A/N: Thanks for reading. Enjoy!

"I've got tons of photos from Belize. I'll have to bring them by to show you. Of course, I'm only going to show the PG onces.", Mia grinned. She grabbed a lemon from the bowl on the table at La Fiesta and placed it in her water.

"I'm not even going to ask you to clarify that."

"Ana, the trip was just what was needed. Ethan was so emotionally fatigued. He was trying so hard to strong in front of everyone especially Kate, but inside, he was utterly drained. On our first night there, we went to dinner and then sat on the beach where we stared into the ocean. It was the most calming thing. The sound of the waves swooshing had a tranquility about it. We could have stayed there forever, but we knew we had to return to Seattle. Even though it was late when we got home, Ethan insisted on seeing Kate first thing. He wanted to check in on her. She told us about the miscarriage, and that she only told the rest of the family the other day."

"I can't even imagine the feelings she was experiencing as she dealt with losing her baby and then her mom." Mia's right hand moved from the table and on to her stomach.

"Me either. After she told us, I felt guilty for having talked about my pregnacny fueled cravings when we first got there. Kate noticed immediately and told me that I shouldn't feel guilty."

"She's right. What Kate went through was devastating, but she's going to pull through it. Did she tell you about the blog post she's working on?", Ana asked before taking a bite of her rice.

"She told me all about it, and I believe it's going to be therapeutic for both her and others. When I was younger, I had a diary where I jotted down my feelings whether they were good or bad. I'd occasionally go over past entries. There would be times where I'd be having what felt like the worst day possible, and then I'd open the diary to a day that was full of good. I'd feel better afterwards. I know my adolescent problems are nothing compared to what Kate's going through, but you get where I'm going, right?"

"Completely."

"Good. Now, what have you and Christian been up to besides work and parenting?"

"Nothing exciting.", Ana shrugged, bringing her water glass to her lips. "Work and parenting have been keeping us busy. The kids are growing like crazy. Landon's last day of school is Wednesday. He's excited of course. Layken has been well...Layken.", Ana giggled. "She gets into things one minute and then acts sweet and innocent the next. She hasn't been getting as many time outs which is good. Liam's been observing both Landon and Layken. I think he's going to have a mixture of both personalities." Ana went about eating her food while Mia stared at her in contemplation.

"I'm glad the kids are doing well. I already know you and Christian are great."

"We are."

"Ana, what are you not telling me?", Mia asked.

"Your brother has had women throw themselves at him before. It happened a few months ago in New York, but that was dealt with. I guess I shouldn't be surprised that it happened again Saturday while we were having dinner at Ivar's Fish and Chips. One of his old classmates stopped at our table. Her name's Meredith Channing. Christian didn't recognize her at first which seemed to slightly irk her. That didn't stop her from batting her eyes at Christian."

"You do realize you have nothing to worry about, right? Christian would never cheat or even consider cheating."

"I know, and I told him I wasn't jealous when I was in fact a tad jealous. She's beautiful and makes her own clothes." The word clothes gathered Mia's attention even more. "She's a fashion designer who's looking to open her own boutique."

"Designing clothes might be awesome, but there's one problem. She's not you.", Mia said.

"I can't wait until my last day of school.", Landon said. He emptied the contents of his backpack on to the top of the kitchen table, instantly sending Layken to his side in curiosity. Her small hand grabbed the Spiderman folder that was on the edge of the table.

"I have this?", she asked nicely.

"I don't need it any more so I guess. You can even have the rest of my folders if you want. All of them are empty."

"Landon, you've still got two more days of school. Won't you need them?", Ana asked from behind the kitchen counter where she was helping Gail peel potatoes.

"Nope. My teacher said all we didn't need our folders. We're not doing a lot of work in class. On Wednesday, we're going to have a party. We have to bring something. I said I'd bring some juice boxes and cookies."

"All right. I'll pick them up at the store tomorrow."

"You can get the juice boxes at the store, but I want the cookies to be homemade.", he grinned. "Please. I can help make them."

"All right. We'll make the cookies.", Ana laughed. "Now how about you get all of your things off the table? We're going to need it for dinner."

"Ok." Landon began shoving his things back in his backpack. "I'll take this to my room." He threw the backpack over his shoulder and started to the door but stopped when he saw Layken following him. "You're like my shadow."

"Uh-huh.", she giggled. He sighed and left the room with her still behind him.

"She loves aggravating him.", Gail pointed out.

"More than anything.", Ana replied as they went back to the potatoes. Ana placed the potatoes in the bowl as Christian and Taylor walked into the kitchen. "Look who's home. Hey guys."

"Hi.", Taylor nodded.

"I saw Landon and Layken on their way upstairs. Layken said Landon's letting her have his folders.", Christian said. He removed his coat and placed it on the back of one of the table chairs.

"He said he doesn't need them.", Ana answered.

"We're going to give the two of you some privacy.", Gail told Ana and Christian. "We'll also check to see if Liam's still sleeping and also make sure Landon and Layken are not fighting." She placed her hand on Taylor's elbow and led him out of the kitchen.

"Melissa wasn't feeling well so she left early.", Ana said, answering the question Christian was about to ask. "I had a nice lunch with Mia today. She got the kids tee shirts and us some nice wine glasses with a beach scenary on them."

"That was nice of her."

"She and Ethan still have some unpacking to do but are going to stop by Friday to see everyone. After our lunch, I went back to the office where I had a meeting with Davis Warren, a potential client. He's already written his book which is about his high school football days. He was the star player until a shoulder injury sidelined him. The book is about the struggles he had afterwards and how he got to be the point in his life where he's at now."

"Sounds interesting.", Christian said. "I...um...got a call from Meredith Channing today. She asked for a meeting with me."

"Of course she did.", Ana mumbled as she tried to stay calm while starting to dice the peeled potatoes. Christian, worried that she might accidentally cut herself, moved next to her and eased the knife from her hand.

"You said you weren't jealous."

"I was a little jealous but got over. What I am now is curious about why the woman who batted her eyes at you is wanting."

"It seems while she was in Europe, Meredith had an organization that helped provide clothing for less fortunate individuals. It was a collaberation with her fiance Pierce. He worked in stock broking and came from a prominent family. With his money as well as money from Meredith, they started up their foundation. Some of the clothes were ones which Meredith created while others were donated from retailers. It was a success that unfortunately came to a halt when Pierce was killed in a car accident." Ana's insecurity over Meredith turned into sympathy. The woman had lost the man she loved. "She apologized for the phone call going longer than she wanted but asked if we could meet tomorrow. She wants to set something similiar up here in Seattle."

"I feel bad for her.", Ana murmured.

"The meeting is in the morning at ten. Baby, I promise you have nothing to worry about."

"Christian, I know you're a very busy man, but thank you for meeting with me.", Meredith said after taking a seat in Christian's office. "I almost waited until next week to call you, but I thought the sooner I meet with you, the sooner I can hopefully get things up and running."

"That's understandable. Tell more about your plan?" Meredith smiled and reached into her bag, pulling out a folder which she handed to Christian. He opened it to find pages with numbers as well as photos of clothes being handed to smiling men, women, and children.

"I'd like to keep the same name, Stitches of Love. It was formed out of the love between Pierce and I, and even though it was hard being in the same place we met and fell in love, he's still very much a part of me and who I am. Basically, the idea is to make sure people have clothes on their back and shoes on their feet. Many of the clothes are made by me, but I also go to local stores and ask for donations. Some say no, but there are many who want to give back. Having sponsors is a big help and not just in a monetary way. When the owner of a store sees the name of a local business giant, they feel compelled to join in."

"You'd like for me to sponsor?", Christian asked while taking notes on the meeting.

"Yes. I figured since you're a staunch believer in giving back that you'd be willing to at least consider it. I'm going to go to others with the proposal, but I thought I'd start with you."

"Meredith, you're doing a good thing, and I will indeed consider sponsoring."

"Just hearing that makes me happy which I haven't been in a long time. Pierce was my everything. Losing him was like losing myself. I felt so lost. Then I decided to come back here. Even though I'm never going to stop missing him, I'm starting to have hope that things are going to be ok.", Meredith said. "I've taken enough of time, but thank you again for meeting with me. I'm going to leave the folder here so you can look over it some more. I believe your assistant has my number, and it's also at the back of the folder if you need it." Meredith stood and offered her hand to Christian.

"I'll get back with you on this.", he replied while shaking her hand. Even though Meredith had been on her best behavior, Christian was still going to keep his guarad up around her.