Epilogue: If you love life, life loves you back.

A/N: This is it. I apologize to my readers. I truly did a disservice to you when I ended this story at Chapter 44. The story is complete, and I must walk away. I apologize if I leave you wanting 'more'. However…here is over 11,000 words to say good-bye.

2014

January 3

"I'm glad we made it through the New Year's Eve celebrations without fireworks." Darius was distracted.

"What's up?" Anya interpreted his thoughtfulness as worry.

"The vet made a kennel call today. Myka only has 60 percent hearing in her left ear."

"You thought that was the case," Anya reminded him.

"I feel bad. He recommended I don't breed her because of her size, and her hearing loss. He recommended she be spayed when she's about 18 months old. He says waiting is recommended for larger breeds. Myka is crazy about water; he thinks she might make a good SARs water dog. The thing is…she's an intuitive little shit. When her brothers were anxious before and after their checkup, she rolled around on them, and teased them into playing with her. She stayed on the table, not moving or barking, just providing support while the vet checked them. It was sweet."

"You'll be in trouble if you fall in love with one puppy from every litter." Anya warned him.

"I'm in trouble already. Morse and I were keyed up on New Year's Eve…like we were susceptible to a PTSD episode. Then Myka raised hell in the kennel, so I brought her into the house. She calmed Morse and me down, almost instantly. She just loved on both of us."

"Do you think she might be a good service dog for a person with PTSD." Anya nuzzled the soft little ball of fur sleeping in her arms.

"I don't know. I want to work with her, and observe her. Either a water recovery dog or a service dog would be a good use for her. But, I think there may be more to her than we know."

January 10

"Happy, happy birthday baby," Darius crooned to Myka. Adrian came to Protective Pups today to help photograph, weigh and measure the boys. After baths, Adrian helped Darius crate them and put them in the back of Adrian's SUV. He was taking them for training at one of prison dog programs which Grey Dogs supported. He gave Darius a check for $5K to cover their cost. He took their paperwork, declared Myka a little beauty, and departed. The boys all weighed around 15 pounds and were 9-10 inches tall at their front withers. Myka was 12 pounds and 8 inches tall. She was compact…and her coloring reminded him of Mite. When he completed her paperwork, she was Mighty Myka McBean-Mills. Some of boy dogs experienced a lift in their ears. It was more obvious now that Myka's left ear was deformed.

January 24

Darius collapsed on couch. "Remind me this was what I wanted to do."

"Trouble in paradise?" Anya laughed.

"First of all…Myka raised hell really early Friday morning before the holiday weekend. When I let her lose, she took me to Macy, who was in heat. I move Macy and Morse over to the single kennel and dog run. Sunday morning, Myka wakes me early. She lets me know Macy's fed up with Morse. I clean them up, separate them in their own kennels, and feed them. I barely get the single kennel and dog run clean…then Myka is nipping at my ankles. Bonnie's in heat. I move her and Bane over to the single kennel. For three days, Myka's like a little watch dog. Myka warned me when Bonnie was sick of Bane. Repeat of the post coupling tasks. I'm cleaning the single kennel and dog run…when Myka is nipping at my ankles again. She leads me to Ember, to repeat the process. Myka drags me out at five this morning to separate Ember and Echo. Repeat brushing, shampoo, food and water and separating our pair. I'm cleaning the single kennel and run, while keeping an eye on Myka. She's finding balls abandoned by the other dogs in the recreation area. She brings them all back to the single kennel and leaves them in a pile. Before I'm done…she's nipping at my ankles again."

"Desi?" Anya guessed correctly.

"Desi came into heat this morning and Devil snapped at me because I wouldn't let him at her. She's only 21 months. I figured I'd move him over to the single kennel and dog run until she's out of heat. While I'm moving him over; I damn near get my arm yanked off. When I set him loose in the dog run, he barked every time I passed the place and didn't have Desi with me. Myka wouldn't come back to the house with me. She's giving Desi moral support I guess. I am determined to build a second single kennel and dog run."

Anya laughed. "Must be something in the water."

Darius opened one eye and glared at her. "I don't care how hot you are…I'm not gagging for a shag."

"Come on old man. I'll wash your back." Anya headed for the master ensuite.

Darius closed his eye and took a deep breath. 'She's only here for the weekend…and I haven't seen her for more than a sandwich and a cup of coffee for the last three weeks.' Then his countenance brightened…technically, they were all alone in the house.

February 15

Grandma Frannie and Aunt Gena coordinated baby showers for Elliot and Kate and Christian and Ana. Elliot and Kate's nursery would be based on The Secret Garden. Kate searched for Pinterest pins of garden-motif nurseries. She settled on cream walls with a soft green Berber carpet and soft pink bed linens, with accent colors of emerald and rose. Their first baby, a little girl, would be named Ava Grace. A twenty-four inch tall, cursive A was decorated in various shades of pink silk roses and green leaves. It would be on the accent wall over the crib.

Christian and Ana choose Over in the Forest for their nursery. Ana searched for Pinterest pins of forest-motif nurseries. While Woodland Babies dominated every search; she continued to look for pictures. The room would be painted cream, with a grey Berber carpet and navy bed linens. Burgundy would be their accent color. They decided to name their first child, a boy, Theodore Raymond Grey and call him Teddy. Over Teddy's crib was a painted wall graphic in burgundy, Little Man Cave, with arrows, mountains and bears.

Each guest brought a onesie – pink and girly for Ava, and forest animal motif for Teddy. Grandma Frannie made a baby quilt for Ava in pinks and greens with flowers and butterflies. She made a baby quilt for Teddy in navy, cream, burgundy and grey, with woodland animals. Ray and Bee gifted bookcases to the nurseries. Ava's was cream with rose and emerald trim. Teddy's was cream with navy and burgundy trim.

While the ladies were in the house cooing over nursery designs and sweet baby clothes, Carrick took the men to the pool house for cards, cigars, food and libations.

March 29-30-31, 2014

Desi came into heat and Darius put Devil with her in one of the single kennels. Two days later, Betty was ready to chase Bane around for a few days in the second single kennel and run. Darius barely sequestered them, and planned to collapse in bed…but Myka wouldn't let him. She pulled him to Macy's kennel…to find out Macy, Ember and Bonnie all went into labor back to back. Darius enlisted the help of two Grey Dogs handlers because he couldn't survive three dogs in labor without backup.

It took twelve hours before all the puppies were born. The ladies each had five pups. Myka kept him and the handlers moving between the three dogs. Darius was shocked by how intuitive Myka was. He was determined to keep her, no matter what training she received. She was an asset he never knew he needed. The eight color bands would not do. He used shades of blue for Macy's puppies, shades of green for Ember's puppies, and shades of purple for Bonnie's puppies. He was sure there was an easier way to do this. He thought he needed to research, but one of the handlers told him to print the bitch's name and a birth number on bands. It was easier than color coding. He could also print the bands on his printer to fit adjustable collar identification bands.

Once the breeding dogs were settled, and the puppies and mamas settled…Darius invited the two handlers to dinner. They grilled steaks with all the trimmings. Darius cooked a spare steak and gave Myka most of the meat, and gave Morse the meaty bone. The two handlers helped Darius with a potential calendar of when his ladies would come into heat. They advised to be prepared quarterly: January, April, July, and September.

Darius brushed his little queen and gave her a bath. He talked to Myka the whole time, telling her his plans for Protective Pups. Once he towel dried her, and brushed her again, she stood still and let him weigh and measure her. At six and a half months, Myka was 24 inches tall at her withers and weighed 50 pounds. Darius purchased a dog pulling harness and a sled for holding weights. Myka would not be a sled dog, but Darius wanted to see how much she could pull. Mite could pull a 200 pound man from harm's way. Darius also purchased a tactical dog harness vest for Myka. He could fill the pockets to see how much she could carry. Both the sled and the vest would be good training for her.

April 21

Darius was desperate for some time away, but camping in the mountains would not happen until he had a helper at Protective Pups. He attended a ham buffet yesterday for Easter at Grey Manor with four dozen people – all friends and family of the Greys. Ray and Bee were present. She fell in love with Myka and begged to adopt her. Darius explained about Myka's intuitive nature. He might train her to help vets who suffered from PTSD, but he would not give her up.

Darius hired two vets from the Washington Warriors Complex to feed and walk dogs so he could have a day off. He took Morse and Myka metal detecting at two large parks. It was an interesting day for him. In addition to finding coins, and weird metal bits like a guitar tuning peg and a small metal coatrack for a dollhouse, he found eight pieces of jewelry. He found a keyring with an aluminum keychain container, which had a $10 bill inside. He found a crochet hook, a jumbo brass paperclip, a small perfume atomizer, a small toothpick holder, and a small flask. He checked the rock borders around the flower beds and along walking paths, but didn't find another meteorite.

May 5

"Even the nicest people have their limits. Don't push Ana, Christian. I've seen her when she's livid. I don't care if Elliot says you are scary when you have a meltdown. You don't know what scary is until you've triggered Atomic Ana." Kate advised her brother-in-law. "If Ana says, 'no C-section,' don't keep nagging at her about it. If it is necessary, she'll do it to keep Teddy safe. She's just tired right now. For god's sake! She's been in labor for 15 hours! Could you stand continuous pain for 15 hours? I don't think so. Consequently – you do not know what's best at this moment in time! Give her a few minutes to catch her second wind." She noted Christian's stiff departure. "I swear to God, Elliot. If you get obsessive compulsive when Ava is born…I'll fuck you up." She noted his glance at the coffee cup in her hand. "It's decaf. Grace bought it for me. She asked the barista to give it a shot of sugar free vanilla syrup and an extra helping of sugar free whipped cream. It's supposed to trick me into thinking I'm drinking the real thing." She made a face.

~X~

"Hello Theodore Raymond Grey," Christian took the wrapped bundle offered him by the nurse. They cleaned up Teddy and worked on Ana. "You did it," he gently kissed her forehead and laid their son in her arms as soon as she was settled. Once they rested, he made calls to notify everyone Teddy was here. Then he sent up a prayer, thanking God for a healthy child and wife.

Memorial Day, 2014

Eastman and Agnes gave their house to Ethan and Mia for his graduation from UDub. Their house was located in the Laurelhurst neighborhood of Seattle's north end. Ethan and Mia hired Grey Construction to renovate the house for them from June to September. Priorities were an open concept first floor, which included a designer gourmet kitchen for Mia. Ethan's home office, with a wall of built-in shelves was second priority. The title transfer, gift tax and renovations were built in to a fifteen-year mortgage arranged by Troy Whelan.

Edwin and Alice give their house to Kate and Elliot for her graduation from UDub. Their house was located in the Magnolia District of Seattle. Grey Construction would flip the house from June to September. Priorities were an open concept first floor, a housekeeper suite, two home offices separated by a private half bath, expanding the master bedroom ensuite and walk-in closet, creation of an au pair suite and Ava's nursery. Again, Troy Whelan arranged a fifteen-year mortgage to cover Kate and Elliot's expenses.

Both older couples moved to a gated community on a golf course in Scottsdale. They offered to host Thanksgiving for all the Kavanaghs and Greys at one of the larger local hotels, as their two-bedroom condos would not begin to contain all the family.

May 31

Adrian took the current fifteen puppies for training. He explained the first set of puppies would go to Grey Dog for advanced training after Labor Day. Grey Dogs wrote a check for $15K to Protective Pups for four healthy girl puppies and eleven healthy boy puppies. Darius named Macy's puppies with M names: Maeve, Misty, Maxim, Mario and Moana. He named Ember's puppies with E names: Ella, Elmo, Eton, Erie and Eden. He named Bonnie's puppies with B names: Bloom, Blake, Blaze, Baron and Booth. He gave Adrian completed files and paperwork for all fifteen, which noted date of birth, weight at birth, and a picture of the new pup. There were weekly notes with pictures also. He included the link to the Protective Pups website, with descriptions and pictures of all the dogs and the puppies.

Darius didn't have time to linger while saying goodbye to pups as Myka notified him Desi and Betty were preparing for labor. It would be a long weekend for Darius.

~X~

Jason was awarded custody of Sophie in a very unpleasant custody battle. Ericka, Jason's ex-wife, decided to marry her boyfriend and relocate to Germany. They both worked for Broetje Automation in Seattle. They both received transfers from Seattle to the future combined site for Broetje Automation in Germany.

There were a minimum of six Broetje Automation sites in the U.S. Ericka could have stayed stateside, retaining custody of her daughter. The Family Courts of Seattle decreed Sophie should not be uprooted from Seattle nor separated from her father. Jason asked the court for permanent custody, no child support, and the ability to claim his daughter every year on his taxes. The court agreed. Sophie would spend eight weeks every summer with her mother. She would Skype her mother on odd weekends and holidays during the year. During odd-numbered years, Sophie would spend Spring Break with her mother. During even-numbered years, Sophie would spend Christmas Break with her mother. The court decreed Ericka would pay for plane tickets to bring Sophie to her. Jason would pay for Sophie' plane tickets to return home.

Erika informed the court she was selling her car and the contents of her home. She would live with her boyfriend until their relocation to Germany. Sophie left the court that day, with two hours to pack and move to her father's home. She arrived at the Sound with a rolling footlocker of clothes and a few personal items. Gail sent Jason to the shooting range while she took Sophie shopping. They purchased paint, furniture and décor to change her part-time weekend lodgings into a home where she was wanted and welcomed. Jason planned for Sophie to attend Seattle Prep, followed by UDub while living with him and Gail in staff housing at the Sound. She would become a steady babysitter for the Greys.

June 14

Kate graduated with honors for her MBA. Kate did not attend the ceremony as she was close to her due date. Grey House arranged to tape and broadcast the UDub graduation ceremony for her and Ana. Eamon promoted Kate to Vice President of Operations for Kavanagh Media as of July first. Kate's first business decision was to create a daycare for Kavanagh Media employees. Her second business decision was to create a gym for staff. Her third business decision was to create a fifty-seat cafeteria in the building's atrium. All three improvements used portions of the Kavanagh Media building which had been mostly unused. Grey Construction promised to finish the renovations by Labor Day when Kate returned to work. All three of these business decisions were solutions to Kate's needs while she worked.

Six dozen people attended the big graduation party at Casa de Kavanagh. After six semesters, Ethan graduated with honors for his Master's Degree in Psychology. Ethan had two offers to intern for his eventual career choice as a psychologist. He would not begin his internship until January 2015. He and Mia were marrying at a destination wedding in Nice, France over Labor Day. Then they wanted time to finish the house, and settle.

Ana graduated with honors from UDub with an associate's degree in publishing. Ana did not attend graduation as she was recovering from giving birth to Teddy. She worked with Christian and Ros to develop a plan for her to become CEO of Grey Publishing by 2020.

José's girlfriend, Sophia Gonzales, graduated from UDub with her master's degree in forensic art. She would become gainfully employed by the Seattle Police Department. She would be welcomed by José's college friends who married Grey men. She would be welcomed by José's Grey Construction friends. They had several working nights and dinners together because neither of them resented the work the other needed to complete.

June 17-19

Grace agreed to take Teddy so Christian and Ana could get away for a few days to celebrate their anniversary. Ana didn't want to leave town so Christian took her to Escala. After six weeks of no sex…Christian had plans for Ana in the red room. They avoided showering together for the last two months. Ana hadn't taken a long soaking bath since she was six months pregnant. Christian knew they needed this time to reconnect with each other. Ana ensured she had her Depo Provera shot…and a prescription of Plan B to take after the weekend was over. She knew to expect her cycle, as her milk production for Teddy decreased. Ana suspected she was ovulating this week…and had no intention of getting pregnant again for a couple years.

June 20

Ava Grace Grey was born at 6:15 in the morning. Kate had been in labor since dinner time the night before. Kate and Elliot didn't notify anyone she was in labor. Kate needed to breathe during the pains, while Elliot needed to swear. Neither of them wanted to play nice with anyone except the doctor and nurses. Once Ava was born, Elliot announced her birth via a broadcast call with picture of the tiny pink creature. Once Ava and Kate were cleaned and resting, Elliot let two people at a time into Kate's room. The grandmothers were first, of course, followed by grandfathers. Elliot was grateful for his calm mother and for Kate's calm father. Ethan and Mia were next, followed by Christian and Ana. Kate agreed to breastfeed for ten days after Ava was born. She did not believe she could live without caffeine past the end of the month.

June 28

José and Sophia married on the beach at Lake Sylvia. The couple married at sunrise, with a large breakfast buffet for family and friends at Mannings' Bed and Breakfast. Sophia wore a tea length white cotton and lace summer dress. José wore a white shirt and white linen pants. Their colors were pale blue, aqua and pale yellow. Mitch Black and Sophia's sister Serafina were their attendants. She wore a pale blue dress and he wore a pale blue shirt with blue jeans. Ray and Bee opened their house to Christian, Ana and Teddy, along with Elliot, Kate and Ava. Kate and Ana purchased a year's subscription to a dinner delivery service. José and Sophia could access the weekly menu online, and order five dinners which fit their tastes. Kate's housekeeper recommended the service. José Senior paid the down payment on Kate and Elliot's condo as a wedding gift for the couple. Christian and Ana's wedding gift was guaranteeing a fifteen-year mortgage at the lowest possible rate for the newlyweds with Troy Whelan. Most of the other wedding guests donated gift cards to local home improvement stores so the couple could paint the condo and make it their own.

~X~

Bee hosted a tea bridal shower for Sophia at Mannings Bed and Breakfast the week before the wedding. Since Sophia and José had been the guests of honor at two other bridal showers, this was a trousseau shower. Guests were urged to gift Sophia clothing and accessories appropriate for her work with the SPD. Ana purchased a black leather briefcase which would hold a laptop, sketching materials, and business paperwork. It had a section to hold chargers for phone and laptop, a section for pens, pencils and office supplies. It had two side sections for an umbrella and a water bottle. It came with an RFID travel portfolio and a black leather wristlet purse.

Kate purchased a stunning black cashmere jacket which would dress up any outfit Sophia wore to work. Bee gave Sophia a black waterproof go bag. The bottom of the go bag had three sections for trainers, ballerina flats and heels. Bee included space bags for underwear, socks and stockings, gym, spare work clothes, and spare court appearance attire. The bag had two sections at each end of the bag – one for toiletries, and one for a battery-operated clothing steamer, a battery-operated blow dryer, and a battery-operated curling iron. Her mother, aunts, grandmothers, and girl cousins consulted with one another to give Sophia work ensembles in black, burgundy and tan.

Kate entertained the guests with stories of José's romantic past, while Ana prayed she was never mentioned. Kate managed to give each of José's grand passions a ridiculous name, and caricatured the worst trait of each woman. Somehow Aria leaving José's bed in the middle of the night was never mentioned, to Ana and Bee's relief.

June 27

It was the day for Grey Publishing's annual review. Ana and Gwen had a great luncheon in Ana's new office. Designs by Drake was a successful business. Gwen had three young artists working for her. Gwen illustrated one book per quarter for Grey Publishing. Her protégés learned to submit requests for proposals and how to build their portfolios. Gwen revealed Aria was now dating a graphic artist who owned two tattoo parlors. Ana explained her intent to build learning opportunities and provide mentorship for young women as she assumed the reins of Grey Publishing.

Christian and Ros attended the review. Grey Publishing solidified its base as an ePublishing entity. The ePublishing editor provided statistics regarding Grey House's foray into ePublishing. There would be roughly one million eBooks published yearly by 2016. However, he could see the eBook market share and unit sales shrink during the last financial year while print book sales increased. He urged Grey Publishing to keep both sectors as strong as possible.

The financial progress of Grey Publishing was encouraging after the $50 million loss the first fiscal year. Grey House was generating quality product and generating enough income to carry Grey House forward another year. Using one printing company had stabilized costs. Using contracted graphic artists stabilized illustration costs. Grey Publishing was not top heavy with paid professionals like SIP, and offered advancement opportunities for lower level employees.

Ros informed staff Anastasia Grey would become an associate editor after July first under the guidance of Jerry Roach. The intent was Jerry's retirement in 2020 and Ana's promotion to CEO of Grey Publishing. Ros informed staff of Trisha's promotion to editor, Mary Jane's promotion to beta reader, and Claire's promotion to editorial assistant. Ana and Hannah would work as a team with Mr. Roach and his executive assistant. Grey Publishing announced a new receptionist would be hired and trained by the first of August.

July 1

It was the operational review for Protective Pups and Grey Dogs. Physical aspects were addressed first. Grey Dogs current facility was excellent for the trained dogs which were in use at the various Grey properties. They needed more space, larger kennels and training facilities. Darius offered to sell half his property in Renton. He felt it would be easier to share his training time with Grey Dogs if their training facility was located next door. Grey Dogs would have the property surveyed and title changes filed. Stan discussed the need for housing for staff members, kennels and dog runs, training facilities, and office for the training portion of Grey Dogs. It was a project for Grey Construction to complete before July 2015.

Darius needed improvements at Protective Pups. He wanted a pavilion which would seat 200. His plan was to offer the facility for potential dog shows for groups like 4-H. It would need parking for 50-100 cars. He wanted six 400-square-foot, one-bedroom cabins for temporary or visiting staff.

Next, the dogs were discussed. Darius already had four studs and eight ladies, but their ages were too close. It would be a strain on the business if he had to replace all the breeding trios in the same year. Stan recommended training one or two new sets of breeders each year. Darius would begin looking for a new set of two-year old dogs.

Next, the finances for both companies was discussed. Darius explained the funds expended to date and the funds realized from the sale of puppies. He explained every puppy sold except Myka, from the first litter of pups. He explained her deformed ear and hearing loss. She would be spayed at 18 months, but he did not intend to sell her as a service dog. The financial ledgers showed Darius paid for her from his own funds. He accepted payment for half of the Renton property to return to his own coffers.

July 4, 2014
"Why are you killing yourself working out?" Ana watched as Kate performed water aerobics in the pool at Grey Sound.
"Because I want a flat ass like Victoria Beckham. I'm ready to go get my fat frozen or liposucked." Kate wiped the sweat off her face. "I don't know where I got this enormous ass but it is going away as soon as I can arrange it. I refuse to be an attendant at my brother's wedding until I am a size four again and can fit in my skinny jeans. I'm thankful for the gym at work! I hired a personal Zumba trainer. I drop Ava in the day care center and Zumba for an hour before showering and going to work. My trainer is my nutritionist also. She leaves weekly menus for what the cafeteria can and cannot serve me. I don't get half and half in my coffee anymore. Skim milk…" Kate made a face.

Labor Day Weekend, 2014

Ethan and Mia hosted a destination wedding for 50 people at a chateau in Nice, France over Labor Day Weekend. The priest conducted the wedding in French and English. The couple married in the lush garden on the grounds of the chateau. The reception was held on the courtyard of the chateau. Mia and Ethan spent ten days before and after the wedding at the chateau, visiting Paris and the French Riviera. The wedding colors were lavender, navy and yellow. Men wore navy; ladies wore lavender; the flowers were yellow rose buds. Mia wore a Christian Dior wedding gown and carried a bouquet of baby purple and baby yellow roses. Her old was a vintage gold and yellow topaz hair ornament to hold her veil in place. Her new was her dress. Her borrowed was a gold bangle bracelet from Grandma Frannie. Her lavender garter was decorated with navy ribbons and yellow silk ribbon roses. Grandpa Theo gave her a silver 1800s five-franc coin for her shoe.

Mia's attendants were Kate and Mia. Ethan's attendants were Elliot and Christian. Everyone's jewelry for the wedding was white gold and lavender diamonds. An amethyst clad Celeste wheeled a two-month-old Ava down the aisle in a white stroller. Ava served as flower girl for her Uncle Ethan's wedding. Ava wore a smocked lavender dress with ruffle socks and lavender shoes. A bow headband graced the scant blonde curls on her head. Her flower girl basket hung off a handle of the stroller. Ava's binky was an exaggerated set of rosy pink lips. A periwinkle clad Grace wheeled a three-month-old Teddy down the aisle in a white stroller. He served as ring bearer for his Aunt Mia. He wore navy shorts with a white shirt, navy suspenders and a navy bow tie. He wore white socks with navy shoes. The wedding rings were attached to Teddy by his shoe laces. His binky was a large black mustache.

Two sets of parents, three sets of grandparents, three sets of aunts and uncles, and six cousins with their plus one joined the happy couple. A dozen friends with their plus one joined in the festivities.

The courtyard reception boasted French foods, wines and champagne. Crudités with Truffle Dip, a six cheese and six fruit charcuterie, and Oysters Rockefeller began the festivities. French Onion Soup was offered next. Steak Au Poivre or Veal Loin in a Cognac and Mushroom Cream Sauce was served with braised mushrooms, leeks and asparagus, a modified Salad Niçoise, along with jacket potatoes served with butter, sour cream and chives. Dessert was French Vanilla cake with lavender scented and tinted mousse between the layers. It was decorated with a silver-plated figurine of two brilliant decorated hearts. The three tier cake stood on a vintage silver-plated cake stand and was cut by a vintage silver-plated cake server.

~X~

"Why isn't Kate sitting down?" Christian asked Ana. She danced with Ava at the side of the courtyard.

"Her ass is sore, and not from a spanking, so put your kinky thoughts away. She had her ass liposuctioned twice and had a fanny lift. She had to take pain pills for the flight from Seattle to Nice."

"I'd better give Elliot some arnica cream." Christian chuckled.

"I'm sure she would appreciate it. She's not allowed to sleep on her back for another couple of weeks." Ana shook her head. 'I will not think about what sex positions Kate and Elliot are using instead of missionary!'

~X~

Natalie Steiner from Grey Publishing asked Darius to coordinate two dozen vets to pick the final fruit and nut harvest at her mother-in-law's orchard. What her mother-in-law did not sell, she donated to the Northwest Food Bank. They were overrun with excessive apple harvests from pick your own sites and gave generous donations to every homeless shelter and soup kitchen in the city.

Claire and half a dozen ladies from Grey Publishing visited the Steiner Orchards the weekend the vets worked. Hannah and Trisha noted the serious discussion between Claire and Darius. Twenty minutes passed before Claire went in one direction and Darius went in another. Hannah told Trisha about Claire's love life. She had not met anyone she was interested in since she ended with Darius. There were speed dating events and family introductions which resulted in several first dates …but there was never a second date. Hannah heard Darius was involved with a doctor from Seattle Children's Hospital. Ana said they were serious, or she would have introduced Hannah to him by now. Trisha wished everyone would find love, but she knew Claire would regret Darius for a long time.

Thanksgiving

Celeste and Eamon, Ethan and Mia, along with Kate, Elliot and Ava went to Scottsdale for Thanksgiving. The Trevelyans, the Greys and the Steeles went to Aspen. Ana was thrilled the Aspen staff set up the nursery for Teddy. Darius hosted Thanksgiving dinner for Anya's family, Adrian and Andrea Welch, and the men from Grey Dogs. José Senior hosted Thanksgiving dinner for José and Sophia and her extended family. He opened his kitchen to Sophia's Abuela Gonzales and Abuela Hernandez to coordinate everyone's efforts. He and Meg, Sophia's aunt, were still seeing one another, but were not sharing the news of their relationship with anyone. Portland was great for them in that respect.

Christmas

Aspen was the center for the Greys, et. al., to celebrate Christmas. Gail helped the Aspen staff prepare to feed and house 30 people. Snow sports kept most of the guests busy. Kate and Ana warned everyone not to spoil Ava and Teddy. Grandma Frannie made a set of one dozen hand puppets for each of the babies to accompany a large volume of fairytales. Everyone else bought a holiday motif book for each of the babies, including Bob. Ana ordered a double Steak Lover's Bundle assembled by Omaha Steaks and shipped to Bob. He apologized he wasn't coming to Aspen for Christmas nor going to the coast to see his sisters. He offered to work full time over the holidays so a couple of his colleagues could have time off with their family.

Jason and Gail joined them in Aspen, but left a day early to be in Seattle when Sophie arrived home from spending her winter break with her mother in Germany. Sophie would bring home German and French Christmas ornaments for Jason and Gail. Her German improved during her time with her mother.

2015

January

While Seattle had steady rain…the coast had a significant number of mudslides. Elliot gathered as many volunteers as possible from WWC to help clear roads, and help repair homes for impacted Grey House and Grey Construction staff.

Winds would knock out power to 65,000 people. Grey House announced all staff were off work with pay from January seventh through the ninth. Christian didn't want parents worrying about daycare for children while struggling to get to work.

~X~

Darius bought a military grade generator for Protective Pups. He needed to keep new mothers and pups warm. It provided energy for the log house also, but Darius recommended Anya spend her spare time at her dads. He missed her, but it was safer for her to not be on the road in this lousy weather.

~X~

Bob transferred to Broetje Automation in Charleston, North Carolina. He sold the property in Savannah and moved to the East Coast near his sisters. Ana flew to Savannah the last two weeks of January to help him empty the house and close escrow. She approved of his two bedroom condo in Charleston. He stayed at her suite in Belmond Charleston Place until the condo was cleaned, painted and organized for Bob.

Broetje Automation combined two outlying sites in Germany to one location in Rastede. This move incorporated 450 employees into one site. Without Carla to travel by his side, Bob stopped traveling to worldwide destinations and stayed in the U.S. Ana explained if he ever had to travel to Seattle, he was welcome to stay with them.

Taylor's ex, Erika and her significant other, were transferred by the Broetje Automation to the new site in Rastede. Erika would not return to the U.S. except for a month vacation when Sophie graduated from high school and graduated from college. She would return to the U.S. for two weeks when Sophie married or had a child.

~X~

Ethan began his internship with Puget Sound Psychology Services. In his next two years he would intern in four different areas: clinical, educational, social and occupational. He would be given time to attend forensic psychology classes if he desired. As he needed his doctorate in psychology to attend the forensic psychology courses, Ethan passed on the forensic training. Ethan opined two more years of internship before he could start a practice was all the education he could stand for a while. He knew he needed to take continuing education courses from time to time to keep his license current. Ethan and Mia settled in their renovated house and wanted to start a family.

February 2015

Bee came to Renton to be with Darius. He was a wreck since Myka was being spayed. While it only took a few hours for the procedure, Myka needed several days to recover. Darius understood it would reduce the risk for cancer and joint problems, but he stressed over his little queen. When she was healed, Darius took her to the kennels. He had 36 puppies ready to go for obedience training at their prison programs. Myka sat quietly by, giving him moral support while he bathed, weighed, measured and photographed the puppies for the last time.

It took two days for Darius to choose four puppies to crate and obedience train. Once they were six months old, he intended to start their protective training, followed by advanced training at Grey Dogs. The group would eventually include one boy puppy fathered by each one of the studs: Montana, Dex, Brick, and Everly. Adrian came to transport the remaining puppies to the prison pups program. Thirty-two thousand dollars was an excellent record for this quarter.

May 5

Teddy's first birthday, a Teddy Bears Picnic motif, was not an overblown affair. Christian and Ana wanted to keep it low key with just family and friends. Ana donated all Teddy's outgrown baby clothes to charity. She cleaned two dozen of his stuffed toys and donated them to the SPD to carry for emergency calls with children. Her rules were absolute – each person could give Teddy one gift. She reiterated for Franny, Grace, Mia and Kate – one gift did not mean one outfit plus one toy plus one book. Ray refurbished an old wooden rocking horse for Teddy's birthday gift.

June 13-19

Christian and Ana celebrated their anniversary on the water, with Teddy, the Taylors, and Liam (Mac) and Laurie McConnell. Mac's calculations were 902 nautical miles from the Port of Seattle to the Port of Juneau. Out of Seattle, across Puget Sound, up the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and then the Pacific Ocean. At 15 knots per hour in The Grace, it would take two and a half days. They would spend one day in Juneau, sightseeing before returning to Seattle. Sailing and sunbathing for a week on the water relaxed all of them. The ladies mastered preparing meals in the galley. Ana only allowed Teddy in a life preserver on deck with her or Christian. Otherwise they were in the main saloon, or Teddy napped in his berth.

They would return to Escala for a few days, claiming the end of the year meant they needed to be close to Grey House and Grey Publishing. The truth was they needed quality time with one another in the red room. They were grateful Teddy slept through the night, and for the baby monitor for his room.

June 20

Kate invited six dozen people to Ava's first birthday party. The over-the-top Sparkle and Shine soiree featured pink sandwich filling with white heart shaped bread (berry-flavored cream cheese, ham salad or shrimp salad), pink vegetable salad (radishes, Swiss chard, carrots, tomatoes, and radicchio) with berry vinaigrette, berry punch, white chocolate dipped strawberries with pink decorating sugar, berry fruit skewers, strawberry ice cream and a two-tier pink and gold frosted cake. The tiers were berry flavored with berry mousse between the fillings.

Ana purchased the soft cream armoire which Ray featured on his website. It was perfect for a little girl's room. Ray and Bee created it from a five drawer dresser. Ana asked them to add an oval mirror to one side of it, and coat hooks on the other. Ray and Bee created a rocking unicorn for Ava. It was white, with blue eyes, long eyelashes, a gold horn, and purple mane and tail. Bee painted the name, 'Rarity', on the rocker. She suggested Kate prepare herself for 'My Pretty Pony.'

June 26

Grey House hosted the annual review of Protective Pups and Grey Dogs. Both businesses met their performance standards set by the Grey House executive staff. Grey Construction built two more sets of kennels and runs at Protective Pups. Grey Construction built two more single kennels with dog runs for breeding dogs. The covered log pavilion Darius wanted for the site was completed with a parking lot to hold 100 cars. The six 400-square-foot, one-bedroom cabins for temporary or visiting staff were completed, with a single car garage at each cabin and a parking area for visitors.

One new kennel and run was for the four trainee pups. Darius acquired a two-year old male, Sounder, and a duet of two-year old ladies, Mustang Sally and Lady Sadie for the other new kennel and run.

~X~

It was Ana's review for her first year as an associate editor. She met the standards and goals set for her, excelling in acquiring new authors for Grey Publishing. Editors who avoided being alone with her in the past were suddenly excessively cooperative when faced with Jerry Roach and Anastasia Grey in a meeting. GP Finance was able to provide a spreadsheet of the costs and profits for the four authors and their books which Ana brought in this fiscal year.

Jerry and Ana, with input from Trisha, opted to contract a set of six books. It was called The Gifts. Book one was about a time-stopping pocket watch. However, as in all gifts, there was a price to pay. For each minute the holder stopped time, he/she lost a minute off their life. The book began in 1890 with a train robbery. The current holder, having been mortally wounded, hands off the watch to a young woman, with directions and a warning. Jerry felt it would be a bestselling series to engage both of them. While fantasy was not a strong genre for Ana, it was a good exercise in monitoring and promoting a series of books. The first book was finished, the second book was half written, and timelines and book outline completed for the other four.

~X~

It was Kate's first year as the Chief of Operations for Kavanagh Media. She was highly rated by staff, who enjoyed having a gym, child care facility, and enlarged cafeteria. She was not rated as highly by two of the department heads who believed they were better qualified than Kate, and resented her promotion. Eamon put an end to their incessant jealousy and bickering over ideas presented by Kate by giving them a generous departure package. Both of them applied to Grey House for positions…but an investigation by Adrian into their backgrounds prevented their hire. One was eventually hired by KING 5 TV and one by KOMO 4 TV.

~X~

Spokane Coping Together received a renewal for their grant. Part of their funding included keeping Jessica Jackson gainfully employed. She was seeing a family court lawyer who was built like Elliot Grey and looked a little like Ethan Kavanagh. She read in the society pages about the destination wedding for Ethan and Mia…and enjoyed shredding the newspaper article. Her young man hated the shabby chic of her apartment. Jessica sold what she could sell, donated the rest to charity, and became a Pottery Barn, Ashley's Furniture, and Ikea devotee.

~X~

José recommended Grey Construction keep the twelve interns from this fiscal year. ten were hired by Mitch Black and assigned to one of the four construction teams. Elliot hired one as the Grey Construction department chief for the mergers and acquisitions. He was attending UDub to get his MBA. The other intern became the new financial manager for Grey Construction. With a background in accounting and construction trades, he streamlined the Grey Construction process, contracts and spreadsheets for rentals and sales. It took most of the day for Elliot, José, and Mitch to choose twelve interns for the next fiscal year. Students with dual majors and top grades were considered first. José's bonus for the last fiscal year paid his and Sophia's student loans for a year. His signing bonus for the next fiscal year provided a three-month emergency fund for them.

June 27

Anya attended Coping Together with Darius. He dressed like the rest of Grey Security in a black tux with grey tie, pocket square and mask. Anya wore a silver goddess gown, with a silver mask decorated with a butterfly. They were accompanied by Morse, in his Grey Security black Kevlar vest, and Myka in a black and red service dog vest. She and Darius were seated at the Grey House table with Ros and Gwen Bailey-Drake, and Adrian and Andrea Welch. There was spare room on either side of their chairs for the dogs. Dr. T. welcomed both Anya and Darius. Adrian and Ros introduced Darius and the dogs to important persons they should know.

The table next to them held staff from Grey Publishing. Claire attended with one of the tech people from Grey House. Anya felt the gaze of half a dozen women on her and Darius. Several of them volunteered for the first dance auction, only to be purchased by business men who attempted to gain information about Christian and Grey House. Anya squelched her unfriendly thoughts after Darius refused to dance with Grey Publishing ladies. When they danced together several times, both Morse and Myka sat patiently on the sidelines watching them.

Olivia Blandino attended with one of the young politicians who followed in Senator Blandino's wake. They would marry at St. Mathew the Apostle Catholic Church in Washington D.C. in the fall. Five hundred people would attend the wedding and the reception afterwards at the Ritz Carleton, Georgetown. The groom-to-be was a lobbyist on Capitol Hill. Olivia would transfer to her father's Washington D.C. office. Ros thought it was an interesting situation and joined Andrea to say hello and congratulations to the couple.

Coping Together raised a fraction over three million dollars this year…and for the second year in a row, there were no fireworks at the end of the evening. Instead Grace hired a stadium-sized plasma screen. It promoted a soundless fireworks display with the amount raised. It was one more thing for the board to coordinate, but cost less than the permit for the fireworks, the cost of the pyrotechnicians and insurance. Christian's IT guy, Barney, could program the board for them. Veterans on the security force, or who attended Coping Together were grateful for the lack of fireworks.

July 4

At sunset in the memorial rose garden of the American Legion in Montesano, Brigette Elaine England and Raymond James Steele exchanged vows at an 'I Do Barbeque.' Bianca stood up for her sister, and Rod stood up for Ray. Bee wore a simple denim fit and flare dress and Ray wore jeans, a white shirt and a denim vest. Her flowers were yellow rock roses, blue geraniums, baby's breath and white sage foliage, held together in a silver tussy mussy bouquet holder which belonged to a Victorian ancestor. Her borrowed was a silver bangle bracelet found by Darius on one of his metal detecting forays. Her blue was her denim garter, and her something new was her dress. Her silver sixpence in her shoe was Victorian and used by every bride in the England family since the 1850s.

Almost every room in the two largest motels in the area were booked for out of town guests. Ana and Christian booked all the rooms and cabins at Mannings Bed and Breakfast. It was a picturesque place for Bee's family. Christian sent the jet to Bellevue to transport Bee's parents, sister and family and any extended relatives who wished to attend the wedding.

Once the bleachers erected for the parade were taken down, a marque with dance floor and reception seating took most of the parking lot of the American Legion. Ana hired an event firm for the reception marque, seating and décor. She hired a catering firm out of Seattle to provide typical BBQ fare for 300 guests. Apple cobbler (created in sheet cake pans) was served instead of wedding cake. Table cloths and napkins were light blue gingham. Chairs were white wood. Table centerpieces were made from antique blue quart mason jars filled with yellow rock roses, blue geraniums, baby's breath and silver sage foliage. Ray and Bee's guests were mostly friends from the American Legion and Montesano. Guests were encouraged to wear summer clothes, or denim. Grey security wore black jeans with white shirts and black denim jackets which were ditched early in the evening.

A DJ from Seattle worked with a local band to provide three hours of dance tunes. Ana enjoyed watching Ray and Bee dance their first dance as a couple to 'Someday Lady You'll Accompany Me.' While Bee danced with her father, Ray danced with Bee's mother to Sunrise, Sunset. After all the family dances…Bee called for a substitute in the playlist. She requested You're My Best Friend by Queen for dancing with Darius. Rod and Ray walked around the marque, urging everyone to eat, drink, dance and be merry.

When Teddy and Ava demonstrated their walking prowess, Morse followed Teddy and Myka followed Ava. They were ready to wrap their teeth around the strap of his overall shorts or her sundress to keep them from harm. Darius and the dogs sat at the table with Ana, Christian, Kate and Elliot, and José and Sophia. José took lots of candid pictures while Sophia drew pictures of the head table, the décor, etc.

Christian and Elliot engaged in discussing sports with Bianca's husband Joe, and her sons. They all enjoyed sailing, water skiing and snow skiing. Christian invited them to Aspen for Thanksgiving.

Labor Day 2015

"There's a reason it's called residency," Anya consoled Amy. "You practically live at the hospital. Residency means you sacrifice everything but work and sleep. You'll find yourself falling asleep in the shower. But it's only seven years of your life."

"I wish I was a fifth year," Amy sighed.

"Being a fifth year only means you have less backup if someone dies while under your care. You can still get kicked out of the program. You have interviews and boards. You have to work hard for a letter of recommendation for fellowships or attending positions. Plus, you hope for the one case which will get you published or awarded." Anya sighed. "Thank god for Mrs. Chang. We'd never survive if we had to clean house, do our own laundry, cook dinner and take care of a family."

"I needed to shop for two duffels, thirty days of underwear, ninety days of toiletries, and two more pairs of trainers. Instead of using my only afternoon off to shop; I used Amazon for thirty minutes and slept the other 4.5 hours." Amy grimaced. "I can't remember what it is like to spend an entire Saturday at the mall, trying on clothes, buying coffee, or having lunch with friends. I usually only see Dad Will when he's buying me coffee and lunch and Dad Drew when he's dropping off duffels filled with clean clothes."

"Well, I'm only accepting interviews that are a minimum of four hours away by plane. I want to sleep on the outbound flight, stay in a hotel with room service, attend the interview, and sleep on the inbound flight." Anya revealed her strategy. "I won't interview on the West Coast. Every big hospital on the East Coast is seeking my attention. I won't relocate, but I won't reveal that to anyone. When you are in your fifth year, feel free to use my interview rules."

November

Myka chivvied Darius if he attempted to take the pups to Grey Dogs without her. She instinctively knew what to do on each of the training courses. She mentored by example and nipped the puppies when they failed to run the course properly. Stan wanted Myka for Grey Dogs, but Darius was not giving her up. No matter how Stan tried to bribe him…Myka arrived with the Protective Pups, and went home with them.

It was the third wettest October, November and December on record for the past several years. Ana was glad Teddy was too young to trick or treat. She was determined to take him to either the Boo Bash or the Safe Streets at WWC when he was old enough. Thirty-six hours of continuous rain between Veterans Day and Thanksgiving dampened almost everyone's enthusiasm. Additional landslides and power outages affected more citizens in Washington. Ana didn't tell anyone, but she appreciated the generators at all the Grey House businesses, at Escala, the Sound or Grey Manor.

~X~

José and Sophia worked the Day of the Dead celebration for the Seattle Latino Metro Chamber of Commerce. Jose donated two large sofa sized paintings to the silent auction. Sophia joined Gwen Drake to draw caricatures for sale at the event. They donated their proceeds to the Girls Leadership programs. Sophia had been a speaker twice this year for graduating seniors. She explained her job and the training she received. Gwen spoke twice at fall open houses and at spring open houses to explain STEM programs to girls and their parents.

José was asked to join the Capital Projects committee. He would help coordinate the Education and Architecture Conference after Labor Day, and the Construction and Building Trades Conference in October. Sophia was asked to join the Education Committee. They both agreed it was worth their membership fees and donation of their time.

~X~

Thanksgiving weekend was huge for Ray and Bee with half a dozen vets. They worked to have 300 pieces to sell in Portland over the weekend. They were staying with Rod. Sophia coordinated food, libations and rooms for a dozen people for the weekend. This year Bee assembled a PowerPoint presentation of the pieces they had for sale. Thirty-six kitchen islands with breakfast bars were recreated in a dozen colors and sizes with barstools in coordinating colors. The rest of the furniture was a mixture of items – old tables recreated as ottomans, old chairs recreated as benches, old doors recreated as hall trees, and old dressers recreated as benches, TV consoles, or storage units. Old dressing tables had been recreated as end tables or night stands. They recreated two dozen metal stands into bars or grill tables for outdoor patio areas. Bee claimed she performed so many furniture marriages, it should say 'matchmaker' on her business cards.

December

Ana begged for warm weather and sunshine during her Christmas vacation. Seattle had a soaking wet spring, a humid summer, and more rainy days in the fall than sunshiny ones. Christian and Ana took December twenty-fourth through January third off, and rented a 4,000 square-foot Victorian house on a private beach in Hawaii. The main house had six bedrooms, four bathrooms and all the amenities. The property had four private guest houses with two bedrooms and two bathrooms. Christian invited Ros and Gwen, and Adrian and Andrea with his family. Gail, Jason and Sophie joined them. Everyone swam, snorkeled, surfed, water skied or sailed. Ana loved setting up the wading pool under the trees for Teddy and Ava to splash and play.

2016

January and February

Since the first Gifts book was about time; the book launch was set for New Year's Day. Ana learned from the PR team about book launches – date, time, venue, author access, book availability, budgets, PR, food, etc. It was an excellent launch both physically at the Fairmont Olympic, and electronically on Amazon. Ana begged Kate for a blog on Kavanagh Media about the book. Kate traded the positive review, with a link to purchase the book online for an afternoon spa date over MLK's Birthday Weekend. Gwen and Ros attended the launch party with Christian and Ana. Most of the Grey Publishing staff were present…along with CEOs from a dozen West Coast publishing companies who were seeking the possibility of Grey Publishing acquiring their firms.

Ana sent many staff members to publishing conferences the two long weekends in January and February. January's conference was set in San Antonio. February's conference was set in Phoenix. She liked the new trends explored in each of the conferences. She felt staff needed to boost their KSAs. She warned the ladies to be wing women for each other. She didn't anticipate the ladies giving her problems. However, she would be the first to admit John Jeremy Hyde was not the only misogynist in the publishing world.

Easter Egg Hunt, March 26

The Lambert Supply Depot was one of the sponsors for the Easter Egg Hunt held at WWC the Saturday before Easter. Teddy and Ava competed with a dozen other toddlers in their age division. Elliot 'helped' Ava by holding her Easter Egg Basket. Kate took pictures. When each section of the hunt was over, and eggs were counted, prizes were given to those who found prize eggs. Teddy knew what a real egg was…and he was not impressed…no matter how prettily some were decorated. He seemed to find a lot of prize eggs, which Ana slipped to other parents when he was not watching. Ana relinquished his remaining prize egg for a Velveteen Rabbit stuffed toy and book.

Over Easter weekend, Ana cleared the excess clothes, books and toys from Teddy's bedroom. Gail took the excess to St. Vincent de Paul's thrift store.

Cinco de Mayo

Sophia and José ran in the Fiesta 5K Ole Run that morning and attended a Cinco de Mayo film festival at the Hispanic Community Center in South Park that evening. Tonight's show was Pan's Labyrinth directed by Guillermo del Toro. Ten other movies would be offered in Spanish with English subtitles through the weekend. Sophia and José signed up for a Saturday street dance which featured a Carlos Santana cover band, a Los Lobos cover band and featured dancers from two Hispanic owned dance studios.

~X~

Christian bought Teddy a wooden train set for his second birthday. It took up a three-foot square space on the patio. He had Barney's team convert two of the little engines to run on solar power. He was up with the sun, hovering to see if the train worked as well as Barney promised. Ana laughed. 'Boys and their toys. Christian is as excited as he was when I gave him a solar powered helicopter a few years ago. I imagine it will become a permanent fixture in our sunroom.'

Christian and Ana hosted a Taco Twosies birthday party for Teddy's second birthday. A hard and soft taco bar with all the fixings dominated the food offerings. Queso, guacamole, salsa, and sour cream were served with blue, red and yellow corn chips. Cactus green limeade birthday punch was offered. Green decorated cupcakes were arranged to look like cactuses. A large pinata shaped like a 2 was whacked on by most of the fathers present. Mini toys and fiesta wrapped candy filled the pinata. Pony rides, ring toss games, and swimming in the heated pool entertained guests. Maracas, bright balloons and paper flowers were party favors. Ana appreciated the red wagon and red tricycle. The swing set, built by Ray and Bee had a climbing wall, a fort, swings, slide, picnic table and covered sand box. Ana loved hearing Teddy and Ava squeal as Ray, Theo and Carrick pushed them on swings.

Memorial Day Weekend, 2016

Washington Warriors Complex held the grand opening for 200 tiny house units. Grey Construction completed the tiny house project, and enjoyed the grand opening Memorial Day Weekend. The 400 square foot units included an attached single garage. The 600 square foot units included an attached double garage. Veterans from recently retired to senior citizens purchased every available house. The sustainable houses boasted selling points of lowered carbon footprints, the best of green building practices, and eligibility for veteran's housing loans.

The Washington Warriors board discussed the acquisition of more property for more houses. There was a demand for housing in Seattle. They had a waiting list for every available living space at the complex. Several of the vets combined resources to purchase one of the houses. Several of the vets acquired two or three bedroom trailers and a space at the RV campground. While combining households freed up room in the dormitories, it underscored the need for more living spaces.

The board met with every business and entity at the complex. Financials were in order for all the businesses. The board was thrilled to pay all their bills, pay all their staff, plan for expansion and boast a profit.

June 18

Ray and Bee had Teddy for the day at the Sound. Christian took Ana soaring over the Columbia Basin and the Cascade Ridge. After soaring, they went back to Escala for breakfast and a nap. Their afternoon was spent with classical music and kinky sex in the red room. Ana gave Christian eight printouts for a glider to purchase. She checked into available hangers at Boeing Field. After July first, the hanger next to the Grey jet hanger and Charlie Tango hanger was available to rent. Christian could have a third hanger for holding a glider if he decided to buy one.

They spent the evening, raiding the refrigerator Gail loaded for them, along with drinking white wine while planning the remainder of the summer. Ava's birthday, Coping Together, the Fourth of July, Labor Day and Ana's birthday were discussed. Christian wanted to take the third weekend of every month off this summer to just kick back and enjoy their son and their life.

June 20

Ava's Two-Ty Fruity birthday was celebrated with six dozen guests. Grilled hot dogs and hamburgers, potato salad and green salad fed the adults while most of the children ate the adorable creatures created from fruits. Ava's two-tier birthday cake was vanilla cake with colorful sprinkles and fruity flavored mousse and frosting. It was served with rainbow sherbet. Colorful balloons and floral arrangements decorated the patio at Elliot and Kate's house. Kate wore a Carmen Miranda costume. Elliot wore a brilliant yellow shirt with black jeans. Ava was dressed in a watermelon motif romper. Guests swam in the pool. Watermelon motif gift bags were filled with fruit flavored suckers, fruit motif stress balls, and pineapple shaped bottles of bubbles. Ray and Bee built a pink and purple playhouse for Ava's birthday.

Fourth of July

Christian's anniversary present to Ana was a trip to New York. They flew to New York on July second, and returned to Seattle on July sixth. He took Jason and his family as guests, not staff, and Elliot, Kate and Ava. He arranged tickets for the Bronx Zoo on July third; baseball and fireworks at Yankee Stadium on July fourth, and Coney Island on July fifth. Ana made him swear not to arrange any shopping trips while they were in New York. She wanted to take Teddy for a stroll in Central Park.

November 10

"Thank you for the birthday greeting! Ray's not home," Bee's voice was too gleeful. Ana had to ask what was up. "Ray and Rod went hunting. This is day two. The guys each shot a turkey and a pheasant yesterday. Both guys have deer tags. I imagine they will be hunting a lot of weekends until they bag a deer. Martin's Meats in Grays Harbor is dressing the pheasant and the turkey for us. Do you want to come to Portland for Thanksgiving? Rod's offering to house us and four vets."

"I called to let you know we aren't going to Aspen this year. I have a book launch over the weekend at the Convention Center in Seattle. We will be in one section on the third floor. The entire fourth floor is a Black Friday rummage sale by the Archdiocese of Seattle. One of the main sections of the book takes place on a Black Friday. We can fly down on Wednesday night, stay for Thanksgiving dinner and fly back on Thursday afternoon."

"We have the annual sale in Portland over Thanksgiving weekend. We have over 250 pieces this year, and we have an eight piece bedroom suite in burled walnut. Ray's been collecting pieces for a few years. It's a handsome set. I think we'll make good profit on it."

"I'm glad. Should I bring Darius with us?" Ana asked.

"I invited him, but he has three new sets of puppies and can't get away." Bee explained. "I told him to find me a Myka, since he won't let me have her." She chuckled. "The next time we're in Seattle, I'd like to take Teddy to Protective Pups. Especially if Darius is prepping puppies for training."

"I don't know how Christian will deal with us bringing home a puppy if Teddy falls in love." Ana chuckled.

2017

January 1

"Are we agreed then," Elliot asked Kate.

"I'll skip my shot for the next two rounds, and we'll see what happens," Kate agreed. "It bothers me because Mia and Ethan aren't having any success with IVF."

"I feel bad for them also, but we can't delay completing our family. Ava shouldn't be an only child." Elliot kissed Kate's hair, and cupped her cheek.

~X~

"If you're ready for another baby, I'm game," Christian kissed Ana. "Teddy needs a sibling, or two."

"Don't get ahead of yourself. We don't have a guarantee I'll get pregnant as fast as fast as I did with Teddy." Ana scolded Christian…and forgot all her worries when he kissed her senseless, and fucked her legless.

May 5

"I hope Kate's pregnant with a boy," Elliot gazed longingly around Teddy's third birthday party. It was 'I'm 3 and digging it!' The motif was big construction rigs and bright yellow decorations. Elliot found two very large metal Tonka trucks for Teddy's birthday.

"I hope I'm pregnant with a girl," Ana laughed. "I wouldn't mind a tea party once in a while."

"Well, Ava's birthday party will be a 'Three-Esta' party, with faux margaritas for you pregnant ladies and cerveza for us men."

"Great," Ana moaned. "Salty rimmed glasses to make my ankles swell more."

Teddy's best present was a set of four Adirondack chairs created for children with a low table. Ray and Bee painted them in woods motif with a lake and trees. They created a picnic table and benches for children as Ava's birthday gift. It was painted soft blue with pink, purple and yellow butterflies.

May 12

"Not quads," Dr. Greene corrected Celeste. "Multiple single sperm, single egg embryos. Two boys, two girls. Due before Thanksgiving."

"Are you considering continuing the family legacy of E names for boys," Celeste asked. "I researched E names – Eldon, Easton, Edrah, Elek…"

"Edris – boy, Ellis – girl, Emerson – boy, Evarith – girl. In case we have the sexes wrong, we have Emma and Elynn for girls and Elijah and Emmett for boys." Ethan kissed Mia's temple. "I know it is asking a lot for you to carry the babes to term. We knew a multiple birth was possible, but four babies at once…our arms will be full."

"Not as full as our hearts. We never have to go through IVF again." Mia smiled through the tears of shock. "We chose E names which have not been in the family for a few generations. Evarith was a great-great grandmother. Emerson was a surname six generations ago. I like Ellis from Gray's Anatomy. I like Idris Elba but the spelling doesn't work, so we decided on E-d-r-i-s."

"We picked middle names from grandparents," Ethan noticed his mother's face. She could hate the names all she wanted, but they had chosen. "Ellis Grace, Evarith Celeste, Emerson Eamon and Edris Carrick."

"We'd better call Elliot. There's work to be done on the house. The three large bedrooms on the second floor need to become two bedrooms and a half bath. Boys in one room, girls in the other." Mia commented. "I want to enlarge the laundry room with another set of the large, front load washer and dryer."

"You're on light duty and plenty of bed rest," Dr. Greene reminded Mia. "I don't want you painting or moving furniture."

Memorial Day Weekend

Memorial Day weekend, Darius proposed to Anya, after she graduated from surgical residency and her fellowship. She was offered an attending position at SHC starting July first. She would stay at Drew and Will's house if it's a long day. Otherwise, she drove from Renton to SHC. He hosted a graduation party for her at Protective Pups. Her presents were blue surgical caps and totes with butterflies. Darius bought her eight sets of blue surgical scrubs which had cargo pants. She could tuck a stethoscope, a cell phone, a surgical cap, and a bottle of hand sanitizer in various pockets.

She didn't want an engagement ring, so Darius bought her a Subaru SUV. He felt it was safer on the road than her Mini Cooper. She was thrilled to carry a couple go bags easier in the back of the SUV than the Mini Cooper.

July 1-2

After the annual review of Protective Pups and Grey Dogs, Darius and Anya took the two days to go to his gold claim. He hadn't spent enough time there. He renewed the claim for another year, but was willing to give it up. He had taken several afternoons to metal detect at parks and beaches, but Morse and Myka loved the unrestrained running on Darius's gold claim. Day one they hiked and Darius metal detected. He found an odd stone the size of a potato. The metal detector identified it as a possible source of iron. They set camp and roasted hot dogs, made s'mores and tented the dogs in a second tent so they had an uninterrupted night with one another.

In the morning, Anya made breakfast and coffee while Darius broke camp. They had frozen sandwiches, juice and water in one of the coolers for lunch. Anya slathered on sunscreen and seated herself under a tree with a novel…which was a novel experience for her! Darius pulled out his metal detecting kit, and his high water waders. He slung one of the sand sifters off his belt.

Three times the metal detector alerted him. He reached down to scoop and filter sand only to find a chain charm for a cell phone, a bottle opener, and a collection of fish hooks. Myka couldn't stay out of the water long enough for Darius to gold pan. Morse nagged at her from the shore, but she enjoyed dashing in and out of the water. Every time she bounded out, Myka shook off her excess water on Morse, which made him growl.

Darius planned to spend the remainder of the summer seeking a two year old male and two ladies for Protective Pups. Sounder and both his ladies had their first litters of six puppies each. He was thrilled to work Sounder with his four one-year-olds and Myka. The six of them were a solid work team.

Labor Day Weekend, 2017

Darius and Anya married Saturday of Labor Day weekend at Protective Pups under the covered pavilion. They agreed on a simple wedding. Frederick Johns stood up for Darius, Amy stood up for Anya. Both Drew and Will walked Anya down the aisle. She wore a simple white satin fit and flare dress. The back was open with two pretty bows for interest. She wore ruby heart studs and a ruby tennis bracelet from Darius. He wore black jeans and black jacket. Amy wore white, Frederick wore black. Their flowers were red roses. Morse was their proxy ring bearer. Myka was a flower bearer with a lei of red roses around her neck.

Darius and Anya spoke their vows together. "I promise open communication. I promise to cherish and build our relationship. I promise to never do anything to betray your trust. I promise to be your safe harbor, your sanctuary. I promise to love and respect you for the rest of my days."

After a lovely ceremony at the log pavilion, two hours of feasting, libations and dancing ensued. Darius and Anya danced their first song to an acoustic version of Till Forever by Joy Williams. Their three tier wedding cake was red velvet. The white chocolate buttercream frosting was decorated with black stylized vines and leaves made of fondant with live red roses. They served a buffet of six Cajun/Creole dishes, six Oriental dishes and Darius's favorite steaks, butterfly shrimp and onion rings. They had an open bar, but they served nonalcoholic cranberry spritzers as their signature drink.

Anya had three father-daughter dances with Drew, Will and Frederick. The couple had an equal number of single women to single men who were required to dance at least once during the reception. They all took advantage of the rule by joining the money dance for Anya and Darius. Frederick and Amy collected the funds and sent everyone to dance a minimum of thirty seconds with the bride or the groom. Anya and Darius were ready for champagne and food after they danced for almost forty-five minutes with guests.

They honeymooned for four days at the Fairmont Olympic in Seattle, because they could bring service dogs. Their entire bill for their suite, room service, spa date and on demand movies was paid by their money dance. Anya had to get back to work as the newest attending pediatric surgeon at Seattle Children's Hospital. By unanimous agreement, Anya and Darius decided to not become parents. They discussed the option of hiring a surrogate. However, being parents was not something either of them needed to live fulfilling lives.

~X~

Grandma Frannie and Aunt Gena hosted a very large (300 women) 'Count Me In' baby shower for the three pregnant ladies at Grey Manor. Grace knew where to find a large marque, and caterer, and tables and chairs. Phoebe meant two children for Christian and Ana. Chase and Drake would make three children for Elliot and Kate. Edris, Ellis, Emerson and Evarith would make four children for Mia and Ethan.

Grandma Frannie made a soft pink floral quilt for Phoebe. She made two blue and green quilts for the twin boys Kate was carrying. She made four baby quilts in bright colors for Mia's anticipated four babies. It was not every year she had seven new great-grandbabies. Grace brought presents for Teddy and Ava – 'big brother' and 'big sister' t-shirts. Ray brought a rocking chair and ottoman for each of the ladies for their nurseries.

October

Phoebe Grace Grey born October fifth. Teddy was not sure he needed a sister. He asked his daddy if he could trade his sister for one of Darius's puppies.

Ray and Bee 'borrowed' Teddy for Boo Bash so Christian could work and Ana could rest. She would not return to Grey Publishing until the first of the year. In the meantime, she worked from home as she could. Hannah brought her mail and work. Ana learned the ins and out of finances and HR at Grey Publishing. Gwen came when she could and trained Ana about the illustration and graphic arts portion of Grey Publishing.

Chase and Drake, twin sons of Kate and Elliot, were born on the twenty-eighth. They were a little early, but Kate was grateful they were healthy. Elliot agreed to get a vasectomy. They were finished building their family.

November 10

Mia and Ethan, capped and gowned, supported one another behind a curtain while Dr. Greene and her staff birthed four babies by C-section. They did not tell anyone today was the day. Everyone expected them to do this on Monday after Veterans Day. Ethan promised to call family after Mia and the babies were settled in her room. Mia depended on hospital staff to keep the delivery from turning into a circus. Each baby weighed between three and four pounds.

Dr. Greene was concerned when Mia's uterus was sluggish to respond after all the babies were born. Eventually, before emergency measures were instituted, Mia's body rallied. Dr. Greene finished with her as her OB/GYN residents and interns worked on the babies. Eventually Mia would be transferred to her room in the OB/GYN wing along with four baby bassinets. Mia would stay a few days at the hospital but the babies were in the NICU unit for a month. While Mia had a Grey Security guard who was sworn to secrecy outside her room, a second guard would be on duty in the NICU.

December 1

"Bith," Teddy stuffed a handful of Cheerios in his mouth.

'WTF?' Christian's eyebrows knotted. "Who is he calling a bitch?"

"I don't know…and I blame your brother…or your sweet sister for teaching Teddy to say his first profanity." Ana snapped at Christian.

"Shit," Teddy spoke, looking at his Cheerios sliding off his high chair tray onto the floor.

"You hold them down…I will feed them the harshest lye soap I can buy." Ana frowned.

"How do you know it wasn't Kate?" Christian frowned.

"Because Ava was almost kicked out of the Kavanagh Day Care, which Kate organized, for saying 'firetruck'. Kate banned all dirty words from the house, and instituted a swear jar at home and at work when Chase and Drake were born. I don't mean a quarter a swear word…she's penalizing everyone $10 an expletive." Ana explained. "Kate takes the money from the swear jar and puts it in a separate account for doing special family things."

"Oh holy Christ!" Christian exploded, looking at the news on TV. Phoebe, who had been content to take her bottle in his arms, began to cry in earnest. Ana set Phoebe in the bouncy chair and held the bottle to her mouth. Away from Christian's angst, she settled down to nurse again.

"Kyst…" Teddy parroted his father.

"CHRISTIAN!" Ana snapped. "Oh…WTF…" her voice disappeared as a picture of Elena Lincoln flashed on the TV screen. "What are they saying?"

"John Lincoln was killed in a car accident in Las Vegas over Thanksgiving weekend. The American Embassy in Rio decreed 'death in abstensia' for Elena. There have been no new leads since her disappearance in Rio in 2011. They will not expend any more of their budget searching for her. The State Department refused to allow her funds be diminished by court actions for the next however many years it would take to declare her legally dead. They plan to distribute her funds by the end of December." Christian frowned. "It appears the Washington Attorney General's Office will handle any legal issues with the court."

"Elena left everything to you, with Grace as executor of her estate." Ana pointed out something Christian already knew and didn't want to consider. "Yes Teddy…she was a bith." Ana kissed the side of his head.

"IRS is taking a fourth of the funds. The Washington Attorney General is taking a fourth of the funds. The American Embassy requested reimbursement for the funds they expended looking for Elena. The accountant who has been monitoring Elena's funds will be paid. Mom and I think there may be $1 million when the dust clears. We're not letting her funds taint Coping Together, or any of our regular charities." Christian announced. "We've decided to donate Elena's funds to the Seattle Police Department to expand their educational offerings for the community. More school presentations, more self-defense courses for women, on-call counselors for people attempting suicide, transportation services for homeless to shelters during life-threatening storms, etc." Christian felt since Elena was such a soul sucker; her funds should be used to change lives.

Ana raised her orange juice to toast Grace and Christian's decision.

December 18

Ethan and Mia hired a nanny who had a neonatal and pediatric background. She was recommended by Grace. She had excellent recommendations, but mostly she knew when new grandmothers needed gentle handling. Her suite was located near the children's rooms. Mia put the girls in a pink and yellow nursery. The boys had a blue and green nursery. Their names were created from stuffed letters which decorated walls over their cribs.

It was a busy afternoon for the priest at St. Madeleine's. First he christened Teddy and Phoebe, whose godparents were Elliot and Kate, and Mia and Ethan. Then he christened Ava, Chase and Drake, whose godparents were Christian and Ana, and Mia and Ethan. Then he christened Edris, Ellis, Emerson and Evarith, whose godparents were Elliot and Kate, and Christian and Ana. Teddy thought they were testing the water to see if it was warm enough to swim. Ava fussed because her pretty white dress got a little wet. The rest of the babies were too young to put up much of a fuss.

A buffet tea was held afterwards at the Skyview Ballroom at the Hilton Bellevue. Each couple invited 50 persons not on the main list. Together the three couples invited 50 people like extended family. Kate and Ana asked Jose to take candid shots for them while a professional children's photographer took dozens of shots of the children. It was the first of many large family gatherings.

The future…

For the rest of their days, the 'seventeen seven', as Frannie called them, would be a tight knit group. They attended private preschool together…kindergarten…elementary school …junior high…Seattle Prep High School…and UDub. It was amazing to watch Chase, Drake and Phoebe Grey get their diplomas one after the other…and even more amazing when Edris, Ellis, Emerson and Evarith Kavanagh received their diplomas one after the other at elementary, junior high, and high school graduations. The seven of them had 14 graduation tickets for their UDub graduation which meant three sets of parents, three sets of grandparents, and one set of great grandparents attended and cheered loud and long for their next generation.