We have a bit of drama, humor, fluff and squee! Enjoy and let me know how ya feel!

Hunter sat down on a deserted bench at Greenwich Point Beach. He sighed heavily and tried to make himself comfortable. In reality, he was quite fucking uncomfortable. He did not want to be here.

Well, actually he loved this beach. He'd been here with Stephanie and/or the kids too many times to count. Even the one time he'd come to this beach with Howard had been enjoyable, barring the fact that he was having marital problems and his brother kept trying to get him to assist in talking to random, slutty women.

Actually, maybe that trip wasn't so damn enjoyable now that he was thinking about it.

"I knew you'd hit me up again."

Hunter spared Howard an annoyed glance as a greeting. Verbally, he remained silent and simply watched his twin plop down next to him.

"This seems a little bit sketchy. Like we're making a drug deal or something," the younger twin quipped.

Hunter shrugged. "I don't want you in my house and I don't feel like talking at a bar."

Howard tossed his head back and laughed loudly. "Oh, come on! Does it really have to be like that?"

"Unless you manage to show me you're not a shit-starting asshole with the hots for my woman, yes. You're damn right that's how it's gonna be."

With a roll of his eyes, Howard turned to stare out over the water. At this rate, the chances of them having at least a clean slate weren't great. Being on actual good terms seemed improbable. But perhaps not totally impossible. He just had a long way to go to get there.

"What?" Hunter asked. "No smart-ass reply?"

Howard looked at her brother fully. He shook his head a little bit and answered, "No. I deserve that."

With narrowed eyes, Hunter considered an appropriate response. This marked the first time that Howard had actually taken responsibility for anything that he'd done. To be honest, he hadn't even thought that it was possible. Surely, Howard's head was shoved so far up his ass that he couldn't even tell if it was day or night.

Perhaps he'd underestimated the guy a little. He still wasn't fond of him…but this was a start. Maybe. "So what your grand plan?"

"I want us to do a major road trip to find our parents."

"Wait, what?" Hunter asked. If that wasn't the stupidest thing he'd ever heard, he didn't know what was. Road trip? Why? He'd be damned if he got dragged all across the country stuck in the same vehicle as Howard. Judging by their history, he was almost certain to kill Howard.

Unfazed, Howard reached into his duffel bag and pulled out a wad of papers. Hunter pressed his fingers to his temples, already frustrated with this endeavor.

"I did some research, printed out the information for every Roy Helmsley and Stella Michaud in this country."

"How many are there?" Hunter asked. Maybe he'd finally lost his mind…because his interest was actually piqued for some reason.

"I only got 6 hits for Roy. 14 for Stella. That's just for 'Murica, though. Helmsley is technically an English last name."

"And Michaud?"

"French-Canadian," Howard told him with a small smirk. "The translation of that one has something to do with being drunk."

"You are your mother's son, whoever she is," Hunter deadpanned.

As much as he wanted to insult his brother right back, Howard refrained. The calmer and more peaceful things stayed, the sooner he would reach his goals. "What can I say? I'm a momma's boy."

"So, we've got 20 people total. Do any of these Stella and Roy's live together?"

"Nope."

Hunter shrugged. He had a feeling that would be the answer. From what studies suggested, it was rare that a loving, stable couple gave their kid up for adoption. If it turned out his parents had been and were still married, he'd probably have fainted from shock. "Wishful thinking."

"The Stella's are pretty much on the East coast and down south. The Roy's are Midwest and West coast. And keep in mind that's just what I pulled from the listings. I'm sure there's more that aren't listed.

"And you want to do a road trip to all these places?" Hunter asked for clarification.

Howard shrugged. "Yeah, we can start on the east, zip to the Midwest, down to the south and save the west coast for last. That's if we even need to hit all those places. If we find each parent earlier in the trip, we can stop."

"Howard," Hunter said slowly. "I'm not doing that shit."

"Why not?"

"You want us to drive for…basically months." It was a whole hell of a lot of work for possibly little benefit. And it would be more time-consuming than Hunter was willing to accept. He had a wife and kids who needed him at home, not joyriding across the country on what could be a wild goose chase. "I won't leave my family behind for that long."

"You're finding your parents, dude. I'm sure they'll understand."

Now, he was becoming agitated. Howard simply didn't seem to grasp the concept of family. Perhaps if Hunter was without responsibilities and didn't often want to strangle Howard, he'd be open to it. But that wasn't the case. He had a wife, kids and a job to do. He'd been fine taking an extended leave of absence to repair things with Stephanie a few years ago. He knew exactly what they were working towards and why. But this? If they even found their parents, the people might want nothing to do with them. "No, they won't! Even I won't understand why we'd go about this in the slowest way possible. I really don't think you've thought this through."

"Yes, I have and this is the best way!"

"How?"

"What, you want to take a plane to each city? We'd have to rent a car or take taxis everywhere, in addition to hotel fees and shit. We'd blow a ton of money."

Hunter nodded slowly. "Oh, I see. So you'd rather drive to 20 states, having to stop at a different hotel each night, burning up tons of gas and putting a crazy amount of miles on one car. That makes perfect sense," he remarked sarcastically.

"It'll still come out to be cheaper. We don't need to stay in a damn resort. Just get some cheap shit."

"I'm not staying in a roach motel, Howard."

"Well excuse the hell out of me for not having extra money to flush down the toilet, like you!"

A frustrated sigh escaped Hunter. This wasn't going to become an argument over money. Especially not since Howard was talking out of his ass instead of presenting anything even remotely factual. "It's not even gonna be cheaper. Have you actually done the figures? Plotted a route? Figured out what hotels we'd stay at along the way? "

Howard bristled and ignored the burning sensation in his cheeks. "Uhh…"

Amused, Hunter shook his head. Jesus, what genes did Howard pick up from their parents? Clearly, being born first had given Hunter the advantage: he'd taken the brains for himself and left Howard with…whatever was in his head. "Have you even gone through your list of potentials and ruled out people who are too young or too old?"

"I – well, I thought we could do that as a team! Go team!" Howard chirped enthusiastically, giving his brother a good-natured punch on the arm.

"All right. So of the many reasons why a road trip is a terrible idea, the fact that I'm not positive you're mentally intact can be added to the list. I can't have you planning things."

Howard twisted his lips in consideration before he spoke. "As rude as that was, if that means you want to do the figuring and that other boring shit, fine. I still want to road trip it."

Stephanie heard Hunter's truck entering the garage. Yet somehow, she barely had time to check on the food in the oven before the man was somehow in the kitchen.

"Hey baby."

Stephanie's eyes softened with her concern for him. He didn't look happy or even neutral. Of course he was still ridiculously sexy…but she could tell that he was tired. Emotionally drained, to be more specific. And was it any little wonder? She knew perfectly well that he'd reached a decision about his parents. His choice hadn't come easy, especially when it involved reaching out to Howard on the matter. They'd met today after work and judging by his weary expression, he hadn't fancied the talk all that much. "Hey," she replied, reaching out to hold his hand. "How'd it go?"

Hunter glanced around the large space of their kitchen and peeked past her into the living and dining rooms. "Where are the kids?"

"Upstairs."

"Good. I'll try to make it quick. I don't want them to overhear."

"Okay." Stephanie leaned up and kissed him quickly. Mostly, she'd done that because he probably needed the affection. It was good to remind him that he had someone that truly loved him, with no ulterior motives or strings attached. Of course he already knew that…but particularly after what was likely a horrible, disappointing conversation with his twin, she just wanted to make that clear again.

"Basically, Howard wants to take a road trip to find our parents."

"You've found them already?" Stephanie asked, with a beaming smile. "Baby, that's great!"

"Ah, not exactly. Howard pulled up about 20 people in total, whose names match our birth parents."

"Okay, not so great."

"They all live in different states," he continued.

"Getting worse…"

"And both surnames originate in other countries. Plus, Howard only looked up those that were listed publicly. There may be more."

Stephanie's mouth was parted in slight confusion while she tried to process the absurdity. "What in – how the hell are you guys gonna take a road trip if you don't even know who you're going to see?"

Hunter took the wad of names and addresses out of his back pocket and tossed it to the kitchen table. "Idiot wants us to visit every potential in that."

"Didn't you say they all live in different states?"

"Uh huh."

"Okay…" she began, still a little baffled on the details and how a road trip was even a remote consideration. "Is it going to be multiple road trips?"

"Nope. One big ass trip across the entire country, pretty much."

"Oh." So, if Hunter agreed to Howard's plan, they'd be physically separated for who knows how long. She would never stand in the way or give him shit over something this huge. She'd just have to miss him terribly while he was gone and hope the trip was worth it in the end. Truthfully, she really did want Hunter to find some relatives. More variety and familial support was always a good thing. She'd love to see his excitement over finding a family member that wasn't an asshole.

"I'm not going," Hunter suddenly said.

Stephanie snapped out of her thoughts and looked at him. "What? But you told me you wanted to find your family."

Hunter reached out to run his finger down the dent in her chin. "I already have."

She cracked a genuine smile, but still said, "That's not what I meant and you know it."

"I know. I also know I'm not okay with leaving you and the kids for who-the-fuck-knows- how long to run around searching for people I've lived almost 40 years without knowing."

"I'll be fine with the-"

"I know. I'm saying I won't be fine without them. Or you."

"Hunter," she said, placing both of her hands on his cheeks. "This won't be an actual separation. We can talk on the phone often, do the webcam thing like last time and-"

"Last time?" He questioned. "Last time fucking sucked! And that was just a couple of weeks. This could be months. I don't want to go," he added stubbornly and removed her hands from his face. "Why are you trying to talk me into it?" He questioned loudly.

"Because I love you!"

Stephanie's sudden outburst took them both aback. Hunter had no idea why that declaration upset her so much. And Stephanie, it seemed, could no longer deny her innermost feelings. They were terrible, insecure feelings that she always managed to talk herself out of. This time, it seemed that was not to be the case.

Hunter chewed his lip in silence and watched her compose herself for a few moments. "What was that?"

With her cheeks burning in embarrassment, she lowered her head and stared at the floor. "It's stupid."

Hunter grabbed her face in his hands and gently lifted until she was looking at him again. "If something is hurting you, I want – no, I need to know about it."

"I did this to myself, really," she uttered with a self-depreciating laugh.

"Don't care. Spill it."

Stephanie blew out a huge breath, resigning herself to the fate of sharing something even she hardly understood. It's just…she didn't like blurting out random emotions and feelings until she made sense of them. Often, she could put herself in check without Hunter's assistance. This one little thing was just as annoying as a gnat – no matter how much she swatted at it, it managed to pop back up when she least expected.

"I love you more than anything and I want you to be happy," she began.

Hunter drew his eyebrows together in confusion. "I am."

"There's a piece of your happiness puzzle missing, Hunter," she told him. "And no matter how much I want to give you that piece, I can't."

"You think my parents are that piece?"

"Parents, brother, cousins, uncles…" she said with a shrug. "Whatever family you could possibly find that isn't genetically tied to the McMahons."

"I don't hate your family, Steph. How could I? They made you, and we made our kids. That's at least two generations of McMahon DNA I adore."

Stephanie laughed and gave him a slight push. "What a dork. The thing is I know that your side of the family has always been a touchy issue. You haven't said it in these exact words, but I can see that you long to know who and where they are."

"You're right," he admitted without hesitation. This was a very serious conversation and there was no point in arguing with what she said. "Am I wrong for wanting that?"

"Of course not," she dissuaded. Really, she wanted to keep a lid on her emotions. They really were quite irrational. She knew that but still wasn't able to keep them at bay. Her eyes were tearing up…but this was Hunter here. He wanted her to be open, even if she didn't fully understand her own thoughts. It was a challenge, but she was trying her best. "I just…I think I'm starting to feel like you'll never be fulfilled until you solve the mystery. I want that for you; fulfillment. But recently…sometimes I get sad that I'm not enough."

"Stephanie-"

"No," she interrupted. "I know it's ridiculous and selfish-"

"You're far from selfish and it's only ridiculous that you could ever think you're not enough for me. You're so much that I don't even know what to do with you half of the time."

"You've given me everything I could possibly want, Hunter. I feel like a failure because I can't do the same for you."

"That makes no sense. My family stuff isn't your fault."

No, whatever was going on with his parents wasn't her fault. In fact, that all happened before she was even born. "I keep thinking if all that shit with Howard hadn't happened last year, you'd have him as a real brother, maybe. But that's ruined, largely because of me. I stole your chance at being completely happy. If you go on this road trip and find family, everything is better."

"Stephanie, shut up."

Her draw dropped in shock, but Hunter decided to speak before she came up with a response.

"Howard is a complete dick. He always has been; I was just in denial because I wanted that connection so badly. Eventually he'd have done something else to piss me off. And it wasn't your fault that he impersonated me to make a pass at you."

"It means a lot that you're saying this."

"Good. Because I wouldn't say it if I wasn't serious. You're enough, Steph…even if I don't find more relatives. I can do without having them in my life. Not having you isn't an option for me. You are my life."

Stephanie nodded and blew out a heavy breath. "It's worth the risk, but love is scary," she pointed out mildly.

Hunter laughed and rubbed her arms soothingly. "Finally you say something in this conversation that I agree with. Now that you're saying what's on your mind instead of trying to talk yourself out of your feelings…would you really be okay with it if I was gone for months on a road trip with Howard?"

Her shoulders lifted in a slight shrug. "I'd just have to find a way to deal. I promise I wouldn't resent you."

"Would you miss me?" He asked, pulling her into his arms.

"A lot," she muttered into his neck. "And that's an understatement."

"Same here. Howard is set on his stupid idea even though I pointed out a bunch of reasons why that's not the best way."

Stephanie pulled back some, so that she could look at her husband. "So what are you gonna do?"

"I want to split the trips up so I can be home a lot more. And I'd really prefer to fly and just rent a car if needed."

"That plan sounds way better. And I'm not just saying that because I want you home for love purposes."

The vibration of his laugh made her smile. "If Howard isn't willing to budge at all, I'm not going. Fuck him. We can search separately for all I care. Maybe you can be my travel buddy. God knows I enjoy your company a lot more."

Stephanie leaned up and kissed him on the mouth briefly. "Plus we get to have sex," she whispered against his lips.

"Get your mind out of the gutter," he told her playfully.

"It lives there. But seriously, I'll support whatever you want to do. It would be nice and more appropriate if you two could find your parents as brothers, though."

"But if I need you, you'll come?"

"Always."

Hunter pecked her on the lips one last time before letting her go. They both heard the sound of stampeding water buffalo. Otherwise known as their three children running down the staircase.

Jackson was the first to reach the landing and spot his parents. "Dad!"

"Hey kid!" Hunter greeted as the little boy ran up to give him a hug.

"Daddy's home?" Karmina asked.

"Daddy!" Kaycee practically shouted as she spotted him.

Hunter's face lit up as the twins attached themselves to his legs. To be honest, only four people existed on this planet that could melt his heart. Three of them were presently attached to him. The fourth was standing nearby, looking on with an expression that was filled with love.

Other than the alone time she got with her husband, seeing him with their kids was Stephanie's favorite part of the day. Hunter extended an arm, inviting her to join in the group hug. But before she could make a move in their direction, Jackson asked, "Is something burning?"

"Shit," Stephanie breathed out. She'd completely forgotten about the chicken she was baking. Quickly, she spun on her heels and raced over to the oven. She already knew it was too late…but she confirmed that based on the smoke that seeped through the door and the charred remains of the poultry.

"Mommy burned dinner," Kaycee giggled.

"Mommy said a bad word," Karmina noticed.

Stephanie turned to her family with a sheepish expression. Even Hunter was fighting to hide his amusement. Probably because he realized it was partially his fault she'd forgotten the food.

"It's okay, honey. We can always go out for dinner," he suggested, lips twitching as he tried not to laugh at her.

So...who was excited at the possibility of a twin road trip? Anybody surprised at Howard's idiocy? LOL