Wildest Dreams

[Kiera Kaster]

Kiera darted around the kitchen of her house as she attempted to cook a dinner for her family and the man she was currently seeing. Snapping the oven door open, the brunette removed the dish and placed it on the stove top. This afternoon, Kiera had received word from her babysitter that the girl would not be able to watch the three Potter children while Kiera went on a date with Carter. Rather than completely cancel her date, Kiera had asked Carter to join them for dinner. Lyra and Link seemed to get along with Carter, and they were happy to see their mother smiling again. It had been rough on them all when James disappeared, but they had all come to terms with the realization that he would not be coming back. Little Jemma was still too small to understand, and she had no memory of James to begin with. The brunette could have just asked her brother and sister-in-law to watch the children, but she didn't want to get into it with her brother again about her relationship with Carter. He had not been pleased to find out that she was dating his opponent, just as she had expected from the start. Kiera had been dating Carter for several months now, and while it was no longer a secret thanks to the debate, Kiera and Carter were still trying to keep a low profile until the election was over. She didn't want to cause her brother any more negativity, and she still supported him publicly. It was a sticky situation, but Kiera was managing it the best she could. Naturally, there was a renewed interest in her every move. She had hired two new assistants for Ollivander's and she was avoiding the shop during the busiest hours.

Yet, Kiera did not regret her decision to go on that first date with Carter all those months back. She smiled at the memory of him showing up at her door, uncertain of what to expect. There had been the slightly awkward conversation as they navigated unfamiliar waters during the dinner that ended with her ultimate decision to go on a second date with him. It had not been an easy decision for her even though she had been attracted to Carter and enjoyed the time she had spent with him. It was her first real date since her husband disappeared. It was a date with her brother's competition. She had been nervous about continuing any relationship, yet alone one with Carter Kaster. They had agreed to continue in secret which was no stranger to Kiera as that was exactly how her relationship and marriage to James had begun. They had not wanted to attract unwanted attention to Carter's campaign or Cameron's campaign. However, the news had come out at the debate in the worst possible way, giving negativity to both Carter and Cameron's campaigns. Her brother had been furious with her, mostly out of concern Kiera knew. He had insisted that she break off contact with Carter which she had promptly ignored. He was slowly coming to terms with it, but Kiera doubted that the tension would ease until the election ended.

The doorbell rang, and Kiera quickly turned off the oven and set the oven mitt to the side. She walked to the front door and opened it to find exactly who she had been expecting. Kiera kissed him lightly on the cheek, stretching up on her tiptoes to do so as he towered over her. "Come on in. Thanks for the change of plans." Kiera said with a smile as she shut the door behind Carter. She was thankful for Carter's willingness to work around her schedule. It had been hard to imagine moving on with her life after James. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined that it would be possible to find someone after him, but Carter had taken her by surprise in the most unexpected way. "How has your day been?" she asked as she walked back towards the kitchen.
​

 

[Carter Kaster]

There were many things that Carter Kaster had to be grateful for. Many things that had happened in his life that had made him who he was today. However, the biggest thing he was grateful for, was his family. Though he didn't say it often, and was more likely to complain about them then to actually acknowledge or thank them, he did love them. They had made him into the man he was today, the man whom had taken full advantage of every opportunity thrown his way. Becoming a part of the Ministry was due in no small part, to his father. The love and affection for the man he knew, was a massive factor in Carter's interest in Politics and Law. With his father's help, he had joined in the hopes of rising up the ranks as his father had. Many of his family members and friends also worked in the Ministry, so it was really no surprise when he had decided to pursue the same career path. It brought them prestige and money, fame and guidance. Though Carter was not in it for the money, it was definitely not something to scoff at either. He had precious little else in his life, a job he could be proud of was any mans dream. Of course, he was now also proud of his relationship with one Kiera Potter. There was a lot at stake for them. She had children and he had a pretty heavy career. She was the daughter in law of the famous Harry Potter. That was one hell of a name to live up too. Still, Carter was his own person, they both knew that and he definitely hoped that Kiera wasn't expecting him to live up to some high expectation in her head, though he didn't really think she did. When he had found out that she was the sister of Cameron Kingsley, he'd had to really take some time out to think things through. As she also had done. Eventually, as it turned out, they had both decided that they saw something in the relationship, some potential that they were willing to let go and see where it lead. They'd kept their relationship secret for a time, only to have themselves outed in the middle of the debate. If it weren't for the repercussions, Carter would have almost enjoyed the look on Cameron's face. Not to hurt him, or to hurt Cameron, but simply because he really liked Kiera and he was sometimes a smug ass who liked to boast about things too people. Though he never did so in front of Kiera, that would be completely ungentlemanly.

Kiera Potter was a unique woman indeed. Unique in that she actually had a brain, she used it and she didn't let him treat her like some delicate little rose that needed to be protected. Kiera Potter could take care of herself and that was something that Carter loved beyond all else. He was so used to his mother and her meddling ways, poking holes in everything and sending him a bunch of marriage contracts a month. He'd put a stop to that eventually, but he still wasn't exactly sure of her agreement. There'd been quite a bit of room for her to move and he was definitely worried about that. However it seemed that she had taken a step back for now and was focussed more on Ingrid then on him, which he had to admit, he was happy about. Whatever kept that woman from meddling in his affairs, he loved, even if she was now meddling in the affairs of his little sister. As far as he had heard, Ingrid was fending off their mother pretty well, so he definitely hoped that she would be able to continue with that. He didn't want the nagging woman to suddenly turn her attentions back to him. Word had gotten out now about his relationship with Kiera and that meant that his mother was nagging him for details, but he was still on precious ground. He'd met her kids, yes, but he wasn't sure their relationship was at the point where she could survive his mother. He wouldn't subject himself to it, if he could avoid it. His mother could be rather... forward. He also wasn't sure what she would think of Kiera not only being a widow, but a widow with three kids. Carter had no problems with it, in fact he rather preferred it. It was like a little ready made family and she wasn't exactly old, if she found the right person, there was nothing stopping her from having more kids in the future anyway. His mother was just very traditional, something he loathed and a trait he definitely lacked. Never-the-less, Kiera Potter was his priority tonight and nothing, not even his crisis manipulating mother, was getting in his way.

Carter had stopped by a flower shop he liked beforehand to buy a bunch of the flowers that Kiera liked. It was only a dinner at her home with her kids, but that didn't mean he had to treat it any differently then he would have had their initial plans worked out. He supposed this would be a nice way of seeing how well he fit in with her little family. The last thing he ever wanted to do was disrupt their status quo. He wasn't the sort of person that could just stand by and allow chaos to consume the very space he had been intending to occupy. Carter was meticulous and therefore he paid extreme attention to detail, this also meant that when things weren't sitting right, he tended to nitpick. When people helped his obsession, by making sure they had thought about all the details, Carter was a happy person, otherwise he would get annoyed and tended to be a very bad conversationalist when he was forced to look at someone with two different earrings in their ears. However, he was stubborn about that, so he often didn't say anything to them and just stared. Thankfully, Kiera was not a messy person and she carried great pride in herself, which Carter really both adored and admired. She was a force to be reckoned with, to be sure. Still, Kiera was managing to really make Carter re-evaluate his life. He'd always maintained that there wasn't any room in his life for someone else. Perhaps he had been wrong. It definitely wouldn't be the first time. He'd been wrong about things before. Still, he hadn't ever met someone quite like her before. He had been very happy to note that she was not like her brother, at least not that he could see. Not that there was anything wrong with Cameron Kingsley, he just didn't want to think that he was dating the female version of his opponent. She was her own person and that was magical indeed.

Carter reached his destination and though he had been here a couple of times before and he had met Link, Lyra and little Jemma and they all seemed to like him well enough under the circumstances, but they'd never really all sat down to have a meal together, no matter the premise. He felt oddly uncomfortable and maybe just a little bit nervous, though it was an emotion he would never admit too. Carter had faced hoards of potential voters, chambers of ministers, his grandfather, never in his life had he felt as nervous as he did now and that was saying something. Ringing the door bell, finally, Carter stepped back and held the flowers behind him. He wasn't going to just shove them in her face. They might have been Kiera's favourite, but he had other plans for these flowers. When Kiera opened the door, she leaned up to give him what he assumed was a kiss on the cheek and so he bent lower to make it easier for her to reach him. He was a good foot and a bit taller than her and so it towered over her quite substantially. Not that it really seemed to matter where she was concerned. After all, she was quite the right height, had Carter been a predator of some sort. He smiled at her and stepped around her into the room. He simply shrugged and brought the flowers out from behind his back. "Don't even worry about it, I'm happy no matter what we are doing, as long as I get to spend some quality time with you." Was that a cheesy line? That was a cheesy line, but it didn't matter, because nothing was more romantic then the truth. He looked over to where Lyra was peeking around the walls and smiled at her and beckoned to her slowly. "Hey, Lyra. I brought these for your mother, but i think you should have them, every little girl deserves flowers every now and then." He hoped Kiera wouldn't mind. He looked at her and winked slightly before turning back to her. "It was long and I was honestly just staring at the clock all day counting down the hours until I could come and see you. It's all very repetitive at the moment, waiting for the elections. Most of the hype has died down for now, but there are still the odd photographers and reporters still hanging around for a story. Had to dodge one on my way here." He wasn't complaining, he would never complain about something so trivial, but she had asked about his day, why leave anything out. It was the only remotely interesting thing to happen! "What about you, how is the shop? Jemma and the twins okay?" Link and Lyra were older, they could mostly fend for themselves now, but Jemma was still a tiny tot, sooner or later she would be asking after a father that Kiera would be unable to provide.
​