Title: "The First Time: Second Time Around"

Author: Macattack102712

Universe: Good Witch (the tv show)

Disclaimer: Don't own the characters of GW. I consider this fact to be most unfortunate.

Summary: Cassie and Sam are getting ready to take a second chance on love and exchange vows. But, it's more than just wedding jitters that has Middleton's beloved shop and B&B owner all out of sorts….

Publish Date: November 2019

Author's Note: Sorry for the extremely delayed update. My job, work travel, and flight training keeps my schedule full!

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Wednesday, late evening

Grey House Bed and Breakfast

Middleton, IL

Flames licked the edge of the pot before settling down, the chocolate fudge in no danger of burning under Cassie's watchful eye. Aside from the subdued bubbling of the dark liquid, it was quiet in Middleton's historic bed-and-breakfast. Grey House was empty for the evening. A rarity, indeed. George was at a gardening club meeting, Grace was at the movies with Nick, and the few guests she had were attending the Lantern Festival in the neighboring town of Blairsville. For once, it felt nice to be alone. The lack of activity gave her time to settle down and collect her thoughts.

She hadn't intended to get into a discussion with her cousin on that topic. Early on, Abigail had made her feelings regarding the two of them known, although as Cassie had gently tried to tell her, it was none of her business. But it didn't prevent Abigail from vehemently expressing her views, even scheming at one point to sabotage Sam's dinner date with Stephanie. At the time, she'd denied having feelings for Sam, accusing her cousin of trying to force the unnatural. Sam was a divorcee who had his hands full raising a misguided son while trying to win the trust of wary Middletonians as it pertained to his new clinic. Cassie was a widower with juggling two businesses while working hard to fill the fatherly void in her daughter's life. The two just weren't cut from the same cloth.

And there had also been Ryan.

She'd come to realize the depth of Ryan's feelings for her following the real estate party. Like her, Ryan was recovering from the tragic end of a relationship, and they seemed to have a lot in common. But her interest in him was lukewarm, even before Sam Radford had moved in next door. The only problem was, Ryan hadn't noticed. He was a decent, hardworking man, and had been a wonderful friend to Cassie in the years following Jake's death.

She had tried to have feelings for Ryan. She really did. Unfortunately, that had been a mistake. She'd known it almost right away when Ryan pressured her to pose as his girlfriend in front of his ex-fiancee and former best friend. It would have been better if she'd just squashed any chances of them being any thing more than friends. He was a corporate ladder-climber, for one thing, and while that hadn't seemed important earlier, it reared its ugly head when his ambitious, albeit innocent business pursuits, almost cost Cassie her shop. Perhaps it was wrong to compare Ryan to Sam, but Cassie couldn't help it. Measured against Sam, Ryan came across as insecure, clingy, and overzealous. Unwilling to hurt him, she'd tried to bolster his ego by referring to all the positive aspects of his personality and their friendship, but it had unfortunately made him to erroneously conclude there was hope for more.

And a part of Cassie wasn't certain she wanted to become that involved. For her part, she reminded herself she was a widower, she had an obligation to her daughter. Nobody could take the place of Jake. She'd been lucky to find true love once; to expect it a second time around would be greedy on her part. Then, gradually, without being fully aware of how it happened, Cassie found herself looking anxiously at her shop door, or the entrance to Grey House, hoping to see him come thru the doorway.

As much as she tried, she couldn't explain it. There was something so…intriguing about Sam Radford.

When Sam Radford had first arrived in Middleton, Cassie had denied her interest. Besides, there were plenty of other singletons in Middleton vying for his attention, mainly Stephanie. A woman of integrity and honor, Cassie would never want to impede her friend's chance at happiness. And so she had stood by in silent support, even going so far as to save Sam from his diabolical attempt at preparing a home cooked meal for the two.

But by the time she realized what was happening, she was too emotionally involved with Sam, and she could no longer deny her feelings. And to her surprise, he returned them.

Oh, she loved Sam, beyond a shadow of a doubt. But while the thought of being intimate with him warmed her from head to toe, it also brought with it a host of other feelings.

And fears.

As she had done with Jake, she would give Sam everything she had, in all matters concerned. The small, but ferociously insecure part of her gnawed unforgivingly at the edges of her mind. She wanted to be the best she could be. Moisture grabbed the corners of her eyes at the possibility of he would be disappointed.

Unfulfilled.

Cassie dabbed at her tears with the back of her hand and gave the pot another careful stir.

Would Sam realize she wasn't right for him? Would he wake up one day and decide he didn't want to be with her? Besides, what did she have to offer a man of his class? He was a renowned surgeon; she a small business owner who did good to keep two businesses afloat. They were also diametrically opposed in their respective views on Eastern medicine, but despite it all, she'd fallen for him. It hadn't happened overnight; rather, it had occurred over time, without her even realizing it. She'd only been with one man in her life, and although she tended to give people the benefit of the doubt on most occasions, she was willing to wager her shop's monthly income that Sam had been with several women since his divorce.

But if what Abigail said was true, whatever she lacked in the intimacy department could be overlooked.

Or, just maybe, not noticed at all.

But even still, Cassie Nightingale, the person Sam considered "unflappable", certainly felt….flapped.

Scared.

Terrified.

This was the man that she longed for in the night, who dominated her thoughts, each and every day. She was so afraid she wouldn't be good enough for a man like Sam, that he would never truly be satisfied with the likes of her.

At that moment, a flash of lightening lit up the dark window, accompanied by the low roll of thunder in the distance. Startled out of her thoughts, she returned her attention to the task at hand. She tapped the wire whisk against the edge of the pot, then discarded it in favor of a rubber spatula and began pouring the molten fudge into the pan. As she smoothed the mixture, her eyes fell on the small box perched on the counter. Her heart gave an uncomfortable squeeze.

It was hers and Jake's wedding rings.

Freshly polished with the diamonds reset, the time had come to pass the rings on to Grace. It seemed only fitting to give the rings to the very child that had resulted from their love for each other. With their wedding only a few days away, Cassie was searching for the right moment to do it.

She still remembered the day she'd picked it out among the other diamonds sparkling magnificently from within the grand display cases at McMillan's Jewelry Shop. Jake had offered to take her to Chicago for a bigger selection, but Cassie declined. She didn't want anything ostentatious. And she wanted to shop local. A small business owner herself, she knew all too well the impact of local patrons. While Grey House was supported mostly by out-of-towners, her Bell, Book and Candle depended heavily on the citizens of Middleton. She wanted to keep her hard-earned money in the town that had, after all, introduced her to him.

Tears rolled down her cheeks as she recalled the horrible, dreadful moment when she'd had to make the painful decision to take Jake off life support. Although it had ripped her from the inside, she'd had no choice but to honor the wishes outlined in his living will. In the overwhelming solitude of the hospital room, she heard his soul begging her to do it, begging her to let him go. As the nursing staff disconnected the machines keeping him alive, she'd held his hands, the cool metal of his wedding band pressed against fingers as she told him over and over how much she loved him

In the months following his passing, she didn't have the heart, nor the emotional strength, to take them off. She'd already lost so much. Instead, she wore them on a necklace where they stayed tucked against her heart. From time to time, Cassie would question if she would ever feel ready to let them go. And the answer was always the same quiet, but calming answer:

'When the time is right'.

And as the years rolled by, she doubted it ever would.

Until Sam Radford moved next door.

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Wednesday, late evening

Middleton Town Center

Middleton, IL

The sun had all but set, taking the warmth with it and casting his surroundings in emerging shadows A storm was brewing in the distance: the winds were beginning to pick up, and the faint rumble of thunder could be heard. Shoving his hands in his coat pockets, Sam took a lap around the park before changing course in the direction that would lead him home.

Home.

He hadn't felt that in so long.

In New York, he'd purposefully drowned himself in work while wrestling with the difficulties that involved raising a rebellious teenager. He preferred it like that. In this way, he didn't have time to think about how lonely he was. How starved he was not just for a woman's attention, but for her intrigue and intellect. Oh, he would casually date, with a handful of evenings winding up in the bedroom. But he never felt interested in making it last. Besides, he'd resigned himself to the fact he wasn't much good at relationships. Or marriage, for that matter.

In retrospect, their stuffy apartment had only served to keep the two of them sheltered and physically safe. Home was supposed to be a place of love, belonging, and contentment. His apartment was anything but that. That achingly familiar feeling of belonging somewhere, but not knowing where that somewhere was, was as familiar to Sam as his own heartbeat.

When he'd moved to Middleton, his intentions had been to get his son away from the toxic environment of New York. He wanted a last-chance to start over, before it was too late. What was NOT his intention was to find himself mired down with feelings for another woman.

Especially one the likes of Cassie Nightingale.

He could still remember, with vivid clarity, the funny feeling in his stomach when he first heard her voice on that cold November night. Mysterious, yet welcoming, he'd found himself instantly ensnared by her intrigue, and the unsettling way she seemed to know what he needed before he even knew himself. The growing intensity of his feelings for this woman he knew nothing about took Sam by surprise. He tried to deny the fact that he was falling for her. He couldn't let those feelings in, for a hundred reasons. He had zero time for a relationship, what with establishing his new practice and earning the trust of the community, while still keeping tabs on his son's needs. The fact was, Cassie Nightingale was out of his league, and he had to burn that reminder into his mind, no matter how hard he didn't want to.

All those reasons made sense, yet somehow didn't make it any easier for him to back away, to leave their relationship where it started: at friendship.

But he had failed. Quite splendidly, one could argue.

Quiet, and assuming, as in everything she did, Cassie had entered his life, righted the wrongs, fixed the broken parts of him and Nick, and made them a family again. He loved Cassie more than life itself. He loved her strength. Her kindness. Her determination to help each and every person who came thru her store, or stayed at Grey House. The way she cared for Nick and turned him on the right path. Cassie was wonderful with him, and Sam would have loved her for that alone, even if not for the thousand other reasons. There was no doubt, none whatsoever, of what he wanted.

He wasn't about to screw up the best thing that had happened to him in years because he was afraid of losing something he cherished so deeply.

Looking back, he knew there had to be some kind of….divine intervention…that led him to her.

Sam walked quickly to the house, then ran up the front steps to the porch. His hand paused as it wrapped over the handle of the front door: he'd headed straight towards Grey House without even realizing it. For as much as he'd called his bachelor pad (if one with a nearly grown son could call it that) home, he'd walked straight past his driveway without so much as giving it a passing glance.

And for the first time in years, he felt…home.

Home.

Tenderness wrapped its way around his heart, suffocating him.

He was home. With her.

Guided by instinct, he searched Cassie out, that inexplicable pull of her heart calling him closer. When his eyes at last fell upon her, he felt a jolt in his chest: that breathless, restless, staggering ache he had felt so many times before with her. He wanted to treasure every minute, savor every second he was with her. And god willing, he'd get a hundred years and then some.

Shrugging out of his overcoat, he quickly hung it on the coatrack and set out to cover the distance between them.

"Hi, Sam. Did you have a good day at the office?". She turned her attention to the teakettle that had started to boil, its piercing scream effectively stifled when she removed it from the burner.

Sam couldn't help but grin. Even without turning around, and absence of sound, she knew he was there. "I did. It was a busy day. Saw a lot of patients. I'm so glad to be home". He stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her slender waist before dropping a soft kiss on the sensitive spot beneath her ear. His efforts were awarded a slight shudder in response.

Good.

He still had that effect on her.

He inhaled the fragrance that was uniquely her, mixed with the savory sweet smell of confectionary sugar. "Smells delicious". He peered over shoulder. "What is it?".

She cleared her throat but didn't turn her head to look at him. "Coconut fudge. Stephanie gave me the recipe".

The light from the overhead lamp tinted her features in a soft amber glow, and while she looked beautiful as always, he couldn't help but noticed she appeared distressed. It was something in the way she held herself, her inability for her to look him in the eyes, that worried him. "Where's everyone?"

"The guests are at the festival, Grace is at the movies with Nick, and George is at his gardening club meeting". She removed two tea bags from a green tin and dropped them into favorite china pot. "I'm not sure where Abigail is".

"Everyone's out and about while you're here by yourself?"

"Mmm hmmm".

Sam leaned against the counter to study her. "Everything ok?".

Her color heightened a bit as she poured the boiling water into the teapot, then covered it with a cozy and left the tea to seep. "Yeah," she hesitated. "Why do you ask?"

To the untrained ear, the slight catch would have gone unnoticed. But as part of his medical training, Sam was trained to read body language, to know when something was amiss. In the last few days, the restlessness within her seemed to grow, and beneath that layer, something else.

Gesturing towards the living room, he gently touched her elbow. "It's been a long day. Mind if we settle down in the sitting room and talk?"

Her soft, pretty features clouded over with indecision while she fiddled with the strings of the tea bags. She considered his request, then capitulated by allowing him to steer her towards the sitting room. "Ok".

Closing the doors behind them, they settled on the overstuff maroon sofa, the quiet whooshing of the gas logs the only sound in the ornate room.

"Cassie…I can't help but notice you've been awfully quiet the last few days. Want to tell me what's bothering you?".

The question hung there for a long moment before she answered. "Oh, n-nothing. Just um….I have a lot to do this week".

He reached for her hands with one of his own and used his other to hook a finger beneath her chin. He brought it gently to his level. "I've known you for almost two years, and you never been less than honest with me". Despite Abigail's assurance, he had to know for himself. "Cassie…have you changed your mind about getting married?". He held his breath as a wave of unpleasant emotions seeped through him. Though he wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around her, he forced down the quelling disappointment should her cousin have been wrong. "It's okay if you ha-"

Her head snapped up at this, her eyes large brown pools of shock and disbelief. "NO! Oh Sam. Never! That is the furthest from the truth." She vacated her seat on the couch and moved toward the fireplace, where the warmth chased away the sudden shiver that rippled thru her. Once more she was letting her fear of not being enough threaten to chase away everything important to her. She'd already lost one good man through no fault of her own. But to lose Sam? That would be her fault, and it scared the hell out of her.

"That's not it. At all". The last words were spoken with such quiet simplicity that it was nearly a whisper, but Sam heard it as though she'd yelled.

"Then…what is it, Cassie? Please help me out here, I don't understand what's going on".

She was quiet for a long moment, and Sam had to fight the urge to pull her into his arms and comfort her. Or at the very least, reach for her hand. It was obvious she needed a moment to sort out whatever was going on in her mind, and as he did with his patients, he gave her the space to gather her thoughts.

She managed to take a steadying breath before answering. "Moving on after Jake's…death…wasn't easy. I wanted to die," she confessed, her voice shaky. "I wished it with all of my heart. Having to make that decision to take him off life support, and then for me to have to raise Grace without him, it really was the cruelest form of punishment that life could have given me". She closed her eyes as if to cloud out the haunting memories. "Jake was my everything. And when I say everything….I mean all of it. He was my first. And only".

Sam's heart did a funny little jig in his chest. He felt decidedly nervous. He didn't know what to expect, or how to react. He just kept praying that Abigail was right.

Cassie could feel the moisture gather in her eyes and did her best to blink them away, but it was no use. A few slipped down her cheek to settle on her cashmere sweater. "For the first time since Jake died, I can feel. I can laugh, and cry. And I can love again". She turned to look at him, tears welling up in her yes. "You've taught me how to do that. And I'm scared that after all you've done for me…you won't…you won't be…" Cassie let the rest fade. Her throat was tight with emotion such that she found it difficult to talk around it. She swallowed thickly. "Sam…I'm terrified".

At her confession, he stood up and joined her. He cupped her cheek, concern etched in his eyes. "Terrified? Of what, Cassie?" He wanted so badly to throw more questions at her, but he could see that she would answer only when she was ready. As it was, she seemed to brace herself against some unseen force.

She blushed profusely, color jumping into her cheekbones. "I'm terrified…..you won't be satisfied". The tenderness of his earlier kiss on her neck, and the peace and contentment she always found whenever she was with him forced a quiet sob out. She hated feeling insecure, but this was perhaps the most important conversation of her life, and Cassie was determined to get all of it on the table. "I'm afraid I won't please you".

"Ohhh Cassie," he groaned, touching his forehead against hers, "how in the world could you ever think that? Do you have any idea how many cold showers I've had to take after I leave you? Hell, just seeing you in your bathrobe the other day was enough to send my thoughts into overdrive!". He reached for her hand and linked her fingers with his as his mouth curved upward in a half smile.

It was true. Even before he'd proposed, and especially during rare moments of privacy at the shop after hours, or at Grey House, they'd settled into a habit of sharing a cup of tea, blending herbs for the shop, cooking dinner together, or his personal favorite, strolling thru the gardens of Middleton Park. There, they could lose themselves in a world free of demanding patrons and needy children. Before long, they found themselves enthralled in heavy make out sessions. He loved to tangle his hands in her silky hair, loved the way she molded against his body, relished the way she responded ardently to his simple touch. Her soft moans and gentle sighs sent pangs of longing down his spine. It took quite a bit of self-restraint on his end to temper the heavy touching and kissing. Although they'd never talked about saving full intimacy until after marriage, he'd sensed it was her desire to wait. And ever the gentleman, he'd gladly oblige. Her request of, 'No pressure,' following their surprise kiss at the lakehouse had remained at the forefront of his mind. The last thing he wanted was for her to feel pressure of any type. She'd endured enough of that in the years following the loss of Grace's father.

But he'd be lying if he said he wasn't counting down the days until they were husband and wife. Each minute felt like a day, each day a year. He yearned to be with her every sense of the way, not just for the physical part, but for the intense emotions that came with it. But he would wait until she was ready and comfortable. Even if it wasn't their wedding night. Or weeks thereafter. Because she was more important than anything in his world. She was his world.

His words made her blush, and she leaned back in order to study his face, to search his eyes for any indication he was being less-than-honest. She wanted to believe him. "Are you sure, Sam?"

He confirmed with a sure nod, tracing her bottom lip with the pad of his thumb. "Yes, Cass. Trust me when I say, my water bill has tripled since we began dating". He chuckled wryly. "I think it was high even before I kissed you at the lakehouse that day!".

She arched her eyebrows in mock skepticism.

His countenance suddenly turned serious. "I'd do anything to show you how much you mean to me. How much I'm looking forward to being your husband". He tucked her hair behind her ears before brushing his lips across hers. "I love you, Cassandra Nightingale. Every bit of you".

He continued gazing down at her, completely motionless, as if she hadn't heard him, and for one long, tenuous moment, Cassie wondered if she'd imagined the conversation they'd just had.

No. She wouldn't let her thoughts go that way. Sam loved her. He said he did. He'd opened up his heart to her. Proposed to her. And despite their differences in opinions and thoughts on life, Sam Radford was a man of honor and integrity.

He wouldn't have said the words if he didn't mean them wholeheartedly.

With a quiet sob of relief, she gently touched his face, tracing the lean, sculpted features of a man she'd grown to love as much, if not more, than Jake. "I'm sorry, Sam. So sorry" She stuffed down another sob. "I'm sorry I made you think I had doubts".

Sam shook his head. "You have nothing to be sorry for". There was so much joy and tenderness in his eyes that she nearly lost it once more. "And nothing could make me love you any less. I'm not going anywhere. My life is here. With you. In Middleton". He pulled her closer, pressing his hands against her head, weaving his fingers into her thick, dark hair. "You'll still marry me, won't you?" he whispered, desperately searching her eyes for confirmation.

She sighed, hands in his hair. "I can't imagine not marrying you". She closed the distance between their lips. She gave herself over to the moment and the tantalizing heat of him. The kiss engulfed them, fueled by the days of worry and misunderstanding. "I guess," she said when the need for air forced her to reluctantly pull away, "we still need to discuss living arrangements".

Sam's brow furrowed with confusion. "Living arrangements?"

"Us, silly. Who else?". The grin slipped from her mouth when she realized he wasn't on the same page, and she scrambled to amend the statement. "Unless you'd rather keep things the way they are". She remembered the conversation they'd held regarding marriage a few months prior. At the time, his confession had all but crushed her, but in a backwards sort of way, it made sense. She surely didn't want to make him feel pressured. He'd endured enough of that from other areas in his life: his ex-wife, Nick, Hillcrest, and his private practice, to name a few.

He tugged her even closer before his lips descended upon hers once more. "Not a chance, Cass. Whether you live with me, or I live with you," he murmured between kisses, "I want us under the same roof. And most definitely in the same bed". He loosened his hold on her at this, and waggled his eyes. "Doctor's orders".

She framed his face, a smile tugging at her mouth. "I think we can figure out something, don't you think?"

He took her hands in his and kissed each fingertip, then dropped a kiss on her knuckles. "With you, Cassie, anything is possible. You're amazing. I don't ever want to miss a chance to tell you that". And it was true. She had come into his life and turned it right side up. She had led the way, showed him how to open his heart, and see the potential in his own son, instead of only problems. "It terrifies me to think of where Nick and I would be had I not seen that advertisement in the paper".

"I'm glad that you did see it. And…I'm glad that lockbox messed up that night".

He playfully narrowed his eyes. "You know, you never did answer my question that night on the way home from the movies. I tried that darn lockbox at least a dozen times".

Merriment danced across her face like the flames in the blazing fireplace. "Thirteen has always been my lucky number". She playfully bumped her hip against his. "You should try it sometime". Her eyes widened with pleasant surprise when he grabbed her hip and pressed her against him.

Just then, the clock above the mantle began to ring out the tenth hour. He slid his hand down her spine, reluctant to loosen his hold on her. "I…should probably go. Nick and Grace will be home any minute…your guests will be returning…" He let his words fade, unable to finish his sentence.

"Yeah," she sighed with regret, drawing her lower lip in. Her soon-to-be-husband was right. The last thing she wanted was for her guests, or worse, Grace and Nick, to walk in and catch them making out. George had already done so a few weeks back, and his hasty, embarrassed retreat was still uncomfortably fresh on her mind. Although their kids were nearly grown, they were still teenagers. Impressionable ones, at that. "You probably should".

"Until tomorrow, then?"

His eyes had darkened considerably and she was sure it was from her own desire reflecting in them. She linked her arms around his neck. "I'll have my special tea-that-tastes-like-coffee waiting…just for you".

"That sounds promising," he murmured, then groaned and forcefully brought his mouth to hers. Their kiss was passionate. Deep. Heady. She melted into his arms as the grandfather clock behind them finished chiming ten strokes.

And for once, the ticking of the clock didn't bother her. Instead of worrying about the moments that would come, she looked forward to them. Each and every minute.

::END CHAPTER THREE::