For anyone familiar with my previous stories, I know M rated stories are not to everyone's taste so rest assured this one, being concerned with family matters, is appropriately family friendly. Well, mostly. It also concerns history, mystery, medicine, mythology, intrigue, humour, romance, emotional angst, and scuba diving. I originally wrote the first draft in 2013 but when S6 aired I went back and almost completely rewrote it, so there are now some S6 spoilers but presumably every DM fan is all caught up by now.

Disclaimer: All characters, places, and situations of Doc Martin are owned by Buffalo Pictures and I would never dream of infringing on any rights of the owners, producers, or anyone else connected with the show.

Chapter 1: Road Trip

Sunday Morning.

The sky was a perfect blue dome, the Atlantic breeze blew softly, and a gentle sun beamed down on the moor as a polished silver Lexus flew along the country road.

Louisa Glasson angled the rear view mirror to check on little James Henry asleep in his baby seat in back. She had so been looking forward to this trip now that summer holidays had begun but all she felt was gloomy at the moment.

She had made a point of waking at dawn to snuggle against Martin, running her hand along his back, feeling his warmth beneath the soft cotton pyjamas, and moving slowly down the curve of his bum, hoping he would rouse enough for her to give him a fond farewell before the baby awoke and demanded his breakfast, and before she and James went away for the week. Martin did respond, very well in fact, and afterward they lay together, as she stroked his close cropped hair and regarded the blond lashes on his closed eyes, and his round, prominent nose, those sensual lips, and those voluptuous ears. The months since his declaration of love for her at the moment of crisis at Pentire Castle were the happiest she had ever been with him, possibly the happiest months of her life.

The moment was perfect to whisper what she had been thinking for some time now. "Martin. We should try for another one."

He smiled his little half-smile, the one he reserved almost exclusively for her and James Henry. Opening his pale blue-grey eyes, he murmured in the velvet tone that made her melt, "if you're up for it, let me rest a bit and I'll see what I can do. I'm not a teenager you know."

"No silly, I mean another baby. A little brother or sister for James."

"Oh Louisa." He rolled onto his back and looked at the ceiling. The perfect moment was over. "You already insist on working full time while caring for one baby. And besides, we're so happy with James Henry it seems unnecessary to have a second one. I was perfectly happy as an only child."

"Martin, how can you say…" She was exasperated at this latest example of his seeming cluelessness about his dysfunctional upbringing. "Well I have a brother, and it made a big difference for me growing up."

"At your age it's unlikely you would become pregnant again so easily, in addition to an increased risk of birth defects such as Down syndrome. At my age the genetic quality of sperm will likely have deteriorated, along with volume and motility. There is evidence for a paternal age effect for a number of conditions and diseases, such as miscarriage and, erm… autism spectrum disorder."

He turned to face her. "It just doesn't seem like a good idea. In fact… I had been considering having a vasectomy done."

Louisa looked at him, horrified. He hastened to assure her he was only considering it for her convenience, "to spare you the burden of dealing with contraception. Of course I would have discussed it with you first."

Down the hall, the baby was beginning to fuss. Now thoroughly annoyed, Louisa got up to start what was looking to be a full and busy day.

When Martin joined her downstairs, he was wearing his all-too-familiar grumpy expression. He started up the espresso machine and began to prepare the eggs and toast, as she gave James his bottle.

"Would you like me to go over the car, make sure everything's in order before you set off?" he asked.

"No need, I've already seen to it."

There was a tense silence until he just couldn't stop himself from escalating the argument.

"So if having a brother was such a fulfilling experience for you, why haven't you seen him in eight years, hmm? He didn't turn up for our, er, non-wedding, or for James Henry's christening. Even your mother has been round to see the baby."

Louisa was getting even more annoyed. "He was living in Greece for some time. He's only recently back in Cornwall, but… you know my Dad's dodgy ways made things a bit uncomfortable for us Glassons here. I've made my own way in Portwenn so people have long since gotten past it for me, but, well… Tom's still a bit sensitive about what people say, and he always liked a bit of gambling himself, so a lot of people always thought he was cut from the same cloth as our Dad."

"Well he is, isn't he?" Martin backed down from the glare he got in response. "I suppose he doesn't show the same criminal inclinations, but he does sound like an aimless sort. And why do you and James Henry have to go off for a whole week to see him? Hardly seems necessary."

"Martin, I told you Tom doesn't feel comfortable coming back to Portwenn, especially since Dad's most recent visit here didn't exactly smooth things over with the villagers. If anything, he's more like Mum, always had a bit of the wanderlust." She could see that wasn't exactly winning over Martin either. "Anyway, I want to see my brother again and I want my son to get to know his uncle, and that's that."

So, despite her best efforts, they hadn't parted on the best of terms, but as she put some distance between her and Portwenn she began feeling better about getting away for a while. The day was gorgeous and she was excited about seeing her big brother again.

To be continued...