A/N: Thanks to those who wished my husband well. He is recovering slowly. So while he naps, I'll write. I plan for this to be the penultimate chapter.

Disclaimer: All characters, except my little OC, are the results of the brilliance of MilMar and ABC.

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March 31, 2019 in the afternoon

Ian had loved the sharks and clown fish. He had fallen asleep in his car seat with his new stuffed shark wrapped in his arms. Kate and Rick lean against each other in the seat facing Ian. Rick whispers to Kate, "How long do you think he'll sleep when we get home?"

Kate smiles as she answers softly, "Hopefully for at least an hour. You know his schedule better than I do, Mr. Mom. What did you want to do while he naps?" Kate looks at Rick with one eyebrow raised and a broad grin.

Rick places a kiss on Kate's temple. He looks over at the driver of the SUV limo they are in. "Sorry, maybe later for that. I want to talk about the note from my father," he whispers, and Kate's smile disappears.

Kate places a hand on either side of Rick's face, "Babe, I'll read it when we get home. I agree with your mother, don't dwell on it today. Call Gina in the morning. The package will come when it comes." Kate reinforces her concern with a short, but firm kiss to his lips.

Rick smiles at Kate, "I know, you and Mother are right. It's just hard. Patience is not one of my virtues." Kate smothers her laugh with her hand and looks at Ian. The little darling snoozes on.

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Ian had slept thru the trip home and until he is put down in his toddler bed. He stirs a little, but settles back to sleep as soon as he puts his thumb in his mouth.

Rick hands Kate the letter when they get downstairs. She sits at the counter and reads it as he prepares each of them a coffee. "Does it help to have an apology after all these years?" Kate asks.

"A little. The mystery of the box is what is weighing on my mind," Rick replies as he hands her the coffee. "What could be in it? I understand why he sent it to Black Pawn. We never want a repeat of Paris, but why send documents now and what kind of documents would he want to send to me?"

"If you think it might help, call Gina now," Kate suggests as soothingly as she can.

Rick opens his iPhone and hits the speed dial for Gina. "Gina, sorry to bother you on Sunday." He pauses, "Yes, I'm working on those edits you sent me, and the next chapter. What I'm calling about is a package that is supposed to be delivered to Black Pawn and addressed to me." Rick pauses and listens to Gina for a minute. "It's personal. I don't know what's in it. It's a birthday gift from a family member." He listens to Gina again.

"Not all of Kate's family members have our address, okay?" Another pause. "Anyway, could you ask the mailroom staff to keep an eye out, please? As soon as it comes, I want to know." After a longer pause, "Thanks, Gina. It's supposed to have something special in it." Rick smiles before he ends the call, "If it's not during his naptime, I'll bring Ian with me. He loves getting spoiled by everyone at Black Pawn. Bye."

"Thanks, Kate. It does help to have that taken care of. I hope you don't mind the little fib about your family sending it," Rick asks tentatively.

"I know that Gina knows nothing about your father. We can just blame it on Aunt Theresa," Kate reassures him. "Now, let me help you relax before our son wakes up."

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April 1, 2019

"Wake up, old man!" Kate whispers into Rick's ear. "I can't believe I'm married to someone half a century old," she laughs as she starts to pepper his face with kisses.

Rick's eyes pop open, and he grabs Kate with a growl, "I'll show you how old I am."

The baby monitor interrupts with Ian's call, "Daddy, Momma Uppy. Daaadaaa!"

They both moan, and Kate rises from the bed, "I'll get him, Birthday Boy. We'll be back in a minute. And I'll take you up on that offer later." Kate hops up from the bed, looks back at Rick and winks.

After breakfast, Gina calls. Rick grabs the phone. "I'll be over in about an hour, and yes I'll bring Ian." He ends the call and walks over to where Ian is playing with his shark toy, "Hey buddy, want to go see Ms. Gina?"

Ian pushes off from the floor and runs over to his father, "Uppy, Dada. See Ms. Gina. Canny, Daddy."

"That's right, Buddy. Ms. Gina has candy." Rick looks over at Kate. "Do you want to come or just wait here?"

"I should probably come with you, but I'm not ready to venture out. You two go ahead. I'll grab a cab in a few minutes, and meet you there. Are you going to take the SUV? A car seat is already in there," Kate answers.

"We'll just wait for you. All you need is to throw on some jeans. You look beautiful already," Rick assures her as he picks up Ian.

"Okay, I'll just be a minute. You get Ian in his jacket and shoes," Kate calls over her shoulder as she walks into the bedroom.

"Ian, does she forget who is Mr. Mom around here?" Rick asks as he swings his son to sit on his shoulder. "Let's get you ready to go see Ms. Gina."

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Rick called his mother on the drive back and asked her to meet them at the loft. She was surprised the package had already arrived at Black Pawn.

After settling Ian with some toys, Rick opens the wooden box with the key. There is a note on top of the papers inside, "Son, I know you always want to know the story. I hope these papers will help you to understand a little of mine. Dad"

The first paper Rick removes from the box is a birth certificate. "The name on the certificate is James Alexander Craig," Rick looks at his mother, "Is that the name he gave you when you met?"

Martha smiles at her son, "All I knew was Alex. He didn't give me a last name."

"You never told me my middle name was my Dad's name!" Rick caresses the document as he speaks. "His parents names are on here, of course. His father was James Andrew Craig, and his mother's maiden name was Lily Marie Clark. He was born in New York. This is a certified copy. He wrote a note on the bottom. It says, 'My dad went by Jack, because of his initials. Jack's son wasn't too far from the truth. That's why I used Jackson in Paris.'" Rick read the note aloud, and placed the birth certificate on the counter. "A copy of his diploma from Columbia is in here. Alexis will like that. There are pictures of his parents, of him as a boy and as a teenager. He even included his parent's obituaries. His dad died of a heart attack at 86. His mother died in a car accident, when she was 62." Rick held up each piece of paper as he referred to it. He stared at the pictures of his grandparents, drinking in the features that connected his face to theirs. He gazes at his wife with tears welling in his eyes. Martha looks over his shoulder and notices the blue eyes of Alex's mother.

Martha slides her arm around Rick's waist as Kate loops her arm around his. Each woman leans her cheek against a shoulder. Martha speaks first, "Alex said he knew you were his son after he did the math and saw your name. I never told you about your middle name, because I didn't want you to search for him. Once you were old enough to have such a discussion, I had already discovered how tenacious you are. I didn't want you to get trapped in a futile search for him."

"Babe, are you alright," Kate gently asks him. She looks down as she feels a tug on her pants leg. "Hello, my baby, do you need something?"

"Dada sad? Uppy, Momma. Needa kissy Daddy."

Rick leans down and swings his son up so they are face to face. "Daddy isn't sad, little man. He is just overflowing with love right now." Ian makes kissing noises, and Rick brings him closer so Ian can place the wet kisses on Rick's cheek. Rick kisses Ian's forehead and hugs him close. "Daddy is having a wonderful birthday."

Ian claps his hands and then hugs Rick around the neck. "Want cake. Where cake?"

Rick laughs, "We'll have cake after Alexis gets here. That will be after naptime."

"Yay, Lexi comin'." Ian throws his little arms up in celebration.

Rick places the happy boy on the floor, and Ian returns to his toys. Rick looks at his mother and his wife "He gave me some answers for my birthday. Not all the answers, but it's more than I ever had before. I'm sure Alexis is going to be thrilled that Dad went to Columbia." Rick smiles at the lovely women on either side of him.

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Martha returns to her apartment an hour later and sits at her desk. They had all looked at the pictures. Martha asked Rick to make her a copy of the picture of Alex as a teenager. He had done it immediately with some fancy copy machine he had. It was the one picture closest to the Alex she had met. She wishes she had a picture of Alex as the handsome man of her memory. She would always have her memory of that night.

She checks the clock. She has some time before she needs to go back to Richard's loft. Opening the drawer in her desk, she removes the note from Alex and places the picture in the drawer. She changes her mind and takes the picture back out. She reads the note again and addresses the picture, "How could you ask me that now?"

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A/N: The last name for Alex isn't for Daniel Craig. NF said Wikipedia has his middle name wrong. Somewhere, I don't remember where, I read it's actually Craig not Christopher. Also, I am my own Beta. If I missed something, let me know and I'll fix it.