After an awkward dinner, Anna and Brian quickly take off. Bella and Bob spend some time with Mom and Dad in his den, while Sean and Becky take care of the dishes.

Julie and I give Lulu and Kate a bath, while Josh is putting Jonah to bed and Finn reads to Marco. I think all the teenagers are playing Wii. I hope the boys aren't harassing Carly.

"Can Lulu and I have a sleepover?" Kate begs as we dry them off.

"You are having a sleepover. You're both sleeping at Grandma's house."

"But not in the same room! We want a real sleepover." Kate whines. Lulu is unusually quiet, but nods in agreement. I don't even think she really knows what a sleepover is.

Julie looks at me for an answer.

"Well, we could put them on the pull out couch in Dad's den. And they could watch a movie until they fall asleep."

"Yay!" The girls cheer. They are so easy to please at this age. Still, Josh looks a little skeptical when I tell him about the plan while Lulu brushes her teeth.

"What if she wakes up and gets scared and we're all the way upstairs?"

"Kate and Marco will be down there. She'll be fine."

"Maybe I'll just sleep on the couch in the living room so I'm on the same floor."

"You're not going to get a good night's sleep on that couch."

"I'm not going to get a good night's sleep listening in case Lulu calls for me." Josh shoots back in exasperation. I pause, giving him a chance to pull the plug on the whole idea. But it doesn't say anything more.

"All ready!" Lulu calls from the bathroom. Josh plasters a smile on his face as she joins us in the hall, scooping her up into his arms and looking her in the eye.

"So, you're going to sleep downstairs?"

Lulu nods but it's not as enthusiastically as when she was with Kate. Josh seems to sense her uncertainty.

"Tell you what, how about you fall asleep on the couch with Marco and Kate and then I carry you back up here when Mommy and I come to bed."

Lulu nods again and lays her head on Josh's shoulder. He rubs her back and smiles at me, pleased with the solution. He's such a great dad.

Once we get the kids settled onto the couch in the den with a DVD playing, Julie, Josh and I head into the dining room to join in on family game night. Becky, Sean, Bob and Bella are already playing while Dad watches and Mom flutters around serving more cookies and pouring coffee.

From the laughter coming from the table, it looks like there's no lingering ill will between Bob and Sean over the scene in the living room. I wonder if they've spoken again since Anna left. Mom directs us towards the other table, where Dad joins us and starts dealing cards.

"Spitz?" He asks casually, his mouth turning up in a slightly evil grin when Josh groans. We only play Sheepshead a couple times a year and Josh tries to keep up, but when they start playing variants, he's pretty well lost.

"I'm tired." Julie offers, "let's just play normal."

Josh gives her a grateful smile, and Dad's eyes tighten a little. It's a little disconcerting. Dad has been very accepting of Josh, harassing him way less than Sean or Mom over the years. It makes me wonder how bad the conference with Bob and Bella went in the den, if Dad is feeling antagonistic towards sons-in-law.

"So . . . everything's okay? I try to keep my tone casual as I glance at my cards.

"As well as it can be I suppose." Mom answers tightly. "Bob was going to put his foot down, and tell Anna she couldn't go, but Sean reminded Bob and Bella that the only leverage they have over Anna is that she's still living with them and they are paying for college."

"Yeah?" Finn drawls not making the connection why that leverage isn't enough.

"Sean reminded them about how that went with Donna." Dad retorts sharply and I feel my face heat up. Josh clamps his lips shut in a tight line.

"You were already off to Green Bay. You didn't live through it." Mom laments. "Dropping out of school, moving in with HIM. Throwing her life away."

"She didn't throw her life away." Josh bites out a little tersely, and Mom has the good grace to blush.

"No." She agrees, "it turned out fine. But for a while there . . ."

Josh gives Mom a little glare and she stops talking. It's silent for a few moments while we play out the hand. I'm embarrassed. Due to our push on the Anti-Violence Towards Women Act, the whole family now knows that Dr. Freeride was abusive. But we've never really talked about it as a family, they don't know any details. And I'm not really that inclined to share them.

And Mom seems to forget that she never encouraged me to leave Dr. Freeride, just that I should hurry up and marry him. She didn't even care about how he treated me, just that it didn't look good to her church friends that her daughter was living in sin.

"I'm going to go check on the kids." I murmur as the hand ends. Josh looks concerned as I stand. I try to reassure him with a smile. I'll be fine. I just need a minute.

I open the door to the den just a crack and peek in at the kids. Marco is completely absorbed in his Kung Fu Panda movie, but Lulu and Kate are barely awake. They won't make it much longer.

They look so sweet laying there. It reminds me of Anna and Carly when they were little. They had Christmas sleepovers too. And I used to watch them, wondering if I'd ever have kids of my own. Relieved that I wasn't stuck in a violent marriage, and excited about the work I was doing with Josh, but still longing to be loved and not sure it would ever happen.

I really do need to talk to Anna and Carly. While I don't want to talk to my parents or siblings about what my life was like with Dr. Freeride, it could be useful for the girls. I'd like them to learn from my mistakes. For them to at least know the warning signs. I'm really worried about Anna- this thing has gotten so intense so fast. Not as much Carly, because we know Peter, but even so — she's so young. I don't want her to feel stuck in a relationship just because we like him.

I watch as Lulu's eyes drift shut, then softly close the door. I'm sure my family is ready for the next hand of cards. On my way back, I pass through the kitchen for a couple of peanut butter blossoms. Hopefully the topic of conversation will have changed, but if not, at least I have cookies.