Chapter 1
It's a normal evening in the Kerrington house, we are sitting down at the dining room table eating a nice family dinner as we always do. The children quietly talk to each other at the end of the table. I smile over at them and am amazed that I've been blessed with two wonderful children. First there is our son Hunter, our miracle and our athlete. I had been told that I wouldn't be able to have children and we struggled to come to terms with that. We had started doing research on adoption agencies to find one that would be able to maintain the level of privacy that we would demand. It isn't every day that the CEO of a Fortune 500 company adopts a child and we wanted to keep our private struggle just that, PRIVATE. But just as we had located and had our first meeting with the agency we got blessed with a glorious phone call from my doctor. We were pregnant and over the moon happy. I think that's when we started to use the phrase "I love you to the moon and back." That's what it felt like we had traveled together.

Then there is our little power house, our daughter Emma, who is the reason my handsome husband is silvering at his temples. Emma is her father's daughter and a spitfire. Between the two children, she's definitely the boss despite being 5 years younger than Hunter. My smile increases as I look at the physical embodiment of our love. That thought brings my gaze to my husband. He commands the dining room the same way he commands the boardroom. He's still dressed in his dress shirt and tie, though the black on black textured tie has been loosened. My eyes catch the movement of his fork with its finely cut piece of chicken move towards his mouth and I watch focused as his soft lips wrap around the tines of the fork and then as it slides out between his lips. God I love his lips, I love when they kiss me every morning as he leaves for the office and every night as we fall asleep. We had developed this routine over our nearly 9 years of marriage.

My loving and handsome husband, Jax, is 8 years my senior and we met at a bar. Okay that bar was at a charity event, and I was the bartender who poured him two fingers of Macallan 25 scotch. I saw him arrive with some leggy redhead who wore a dress that was a second skin and even though I couldn't help thinking she must be freezing since it was January, my eyes were locked on him. There was something about him that spoke to a deep part of me. Through the crowd I watched and was drawn to his movements like there was an invisible thread fastened to me the moment he had come into my world. As I grabbed a bottle from the back bar and start to turn back, I feel his presence, a scent of musk fills my nose and the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. As I turn from the back bar, I smooth my drab uniform, a black vest over the stark white shirt, and tuck a loose tendril of my brown hair behind my ear. I feel his gaze as if he were physically touching me as it moves from my hips up to the exposed skin at the opening of the dress shirt to my face. When our eyes locked, his eyes flashed with an acknowledgement that resonated in my own. I watched with racked attention as he leans to the red head and whispers something, then I watch her plastered on smile fall. My eyebrows raise as she curses at him and stomps off. He approached the bar and asked for two finger of Macallan 25 neat and from that moment on he has only had eyes for me.

I'm brought out of my daydream of a time gone by when a strong hand covers and squeezes mine. "Where was my beautiful bride? You have that look on your face." Jax's deep male voice rumbles. I smile, "Just remembering when we met." Jax leans back him his chair and a smirk crosses his face, "One of the best drinks I've ever had." I chuckle and poke him in the shoulder "...And... You didn't let me finish... I wouldn't change a moment of it." He laughs and I turn my attention back to the chicken and vegetables on my plate. I love cooking for my family every night and our family has one more member, our live in nanny, Stacy.

Stacy Kingston had been a family friend to Jax's family for years. They knew each other as since they were in their teens. I watch Stacy and see her share a smile with Emma and I'm so glad she's here. Hunter was five and a handful so I welcomed the additional pair of hands around the house. Stacy took Hunter to school while I was at home with Emma. Then as Hunter and Emma have grown, Stacy has become family. She helps with the errands and the upkeep of the house, since our house is quite large, and Jax works long hours in the office and at home.

I take a quick look at my family and I have an amazing feeling of happiness especially as my hand rubs my burgeoning belly. In about 3 months Jax and I are expecting our third child another little girl, Charlotte. Jax's hand settles on top of mine and Charlotte kicks our hands and we smile at each other. But our moment is interrupted by a chirp from Jax's phone and followed shortly by one on Stacy's phone. I pass a curious look between them as they both excuse themselves and exit the dining room. I brush off my discomfort at the event and turn my attention to Hunter and Emma, "Let's clear the table and see if we can find a little dessert." Emma lets out a scream of pure delight and grabs her plate as Hunter and I grab the other plates and move into the kitchen. After loading the dishwasher and giving Emma and Hunter some fresh baked cookies, I load a tray with cookies, a glass of wine for Jax and some sparkling water for myself. I kiss both kids and instruct them that it's bath time as soon as they are finished with their cookies.

I head out of the kitchen and down the hall towards Jax's office with the tray. As I approach the door, I hear hushed voices which I quickly recognize as Jax and Stacy's. "We can't do that..." "She'll never..." "But she's pregnant and..." "Jax, I promise it will stay between us..." The tray slips from my hands and crashes to the floor. I stand shocked still as I can't believe what I just heard. I want to storm into the office but the element of surprise has been ruined when Jax comes rushing through the office door, "Scarlet? What?..." He takes in the mess of cookies, wine, water and broken plate that litter the floor at my feet. "Don't move." He grabs the wastebasket from his office and starts picking up pieces of the ruined dessert. "What were you doing carrying that heavy tray? Are you okay? Is it Charlotte?" I stand there in silence. "Scarlet! Answer me, are you okay?" I blink and shake my head slightly. "I'm sorry what? Oh I'm fine and Charlotte is fine. I guess the tray was heavier than I expected and it slipped from my hands as I went to open the door." he sighs as he continues to clean. "Scarlet the door was open you could have just pushed on it." "I guess I wasn't paying attention" It's just then that I realize that Stacy has joined us at the office door and I watch as she watches Jax work to clean up the mess. I know the view she's getting. My husband has many fine assets and his ass is one of the best. I feel myself bristle but I dismiss it as hormones. Stacy bends down in a slow fluid movement that I could never attempt in my current condition and helps Jax with the mess and I swear I see them exchange a look. I feel helpless which is not something I handle well so I make a move to try to get down to add my hands to the cleanup but Jax shoots up, "What are you doing? My pregnant wife is not going to be getting down on the floor. Babe please why don't you let Stacy and I attend to the mess and you go make sure the children taking their baths." Feeling hurt and dismissed I turn on my heels and walk away from them and just as I turn towards the children's rooms I hear the hushed whispers start again. My feet quickly carry me away from them and I pause outside of Emma's bathroom door to gather myself. I take a deep breath and dash the tears from my cheeks and I pull a smile on my face as I hear Emma singing as she waits for me. When I walk through the door, I see her sitting on the stool at her vanity singing her heart out. "Alright my little singing princess, bath time." She slides down off the stool with a giggle and I help her out of her play clothes and into the bathtub after filling it with warm water and bubbles.

Once Hunter and Emma are tucked into bed, I wander into the family room to pick up from the day. As I maneuver my way down to pick up a baby doll that had been missed behind the couch in the cleanup, I hear Jax and Stacy talking as they come down the hall and all the forgotten feelings from earlier come rushing back. I drop the rest of the way to the floor and I'm hiding behind the couch, hiding in my own home like some interloper to their private world. I settle back against the couch, listening to them talk about some summer vacation they went on and I hear Stacy coo about how much fun they had. My hand starts to tighten around the baby doll as I eavesdrop when the still of the evening is shattered by "Mommy, I want a bottle" from the baby doll that I had been apparently squeezing the life out of. The doll drops from my hand and I freeze as if that will keep me from being discovered. A pair of men's dress shoes appear to my left and I look up to see Jax staring down at me. "Are you stuck?" He says with his sexy smirk on his lips. "No I was," I search for the doll, "picking up and this is was on the floor." I try to get up and struggle until I feel Jax's hand wrap around my arm, he lifts me easily off the floor. "You, my dear, are 7 months pregnant, would you please refrain from doing things that will make our Charlotte from coming before I've had a chance to put together her crib." "Yes Jax I know and I am doing my best but I need to keep a clean house," I quip back at him, slightly annoyed. "And that is part of the reason Stacy is here, to help you while you are pregnant," he nods towards Stacy who is standing on the other side of the couch. "Yes I know," I pull my arm out of his grip "but I'm not an invalid either." Jax gives me a look that tells me I've been cheeky and need to watch it.

I look away and catch that Stacy is watching this interaction and I bristle even more. "Jax please don't scold me like one of our children especially in front others," my eyes flick to Stacy and then back to him. Jax looks from me to Stacy and then back to me and as his eyes stay locked on mine as he dismisses Stacy, "That's all for today, Stacy. Thank you." He then helps me around the back of the couch, taking the baby doll from my hand and tosses it in the toy box. "Scarlet, baby please sit down," he motions to the couch "What's going on? This is not normal for you." He sits next to me and feels my cheek and forehead for a fever and I bat his hand away. "I'm fine, just off my game a little. It's been a long day getting things ready for Hunter to go back to school, making arrangements for Emma to go to ballet classes and all of my appointments with Charlotte. I guess I'm more tired than I thought." His arm wraps around my shoulder and he tugs me close. "You have Stacy to help, please let her. It's what we pay her to do. She helps with Emma and the house." He lifts my chin to look up at him. "You can't do it all. Nor do I want you to try. Please Snow, for me, for your Charming?" And at the mention of our pet names I melt. He can get anything he wants by using them. "Yes, Charming, for you I will." I lean up and kiss him and soon he takes over the kiss and I'm lost to his desire.

Chapter 2
A few days later, I'm resting on the couch which has become my routine. Charlotte gives me tons of energy in the morning but by midday I am wiped and I usually take a nap while Emma naps. As I slowly slip into a light sleep, I'm transported back to one of our first trips to Walt Disney World. Early on when we were dating, Jax had asked me where I had always wanted to visit but had never gotten the opportunity. I laughed lightly and explained that I really hadn't gotten to travel because of my mom and dad having to work hard to even cover the extra $200 for my senior trip to Washington DC. He smiled, kissed my forehead and asked the question again. "Promise not to laugh?" He nodded with a twinkle of laughter in his eye. "I've always wanted to visit Walt Disney World." "Disney World?" He questioned and I nod with a smirk. "Well we will have to see what we can do about that?" and hugged me close to him.

On our one year anniversary, he whisked us off to two full weeks in the happiest place on Earth. We had so much fun and acted like children. He even tolerated my need to buy us Mickey and Minnie ears. Jax made sure we had the best experiences, a private behind the scene tour, a private yacht to watch fireworks and chef table dinners every night at the nicest restaurants. When we were in Fantasyland in the Magic Kingdom, Jax tugged me over to Snow White's fountain to get our picture taken with Prince Charming and Snow White. As we walked away, Jax stopped me and looked deep into my eyes and then lowered his tall frame down onto one knee, "Scarlet Drews, will you be my Snow White? You were made for me. You are the missing piece that I had always been searching for. Marry me, Scarlet." He had my left hand in his and as tears filled my eyes he slides the most beautiful ring onto my finger. I nod frantically and once I could speak through the emotional lump into my throat, "Jax Kerrington, yes I will marry you but you must agree to be my Prince Charming." He wrapped me in a soul squeezing hug and kissed me senseless. "Yes, Snow I will be your Charming."

Jax didn't want to wait to marry and wanted the wedding in a month's time but I negotiated 6 months to plan a proper wedding. It was the social event of the year and was attended by several of Jax's clients and a few of the celebrities he managed investments for. My father struggled with the idea of Jax's paying for the wedding and Jax only gave in a little when I begged for him to allow my father to purchase my dress, the cake and catering services. That dinner was pretty tense, both of the strong men in my life trying to provide for me. My mother and I found the perfect dress in one of the local boutique that Jax had rented out for us. The dress was a lace vision with a sweetheart neckline with sheer lace sleeves and a short train. My neck and ears were adorned with simple pearls and diamonds that had been in my family for generations. My something blue was a beautiful sapphire ring that Jax gifted to me on our first Christmas. As for new that discovered by Jax on our wedding night.

I walked down the aisle floating on clouds, escorted by both my parents who gave me away. The small country church that we had rented for the ceremony was decorated with red and white roses which added a beautiful touch to the Christmas theme. The pews were filled with our families and friends. Jax brought me to tears with his vows which he had written himself. I barely made it through my own vows and in them I told him how blessed I felt to be loved by such a wonderful man. I spoke of how he was my missing piece just as I was his and that I didn't need his money but just his love. The church erupted when we had our first kiss as Mr. and Mrs. Kerrington. The reception was a party to end all parties and Jax surprised me with the wedding gift of having Harry Connick Jr perform our song for the first dance.

As we dance, a scowling Stacy emerges from the crowd and she approaches us. Suddenly she is grabbing my arm and violently pulling me away from Jax. As I fall backwards in the dream, I wake with a start. Looking around the empty room I take a deep breath to try to calm my heart, "What the fuck was that?!" Standing I retrieve a bottle of water from the refrigerator and take a large sip. The dream not far from my consciousness, I can't remember if Stacy was at the wedding or not. I know she had been invited but I can't remember if she had come. I remember that Jax had the dvd of our wedding in his office and I have to answer the question.

I walk to the office door and pause for just a moment before entering wondering if I'm being foolish. I turn the knob and step into Jax's domain. The room is Jax personified, rich masculine colors, everything in its place and his scent fills the air. I take comfort in that as I walk to the book shelf retrieving Jax's copy of The Brother's Grimm's Fairy Tales that hides the key for the drawer in the desk where all the important family and business documents are held. Once I'm at the desk I slide the key into the lock on the inside of the desk and then pull the heavy drawer open. I pass a finger over several of the files and I see one that has my name boldly printed on it, pull it out to set it on the desktop, as I do a piece of paper flutters to the floor. As I reach to grab it I recognize the paper as the type used for ultrasound prints. I turn it over and look at it briefly before placing it to the right of the folder. I then flip through the papers, pictures and other things Jax has in the folder until I find the dvd that holds the images from our wedding. I place it on top of the ultrasound and return the folder to the drawer and lock it. I sweep up the dvd quickly as I hear Emma and Jax coming down the hall and not that I'm not allowed in here but I don't really feel like explaining the uneasy feeling I have from my dream. I slip the drawer key and dvd into my pocket with the thought of returning them both later tonight and I emerge from the office just as a giggling Emma comes around the corner followed by a tickling monster Jax.

After a normal dinner, I excuse myself early with the excuse of a headache and go to my study and pull out my laptop. As the laptop boots, I pull the dvd out from my pocket and again the ultrasound pictures flutters to the ground. I pick it up and notice that it has well-worn edges and I smile thinking of all the times Jax must have stared at the image of our Hunter, Emma or Charlotte before putting it away in the drawer. I put the ultrasound away in my desk and load the dvd, skipping to the reception and as images of Jax and me dancing our first dance fill the screen, I scan the crowd looking for Stacy. I catch a few frames of her in the crowd but she looks happy. She has a smile that beams but the smile is aimed not at us but at my husband. It follows him when he steps away from me during the dance. But she would be happier for him, right? She's known him most of her life. It's like her brother got married, right? As our dance continues I get lost in watching the loving way Jax looks at me that I miss the flash of pure jealousy that flashes across Stacy's face when he kisses my forehead and whispers in my ear. Satisfied that Stacy was there but was not out to get me as my silly dream made me believe, I shutdown the laptop, just as Jax finds me. "I thought you had a headache? What are you doing in here instead of our bed?" he asked as he sat on the edge of my writing table. "I did and do have a headache but I couldn't get comfortable in bed so I thought maybe I could just close my eyes in here and try to relax." He shakes his head at me, "Nope you're not sleeping or dozing or relaxing in a desk chair." He standing, he scoops me out of the chair and carries me to our bathroom. He deposits me on the counter and runs a bubble bath for me.

It's a Sunday afternoon, Jax has the children out in the backyard playing. I watch them through the kitchen window as I prep dinner. The air is filled with music from the house stereo system and I'm softly humming along. He had emptied his pockets of his wallet, keys and phone on the island on his way out the door. The music is harshly interrupted by an alert from Jax's phone. It's the weekend, so if it's work it must be an emergency. I dry my hands on a towel tucked into my apron and walk over to silent the alert. I check if it is Jessica, his assistant or Greg, his right hand man in case they need something. It is neither of them but someone named Bambi, really Bambi? And the message does not seem like something that should be sent to a married man.

Bambi: I can't wait to check out the resort later this week. It will be so nice to be away. XOXO

He had mentioned being away at the end of the week for business but who the hell is Bambi! And why is she texting my husband about being away! I feel my blood start to boil, but don't get much time to ponder and fume before a laughing and giggling Emma comes bouncing into the house followed by her brother and father. Jax sees the phone in my hand and nods his head in its direction. I explain it just went off and wanted to silence it as I hand it over. He kisses my cheek, "Dinner smells wonderful. These two" wagging a finger between the kids "have definitely worked up my appetite." "Dinner will be another few minutes. Go wash hands and faces, please." And with a squeal with laughter, Emma take off down the hallway racing Hunter to the bathroom, Jax is just laughing as he follows behind them, checking his phone.