Lindsay arrived home half an hour after taking Helen to fill her prescription and letting herself into the apartment. "Bobby? I'm home!" When no one answered, she wandered into the bedroom and smiled to see that Bobby had made the bed that morning. She walked into their son's room to find it in the usual disarray of toys and books. No one in there either.

A little worried now, Lindsay hurried into the kitchen and looked around, then smiled when she saw the kitchen table. There, sitting on the scarred wood, was a strip of black and white pictures from one of those booths at the mall showing the two men in her life making faces at the camera in two pictures, Bobby tickling Robby in one, and in the last, both smiling at the camera, identical smiles melting her heart. Under the pictures was a note. "Linds, I took the little monster here to the park. Think about what you want for dinner. We'll be back by three. We love you! Love, B&R"

Lindsay's eyes filled with tears, tears for her husband and son who she loved more than life, and tears for her best friend, that the beginning of Helen's family wouldn't be as easy as Lindsay's had been. Not that she and Bobby had ever done things the easy way, but he'd been right next to her for her entire pregnancy, just as excited and happy as she was. Mike would be happy about the baby, Lindsay was sure of it. She just wasn't sure what would happen with Mike and Helen's personal relationship.

Lindsay shook her head and decided to use the few hours of quiet to work on her only case. She grabbed the files from her briefcase and walked onto the terrace where she sat in a lounge chair and started working on her closing for Monday.

It was really an awful case. Lindsay's client, Amanda Byrd, was a fourteen-year-old girl who was accused of the murder of Jeff Gladstone. Amanda had gone to baby-sit for Gladstone's wife while he was away on business. Gladstone had arrived home early and raped Amanda. She had managed to grab a kitchen knife and stab him with it. Now Amanda was being charged with first degree murder because she'd waited until he fell asleep, about half an hour, before stabbing him which qualified as premeditated. In addition, Amanda had become pregnant and now Gladstone's parents were trying to keep her from having an abortion, claiming that as grandparents they had the right to know the child. Amanda was getting desperate. She was three months pregnant and wanted to have the abortion as soon as possible.

It was a horrible predicament and Lindsay felt awful for the girl. She had a good feeling on murder 1. The jury had heard Amanda up on the stand sobbing about what had happened. However there was no precedent for the abortion case and Lindsay was a little worried about it. She couldn't imagine killing her child, but at the same time she couldn't fathom what Amanda must be going through. She decided that it was time to take a page from Bobby's book and alter her closing strategy from clinical persuasion to passion. She worked for an hour and a half, hand writing the closing the first time. It was only a rough draft, but it was pretty good. She'd run it by Bobby tonight or tomorrow and fix it a couple more times.

Pleased with her progress, Lindsay stood and stretched. Tired, she wandered into the living room with her files and lied down on the couch, planning to catch up on the last week of Days of Our Lives, which she taped religiously.

As Shawn told Jan that he could no longer live the lie that he was her baby's father, Bobby unlocked the door, balancing the sleeping Robby in his right arm along with Robby's bike that he'd insisted on bringing to the park in his left and the bag that Lindsay made him bring anywhere he took Robby over his shoulder. It was 3:30 and they were late, but Bobby had picked up a surprise for his wife. The door finally swung open and Bobby stumbled in, dropping the bag and bike next to the door. He carried Robby into his room and put to him to bed, tucking him under the covers after he removed the little boy's shoes.

Bobby glanced into his bedroom, looking for his wife. She'd been acting really strange the day before and he was hoping to figure out what was wrong. When he didn't find her in their room or in their bathroom he tried the balcony. She liked to work on cases out there nice days, but she wasn't there either. Bobby was starting to get worried. Surely she couldn't still be with Helen? He was about to call to check when he caught a glimpse of the couch and smiled at what he saw.

Lindsay was sound asleep curled against the back of the couch, one hand resting on her stomach, the other cupping her cheek. Bobby crept over to her, even though when she was pregnant it took an act of God to wake her up. He sat next to her and gently brushed his finger over her cheek to her lips. When she still didn't move, he laid next to her, kissing her neck gently. Lindsay sighed and cuddled closer to him, smiling in her sleep.

Never one to give up, Bobby kissed her again. Lindsay rolled over sleepily. She opened her eyes and smiled into his husband's eyes. "Hey."

Bobby smiled. "Hey yourself. How're you feeling?"

Lindsay stretched again and burrowed into her husband. "Good. Where's Robby?"

"Taking a nap. All the bike riding and playing we did wore him out. How was your girls night with Helen?"

Lindsay closed her eyes, shaking her head. "I'll tell you later." Her voice caught as tears filled her eyes and were quickly blinked back.

"Hey there." Bobby drew her close and held her tightly. "What's wrong?"

"Later," Lindsay repeated. "When we're sure Robby won't wake up and hear us."

"Okay," Bobby murmured, stroking her back and hair comfortingly. "Come on."

"Where?" Lindsay was quite happy to stay on the couch in Bobby's arms for the foreseeable future.

"I was thinking somewhere a little more comfortable. Like bed?"

Lindsay pulled back and smiled. "Bed sounds good."

Bobby shifted a little so she was sitting in his lap before he slid one arm under her knees and the other around her back and stood, lifting her with him. He carried her into the room and laid her gently on the bed, lying next to her. Sensing that she needed to feel loved, Bobby took his time. He trailed his fingers gently over her body causing chills and heat to mix before he slid the oversized pink t-shirt over her head and removed the khaki maternity pants. She wasn't very big yet but big enough that her old clothes didn't fit.

Lindsay responded by sliding his navy blue polo shirt over his head and pressing hot kisses to his chest. She let her hands slide down his sides to his pants where she pulled off his belt before purposely fumbling with the button and zipper, letting her hand "accidentally" brush against the bulge in his pants.

Desperate, Bobby grabbed her hands and pulled her back up to him. Once she was there, he lowered his mouth first to one breast, then the other, slowly and deliberately drawing her closer and closer to her peak. Finally he slid out of his blue jeans and entered her, moving slowly at first, then quickening until they both climaxed together, Lindsay clinging desperately to him, afraid to let go.

After, Lindsay dozed in Bobby's arms, their hands linked over the children growing in her stomach. Bobby watched her and smiled gently. She was so beautiful, so delicate but so strong.

He knew that the Byrd case was bothering her. He hadn't wanted her to stay on it, but she'd insisted. Finally in desperation, she'd appealed to him as his wife, not his partner, pleading that Amanda was emotionally fragile and needed consistency. It was dangerously close to the argument he'd made for remaining on Scott Wallace's case four years before and she'd given into him then. So he gave into her now, with Rebecca second chairing and keeping an eye on her.

Before he could ponder what was bothering his wife any more, Robby showed up in the doorway, looking confused. Bobby was thankful that both he and Lindsay had gotten dressed again after making love, she in her t-shirt and he in boxers when he suddenly heard a small voice ask, "Daddy? Why you and Mama sleeping?"

Bobby smiled and motioned the little boy up on the bed with them. Robby happily scrambled up and wedged himself between his parents. Bobby held a finger to his lips and whispered, "Mama's sleeping because the babies make her tired."

"Why?"

Bobby thought about that. "Because growing big and strong takes a lot of energy." He was proud of his answer.

Robby nodded seriously. "K."

Sensing Robby's presence, Lindsay rolled over, opened her eyes, and when she saw her son's blue eyes she sat up. "Hi big boy."

"Mama!" Robby crawled into her lap for a hug. "Missed you."

"I missed you too." Lindsay murmured into his hair as she held her son close. Bobby wrapped his arms around both. This was perfect he thought. He had his whole world, his family, safe in his arms. Robby squirmed out of his mother's arms and began jumping on the bed.

"I'm hungry!" the little boy announced and his parents laughed.

"Dinner tonight is Mama's choice," Bobby said and smiled at Lindsay. "What are we craving tonight?"

Lindsay thought for a second then blushed. Bobby saw it and raised his eyebrows. She relented. "I'd really like to have breakfast food. With the morning sickness, I haven't been able to enjoy an omelet or sausage in three months."

"Mama," Robby explained in a very patient adult voice. "It not breakfast, it dinnertime!"

"That's okay buddy,"Bobby stood, scooping Robby into his arms and spinning him around in a circle. "You can have breakfast food anytime you want."

"Really?" Robby asked in that way that meant he was thinking of something that would get him in trouble. "Tomorrow I have hot dogs and fries for breakfast?"

Lindsay laughed and shook her head. "Sorry, this rule only works for breakfast food."

Robby pouted for a minute, then his eyes lit up again. "I have Mickey Mouse?"

The senior Donnell nodded. "One Mickey Mouse pancake for Robby. What do you want sweetheart?"

Lindsay smiled dreamily, thinking of all the foods she'd missed. "A cheese omelet, and sausage, and cinnamon buns, and hash browns, and waffles with strawberries. And coffee?" The last item she knew she wasn't likely to get, but she'd missed her coffee so much.

Bobby grinned at his wife and dropped a kiss on her forehead. "Decaf. I can handle that. Do you want to get up or do you want to take a longer nap?"

Lindsay shook her head and swung her legs over the side of the bed. "I'll get up, or I won't be able to sleep tonight."

"Okay." Bobby bent to press a kiss to her lips before pulling on his jeans and black polo shirt again. "Why don't you get ready, then you can come squeeze oranges? I bought some today as a treat and we'll have fresh squeezed juice with dinner."

Lindsay nodded, fresh squeezed juice was one of her favorite treats. Bobby left with Robby to get dinner started and Lindsay pulled her pants on and brushed her hair before joining them.

After having dinner, or breakfast, they pulled on gym shoes and walked four blocks to Robby's favorite ice cream store, Bessie's Ice Cream Parlor. The entire store was decorated in cow print and the ice cream, which was all soft serve, came out of the udders of a giant fake cow. Robby loved the cow and the ice cream wasn't bad, so they usually went there once a week.

They got their treats then took them to the park across the street to eat. Bobby licked his strawberry cheesecake flavored cone while Robby happily licked at his peanut butter ice cream with marshmallow topping, which both his parents thought was disgusting. Lindsay was enjoying her dish of chocolate yogurt with chocolate sauce, chocolate sprinkles, chocolate chips, and brownie pieces. Bobby had teased her that the babies chose the flavor, but she just glared at him and concentrated on the indulgence.

When the ice cream was all finished and Robby's very sticky face had been cleaned up, Bobby and Lindsay spent the rest of the evening playing on the playground with their son. They pushed Robby on the swing and Bobby had brought along a child's soft baseball and gloves, so Lindsay sat on the grass, quite happy to watch her husband teach their son the elementary points of baseball.

After playing catch for awhile, Robby noticed a lady walk in to park. His eyes lit up as he dropped both ball and glove. "Mama, Daddy look, a puppy!" He hurried over with Lindsay and Bobby on his heels.

"Hi Lady!" Robby exclaimed as he reached out to pet the golden retriever.

"Robby, ask first," Lindsay reminded gently.

"I pet the puppy?" Robby asked hopefully and the lady laughed.

"Sure you can. You can even hold her for me while I get my box out of my car."

"Okay!" The lady came back with a box and put it on the ground, revealing five balls of golden fur.

"This is Missy," the lady gestured at the older dog whom Robby was holding. "And these are her puppies. I'm trying to find a good home for the puppies."

Robby immediately fell in love with the puppies and began to play with them, rolling around in the grass, laughing as they licked his face.

Bobby came up behind his wife and wrapped his arms around her waist, gently pulling her to him. Lindsay laid her arms over his and leaned back against his strong chest, grinning when she felt his chin come to rest on the top of her head. She loved it when he held her this way. They watched their son for awhile before Robby came up with one of the puppies in his arms.

"Mama, Daddy, I keep the puppy?"

Lindsay shook her head. "Sorry honey. We don't have room for a puppy."

Robby's lower lip poked out, an exact replica of his mother's pout and he went back to play. Bobby waited a few minutes before leaning down to whisper in Lindsay's ear.

"Maybe we should..." That was as far as he got before Lindsay shook her head.

"Don't you start too Bobby. Where in our apartment is there room for a golden retriever?"

"It's just a puppy." Bobby pointed out, sounding about three years old himself. "And you said yourself that we have to buy a house so we have room for the babies." His hands stroked gently over her stomach, hoping to win her over that way.

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "Yes, we do need to buy a house. BUT, in five and a half months, we're going to have two new babies. Two infants, plus a three-year-old, plus a dog is too much. And who would end up taking care of it?"

"Robby and I would," Bobby quickly volunteered. "It'll be good for him to learn responsibility."

Lindsay looked back at her husband gently. "I know you want a pet, honey. But for right now, until the babies are at least four, I think the only pet we should have is a goldfish."

Bobby let out a sigh and pressed a kiss to her lips. "Okay. But in four years, I want to talk about getting a real pet."

"Deal," Lindsay answered and they sealed it with another kiss.

They finally got back home around 7:30 when it started getting dark. Lindsay drew a warm bath and despite Robby's sleepy protests gave him a quick bath before getting him dressed in his pajamas. She tucked him into bed, made sure he had his blanket that he'd slept with since he was born, then sat at the foot of the bed while Bobby read him the story of Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel.

"Mike, like Uncle Mike?" Robby asked sleepily, referring of course to Mike Maguire. Bobby shook his head no and both parents kissed Robby good-night before tiptoeing out of the room, leaving the door cracked and a night light on.

Back in the living room Bobby decided that it was a good time to broach the subject of what had been bothering Lindsay since her dinner with Helen Thursday night. Before he could though Lindsay, apparently sensing that he wanted to talk and not really being ready to, asked his opinion on her closing. He listened patiently, gave her a few ideas for changes, then took the bull by the horns so to speak.

"So I'm guessing all did not go well with the girls night," Bobby said, sitting down close to his wife and taking her hands in his. Lindsay shook her head as tears filled her eyes. Bobby pulled her into a hug and held her there, soothing her by rubbing a gentle hand up and down her back. "It's all right baby. What happened?"

Lindsay sighed. Helen had agreed that she could tell Bobby, but no one else. She took a deep breath. "Helen's pregnant."

Bobby's eyes grew big and his jaw dropped, rendering him temporarily speechless. "Wha-?"

"Helen's pregnant," Lindsay repeated, a little aggravated.

"But who...when...how..."

The last question made Lindsay laugh a little. "If you've forgotten how, we might need to have a little refresher course for you."

"You know what I mean."

Lindsay nodded and continued. "She was late and told me on Thursday. The baby is Mike's and you know he's out of town?" Bobby nodded. "Well she didn't want to test alone so she asked me over last night. She took three tests and they're all positive. Today I took her to Dr. Klein, who confirmed it."

"I still don't get why you're so upset."

"She's all alone Bobby. Mike's in Chicago dealing with his grandfather's being sick and she didn't plan this."

"Mike won't be in Chicago forever though. Is she happy about it?"

Lindsay nodded. "I think she is. But she's afraid to tell Mike, afraid to tell her parents, afraid of what's going to happen. Just afraid. And I started to think about what I would do, how I would feel if something happened to you and I had to raise Robby and these babies all alone." Her voice broke as tears poured faster down her face and she sobbed. "And I don't think I could do it."

Bobby gathered her into his lap and gently rocked her back and forth. "Sh. Lindsay, I'm not going anywhere. You won't have to do it alone, I'm right here. I'll always be right here."

"I'm so scared for her," Lindsay continued to sob. "I'm happy because she'll be a great mom, but I'm scared for what she'll have to go through. What if Mike isn't happy about the baby? What if she had to do it all alone? I was lucky because you were with me and I was so happy, so sure that you'd always be there. Helen doesn't have that."

"Linds, you know Mike," Bobby tried to reason with her. "He'll be thrilled to be a daddy. And even if for some reason he isn't, she'll still have you and me and Ellenor, and everyone at work. She'll be fine. Helen's a fighter, you know that. She'll manage just fine."

Lindsay nodded but stayed tightly in her husband's arms. She needed him to hold her then, to reassure her that she wasn't alone. They stayed like that for several minutes before Bobby slowly stood, brining Lindsay up with him. They walked into their bedroom and after changing into their pajamas climbed into bed, Lindsay still clinging to him, afraid that if she let go, he'd disappear.

When Bobby's breathing grew steady, Lindsay gently levered herself out of bed and headed back into the living room. Once there, she plugged in her laptop and took a deep breath. Despite her fears for her friend and her own emotions, Lindsay needed to concentrate on Amanda Byrd's case. She began to type her closing and as it had hundreds of times before, the act of working blocked out all of her other worries. She didn't realize how late it was until she heard Bobby emerge from their room.

"You okay," he asked, his voice rough with sleep.

Lindsay nodded. "I just wanted to finish this."

"Done?"

"Almost. Go back to bed, Bobby. I'll be in soon."

"Don't be too long." Bobby kissed the top of her head.

"I won't," but Lindsay was already engrossed in her closing again, and it was nearly 2:00 before she re-entered their bedroom to find Bobby already asleep. She crawled into bed and snuggled up against him. She smiled when, even in his sleep, his arms came around her, holding close. She drifted into sleep that way, Bobby spooned behind her, his hand protectively resting on her stomach.

Across town, Ellenor had put Zoe to bed and was working on preparing the questions for her next witness in her room. Thankful for the quiet and time alone with her thoughts, Helen wandered around the living room alone with one hand resting on her stomach over her child, looking at the pictures that decorated the shelves and tables.

She'd been exhausted when she arrived home after the doctor's appointment and found that Ellenor had taken Zoe to the park. She'd taken a nap, then woken up when Zoe climbed on to the bed and asked why she was sleeping. Helen had then taken care of Zoe so Ellenor could work on the case. As she'd rocked the little girl and read her a story before bed, Helen tried to picture rocking her own child in a few months. The thought made her smile. She'd always wanted children. Maybe not without being married, but to have a baby...the idea filled her with awe.

The two pictures that her eye kept coming back to were ones of her with the kids, Robby and Zoe. One showed Helen holding Robby at his baptism, sitting in a rocking chair in Lindsay and Bobby's living room talking to the baby with a small smile on her face. Bobby had taken the photo and she never noticed until her birthday a few months later when Lindsay gave it to her in a frame that said "I love my Godmother," supposedly a gift from Robby.

The other picture was one that Ellenor had taken one night when she'd been working late at the office and asked Helen to pick Zoe up from daycare. Unfortunately, it had been one of Zoe's cranky nights and by the time she'd cried herself to sleep, Helen was exhausted. She lied down on the couch, Zoe resting on her chest, asleep. Ellenor had come home to find her roommate and her daughter both sound asleep, Helen cradling Zoe to her. Ellenor had smiled, glad that Helen was so good with the baby. Ellenor had been a little worried and not sure how Helen would react. But from the beginning Helen had been delighted with Zoe and loved taking care of her. Ellenor knew that her roommate would want the reminder of that moment. Now she, Helen, was going to have a baby. She was the mommy.

Helen was jerked out of her thoughts when the phone rang. She grabbed it automatically, not wanting to wake Zoe up. "Hello?"

"Hi gorgeous," Mike's voice answered. Helen was suddenly torn. She had no idea if she was going to tell him about the baby or not. So she half listened to Mike telling her about how his grandfather was improving slowly. "What have you been doing? Not working too hard I hope."

"What?" Helen was snapped back to the conversation. "Oh, no I haven't been working too hard. Lindsay and I went out to dinner Thursday night."

"That's nice. Did you ladies have a good time?"

"Yeah. Ellenor went out last night so I babysat for Zoe."

"Ellenor went out with Matt?"

"Yeah."

"They seem to be getting serious."

"Ellenor deserves it. He's great to her and Zoe. Lindsay came over for a girls night while I babysat Zoe."

"That sounds dangerous," Mike teased and Helen laughed awkwardly.

"We ate ice cream and watched Sex and the City. It was harmless, I promise."

"That's good. The doctors think that Grampa might be out of the hospital by the end of next week."

Helen's mind had wandered again, back to their child. "What?"

Mike repeated himself slowly. It wasn't like Helen to zone out like that. She'd sounded so surprised when she answered the phone, despite the fact that he called every night at the same time. "Are you okay sweetheart?"

Helen gulped and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. You'll call tomorrow?"

"You know I will," Mike assured her, even though he was uncertain she was all right. "I love you Helen. You're sure nothing's wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong. I love you too, Mike. Talk to you tomorrow." Helen hung up the phone and sank onto the couch, pressing a gentle hand to her stomach. I'm fine Mike. I'm just having your baby.