SAM & QUINN: FINDING ENCHANTMENT

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT~SETTLING IN

SETTING: Sam and Quinn's, Tennessee
WHO:
Sam and Quinn Evans, others
WHEN:
Early August 2013

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing related to Glee or any other song/product mentioned below.

Moving day started bright and early for the Evans' family and Hudson family. Finn had picked up the moving van the night before and had loaded what he could then. Sam and Rachel's two dads helped load the furniture items and they drove the truck to Quinn's grandmother's to pick up the comics and then onto Sam and Quinn's. Rachel and Arielle had a teary goodbye with her two dads and followed in her car. Burt and Carole Hummel came over to Quinn's to see Finn, Rachel, and Arielle off as Sam and Finn loaded their boxes of stuff. Quinn's mom, Bill, and grandmother showed up also to say goodbye. By noon, everything was loaded on the truck, the truck itself full. There were lots of hugs and tears and promises to call and visit soon. Finn was driving the truck while Quinn and Rachel followed in their cars with the babies and Sam rode his motorcycle, leading the way. As Sam drove out of Lima, he realized this was the first time he would be living away from his parents and siblings, kind of on his own with his family.

They stopped at a rest stop in Cincinnati for a break; Sam knew Quinn was probably about to pee her pants and he was right.

"Next time, let's stop after about an hour and a half, not 3 hours Sam," she told him on her way to the restroom, handing him Joseph. Rachel followed her soon thereafter after passing off Arielle to Finn.

"I think momma is ticked off at me, Joey," he laughed. "I missed you on the drive...someday I'll take you for a ride on the bike...probably better keep that between me and you for now...it'd scare your momma to death."

After the bathroom break, they found a shady area away from the other travelers so Quinn could breastfeed Joseph with some privacy and Rachel could let Arielle burn off some pent-up energy by toddling around underneath the shade trees.

"Next stop is Louisville!" Sam told the group.

They stopped again in Louisville for bathroom, snacks, and nursing. The August heat kept them inside an air-conditioned restaurant during that stop. They got 2 hours outside Louisville and stopped for dinner and gas.

"It's so beautiful here," Rachel said. They had just crossed into Tennessee. "So much more green than Ohio already."

"The heat and humidity about killed me last summer when we were here for a few days," Quinn said. "Joey and I plan on spending an inordinate amount of time in the pool."

"Sunscreen..." Sam mumbled, burping Joseph on his shoulder. To Joseph, he said, "Don't want you getting burnt!"

"I know, Sam, I know..." Quinn sighed.

Sam gave Finn and Rachel directions from Nashville because he was afraid they might get split up on the freeway going around Nashville. Finn, Rachel, and Arielle were staying at Sam's grandparents that night since they wouldn't be getting there until after 8. The next day was set aside for unloading the truck and moving Finn and Rachel into their townhouse.

At 9:05 p.m., they finally pulled down the Stone's drive. Sam hopped off his motorcycle, stretched, and jogged to Quinn's car once she came to a stop.

She rolled down her window as he approached. He kissed her first and then said, "My ass is so freakin' sore!"

"And guess who needs to pee?" she replied, smiling.

"Well, me and I'm assuming you?"

"Probably all of us..." She was getting Joseph out of his car seat. "And somebody's hungry!"

"You and Rachel go inside...I'll grab Finn and find a tree..."

Sam went to Finn and Rachel and told Rachel she could go inside with Quinn; he and Finn would be in shortly.

"Come with me, Finn," Sam told him, wandering off to a grove of trees. "Gotta take a leak."

"You weren't kidding when you said you'd be in the country...this is great, man," Finn told him, trying to keep up.

By the time Sam answered him, he was already relieving himself. "God, that bike worked my bladder into a frenzy...yeah, it's awesome out here...quiet from the city but close enough that it doesn't take forever to get anywhere."

"It wasn't such a bad drive from Lima...I'm kinda likin' that big truck now," Finn laughed. "I missed having Rachel and Ari with me though."

"Yeah, it was kinda boring..."

They readjusted their shorts and went inside to find the girls and Sam's grandparents.

When Quinn and Rachel stepped onto the front porch, Sam's grandmother was already there, opening the door to them, ushering them inside.

"Where's the rest of your gang?" she asked, smiling.

"Uh, checking something on the truck," Quinn said, covering for Sam peeing outside.

Quinn introduced Rachel and Arielle and then excused herself to the bathroom, leaving Joseph with Sam's grandma.

Sam and Finn found his grandmother holding Joseph with Rachel and Arielle in the kitchen. When Quinn returned, Rachel went to the bathroom, leaving Arielle with Finn.

Sam hugged his grandmother, taking Joseph from her. "Where's Grampa?"

"He's asleep already...he turns in pretty early," she replied. "I imagine you all are exhausted, as well."

They all nodded and mumbled in agreement.

"Then, let me show you to your rooms..."

"Thank you so much, Mrs. Stone, for letting me and Finn and Ari stay here tonight," Rachel said.

"Why, it is my pleasure, Rachel! And please, just call me Gramma like the other kids! It is wonderful to have this house full of life again..." Sam's grandmother said, smiling and leading them upstairs.

She showed Finn, Rachel, and Arielle to a guestroom and then led Sam, Quinn, and Joseph to the other end of the hallway, entering what Sam knew as her and his grandfather's suite.

Once inside the room, she turned to Sam and Quinn. "When you called asking to move here, your grandfather and I decided it was time we moved to the downstairs bedroom. It is just easier for us to be on the main floor now. So, I had our master suite updated for you three. Hopefully, it is to your liking. We figured you'd want the privacy also. There is the main bedroom, the bathroom, walk-in closet, and two sitting rooms. You could probably use one of the sitting rooms for a small nursery and the other for a small office if you wanted...whatever you want to do with them." As she spoke, she moved throughout the space, flipping on lights. Quinn thought the Evans' house was awesome; this suite of rooms was magnificent to her.

"Are you sure, Gramma?" Sam asked, looking at all the space.

"Sammy, we're moved downstairs so yes, I'm sure. We're just so happy to have you three here with us. Grampa is very excited to start teaching you all he knows," his grandmother told him, pulling him into a hug.

"We're happy to be here, too, and are very grateful to you for opening up your home to us," Sam told her, using his best manners.

"You two get your rest...another big day tomorrow!" she said, leaving them in their new bedroom.

"This is insane, Sam...it's like an apartment up here!" Quinn said, quietly but excitedly. "It's perfect...absolutely perfect."

He had sat down on the large bed, lying back against the pillows. She put Joseph between them and lay down herself.

"Now I know I've gotta do a good job," he sighed, rolling over toward Joseph, letting him grasp his index finger. "How're you feeling? That was a long drive for a preggo..." He laughed a little. She looked tired to him.

"I'm just tired...I'm going to change, nurse Joey, and crash," she said, getting up to find something to sleep in in their suitcase.

"Interesting..."

"What?"

"No TV in here," Sam mumbled.

"Good, it'll be nice and quiet, like a bedroom should be..." she said, giggling a little, returning for Joseph. She latched him on and rested against the pillows next to Sam.

"Don't be mad if I drift off, Q..." he said, sounding exhausted.

"That's fine...get some sleep...I love you..." He was snoring before she finished her sentence.

The next morning, the sun woke them in addition to Joseph's babbling.

"Good morning Joseph Aaron...how did you sleep?" Sam asked quietly, rolling to him, pulling him close. He glanced at Quinn; she was still sleeping. "You sound hungry, big guy...let's go find you something to eat. And yeah, about your diaper..."

Sam got up, putting a pillow next to Joseph so he wouldn't roll off the bed, and went to the bathroom, grabbing the diaper bag on his way back to the bed. He changed Joseph quickly and threw on some clean clothes himself and went downstairs, finding Finn, Rachel, and Arielle wide awake, already having breakfast. He got a bottle ready for Joseph quickly as he was getting crankier by the minute and sat down with the others.

"Your grandparents are outside," Rachel told Sam. "They are so sweet! It's like I've known them forever. Their house is lovely, too."

Sam smiled. "Thanks...did you guys sleep okay? Quinn and I were beyond exhausted. I just let her sleep for a bit longer."

They talked about the plans for the day. As Sam was burping Joseph, Quinn showed up in the kitchen.

"Good morning, sleepyhead!" Sam said to her, smiling. "I let you get some extra rest...Joey's been fed and changed."

"Thank you so much, Samuel," she said, leaning down to peck him on the cheek and Joseph on the top of his head, then getting her breakfast. "Today, while you and Finn move stuff into the townhouse, Rachel, me, and the babies are going to a doctor's office I found online to see if I can get in as a patient."

"Oh! I'm glad you mentioned that…these came in the mail the other day and I've been meaning to give you yours…" Sam said, pulling his wallet from a pocket in his shorts and handing her a small laminated card. "It's our insurance information that you'll need to give them."

"Thanks Sam…do I pay anything when I go?"

"Umm, I think it said the maternity plan you pay the first office co-pay and the rest is covered 100%, thank god," Sam told her.

"Awesome! After breakfast, let's go see the townhouse, okay?" she asked him. She took Joseph and sat him on her knee as she ate.

"Sounds good…after we unload our crap…I'm gonna go say hi to Grampa…" Sam said, putting his plate in the sink. He kissed the top of Joseph's head and went outside.

Quinn watched her husband walk toward the main barn. He seemed hesitant, walking slowly. She knew he was nervous about what he was going to be learning, wanting to do the best job he could for his grandfather but she knew he was very worried about letting his family down, about failing.

Sam was feeling anxious about seeing his Grampa. He wasn't sure how he'd find him, confused and disoriented or completely with it. After all his grandparents were doing for him, he felt he had to go above and beyond and be more than they expected. Not only were they paying him an awesome salary but they hadn't mentioned any living expenses, they had given him and Quinn an entire suite of rooms, just the stability he had desired since marrying Quinn and discussing children. As he got closer to the main barn, he could hear his grandparents laughing with other men. He tentatively stepped inside, taking in the scene.

"Good morning Grampa!" he said happily, making his presence known. His grandparents were at the desk talking to three other men, farmhands Sam presumed.

"Samuel Aaron! Welcome son!" his grandfather said, smiling and jumping up to hug Sam. "We're so thrilled to have you and your family here. The house was just too quiet, wasn't it Jess?"

"It was…it'll be so nice to have babies here again and of course you and Quinn!" his grandmother said, wrapping an arm around his shoulders, squeezing him. "I'm going inside, things to do there…don't forget to come in at noon, Shane."

"Yes woman, noon…" he sighed, rolling his eyes as she headed out of the barn.

"Okay, guys, this is my grandson Sam," his grandfather said, turning to face the three men. "Sam, this is George, Roger, and Hector…George and Roger rent some land and Hector is a farmhand. We generally meet here of a morning to go over any jobs for the day and other issues. Men, Sam will be the new foreman once I retire."

To Sam, his grandfather seemed perfectly normal as he made introductions. It helped ease Sam's anxiety a lot.

"It's nice to meet you, Sam," the man named Hector said with a strong Mexican accent. He reached out to shake Sam's hand. The other two followed suit. Sam had definitely not expected this; they were treating him with basically the same respect they gave his grandfather and Sam knew he had not earned such respect and was humbled by it.

The three men left the barn to go about their chores and Grampa motioned for Sam to have a seat at the desk.

"Well, Sammy, this is where we'll be working every day, plus my office in the house, and of course around the property…are you happy to be here?"

"Very much, sir. Quinn and I wanted to thank you and Grandma again for the bedroom space for us…it's beautiful. We need to know how much to pay you in rent also," Sam told him.

"Well, we hadn't expected any rent, to be honest, you'll be working so hard that your salary probably won't cover your time so we'll just consider room and board part of your wages," Grampa said, smiling. "Now, about the work…you're probably wondering why I asked you to apprentice under me. I did the same thing with my grandfather when I finished school. The generation between us went to war and had other ways they wanted to go, just like your father's generation. They wanted factory work and that's fine; I wasn't ready to retire. I figured my oldest grandson, if he wanted this work, would be my apprentice. You're my oldest grandson and that's why you're here. When the confusion started, I didn't think I'd have time to teach you what I do, but the medicine has done wonders, to at least help me regain some normalcy of my life, enough so that I feel I can show you what I need to. Since you were a little boy, I've always wondered if you'd be interested in this. You loved the outdoors when you lived here and were so inquisitive and good with your hands. So, when you called about moving down here, I felt it was time. What are your thoughts, son?"

Sam looked at his hands, nervous that he was going to say something stupid or something wrong.

"Well, Grampa, first of all I want to thank you for this opportunity and I want to let you know that I'm going to do my best not to let you down. I'm gonna be honest, though, I've had my doubts about learning all you do and filling your shoes. I'm eager to learn but I'm also afraid of making mistakes and failing. I'll do the best I can, just please be patient with me…" Sam said to him.

His grandfather smiled. "You'll do fine, Sammy. It's a lot of hard work but we'll have fun doing it, right? Don't be afraid to ask questions or even make blunders…it happens to all of us and we learn from it. I have no doubt at all that you'll make a fine foreman, Sam."

"Thanks Grampa…that means a lot to me," Sam said, blushing. Let's see, after making love to Quinn and making her pregnant twice now, add this to the list of things that make me feel like a man, he thought.

"You're moving your friends today, correct?"

Sam nodded.

"You best get started on that before the day gets too hot. Are the ladies staying to swim?"

"Maybe later…they're going to a baby doctor's office so Quinn can get in with a baby doctor for the new baby," Sam told him.

"Oh yes! The new baby! What a wonderful thing! The house is going to be full of children again," his Grampa said, clapping Sam on the shoulder. Sam smiled, again feeling like a man.

"I usually begin my day around 6 in the morning, try to be done by suppertime...so on Monday at 6 we'll get started," his Grampa said, smiling.

"Sure, sounds great Grampa," Sam responded. "So, what has your doctor said, about the confusion?"

"It's early Alzheimer's, Sam...it won't get any better. I'm on a couple medications that help me greatly. Eventually, though, the medicines won't work either and they said it's unique to each patient. I could just lose my memory, see things that aren't there, forget my family and friends...it's depressing if you let it get to you. That's why I felt it was important to get started with you as soon as possible. Last summer when you visited, we didn't know what it was...that's what it looks like without the medication."

"Oh..." Sam let that sink in. "Well, I love you Grampa...you know that, right?" He didn't know what else to say.

"Of course I do Sammy...and I love you as well. You have a busy day ahead of you with moving and unloading so you better get at it. I'll be in to see your little Joseph soon."

"Awesome...thanks again Grampa," Sam stood up as did his grandfather, hugging one another.

Sam returned to the house to find the others talking to his grandmother.

"I was just telling your friends about the county fair and of course there's the state fair next month...both fun things to attend," his grandmother told Sam.

"Sounds fun...if Q feels up to it..." he said, smiling at her. "You ready to unload, Finn?"

"Yep, let's do this..." Finn said, standing up and following Sam outside.

They opened the back of the truck and inspected all the boxes before picking any up.

"Your gramma's pretty cool...she was kinda giving Quinn a hard time about feeding Joey though..." Finn said to Sam.

"What?"

"Yeah, she was asking her if he was getting enough to eat, you know, at her boob and maybe he needed formula."

"What'd Quinn say?"

"She seemed to take it pretty well, just smiled and said Joey was fine, the doctor had said so and that she nursed him a lot," Finn told him.

"Okay, thanks for the heads up, dude," Sam mumbled. He figured he'd hear about it later from Quinn.

It took a couple hours for Sam and Finn to unload all of the Evans' belongings. They just piled them all up downstairs and Sam would get them upstairs later. They still had to go to Finn and Rachel's new townhouse and get them situated.

After a quick lunch, they headed that way. Finn and Rachel had already applied for a townhouse and paid the deposit and first month's rent so they just needed to sign the lease and do a walk-through of their townhome, which was located just around the corner from Blaze and Kourtney's. Their townhouse was only 2 bedrooms, not 3, and a little smaller than Blaze and Kourtney's but Rachel was thrilled with it. Sam and Finn started unloading the Hudson belongings while Quinn and Rachel and the kids drove off to find the OB/GYN Quinn had researched.

After about 15 minutes of wrong turns, Quinn found the office. It was a sprawling building, tons of cars parked there. She knew the practice had several doctors, some focused on obstetric issues, some on gynecologic issues, but all of them could deliver a baby, vaginally or by cesarean section.

"This place is huge, Quinn," Rachel said.

"That's what I was thinking...they were highly recommended so I guess let's see..."

She found a parking space, and they got the kids out of the car. The walk to the door was enough to cause them to sweat in the heat of midday.

"Whew...you weren't joking about the humidity!" Rachel said, as they entered the air-conditioned foyer.

The building was split into two different sides, obstetrics on one side, gynecology on the other. Quinn headed to the OB side while Rachel took the kids and sat in the expansive waiting room.

She explained to the receptionist that they had just moved to the area, she was 3 months' pregnant, and needed to set up an appointment with an OB/GYN. Thankfully, they were taking new patients with her insurance. They gave her past medical history forms to fill out and a form to request her records from Lima. They set up her next appointment for September 3 with a Dr. Meador. She sat down with Rachel to begin filling out the paperwork.

"I don't know why I need to do this when they'll be getting copies of the same information from Dr. Shields' office," Quinn sighed.

"Just red tape...ugh," Rachel said, running after Arielle. Joseph was sitting in his stroller with his bug, looking at Quinn. She glanced up at him and said boo and he laughed at her. She about died. It was his first laugh. She laughed in response to Joseph, making him laugh again. She suddenly felt bad because Sam missed it. When Rachel returned, she told her to do the same type thing to get Joseph to laugh, so Rachel did the peek-a-boo trick and made him giggle.

"Oh my gosh, Quinn, he laughs just like Sam!" Rachel said, giggling herself.

"I know...I feel awful 'cause he missed the first laugh...I mean, I know there'll be lots more, just it was the first one..." Quinn sighed.

She finished with the mountain of paperwork and returned it to the receptionist.

"You ready to go check out your new house? Hopefully, they have everything moved in and arranged just how you want it!" Quinn said to Rachel, laughing.

"I just hope they have everything off the truck!"

When they returned to the townhouse, they found Sam and Finn sitting on the stoop, both shirtless, both sweating, drinking water, the truck still half full of stuff.

"It's just so hot..." Finn mumbled as the girls made their way to the front of the apartment, looking at the truck and back at them. They both looked exhausted.

"We are definitely swimming when we're done here, Q," Sam said, chugging his water. "Did you get set up at that doctor's office?"

"Yes, we've got an appointment and everything...and guess what?" She was excited about Joseph's laughter and hoped he'd laugh for Sam.

"Hmm?" he asked, squinting up at her.

She handed him Joseph and told him to do peek-a-boo with him.

"Really? Right now? I'm kinda hot and nasty and..."

"Just do it!" He could tell she was clearly excited so he let her put the burp cloth over his face (I so hope that thing is clean, he thought) and when she yanked it away he cheered up and said peek-a-boo in his best daddy voice was rewarded with the sweetest sound he had ever heard.

"Holy shit, Q...he giggled!"

"I know! I know! He started doing it at the doctor office...I hoped he'd do it for you but he's a daddy's boy, for sure, I knew he wouldn't let you down," she said, happily. "Now give him back; we're going inside."

He kissed Joseph and squeezed him quickly, handing him back to Quinn and then he heard her mumble something about how he was stinky like daddy now.

"C'mon, man, let's finish this shit up..." Sam said to Finn.

They looked at the back of the truck. A lot of boxes and Finn and Rachel's king-sized mattress and box springs remained.

"Let's tackle that mattress and box springs first, bro," Finn said, tossing down his water bottle. Sam looked at him. "Rachel'll pick it up...jeesh..."

Sam climbed the ramp to the back of the truck and slid one half of the two box springs out.

"These are light enough we can each take one...what possessed you two to get a king-sized bed anyway?" Sam asked.

"I'm so tall, man...I need the space..." Finn mumbled, taking the other half of the box springs.

"Well, getting that mattress upstairs is gonna be a huge bitch, I'm just sayin' that right now," Sam mumbled. The heat was bothering him; every muscle he had was bothering him. He was beginning to think they should've hired movers. And he still had his own things to unpack. He groaned but then had an idea. He pulled out his phone and called Blaze. Thankfully, Blaze was off work that day and was over to the Hudson house in record time.

"Good to see you, buddy!" Blaze said, walking up to the move-in scene.

"You too! This heat is a bitch, though," Sam said, doing some quick man embrace. "This mattress shouldn't a problem now," Sam said about the gigantic bed.

"Yeah, I think I know how to get it up the stairs...we had to with ours," Blaze said. "Kourtney is out shopping with my mom…I'll tell her you guys are here."

The three of them started maneuvering the mattress from the back of the truck while Rachel and Quinn had found refuge in Rachel's new kitchen and were unpacking a couple boxes that had been left there.

"I'm so excited! I get to use the gifts from the wedding finally!" Rachel said, grabbing things out of the boxes. "It's like it's Hanukkah in August!"

Quinn laughed. She was unpacking dishes and Rachel had told her where to put them so she at least knew her job.

"We brought our stuff from the wedding but I'm not sure how much of it I'll actually be able to use since, you know, Sam's grandparents kind of have everything already," Quinn said. "I love these plates. You and your gold stars!" The chinaware was white with swaths of navy blue and gold stars sprinkled throughout. Rachel laughed.

"I know! I can't believe I found them and someone actually gave them to us...so awesome!"

"Do you think you'll be happy here?" Quinn asked her.

"Here in this townhouse or here in Tennessee?"

"Both..."

"Definitely happy in our own place...so nice to have the freedom of being grownups without having parents breathing down our necks every second. Happy in Tennessee? That remains to be seen. Hopefully, things go okay for us and we can get by down here. If we're having problems at the end of a year, we'll probably move back to Ohio or move on..."

"Oh...I didn't know...I hope things work out for me and Sam too. He's got a lot to learn from his Grampa; he's so worried he'll screw up. Then, his Grandma today, asking about Joey eating enough...I hope that doesn't go on...Sam's parents hardly ever butted in in Lima..."

They heard the guys at the front of the townhouse cussing and then a thud, then more cussing. The girls peeked out of the kitchen at the three of them, trying to maneuver the king-sized mattress up the stairs through the front door. To Quinn, it looked like a circus act. They finally managed to start going upstairs when Blaze started yelling "pivot" from the old Friends episode, which cracked Quinn and Rachel up. Sam and Finn were not laughing.

"Really Blaze? Seriously?" Sam asked from his position at pulling the mattress up the stairs. Blaze was in the middle and Finn was pushing from below.

"Yeah, really! C'mon, man, that was hilarious!" Blaze laughed.

"This thing weighs a metric ton and you're telling me to pivot? I'll tell you where you can put your pivot, right up your..." Sam mumbled.

"Boys! Boys! Calm down! Lemonade sound good?" Rachel asked.

"The pool sounds good..." Sam said.

"We've got to return that truck before 5 today, Rach...we've got all kinds of crap to unload still...but yeah if you have lemonade, make us some...please," Finn told her.

"Quinn and I are going to run to the grocery then," Rachel told them.

Once in the car on the way to find a Target or Wal-Mart, Quinn said, "Sam sure is cranky!"

"Finn will be later on also, I'm sure...hopefully the pool cools them off," Rachel said. She drove for this trip since Quinn drove to the doctor's office.

Finally, they found a Super Target and loaded the kids in carts.

"I'm gonna get some of me and Sam's favorites...oh! I need that cheese in a can! Must be new baby talking to me," Quinn laughed. Rachel made a face.

"Actually, I craved cucumbers and onions in ranch dressing when I was pregnant with Ari!" Now Quinn made a face.

They wandered around the Super Target, taking their time, picking up things here and there. Quinn picked up the ingredients to make marinated grilled chicken for Sam and his grandparents as a way of saying thank you. She hadn't really cooked in a while and wanted to try out the kitchen on the farm.

By the time they made it back to Finn and Rachel's, the guys were done and had even returned the truck.

"Damn, girl, I thought you were going to make us some lemonade," Finn said to Rachel.

"Bring in the groceries and I will!" she replied.

Quinn needed to nurse Joseph and get him changed. Sam was laying in the middle of the living room floor with a fan blowing on him.

"I'm exhausted, Quinn…I need the pool…" he said, pushing himself up on an elbow.

"I know, Sam, we'll head home in a few minutes…" As if I can make Joey nurse faster, she thought to herself. Now I'm getting cranky.

"Oh, I bought some stuff for supper tomorrow night…I thought I could marinate some chicken breasts and you could grill them…kind of a thank you to your grandparents," she told him

"I'll grill if we get all our stuff to our room and unpacked," he said, maybe a little too short.

"Ooookaaaay…" she said, rolling her eyes.

Once Joseph finished up and Sam had a glass of lemonade, they headed back to the farm. Finn and Rachel decided to swim the next day; they were too tired to get back out and had a ton of work to do at their townhome.

At the farm, Quinn hurriedly put Joseph in a swim diaper and put her own suit on as Sam changed. Sam had cringed when they returned there and he saw all their boxes in the living room that needed to be moved upstairs still. Those can wait until tomorrow, he thought, his mind focused on jumping in the pool.

And once he hit the pool, all the stress he had built up slowly left him. He held Joseph for awhile, letting Quinn swim around some and then they'd switch. After a few rounds of that, he swam up to her and Joseph, wrapping his arms around them both, kissing her on the cheek.

"I'm sorry I was cranky today, Q…just been a long couple days…I'm ready for a long night of sleep," he laughed a little, nuzzling her. Joseph started babbling.

"I know you're tired too Joey…you've had such a busy day with momma and I hardly spent any time at all with you…let's go swim a little…" Sam took Joseph in his arms and walked around the pool, dipping himself and the baby down lower sometimes, making Joseph chuckle.

"That is the sweetest thing I've ever heard, Q," Sam told her.

"He sounds just like you…I love it," she answered, watching them move around the pool.

"Oh my gosh, Quinn, what about when he says his first word? I can't wait, Joey, I can't wait 'til you can talk to me!" Sam said, excited all of a sudden.

"I can't wait for that either…I wonder if he'll say 'momma' first or 'daddy'?" she asked, floating toward them.

"His first word will probably be something like 'boob' since he seems to love yours," Sam said, winking at her.

"Samuel," she admonished teasingly.

"You ready to get out?" he asked after a few minutes. The sun was setting and the bugs were coming out.

"Yes…let's dry off and sit on the front porch…" she said.

He smiled at her and followed her out of the pool. Once dried off, they ate a quick supper and found seats on the porch, Quinn in the porch swing with Joseph and Sam in a rocking chair. Sam's grandparents went to bed shortly after supper.

"It is so quiet here…so peaceful…" she said.

"Awesome, isn't it?"

"Yes, very…"

After a few minutes of silence, Quinn said, "Your grandparents go to bed early…"

"I think they watch TV in there…" he chuckled a little. "I haven't watched TV in two whole days!"

"Me either!"

They sat there in silence for awhile, listening to crickets and watching lightning bugs. Quinn looked down at Joseph; he was asleep. Then, she heard soft snoring and glanced over at Sam; he had nodded off sitting up.

"Time for beddy-bye, Joey," she said quietly, getting up and gently nudging Sam awake. "C'mon sleepyhead…"

He looked up at her, eyes only half open, and took her hand, letting her lead the way upstairs.

The next day, they had to unpack all their stuff. Sam hauled most of the boxes upstairs. They had decided that one small sitting room could be a nursery; Quinn thought they could fit a small crib and dresser in there. The other sitting room was going to be used for baby stuff and toys since they really didn't need an office. Until they bought a crib, though, Joseph was just sleeping in his bassinet next to their bed.

Quinn loved how Sam's grandmother had decorated the room. The walls were a warm cocoa brown with white trim. The drapes and bedspread were a soft tan color. It was just enough neutral that she could add punches of color if she wanted but it was also inviting and homey.

As she was going through boxes of stuff, she came across the Styrofoam planet he had made their junior year of high school and hung in the astronomy classroom until they graduated. She didn't recall packing it; he must have. She asked him to hang it in a corner of their room.

"This old thing?" he asked, laughing.

"Well, yeah…I happen to cherish that old thing!"

"Okay, okay…" He climbed up on a chair and hooked it into a ceiling tile. "How does that look?"

"Great, thank you!" she said, getting up to put her snow globe on their dresser. "I need you to hang this picture also…well, a couple pictures actually…"

"Lemme see…" He took them from her, one was their wedding picture and the other their family picture. "I think we should hang up our prom pictures too, for the fun of it."

"I'll have to put them in frames but sure…"

Joseph was on a blanket on the floor and had rolled over to their feet.

Sam felt the nudge at his ankle and laughed, looking at Quinn. "Do you see that? Joey is rolling all over now!" He bent over and picked him up. His nose crinkled up. "I see why he wanted our attention…that is just gross, young man…" Sam wandered off with a stinky Joseph to change him in his new nursery.

"What do you think of your room, big boy? You like it, don't you? What kind of stuff do you want on the walls or do you want me to paint it a different color for you? You know what I liked when I was a kid? Cowboys! I did! And then superheroes in the comics….hey! There's an idea…superheroes! We'll talk to momma and see what she thinks…soon, you'll be sharing space with your new brother or sister…that'll be lots of fun, you'll love it!"

Quinn listened to Sam talk to Joseph. She knew he had missed spending time with him the two days it took to move so she let him take over most of childcare duty that day. He was definitely more comfortable now with baby care than he was at the beginning. 'Enthusiastic' was one way she described him to others. The only time she had heard him complain about taking care of Joseph was in a joking fashion but he always jumped in and helped. He was such a hand's on dad that she wondered how his new work responsibilities would affect that aspect of his life.

"So, how's the room working out for you all?" Sam's grandmother appeared at their door, knocking lightly.

Quinn got up from the box she was unpacking and hugged his grandmother.

"This is perfect, Gramma…we love it. Thank you so much!"

Sam poked his head out of the nursery to say hi. "I'm just changing Mr. Stinky."

"Keep your eye on him Samuel!"

"I've got a hand on him, Gramma!" He finished up with Joseph and carried him out to the main bedroom. His grandmother extended her arms so he handed him over to her. "Quinn and I are cooking dinner tonight for you and Grampa, okay?"

"Oh, that sounds nice! Thank you very much," she said, cuddling Joseph to her. "This baby is adorable…he smiles so much, just like you did Sammy."

Sam kissed the top of Joseph's head. Sometimes, he thought he could not get enough of that baby smell coming off Joseph. Sometimes he would just gaze at him and wonder how he came to be. He knew how it happened but sometimes he would see more of Quinn, sometimes more of himself, sometimes a personality very unique from him or Quinn. He never had any idea the love he'd feel for that child would be so deep or affect him as it had. Sometimes the fact that he had helped create another living breathing creature – well, two now – who was uniquely their own person yet a perfect mixture of Evans and Fabray amazed him and he couldn't quite wrap his mind around it. So, he tried to live in the moment because all the pondering of these hard-to-grasp ideas made it that much harder for him to understand. He'd think about things like what if Joseph had a little brother? a little sister? Were they going to find out ahead of time this time? What if it was a little girl? He wouldn't know what to do at all.

He had been messing with hanging pictures and realized Quinn had walked his grandmother out of their room, shutting the door behind her.

"Hey Sam, we're going to church tomorrow morning with Gramma and Grampa, okay?" Quinn hollered at him from the bathroom.

"Okay, yeah," he said, fumbling with the hammer and nail, trying to line up the pictures without a level.

"Hmmm…that's funny…" she said from the bathroom.

"What's funny?"

She stepped out in their bedroom, topless. "Does it look like my belly is showing already?" He turned to her and his jaw dropped when he saw her standing there without a shirt on.

"Uh, well, umm…." He snapped out of his reverie and really looked at her. "Well, yeah, I think you are showing…" He walked over to her and put his hands on her bare belly, then looked her in the eyes.

"This is happening, isn't it?" he asked quietly.

"Yep," she said, putting her hands over his.

"Wait, wait…you're only like 12 weeks' pregnant…why are you showing already?" he asked. She shrugged.

"Holy sweet jesus, Quinn, what if there's more than one in there?" he said, starting to freak out. Her eyes opened up wide; that possibility had not occurred to her. She was speechless.

"Have you felt any movement yet?" he asked, kind of pacing the room at that point.

"No…I just passed a mirror in the bathroom and saw my belly pooching out…"

"What should we do? Call the doctor? I don't know…oh my god, what do we do?"

She grabbed him by his arms and made him stop pacing.

"Okay, first, we need to calm down and by 'we' I mean you need to calm down…if it's two then it's two…we'll deal with it…I have my doubts but I guess we won't know until I have an ultrasound…"

"Oh my god, Q…I have a weird feeling about this…I can't calm down! You gained 5 pounds at the last appointment…five pounds!"

"I'll see if I can find anything on the internet about…this…" she said, trying to be calm herself but freaking out on the inside. They had put Joseph down for a nap in his bassinet so he was missing out on all the excitement occurring in their room. Sam and Quinn sat on their new bed and looked at her laptop, hoping to find some explanation.

"Okay, it says that subsequent pregnancies after your first one you start showing sooner but I don't think I did with Joseph, did I?" she asked.

Sam shook his head no. "I didn't think you were ever going to show with Joey."

"Alright, pregnant with twins…oh my god…oh jeez, Sam, it does say you start showing earlier! Oh my god, oh my god…"

"Maybe you're just bloated…did you eat a lot of salt yesterday?" he asked her. She glared at him.

"Okay, maybe not that…Dr. Shields said you measured a little larger than average, remember?"

"Yeah, but we only heard one heart beat…and that was twice," Quinn said.

"Okay, that calms me down a little…one heart beat," Sam mumbled, looking at Quinn again. "I'd love to have twins with you, Q, but is right now the best time? I mean, if it is twins then awesome, but if not then whew!"

"I think I'm just bloated…we'll go with that…" she said. She couldn't even comprehend the thought of twins at that point. Having twins with Joseph being less than a year old boggled her mind.

They finished unpacking and eventually the idea of Quinn being pregnant with more than one fetus left their minds. Blaze and Kourtney came over in the afternoon to swim and have dinner, the plan being to go to the fair the county over that night. Quinn called Rachel to see how she and Finn and Arielle were faring in their new home. Rachel said they were tired but had gotten a lot done. Quinn invited them to the fair so they made plans to pick them up later that evening.

Sam and Quinn prepared dinner while his grandparents kept an eye on Joseph. Quinn loved the kitchen in the farmhouse. There was a lot of space to work and she and Sam could be in there together without crashing into one another every time they turned around. The chicken turned out great; Quinn had used a marinade she had learned about in high school. They had a salad and fresh corn on the cob, and his grandmother had made a jello cake for dessert.

During supper, Sam told his grandparents that they were going to the fair that evening and would be back later.

"Are you leaving Joey and Audrina with us then?" his grandmother asked them.

"No, he's coming with us..." Sam said.

"Yeah, we're taking Audi, Gramma," Kourtney said.

"Are you two sure? You want to take them to a dusty fair with all those strangers?" she asked, seeming concerned.

"Well, we're not going to let a stranger walk off with them...we like to do stuff with him, as a family," Sam replied.

"And we won't be out that late..." Quinn added.

Sam's grandmother still seemed worried by this but acquiesced finally, saying, "Okay, if you insist, but I'd be happy to sit with them while you all go have fun."

"It's okay, Gramma, we don't mind taking them...we don't want to interrupt your night either," Kourtney told her.

Supper finished up somewhat uncomfortably. Quinn readied the diaper bag while Sam found his grandmother in the kitchen putting dishes in dishwasher. He leaned up against the counter to talk to her.

"Thanks for offering to watch the kids for us...we enjoy having them with us, especially since I'm getting ready to start helping Grampa I want to spend as much time as I can with Quinn and Joey...I hope you understand," he told her.

"I understand, Samuel...sometimes it's nice to feel needed, I suppose. You all have fun tonight," she said, trying to mask her sadness.

"I'm sure Q and I will want to get out sometimes, maybe to see a movie or something, and you're more than welcome to babysit," Sam said, smiling. He gave her a quick hug and told her he loved her and went to check on Quinn and Joseph. He found them in the family room with Blaze, Kourtney, and Audrina.

"You all ready?" he asked.

They nodded and loaded up their cars to go pick up Finn, Rachel, and Arielle.

Soon, they were on the highway heading to Williamson County.

Sam and Quinn had their windows down, enjoying the warm summer breeze and were listening to some quiet music.

"Remember last year, Q? When we came to this fair?" he asked, putting his hand on her knee.

"Yes...we ran into your old girlfriend..." she laughed. He rolled his eyes at her and went on.

"I remember being in the back of Blaze's Jeep and I couldn't keep my hands off you...you know what? I bet you were preggers then!" he said, squeezing her knee, making her giggle.

"Maybe I was...and yes, I remember you being all over me..." she said, sneaking a glance at him.

"I also recall your hand somewhere...I wasn't the only one..."

"How do you remember this stuff?"

"I don't remember every single thing but certain times stand out in my mind...I'm gonna write about it in our story..." he said.

"Really?" she asked, a little surprised.

"Yeah...I think it shows how much we love each other...in that physical sense...not being able to keep our hands off each other...I mean, seriously, look where my hand wound up just now..." He squeezed her knee again. "I love touching you..."

She unbuckled her seatbelt quickly and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. "I love touching you too and kissing you..." She buckled her seatbelt again.

"I'm kinda hating it right now that I'm driving..." he said, smirking at her.

Just then Joseph let out a high-pitched squeal from the back seat, surprising both Sam and Quinn. He then went back to babbling.

"I think he's letting us know we're not alone..." Quinn laughed. "God, he is so awesome..."

"Are you happy? You wanted him so badly..."

"Just when I think I can't be any happier with my life, you or him or something happens that makes me even happier...it's limitless, Sam," she replied. "And you've given me another one..."

They drove down the road for a bit, not talking.

Then, Sam spoke up. "Have I ever told you how much of a man I feel like when I see you carrying our baby?"

She looked at him and shook her head, whispering no.

"I do...it makes me feel like a man," he repeated quietly.

His statement saddened her in a way; it was like she could feel his boyhood slipping away from them as he said the words out loud to her. She looked out her window, letting a few tears fall without him noticing. She felt his hand on her knee again.

At the fair, any thought of manhood was gone from his mind as he returned to his boylike manners, winning her a couple funny stuffed animals, riding crazy rides with Blaze and Finn, playing the rigged games. This year, though, he finally hit the bell on the strength game with the sledgehammer and walked away with a giant floppy turtle of all different colors.

Walking away from the game, Quinn told Sam that had to be the ugliest stuffed animal she had ever seen.

"If I buy you some cotton candy will you not make fun of it? That's the first thing I've won for Joey!" he said, smiling.

"Deal..." They shook on it and he found her some cotton candy.

The three couples took turns riding the Ferris wheel while watching the kids. Finn and Rachel rode first while Quinn held Arielle on her knee and Sam talked to Joseph.

"Someday, you'll ride with me and momma on the Ferris wheel, Joe...you'll love it...it moves nice and slow, around and around, and at one point you'll stop at the very tip top and be able to see for miles...and me and momma will kiss you there...someday you can ride it with someone you love and kiss them at the top..."

Quinn listened to Sam talk to Joseph and smiled.

Blaze and Kourtney went up next, while the other four stayed below, watching the little kids. This time, Sam held Audrina on his knee while Quinn held Joseph.

"When you stop at the top, Joey, it's like you're sitting in the stars...that's what I thought when my dad would take me on the Ferris wheel...I always wanted to reach out and touch one but they were still so far away..." Quinn whispered to Joseph, hugging him close to her. "After me and daddy ride this, we'll find somewhere to nurse you."

Blaze and Kourtney returned, and Kourtney took over Joseph. Sam and Quinn got in line, holding hands.

"It's like we're in high school again, Q," he said to her quietly.

"Are you nervous? Like this is our first date or something?" she asked.

"Nah, not nervous...I know you too well..." he laughed. "It's just me and you right now..." He let go of her hand and slid his arm around her waist.

The people in front of them loaded into a car and then it was their turn.

"After you..." he said, ushering her into the car first. He slipped in after her and strapped themselves in. He put his arm around her shoulders, and she scooted in close to him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Are you gonna reach for the stars tonight, Q?" he asked her quietly and she realized he had been listening to her talk to Joseph.

The wheel turned slowly, stopping and going, until it finally started spinning around continuously. She didn't answer his question about the stars. She looked at him, though, as they neared the top and the wheel was again stopping and going.

"I see the stars in your eyes, Sam, and that's all I need..."

He gazed at her a moment before pulling her into a gentle, lingering kiss that didn't break until their car was past the top and heading down. Her lips were soft against his and the kiss stayed that way, lips on lips, until he felt hers part open and then the warmth of her tongue against his bottom lip. He groaned quietly when he allowed his tongue to meet hers, almost hesitantly. He felt the cool rush of the night's air against them as their car moved down another position. He didn't think he had ever felt anything so sensual before.

She broke the kiss, still nose to nose with him, breathing a bit quicker, and said, "It was magical..."

Their car moved down again and he watched her hair blow back in the short breeze.

"It's always magical for me..." he whispered, sneaking in one more quick kiss.

Their car finally reached the bottom, and Sam stepped out first, trying to cover up his boner with his t-shirt. That always happens to me on the Ferris wheel, he thought, taking Joseph from Kourtney. It's worth it to share a kiss like that.

"So...you two were like making out on that thing. Enjoy it?" Blaze asked him.

"Yep..."

"It's obvious..." Blaze snickered and caught up with Kourtney who punched him in the arm.

They found seats in a tent set up exclusively for nursing moms so Joseph could eat before they called it a night and headed back to Belle Meade.

"Is it weird that I don't even care where she whips her boobs out anymore?" Blaze asked Sam and Finn.

"Just part of the territory now, man," Finn replied.

Sam glanced over at Quinn, smiling; she saw him and smiled back. Really, she had gotten very good at nursing Joseph in public; he could barely see the swell of her breast and then his baby attached to her. The carnival lights were flashing all around them, different colors spilling over Quinn and his son. Joseph's hair was spiked up that night and one little hand was waving around in the air. He watched how Joseph trained his eyes on Quinn the entire time he nursed; they shared a bond that he unfortunately would never experience on such a level.

"Yo, dude...do you wanna ride that Gravity thing or not?" Blaze asked him, obviously more than once because Sam had zoned out while thinking about Quinn and Joseph.

"Oh, uh, yeah, sure...Q, you okay here?" he asked.

She nodded. "We're okay...go have fun on it!"

The three guys took off, and the girls laughed.

"They're like little kids!" Rachel said.

"I like it that Sam's young at heart...I don't want him all grown up just yet..." Quinn said.

"Yeah, with two kids, you two are definitely going to have to grow up fast," Kourtney said.

"We're young at heart…" Quinn repeated, mostly to herself. But then she thought of Sam starting work in a couple days, hard farm work, tons to learn, while she took care of Joseph and grew baby #2. She would remember those words often over the next few months, young at heart.

The guys came back from the more daring ride, laughing and shoving one another.

Sam walked up to Quinn and Joseph, pecking each on the cheek. "You ready to head home?" he asked.

"I think so...Joey is getting a little worn out..." The lights and noise seemed to be making him antsy.

The other two couples also decided to call it a night and decided they'd meet up the next afternoon at Sam's grandparents' pool. As they walked to the car, Sam pushed the stroller and Quinn carried Joseph as he did get cranky. By the time they reached the car, he was asleep in her arms.

"Look Sam..." she said quietly while he folded up the stroller to put in the trunk.

Sam looked at Joseph in the light coming from the trunk. Joseph had moved his hand up to his cheek and almost had his thumb in his mouth. In his sleep, he was rubbing his cheek. Sam kissed the top of his head. I love you, little buddy, he whispered. He shut the trunk quietly and opened the driver's side door so Quinn could strap Joseph in his car seat.

Once he was strapped in and actually still asleep, Quinn stood up to go to her side of the car but Sam stopped her, leaning up against her at the car, shutting the driver's side door quietly. His lips were on her quickly, about her neck and cheek and mouth.

"Let's make out a little," he mumbled. After the kiss on the Ferris wheel, he was pretty much ready for a round #2 at that point.

She smiled a little against his kisses, sliding her hands up his arms, lacing her fingers behind his neck. He shivered a little.

"You okay?" she asked.

"Yeah...I'm fine..." Her touch on his neck caused a chill to go up his spine, then her lips were on his neck, sucking him, nipping at him a little.

"Mmm...Quinn..." he mumbled to her, pressing his erection up against her. He wanted to take her hand and move it down to his dick but was afraid to be so forward doing something like that. He didn't have to worry about it though; she put her hand there herself.

She felt his hardness and the heat coming from him. "Someone is aroused..." she purred into his ear. He smirked against her neck, moving a hand up her t-shirt, cupping her breast.

"We need to get in the car..." he said quietly, pulling back a little to look at her in the moonlight.

She glanced around. "Why? We're parked in the middle of a dark field surrounded by corn and I don't see another single soul..." Her hand slipped under the waistband of his shorts and into his boxers. "You're hard..."

"Mmhmm..." A handjob outside the fair, next to the car, god yes...wait, what is she doing?

She reached behind her for the door handle and opened the driver's side door. The dome light came on, so she sat down and fiddled with the knob on the dashboard until she turned it off. Joseph whimpered a little but quieted back down. She looked up at Sam standing in front of her.

"I think you know where this is going..." she whispered, pulling at his shorts. Holy hell, holy sweet hell, jesus she just put my cock in her mouth...ohhh fuck, he thought, his mind racing. He braced himself against the frame of the car, letting his hips lean into her.

It wasn't the ideal place for a blowjob but it was exciting to Quinn, even if he was kind of sweaty down there.

She sucked on him slowly, letting her tongue play over and around his head. She'd take her mouth off him and the cool breeze would move across his hot wet penis, causing an unreal sensation to him. At one point, he was moaning and rocking his hips a little so she pulled off, teasing him, and he reached down and squeezed his cock, whispering shit Q I almost came...

He finally let go of his cock, breathing hard, and rested his head on his arm on the top of the car, knowing when her mouth hit him again he'd be close to his climax. She slowly put her mouth back on him and after a couple hard sucks on his head he was spilling into her. She could hear him above her, quietly cussing into his arm. After a few minutes, he pulled back from her slowly, pulling his shorts back up but still leaning against the car. He then squatted down in front of her to meet her eye to eye.

"You always surprise me, Q..."

"It's fun that way...at least for me," she giggled quietly.

He pulled her out of the car a little, into his arms. "I love you, Quinn..." he whispered.

She moaned a little and said she loved him too, hugging him back. She got up from the driver's seat, and he walked her around to the passenger side and opened her door for her there. He hugged her again before she got into the car.

"You have no idea what you mean to me," he whispered into her hair.

"And you to me..." she replied, kissing him on the cheek before sitting down in the car.

They drove home, holding hands, listening to some music quietly, windows down. Every once in awhile, he'd glance over at her and catch her resting her head against the seat, sometimes looking out the window at the stars. He rubbed his thumb over her knuckles, over her wedding bands.

At the farm, he took Joseph out of his car seat gently and they went upstairs quietly. Joseph had awakened by that time so Quinn got ready to nurse him.

"I can give him a bottle if you're sleepy," Sam told her.

"That'd be great, Sam...I'd appreciate it..." she said, handing him the baby. She set the alarm clock for the next morning since they were going to church and fell asleep.

Sam took Joseph to the kitchen to warm up a bottle of breast milk for him and then sat in the family room giving him the bottle quietly.

"Momma was sleepy tonight, Joey, so I get to do the honors..." Sam told him. "I love to feed you...I kinda can't wait 'til you start eating real food...you will love it! Although I can see why you like breastfeeding..." Sam chuckled to himself. "Your momma is great...I know you think so...I see how you look at her. At one time, she was afraid she wouldn't be a good mom and, I'm serious here Joey, she's one of the best I've ever seen. Sometimes, she doesn't even want to put you in your bassinet; she just wants to hold you as long as she can...I totally get that...we think the world of you..."

He glanced down at Joseph and found him asleep in his arms. Sam smiled and kissed him softly, getting up to take the bottle to the kitchen and then return upstairs. He changed his diaper swiftly (he was getting good at changing Joseph even as Joseph slept, to the point of not even waking him up) and stripped down to his boxers. He climbed into bed next to Quinn, snuggling close to her. He was still trying to get used to his side of the bed not being up against a wall; he was just waiting for the night where he rolled out of bed, Quinn would get a good laugh out of that, he was sure. He wrapped an arm around her sleeping body, letting his hand rest on her little belly, feeling the start of a swell there...their new baby growing beneath his hand.

The alarm went off at 7 a.m. the next morning. Quinn sat upright in bed, looking over at Sam. Seeing him still lying on his stomach and snoring, she shook his shoulder to wake him.

"Sam! Sam!" she whispered at him. "Sam!"

"Guuuhhh...what?" he mumbled into the pillow.

"Joey slept through the whole night!" she said excitedly.

"Mmm...probably that big bottle I gave him last night...have fun with that diaper..." Sam mumbled, face still in his pillow. She thought she heard him snicker.

She got up out of bed and checked on Joseph in his bassinet. He was wide awake, just lying there playing with his foot. When she appeared in his sight, he jumped a little, shocked that she was all of a sudden there.

"I'm sorry baby!" she said, laughing a little and picking him up. "Oh! Daddy was right about your diaper...yucky!" She picked him up to change him in his nursery but in the middle of it a wave of nausea passed over her.

She rushed him out to Sam, the baby naked from the waist down, telling Sam quickly that she was about to barf and then she ran back to the bathroom.

Sam wrapped an arm around Joseph; the baby looked totally confused as to what was going on.

"Momma just felt sick, Joey...she'll be okay..." Sam sat up with him. "Let's find you some pants!"

On the way back to the nursery, Sam stopped in the bathroom, finding Quinn leaning over the sink with a washcloth up to her head.

"I'm so sorry, Q...about the diaper..." Sam said to her.

She laughed a little. "I was fine until the smell hit me...wow...sorry you had to get up..."

"S'okay...I get to dress Joseph for church," he said, giving her a one-armed hug.

"Thanks, Sam..." Once the nausea had passed, she went to the walk-in closet and found a summery dress to wear to church, not too revealing, and thought about how the next day was going to go. Sam would be starting work with his grandfather at 6 in the morning so she'd have Joseph all day. What if a wave of nausea hit her again while taking care of him? She imagined she could always have his grandmother help her out but she didn't want to burden the older lady with infant care. I'm just going to have to suck it up, that's all there is to it, she thought. She went to the nursery to take over with Joseph so Sam could get ready and found she was just in time. Sam had him dressed in a onesie and baby shorts.

"Seriously Sam?" she laughed. "We're going to church, not the beach." She found a cute jumper to put on over his onesie.

"I thought he looked totally rad," Sam said, a bit disappointed. "What about shoes?"

"I think I'll have him wear these cute sandals that Kourtney gave me...Audi outgrew them already..."

"Girl sandals? I don't think so!"

"They're not girl sandals! They're baby sandals...see?" She found them and held them up for his inspection.

"Those are girl sandals...just let him go barefoot..."

She sighed and put the sandals down. Since Sam had okayed the little shoes for their family picture for her, she let the sandals go. She figured she'd have him wear them soon anyway. Sam smiled and pecked her on the cheek.

He found his black suit but left the jacket off. He figured he was wearing long pants in that heat, he didn't need the jacket.

When they had everything together, themselves and the diaper bag, they headed downstairs for breakfast.

It appeared as though his grandparents had been up for hours.

"Good morning kids! Did you have fun last night? That dust didn't get to the babies, did it?" his grandmother asked.

"They seemed to enjoy it...yeah, we had fun," Sam said, glancing at Quinn with the smallest of smiles.

"It's supposed to be hotter than Hades today...do you plan on swimming later?" his grandfather asked.

"Definitely..."

"Just be careful in the sun...we have great sunscreen here if you need it," Gramma said. "Joseph will definitely need it."

"We always put a ton on him, Gramma," Sam said, chuckling.

"You need it too, Samuel," she replied.

"I know, I know..." he said, rolling his eyes at Quinn. She smiled a little, now understanding where his obsession with getting sunburnt came from.

"It was just a gentle reminder, Sam. After church, your grandfather and I are going visiting at the old folks' home. Are Blaze and Kourtney coming over to swim?"

"Yeah, and Finn and Rachel too..."

"Keep a close eye on the children, you know how it worries me with babies around the pool," she said, wringing her hands a bit.

"We'll be fine, Grams..." he told her.

Quinn watched this exchange with fascination, pretending she was playing patty-cake with Joseph. Sam's grandmother treated him like he was a kid and Quinn got the sense that she probably thought Quinn didn't have a clue on how to raise their baby. I suppose that's partially right, Quinn thought, I am new to the baby thing but we seem to be doing okay...she's just trying to be helpful, I need to remind myself of that.

Sam and Quinn followed his grandparents to church that day in their car.

"She was trying to push my buttons today," he said.

"You think? I think she was just trying to be helpful...no big deal," Quinn answered. "They haven't had kids in the house in a long time, remember? It just worries her."

"I suppose..." he said, his jaw clenching, unclenching as he drove.

The sermon that day was on trials and difficulties, hardships of life. Sam listened closely, feeling he was about to undergo the biggest trial of his young life the next day. Quinn listened closely also, wondering to herself how being alone all day with Joseph and Sam's grandmother was going to work out. At the end of the sermon, she prayed for strength as did Sam.

His grandfather wasn't kidding about the heat. After lunch, the thermometer read 97 degrees. They changed into their swim gear and hopped in the pool. Finn, Rachel, and Arielle showed up, followed by Blaze, Kourtney, and Audrina. The girls holding their babies congregated in a shady corner of the pool while the boys rough-housed in the deeper end.

"You ready to start working tomorrow, Sam?" Blaze asked him.

"I have to be ready…"

"It's hard work, dude…especially with harvest coming up…"

"I knew it wouldn't be easy…I've got a lot to learn…" Sam said.

"Hey, let's put the babies on our shoulders and play chicken!" Finn said, enthused by that idea.

Sam and Blaze just looked at him. "Uh, no…" Sam said finally.

"How're you feeling, Quinn?" Kourtney asked her.

"Well…bloated…I'm only about 13 weeks but Sam and I think I'm showing already…"

"Your belly does look a little bigger, you look pregnant," Rachel told her.

"We've only heard one heart beat and that was two separate times…we wondered if I might have an extra baby in there…I really don't think so, though…" Quinn said quietly.

"What would you do? If it's twins?" Kourtney asked her, in shock.

"Just like anyone else, I guess...go with the flow..." Quinn laughed a little.

"Do twins run in your family or Sam's?" Rachel asked.

"Not that I know of..."

"Do you have a doctor here yet?" Kourtney asked.

"Yeah, I went Friday and set up an appointment with a Dr. Meador...the appointment isn't until like September 3rd though," Quinn replied.

"Okay, he's in the practice I go to...cool..." Kourtney said. "They're great there."

"Are you still watching your blood pressure?" Rachel asked.

"Yes..." Quinn stated but paused. "When I remember..."

"Quiiiiinnnn..." Rachel said, admonishingly. "I will call you every day and remind you to check it, if that's what it takes..."

"I will too! If it's twins, I can't even imagine the adorableness of that!" Kourtney said.

"Okay, guys, we've only heard one heart beat and my morning sickness has not even been that bad this time around, so...I'm sure it's just one!" Almost instinctively, her hand fell to her belly protectively.

Thankfully, Sam came over and rescued her from all the questions by taking Joseph from her for a little while. The other two dads followed suit and they stood around with their babies trying to decide if Joseph would date Arielle. They already assumed that Joseph and Audrina would be friends like Sam and Kourtney; it was just a given to them. The girls started tossing a beachball back and forth. Quinn was a tiny bit jealous of Rachel and Kourtney in their bikinis while she was in her one-piece bathing suit, her belly definitely showing now. The exercise felt good, though, so she focused on that. Joseph began to cry, so Quinn had to stop playing and she took him from Sam to nurse him in the shade. Now that they were more used to his squirmy body when wet she loved to hold him in the water. He had noticed he was in water and liked to kick his feet and "talk" to it. When Sam had him, he'd let drops of water fall on Joseph's head, watching the baby's reaction to the cool trickles of water slipping over his skin.

Once Quinn and Joseph got out of the pool, Sam decided to take a break too and sat down with them. The others got out, as well, taking a break. They decided to order pizza for supper, since that was easy and fairly cheap and no one felt like cooking or going to the grocery store. After they were all dry, they moved into the family room to let the kids play and so they could eat their pizza.

"Do you like Tennessee so far?" Kourtney asked Finn and Rachel.

Rachel nodded enthusiastically and said so far it was great. Finn said it was incredibly hot and humid but everyone had been very nice that he had met. They said they were anxious to get started at TTC and Finn needed to find at least part-time work soon.

Sam's grandparents returned so the Hudsons and Williams got ready to make their departure, since Sam had an early day the next day.

"How was your visiting?" Sam asked his grandparents.

"Wonderful! So inspiring..." his grandmother answered. "Did you all have fun swimming? Everyone wear sunscreen?"

"Yes, Gramma," Sam said. "Well, Kourt didn't...she's working on her end-of-summer tan, she said." His grandmother sighed and rolled her eyes.

"You ready for tomorrow, Samuel?" his grandfather asked him.

"Very much so, Grampa...6 o'clock, right?"

"Yep...meet me for breakfast and we'll go from there."

"Great, sounds good...I'll be there...can't wait..." Quinn elbowed him in the ribs. He knew he was rambling but couldn't shut himself up.

Thanks he whispered to her.

His grandparents retired to their bedroom, and Sam, Quinn, and Joseph stayed in the family room watching TV for awhile. She curled up against him in the crook of his arm while holding Joseph. He kept flipping the channels, never settling on one show, so finally she suggested they go upstairs and relax since Joseph had fallen asleep in her arms.

"Really? This early?" he asked. It was 9:30.

"You have a big day tomorrow, silly, and 6 o'clock will be here before you know it," she said, sitting up straight, looking at Joseph's sweet sleeping face.

"I know..." he said, sounding tired. He sat up and motioned for Joseph. She handed him over and stood up, stretching.

"I'm worn out from the pool...that's such great exercise," she said.

Sam stood up with her, pecking her on the cheek. "You looked so pretty in your swimsuit, your little belly showing already." She smiled and blushed a little, liking the fact that he had been watching her in the pool. He wrapped his free arm around her waist, cradling sleeping Joseph in his other arm.

Upstairs, they put Joseph in his bassinet and got themselves ready for bed. Quinn was in bed before Sam; he seemed to be taking longer than usual. He usually was half asleep by the time she made it to bed. He finally finished up, checked on Joseph, killed the lights, and joined Quinn in bed.

He squeezed up close to her, pecking her on the cheek, whispering goodnight sweetheart to her. She rolled over to face him.

"Not so fast, Samuel Evans...what's bothering you? I mean, I know...but talk to me..."

He looked at her in the dark a moment, his eyes adjusting to the low light, only moonlight streaming in through their windows.

He sighed deeply. "I'm really scared, Q...I'm afraid I'm going to mess up..."

"You've been worrying about this, haven't you?"

"Well, yeah...how could I not worry about it?" he asked, feeling under the covers for her hand, grabbing her boob by mistake and giggling.

"You are going to do fine tomorrow, the next day, and the next day, and next week, and next month...you just gotta take it one day at a time, Sam. Your Grampa doesn't expect you to know everything tomorrow; that's why he's taking his time to teach you what he knows. You know what?" She paused, waiting for him to shake his head. "I think this time you get to spend with your Grampa is going to be awesome! You two will get to know each other better and he'll have peace of mind knowing that when the time comes he'll be leaving the farm in very capable hands."

"Day by day..." he mumbled.

"Yes. I know you can do this, Sam. I'm not gonna lie and tell you I think it's gonna be easy because I don't think it's going to be easy...at all. It's going to be hard work for you. Not only the physical labor but being away from us a lot more. Well, maybe you'll enjoy being away from me..." She laughed a little. "But I know being apart from Joey is going to be difficult, at least at the beginning..."

"I'll miss both of you, Quinn...I'm doing this for us, though, so we can have a good life, remember?"

She smiled and kissed him. "Yes, I remember..."

In a discussion right before they got married, Quinn had told Sam how badly she wanted children and he asked her to wait so he could provide them all with a good life; he didn't want to struggle for things they needed or wanted.

"I'm gonna do my best...for you, Joey, and our new little guy or gal..." He scooted up next to her, wrapping his arms around her, kissing her deeply.

"I love you so much, Quinn...you know what to say to make me feel better, or make me understand, or make me love you more...thanks for being my biggest fan..." The whole time he spoke to her his forehead rested against hers, his lips sometimes brushing hers.

"I've always been your biggest fan, Sam, and always will be...you need to get your rest though...I love you forever..." She kissed him, running a hand through his hair before rolling over to press her back against his front.

"Sweet dreams," he whispered behind her. She squeezed his hand, the one resting on her belly and fell asleep.