A/N: Thank you all for the awesome reviews.
Chapter Twenty Eight
Can't Fight This Feeling
After a few days in the hospital, Morgan was able to come home. To her disappointment, she still had to take it easy and that meant no baseball. Luckily, Derek saved the day by promising to spend the day with her and they could do whatever she wanted, just the two of them. Morgan was happy about that and had plenty of ideas.
While Derek and Morgan was spending time together, Meredith was watching Owen as he put Katie's old crib together. Addison had it sent out once she found out that Derek and Meredith were expecting twins. "Boy, you're really going to have a full house after these babies are born, aren't you?" Owen asked her. "If you need any help during midnight feedings, don't hesitate to call me."
Meredith smiled gratefully. "Thanks Owen. We always can count on you. That's why Derek and I have chosen you to be a godparent."
Owen smiled in return. "I'm honored and I accept. Does this mean that you also chosen Cristina as a godparent?"
Meredith nodded. "Even though she doesn't want kids of her own, she is great with Morgan. I know she will be a great aunt to the rest of the children. Now are you sure you don't need any help? Just because I'm pregnant doesn't mean I'm helpless."
Owen laughed. "I appreciate the offer, but I can take care of it. You just sit down and relax. I don't want to be the cause of you losing your twins so soon in the pregnancy."
"I think you and Derek worry too much," Meredith replied as she heard a faint ringing sound. Recognizing the doorbell, she excused herself and went to answer it. Wondering if it was Derek or Morgan, she pulled it open without even checking who it was. She gasped in surprise when she saw who was standing on her front porch. Out of all of the people who she wanted to see, Finn was the last person on the list.
It took her a few moments to find her voice. However, he spoke up first. "Hey, can I come in?" he asked. Meredith just nodded as he stepped into the foyer. "I suppose you're wondering what I am doing here."
"You're not getting custody of Morgan," Meredith insisted. She didn't let Finn answer. "I raised her, all by myself for the last five years! So if you think you can just change your mind and take responsibility for my daughter just because you were asked to allow my husband to adopt Morgan as his own, you have another thing coming." Finn just listened as Meredith continued. "You know, Derek is a great father. He has two kids of his own, but it doesn't matter to him. He loves my daughter and he loves me." She paused for a moment as she came to a realization. "And I love him," she admitted. "I love Derek." Shaking her head, she couldn't believe that it took her so long to realize that. "We're very happy with our little family. And I don't want anything to jeopardize that."
Finn tried not to laugh as he saw Meredith's angry face. "Can I speak now?" he asked. Meredith nodded, ready to hear what he had to say. "I'm not here to take Morgan away from you. I would never do that to her or you. I know she is your daughter, not mine. That's why I've signed the adoption papers."
Meredith frowned. "If you're not here for Morgan, why are you here?"
"Because I had business in Seattle," Finn replied as he pulled out a file folder and handed it to Meredith. "And since I was going to be in town, I thought I would deliver the papers in person." Meredith felt embarrassed for accusing him when she didn't let him explain his side of the story. "Why would you think I wanted to file for custody of Morgan?"
Meredith gave him a look. "Because you came here right after I sent the adoption papers. What was I supposed to think?"
Finn knew she had a point. "If I would have wanted Morgan, I would have asked for custody long ago," he replied. "I admit that I felt guilty for leaving you alone to raise the baby. But I then realized that it was for the best. I didn't want to be a dad. My feelings about children haven't changed. I am perfectly happy without them."
Meredith could see that he was telling the truth. She then noticed that he was wearing an engagement ring. "Congratulations. When is the wedding?"
"It's in a few days and that's partly why I decided to come to see you," Finn replied. "I wanted to get closure with you before I got married." Meredith knew how that felt. "I wanted to make sure that all of my feelings for you were gone. But I think it's safe to say that we've both finally moved on from our relationship."
Meredith didn't answer for a moment. "I will always love you for giving me the precious gift I could ever receive. And for the longest time, I kept putting my love life on hold because I was stuck in the past. I knew you weren't coming back, but I was afraid of falling in love and getting hurt again. And in a way, I think I was still in love with you." There was a short pause before she spoke again. "But I'm not anymore. I'm crazy about Derek."
"It certainly shows and I'm happy for you," Finn replied. "Congratulations on your baby."
Meredith turned red. "Actually, it's twins." Finn gasped in surprise. "Yeah, my husband didn't tell me about twins being hereditary in his family until after we found out on the ultrasound." She then heard footsteps and turned to see Owen coming into the room. She quickly thought of the best way to introduce the two men. "Owen, this is an old friend of mine, Finn. Finn, this is my friend Owen."
They greeted each other as they shook hands. There was an awkward silence before Finn spoke. "It's nice to meet you, but I should get going back to my hotel. I've stayed too long already." He said good-bye to the two before he went to the door.
Meredith followed him out to the car. "You don't have to go."
Finn nodded. "I interrupted your life long enough. It's time for us to say good-bye. But it was really nice to see you again. I wish you the best of luck with Derek and your family." Meredith wished the same for him before they said their final good-byes.
Meredith watched until she couldn't see his car anymore before returning to the house. Owen just gave her a smile as she walked back into the foyer. "So when were you planning on telling us about your marriage to Derek?" he teased.
Meredith then realized that he had been listening to the conversation for awhile. "We only got married because it was his mother's last request," she told him. "She had this idea that Derek and I are perfect for each other. And I'm starting to think she's right." Owen could tell that she was deep in thought. He was curious to hear what she was planning. "Do you mind if you and Cristina take Morgan for the night? I want to spend some time with my husband alone." Owen nodded in agreement. "But I need to make one stop first."
Meredith walked into Dr. Wyatt's office, surprising her. However, she was ready to listen to what her patient had to say. "Thank you for your help, but I don't need any more sessions. I'm healed now." Dr. Wyatt didn't respond as she continued her explanation. "Derek wanted to adopt Morgan so we had to send the adoption papers out to Finn. He came all the way to Seattle to deliver the papers and wanted closure so he could marry his fiancée. I then realized that I love Derek. And I want to spend the rest of my life with him."
"So you think that just because you have discovered that you love him, we're done with your sessions?" Dr. Wyatt asked.
"Yes, the whole reason I was doing this was to accept my past and move on with Derek," Meredith replied. "Now that I know I love Derek, we can concentrate on raising our family together. What more do we need to talk about?"
"There's more to a relationship than just falling in love," Dr. Wyatt reminded her. "We're not done." Meredith didn't respond as she left the office, not wanting to discuss it any further.
A couple of hours later, Meredith was sitting down in the dining room, waiting for Derek to walk into the door. It seemed like days before she heard the front door open. He was surprised, but pleased to find a romantic dinner was waiting for him. "Wow, this is a nice surprise. I wasn't expecting this."
"I thought you would want a break from taking care of Morgan all day," Meredith replied. Derek was still suspicious. However, he decided to just go with it for now. He pulled his wife's chair out for her before he went to sit down on his own chair. "Did you have fun with Morgan?"
Derek nodded. "Yeah, we'll have to make it a family day next time." He then told her all the fun activities that they had done. They went on different subjects, laughing and enjoying themselves. He waited until after they were cleaning the dishes up before he brought up a serious subject. "Look, you don't have to put on the brave face around me. I know it's uncomfortable for you to have me here again. And I understand that. I want to make this marriage work, but it might be best to separate for awhile."
"Unfortunately, I don't agree with that answer," Meredith said. "I want my whole family under one roof."
Derek let out a heavy sigh. "I know and I would love that too. Do you think I want to go through another divorce and only see my kids every other weekend? Of course not. But I can't stay with you if you don't want this marriage. I appreciate you helping my mom fulfill her last wish. And I know I promised that I was going to wait for you, but we have to think about the children. This is too confusing for them. We either stay married or get a divorce. We can't have anything in between."
Meredith nodded in agreement. "You're right. This whole marriage doesn't seem real. So why don't we get married again?" Derek was about to protest when she didn't let him interrupt. "Finn came by today." Derek looked at her surprised. "He wanted to give me the adoption papers in person. We talked about our history together. And we both realized something." Derek was curious to hear this. "Neither of us is in love with each other anymore. We're happy with other people."
Derek looked into her eyes and could see that she was telling the truth. "You mean it, Meredith? You're happy with me?"
Meredith gave him a wide smile. "I'm more than that. I'm in love with you. I just was afraid to admit it. But now I'm ready to tell the world that I love Derek Christopher Shepherd, my husband and the father of our children." Derek returned the smile before they shared a hard passionate kiss. She pulled away for one quick moment. "So do you want to remarry me or not?"
Derek laughed. "Yes, I would be proud to be your husband once again."
