James closed the book he was holding, and put his arm around Clementine's shoulders. They were both sitting on her bed, she in the pajamas that were already getting a little small for her, he in his reading glasses and the hoodie she'd picked out for him at the secondhand store.

"One more story?" Clementine asked hopefully. Daddy had a swagger she'd never seen before, and she couldn't get enough of his reading voice. He did all the voices better than Mama.

"Another one?" James said, as if he just couldn't believe it. He was just putting on a show; of course he wanted to read her another. If he'd known, way back when, what a joy it would be just to sit in bed with her, reading stories, having her undivided attention...but he hadn't been ready way back when. He'd have to enjoy it now. "Alright," he said skeptically. "But if I see your eyelids droopin'..."

"I'll stay awake." Clementine promised.

"Okay. Which one do you wanna hear?"

"I want a new one."

"A new one? But I've read all of 'em, I'd have to make it up."

Clementine smiled and nodded. He was getting the idea, if slowly.

"A Daddy-o original, huh?"

"That's right, Daddy-o."

"Alright...once upon a time..." James began, because that's where you always began. Then he noticed someone at the door. Someone was hiding outside, trying to eavesdrop without being seen, but he could still see a lock of their blonde hair. A small smile passed across his face, and he began again. "Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess-"

"Does she live in a castle?"

"Excuse me, who's the one telling the story?"

"Well?" said Clementine, copying her father's indignance. "Does she?"

"No, she lives in a little yellow house, on an island, in the middle of the ocean where no one could ever find her except by accident."

"...Huh?" Clementine said, her face scrunched up in utter confusion.

"Just listen." said James. "So there's this princess, living on an island, and she's trapped there because this Napoleon with bushbaby eyes who thinks he's king wants to make her his queen."

"...What's a Napoleon?"

"It's a really short guy who tries to make up for his insecurities by controlling everyone around him."

"Okay..."

"Do you know what a bushbaby is?"

"Yeah, I seen one at the zoo."

"They're weird lookin', right?"

"Yeah, kind of..."

"Well this Napoleon wannabe looks weird too. And he's evil. Ya with me so far?"

"Nice princess, evil king guy. Got it."

Outside, Juliet put a hand to her mouth to cover her smile. Cassidy was on the other side of the door, eavesdropping along with her. It had been a month since they'd arrived and met Clementine for the first time, and it was James' last night to read Clementine a bed time story. They were flying back to Miami in the morning, but they were already making plans to come back, to move closer to James' family permanently. Juliet had talked it over with Rachel, and Rachel had agreed to think about switching coasts.

I said I'd never leave you two again. Juliet had said.

It's not the same as last time. Rachel reassured her. At least this time I'll be able to call, email and visit you. And who knows, I've been looking for an excuse to get Julian out of this crappy school district anyway, what better reason than family? I've heard they're friendly to my kind in San Francisco...

"Wait," said Clementine, interrupting her father for the millionth time. "If the princess thought the guy was so cute, why'd she lock him up?"

"Because," said James to his doubting daughter. "Some people just need to be locked up for a while. So they can appreciate what life truly has to offer."

Outside, Cassidy bit her lip to keep from laughing out loud. The man could still spin a tale, and it was still just enough of the truth to make a skeptic believe it.

"Daddy..." said Clementine. "Your stories are weird."

"Yeah," James sighed. "I probably should have thought this one through before I started telling it. How 'bout I start over?"

"I think that would be good." Clementine said, nodding to emphasize her point. "It can still be about the princess though. Just make her live in a castle this time."

"Alright." said James. "Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess..." He paused long enough to make Clementine worry, and right as she opened her mouth to give him his prompt, he continued. "And she lived in a great big castle." he said quickly, stealing the words right from her and making her giggle.

"Like Cinderella?" Clementine asked, just to make sure.

"Yeah. Like Cinderella. Cinderella, Rapunzel and Sleeping Beauty all rolled into one."

"Wow. That's a whole lotta princess."

James smiled. "Yer damn straight." he agreed.

"Language!" Cassidy whispered loudly from the hallway. Clementine giggled again. Her mother never told Aunt Kate to watch her language. There must be special rules for boys, she thought. Or maybe just for Daddy.

"Yer darn tootin'." James corrected himself carefully, taking a deep breath as he glanced at the empty doorway.

Cassidy and Juliet shared a smile, and Cassidy motioned with her head for Juliet to follow her out to the living room.

"Are you sure you can't stay another week?" Cassidy asked, her voice still hushed as they left the hallway.

Julie smiled apologetically, joining Cassidy on the couch when she sat down. Kate was curled up in one of the chairs in the living room, eyes closed and breathing evenly, with the television still on but muted. Juliet kept her voice down as well.

"I told James he should stay here while I go back to see Rachel." she said quietly. Her smile turned sheepish, joined by a stifled chuckle. "He won't let me travel alone."

"From what you've told me, it's not a bad idea for you two to stick together." said Cassidy. She smirked without malice. "He doesn't want to be away from you, even for a second. Lucky girl. I would've given my left arm for him to stay with me like that. 'specially after Clementine was born."

A sad smile accompanied Juliet's understanding nod. She wanted to tell Cassidy all about James' regret, but that was between them. All he could do now was move forward and use the future to make up for the past.

"Well," Cassidy said as she leaned back and draped her arms over her stomach. "Any way you cut it, we miss you already."

"We'll miss you too, Cassidy." said Juliet. "And we'll be back as soon as we can. I know James doesn't want to miss another minute with Clementine."

Cassidy nodded. "I see that. I don't know what you and Kate did to him, but Clementine and I are eternally grateful. He's what I wish he'd been 8 years ago. Better late than never, huh? If I were a lesser woman I might try to steal him from you."

"Don't." Kate murmured across the room, her voice a surprise to the women that believed her to be fast asleep until that moment. "She'll flip you over her shoulder before you even make a move."

Cassidy turned, missing the slight coloring of Juliet's cheeks and also missing the truth of Kate's statement as she stared open mouthed at her best friend.

"You are such a faker." said Cassidy, scolding her like she scolded Clementine when she lied about brushing her teeth.

With her eyes still closed, Kate smiled. "Sorry," she said, the sweetness a total act. "Did you think I was asleep?"

"You get me every damn time, I swear." Cassidy marveled.

Kate gave a smug little chuckle at that, and then she shifted her head and lazily opened her eyes so she could look at the other two. "Is he still reading to her?" she asked them.

"They ran out of books," said Cassidy. "But he's still tellin' stories."

Kate's smile deepened. "He's good at that, isn't he?" she asked sarcastically, already knowing Cassidy's answer to that question. Kate shifted her gaze and made eye contact with Juliet, who had been subtly watching Kate since she'd spoken up. They smiled faintly at each other. There was still a distance between them, but it was polite. The ice was melting, slowly but surely. Nobody in the house - except for Clementine, still young and blissfully ignorant - had any illusions about Juliet and Kate ever being the best of friends, but at least now they had an understanding. Understanding was the first part of friendship, and perhaps the most important for them. They both knew where they stood, in James' life and in Clementine's, and that was the most important thing of all.

Just as the dashing prince was saving the beautiful princess from a rain of flaming arrows, Clementine nodded off for the fourth and final time. James would have to save the rest of the fantastic tale for another time. He felt the weight of her little head as it rested against his arm. He looked down at her, at his daughter's face. He saw Cassidy in some of her features. She had Cassidy's eyes, and their smiles looked exactly the same. She had her mother's feisty attitude, but that could be attributed to nurture as well as nature.

James didn't remember the faces of his own parents very well. It was easier for him not to. When he looked at his daughter's face, however, he could see some of his family's features. He saw it in the bridge of Clementine's nose. He saw it in the shape of her cheeks when she smiled Cassidy's smile. She had the tiniest dimples, if you looked close enough. He'd been looking, since the first time he saw her running across the school yard. When he looked at Clementine, when he looked around her bedroom and sat around her house and saw all the things Cassidy had acquired and done for their little girl, James knew Clementine was on the right track. James couldn't help thinking, when he looked at Juliet and at the new chance life had suddenly given him to do right by himself, by his woman and by his family, that his presence in Clementine's life could only help her along. At the same time, James knew life had a way of going its own way, no matter how hard he tried, and no matter how much he wished it could be different. Things were good now, they were looking better and better every day, but there was no way of knowing what tomorrow would bring. He could only hope and do his best to make sure Clementine was prepared to take life's tumbles. He didn't want her to go through even a fraction of what he'd been through. There were safer ways of finding peace with oneself.

"You listen to your Daddy." James whispered to the sleeping girl beside him. "You're allowed to look like us," he said. "But you're not allowed to grow up like us, ya hear?"

Clementine didn't answer. She remained asleep, already deep into dreamland as she breathed through her open mouth. James reached over and, with a tender touch, pushed up on her chin with one finger. Her mouth stayed closed for a few seconds, and then it slowly fell open again. James chuckled. He felt the amusement deep in his belly, and he felt the love fill his entire heart.

"You're gonna snore like your mama too, ain't ya?"

Right on cue, Clementine breathed in through her nose and made a sound that reminded him of a wild boar. It made him grin - the sound, the comparison, the fact that she was almost drooling on him. He knew he would be able to relieve the stress on her nasal passages if he laid her down properly in her bed. It was a shame to move, to leave his daughter's side at all, but she needed her rest. She had school tomorrow, and Daddy wasn't going to be there to tuck her in the following night.

So James sat up, careful not to move too fast, and he got Clementine to lie down on her side with her head on her pillow. The snoring stopped. She closed her mouth, and she grabbed hold of the teddy bear next to her, still warm from James' back since he'd been leaning against it for hours. James watched her for a few more minutes, unable to take his eyes off of her.

"You're gonna have a better life." he murmured aloud. That was his promise to her. He'd been orphaned, left alone when he was right around his daughter's age. He'd lost two parents, and now Clementine was gaining one. He'd missed eight years already, but he wasn't going to miss any more. He was a father now, and thanks to the three women waiting for him in the living room he was ready for it.

In the motel that night, James laid back on the bed with his arms folded behind his head. He watched Juliet as she brushed her hair and put the last of her clothes in her suitcase so she wouldn't have to pack as much in the morning. James felt the smile on his face, reflecting what he felt inside whenever he watched Juliet do mundane things like brush her hair and move her clothes around a bedroom. It was better than anything on television, especially when she was wearing only a tank top and her underwear.

He couldn't believe it had only been two months since they remembered. The memories of their other life, the years they'd spent together on the island, were dominating his mind, and they made it hard to believe there had ever been any other version of events. The memories of the years they'd spent apart were so much less important now. They faded, distant and gray, while the time they'd spent together became more vibrant and immediate, helped along by the time they were spending together now.

It was so easy for them to be together, and being together just made life so damn easy.

"Juliet."

She stopped packing and turned to him with an expectant look on her face. He waited just a second before speaking, and he was smiling that smile of his so she already knew it would be something good.

"I'll pack for you in the morning if you stop what you're doing and come to bed."

Juliet's face transformed. She smiled, deep and pretty, and her eyes sparkled with the same love contained in James' offer. He just wanted to hold her, and he wanted to hold her now.

"I'm done packing." she said as she flipped the top of the suitcase over the pile she'd just stuck in it. "But thanks for offering."

"Anything for you, baby."

"Anything to get me in bed." Juliet said with a teasing smirk. She loved the way his eyes followed as she walked toward him and the bed. He couldn't help it with that outfit.

"I like a little icing on my cake." James admitted, his own smile deepening as the level of suggestion rose. "I've never denied that."

Juliet sat on the edge of the bed and twisted her upper body so she could look at him. "The cake being...?" she asked, just as he moved one of his hands from under his head so he could touch his fingers to her thigh.

"Doing whatever I can to make you happy." said James.

"You make me happy." said Juliet. "Just being here with me." She lifted her leg, the one he was touching, onto the bed and leaned toward him, so she could kiss him. "You make me so happy." she whispered, right before their lips touched. He moved his other hand and held the side of her head, brushing her cheek with his thumb, cradling her jaw with his fingers. Juliet pulled back, looked into his eyes, and then kissed him again. James smiled softly after her second kiss, and his thumb followed the same path across her cheek that it always did.

"You ready to climb under these covers and get a good night's sleep?" he asked.

"With you?"

"Yeah, with me."

"Absolutely." said Juliet, with the utmost confidence. James liked that a lot. He grinned and made her laugh when he put both arms around her to pull her down, closer to him. He made room for her, and she settled in. Juliet curled up on her side and pulled his arm over her waist. James held her close, real close, and he sighed quietly and contentedly when Juliet laced her fingers with his. They both laid there and felt the other's bodies against their own, and like the very first time they'd laid like that together, they were thinking of how lucky they were, and how happy they were going to be.

"Baby?" James said quietly.

"What is it?" she replied softly.

"Let's get married." he said.

Juliet grinned and squeezed her hand around his. She'd already agreed to it on the cross country car trip. The quiet excitement in his voice when he said it made her want to agree to it all the time.

"We will." she insisted. She leaned her head back, and he pressed the side of his face against hers.

"I wanna put a ring on your finger." he said. "And I wanna find a little yellow house to keep you in, with a bedroom for Clementine to stay in when she spends the night."

Juliet closed her eyes and pictured it, all of it. She was smiling so hard it made her cheeks hurt.

"And maybe she'll call you Step-Mom."

Juliet groaned. "I'd rather she call me Juliet." she said, making James smile and squeeze her waist.

"Alright, she'll call you Juliet." he said. "And she'll love you, and she'll look up to you. And maybe...maybe after a few years, we can have some babies of our own."

Juliet's heart skipped a beat. That one was new. She turned her head, shifting her body so she could look into James' eyes. He looked back at her, and she could see he was serious.

"Is that what you want?" she asked him.

"That's what I want." he answered. "But only if you want it too. I know you already got more than you signed up for, with a step-kid and all-"

"James." Juliet interrupted him, gentle as always.

"Yeah, baby?"

"I don't think I have an answer for that right now."

"Hey," James said, his tone shifting to one of calm and gentle reassurance. "I don't need an answer right now. And if you never have one, that's okay too. It's just...an hour ago I was sitting in bed, reading to my little girl, and it felt good. It felt really good. And I think about what it must have been like, what she looked like when she was just a baby..."

James trailed off, and Juliet remained silent, allowing him to think about what he was saying.

"Listen to me." he said. "You must think a pod person came down and took over my body."

Juliet shook her head. "No." she murmured. It didn't sound crazy to her at all. She knew exactly what was going on. She remembered the way his face used to look, back when they'd lay in bed and talk about about how they'd never meet Clementine or Julian, and how they'd have to be okay with that, that they were okay with that, as long as they had each other. She looked over his face now, and she saw a light in his eyes that she'd never seen before. It made her smile.

"You're happy." she said.

"Of course I'm happy." said James. He tightened his embrace, and kissed her on the cheek. "I got you."

"That's part of it..."

"The biggest part." James insisted.

Juliet twisted her body so that she could fully face him. James adjusted his arm, keeping it draped over her waist. He looked into her clear blue eyes. They were the clearest he'd ever seen, because they could read him, and he could read her. Even when her eyes were clouding over with worry like they were in this particular moment, he could read her.

"I know how important this is for you." she explained. "Being a part of her life."

"And I know Rachel and Julian are a big part of yours."

Juliet sighed sweetly, and she touched the side of James' face. "I feel like we got everything we ever wanted." said Juliet, as her eyes wandered down, past his mouth. Her gaze followed the trail that her hand was taking, down to his chest and over his shoulder. "Our family...each other..."

"You thinkin we shouldn't ask for anything more?" James guessed, though it wasn't really a guess. He knew her too well for guessing.

"I still get worried sometimes." said Juliet. Her eyes found his again, and she gave him a half smile. "You know?"

"I know." said James. "I get worried too. It just reminds me that I gotta live in the moment. Every moment I have with you..."

The rest of that thought was lost in a kiss when Juliet suddenly closed the distance between them. She pressed her lips against his, and she felt his arm squeeze her waist until their bodies were pressed tight against one another. She kissed him hard, and when they parted a moment later, James smirked.

"You trying to shut me up?" he teased.

"No." she said, smiling sheepishly. "I actually allowed myself to picture it again, and I realized-"

"Again?" said James, too surprised by what that implied to not interrupt her mid-sentence.

"Yeah, again." she confirmed. "I used to daydream about it all the time."

"Well ain't that somethin'." James murmured. He smiled, stroked her back and tried to keep any teasing to a minimum. "And what do you see when you picture us having a baby?"

"I see..." Juliet began slowly. She set her hand on his chest, and traced the faded letters on his t-shirt. "A beautiful, healthy baby..." She paused before the next part, glancing up at him with a smirk. "Conceived in a very natural way..."

"I've always loved your attention to detail."

The comment that James snuck in made her chuckle, but she continued without formally acknowledging it. "With two parents that love each other and work so well together that even a hydrogen bomb can't keep them apart..."

"...And? Is this the part where we live happily ever after or do I sense a 'but' in our future?"

"Well...the thing about these parents is they are both broke and jobless, relying completely on the kindness and generosity of those families they were so desperate to get back to."

"Ah." James tilted his head back as he realized what Juliet was getting at. "For now." he added to her thoughts.

"For now." she agreed.

"That's why they're going to take their time with it, not rush into things. They'll figure out the situation soon enough."

"Will they?" asked Juliet.

"Well," said James, echoing her style. "The thing about these parents is, the universe wanted 'em together so bad that even in a world where they were never supposed to meet, they found their way back to each other."

"And this solves the problem of their financial stability...how, exactly?"

"It doesn't." James said simply. "But I'd rather be broke and raising a baby with you than rich and alone."

He pulled her into a hug, and Juliet smiled. She snuck her arms around his waist, and they tucked their heads over each other's shoulders.

"What I mean is, we'll find a way to make it work. We always do. Besides, I didn't mean to make you worry about all that." said James. "I'm not in a rush. I'm just excited to start a life with you. And what happened before, it doesn't matter." James pulled his head back, and cradled her head in his hand. "Everything I did before this-"

"It doesn't matter." said Juliet. She looked into his eyes, all the way into his soul, and she told him not to think about the women and the money and the pain. He was quickly reassured. He nodded, content that Juliet was also at peace.

"That'll go on the back burner." he said of the baby talk. "Better yet, back in the cupboard. Until you're ready, how 'bout that?"

"Sounds good to me." said Juliet.

"How 'bout we talk about something we are ready for. What kind of wedding you want?"

Juliet smiled, faintly at first. It grew bigger the more she thought about it, and though her gaze wandered again, to somewhere only she could see in her mind's eye, James could see the glimmer there, something that amused and excited her as she had another daydream.

"I have a few ideas." she said. The way she said it, and the way she looked at him afterward; he couldn't wait to hear them all.