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There will be a couple of surprises in this chapter, one good one and one not so good one but it turns out ok in the end

The day after the friends returned from holiday, none of them had work on that day as it was time for their next scan, they were due to have their 20 week scans while they were away but they were all rearranged for the day after they returned, so effectively they were having 22 week scans and they again were watching each others, they had the same doctor doing the sonograms again

"So Amy I can tell you that everything is looking good, the baby is the right size and weight for the time of pregnancy, have you had any problems? Asked Dr Taylor once she had finished checking things over

"Other than a little bit of tiredness no" replied Amy

Natasha was next and the doctor confirmed that they twins were growing well, the boy twin was still slightly bigger than the girl though

"How are you coping with the pregnancy?

"Well I tend to have more energy in the morning, usually by about mid afternoon I start to feel exhausted" replied Natasha

"Are you still working full time?

"Yes but I intend to reduce my hours by the end of September" replied Natasha

"Hmm well I would recommend you start reducing them before then, you need to rest as much as you can" said the Doctor

"I tried telling her that Dr but she insists on working as much as she can" said George

"Yes thanks for that George" said Natasha glaring at him

"Nat he is just looking out for you" said Penny

"Yes I know but I like working and don't want to give up until I absolutely have to" replied Natasha getting off the bed and Penny took her place

"Lets talk about this later" said George cuddling Natasha

"Ok" said the Doctor a few minutes later "Your little girl is growing as we expect and there are no problems, please all of you if you have any problems you have my number, please come and see me and I will recommend you all rest as much as you can"

On the way out of the hospital Sheldon and George received text messages from Mary asking them to Skype her as soon as possible, luckily Penny had her laptop with her so they found a bench outside and called her

"Hi mom, what's going on? Asked Sheldon when Mary answered

"Is George with you?

"Yes, we just had our latest baby scans" replied Sheldon as George came into shot

"Oh good, how did they go? Asked Mary

"Everything is fine but what's the reason that you need to talk to us so quickly?" asked Sheldon

"Well it seems your sister has gone and gotten married without telling anybody" said Mary looking suitably annoyed

"What? Said George

"When did this happen? Asked Sheldon

"The weekend apparently, Missy came over this morning to tell me, you remember her boyfriend Brett that she has been seeing on and off for the past few years? asked Mary

"Yes, he seems a nice enough guy" said George who had seen more of him than Sheldon had

"Why did they get married without telling anybody? Asked Natasha

"She is pregnant also and she wasn't going to tell me but I forced it out of her, you know me I can tell when somebody is hiding something" replied Mary

"She's pregnant? When is she due? Asked Amy

"She said she was 6 weeks so probably around February or March, she was going to tell you all tonight but she's gone to work, also please thank Raj and Alex for the invitation to the engagement party but we wont be able to make it but we will try and come over for the wedding" said Mary

"Sure but why would she feel that she has to get married because she's pregnant? Asked George

"My guess is that because she is so early in the pregnancy that she could then announce later on that she was pregnant a couple of months into the marriage, am I such a bad mother that you kids can't tell me things? Asked Mary

"No mom you are great and we do tell you things, maybe Missy was worried about your reaction" said George

"Well I would have preferred to have been there at the wedding, it was only them and their two best friends as witnesses" said Mary

"Well maybe you can see if they want to have a blessing then at Christmas time over here" said Sheldon

"That's actually a good idea, anyway I have to go and take Meemaw to the doctors, she has a chest infection" said Mary

"Give her my love" said Sheldon

"Will do and just be nice to Missy when she calls you all tonight please" said Mary ending the call

"Well that was interesting, is Brett on Facebook do you think? Asked Penny logging on to her Facebook profile and finding Missy's page on her friend list

"I have no idea but if you look at Missy's friend list he might be there" replied George

"Did we ever meet him? Asked Amy

"No she's pretty much kept him away when we have visited, I don't know why" replied Sheldon

"But you have met him before though? Asked Amy again

"Yes they dated when they were teenagers and it's been on and off ever since, sometimes with several years in between" replied Sheldon

"Oh look here he is" said Penny finding Brett's page

"It didn't take long for them to say they were married to each other then" said Amy spotting Brett's relationship status

"What does he do for a living? Asked Natasha

"He has his own mechanics garage" replied George

The group made their way home, Amy offered to cook for them and around 7pm Missy called them on Skype

"Hi guys, so I guess Mom told you then" said Missy waving to them all

"Yes and double congratulations" said Sheldon

"Thanks, I am sorry I didn't tell y'all though" said Missy

"Don't worry about it, we suggested to Mom that when you come over at Christmas you can have the wedding blessed at the church where Natasha and I got married" said George

"That way all of us will be there, providing we have had the babies by then" added Amy

"I think we are coming over on the 20th December so unless you go 10 days overdue then I think you will have had them, especially Natasha" said Missy

"So how far along are you exactly? Asked Penny

"I had a scan on the way home from work and I am 7 weeks pregnant so around the middle of February I will be due, I don't even have a bump yet" said Missy

"And its just one baby? Asked Sheldon

"Yes, which I am glad about" replied Missy

"Missy, I am scared to bits about having twins but if you had them, then I am sure you would be fine" said Natasha

"Perhaps, also Brett is here with me if y'all would like to say hello" said Missy as Brett appeared on the screen

They chatted for a few minutes until Amy remembered the dinner and called the children down from upstairs, they told them about Missy getting married and that they would be having another cousin in February

"Also Marie, you and Rose will be Alex's bridesmaids"

"Like when I was for Natasha? Asked Marie

"Yes and Natasha will be Alex's maid of honour so all you will have to do is follow her down the aisle, Alex has two nephews who are 7 and 8 who will be page boys and they will join you" said Amy

"Ok mommy can we go in pool after dinner? Asked Marie

"Yes but daddy will supervise you, I need to have a rest as I have to go to work early tomorrow to catch up with the study" replied Amy

"Penny I wanted to talk to you about my hours" said Natasha

"Ok go ahead?

"Well if I am going to reduce them, then perhaps I should start reducing them straight away, I am fine in the mornings so perhaps I should just work 9 till 2, Kelly is due back at work next month from maternity leave and Alex can work in the afternoons when I am not" suggested Natasha

"That's actually a good idea, Kelly can work the weekend shift as women's floor manager and Alex can do 12 until 6, I will be working a lot more as well to fit in all my clients before I stop in November" said Penny

"That's sorted then, also George if you want to stay with the kids in the pool after dinner please do, I need to go home for a rest, I am exhausted" said Natasha

"Finally, you do know it's not a bad thing to admit you can't do too much" said George

"I know and I realise I need to look after myself as well as these two inside me" replied Natasha

"Have you got spare swimming shorts here? Asked Sheldon to George

"Yes I left them in the annexe, I hope that's ok?

"Sure, probably a good idea" said Sheldon

A little while later Leonard took Archie and Corey next door to get changed as they wanted to join Marie and Richard in the pool, Sheldon took Marie and Richard up to get changed and Amy followed him

"Right kids, Uncle George is waiting for you in the garden, let me just get changed and I will be down" said Sheldon

"I think I will go in the hot tub for a few minutes to relax" said Amy going to her wardrobe and looking for her swimsuit

"Really well perhaps I will join you" said Sheldon coming up behind Amy and kissing her neck, Amy turned around and still in his arms, kissed him softly on the lips

"I thought you were supervising the children? Said Amy a few minutes later

"I am but something changed my mind" replied Sheldon leading her to the bed and lying down with her

"I wonder what that was" said Amy knowing just what Sheldon wanted

"You being a vixen that turns me on" replied Sheldon kissing her again

"My mom has the kids Saturday night until Sunday afternoon so perhaps after the engagement party we can have more fun time" replied Amy

"Will you wear the basque I bought you?

"I don't think it would fit me now" said Amy indicating her swollen belly

"Oh yes, never mind, let's just get changed so we can see to the kids" replied Sheldon groaning as his erection twitched against Amy's stomach

"Would you like some help with your problem? Asked Amy

"What do you have in mind? Asked Sheldon getting excited for what was to come

"I will show you" replied crawling down the bed and taking his erection in her mouth

"Oh boy" moaned Sheldon running his hands through Amy's head

"Did that work" said Amy a few minutes later while they were getting changed

"Yes but you know I want more" replied Sheldon

"Maybe later, we have already left them downstairs for long enough" said Amy taking Sheldon's hand and leading him to the garden and the pool house

Penny had brought Jess and Jack round the dogs were chasing each other round having fun when they heard a squeal from Daisy who then appeared to be limping

"Daisy come here" said Amy calling to her, Daisy limped over towards her and Amy sat down on the grass beside her and examined her leg but couldn't see anything wrong

"Maybe she just bent her foot the wrong way when they were playing? Suggested Leonard

"Perhaps but I will see how it is in the morning" said Amy patting Daisy's back and letting her go, she continued to limp a little but it didn't stop her chasing after the other dogs and pretty soon the limp had gone

The next day Amy arrived at the lab at 730 am, she was greeted by her assistant Grace who informed her that two of the monkeys had given birth while she was away

"What did you do with the monkeys? Asked Amy

"Dr Carter said to leave them there but not give them any alcohol or cigarettes until you came back" said Grace

"Ok, did the babies suffer any effects from the addictions?

"No we haven't seen any but then as both the monkeys were on the alcohol study which had been reduced for the past month, then I guess it doesn't effect them as much" said Grace showing Amy to the cage where the two monkeys with babies had been put

"Did you find out the sexes of the babies yet? Asked Amy looking at them

"No they wont let us look close enough, are we going to include the babies in the study?

"No and I think as neither Monkey has had a problem so far with withdrawal, then we shall give them to a private collection that I know of and bring in two more that I have as back up" said Amy

"When will that happen? Asked Grace

"I will make some calls now and probably we will have them by the end of the day" replied Amy

"What shall we do with these in the meantime?

"They can stay in here as long as they don't get upset, now I have some brain specimens to look at, call me if you need me" smiled Amy as she left the lab and went to her office next door, Dr Carter was walking down the corridor when she spotted Amy

"Hi Amy, you look well by the way" said Dr Carter

"Thank you, I have just given Grace the required information as to the monkeys" said Amy telling Dr Carter what she had said

"That's very good, now I am off on holiday at the end of August for three weeks, could I leave you in charge of the department then? Asked Dr Carter

"Sure that's not a problem" said Amy

"I will talk to you next week about anything you may need to do" said Dr Carter

"Where are you going by the way?

"I am off to visit my brother and his family in Sydney, they moved there about 5 years ago and we can only converse via Skype, so I thought I would treat myself, my husband is coming with me as well" replied Dr Carter

"Are you children going with you?

"Yes, all three are at College or University so they will be going back at the end of September, they are at different stages, my eldest is in his final year and my youngest will just be starting"

"Well I hope you enjoy, also I have to go to Harvard in the middle of September, I hope that will be ok"

"Yes of course, you already told me that and it will be the last time you can fly until after the baby is born" replied Dr Carter

"Oh yes I did, I better get onto these specimens then, I can already see there is a lot" said Amy looking through her office door to her own private lab area

Amy had two days of very productive work, the new monkeys arrived and Amy decided not to give them anything until after the weekend to let them settle in, on Friday night the group had their monthly Chinese food and vintage video game night, although there was very little video game play going on as the children required their fathers attention as Penny, Natasha and Amy had a busy two days at work and were starting to feel the tiredness creeping in

Amy and Sheldon had just gone to bed around midnight when there was a loud banging at the door followed by the sound of somebody running away, Sheldon looked out of the window and could only see the back on somebody running and jumping into a car further down the road

"Who was it? Asked Amy

"I don't know, they knocked and ran off, who would do that? Asked Sheldon going to close the window, he then heard a faint cry coming from the veranda below him, even Amy heard it

"Sounds like a baby? Said Amy as she and Sheldon went downstairs and opening the front door they found a baby in a basket with a note saying "sorry we can't look after her"

"Who would do such a thing? Said Sheldon picking the basket up and carrying her inside

"Somebody who can't cope I guess" replied Amy taking the baby out and checking it over "Well it's a girl and she still has her birth tag on her wrist"

"Ok, you look after her and I will call the police" said Sheldon

"Sure, let me go next door and ask Nancy, she's a nurse" said Amy putting the baby back in the basket and leaving the house, she saw Penny outside

"Ames what's going on, I heard somebody banging on your door"

"Yes it appears they have left their baby behind, go in if you like, I am just seeing if Nancy is in" said Amy

A few minutes later Nancy came back with Amy and the quiet of the night was shattered by the sound of sirens blaring, Penny had gone back to tell Leonard and he had brought Archie and Corey round and put them in the spare room while the police spoke to Sheldon and Amy

"Tell me exactly what you saw please Dr Cooper?

"All I saw was somebody running away, I only saw their back and then getting into a car further down the road, it's dark so I couldn't see the registration number" said Sheldon as Nancy examined the baby

"I think the baby is no more than two days old, I do know she was born at Pasadena General Hospital, I can tell by the tag because I work there"

"Do you recognise the baby? Asked the police officer to Nancy

"No today was my day off"

"You didn't see anything else that could be of any help? Asked the police officer

"No sorry, only that it was a dark coloured car, it was a couple hundred yards down the road going in the direction of East Washington Boulevard and there was this note left with the baby" said Sheldon passing the police officer the note

"Very well, would you both be able to come to the hospital with us, we need to make sure the baby is not in any danger" said the police officer

"I can tell you now from experience, that the baby is fine" said Nancy

"I will go with your judgement on this one" replied the police officer

"Sheldon can you go to the late night garage and get some formula?

"Of course, perhaps Leonard will come with me" said Sheldon looking to Leonard who nodded and followed him out

"How far into your pregnancies are you both? Asked the police officer noticing Penny and Amy's bumps for the first time

"We are both 22 weeks" replied Amy

"Ok, there is a chance we may not be able to get a foster parent in place until the morning, would either you be able to watch her until then?

"Yes of course, that's not a problem" said Amy as Nancy passed her the baby

"Presumably you are in touch with social services? Asked Penny

"Yes of course and sometimes these things take time but if somebody is willing to look after the baby until morning that will be very helpful" replied the police officer

"I wonder why they left the baby here though? Asked Penny

"Sometimes the people that do this often plan it out and they target families because they know the baby will be looked after" said the police officer

"Somebody has been watching us? That's kind of creepy" replied Amy

"That's true but also a compliment, oh hold on" said the police officer as a message came over the radio, he disappeared off towards the kitchen to hear it better

Sheldon and Leonard arrived back with the formula and Raj who had been watching from his front garden and wanted to know what was going on, Amy was cuddling the baby and stroking her hair

"Amy I will make a bottle up for her, also I got some nappies from Raj as well, seeing as Yasmin is still young" said Sheldon

"Thanks"

"Ok, what I told you about getting a social worker so late at night is true, but one will be here first thing in the morning, are you sure you are ok to keep her? Asked the police officer

"Yes, I have two other children so I know what to do" replied Amy

"Very well, I am just going to search the outside of your home, sometimes they leave clues, would you mind if I borrowed your one of your dogs? They are very good at sniffing out things" said the police officer

"Sure you can take Daisy, Daisy come here" said Amy clipping her onto her harness and passing her to the police officer, Daisy was very reluctant to go with the stranger, so she was swapped for Cassie who had already taken a liking to him

"Would you like me to come with you? Asked Sheldon

"No its ok, I will only be a few minutes" The officer returned a few minutes later and said he had found nothing and then left the house after taking Amy's number and promising to call her in the morning

"Sheldon will you get the cot from the garage, she can sleep in that after she has had her bottle" said Amy

"Amy hang on, Yasmin has recently stopped sleeping in her moses basket, so I can get that if you like? Asked Raj

"That probably works, thank you" replied Amy, Raj left and returned a few minutes later with the moses basket, Sheldon took it upstairs to their room and came back down where Amy was feeding the baby

"I still can't believe somebody would just leave a baby like that" said Penny

"I know, maybe she was scared, who knows" replied Amy

"Well we will leave you to it, call us if you need any help" said Penny

"Thank you" replied Amy

The baby slept through until the morning after her feed and when Marie came into Amy and Sheldon's bedroom at 7am she was curious about the baby

"Mommy did you have the baby?

"No, we are just looking after for the night" replied Amy not going into details

"But she wasn't here when I went to bed" replied Marie

"I know, it was an emergency, now daddy will take you downstairs and put the TV on for you" said Amy nudging Sheldon to get up, which he did, he returned a few minutes later

"Amy I don't think it's a good idea that the kids are here when the social worker arrives, it will cause too many questions, I just rang George and he will come and take them in a minute"

"That's a good idea actually" replied Amy as Marie could be heard shouting from downstairs

"Mommy there's somebody in the garden"

"What the hell" said Amy as Sheldon raced downstairs to the garden and found the door to the annexe open, Amy had already called Leonard for back up and he arrived within seconds to help Sheldon

"Marie did you see where the person went? Asked Sheldon as he went back into the house and brought Daisy with him to the garden

"It was a lady and she looked through the window and then went round the side of the house" replied Marie

"Ok go into the kitchen where its safe" said Sheldon, Marie did just that

Amy had come downstairs as the doorbell rung, she found a lady there

"Hello, my name is Janet Parker, I am from Pasadena Social Services" said Janet showing her ID card

"Oh good, you have got here when we have a situation, somebody just appeared in the garden and broke into our annexe"

"Are they still there?

"Yes my husband has taken the dog to check it out" said Amy leading her through to the garden

"I think I know who this lady is, she has had a history of having babies and giving them away, she is ok with me if I go up there" said Janet

"Has she got mental health problems? Enquired Penny from over the garden fence

"No but she has trouble dealing with real life" replied Janet as she entered the annexe with Sheldon and Leonard following her, she could be heard calling for the woman gently, she then appeared with Janet a few minutes later

"Sorry for scaring you all" said the woman

"Is it your baby that was left here last night? Asked Amy as George appeared through the side gate

"Yes and I left her with you deliberately, I often look out for families at the park and I see you there a lot with your kids and dogs and you all look so happy" said the girl

"What's your name? asked Amy

"Karen Garner and I am sorry for causing you trouble"

"That's fine but why didn't you want to keep the baby? Asked Amy

"I can't cope with children, I already had 3 taken away from me and I was scared about this one, especially with the father not around and she will do better without me" replied Karen

"Ok Karen we will take you out of here now, please do not come back here again, the baby will be taken into care" said Janet leading her through the side gate and out to the front where the police were waiting to take her away, she returned back to the house, where Amy had brought the baby downstairs and was feeding her

"Your very good with her" said Janet

"Thanks, I have two myself so it's all good practice for when this one arrives" replied Amy

"Is she really going to go into care? Asked Penny

"Well we have foster carers who are happy to take her until she can be adopted" replied Janet

"I wish I was in a position to do so" said Amy looking wistfully at the baby

"You can always put yourself on the fostering list, its easier to do than the process for adoption, there are still vigorous checks but we have a lot of successful fosterers" said Janet

"Oh maybe we can do that in the future" said Amy looking to Sheldon

"We can talk about it certainly" said Sheldon cautiously

"Now will you be pressing charges for the broken door? Asked Janet

"No it's easily fixable" said Sheldon

"Have you got a foster carer in mind? Asked Amy

"Yes and thank you for not pressing charges, I will pass that on to the police and hopefully Karen will stay away, she's a very troubled girl" said Janet

"How old is she? Asked George

"She's 25 and since she was 12 when she ran away from home, she has been in and out care and then hostels as an adult"

"Doesn't she want help? Asked Leonard

"She's been to therapy sessions but never stays for the whole session"

"Well my mother is very well know in psycho analyzing people and getting them to open up, I can give you her email address if you wanted to speak to her, she lives in New York" replied Leonard

"Thank you, what did you say your name was?

"It's Leonard Hofstadter"

"Oh your mother is Beverley? I've read all her books" said Janet

"Oh good, well here is her email address" said Leonard as Amy passed him a pen and paper

"Thank you, I will be in touch about what happens with the baby" said Janet taking the baby from Amy and leaving the house

"I really wanted to keep her" said Amy looking sadly out of the window at the car

"I know but she will be looked after elsewhere" said Sheldon

"I hope so, I also hope your mother can help her Leonard" said Amy

"Well I will call her later to explain and give her the details, she's very good at what she does" replied Leonard

"Do you still want me to take Marie and Richard to mine? Asked George

"No its ok but thank you for agreeing to it" said Sheldon

"No problem, I better get back and tell Nat what happened" said George waving and leaving, Leonard followed him out and went home also

"Do you think fostering would be a good idea? Asked Amy

"Maybe in the future yes, let's have this one first and we will see" replied Sheldon kissing her and patting her bump

"I can tell you for one thing, this baby will never be dumped on somebody's doorstep" replied Amy

"That's true and also we are solid as a family"

"That's true" replied Amy smiling up at her husband

Next chapter up soon