"Are you going to stand in the doorway or has Annabelle sent you here for-"

"She doesn't know I'm here," he interrupted through a whisper. "She told me to clean the stables."

A smile crossed her lips as she turned her head from her children, who at last sleeping in their small beds. From the smell that filled the room, she knew he had done as he was told, but instead of going back for his next command, he came to her. "I'm sure they're cleaner than they've ever been." He grinned at her response, making her smile widen. "Do you want to sit with us?"

"Would it be alright?" he questioned, but she knew he didn't only mean for her.

"I'm sure she would understand." Pulling the extra chair closer to her, she tapped the top, motioning him to come and sit beside her. "Here, you don't have to stay long."

Sitting down, he leaned forward and stared down at the sleeping children. "She looks like you."

"And she, looks like you. Just like you said they would."

"Her name?"

"I don't know," Kahlan replied honestly. "I can't decide and... It doesn't feel right doing it on my own."

"You liked Katy."

"Did you?"

"It's nice."

She nearly laughed, but stopped herself when she realized it would wake their daughters. "Nice? When we discussed it, you said that you could never name your daughter-..." She let her sentence fade into silence; remember that he wasn't her Richard.

"Jade," he stated after a moment, his eyes coming to hers.

Before either could form a single thought, she closed the distance between them and connected their lips, momentarily forgetting he was in love with another woman. When the knowledge swept through her, she started to pull back, but hesitated. It had been far too long since their lips had touched, she didn't want it to end. She waited another second, savored the feeling and then without warning, broke their connection.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have kissed you. You- you should probably go back to Annabelle." Saying the other woman's name made her want to cry, forcing her to swallow back the sound as she held her Confessor's face and hid her emotions. "She'll begin to wonder what happened to you." Nodding, the Seeker stood and turned his back to her and walked to the door without a word. "Richard," she said as he touched the doorknob, bringing his attention back to her. "I like Jade."

******

Running her tongue over her lips, she tried to remember the taste of his. It had been three weeks since she had missed him and his flavor had long left her. Jade was the first to awake each day, seeming to want a little extra time with her mother before her twin sister began cry. She made Kahlan think of Richard, something she was both grateful and saddened by, but each time her tiny hand wrapped around her finger, all thoughts were thrown away. Shifting her arms, she rolled her shoulders to keep them from stiffening as the small baby fed in silence.

Sighing heavily, she looked to the door as it opened, Richard's face instantly appearing. "Hi."

"Is Elizabeth still sleeping?"

Smiling, the mother nodded, looking back to the dozing child. "She's so peaceful when she's asleep."

He couldn't stop the laugh that left his lips, stepping closer as the sound melted the woman's heart. Elizabeth had come into her own personality rather quickly, crying often when she wasn't being held and always making sure others knew she was there. Other than the morning, Kahlan found it difficult to spend time with Jade, but after several days, Richard began showing up again, asking to spend more time with their family, usually taking an already crying Elizabeth into his arms and rocking her gently until she quieted and stared up at him in wonder. The Mother Confessor wondered if the child as she did and was only truly comforted when he was near.

"She likes to be noticed."

"She doesn't have to worry about that," the brunette laughed as he poked his head over the top of the young girl's bed. "You've been keeping a close eye on her."

"Is that wrong?" he asked quickly, looking over to her for a moment.

"No. It's nice; I'm sure she appreciates it as much as I do."

As he opened his mouth to reply, the blanket wiggled, silently announcing that the baby as now awake. Before she had a chance to cry, her father lifted her into his arms and brought her to his chest in a gentle hug.

"Switch with me?" she asked softly as Jade finished feeding.

"Yes, I'm sorry."

"Sometimes I wonder if she knows when Elizabeth wakes up." A part of her expected him to make a remark about how they were twins and could probably see through each other's eyes, but that would only come from 'her' Richard and that was not who sat beside her. Instead, he only nodded, leaving her feeling more let down than she would admit.

***

Cara rolled her eyes as she took one of the small children into her arms, half annoyed that the Mother Confessor had asked for her help. It was she who would come to when Richard returned to Annabelle's side, she being one of the few people Kahlan trusted more than anyone. In truth, she though the Mord'Sith part of the family and with Richard gone, she needed someone with her.

"Didn't they give you something to hold this in?" the blonde asked as she held Jade at arm's length.

"It won't hurt you to have a little human contact, Cara," Kahlan teased with a wide grin. "She won't hurt you."

"Of course not, it's too small to cause damage."

Laughing, the Mother Confessor pushed her shoulder against her friend's. "Give her a few years and you'll change your mind."

"It's unlikely," Cara said, cuddling the child closer to her chest as they began walking through the garden.

They hadn't been able to walk the grounds for fear of attack, but she needed the distraction and the scent of the trees, anything to remind her of him. With the blonde at her side, she knew there was nothing to worry about and a few moments comfort was all she needed.

"Cara," the brunette started softly. "I need to ask something of you." The rolling of her friends eyes told her to continue, but she knew she wouldn't like it. "When they come, I- I need you to take them from here."

"What?"

"I trust you and I know- Please, Cara?"

"No."

"Cara-"

With a heavy sigh of annoyance, the Mord'Sith stopped walking. "I'm not running away from a decent fight with these things."

"You're all I have, Cara. If you don't do this, we all die. Our children, the only piece of him I have left- I can't lose them too. Cara, please."

******

She came to him, the need to see him overshadowing everything else. Knocking on his door, she waited anxiously as she heard him walk across the room. Annabelle had told her where he would be, where he had been and where he had asked to stay. When he opened the door, he almost smiled at the sight of her face, sending chills throughout both of their bodies.

"Hi," he whispered. "Is something wrong?"

"No, I- I just wanted- needed to see you again. Is that alright?"

Nodding, he stepped aside, allowing her to enter his bedroom. "Of course. Elizabeth and Jade?"

"They're with Cara," Kahlan replied with a soft laugh. "It was easier to convince her to watch them than I thought." She stopped halfway across the room and looked back to him. "Are you alright?"

"Fine."

"You may not be confessed to me, but I still know when you're lying." Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she looked up at him as he closed the door and turned to face her completely. "Are you worried about what might happen to Annabelle?"

"No. I- I don't know what I'm feeling." His voice was soft, confused and filled with sorrow. "I can't think straight."

"What are you thinking about?"

"You," he said simply. "My Mistress, Elizabeth, Jade... You. I- I know I'm disappointing her and I can't bare it, but I can't stop. I push the thoughts away, but they run back to me. I see the way she looks at me, she's not angry, but- I don't understand what's happening."

"I'm sorry, Richard."

"No, don't- Why are you sorry? Do you know what's wrong with me?"

A frown settled onto her lips, her brow creasing as her head shook. "No, but I've tried to understand it myself. I want to believe that a part of you remembers us. But I'm only kidding myself. You- You love Annabelle."

"Then why do I feel this way about you?"

"What way?"

"I dream of you, of us." Richard walked passed her, stopping a few feet away in front of his wash station, his right index finger circling the bowl of cool water. "I can feel you with me sometimes. Like you're lying beside me, but you're not. And when you kissed me- when I kissed you, I- It didn't feel wrong. I know it was, I am not yours, but I liked it." He was saying something that wasn't possible. There should be no way he could feel anything for someone other than his Confessor and he should not enjoy kissing another woman. "I want so badly to kiss you again."

"Then kiss me," she said before thought. Even if she had given it a moment, she knew she would have said the same. Their kiss had been on her mind for some time and she would give anything to feel his lips against hers again. Their eyes met, silence smothering them as he seemed to think. Standing, the Mother Confessor swallowed. "I shouldn't have come."

He rushed after her, grabbing her arm to spin her around to face him. Touching his the fingertips of his left hand to her cheek, he stepped in close, their bodies now a breath part. "Please don't go."

"Richard..."

His eyes were moving slowly over her face, taking in all of her features. She was beautiful and each time he saw her, she was even more so and his Mistress was gradually being lost in his mind's eye. Her skin was soft, whispering to his fingertips and begging them not to let her go. Leaning forward he pressed his lips to hers and ever so gently, pulled her into his arms. She returned the kiss in full, but kept her arms at her sides, not wanting to push this too far. When he took another step forward and pressed his body against hers, she lost all control.

Pushing forward, she grabbed his face and parted her lips, allowing his tongue to run into hers. The low moan he released set her on fire, reminding her of a time when they were perfect. Richard was walking them backward, leading her to his bed as he had imagined doing for several days. She allowed him to lower her onto the blankets, their lips never parting as he laid over her. Sliding his hands down her sides, he began lifting her dress, wanting to feel more of her skin. Abandoning her mouth, he began kissing over her jaw and down her neck, his tongue gliding over the flesh before sucking a small portion into his mouth.

He almost stopped, afraid that he had gone too far, but when she softly moaned his name, he pushed onward. From the way she pushed up against him, he knew she was just as excited and it thrilled him beyond imagining. Making quick work of the laces on her dress, he opened the white fabric and stopped. She wasn't wearing her corset, her breasts too big to be held by it and the sight made him impossibly hard.

Their clothes were removed quickly, tossed from the bed as their bodies entangled. His lips covered her body, being sure not to miss a single spot. Her stomach had returned to its taut form, maybe even more firm than before and just as he had admired it before, his love for the area grew wild.

A part of her mind screamed for her to stop him, that it wasn't really him, but the rest of her whispered beneath it all. It told her that he was there, trying to break free and get back to her, this was her only chance. She believed it, the way he held her, kissed and... It was so much like Richard, she had to believe it was true. He spent an amazing amount of time on her stomach, leaving that part of her to tell her that it was because she had held his children there and the last time she had been with him, they were still within her.

Her fingers were wound into his hair, pulling, pushing and holding him still while her head pushed back onto the bed and she moaned in pleasure. Making another trip down her stomach, he dipped his tongue into her bellybutton, pausing as her fingers tightened their hold. He seemed to thrive off of her reactions, pleased each time she softly begged him not to stop. Abandoning his hold on her hips, he hurried his hands over her, setting, a little roughly, at her breasts. She pushed into his hold at once, her own hands leaving his head to join his, keeping them in place as his head and kisses moved lower. The once quiet whimpers of pleasure were quickly replaced by a loud moan that echoed throughout the room, the sounds made it nearly impossible for him continue.

Crawling back up her body, he connected their lips, pushing down against her in an attempt to be as close as possible. She was too far away; he hated it. Wrapping his arms around her, he tired to mold their bodies together, but no matter how hard he tried, she was still too far away. Her body shifted beneath him, making him afraid that he had hurt her. Rolling them over, he opened his eyes and watched her sit up and looked down at him. Her eyes were dark, her magic hanging on by a thread and he couldn't help but fell that, in this moment, he was as close to her as he would ever be.

Trailing two fingers down her chest, he watched her face, needing to never take his eyes off of her again. "Kahlan..."

Speaking her name seemed to shake her, bringing her to question what they were doing. "Richard, I..." She couldn't complete her sentence, the view of him beneath her making it all clear. Leaning forward, she gave him a light kiss, letting her lips linger for a second before she moved off of him. "I'm sorry. I can't do this with you, not while you're like this..." She expected him to try to change her mind or ask her to leave, but he didn't. Sitting up, he pulled the blankets from beneath him and slowly folded them over, covering her naked body. "Thank you." It was all she could think to say, her mind still imagining being with him.

Pacing beside the bed, Richard watched her, trying to figure out what to do next. His body was still anticipating hers and he gave no effort to hide it. "Would you mind laying with me?"

"Are you sure?" he questioned softly.

"Yes." As he crawled onto the bed, Kahlan pushed the blanket from her body and moved closer to him. Resting her head on his shoulder, she cuddled to his side. "I'm sorry, Richard."

"Me too."

She could feel his still thriving body against hers and her hand moved at once. Running her hand down his stomach, she took hold of his manhood and slowly, very slowly, began stoking. His eyes slid closed, his mind trapped between focusing on her touch and her quiet whispers. The warmth of her breath on his ear was just as pleasurable as her hand on him. Both actions, he wished would never end. His release took over and as she had prayed for, it was her name that left his lips.

Opening his eyes, he reached down and grabbed her hand, holding it still as he sucked in a large gulp of air. Her lips were still on his ear, making it almost impossible for him to think. Turning his head, he said her name once more and waited for her to bring her eyes to his. It took a few seconds, but at last, she brought her ocean blues to his forest brown.

"Spirits, Kahlan," he said after what seemed to be hours of silence. "I..." His eyes closed as his words trailed off into the air, leaving them in the quiet again.

When he reopened his eyes, she lunged forward, taking hold of his face for a better look. "Richard?"

Bringing her closer, he connected their lips. "I wasn't sure it would work."

"I don't understand. What happened? How-?"

"You." The word left his mouth as though it was the answer to all of life's problems and he had known all along. "I could never be hers, not when everything I am belongs to you. I- I just needed to make myself remember."

"What?"

Grinning, he returned her to her back and leaned over her. "I could feel you, I could feel us and once I started to remember what it was, I wanted it back. I needed it back, but nothing I did... It had to be you. You had to make me yours again."

"But I didn't-"

"I'm not yours through your magic, Kahlan," he said with a wide smile. "When you kissed me, I felt it. I could feel her hold on me slipping away and when I saw you at my door, the same look in your eyes as you always have... You held me to you like I was still me and I- you brought me back."

Touching the side of his face, she stroked her thumb across his cheek. "How long will this last?"

"I don't feel her anymore, Kahlan. She's still alive and I can't feel any of her magic within me. I feel you; I feel everything that is of you. I'm finally whole."

With a slow and gentle motion, he leaned forward and kissed her cheeks, removing the tears that had begun to fall. When her face was nearly dry, he shifted their positions, bringing her on top of him so that his arms could enfold around her in a hug. After a moment, she felt his breath quicken and she lifted her head to look upon his face. "Richard?"

His eyes were damp and he was now clinging tightly to her. "I missed you."