To all the readers of "Second chances", thank you for reading (ad hopefully reviewing this story). The idea of this fanfiction is mostly born after the serie finale of Private Practice, talking with a couple of friends on twitter.

We wrote it at four hands with "Adrienne Forbes" confronting our, sometimes, different ideas and opinions. Second chance is mostly a Jaddison/Addek fanfiction that follows a slight A/U. Many important things that happened in season 5 and season 6 of the show, such as Amelia's unicorn baby or the Henry's adoption storyline, don't take place in the story, but Jake and Addison are married (YAY!) and they are struggling to build their family. We hope you will enjoy the Second Chances. Reviews, critics and advices are, as always, more than welcome.

SECOND CHANCES - chapter 1

"I believe in second chances and starting fresh, I believe that out there is that one person where it was meant to be and I believe in miracles. I've made my fair share of mistakes over the years and I've had to live with the repercussions of them ever since. I came to LA with the dreams of starting fresh, to find myself and to have the life that I had always dreamed of. Not to say that I didn't feel that way with Derek because he will always have a special place in my heart but sometimes loving someone is letting them go and knowing that they can be happy with someone else. Life isn't always what you want it to be like and everyone's story is different but it changes in an instant and in that moment transforms your whole entire being. That's when I met him, Jake the man of my dreams. We were both people who had our flaws but we saw something in each other, this undivided love and appreciation of one another that takes your breath away. I guess the Beatles were right because all you really need is love."

It was a cold and brisk morning in Los Angeles when Addison Forbes Montgomery and Jake Reilly entered Seaside Wellness Center. The two of them were giggling as they exited the elevator from a remark that Jake had made and went to collect their morning appointment. As they scanned over their schedules Jake couldn't help but stare at her radiant glow taking in just how beautiful his wife truly was. She saw that he was staring and simply smiled in return gazing into those handsome brown eyes.

"So you're right to do the ultrasound in an hour right?" The redhead asked with a slight hint of hesitation.

"Of course I can, you know that I wouldn't miss seeing out wonderful babies for anything in the world."

Jake then walked over to his wife and bent down to her stomach and started talking to the fetuses.

"Now you two behave for Mommy today and make sure that she doesn't start the ultrasound without me again."

"That was one time! I just couldn't help my self you know that I am a double board certified Neonatal Surgeon..."

"With two years specializing in genetics, yes I know," Jake replied as he silenced the beaming redhead with a soft kiss on the lips.

"What did I ever do to deserve you?" Addison asked after becoming completely lost in that kiss.

It was with that, that the two doctors went their separate ways into their respective offices and met with their first patients for the day.

Addison walked into the exam room and ly down on the exam table. She took a deep breath and took a moment to understand what was happening. She was finally going to be a mother. It seemed so different being on the other side of the table and not being in control but none of that really mattered because she was finally going to have two little bundles of joy in her arms in a couple of months time. She turned the machine on and lifted up her shirt not thinking and realized that she had promised Jake that she would wait for him. So she placed her hand on her bare stomach and let go of the breath she was holding, inside of her were two little babies, her own babies and she was finally going to have a family. So many thoughts and fears flooded her mind as to what kind of parent she would be and if her children would turn out ok but then she remembered that for the first time in a while, she wasn't alone. Jake was there for her and would always be there for her and no matter what these children would have the undivided love and support from two of the most giving parents that anyone could ask for.

Jake entered in the exam room "You really can't wait, Addie"

"I was just getting everything ready for you, that's all"

He took the probe and put the cold gel on Addison's belly "Ready to say hello to our babies?"

She then closed her eyes for a moment trying to capture this memory and when she opened her eyes she saw that Jake had turned the monitor away from her and had a concerned look on his face. It was then that Addison felt her heart sink into the bottom of her chest.

"Jake what's wrong? What aren't you telling me? Jake turned the monitor around." Addison said in a concerned voice, Jake could hear it cracking with fear over the health of their babies.

Jake felt the pain in Addison's voice and to try to reassure her he put the Doppler on one of the baby heartbeat so she could hear it.

"Addison, honey... what you have to know is that there are still.." Jake began as he tried to let her down easily.

"Jake, TURN THE MONITOR AROUND!" Addison said with a stern voice. "I NEED TO SEE MY BABIES, THEY ARE OK UNTIL I SAY SO."

Jake took a deep breath and slowly turned the monitor to face his distressed wife. Addison then grabbed the probe and frantically searched the area for her two babies and it was in that moment that she saw what had happened. There was only one heartbeat. She immediately dropped the probe and began to panic as her breaths became more shallow and frequent Addison was beginning to hyperventilate as the tears were streaming down her face.

Addison just sat there on the exam table crying and staring into the corner as everything was moving at a rapid pace. Jake ran over to his wife and just held her in the hopes of calming her down and praying that this wouldn't break her. He had never seen the woman he loved so defeated and numb so he pressed kisses all over her forehead as the small tears escaped from his eyes as they both grieved over the loss of their child.

Addison then moved surprising Jake and wiped the gel off of her stomach and pulled her shirt down. She then slowly walked out of the room and into her office and shut the blinds. Jake was taken back by her actions and was gravely concerned but knew that she just needed a minute to herself and then he would be there as soon as she was ready.

Unknowing to what had just happened Amelia observed her former sister in-law walk across the foyer in an empty manner. She furrowed her brow and called out to her.

"Addie, what's up?"

Amelia approaches Addison's office not sure of what she would find behind the door. She slowly opened it and somewhat expected Addison to throw herself into her work, she had always found that work was the perfect escape from her problems but when she stepped inside she saw her sister lying down on sofa curled into the fetal position quietly sobbing as she held her hand to her stomach. Amelia then exactly knew what was going on. She slowly walked over the fragile woman carefully enough not to scare her and tried to comfort her.

"Addie, I'm so sorry. I know that..." Amelia tried to go on but she could see that none of her words were registering to Addison as she just stared at the ground. She even went to hug her in the hopes that the simple gesture would break through but Addison still stayed in the same position as if she had just be frozen in place because of her complete numbness.

Amelia left Addison's office and headed in Jake's one. She wasn't expected to see the always congenial man with his tie slacken, seated in the sofa drinking a glass of scotch at 10 am.

"Alcohol is never the solution...What's wrong with you and Addie, Jake? I saw you both radiant and happy this morning... It's something wrong with the babies, isn't it?"

"It's just one baby, Amelia… This is why you see Addison in her office so heartbroken…"

"Vanishing twin?" he nodded "I'm so sorry Jake!" she hugged him and went back to Addison.

She decided that she would stay with her sister-in-law until something got through because she was all that Addison had apart from Jake and she had already finished up with her patients for the day.

Jake returned at home in the evening after an emergency at St. Ambrose. He put his bags down in the lounge-room and ascended the stairs to change into something more comfortable. Today had been a long day for the surgeon and the sooner it was over the better he thought. As he walked into the bedroom he sees her sitting on the bed with some material in her hands. After a moment he realized that she was holding a onesie but not just one of them, there were two each saying twin one and twin two.

She looked up at him with her tired eyes, she had been crying all day and she really needed to rest. The look was filled with bitterness and disappointment as the thoughts surfaced from within.

"They were two, I did the first ultrasound a 7 weeks and they were two, Jake! My mind, my heart, my whole body were all set to have two babies!"

"It's a common thing with twins, Addie, and you know that, be rational! We have been lucky it happened in the first trimester…"

"You wanted this to happen, you don't even care about these babies because they're not yours."

"Addison you know that's not true that I love these babies more than anything else in the world but you also know that professionally a singleton pregnancy is much safer, especially for a woman in your condition. Think about it you would have said the same thing to your patients and you know it."

"I can't deal with you right now, I just feel sick to my stomach thinking about it. I can't do this, I can't go through this again please don't make me."

Addison then started to burst into tears and went to storm out but Jake took this opportunity to make his move and show her how much he cared. He grabbed her as she was walking away and hugged her as tightly as he could. She was fighting against him with all her will because she didn't want to go through this pain anymore as the tears kept flowing. Eventually she gave into his embrace and collapsed into is arms and finally let's him in. He kissed her forehead intensely to let her know that he was not going anywhere and he lowered her onto the couch still in his arms. She held on tighter as if she was just about to fall of the edge because the thought of doing any of this alone terrified her more than she'd like to admit. He knows that she had had a long day so he gently picked up her fragile body and carried her upstairs to the master bedroom and lay her on the bed. There was no romance, no sensual kisses or sex, just simply holding her and letting her knew that he was here for the long run.

"I want to take the amniocentesis Jake… I need to know if the other baby I'm carrying is fine"

"It's okay, honey, you don't have to think about this today" he said kissing again her forehead.

"I have Jake, especially today, especially because one of my babies is not there anymore…"

Flashback – NYC 3 months ago

"We can't do that"

"Why? I promised you I would have gave you a baby… in a tube, or whatever…"

"…What if Derek said no? Or worse, he wants to be part of it, after all they are also his embryos, he had a huge part of it…"

"You mean DNA?"

"Jake…"

"You know, sweetheart, there are a lot of ethic controversies about cryo-saved embryos..."

"Derek was never ok with the whole medical assisted reproductive process…"

"Why?"

"It was a male-ego problem, I guess…"

"Uh? Didn't you do it for a ∆F508 CF heterozygosity in cystic fibrosis?"

"It wasn't the only problem, well we had also other fertility issues… We tried for 2 years but nothing happened, meanwhile our marriage went downhill, you know the rest of the story… Do you really want to talk about the end of my previous marriage?"

"Not really" he kissed her lips "I had other plans for the night, Mrs. Reilly!"

Later in bed, Addison was playing with her fingers on Jake's bare chest "Jake, Are you sure about the baby? I mean, I know you would be an amazing father, but maybe we can try again with adoption… I know it was hard for me after Melanie did not chose me as mother of her baby girl, but with you I'm stronger… Maybe we can try another course of IVF…"

"Addison, we already talked about that… These embryos are yours, there isn't any problem of match compatibility, I just have to work on the defrost passage…"

"Oh my god, they should be 7 year old kids, going to school, play baseball or dancing…"

"They will be amazing, just like you…"

"You mean waspy, cheaters, with a screwed moral compass?"

He laughed "You're a good and funny woman, Addison Montgomery"

"What if he wants be part of their life… I mean, it's one of his rights…"

"He will not"

"Why are you so sure?"

"Addie, he has a wife and two children! You said he's a good man I'm sure he will let us have our little family"

Next morning Jake and Addison were waiting to meet Derek at Marriott Hotel in Manhattan. Jake checked again his watch, 10:30 am "At what time did you tell Derek to meet us?"

"9 am…" she answered looking again at her smartphone.

"I hope he is timely when he has a surgery…" he commented sarcastically

"He doesn't even know why we want to meet him… it's the same old story all over again…" she tried to call him again, but as other many times he didn't answer "This is typical Derek really… typical!"

"Well maybe he had an hitch…"

"Or maybe he is just the same old ass" she looked again at his husband, she was tired and pissed, "promise me you won't leave me, please Jake"

"I promise" he softly kissed her lips "I will not leave you and I will do anything for you"

"You know what, they are mine, I don't need any authorization by a man that doesn't even care or wonder why I asked to meet him again!" she put on her coat "It's time to go, Jake, we have an appointment at the practice".