Protecting the Heart

Disclaimers: I do not own any part of Glee or its characters. This is purely for pleasure I get nothing else for this. Want to give a special thanks to Niekie for helping proof read this story for me. She's all kinds of awesome and an amazing author herself. Check out her Glee fic too.

Chapter 6

The rest of the week went by quickly and before they knew it, it was the night before they would be leaving. They were completely packed and were set to leave at first light. They had the SUV totally ready with things to keep Teddy occupied and Santana made sure there were extra blankets and pillow to keep Rachel comfortable as well.

With Teddy down for the night they all made a last sweep of the house to double check that they had everything. They would be stopping at the diner in the morning for one last meal there before heading out so everything in the kitchen had been cleared out as well. When they assured themselves that they were truly ready for the trip they all headed upstairs.

Rachel was now ready for bed but standing looking out of the bedroom window into the night. She was really apprehensive about this next phase of things. They were told it shouldn't take too long but there was really no way of knowing how long things would take and when they could safely return to their lives. In an effort not to actively think about how scared she was and just how much danger they were in she thought about everything else, like finding work when they got back and settled.

She had just ended a very successful role on Broadway and had been nominated for what she hoped was her 2nd Tony. She already had one for Lead Actress and a Grammy for Best Song Written for Visual Media for a song she wrote and sang for a Disney movie. She also won an Oscar for Best Achievement in Music Written for a motion Picture for the same song. She did the voice over for the princess in that film. Since she had written the song her agent was able to get her the part of Princess Yolanda.

She was an Emmy away from her EGOT and had, had a role lined up for a television drama that she was hoping would help her achieve it. She was a little worried that if this went on too long that her career would be hurt but she was mostly confident that if she chose to continue working when she got home she would have no problem. Although now that she was going to have a second child she was honestly considering taking some time off to just be a mom.

After Teddy was born she threw herself into her work trying to make it with a baby still in college and then she got the starring role in Funny Girl which she won her Tony for. Since then she has done one other play and the Disney movie. She had been fortunate and so lucky to get these roles and mostly they allowed her a lot more time with her baby then she had originally thought she'd get. Funny Girl catapulted her into stardom and the other two subsequent roles just made her a household name in some circles, especially the role of Princess Yolanda.

As she contemplated all of this she had to admit that what she worried about the most, other than the eminent danger they were all in, was being with Santana for an undetermined amount of time in this fake relationship. It had been so easy to fall into a comfortable routine with the Latina. When they had lived together before they actually got along a lot better then she had imagined that they would. They just fell into a rhythm together and this time was just as seamless as the last.

The problem was that she had always had a little thing for Santana, even in school, and she was worried about getting too attached. She knew that when this was all over, even if they remained friends, it was going to hurt to not be with her like she was pretending to be now. She didn't even want to think about what this was going to do to Teddy. He was getting so attached to his 'Mami' and she was really afraid of how this was all going to affect him as well, not to mention the baby if it went longer then they anticipated.

She was pulled out of her musings by a pair of arms wrapping around her from behind and two hands that slayed over her ever growing stomach. "What are you doing over here? I figured you'd be in bed waiting for me."

Rachel smiled and leaned back into her. "I was just thinking. Are you ready for bed?"

Santana nodded and rested her chin on Rachel's shoulder. "I'm ready when you are. Are you ok? I know that so much has been going on and we've barely had a moment to breathe. Once we get settled things will calm down and we'll get into a routine. I know you hate not having an agenda for your days and weeks."

"I'm sure things will be easier once we're all unpacked and the agents leave, I'm just nervous."

Turning her around Santana cupped her face. "I promise I'm going to keep us safe."

Rachel sighed and leaned into her resting her head on Santana's shoulder. "I know you will. I just can't help but worry about Teddy and the baby and you. I know you hate this as much as I do."

She shrugged and pulled Rachel into her body more fully. "Eh, the way I see it I get to be there with you through this pregnancy in the way I wasn't able to be there for little man. Try not to stress too much sweetie it's not good for you or little Rosie in there."

Rachel raised her head looking at her in confusion. "Rosie?"

Santana just smirked. "You know like Rosalia in West Side Story. She's a little shark swimming in there."

Rachel threw her head back and laughed as Santana chuckled, happy that she had made the other woman smile and not seem so down. "Poor Tony being the only Jet in the family," Rachel said in amusement shaking her head."

"He's an honorary Shark by association. I just didn't like any of the Jet names and Tony is a main character."

Chuckling at the silly woman she pulled away taking her hand. "Come on you, let's get some sleep. You have to be able to drive tomorrow."

Santana let her lead her to the bed then climbed in holding out her arms for Rachel to crawl into. After waking in each other's arms for so many mornings they just lost all pretense of falling asleep barely touching or just holding hands. Neither woman ever said a word about it but one night Rachel just rolled into her and lay her head on her chest and Santana just adjusted to wrap her arms around her. From that night on they just moved together naturally.

Now that she was starting to show more Rachel would sometimes roll over on her side facing away from her and wait for Santana to spoon her from behind before they fell asleep. The first night that Rachel had rolled away from her Santana was confused and thought she'd done something wrong until Rachel reached behind her back grabbing her hand pulling her into her. From that night on Santana would adjust to whatever position that was most comfortable for the Diva. Tonight though, she knew that with all the emotional stuff rolling around in Rachel's head that she'd want to be held.

It wasn't long before Rachel's breath evened out and she was asleep. Santana held her for a little longer making sure she was good and asleep before running her hand down to caress her stomach. "Goodnight Rosie." With that she closed her eyes and let sleep finally take her.

Dawn arose quicker than any of them wanted but they were up and loaded in the cars quickly. Rachel expertly dressed a still sleeping Teddy and Santana carried him out getting him strapped in and heading into town. After eating they gassed up and were on the road by 7:00am.

The trip took quite a bit longer than anticipated with a small child and a pregnant woman having to stop so much but Santana was enjoying the drive. After she had joined the Academy she had been all go and no quit climbing the ladder in her career clawing her way to detective at such a young age. This last year especially with being undercover she was always on guard and could never truly relax. She knew that this was just another form of undercover assignment but it was different. Rachel made it different.

She would have to be on guard for the unforeseeable future to make sure that they all stayed safe but she could also just relax with them. For the moment no one knew where they were, thinking they were dead and they were safe for the time being. They could just get to where they were going and fall into a routine passing the time together. She had no intention of ever letting them go again. She knew that they would have to stop the charade of being a family when this was all over but she was going to make sure that she was still in their lives when they went home. She wasn't going to lose Rachel again and she'd be damned if she lost that precious boy either.

By the end of the fourth day on the road Santana sighed as they pulled into another motel. When she got out she motioned for Rachel to stay put and walked over to Agent Donavon as he jumped out of the truck. "How far is it until we get to where we're going Joe?"

Glancing at the GPS on his phone he shrugged. "We should be there by 9:00 tomorrow if we pull out at 6:00 like we have been. We could make it tonight but I figured Maria and Teddy needed to stop for the night and I hate to leave all of this in the truck overnight on the road outside of the house once we get there. This way we can unload and drop off the truck that night and pick up another car for us so we can head back. Tomorrow night you are officially on your own."

Santana sighed looking to her car and the two sitting in it then looked back and spoke softly so she wouldn't be over heard. "You guys just get back and make sure that those assholes don't find us. That damn leak needs to be plugged."

"They won't find you. We are the only two that know where you are and it's going to stay that way, don't worry. You just make sure that they are ok and you all get settled for the duration."

She looked at him for a moment then nodded. "Dude, I don't trust easily but I'm trusting you to help me keep them safe. Those two…"

She trailed off turning back to look at them and he gently touched her shoulder. "We got your back Ana."

She looked back and smiled slightly then they headed in to rent some rooms so they could get settled and find some dinner. Once they were fed they settled quickly and no one had trouble falling asleep once their heads hit the bed.

The next morning the remainder of the trip went quickly and by 8:45 they were pulling off of the highway and heading in to a small town named Boseman Montana. It wasn't as small as the little town by the farm house but it wasn't any were near the size of Richmond. Driving down Main Street they looked at all of the little shops and stuff around and Santana groaned. "Oh dear god it's Lima."

Rachel whipped her head around to the back looking at her sleeping boy and sighed in relief that he was asleep then looked back to Santana and speaking in a hushed voice as to not wake him. "Never say the L word around him or he will be talking about Noah for the rest of our time here until he gets to see him."

Santana rolled her eyes. "Oh dear lord you let Puck near him? What were you thinking? We're going to have to watch him closely now to make sure he doesn't show any of his tendencies."

Rachel chuckled. "He's not that bad anymore. He settled down last year and got married to a lovely woman named Mary. He's really grown up and she's expecting his first baby in October."

She turned to look out the window at the thought and pouted slightly thinking that she may not be back in time to see that happening. Santana read her correctly and grabbed her hand. "Hey, you never know, we may be back by then. Hell, I'd really like to see him again too and this miracle woman that tamed him."

She nodded sadly and looked back at Santana, "maybe. Either way I want to go see him as soon as I can because he is going to be beside himself about mine and Teddy's deaths, yours too probably when he finds out. He's really like my brother now and a terrific uncle to Teddy. After everything happened with Brody and then Finn dying, he was there for me in so many ways. Dad and Daddy had him stay in their house when they moved to New York to keep an eye on things for them and to help him out. He bought it from them right before he got married."

Santana smiled thinking about the boy she once knew being a father. "I promise as soon as we are free from all of this I'll take you to see him myself if you want. I can't wait to see if that kid comes out with a Mohawk."

They both laughed at the thought and looked around some more as they turned into a neighborhood. After making two more turns Rachel's phone rang and Agent Carlson told them what house to turn into as they parked the truck out front.

Santana parked and they got out meeting each other at the back of the car looking up at the house. "It's huge babe." Santana said looking up incredulously. Then caught herself seeing neighbors walking by. "The pictures didn't do it justice."

Catching on Rachel chuckled. "You knew the square footage, what were you expecting, a doll house?"

Santana slapped her ass playfully and handed her the keys. "Go open the door while I get this boy out, but don't go in without us."

Rachel yelped at the slap but took the keys scowling at her playfully and walked up to the front door. She opened it and turned to see Santana setting Teddy down on the porch after she climbed the steps. She whispered something in his ear and he nodded excitedly and before Rachel knew what was happening she was being hoisted into Santana's arms bridal style.

She gasped at the sudden movement and slapped at her arm. "Ana put me down this instant."

Santana kissed her cheek and grinned. "Stop squirming I don't want to drop you and the baby woman. I'm just going to carry you over the threshold of our new house, relax."

Rachel huffed but stopped moving not wanting to be dropped. Satisfied Santana pushed open the door with her foot and stepped into the house. Coming fully into the living room she turned in a circle slowly taking in the space. "Welcome home."

Rachel relaxed into her and sighed. "It's beautiful."

Before either could say more Teddy started jumping up and down in the doorway, "me too Mami, me too."

Santana gently put Rachel down and ran over to scoop up the boy the same way she had his mama, "You too, you too." She spun him around the living room once then adjusted him on her hip. "What do you think Mijo?"

He looked around and smiled. "It's big. Do I get to have a swing like our last house?"

Santana smiled taking Rachel's hand and leading them through the house to the back yard. "Yes sir. As soon as I saw how big our yard was I bought one and had it delivered."

She opened the back door and set him down on the patio. He squealed in delight and ran to his new toys. Rachel gasped and put a hand over her mouth. In front of her was a large pirate ship playhouse complete with two swings and a slide. "Oh Ana what did you do?"

Shrugging she looked at her apprehensively. "I just knew how much he loved the swing at the old house and I wanted him to have one here too only I took it a step further. Did I do something wrong? Are you mad at me?"

Rachel shook her head watching him climb up the platforms and slide down. "No, I'm not mad. This was so sweet of you Ana."

She turned and pulled the taller woman into a tight hug and Santana held her just as tight. They were pulled apart by the clearing of a throat and turned to look at Agent Donavon. "Hey, we need to start unloading soon so if you want get a look at the rest so we can get this show on the road that would be great. Sara and I need turn the truck in by 6:00 tonight."

They pulled the rest of the way apart and called Teddy to them. They made their way back into the house and took a tour of all of the rooms so that they could get a feel for the place before they started bringing things in. The place was a Beautiful two story home with a finished basement. The main level housed the kitchen, living room, dining room, den/office area and half bath. The second level was Teddy's room, the nursery, a bathroom in the hall and the master suite with private bath.

The final level was the basement and the last room Santana took Rachel to see. When they came down the stairs Rachel looked around curiously. "It looks a lot smaller then I was expecting but I suppose it will still work all of the things we bought for it."

The space was indeed smaller. They had decided to make this space into a family room/toy room and it was in fact about half as the blue prints had stated but only because Santana had the room modified. "It is smaller. I had them do a little work in here."

She led her through the door at the back of the room and Rachel gasped seeing what was in the room. Turning in a circle she took in all that was around her. She looked at Santana with tears in her eyes. "What did you do? I didn't think I was allowed to do my music."

Santana pulled her into her arms. "Yes but I knew that music is who you are and you need it so I had them sound proof the whole basement and this has the sound crate too. This way you can still work on your music without others outside being able to hear. The door bell has also been wired to this room and there is a speaker system so you can close the door while baby boy is taking a nap in the other room and you can still hear him but he can't hear you. You can write to your heart's content so that when we can go home you can wow the world with your greatness."

Rachel looked around again in awe. The room was a fully functioning recording studio with several musical instruments and all of the equipment she needed to write and record her music. Turning back to Santana she flung her arms around her burying her face in her neck and proceeded to cry into her.

Santana wasn't sure what to do so she just held on. "Please tell me those are happy tears."

Rachel half laughed half sobbed nodding into her neck. "Yes, just… I don't… Thank you Ana."

Sighing in relief she smiled and kissed the side of her head. Once she calmed Santana pulled her away slightly. "Ok let's go on up so I can start helping them get the truck unpacked."

Rachel nodded kissing her cheek and they headed upstairs. Once they started unloading it went fairly quickly. Rachel had supervised the loading of the truck insisting that it be loaded by room in order so that they started with the master suite and ended with the living room making sure that each room was properly unloaded and she could show them where to put everything. Since it was being done in order they also wouldn't be tripping over things in other rooms.

The top floor was done first then they finished with the basement and were going to do the main floor next. It was just after noon when the basement family room was done and Rachel had ordered pizza to be delivered then and they all sat on the front porch eating lunch. While they ate they talked about Santana's new job and how she was kind of excited for it to start in a few weeks.

They were just finishing up when two men and a little boy came up the walk. Santana stood and walked down a few steps. "Hello, can I help you?"

The shorter of the two men smiled and held out his hand to shake hers. "My name is William Jones and this is my husband Daniel and our son Elijah."

Santana smiled as she shook his hand and Rachel came to stand beside her. "It's nice to meet you, Anita Sanchez. This is my wife Maria and our son Tony and her Uncle Joe and Aunt Sara."

They all shook hands and the little boys started talking walking up on the porch. Will smiled at them and turned back to the woman in front of him. "We just wanted to come over, introduce ourselves and welcome you do the neighborhood. We live next door on the left."

Rachel smiled, "It's a pleasure meeting you. It looks like our boys have hit it off."

They all looked to the boys that now had Teddy's backpack dumped out playing with his dinosaurs. Chuckling Daniel spoke for the first time. "Aw, bonding over lizards, the joys of childhood."

They all laughed and Will clapped excitedly. "I just wanted to let you know that I am a stay at home dad so I am always home and if you need anything at all I am just next door. It's so nice to have a family like ours moving into the neighborhood and with a child our son's age too. Don't get me wrong this is a lovely neighborhood and the people are amazing there just aren't a lot of children their age to play with and no other couples like us."

Daniel smiled. "The Henderson's right across the street have a little girl, Abby, that is their age and 3 doors down the Simmons' have a set of twins, a boy and girl about their age as well."

"Yes, once you are settled we'll have to arrange a play date to meet all of the parents and the children," Will said excitedly already planning it in his head.

Rachel and Santana shared an amused look. These men reminded them of Rachel's fathers. "That would be so nice. I am also a stay at home parent so I'm sure living right next door to each other we will become fast friends."

Santana smiled placing a hand on her back. "It will actually make me feel better having someone next door that she can call on while I'm at work."

"What line of work are you in Anita?" Daniel asked.

"I'm the new Psychology professor at the University. I start a week before school is in session so I can get my office in order and the curriculum set."

Daniel's face lit up. "I'm a professor there too, part of the science department. I teach several Chemistry classes. I'm sure we'll see each other around campus."

Santana smiled. "I'm sure we will, maybe you could show me around."

"Absolutely," he was about to say more but the clearing of a throat stopped him and they all looked up to Agent Donavon.

He looked at his watch then back to the girls. "I don't mean to be pushy but…"

Rachel smiled walking over to kiss his cheek. "Don't be rude Uncle Joe. We'll only be a little while more. Finish your lunch."

Santana laughed at the dumbfounded look on his face and turned back as Will started talking again. "We are so sorry. We shouldn't have kept you talking so long you obviously need to finish unloading your truck."

Daniel looked back at the truck, "Did you need a few more hands? I'm good with heavy lifting. I think it's what Will keeps me around for."

Will clapped his hands excitedly. "Oh yes let us help. I'm sure Ely would love to keep Tony occupied and it will get done faster with two more abled bodies."

Rachel moved to argue but Daniel held up a hand. "We insist."

Sharing a look with Rachel, Santana just shrugged and Rachel sighed. "Ok but I must insist that you let us buy you dinner for helping us out. We're just having Chinese takeout but we'd love to have you."

Will and Daniel shared a nod, "Deal."

The rest of the unloading went quickly. Santana knew where they decided to put everything on the main level so Rachel went with the boys up to Teddy's room to start unpacking his things and getting his room in order. When she finished in there she told the boys to stay put and play and not to leave unless they were coming to her room next door. By the time she finished making their bed and scooting a few things around they were done with the truck.

Santana stood in the doorway watching her for a moment then came in and helped her lift a box of clothing onto the bed for her. "You shouldn't be lifting that."

"I wasn't, I was just scooting it closer to the dresser so I could unpack your clothes."

"Well take a break, we're done unloading the truck and everything is in the rooms it belongs in. I even have the stuff in the garage halfway organized and the new grill is on the patio. We also got your car moved into the drive next to mine. Will and Daniel are going to head home and clean up and be back in at 7:00 for dinner."

Rachel glanced at the time on her phone and looked up at her in shock. "It's only 3:00, you guys worked fast."

"I know. Those guys earned their dinner tonight. I wrote down what they wanted and I'll pick it up while Uncle Joe and I run into town to turn in the truck and pick up another car for them. Could you please write down what you, T-man and Aunt Sara want to eat for me so I have it when we leave?"

Rachel nodded and did as she was asked. She and Santana then moved on to the dining room to move things around so they could at least eat at the table for dinner then Santana and Joe were off.

Later that night after Will, Daniel, and Eli went home they stood at the door and bid Donavon and Carlson goodbye. "Are you sure you don't want to stay the night? We have the pull out couch downstairs?" Rachel asked.

Carlson shook her head. "No, we need to get going. We're only driving as far as the nearest airport. Our flight leaves at midnight."

Donavon hugged the girls one last time. "You two take care of each other and we'll be back to get you as soon as the coast is clear. You have our numbers in case of emergency."

With that they said their final goodbyes and watched as they drove off. Santana moved in behind Rachel, wrapped her arms around her and rested her chin on her shoulder, "looks like it's just us now."

Rachel leaned back into her and sighed, "Yea."

A/N: Ok they are finally settled into their new place, lots of fun things to come. As always please review.