Peach Brandy
Garcia and Derek were awake in their bed, Bethany between them, speaking in low voices so as not to wake her.
"Mom's coming out for Thanksgiving still," Derek was saying. "She wants to know when the real wedding is, too. That's on you."
"Oh hush. Besides, I told her we would have a spring wedding, when the cherry trees came out."
"Did we have a conversation about that?"
"I was going to, but I ran through it all in my head and you agreed, so I didn't bother with the real-world test."
Derek chuckled and stroked her cheek. "Leads to a conversation I never did the real-world test with, with you."
"And what was that, O great god composed solely of chocolate?"
"The fact that we're going to have at least a half-dozen kids, part of which will be adopted. "
"I was hoping for a round dozen, actually."
The streetlamp cast shadows over the three of them. Garcia's stuffed animals were scattered around the room, as well as Derek's gun on the nightstand, locked away in a box that was fingerprint coded so that Bethany couldn't get in.
"And," Garcia continued. "Some of the women around here stopped by to see me. Crystal-she's two houses down-invited us over for a cookout and Bethany swimming."
"Sounds like a party."
"No, a party is what Em and I are planning for JJ. Girls only, no alcohol, sexy lingerie, and maybe a male stripper."
"Woman, can I trust you with a male stripper?"
"Why? You want to volunteer to take his place?"
"Hell no. You're the only woman I want to see my-"
"Language!"
"Penelope, she's asleep."
"She might absorb it and be permanently scarred."
"I've never heard of that happening. What have you been looking up on those computers of yours, goddess?"
"Things beyond your comprehension, technological mortal."
" I don't doubt it for an instant."
He passed a hand over Bethany's hair. Garcia had braided it so it would be easier to brush in the morning.
"I love you, Baby Girl," he told Garcia. Then he kissed Bethany. "Love you too, Princess."
They were a family.
Author's Note: Sorry so short! I blame Morgan and Reid, who have run away with my muse and won't let me play here! I will update this-I have a ton of ideas for this story, but none seem to be working right now. Updates will continue more frequently on "Don't Know Much About History"-where the boys hid my muse-and some other things until I figure out where this goes from here. But I did try to give it a feeling of closure, since it might be awhile and I didn't want to leave things hanging out like underwear on a clothesline. Isn't that embarrassing when some older lady relative does that-with her own panties next to yours?