He'd been chatty the whole car ride—that is, until they turned onto Juliet's oldest brother, Mark's street.

"Shawn?" Juliet prompted. He didn't answer. "Shawn, what are you doing?" She glanced away from the road for a second to look at him. "Are you Lamaze breathing?"

"It helps Gus, ok?"

She pulled slowly into the driveway and came to a slow stop. "Don't be nervous."

"You're not nervous because they love you . . . which is exactly what scares me."

She turned off the car and began gathering her things. "My brothers are going to be uncles and my parents will be grandparents." She pulled her keys out of the ignition and opened her door, heading to the trunk where all the gifts were stowed. "They should be excited."

He got out and followed her around to the trunk, offering empty arms for her to load with packages. "I have had very few encounters meeting the parents, Jules. These circumstances are highly unfavorable for it to be the first time. And what are we going to tell them about getting married?"

She slammed the trunk. "Shawn, we talked about that."

"I know what we talked about, Jules, but what are we going to tell them?" He trailed after her as she made her way up the walkway, through the picket fence gate.

"The truth? That we're taking it one step at a time."

Shawn tilted his head and looked at her incredulously. "Really, Jules? You think that's going to make the best impression on your dad?"

She knocked on the door. "We'll just . . . cross that bridge when we come to it."

"I'm just hoping there's actually a bridge . . . a zipline would be cool . . . even a hang glider would give me a—"

She elbowed him in the stomach as her mom answered the door.

"Julie!" she exclaimed.

"Hi!" she greeted warmly, returning her mom's embrace.

"Mom, this is Shawn," she introduced.

"Mom?" Shawn exclaimed. "This can't be mom . . . I was assuming woman-of-the-house sister-in-law."

"You are smooth, Shawn," Mrs. O'Hara stated. "Obvious, but smooth."

"You know that's right," Juliet whispered.

Shawn grinned at her as they were ushered into the house. He stood awkwardly clutching his stack of gifts while Juliet greeted her brother, sister-in-law, father, and nephews.

"Dylan will be here in about an hour and he's picking up Ewan at the airport on his way. Regan had to pick up Cheryl at her sister's house before he could come and said he may be a while. But we're so glad you're here!" Mrs. O'Hara spouted as hugs were exchanged all around.

"Ewan's going to be here?" Juliet exclaimed, excited, but more nervous than before.

"Yeah, he said he didn't know how, but he'd managed it," Mark stated.

"Everyone," Juliet began, taking a step nearer to Shawn, "this is Shawn."

Before he knew what had happened, the gifts were under the tree, he'd been hugged by people whose names he didn't even know, and he was sitting on a love seat with a warm cup of cider in his hand.

He was pleasantly engaging in conversation with Mark and Mark's wife—whose name Shawn had yet to learn—for twenty minutes before he found a chance to subtly whisper to Juliet, "Are you all right?"

"I feel like I could throw up I'm so nervous," she whispered back.

"Do you need anything?"

"I need to just get this over with."

"No time like the present."

She nodded and nervously played with the too-long sleeves of the rather large sweater she was wearing to hide the ever-so-slightly-obvious baby bump.

"Mom?" she began.

"That sweater's a little big on you, Julie—have you lost weight?"

Juliet's face reddened. "It's just comfortable, Mom."

Shawn encouragingly interlaced his fingers into hers between them.

"Mom, I have something to tell everyone."

"Rod!" she called into the other room. "Rod, Julie has an announcement to make."

"Oh, God," she whispered, her stomach churning.

"Are you going to hurl?" he asked nervously.

"Who says 'hurl' anymore?" she challenged.

He smiled and squeezed her hand.

Just as Rod made himself comfortable next to his wife—directly across from the now panicked-to-his-core Shawn—the door opened and the commotion now familiar to Shawn as the greeting ritual of the O'Hara home began again. Shawn sighed.

"I'm going to the bathroom," Juliet whispered, standing up.

"To hurl?"

She rolled her eyes. "To pee, Shawn—again." She made it to the beginning of the hallway when she heard her name and stopped short.

"Aren't you going to at least say 'hey' before you run off?" Ewan teased.

"Actually, Julie was about to make an announcement," her dad disclosed.

She looked warily around the room, chewing on her thumbnail nervously as she surveyed the eager faces of those who loved her best. When she caught Shawn's eye, he raised his eyebrows—a show of support for whatever she was about to say.

She took a deep breath and tried to find the eyes of whomever she felt would be most understanding. She finally sought solace in the only eyes she knew would support her no matter what. Shawn tipped the corner of his mouth up at her and nodded.

"I . . . I . . ." She shook her head at him subtly.

"I love this game!" he exclaimed, jumping to his feet. "You . . . need some coffee!"

"No," she laughed.

"—ce Cream," he finished.

"No, Shawn."

"Skating? Glasses? Nnnnnstein?"

She shook her head, but as the nephews took over the crazy guessing, she reached for his hand, mouthing, "Thank you."

"Didn't you have some business to take care of?" he whispered.

"Oh, god, yes," she replied, quickly turning on her heel.

"Nobody move!" Shawn exclaimed to the rest of the room. "I have one that you'll never guess!"

Within minutes, Liam had guessed Justin Bieber, and by the time Juliet was out of the restroom, Shawn had run completely out of pre-adolescent boy pop-culture knowledge.

"Are you ready?" he asked out of the corner of his mouth as she passed him.

She took another deep breath and nodded.

"I'm beat," he exclaimed, following her to the loveseat they'd formerly occupied, "but why don't you three boys continue in the kitchen? See who can get the most points in five minutes. I'll give the winner some delicious fresh pineapple!"

He took her hand again as the boys raced to the kitchen.

"So, what is this big news, Juliet?" Ewan prompted, perching on the arm of the couch next to her.

"Well . . . I'm pregnant," she stated abruptly.

All the color drained from Shawn's face as all eyes turned on him in complete silence. He was beginning to think time had actually frozen when Mrs. O'Hara said, "When are you due, Baby Girl?"

He felt Juliet noticeably relax against him. "June," she stated simply.

"Boy or girl?" Dylan asked. Very much like his mom, he desperately wanted to relieve some of the obvious tension in the room.

Shawn, wide-eyed and fearful, noticed only the stony anger on Ewan's face before he walked out onto the porch silently.

"We won't know until February," she answered the kind inquiry.

"We'll know in February?" Shawn responded incredulously.

"Of course. Around five months."

She could tell he was counting.

"What?" she questioned.

"Well, in every birth I've ever seen, they always say "It's a boy" or "It's a girl" so I guess I just assumed there was no way to know until the baby was actually born."

"All the births you've seen in movies?" she challenged good-naturedly. "I have some books for you," she teased. She then noticed Ewan's absence. "Where did Ewan go?"

"Front yard," Shawn whispered.

"Is he mad?"

"Is Alex P. Keaton conservative?"

She stood up immediately.

"Are you sure it's safe?"

She rolled her eyes. "He's my brother, Shawn."

He squeezed her hand and let her go. No sooner had the front door closed behind her than Shawn found himself sitting next to the one person he feared the most—her father.

"Mr. O'Hara," he stated nervously.

Rod proceeded to look him over steadily for a few minutes without saying a word. Shawn pulled at his collar, feeling stifled and well beyond nervous. He cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Are you going to marry my Juliet?"

"One step at a time," he recited lamely, the words leaving a bitter taste in his mouth.

"What in the hell does that mean?"

He turned to look at the father of the woman he loved more than his own life. "It means I was willing to marry her on the spot the day I found out, but she turned me down."

Rod's eyes narrowed. Shawn knew he was treading on dangerous ground making Juliet sound like the bad guy.

"Mr. O'Hara, I don't want to spend a day without your daughter—ever. I'm committed to Juliet and I'm committed to our baby. If ever she'll have me—" he set a jewelry box down on the coffee table in front of them, "—I'll marry her that second."

Rod nodded. "You're a good boy, Shawn." With that, Rod slapped Shawn on the shoulder, stood up, and walked back into the kitchen. He didn't breathe a word about the baby or marriage to Shawn for the rest of the holiday.

"One down, four to go," Shawn whispered to himself, quickly eyeing his surroundings. Dylan was already on his side, he could tell from his incessant effort to put everyone else at ease. Mark was eyeing Shawn warily, but a quick word from his dad seemed to stifle any contempt the oldest brother held for him. He had yet to meet Regan, but imagined a newly-engaged brother may be easy to win if he worked first through the doe-eyed fiancée.

Ewan would be the challenge. Just as Shawn began formulating his strategy, Juliet burst through the front door and ran up the stairs without a word to anyone. Shawn stood immediately and moved toward the bottom of the stairs—at which point he nearly ran into Mrs. O'Hara. He quickly searched her face, himself wondering if it wouldn't be a better idea for her to go.

"Go, Shawn. It's obviously not the first time and I'm sure it won't be the last," she whispered.

His mouth was open and he shifted the bottom half of his jaw over before nodding once and following Juliet's trail up to a bathroom upstairs. He rapped his knuckles lightly against the door.

"Jules?" He heard only a stifled sob. He opened the door to see her curled up against the bathtub, sleeves soaking wet with her tears. Without even a second thought, he sat down beside her.

"He called me a slut," she whispered. "He said I was throwing away everything for a . . . a waste of a man," she uttered, barely audible.

"Well, I always knew your brother was a smart man."

She shook her head, a pained look on her face and turned to meet his eyes, setting her hand in his. "I love you, Shawn."

"You . . . you do?"

"Of course I do. Ewan just kept going on and on about how disappointed he was—not in me, but in my choice and everything in me just got so mad at him. I know it was impulsive and probably a little foolish, but I still don't regret asking you to stay that night."

He moved in to kiss her, but she quickly stated, "Close talking again?"

He opened his eyes enough to see that her eyes were closed. "Do you know what I said to my dad after you left me kneeling in the SBPD parking lot?"

"What?" she breathed.

"That I knew as soon as I asked you out we'd be moving somewhere serious. And that I never want to spend a day without you."

"Anything else I should know?" she asked, tilting her head just enough so that her lips rested against his.

"That I love you more than Gus loves spelling," he whispered.

She smiled and opened her eyes. "Do you have anything else to say?"

"No," he whispered.

"Well, I might," she stated quickly, finally making complete contact with his lips. Every feeling and sensation from that first night came rushing back to her as the kiss quickly escalated.

"We can't do this," he finally stated, pulling himself away from her.

"You're right," she agreed, breathless. "One step at a time, right?"

He kissed her hand. "Whatever you say, Jules."

As he moved to open the door, she pulled him back and looked straight up into his eyes.

"Shawn?"

"Yes, Jules?"

"I don't regret a moment."

He left a lingering kiss on her cheek before opening the bathroom door for her and following her—his hand tightly enclosing hers—down the stairs.

...

Just before dinner was served, Mrs. O'Hara managed to extricate her daughter from the devoted embrace of her . . . she didn't know what to call him.

"First of all, Julie, what do we call him?"

She shrugged. "We're taking it one step at a time, Mom."

"You're not wearing a ring; didn't he propose?"

Juliet pulled the green bean casserole out of the oven. "He did. I turned him down. I don't want him to marry me just because of the baby."

"Oh, my sweet girl. He obviously cares a great deal for you."

She smiled what seemed to be a secret smile to herself. "He does."

Mrs. O'Hara paused and eyed her daughter curiously. "It was the night of the fire, wasn't it?"

Juliet flushed and uttered, "Mom!"

"He was trying to comfort you and it just went too far?" she pressed.

Juliet shook her head. "It wasn't like that at all."

"Tell me how it was."

Juliet sighed. "He took me home and I broke down the minute I walked in the door." She looked up at her mom. "He never did anything I didn't ask him to do, Mom. I asked him to stay and he made up the couch. I asked him to come to bed because I was afraid and he offered to sleep on the floor, then settled on sitting—sitting, Mom—on the bed next to me. I asked him to spend the night. I kissed him and even then he stopped just in time and tried to sleep in the living room again."

"What happened, Julie, baby?"

She flushed bright red. "I followed him in nothing but a sheet and asked him to make love to me."

Colleen O'Hara just nodded, not sure what to think of her daughter's overt advances in the midst of trauma.

"But I love him, Mom. And I'm happy. I'd honestly be happy to spend the rest of my life as Juliet Spencer."

"So, what do we call him, Love—for now?"

"Boyfriend, I guess."

...

While everyone else had an after-dinner beer or glass of wine, Juliet drank the sparkling cider intended for the boys. Dylan sidled up next to her against the kitchen counter.

"Congratulations, Little Sister."

"Thanks, Dyl," she stated gratefully, beaming under his approval. He followed her gaze to where Shawn was teaching Isaac how to grind a cereal box with a finger skateboard.

"He'll make a good dad."

"Will he?"

"You're not sure?" He looked down at his much-shorter younger sister.

She shrugged. "He's kind of flighty. I get the impression from his best friend that he tends to be irresponsible. He's very . . . impulsive."

"Says the girl that seduced him for one night only."

"Tell me he didn't tell you that."

"Of course not."

"I should've known better than to tell Mom everything."

"She wants to make sure we all know that he's your choice—that he didn't trick you or pressure you or anything."

"He didn't."

"I know!" he laughed. "But look at him, Julie. He's here. And everybody loves him. I think you—you both—are in good hands."

...

It was only eight-o'-clock when Ewan stood up. "My ride's here—I've gotta go." Again, Shawn observed the O'Hara greeting ritual. Shawn and Juliet were closest to the door and, thus, the last to receive goodbyes.

"Take care of yourself, Julie," he whispered as he enveloped her in his very ample personage.

He reached for Shawn's hand and yanked him roughly into a mock hug. "My parents both gave me a lecture on how I should treat you," he hissed menacingly, "but if I ever find out you hurt my sister, there will be hell to pay." He moved to back up, but Shawn tightened his grip.

"And if you ever call my Juliet a slut again, I'll spend my dying breath inflicting the greatest possible pain I can on you."

Ewan smiled ever so slightly. "We may be all right after all, Spencer."

...

Shawn genuinely enjoyed the rest of the night with the O'Haras. He found himself at ease and almost at home in their company. Juliet, on the other hand, found herself oddly at home in his arms. As her head began to feel heavy, she didn't even give it a second thought as she dropped her head in his lap—just to rest for a moment.

She'd been asleep for almost an hour when he started rubbing her arm to rouse her.

"Jules, we should go. You need to go to bed."

"I'm so comfy," she murmured, rolling over onto her back.

"Come on, Sleeping Beauty," he whispered. "We have a bit of a drive ahead of us and it's getting late."

Regan's fiancée, Cheryl, got a bit of a mischievous gleam in her eye. "The prince had to kiss Sleeping Beauty to wake her, Shawn."

Shawn felt his face heat up and he looked down at her. "Is that what I have to do, Jules?"

He saw the corner of her mouth tip up ever so slightly. Placing a hand on either side of her face, he leaned down and engaged in the first real kiss he'd been permitted. She reached up and touched his shoulder, waiting until he sat back up before sitting up herself.

"Told you," Cheryl teased.

Shawn stood and helped Juliet to stand beside him. He followed her around the family circle, ending with her mom.

"Julie, get some good maternity clothes—don't hide anymore, all right?"

"We're going shopping next week," Shawn assured her.

"And you," she kissed him on the cheek and squeezed his upper arm, "don't be a stranger, Shawn Spencer. And take good care of them."

"I absolutely promise you, Mrs. O'Hara, I'd give my life for either one of them."

As soon as the door shut behind them, Juliet grabbed Shawn's hand. "Tell me it will never come to that, Shawn—your life or ours. I don't want to do this without you."

He fingered the jewelry box in his coat pocket as he opened her passenger door. "It is never my intention to leave you, Jules."

She handed him the keys and he walked around the car, immediately adjusting the mirrors, the seat, and the steering wheel when he sat down.

"Do you mind if I sleep a little?"

"You do all the sleeping you need to do."

...

"Shawn, what are you doing here?"

"Gus, we work here."

"You haven't been here in weeks and it's the day after Christmas. I didn't expect to see you."

"Well, I'm here. We have to take some cases—make some money. I have a family to take care of now."

"How is Juliet?"

Shawn shrugged. "Fine, I guess. Her clothes are getting tight, so we're going shopping tonight.

"My dad wants to have us over for dinner Friday, can you make it?"

"The three of us?"

Shawn nodded.

"Sure." Gus took a seat at his desk. "How was Christmas with Juliet's family?"

"Good, bad, ugly, and wonderful."

"You don't have any bruises."

"If looks could kill, Ewan would be a murderer—again."

"And the wonderful . . .?"

"She loves me, Gus."

"She said that?"

Shawn nodded. "But she can't."

"Are you saying Juliet is physically incapable of love?"

"Gus, don't be Sheldon from Big Bang Theory. She can't love me because she doesn't know me—not all of me. There's something very specific she doesn't know about me."

Gus sighed. "That's a pretty important conversation." He paused. "Before or after shopping?"

"Haven't decided yet."