Disclaimer in chapter 1

He stood in front of the door, unsure of what to do. Yeah, he could walk right in – it was his home after all, but after everything they had been through over the last week, he wasn't sure if that would be appropriate. Ringing the door bell seemed a little silly, so he took a deep breath and knocked.

Beverly answered the door and smiled at him. "You look nervous."

"Shut up. Aren't you late for a class or something?"

She smirked back as she grabbed her purse and bag off the ground. "Canceled. I have a free evening and no idea what do to with it."

"You should go get drunk."

"Yeah, but I'm probably just going to hit the library and try to get ahead on my reading. You two have fun tonight" she said, smirking as she walked out the door. Zach shook his head and waved bye as he closed the door.

Zach walked through the house to the kitchen. He didn't see Kendall there and was about to head upstairs when he heard Will outside. He walked to the doorway of their screened in porch and stood completely still.

'She's a vision' he thought to himself. She had her back to him, putting the finishing touches on the table. She looked stunning in a dark red skirt, flirty black heels, a black blouse with her hair piled on top of her head. His mouth went dry as she craned her head from one side to the other, giving him a nice long view of her neck. He failed to notice Will already sitting at the table until he cried out "Dad! Eat now!" Kendall whipped around and caught Zach checking her out. She smiled shyly and started to say something when Will screamed "Dad here. Eat now!" She turned back and glared at Will.

"Boy, you are quickly becoming a pain in my…"

"Kendall" Zach said, laughing as he walked over to Will.

Kendall laughed back. "Sorry. Did he not eat all his lunch today?"

"All of it and some of mine. Why?"

"He's been yelling 'hungry' for the last 45 minutes – this after Beverly gave him a snack at about 2. I told him he couldn't eat till you got here, so…" she said, trailing off as she took a good look at him.

'Oh my god…' she thought to herself. He looked wickedly scrumptious in khaki pants and a dark blue dress shirt. She could smell his aftershave and could only assume that he has showered and changed before coming over here. Suddenly he was next to her and she shook her head to snap herself out of it.

"I'm sorry, what?"

He smirked at her and she felt like she was back in high school and the quarterback was talking to her. "I said are you alright? Your face got flushed there for a second and…"

"Oh, yeah. I've just been running around all day."

"Well, everything looks great" he said, leaning into her a little more. She felt the air fly out of her lungs when he squeezed her hand. 'God, I have missed him' she thought.

"You hungry?" she asked, taking a step closer to him. He inhaled her scent and it nearly sent him over the edge.

"Starved" he whispered to her, running his hand up and down her arm. She leaned in and rested her hand on his chest. She licked her lips, lips that were begging for him to kiss them. Zach smiled at her and started to lean in to…

"HUNGRY" Will yelled from behind them, breaking them apart. They both looked down at the boy and then back at each other and started to laugh.

"I guess I should got get the food" Kendall said, heading toward the kitchen.

"You need any help" Zach said, walking toward her.

"No, I've got it. Sit down and keep his highness company." Zach smiled at her retreating form. He dropped a kiss on Will's head before sitting down. Will looked at where his mother had been then back at Zach. "Mommy pretty" he said, giving Zach what he could only classify as a smirk. "Yeah, mommy's very pretty" he said.

Kendall came back with a tray full of food and a bottle of wine, elegantly paired with Will's sippy cup. "One more trip" she said.

"I thought you said you didn't need any help" Zach said, getting out of his chair.

"I don't. Well, ok, I lied – take the stuff off the tray, would you?" she said, walking back into the kitchen. Zach removed the items from the tray and gave Will his bottle before pouring two glasses of wine. Zach sat the tray off to the side as Kendall returned with their food.

Zach laughed when she set down the tray on the table. "Lobster" he said, looking up at her.

She smiled back. "Yeah, umm… I just figured…"

"It's perfect."

"And of course, Prince Slater's hamburger and mashed potatoes."

"Potatoes" Will yelled, grabbing his spoon and digging into the heaping mound of mashed potatoes on his plate.

Kendall sat down and placed the napkin in her lap. "Well, dig in. I'm sure…"

Zach held up his wine glass and she quieted, doing the same. "Thank you for inviting me over for dinner."

"Thanks for coming" she said as they clinked their glasses together.

They talked about frivolous stuff over dinner, laughing like they hadn't laughed together since before Ryan took Will. They had moved to the chaise-lounge chairs on the outside deck to watch the sunset and continued to talk and laugh well after the sun had set. Zach looked down at one point to see that Will had fallen asleep in his lap.

"I guess someone is ready for bed" he whispered.

Kendall looked over and smiled. "I should hope so. That boy ran me ragged this afternoon. Do you want me to take him?"

"Nah. I'll take him up" Zach said, gently getting up out of the chair. Kendall held the door open for him and followed him through the house and up the stairs. Silently, they both changed him out of his clothes and into pajamas before setting him down. They both dropped a kiss on his head and headed out of the room. They took one more look before Zach pulled the door shut behind them. They walked down the steps and stopped at the bottom, unsure of what to do next.

"Do you… do you want some help cleaning up?"

"Yeah" Kendall said breathlessly. They smiled at each other and walked into the kitchen. Zach cracked jokes as they loaded the dishwasher and put food away. Zach wiped down the table outside and walked back in the house as Kendall wiped her hands on a dish towel.

"I guess that's it. Thanks for helping" she said, smiling brightly at him.

"My pleasure. Well, I guess I should…" he said, walking toward the front door. Kendall froze for a moment, unsure of what to do. 'Well, you can't let him walk out that door' she thought to herself. She bolted after him and grabbed his arm as he was about to open the front door. Zach slowly turned around and stared at her.

"Kendall…" he said, taking a step toward her.

"Please don't leave" she whispered, tears filling her eyes.

"Kendall, I don't think that…"

"Zach, please – just hear me out and then, if you still want to… leave, I won't stop you" she breathed out. She looked up at him with pleading eyes. He simply nodded and she led him into the living room. He sat down on the couch and she flipped on a lamp and pulled the ottoman up in front of him, so she could look him in the eye while she talked.

She sat down and closed her eyes, gathering her thoughts. She took a deep breath and opened her eyes to see his warm, gorgeous brown eyes staring back at her.

Zach sat up and leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees. "Kendall, you don't have to…"

"Yes I do" she said, sitting up straighter and squaring her shoulders, ready to pour her heart out.

"I had no right to say those words to you, Zach, no right at all. There are no excuses – I won't use them. I was wrong, dead wrong, and there's all there is to it."

"Kendall…"

"I've got more to say. Please, please let me get through it and then you can say whatever you want to me, alright?" Zach nodded and stared at her, waiting for her to continue.

"It was a stupid sentence, actually, because nothing could be further from the truth. Every time I look at Will, all I see is you. When he's up to something, he gets that same twinkle in his eye that you get. He cocks his head just like you do when he's thinking about something and I swear to God, Zach, just when I'm about to yell at him for something, he displays your smirk on his face and the only thing I can do is laugh. He's your son, inside and out. I know that, I have always known that. I will never forgive myself for saying those hateful words to you. You may not be his father, but you are 100 percent his dad. You are the only dad I would ever want for him, the only husband I will ever want for myself. I love you and this family so much that I could kick myself for saying something so stupid, something that could put this life I love so much in jeopardy. Zach, please, you have to know that I…"

She looked down and clenched her hands together, praying for the strength to get through whatever she had coming. Zach watched his wife barely holding it together and he knew he had to help her. He reached over and wrapped his hands around hers, giving her the strength to continue.

She looked up at him with tears in her eyes. "Please don't leave Zach. I will do anything, say anything if you just don't walk out that door. I love you more than life itself and if you were to leave… well, I don't know how I would go on, how I would continue to breathe. We will do this on your terms, how you want, as long as you don't wa…"

The rest of her words were caught in her mouth as his lips descended on hers. She brought her hands up to his face, making sure that this was real, that he was here and kissing her. When he ran his tongue over her bottom lip, she groaned and gave in to him completely. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he lifted her off the ottoman and pulled her onto the couch, leaning back so that she was soon lying half on top of him.

The rest of the world melted away for her – all that mattered to her was him. She couldn't get enough of him. She ran her hands over his chest, up and down his arms, through his hair and back again. She shuddered as he slipped on hand under her blouse and lightly tapped his fingers against the small of her back. She tried to convey everything she felt, every emotion she had had over the last week through this sensual, mind blowing kiss.

Kissing her made him feel whole again. He could feel his heart literally mending itself as she ran her fingers through his hair. He slowly ran his hands up her body to her face – he had things he wanted to say to her, things he needed to say. He framed her face with his hands and pulled her back slightly, finally breaking their kiss.

The look of desire and unadulterated love in her eyes made him want to forget the words, but he knew he couldn't. He couldn't leave her hanging; leave her wondering what he was thinking.

"It's my turn now" he whispered to her. She nodded and started to push herself up when he grabbed her. He pulled her back down and nestled her between his body and the pillows on the back of the couch. He dropped a light kiss on her forehead and pulled back, looking her square in the eye – something he wasn't sure he was ever going to be able to do again.

"Kendall, you… you gave me this life. You entrusted me with this boy asleep upstairs. You didn't have, but you did. You gave me your heart and your family and I love this life more than anything else in the world, too. My heart broke for you, for me, for him, for everyone while he was gone. You threw those words out at me… I knew they were just words, but they hurt just the same. I needed some time to heal, to get over the hurt of having you question me, even if just for a second. Kendall, I don't want to leave, either. I would never voluntarily leave my family, and I'm sorry I did, but needed some time, some perspective, to clear my head and gather my thoughts."

"And have you… because if you need more time, you can have it…"

"I don't. You are my life, Will is my life – I know that, I've always known that. I don't want to leave tonight, tomorrow or ever, as long as you will have me here. It hurt to be away from the two of you for a day. I love my life and I love you and our son with all my heart."

The tears she had been holding back started to fall freely down her face. "Say it again" she said as he wiped the tears off her face.

He laughed and ran his thumb over her cheekbone. "I love you Kendall." Kendall laughed and pushed herself off the couch, pulling him with her. As he got his footing, she threw her arms around his neck and sighed, happily. "Say it one more time" she whispered in his ear.

He leaned down and placed an open-mouth kiss behind her ear and smiled as she moaned loudly. "I love you with all my heart and will till the day I die" he whispered in her ear.

"I love you, too, Zach, and always will." He pulled back and looked at her. 'I want to make love to you" he said to her as he ran his hands up and down her back.

"Oh thank God" she whispered back, falling into his arms as he picked her up to carry her up the stairs to their room.

Zach awoke the next morning to the feel of something small pushing against his chest. He cocked one eye open to see his son sitting on his chest. "Morr-ing" Will yelled, giggling as Zach tickled his stomach. Zach rolled him off his chest and onto the bed, noticing that Kendall was missing. "Where's mommy?" he whispered to his son. Will pointed toward the bathroom. Zach nodded. "You stay here" he whispered as he got out of bed.

Kendall finished brushing her teeth and smiled as Zach's reflection appeared in the mirror. "Did he wake you?" she asked as he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her neck. "Nah, I needed to get up anyway."

Kendall turned around in his arms and graced him with a long, passionate kiss. "Why Mrs. Slater…" Zach said jokingly as she pulled out of the kiss. She just laughed and pulled out of his arms, walking back toward the bedroom.

They both stopped short and their hearts froze for a second – Will wasn't where Zach left him. They were both about to lose it when a small lump on the bed started to move under the sheets and comforter. Zach looked over at Kendall, who shrugged and pointed at him. "He's your son" she whispered to him.

Zach wiggled his eyebrows and walked around the bed. "Now, I know I left Will here somewhere" he said very loudly and the lump under the sheets froze. Zach suppressed a laugh and continued. "I know I told him to stay on the bed. Now where oh where could…"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Will yelled as he burst from under the covers. The look on her son's face had Kendall immediately doubled over in laughter as Zach shook his head at the little boy and plopped down next to him. "Me funny" Will said, smiling up at his dad.

"Yeah, I guess you are a little bit. Mommy seems to think so."

Kendall sat down next to her men and sighed happily.

Zach looked at his family for a moment and knew that this was perfect and how his life was meant to be. "So, I say the three of us blow off our day, give Beverly the day off and bum around. We can go to the park, the zoo…."

"ZOO!" Will screamed, jumping up and down on the bed.

"Well, there you have it" Kendall said. "Guess the zoo it is."

Zach reached over and pulled Kendall on top of him for another amazing kiss as Will continue to jump up and down on the bed, screaming zoo over and over until he collapsed on top of his parents.

THE END (with an epilogue to follow!)