Connor crept in the hallway silently, plastic bags in each hand. A week had gone by and things were still settling down though nothing was normal. Nico and Victoria had moved out, Georgio and Emporio were back home and the twins were clingier than ever. But Connor was still sane to the surprise of himself. He had expected to crack under pressure, give up...go crazy...but not Connor. He was determined to be the sane one...the strong one. Willie could be the maverick in the office but at home he was the husband, taking care of what was his.

"Hey.." He whispered, leaning over the bed to see Willie and the twins stirring from their nap.

Her eyes fluttered back in forth, fighting on whether to sleep or awaken. "Hmmm." She mumbled, turning over and choosing sleep as the twins snuggled closer to her.

"I brought dinner..." He lead on, expecting her to jump at the words. Surprisingly she just plopped her head down, pulling the girls close. "You know your going to have to let go of them eventually..."

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Kai exclaimed, pressing her small finger to her lips, half sleep yet aware of the disturbance.

Connor smiled, moving to pick her up. "I'll just take them into their room..."

"No!" Wilhelmina instructed, pulling at his sleeve. "Leave them here..." Her eyes, now fully open and staring him down dangerously, a mama bear coming out of her.

Connor rose a brow, crossing his arms as they clung further to her, Nia never moving, tucked under the covers with her thumb in her mouth. Kai growled angrily, upset that she had to wake up.

"If cwase you din't know...Shhhhhhh means Shut up." She spat before falling back onto the bed.

"Willie...What's going to happen tomorrow morning when you have to go back to work and the girls wrap themselves around your ankles like shackles."

"They'll become my new anklets...toddler is In this season."

Kai rolled her eyes, throwing her hand over her mother;s mouth. "You too."

"Sweetie, do you want to be in your own bed?" Wilhelmina questioned, stroking Kai's hair gently.

"Uh Uh." She answered, shaking her head and laying it on Wilhelmina's stomach.

"Come on." Connor coxed, extending his arms towards her.

Kai sighed, sliding down the sheets and onto the floor. "I know my coo to leave...and I can walk, tank you." She answered sassily, as she marched out of the bedroom.

Wilhelmina chuckled, watching as he kicked off his shoes and lounged next to her. His hand reached over to touch Nia's back, still asleep. "What about this one?"

"Leave her..If you wake her up she'll start crying again...took me an hour just to get her to settle down."

"Again?"

"Well when your kidnapped and taken to a foreign country by a strange man it tends to traumatize you."

"Was that the highlight of your day?"

"Hmm.." She answered, pinching the bridge of her nose as she yawned sleepily.

"You okay?" He questioned, touching her forehead with his backhand.

Wilhelmina shrugged, reaching out her hand. Connor smiled, pulling on her hand as she heaved to a sitting position. Looking exhausted as ever, she sat up, her air pulled into loose ponytail and still in her day clothes with a ruffle front blouse and pencil skirt. She yawned again, covering her mouth as she leaned her head against his chest, taking a load off. So many thoughts in one mind tends to cause great exhaustion and for Wilhelmina that didn't even begin to tap the surface of where she was. Still thinking about Grant, even though he was gone, he still haunted her thoughts. Afraid to lose the girls, they went everywhere with her like an extension of her body. Mode, Nico, Connor, Kai, Nia, Audreanna, Connor, Victoria, The Triplets...The triplets...the frickin triplets all circulated in her head.

"Willie?" Connor questioned, her head bobbing in lack of sleep.

"Hmm...my head hurts..." She replied simply.

Again he touched his hand to her forehead. "Your alittle warm too...why don't you lay back down and I'll take care of the girls."

"I'm fine, I just have to-" She stopped, maneuvering her self from the bed. "Make a phone call."

"You can make than phone call laying down...resting." Connor suggested. He looked down at his arm as a nail pierced at his skin and Wilhelmina's grip tightened and she exhaled slowly, her eyes shutting closed. "Willie?"

"I'm fine." She stated firmly, still holding onto his arm. "Just...please don't move."

"Why?"

"I...I don't feel so well..."

Connor looked her over, watching as she breathed in slowly, her hand stroking her stomach soothingly. "Come here." He pulled her into a loving hug, his arms wrapping around her tightly. She rested her head against his chest, exhaling her strength as she slowly slipped from his grip. "Whoah." He acted fast, catching her as she lost her balance. "Stay with me Wils." He instructed, laying her back on the bed.

"I'm fine Connor." Wilhelmina assured, still wavering.

"Don't give me that...What's your doctor's number."

"You don't need to call him...It's just been hectic...I'll be fine...Just give me...a minute."

"No...What's his number?"

"Connor."

"Wilhelmina."

"Connor."

Wilhelmina."

"Connor."

"Wilhelmina."

"We can do this all day."

"Fine...I'll just call my mom and tell her that we will be coming her way for Easter this weekend."

"You wouldn't."

Connor smiled, dialing his blackberry. "Try me."

"You wouldn't dare."

"Hello Ma-"

"51-813-9025! 51 fricking 6 813 9025!

"Sorry...Deeds done...Get ready for Georgia."

"I hate you." She pouted, rolling her eyes as he turned around. "Big head.." She mumbled childishly. "Wait...What's going on?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You had already told your mother that we were coming didn't you?"

"No..." Connor answered, his voice shaking as he watched her eyes narrow from across the room. "...Yes."

"No Connor...You can go but I'm not going."

"Why not?"

"You kicked your mother out because she was horrible to me and now you want me to go to her house?"

"She wants to apologize."

"With a stake knife?"

"Give her a chance."

"How am I suppose to give her a chance when she didn't even bat her eyes before choosing to disrespect me and our family..."

"People change."

"No...I wanna stay with Nico and Audreanna..It's her first Easter."

"They can come too."

"Are you mad? The only reason Nico didn't decapitate your mother in her sleep was because she was pregnant and had heard about prison showers...Now the baby is born and she's seen movies...She'll kill her."

"Wilhelmina this family can't go on hating each other."

"I don't hate you...I hate your mother...there's a distinctive difference."

"Wilhelmina."

"What? She started it."

"And you have the power to end it...Be the bigger person." Wilhelmina growled, narrowing her eyes as she took offense to the statement. Connor coughed, scratching his neck as he looked at her stomach. "No pun intended."

"Okay, Now I really hate you."

"Willie...Just think about it."

"I have alot of other things to think about other than your mother...I have to start work again tomorrow and we have to go..to...his funeral."

Connor watched as her countenance slowly changed. her defenses pulling up. "Willie...You don't have to go if you don't want to."

"Of course I do...I have to be there for Nico...As much as she hated her father...They had some good times...and she's hurting right now."

"Do you want me to go with you or.."

"Yeah...I want you there with me...just in case."

"Just in case what?"

"Grant's family just...doesn't like me..When we split he blamed it entirely on me..soooo I'm not exactly like by them.."

"Soo..That's never stopped you."

"But..then..I...I kind of..killed him."

"No you didn't, you fired in self defense."

"But I didn't mean to shoot the shot to kill."

"And you wonder why your stressing." Connor looked and her worried face, pithily climbing into bed with her. She cuddled against him, her sleep factor beginning to set in. She yawned softly, closing her eyes as Connor began to talk.

"Don't think about that...or his family..your going there for Nico and no one else..." He ended, Wilhelmina's snoring putting a period on what he had said.

He smiled, still holding her as she fell into a deep sleep, clutching his side." He tried to get up but her grip was too much. Connor sighed, settling back down with her. "Dinner can wait.." He moved slightly as his phone began to vibrate and he moved to pick it up, knowing it was his mother.

"Don't you dare."

NWJ

"Wilhelmina c'mon, we're going to be late!" Connor bellowed from the living room, checking his watch every 10 seconds. Growing more and more agitated, he charged into the bedroom only to see Wilhelmina sitting in the floor surrounded by her mountains of shoes. She looked up at her husband, her face wet with tears and Connor's dry with confusion.

"Willie..."

"Leave me alone!" She yelled, not wanting to be bothered as she wallowed.

"Wils..." He inched around her, moving to the closet to see what the dogs were up to as they growled from the inside. He peeked over the door, two small long haired Terriers fighting over Connor's rack of Ties...Designer Ties..Armani Ties...New Designer Armani Ties...The rack alone could allow both him and Wilhelmina to retire.

"Wilhelmina..." Connor called out once again, trailing around her shoe mountain. "Why are you not dressed?"

"Because I'm not going."

Connor sighed, bending down to her eye level. "Why..."

"Because I have nothing to wear." She answered simply.

"Wilhelmina your closet is in it's own providence, how do you not have anything to wear?"

"Because I can't fit anything."

"What about the clothes I bought you in the Bahamas?"

"We never broung them."

"Why are you surrounded by shoes?"

"Don't change the subject to try and distract me."

"I'm not...Just...Get ready."

"What do you want me to wear? The air?"

Connor huffed, walking to her closet as she watched him dotingly. He pushed the doors open further, mashing the black button as the rack swung to the black dresses in her closet. He looked in the tag of each dress and then went over to Wilhelmina and looked in the tag of her robe.

She leaned forward, confused. "What are you do-"

"Shhhh." He ordered, walking back to the closet. Wilhelmina rolled her eyes childishly, leaning back on the edge of the bed. Suddenly he reached in, pulling out a black Egyptian neck dress, ruched at the waist along with a black shawl and black flats."

"Flats?" She whined, pleading with him.

"You heard your doctor yesterday...no more heels."

"I want him fired."

"And I want you dressed."

"No."

"Willie..honey...please do not make this day any harder than it has to be..just get dressed and put on the shoes."

"No."

"Willie...Please..just put on the shoes."

"No."

"Pl-"

"No."

"P-"

"No."

"Fine." Connor answered, leaving the room only to come back with a large black garbage bag. He looked at his wife's curious face, stuffing the the surrounding shoes into the bag, hill by hill.

"Connor..what are you doing?"

"If you don't want to get ready than I don't want your shoes taking up 99% of the closet space anymore...so I'm throwing them out."

"No!" Wilhelmina jumped up, grabbing hold of the bag.

Connor ignored her, continuing to fill the large bag to the brim.

"Connor...Give me the bag."

"Go get dressed."

Wilhelmina rolled her eyes in frustration. "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" She screamed, snatching the dress up from the bed. She looked a Connor once more, growling as she neared him. He smiled, kissing her cheek as she passed by, pouting like a child.

"I'll be in the living room!" Connor yelled, placing the bag by the closet.

"I hate you!"She yelled hormonally from the bathroom.

"I love you too darling."