A/N – Once again – a chapter that looks like the end really isn't. LOL! But I hope you enjoy it anyway.
Until 71! xox-G
Chapter Seventy
"I brought everything you asked for Katrina." Colin said with a huge smile. He brought the carrier over to the bed and placed it down beside his son. "At least I hope I did."
"He looks so handsome doesn't he?" Kate sighed, her face beaming with joy. Alex squirmed and kicked as she wrapped a soft white blanket around him.
"Yes he is." Colin replied as he pressed a kiss to his head. "You better bring him to see your sister before we leave."
Kate laughed softly as she picked Alex up and placed him gently in the car seat. "Is she still pouting?"
Colin laughed back at her. "Pouting doesn't begin to describe it. Kyle looks as miserable as she does."
"Poor guy." Kate tucked another blanket around her son as she added. "It's not going to be easy for him. Becky's sweet but she can be a tough cookie."
So can you, Colin thought to himself. "Katrina." Colin commented as he watched her. "It's almost 80 degrees out today."
"Babies need to keep warm." She said sharply as she pulled a hat over the baby's head.
Colin decided he didn't want to argue. He said a phrase he learned a long time ago would stop any disagreement. "You're right, honey."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Honey? Do you like this crib?" Chloe asked as she stared at it thoughtfully.
Grant looked up from the swing he was trying to put together. Whose idea was it for them to volunteer to get Alex's nursery ready anyway? "Huh?" He grunted, completely distracted.
"Do you like this crib?" She asked again.
"It's fine Clo." Grant replied as he scratched his head, turning the directions in front of him upside down. He was never going to figure this thing out.
"Don't you care about where our child is going to sleep?" Chloe asked then, blowing a stray curl away from her eyes, glaring at him with her hands on her hips.
She looked adorable was all Grant could think. "Of course I care." He replied as he dropped the screwdriver and crept towards her. "I care deeply."
"Grant…" Chloe sighed, exasperated.
He continued towards her, smiling widely. "I really, truly care. And I don't think this crib meets my standards. I think we need something trimmed in gold. With diamond screws."
"Grant." Chloe rolled her eyes as he caught her around the waist and dragged her to him. She playfully tried to squirm away from his grasp.
He held her still and nibbled at her lips. "Nothing but the best for our little one." He whispered.
Chloe sighed as he kissed her softly. She brought a hand up to rest on his cheek. "You know what? We can start to tell everyone now." She said, her eyes sparkling.
"You think so?" He replied.
"Yeah. I mean. Kate's coming home with the baby today. Becky's going to be alright. I think it's the perfect time."
"I'm not sure…" Grant teased.
"Grant." She smacked him lightly on the arm as she realized her was making fun of her.
"My mom already knows you know." Grant said as he kissed her again, his hand unconsciously moving to rest on her stomach.
"Really?" Her first thought was to ask him how she knew but at that same moment another thought flew into her head. She kissed him back and blinked away tears. Smiling widely she gazed up at the ceiling as she said. "You know what? I bet you mine does too."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"I should be able to leave too." Becky grumbled.
Alison sighed. "Sweetheart – you've only been out of surgery for a few days. Ian and Chris..."
Becky cut her off. "...are letting Katie go home – why can't I go too?"
Rafe tried to explain to her. "Because, Angel Face – I know you like to pretend you're fine but you went through quite an ordeal."
"So was Katie." She said with a pout as she folded her good arm in front of her chest. Her other remained in a sling to keep her from pulling at the stitches in her back.
"It's only for a few more days." Kyle offered from the doorway.
"Oh please!" She rolled her eyes at him. "I've already been here for like a week."
"It's been five days, Rebecca." Alison corrected her.
"Whatever." She rolled her eyes again. "God I'm so bored. Plus I'm supposed to be working for you and Aunt Abby. There's only like two and a half weeks left of the summer and then I have to go back to school."
"Don't worry about your job – it's taken care of." Rafe replied.
"Oh yeah? By who?" Becky challenged him, sure he was just saying that to quiet her.
"By me." Kyle offered.
"YOU!" Becky's jaw dropped. "You're serving lattes and filing membership forms? Are you teaching Pilates too?"
"No." Kyle said softly. "But your dad gave me a job at the gym and I've been helping out at the bookshop unloading shipments and stuff."
"Don't lie to me, Kyle. Are you really serious?" Becky replied, suspicious.
"Yeah – I'm serious." Kyle said with a laugh.
The discussion was dropped as Kate and Colin walked into the room. "Hey there Aunt Becks." Kate whispered. "Got a minute to say hi?"
"We'll let you visit." Alison said with a smile as she grabbed for Rafe's hand. She nodded towards Kyle as she pulled her husband towards the door. "C'mon boys. I'll let you buy me some coffee." She walked past her grandson and pressed a kiss to his nose.
"I'll come with you too." Colin called after them. He leaned in towards Kate and kissed her softly. "I'll be back to get you in a few." He kissed her again and added. "Love you."
"Love you too." She replied with a smile.
"Ohhhh!" Becky's eyes filled with tears as Kate walked towards her. "Hey little guy." She said softly as Kate placed his seat on the bed next to her. "Look at you. I swear you got bigger. As soon as they spring me – you and me – we'll go for a nice long walk."
"Getting antsy Becks?" Kate chuckled.
Becky sighed. "Incredibly – and those three – they're no help. Mom's just worried and Dad and Kyle are now completely buddy buddy. I guess you should be careful what you wish for." She said rolling her eyes. She took a deep breath and smiled at her sister. "Gosh, Katie. You look so much better."
"I feel so much better. And so will you – but you have to rest – Becky. I know you want to leave but you don't want anything to happen. It's bad enough you ended up here…"
"I know." Becky nodded. "Dad's still a wreck – and Kyle…"
"What about Kyle?" Kate fought to keep her voice light. "He's been around a lot hasn't he?"
"Yes." Becky blushed a bit. "He's just so sweet – Katie. I don't even remember what it was like before I met him."
"Really?" Kate asked her, trying to read her sister's thoughts.
"Yeah." Becky nodded again. "You should have seen him. He was so upset about me getting hurt but I told him – I couldn't let him get hurt instead. I didn't even think before I jumped in to save him – I just did it."
"Because - you love him." Kate said with a smile.
"Yeah. I really do." Becky smiled back.
Kate ran a finger over Alex's cheek as she whispered. "I know what that's like."
"Are you really going to be OK?" Becky asked her then.
Kate nodded and sighed. "I think so. That's what they say. I…I just hope that someday Colin and I can have more kids without it being such an ordeal – you know? But right now – that's not important. Not when I have this little munchkin."
"No. You shouldn't worry about that now."
"And you shouldn't worry about getting out of here. Take care of yourself Becks. I swear – Grant and I never thought you'd be the one to be the slayer – but look at you. You're the bravest of all of us." Kate said with a smile.
Her sister shook her head at her. "I'm not brave." She protested.
Kate completely disagreed. "You certainly are."
"No. I'm not. If I never face another vampire again it'll be just fine for me. I'm going to leave that kind of stuff to Kyle from now on."
"That's your plan huh?"
"Yes." Becky squinted her eyes at Kate. "What's wrong with it?"
Kate leaned down and gave Becky a quick kiss on the cheek. "The only thing you'll get for making plans will be the guarantee that something will change them." Colin peeked in the door and she moved to pick up Alex's carrier. She wagged a finger at her sister as she scolded. "Promise me you'll take care of yourself. We'll see you this weekend."
"OK." Becky nodded. "I promise. Love you Katie and you too little one."
"Love you too." Kate said with a sniffle a bit overwhelmed by it all. "We'll see you later!"
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Want to take a break?" Cam asked as he leaned on the doorframe to Abby's office.
"Sure." She said with a smile. Abby stood and almost ran over to him, giving him a long lingering kiss.
"Mmmm." He whispered as she pulled away. "What was that for?"
"Just because." She replied with a shrug. She peeked around his back. "Did you bring me lunch?"
"Maybe." Cam chuckled.
Abby's eyes lit up. "Ooo! Really? What is it?" She sniffed the air. "It's not Italian." She sniffed again. "Are those fries I smell?"
"Maybe." He said again.
She pulled him inside and locked the door behind him. "Let me at them." She demanded.
Cameron sighed. "And here I thought you were locking the door to get me alone."
"Later." Abby giggled as she grabbed the bag from his hand and dug in. She closed her eyes as she chewed and swallowed. "This was a lovely surprise."
He grabbed the bag back and got his own lunch out – spreading it over the desk. "I have another one for you." He said with a grin.
"What that?" She asked, distracted as she took a bite of her burger.
"Lynnie's coming to close up the store. You're taking the afternoon off."
"Oh am I?" She said with a smile. "And why's that?"
"Because we have someplace to go." He said smiling wider.
"Do we really?" Abby dropped the fry she was holding in her hand.
"There's no reason not to." Cam replied. "We need to be at the airport by six."
"The airport? Where are we going?" She said as she abandoned her lunch and jumped into his lap, raining kisses over his face.
"Back to where we first fell in love." He whispered as he threaded his fingers through her hair.
She pulled back and blinked away tears. "Cameron…" She breathed.
"It's not very original…" He said then, averting his eyes for a moment. "It's not winter so there won't be snow."
She shook her head at him and then kissed him soundly. "I don't care…"
Cam kept on, hoping it would be enough to show her how much he loved her. "But it's where it all started and I can't believe how far we've come. I mean – look at us Abs."
"I know." She said with a sigh. "It's amazing."
"I know it's not a tropical beach or a quiet country inn – but I wanted to take you someplace really romantic – I wanted to do something spectacular..."
"Oh Cameron." She said as she pressed her lips to his. "You already have."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
They walked slowly into the apartment. It was so good to be home. Kate followed behind Colin, her eyes taking in every inch of the room. It seemed like it had been years since she'd been there, since she'd really been able to notice anything. "Mom?" Kate called out. "We're home!"
"There you are." Alison said with a smile as she and Rafe came in from the kitchen. "Hello sweetie." She said as she peered down at Alex. "Everything's all ready for you, little one."
"Hey." Grant called out from the door of the nursery, holding Chloe's hand tightly in his. "Where's that nephew of mine?"
"Right here." Kate replied as she watched Colin take him from the carrier. "Here's your house, little man. Welcome home."
Grant took Alex from Colin's arms and rocked him back and forth as he held him. "I'm so glad I have you around. You can help me practice for when your cousin comes this winter."
"This winter?" Kate looked on, confused. She turned to stare at her mother, who was grinning madly. "Grant?" She said shocked. She whirled around and gasped. "Chloe!"
"More like the end of winter. In March really – your brother was always bad at math." Chloe giggled.
Shouts of congratulations followed with plenty of hugs and a few tears too. But for the first time in months, they were tears of happiness. Finally everyone had something to celebrate.
A while later, they sat down to dinner. Rafe took a moment during dessert to take Colin aside. He had a few questions he needed answered.
"How's your father?" Rafe asked as he watched his daughter holding Alex in her arms.
"He's doing well. Thanks." Colin replied. "You know for the first time I think that you really care about the answer to that question."
"It's amazing but true." Rafe admitted. "I'll never totally let my guard down around him – it wouldn't be natural for me to. But he did a selfless thing in helping Katrina – and for that I'll be eternally grateful."
"Which is why I need to tell you something." Colin began as he cleared his throat. "My great, great grandfather was named Alexander. Did you know that?"
"I did." Rafe nodded. "He also was never turned. He wasn't a Morley."
"Yes." Colin replied with a smile. "That's right. He was my great-grandmother's father. We picked it because he's part of my history – but also because he didn't share the legacy of my father's family. That's not the life our son will have."
"And I have to tell you – even though it's biologically impossible to turn Alex." He shivered at the image as he continued. "I really admire you for that." Rafe said honestly.
"Katrina and I…" Colin took a deep breath before continuing. "We changed his middle name."
Rafe stared at Colin – a bit confused until he heard him add. "Our son's name is Alexander Kovich Morley." He tried to read Rafe's expression. "I know it's kind of weird seeing those names together – but it made sense to us."
Rafe was humbled and honored by Colin's words. "It's crazy but it does make sense." Rafe said with a smile, completely amazed at everything that had happened. Ever since he'd been back on earth, he'd seen the least likely things happen in front of his eyes. This definitely ranked right up there with the best of them. Still he knew the words he uttered were completely and totally true. He smiled at Colin as he said again. "It makes perfect sense."
