Kilarney….. Just after midnight…..

Nick Ryan opens the back door and is followed inside by his brother.

"Thanks for that Nick." Alex offers.

"No worries." Nick answers sounding tired.

"Nick! Are you alright?" Alex asks.

….

"At Tess's appointment today… Something isn't right Alex." Nick explains.

"Like what?" Alex asks looking concerned.

"We have to go back next week. The baby's hearts ok which was my first worry but they said they'd like to do another check." Nick replies.

Alex looks at his brother trying to think of something positive to say.

"It'll be ok Nick they're probably just being thorough." Alex offers.

…..

Nick doesn't look convinced.

"Mate what did they say? Why do you have to go back?" Alex asks.

"I don't know we didn't ask." Nick answers.

Alex shakes his head and says. "You have to ask questions Nick. Stevie and I asked loads of questions and if something came up in between visits we'd ring and ask the doctor. "

Nick's expression changes and he asks. "So if I ring in the morning they might tell be why they need to check."

"Yeah you have a right to know Nick and with specialists they tend to not be very chatty so you have to ask questions. Ring in the morning mate because otherwise you'll be worried all week over something that might be nothing." Alex explains.

….

Upstairs…

Alex places his hand on Amelia and Alexander's bedroom door and glancing up gives Nick a smile and a quick wave as his brother disappears into his own room.

Flicking on the night light Alex smiles at his little girl.

She sleeps like her Mother, flat on her back.

Her blonde curls splash across her pillow with one hand palm up beside her head and the other one sitting on her belly.

He takes a minute to stand and look at her.

Same beautiful mouth as her Mother, curling up at the edges even without a smile giving her a happy look even though she's asleep.

He lifts the blankets and covers her properly and leaning down kisses her forehead.

"Daddy." She whispers.

He smiles and says softly. "Yeah it's me."

She opens her eyes and looks sleepily at him.

He brushes her face with his hand.

Moving her hand she holds onto his thumb and rolls over still holding it.

He grins.

Within seconds her grip loosens and he moves over to Alexander.

Covering him properly too, he kisses his small sons cheek and moves to his own room.

….

Stevie and Alex's room….

Alex showers quickly.

Returning to his room he smiles.

Stevie is flat on her back, one hand beside her head, palm up and the other resting on her now flatter belly.

Her wild red curls haphazardly strewn across the pillow.

….

Quickly he checks on the twins, gently stroking their puffy, soft cheeks.

"I hope you guys behaved yourselves." He whispers.

Moving back to the bed he lifts the doona and slides in.

Lying on his back he rests his arms behind his head.

"What time is it?" Stevie asks sleepily.

"After midnight go back to sleep." Alex whispers.

Rolling towards him she runs her hand onto his chest.

Lifting his arm she snuggles into him.

He smiles when she doesn't move again.

He doubts she was even properly awake.

Breathing deeply he thinks about the past twenty four hours.

Marcus, Dave, Riley, Grace and Kate.

Nick and Tess and their new bub.

He wonders what could possibly be wrong.

….

He'll have a chat to Brett about Tracy when he returns from the muster.

It was nice of him to get Nick to drive him out and take over from Alex.

He's back with Stevie and the babies where he should be.

Brett's a good guy and they should try and keep him around.

Alex decides he'll front him about Jodi's theory and set the record straight that he has no problems with Brett's sexual orientation but he'd appreciate it if Brett respected his too.

….

Stevie and Alex's bedroom ….Just before four am...

Alex opens his eyes and feeling disorientated wonders what the noise is.

Smiling to himself he realises he's at home in his bed and the noise is one of his newborn sons stirring in his crib.

Stevie has her back to him and is curled into a ball.

Turning over he wraps himself around her and kissing the side of her head waits for her to wake.

The babies soft murmurings' become agitated growls and squawks and then quickly kicks up to an I'm hungry feed me now wail.

Stevie stirs and half asleep throws back the covers.

"Stay there Stevie I'll get him." Alex offers.

"I need to pee." She replies softly and continues on her way.

…..

Walking back into the room Stevie asks. "Why are you here?"

"I live here." Alex replies playfully.

She grins at him and lies down lifting her top to the now very unhappy baby between them.

Alex leans his head on his hand and watches.

Reaching out he touches her breast and asks. "Been awhile since you fed them? They're like rock again."

"Eleven o'clock they've gone five hours! Not bad." She states.

"Hmmm." Is the only reply he gives.

…..

Stevie yawns and looking back at Alex grins and asks. "Enjoying yourself?"

"I'm watching the baby." He answers.

"Liar." She admonishes.

"Got me!" He laughs.

"It's going to be difficult for you isn't it." She asks seriously.

"Nah piece of cake." He answers.

"Liar!" She chuckles.

He laughs too.

Kilarney daybreak….

Kate, Marcus, Riley and Brett have had breakfast and packed up the gear ready for Nick to pick up later on.

With the horses saddled up they begin the last leg of the journey back to the yards.

"Are you ok Kate?" Marcus asks.

She shakes her head and replies. "Not really Marcus. I think perhaps I should hand in my notice and move on."

"You can't be serious Kate, you're a brilliant overseer and I'd miss you." He suggests.

She smiles at him and replies. "Thank you for the encouragement Marcus but I think it's inevitable after last night. I mean you and Alex almost got into a punch up."

"That had nothing to do with you Kate he was worried about Stevie and the babies. You watch everything will be fine when we get back." Marcus replies.

She studies his face but rides on silently.

….

He follows her.

Stopping her horse she turns back and asks. "So you'd miss me!"

Grinning he replies. "Yeah I would. I mean who am I going to talk too? Plus I love your cooking. If I rely on Dave and Riley's efforts I'll probably starve to death. "

She giggles and rides on.

….

Drover's Run… eight am…..

Ben walks from the office into the kitchen with a big smile on his face.

Claire smiles back at him.

"She right?" Claire asks.

"Yeah I just spoke to Alex, the babies slept from eleven until almost four this morning and Stevie and the babies are still asleep. He also said to say thank you for Brett." Ben answers.

"Hmmm yeah Brett about that!" Claire says frowning.

Ben pulls her in closer and offers. "Hey don't start! I've been up since daybreak and I'll work until dusk to make up his hours. The only reason I'm back is because I thought you'd be missing me by now."

Pushing back with her hands on his chest she asks. "Did he volunteer or did you volunteer his services?"

"It was a joint decision. It was nice of Nick to offer to drive him out to swap with Alex they were back by midnight." Ben replies.

She rests her head on his chest.

Shifting his arms he gently hugs her tighter.

Kilarney lunchtime….

Alex is down at the yards waiting for the herd to arrive.

By his calculations they shouldn't be too far away.

Alexander and Amelia are toddling about nearby rugged up in their coats, beanies and mittens.

The weather has been unseasonably cold in the last few days.

….

Moira had offered to keep the children with her but Alex decided to take them with him to burn off some of their excess energy.

Stevie was asleep again.

He doesn't remember Claire sleeping so much after the birth of Charlotte but then again Stevie has given birth four times in the last two years.

There was no comparison.

Plus feeding two babies took an amazing amount of energy from her.

He grinned to himself when he thought about the amount of food and fluids she is consuming.

"Hey!" Stevie's voice calls.

Alexander and Amelia run to her gabbling away excitedly.

Alex smiles watching them.

Stevie is wearing her drizabone and akubra as she slowly makes her way over to him.

"Do up your coat Stevie you'll get a chill." He chastises grabbing either side of the coat.

She laughs when he realises the two sides don't quite meet up.

….

"I may need to take up jogging." She chuckles.

Opening the front of his own coat he encourages her to hug him and quips. "I don't think it would be safe to jog at the moment."

Looking up at him she asks. "What are you implying Alex?"

"I'm implying nothing, just stating a fact Stevie. If you try to run with your breasts the way they are you'll either blacken your eyes or rip your chest muscles." He smirks.

Resting her head on his chest she sighs.

"Cow Daddy Cow." Amelia says.

Looking down at her he releases Stevie and picking up his daughter asks. "Where? Show Daddy!"

Amelia points to the herd on the horizon.

The noise had already alerted Stevie and Alex of their approach but Alex indulges the children's observations.

Stevie picks Alexander up to ensure his safety as the sometimes unruly herd move closer to the holding yards.

"Uncma Mummy Uncma!" Alexander calls excitedly.

Stevie waves, gaining Marcus's attention and points to Alexander as she moves towards Marcus.

Clearing the herd Marcus lifts the little boy from Stevie's arms and places him in front of him on the saddle.

"How was the ride?" She asks.

Leaning down he whispers. "Kate's thinking of chucking her job because of all the trouble I've caused. Don't let her do it Stevie she's too good to let go."

Stevie's smile drops and she moves quickly back over to Alex.

….

Marcus walks his horse up to the gates but keeps a safe distance because of his passenger.

Kate closes the gate and turns back to Marcus and Alexander.

"Righto mate go to Katie for a moment so Uncma can get down." Marcus tells Alexander using the little boys name for him.

Kate holds her arms up for Alexander and he smiles broadly.

Wrapping his arms around her neck and his chubby little legs around her waist he squeezes her tightly.

Marcus dismounts and holds his arm out to his nephew." Ok Matey you can come back now."

Kate stretches her arms out to her sides and quips. "I'm not stopping him."

Marcus laughs.

"Looks like you've found a friend Kate." Alex offers smiling at her.

The smile she had for Marcus and Alexander fades when she replies. "Aside from Marcus he's about the only one I've got left."

"Alexander go to Uncma. Daddy needs to speak with Kate for a few minutes." Alex orders.

…..

Alexander does as he's told and Marcus leads his horse away from Kate and Alex.

"I need to speak with you too Alex." Kate states.

"I owe you an apology Kate." Alex says.

Kate is surprised and says. "Oh."

"I was gruff with you because I was upset over having to muster instead of being here with Stevie. It was unfair, you were already under enough pressure without me adding to it." Alex explains.

Kate stares at him and nods as she gathers her thoughts and emotions.

"I've made a mess of this Alex. Grace isn't talking to me, Dave and Riley are avoiding me. How can I bring harmony to my work if people don't want to talk to me?" Kate finally says.

He looks down at her and placing his hand on her shoulder says. "Harmony is great if you can arrange it but all I want is the job done and I want it done right. You've managed to bring the herd in on time and they look calm which is how we want them for the market tomorrow. So as far as I'm concerned you've done a perfect job Kate."

Stunned she just nods at him.

"You wanted to talk to me about something?" He asks.

"Um yeah ….argh…oh what did you want us to do this afternoon?" Kate asks.

He smiles and replies. "I think once you unsaddle the horses, perhaps a beer with your workers followed by an afternoon off might make you all feel better."

She smiles and says. "Thanks Alex."

He nods and moves back over to Stevie.

….

Stevie is looking at the cattle as Alex stands beside her.

"They're in great condition Alex." She offers.

"Yep." He replies sounding distracted.

"Oi! Brett can I have a word before you head off." Alex calls across the yard.

Brett waves and yells back "Ok."

Stevie and Alex walk back to the house with the children as Kate and her workers finish up for the day.

….

Kilarney's Old Homestead …late in the afternoon…

Dave pulls up and notices Riley's Ute is missing.

Only Marcus and Kate's cars are out the front.

Grabbing the box of chocolates from the passenger seat he moves inside.

A waft of something delicious fills his nostrils.

…..

"Hello!" He says greeting Marcus and Kate who are busy in the kitchen.

"Hi!" Kate says smiling at him.

Holding up the chocolates Dave offers. "Thought I'd come crawling with these to say I'm sorry."

Kate laughs and says. "I'm cooking to say I'm sorry too."

"Where's Riley?" Dave asks.

"Apparently he has a hot date in town." Marcus replies.

Dave nods and says. "I've got a meeting at the racecourse at seven will we be done by then?"

"Yeah of course it's ready now if you'd like to eat early?" Kate answers.

…..

An Hour later…

With Riley out and Dave gone to his meeting.

Marcus and Kate stand at the sink washing the dishes.

"Want to watch a movie or have an early night?" Marcus asks.

Kate smiles and replies. "A movie might be relaxing."

"Right we need beer and snacks." Marcus suggests.

An hour later and several beers later….

With the movie forgotten Marcus and Kate are talking and laughing, thoroughly enjoying each other's company.
"Thanks for last night and today Marcus. You've made me feel good in the middle of a difficult situation.' Kate says.

He smiles at her and replies. "You're very welcome Kate it's so easy spending time with you."

She looks at him and reaching over wipes a bit of froth from the beer off his top lip.

He holds her hand and kisses the palm softly.

She begins to move forward.

Marcus does too.

The back door closes and Riley walks into the room.

"Oh your back early have you eaten?" Kate asks.

"No I haven't the bloody power went out at the pub and my date didn't turn up." Riley grumbles.

Rising Kate says. "I'll grab you something to eat."

"Stay there Kate I can heat it up myself." Riley urges.

Kate sits back down.

"Who needs a refill?" Riley asks.

Both reply in the positive.

Riley moves from the room.

Marcus flicks Kate's leg grinning at her.

She giggles and playfully pushes him back.

…..