AN: So what did everyone think of this most recent episode? Hmm.

%%%%%%%

"You could have called me earlier, you know."

Nick slid the elevator gate back down and followed Rosalee, and Monroe, who had joined her, into the loft.

"I was trying to convince myself I could handle it."

Nick was in his old police academy sweats and socks, and an apron, having changed clothes after Kelly managed to puke on him a second time. He had also managed what might be the world record in showering, too, clocking in at just under three minutes and forty-five seconds, Kelly having fallen asleep on the bathroom tile exhausted from his illness. Nick had kept a worried eye on him, feeling well out of his depth and expertise in child care. He had only taken care of Kelly by himself once before when he had been this sick, months ago when Adalind had been using Louis Parker, a Wesen involved in Black Claw, that had been using her to try to get at Nick and Kelly. He had felt out of his depth then, too, but had Adalind only a phone call away to help him, and Rosalee, who had stopped by in the afternoon to offer her assistance when she heard Kelly had been sick. Kelly had spent most of the late morning and afternoon sleeping by that point, so he had been given a reprieve compared to what he was dealing with now. Adalind was only a phone call away now, too, but if he was going to prove she had nothing to worry about and that she could focus on her job, he needed to figure this out.

He had finally admitted that didn't mean on his own.

"How's he doing?"

"He slept for a little bit, but he's up and he can't keep anything down. He's fussy and irritable, and just plain miserable."

"Poor little guy," Monroe said, and Rosalee followed Nick into the loft and to Kelly, who was sitting on the floor, in a shirt and diaper, his third change of clothes, looking unhappy. "What's up with the apron?" Monroe asked Nick, "You cooking something?" His answer was delayed when Rosalee turned to Nick.

"Is he still running a fever?"

"Yeah, 102, now, up a little bit from earlier."

"Okay, we need to get the fever down and keep him hydrated," Rosalee said.

"Good luck on both," Nick said, frowning when Kelly spotted Rosalee and help up his arms with a few rather pitiful cries.

"What's the matter sweetheart?" Rosalee asked, and Kelly uttered a plaintive sounding "want Mama," that stabbed in Nick's heart. He should call Adalind. He was only hurting Kelly by keeping him from seeing his mother, and Adalind knew better what to do. "Are you not feeling well, huh?" Kelly sniffled and a few tears ran down his cheeks. Rosalee pressed her palm against Kelly's cheek and forehead, before placing a kiss there.

"Yeah, he's still pretty warm," she said. "I think I may have something that might settle his stomach." She handed Kelly to Monroe.

"Do you have like an eye dropper?" Rosalee asked Nick, handing Kelly off to Monroe.

"Yeah, I think so, in the drawer next to sink." Rosalee rounded the counter and pulled it open.

"Excellent," she said smiling. The smile vanished when Kelly gagged and threw up all over Monroe's shirt front. Monroe held Kelly at arm's length away from him, glancing down, before looking up at the ceiling, with a hard swallow. He looked at Nick, pivoting to present his son back to him. Nick smiled briefly.

"That's what the apron is for."

%%%%%%%%%

"Nick? Nick."

"Mm?" he murmured sleepily. He buried his nose deeper into the pillow and drifted back to sleep after few moments.

"Nick? Are you awake?" He pondered a rude reply when he felt Adalind's hand ghost over him.

"What time is it?" he mumbled, twisting around to look at Adalind. He jerked his head away when she turned on the bedside lamp. "Ahh!" he uttered, covering his eyes.

"Sorry," Adalind said, and he felt the bed dip down beside. He blinked a few times, and squinted at his girlfriend and live-in love for almost two years. Her hair was long and wavy and loose, and she smiled in apology as she slipped off her pumps and sighed. She looked tired, Nick thought, and he wondered again how late it was. He hadn't meant to fall asleep so early but Kelly's stomach had finally settled down in the evening and both father and son had welcomed the change in status. Kelly still slept fitfully, taking a two-hour nap sometime around six, when Adalind had finally called to say she was running late. He had woken sometime before eight when Nick attempted some pedialyte and so far it had stayed down. Both had fallen back asleep and Nick had finally put Kelly back in his crib before hitting the sack himself. That had been a little after nine, Nick thought.

"It's 10:30, give or take," Adalind said, and fell back against the bed. "How's my baby?" she asked Nick, running her fingers through his hair.

Nick shrugged into his pillow, enjoying her soft touch. "I'm all right."

He winced when he felt her tug on his hair. "Oh, you mean Kelly? He's doing okay. Fever's down, and he's keeping food down now."

"He threw up?" Adalind asked, sitting up in alarm, and Nick recalled he hadn't mentioned that fact to her. "Why didn't you call me?" She exclaimed, getting out of bed, but she stopped when Nick grabbed her wrist.

"Because he's fine, and he's sleeping. He's okay…just…has the flu I think." Nick said. "Come back to bed." She resisted for a few moments, the need to assuage her own fears warring with her ability to trust Nick. She finally relented, and sat back down on the bed, one leg tucked under her.

"He's okay?" Adalind asked again. "You're sure?"

"Yeah, he's cranky as all shit, but he's okay. Just tired. Finally went down around nine. Hoping he sleeps all through the night."

"I should be here with him. I'm not so sure this is a good idea, taking on this new client."

"You think I can't do it?" Nick asked with a small grin, but he let go of any hurt he might be feeling when she looked at him teary-eyed.

"No, but I'm his mother, it's my job to take care of him when he's sick or hurting," she said, and Nick recalled his own mother doing the same when he was a child. How he looked to her for comfort and sympathy when he was ill, how she held him at times. He nodded once in understanding.

"I know, but technically it's both our jobs. I'm not saying he didn't miss his mom. We both did, but I think we both do anyway like any normal day."

She flashed him a watery smile and relaxed against the pillow on her side facing him. He slid over and kissed her forehead and gathered her close. She snuggled against him, tucking her head under his chin and let his gentle ministrations soothe her.

"How did your first official day with your new high-profile client go?"

"Long," she said after a moment, with another sigh. "I think they're going to be a handful."

"Hmm," Nick said, drifting back to sleep. He came back to consciousness when Adalind stirred.

"I need to get out of this dress," Adalind murmured.

"Hmm," Nick replied, drifting away again.

"Really?" She said, and he opened his eyes blearily.

"What?"

"No lascivious comment about getting me out of it? No help?" she said, leaning back to look at him. "This morning you couldn't keep your hands off me. Are you sure Kelly's okay? Are you?" she asked somewhat worriedly.

"I'm fine. We're fine." He said. "I suppose if it means that much to you, I can assist you with your dress conundrum." He slid his hand from her waist to her back and pulled the zipper down. "You're good to go."

"Wow," she said in amusement. "Never thought I'd see the day where Nicholas Burkhardt was too tired to take advantage of an opportunity for sex with me. I must be losing my touch. My looks?" she asked, and Nick opened one eye to stare at her.

"No, you're still beautiful," Nick said. "Maybe more so since you're mine." He closed the eye.

"Wow, you mean to tell me you're just going to let me slip out of this dress with no assistance at all?"

"What do you mean, no assistance? I unzipped it," Nick retorted. "You mean to tell me after a 13 hour day you want to go a couple of rounds with me?" Nick wasn't sure if he wanted the answer to be yes. He really was kind of tired, but the talk of sex, and the possibility of having Adalind naked and wanting was starting to buzz in his groin. He might be able to muster some enthusiasm for the cause.

"No," Adalind admitted with a sigh and he nodded, a trifle disappointed. "Not a couple, anyway. Maybe one," she said, and he opened an eye again. "I don't know. I suppose I'm really tired, but now it just seems like we need to do it as a matter of principle."

"Principle?"

"Yeah, I need to see that I still have it," she said.

"I suppose if we need to do it," Nick said, sliding the dress off her shoulder, and rolling on his back when she moved out of his grasp to stand up and step out of it. The lacy almond colored slip remained and Nick could see her nipples strain against the fabric. She climbed back into bed, and Nick pulled aside the covers, as she settled back down over him, straddling his hips. She ground against him, slow and hard, and Nick was suddenly awake, and he felt his body respond between them.

He slid his hands up, over her breasts, cupping them against his hands and she pressed against him. She watched him fondle her breasts, a slow smile curling on her face. He loved that smile. He leaned forward and pressed his mouth against hers, sliding his arms around her, fingering her soft hair. She still ground against him, rotating her hips slowly, and Nick pulled away to smile crookedly back, and stared into her soft blue eyes as his hands fanned over her shoulders and pulled the straps of her slip down. He rolled her suddenly underneath him and his smiled widened at her sudden gasp. He leaned down and kissed her and pressed his body against hers.

%%%%%%%%

He spent the next day at home with Kelly, still slightly feverish and therefore unable to attend his daycare. Kelly was still fairly irritable, but he managed to keep fluids down and Nick hesitantly gave him some food. He was basically twiddling his thumbs in the investigation, only available for phone consultations with Hank or Wu, having researched everything he had access to from home. He was glad when Kelly's stomach was settled enough on day three that Nick was able to transport him to the station for a short visit. By day four, he was well enough that Nick was transporting him back to Felicia and daycare, in time for him to watch Hank and Wu get all the credit for closing their latest case. He didn't begrudge them that but he felt a little off his game the rest of the day, out of the loop, it felt like.

He picked up Kelly, and some Chinese, and drove to Adalind's work. She was spending Friday night at the office, having spent every day in the last week there until at least nine p.m. It was after six now, and Nick figured most of the staff had gone home, but he was surprised to see more lawyers than expected in the law office. Kelly trailed behind him, carrying in his beloved, beat-up George in one hand and his police car in the other hand, chatting to Nick in his baby speak, in much better humor than in the days past.

He found Adalind's assistant, Anita, at her desk typing furiously, and wondered if she had been here every night until nine, too. She frowned when Nick's shadow fell across her desk and then smiled when she realized who it was. The smile became more strained when Kelly came into view, and Nick surmised she was not what one would call a kids person. She kept a wary eye on Kelly as he walked around her desk and examined his immediate surroundings.

"Detective Burkhardt," She said pleasantly. Nick spied a Portland Arts Council charity calendar on the wall behind her, and thanked his lucky stars it wasn't on June.

"Is Adalind available?" he asked. The blinds to her office were closed, but the lights were on.

"She stepped out of her office a few moments ago to consult with another colleague," Anita said. "If you'd like to wait, you can have a seat," Anita offered and Nick smiled. He grabbed a potted plant and righted it before Kelly finished knocking it over, and then grabbed Kelly and swung him in his arms.

"That's all right. I'm just going to drop off dinner for her. I can go in her office, right?"

"Dinner, that's very nice. How thoughtful!" Anita replied, staring at him with wide eyes. Nick refrained from rolling his and hefted Kelly against his hip, and pointed to Adalind's office in question.

"Uh, sure, go right on in," Anita said, and then hurried out of her chair to open the door for him when she saw his hands were full. Nick nodded his thanks and then realized Anita was still watching him from the doorway.

"I'm just going to leave her a note," he said, "You don't have to wait on me," he added, hoping she would take the hint, and he was helped when the phone rang at her desk and she hurried to answer it. Nick shut the door behind her and set Kelly down. Kelly wandered around the space, and Nick set the bags of food down on her desk. He found a pad of post-its, glancing up to see what Kelly was doing, before searching for a pen to write with. He found one under a mountain of papers, and smiled at his son when he felt him brush by him.

"We'll just leave mommy a note, okay?" Nick said.

"Okay," Kelly agreed, and Nick smiled again and scribbled a few words on the sticky note. He checked through the bags, switching a few of the cartons before leaving one bag and grabbing the other to take with him. He looked up when he heard footfalls outside the walls and then the door opened a few seconds later.

"Nick!" Adalind said in surprise.

"Hey," Nick said, hoping he wasn't interfering with some lawyerly powwow about to commence in her office.

"Mama!" Kelly moved around the desk and into his mother's arms where she picked him up and held him close to her. Nick watched mother and son smile at one another, Adalind looking happy and less stressed for a moment as she rocked gently side to side with her son.

"I feel like I haven't seen that beautiful smile in forever, Kell-bell." She looked at Nick questioningly. "What are you guys doing."

"Just dropping off some food. Thought we would say hi." Adalind glanced at the bag of food on her desk and smiled gratefully at Nick. She moved around the desk and placed a soft kiss against Nick's cheek.

"Oh my god, you guys are the best," she smiled down at Kelly and kissed him. She glanced up at Nick, a soft look in her eyes Nick recognized well. He shrugged nonchalantly, but turned his head so that when she bounced up on her toes again to kiss him again, it was on his lips and not his cheek. He had missed her too, this week.

"You can stay and eat with me," Adalind said, and Nick raised his eyebrows.

"You sure. We don't want to keep you from work."

"No god, I'm so sick of thinking about work. Here, we can clear off the coffee table," Adalind said, pointing to a sitting area near the windows. Nick moved some papers aside and Adalind grabbed the other bag of food and joined him. She smiled again at her son, listening to him jabber excitedly to her, catching Nick's eye, and Nick noted her spotless white silk blouse, and clean black skirt. Perhaps having Kelly seated on her lap while they ate was not the wisest thing.

"Here, I can take Kelly," Nick said, holding out his arms, and Adalind looked up from where she had just taken her seat on one of her uncomfortably chic chairs in consternation.

"He's fine," she replied dismissively, returning her attention to their son.

"Your blouse," Nick said, and Adalind glanced down at it in confusion. "Kelly. Food," Nick explained. "I can take him."

"Oh. He's fine. I have a couple of spare suits if I need them," Adalind replied, and Nick retracted his arms after a moment.

"Okay," he said, but he was aware of how happy and animated Adalind was holding their son, so he was glad to let it go. Kelly, too, looked quite content in her arms, and Nick reflected it wasn't a bad place to be if you were a Burkhardt. He caught Adalind's eye again and smiled and dug into his food. He and Adalind chatted aimlessly about Nick's work and Kelly for a while. Kelly, who was becoming more adept at talking as his vocabulary grew, interrupted the conversation periodically with comments of his own, making Adalind laugh. He slid off his mother's lap after a few bites of food and wandered over by the windows, looking out at the Portland skyline lit up at night. He pointed and touched the window, and Nick could imagine the grubby fingerprints in her spotless office. He said nothing though as Kelly kept running his fingers over the glass.

"It's been kind of quiet on the Wesen front," Adalind remarked after a moment, and Nick glanced at her in alarm.

"Bite your tongue," Nick said. "I've spent the last few months inundated with Wesen issues and I am enjoying my small reprieve."

She looked at him and nodded, taking a bite of some rice. "Still, it feels sort of like the calm before the storm, don't you think?"

Nick sighed and rolled his eyes. "Seriously, are you trying to jinx me. Can't we just enjoy it for a little bit. I'm sure next week I'll be up to my eyeballs in Wesen issues."

"Sorry," Adalind said. "You're not worried?" she asked after another bite of food. She glanced up at him, meeting his eyes, and Nick looked away after a moment, concentrating on his own meal. Truthfully, yes he was. It did feel like the calm before the storm, and Nick had been through plenty of shit storms lately to recognize the signs. Black Claw was in disarray but that didn't mean they weren't troubled by some of their members from time to time.

"I'm a little concerned, maybe," he admitted, and she met his eyes again, considering. She nodded slowly and glanced at Kelly. Nick followed her gaze and noted that he had his police car in his hand again, but George was MIA. He looked around the office but didn't spy the vibrant hued giraffe anywhere. Adalind finished her meal and set her carton on the table. Kelly drifted near, running his car over the various surfaces. The glass of the table, the leather on the seat, his mother's knee and the part of her shapely thigh that was visible, and the part covered by her skirt. Nick pulled his eyes away from her legs and checked the time on his watch.

"We should probably head out and let you get back to work," Nick said, placing his own empty carton on the table. Kelly drifted around to him, running his car over Nick's legs, before Nick gathered him up in his arms with a growl. Kelly squealed in delight and squirmed, and Nick stood and moved Kelly to his hip and gathered the boxes. Adalind stood, too, and began gathering up the trash.

"Thanks guys, for bringing me dinner," she said, taking what Nick had gathered and stuffing in her trashcan under her desk.

"No problem," Nick said, still looking for George. "You seen George?" he asked, and Adalind frowned.

"Did he bring him in here?"

"Yeah, he had him when we came in your office."

"Well, he couldn't have gone far," Adalind said, and looked around herself. Ten minutes later both came up empty. "You're sure he had him in here," she said.

"Positive."

"I don't see him, Nick."

"I know, but he's here somewhere."

They spent another ten minutes looking, Nick setting his son back down and getting on his hands and knees to look under the furniture. Adalind watched him search for another minute before pulling out the drawers of her desk and file cabinets.

"What are you doing?" Nick asked, and then stared dumbfounded when she pulled George from one of her lower desk drawers.

"Gaar!" Kelly said, snatching him from his mother.

"I don't even know when he did that," Nick lamented.

"He likes to put his toys in drawers and anything else that closes up. He's quite sneaky," Adalind said, and Nick shook his head. He got to his feet and grabbed the police car Kelly had discarded when he reclaimed George. He grabbed his son and hefted him up in his arms again.

"Tell mommy bye-bye," Nick said, and Kelly looked at his mother, considering.

"Bye-bye," Adalind said, waving to her son, and Kelly ducked his head against Nick's neck.

He accepted a kiss from his mother, and Nick planted one against Adalind's lips in goodbye. "I'll see you tonight."

"If you're still awake," Adalind muttered.

"Wake me if I'm not," Nick said, and strode out of the office.

"Bye-bye," Kelly chanted softly and Nick caught her eye one last time before she was out of sight.

%%%%%%%%

"Ohh, Kelly," Nick groaned, shifting his son from his shoulder to his car seat. "You're getting big," Nick noted with a pang. It didn't seem possible that in only a few short months his son would be two. He could still remember bringing him home like it was yesterday, though so much had happened since then it was a wonder he wasn't much older.

He strapped his son in and shut the car door, walking around the vehicle to the driver's side, and had his hand on the door handle when he paused, listening. He turned and cocked his head, tracking the sound that had attracted his attention and moved his hand over his gun.

He had it pulled and aimed directly at Meisner's head when he stepped from the shadows.

"Nick." Meisner said.

"What do you think you're doing?" Nick asked, lowering his gun after a short inner debate. He holstered his weapon when another thought struck them. "This is Adalind's workplace," he said. "What are you doing here?"

He was suddenly filled with fear. Another threat on her? He glanced back at his car, at Kelly ensconced inside.

"What's going on?" Nick asked and Meisner stepped closer.

"Nothing," Meisner said.

"Nothing!" Nick repeated. "Then what are you doing here? Tell me what's going on."

"I assure you, there is no threat against Adalind. I'm only here…keeping an eye on her."

"Keeping an eye on her?"

"I…check in on her from time to time, see how she's doing."

Nick rocked back on his heels, not sure what he thought about this.

"Does she know this?" Nick asked. She had never mentioned Meisner being at her office, checking in on her.

"No," Meisner said, and Nick frowned. She wasn't aware she was being spied on. The thought unsettled Nick, and while it only being Meisner should have been a comfort, it wasn't. Nick wasn't blind to the fact that Meisner seemed to be infatuated with Adalind. He knew Meisner had been instrumental in getting Adalind to his mother, that he had helped her through Diana's birth. The knowledge didn't sit well with Nick, who was also aware that Adalind seemed to regard Meisner with gratitude and adoration, and he was aware enough that if it had been Meisner she had slept with instead of Nick, she could be with him instead in much the same manner she wound up living with Nick.

"Then maybe you shouldn't be here," Nick said coldly.

"She's doing okay," Meisner asked. "After everything?"

He of course was referring to her kidnapping and subsequent beatings—plural—she had taken as a result. Nick's mouth set angrily, the reminder of her ordeal unwelcome. She had suffered some physical and mental trauma. She had not, initially, been okay. They had not been okay. It had taken a while for her to stop having nightmares about losing Kelly, and Nick. She had feared the reemergence of Juliette from Eve—though only temporary due to the toxin—would take Nick and their child away from her. It had been the first truly difficult patch they had had to work through as a couple and Nick wasn't wanting to experience it again any time soon.

"She's fine," he said shortly.

"That's good," he said, and Nick narrowed his eyes.

"Right. Well, you can leave now," Nick said rudely and Meisner met his eyes.

"Actually I do have something to discuss with you," Meisner said.

"Great, let's have it."

"Not here. Meet me at The Wall tomorrow night. We can discuss it there."

"Fine," Nick said. "If that's all."

The corners of Meisner's mouth turned up briefly and he slipped back into the shadows.

"I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't hang around here, spying on her all the time. It's creepy," Nick called in a warning, but Meisner was already gone.

%%%%%%%

Thoughts, comments, remarks?