A/N: I'm so sorry. I totally lost my muse for this story and of course now I find it just in time to go back to school. Ugh, anyways hopefully I can update a little more frequently now. Thanks for sticking with me.

When they won't go to bed or do what you said or eat their food. And they cry and they fuss and you can't cuss cause she'll say it too. And you're tired and you're numb and you're stressed and you're mad and then she smiles and says 'I love you dad'. That's what it's all about. This is the life I couldn't live without. There's a moment frozen there in time when the reason's all begin to rhyme. Love's a little bigger and you finally start figuring out. That's what it's all about.—Brooks and Dunn, That's What It's All About

Steve rubbed his forehead roughly as he looked at the disaster zone currently known as his desk. There were few aspects of his job that he truly disliked and playing the political games was at the top of the list. Governor Jameson had asked (ordered) Steve to compile a file to submit to the State legislature to convince them to continue funding the taskforce. He knew the 5-0 was expensive and at times had a hard time flying under the radar (no thanks to him) but they also provided a valuable service to the State, taking on the cases that HPD couldn't. It was just a matter of making the politicians understand that.

Which was why Steve was still in his office at almost 7pm on a Friday trying to get this file done when he would have much rather been at home with his family. It was their weekend with Grace and Danny had left hours ago to be with the girls. Normally Steve would have left with him but the file was due on the Governor's desk by Monday morning and he knew he'd get nothing done if he took it home. Not to mention the fact that it was against one of Danny's rules. Work consumed enough of their life and he refused to let it take away precious time they did have with their children, so Danny was strict about not bringing work home unless absolutely necessary.

Steve was happy to comply with the rule. Makayla was five months old now and he swore that she changed from the time they left in the morning to when they came home at night. She was starting to transform from the helpless little newborn into a curious infant who was determined to get into everything. He and Danny had already started baby-proofing the house. Makayla wasn't mobile yet but they knew that as soon as she was, they were in big trouble.

Looking over at the picture of his daughter on the corner of his desk, Steve sighed. He knew he was being a bit overdramatic but there was a part of him that was sad to see how big his baby girl had gotten. The more independence she gained, the less she was going to need him and Danny and Steve wasn't quite ready for that yet. His cell phone rang, clearing his head of his thoughts. Steve reached under a pile of papers and saw Danny's face pop up on his screen.

"What's up Danny?" He asked as he answered.

"Are you planning on coming home anytime soon?" Danny replied, sounding a bit frazzled. In the background he could hear Makayla crying and Grace's shouting about something.

"Everything alright?" Steve dared to ask.

"No, everything is not alright because our daughters have been replaced by little demons and they are ganging up on me. Makayla is starting to teeth and Grace is…I don't know what her problem is but she's only serving to make things worse with the baby." Danny informed him, obviously frustrated.

Steve was glad they were having this conversation on the phone because the smile that he was currently sporting would have mostly like gotten him punched if his partner could have seen it. After they had adopted Makayla, Danny had started to refer to Grace as their daughter and it still made Steve smiled every time he heard it. Tucking away his file for the night, Steve stood and began to make his way out of the office. There were more important things that needed his attention at the moment.

"Alright, I'm on my way Danno."

It was no secret that Makayla was Steve's girl and when she got in one of her moods, he was the only one who could console her. It didn't really bother Danny because Grace had been and still was the same way with him. If anything he saw it as a good thing. Steve had been worried after Makayla was born that she wouldn't connect with him because he wasn't good with kids. Which had been true when they first met. Danny could still remember the elevator incident on their first case but Steve had changed since then (thanks in large part to Grace) and his awkwardness was all but gone.

"Babies respond to your behavior Steven. If you act confident with her then she'll be comfortable with you."

Danny had told him when they brought her home and once Steve was convinced he wasn't going to break Makayla, he had become a pro had taking care of her. And right now, Danny would do anything to have his partner's help.

He had left the office around 3pm to pick up Grace and it had become clear though after just a few minutes with Grace in the car that something wasn't right with his oldest daughter. She was upset about something and he had been determined to figure out what it was until he got home and was faced with yet another upset child.

Makayla was starting to teeth. She had already cut one tooth a few weeks ago and she had been nearly inconsolable for days when it happened. Two more were starting to break through now and it looked as if they were going to be in for a long weekend. Danny had known that Steve was planning to stay late that night to finish his report and he hadn't had a problem with it at the time. Dealing with the Governor was one of the things that Danny didn't envy about his partner's job and he had been prepared to deal with the girls on his own. That was before he realized that his sweet babies had been replaced with the devils incarnate. So by seven, Danny finally had to say 'uncle' and call Steve and practically beg him to come home.

When his partner walked through the door twenty minutes later, Danny didn't think he'd ever been so happy to see him. He had been in the kitchen attempting to put together something for dinner but had so far only succeeded in pulling out a random assortment of ingredients that sat forgotten on the counter as he retrieved another frozen ring for Makayla to suck on to try to ease some of her pain while she sobbed miserably on his shoulder. As he closed the freezer door, Danny caught sight of Steve entering the house and he sighed. His backup had finally arrived.

Steve quickly took the baby from Danny's arms and settled her against his chest before he leaned over to give his husband a quick but reassuring kiss.

"Has she been like this all night?" Steve asked as he gently bounced Makayla while trying to coax the frozen ring into her mouth.

"Vivie said she's been like this most of the day. She's got two new teeth coming in." Danny informed.

"Poor Mak." Steve cooed as he kissed the top of his daughter's head. "Where's Gracie?"

"I sent her upstairs." Danny sighed. "Something's got her all worked up and I could only deal with one crisis at a time." He felt bad that he hadn't sat down and talked with Grace about whatever was bothering her but it was hard to have a serious conversation with a screaming baby demanding attention too.

"Well I've got this one. Go on upstairs and talk to Gracie. She needs you now." Steve said as he gently swayed back and forth with Makayla.

"When did you get so good at all of this?" Danny joked as he ran a hand over Makayla's silky fine hair.

"I've had a good example to learn from." Steve smiled as his partner walked away.

By the time both Steve and Danny crawled into bed that night they were both exhausted and for the first time in a while it wasn't because of work. Steve had spent the rest of his night with Makayla as a permanent fixture in his arms until she finally cried herself to sleep about an hour ago. He had done everything he could think of to make his baby's pain go away. Eventually a combination of numbing gel on her gums and some baby Motrin seemed to finally make her feel a little bit better though she still remained clingy to him.

Danny had had his hands full dealing with Grace. Steve found it odd for the usually sweet tempered girl to be in such a foul mood. But after a lot of prodding and the use of bribery in the form of shave ice, Danny was finally able to get to the bottom of what was bothering his oldest. Apparently Rachel had made a promise to Grace that she would take her to some specialty doll store in New York for her birthday but now that she was pregnant, they weren't going to be able to go because Rachel wasn't going to be able to travel by the time Grace's birthday came around.

Being the father that he was, he couldn't stand to see the tears that were rolling down her face by the time he had gotten the truth out of her, so he did the only logical thing he could think of—he promised to take Grace to New York for her birthday. Of course, he realized that he needed to talk to Steve about all of this but Danny didn't really see it being a problem. Plus, Danny thought that the trip would be good for Grace. She had been an only child for eight years and now in the span of about a year, she suddenly had a baby sister with another sibling on the way. He didn't want her to feel forgotten or replaced by the babies so a trip with just the two of them probably wouldn't be a bad idea.

"You know, you and I make a pretty good pair." Danny commented as he pulled the blankets around him on the bed.

"I've always thought so, but why do you bring it up?" Steve asked, his eyes already closed.

"Well, we've always been a pair on the job because we balance each other out. You're insane, I'm rational. You're brawn, I'm brains—" Steve opened one eye to glare at him. "—but we also make a great pair as parents." Danny finished. Steve opened both eyes now and rolled over onto his side to face his partner.

"What makes you say that?"

"I don't know, I guess it's because we both understand that nothing about having kids is easy. I mean tonight is a perfect example. Both of our kids were being difficult and instead of ignoring the problems or getting frustrated by them, we worked together to fix the problems and make them feel better. Not all parents are like that." Danny said softly.

"No, they're not. But Danno, you and I have seen the mistakes that other parents—including our own—have made when it comes to their kids and so we're determined not to make the same ones." Steve stated.

Danny couldn't help but agree. If his parents had done for his sister what he did for Grace tonight, maybe things could have been different for her. He moved over closer to Steve and closed his eyes.

"You're a good father, Steve." Danny muttered as he drifted out. Steve smiled and kissed the top of his lover's head.

"It's all because of you, Danno. It's all because of you."