Fran came home with the twins, both exhausted and exhilarated. Motherhood was everything she had ever dreamed of, and then more. All of her life she just knew that she was destined to be a mother. Adopting Maxwell's kids had been a start, but there was still a void that she knew that only her own experience of childbearing could provide. And boy did it live up to her expectations.
Maxwell was loving and thoughtful- he's suggested hiring a nanny for her. But as she pointed out, they'd never really needed one before, so why start now, she had smiled through her postpartum blues.
"Oh, but we did need you sweetheart. You have no idea how much this family needed you...how much I needed you."
Fran wiped away the tears as she sat down the baby carriers. She'd refused to let Max help her, but it was hard work, and she was still quite emotional from the experience of it all.
"My darling, what is wrong? Have I upset you in some way?"
"On the contrary," Fran said making Max laugh. "You have made me happier than I ever dreamed of being."
"So you weren't happy before..."
"Oh Max. Don't ever think that. I love you and your kids more than you ever knew. But I love my babies in a way that I...I...I..."
"Ssh," Max leaned down and kissed her tears away. "You have nothing to apologize for. You've brought so much joy and so much color into our lives. And now we have our own little ones to bond us for life."
"Really? You think they will bond us?"
"I have no doubt. After all, it was because of my kids that I fell in love with you. I saw how much you loved them and now they are our kids...all our kids."
Fran sobbed into her husband's welcoming arms. "My dear, what should it be that makes you feel better? Niles has prepared a full course meal waiting for you."
"You know what I want, what I really want?"
"Anything for you my darling."
"I want you. I just want my family."
"And you'll always have us."
With that, Fran leaned in against her husband and observed the twins. She would probably cry over them for a while, but never would she forget how she felt at this moment with her entire family around. She felt loved, and she felt love to give, and for that, she would always be grateful.