"Hey babe, do you mind if I borrow a shirt?" Maddie called from the bedroom of their new apartment.

Danny wandered in from the living room trying to conceal a grin. "Having trouble finding something that fits?"

She sighed. "I guess it's a good thing Stella's going shopping with me today…this is the only pair of pants left that I can still wear, and they're starting to feel tight, too."

He pulled one of his button-downs out of the closet and helped her into it, buttoning it up as he kissed her. "Time for some maternity clothes."

She sighed again and kissed him back. "Guess so."

"Promise me you'll still wear my shirts once in a while," he smiled. "You look so good in 'em…"

This time she laughed, sliding her arms around his shoulders. "We'll see how good you think I look when I weigh an extra fifty pounds."

"You'll look pregnant," he smiled, kissing her again, "and beautiful."

"You always know just what to say," she grinned, running her fingers through his hair. The buzzer sounded in the entryway and she kissed him one last time. "There's Don…"

Danny went to let his friend in and Maddie finished getting ready. When she appeared in the living room she found not only Don, but Stella as well.

"How's the little one doing?" she asked.

"Gettin' bigger," Maddie chuckled.

Stella grinned. "Then let's go get you some new clothes."

Maddie squeezed Don's shoulder and kissed Danny good-bye. "Now you boys behave yourselves…"

"Yes dear," both replied sheepishly.

Stella laughed and walked with Maddie out to the car. "What're they up to today?"

"Watching football and drinking beer," Maddie smiled.

"Ah, a man's perfect afternoon," Stella grinned.

"Yeah, gives 'em a chance to spend some time together without us women around." Maddie paused for a minute as the two climbed into the car and buckled their seatbelts. She glanced sideways at Stella and grinned slyly. "So what's Mac up to today?"

"Oh, he's got some project he's working on…" her voice trailed off and she studiously kept her eyes on the road as she drove. "Why are you asking me about Mac's day off?"

"I figured if anyone knew it would be you."

Stella looked over at Maddie with a very serious face. "How did you come to that conclusion?"

Maddie laughed. "Stella, I know."

"Know what?" the detective feigned innocence.

"You're gonna make me say it? I know about you and Mac."

Stella looked panicked. "If you know, who else does?"

"Oh no no no," Maddie replied. "It's just me, don't worry…"

"How…?"

Maddie blushed a little. "Back before Danny and I got together, I was trying to hide my feelings for him but Mac found me out. He knew what I was hiding because he was doing the same thing, hiding his feelings for you. It was one of those bonding moments…"

"And you didn't tell Danny? Not even now?"

Maddie shook her head. "He knows everything about me, all my secrets, but this isn't my secret to tell."

Stella's face took on a relieved expression. "It isn't that I'm ashamed of our relationship," she explained. "But he's technically my superior…"

"I understand," Maddie nodded. "And believe me, I don't want to get either of you in trouble."

The two were quiet again until Stella's curiosity got the better of her. "So what has he said about me?"

Maddie laughed. "Well…"

Back at the apartment Don and Danny sat on the couch, each with a bottle of beer in his hand.

"You sure you're okay with this?" Danny asked. "If this is going to be too hard for you, you don't have to…"

Don smiled a little sadly and looked down at his hands. "I used to daydream about what it would be like if Aiden and I had kids…and I miss her like crazy…. But this kid is like part of my family, and I want to help." His smile perked up and he made eye contact with Danny. "Besides, I want to see the look on Maddie's face when she gets home and sees that we've decorated the entire nursery."

Danny grinned and slapped his back appreciatively. "Then let's get started."

The two trotted downstairs and retrieved the paint and supplies they'd need and hauled them back up to the apartment, dragging everything into the spare bedroom. They cracked open the paint cans and began covering the walls in a delicate pale green, slopping a good share of it on themselves in the process. Within a couple of hours, they had painted the entire room and were pulling out the border with little frogs all over it while waiting for the walls to dry.

"Should we grab the rest of the stuff?" Don asked.

Danny nodded, pulling the wrapper off the last roll of border. "Yeah. We can put the furniture together while the paint dries."

After several trips back down to Don's car, they two men had grunted and sweated and cursed the boxes containing the crib, dresser, and changing table into the apartment. They stood for a moment trying to catch their breath before breaking out the tools, ripping open the boxes, and discarding the directions as they attempted to put together each piece.

About halfway through the assembly process the buzzer rang again and Danny jumped up to answer it.

"Hey Detective Messer, it's Dantrell."

Danny grinned. "Did you bring it?"

"Got it right here," came the reply.

"Excellent." He buzzed the young man in and cleared a place in the living room, holding the door open when Dantrell appeared.

"So whaddaya think?" he asked, carrying his contribution to the nursery into the apartment. It was a large wooden rocking chair, built by hand from an oak tree that had lived in the Bakers' back yard.

"When did you find the time to do this?" Danny asked. "Aren't you supposed to be in college now?"

Dantrell smiled shyly. "Gran had to have our oak tree taken out right after you and Miss Parrish called and told me about the baby. I've been building furniture since I was old enough to hold a hammer, and I knew the oak would have a good home here."

Danny ran his hand over the network of details that had been lovingly carved into the arms and back. "It's amazing, Dantrell. Really, it's beautiful."

"You think she'll like it?"

"She's gonna love it."

A few hours later, Maddie and Stella arrived back at the apartment loaded down with shopping bags.

Danny greeted them at the door, kissing Maddie as he chuckled. "Geez, for a woman who doesn't like to shop you sure were busy today."

Maddie smiled ruefully. "And I'll have to go out again in a couple of months. I have no idea how big I'm going to get, so I can't buy a lot of stuff…"

"But we did manage to get her a few outfits to wear to school," Stella informed him.

"That's good," Danny smiled.

Maddie glanced over at him and knew he was hiding something. "What have you got up your sleeve, Danny Messer?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at him. "Where's Don, and why do I smell paint?"

He and Stella looked at each other and simultaneously broke into wide grins. "I have a surprise for you," he said, taking Maddie's hand and leading her into the spare bedroom.

Don stood in the middle of the new nursery, a grin plastered on his face that matched Danny and Stella's.

"What do you think?" he asked. "Not bad for a couple of cops, eh?"

Maddie's eyes traveled around the room, taking in the product of the afternoon's labor. In addition to the mint green on the walls and the frog border, the crib stood against the far wall, with the changing table across from it, the little dresser sat in the corner, and a framed blow-up of the latest sonogram sat atop it. There were green sheets in the crib, covered with a soft comforter sprinkled with yellow stars and moons and a teddy bear resting against the side. A mobile hung overtop, and Maddie laughed out loud when she saw it.

"Baseballs and bats?" she asked. "What if it's a girl?"

"You of all people should know that girls can do whatever they want to. If it's a girl, I'll teach her to play baseball, too," Danny grinned.

"So, do you like it?" Don asked, already knowing the answer to his question.

"I love it!" Maddie replied, throwing her arms around him and kissing his cheek. "It's beautiful…" She released Don and turned to Danny, pulling him close to her. "Thank you so much."

"It was our pleasure," he told her softly, sliding his arms around her waist. "But you missed the most impressive thing…"

She gasped sharply as he led her over to Dantrell's rocking chair, positioned by the only window in the room. "Oh…my…Danny, where did you get this…"

"Dantrell brought it by. He built it from an oak tree that had been growing in his grandmother's back yard."

He helped her down into it and watched her face light up as she rocked a little, getting a feel for the chair.

"He made this?" she asked incredulously.

Dantrell appeared in the doorway of the nursery at that moment, back from a trip to the car. "For all those 2am feedings," he told her shyly.

Maddie rose from the chair and embraced her former student, holding him tightly. "It's amazing," she replied. "I can't believe you did this for us."

He hugged her back. "Nothing's too good for my family," he said quietly.

More hugs were exchanged and thanks expressed by both Maddie and Danny for their friends' participation in the nursery preparation. Dantrell slipped out the door as quietly as he'd appeared, explaining that he had a paper to finish for one of his classes at City College. Don and Stella followed him out, wanting to give the parents-to-be some time alone with their new digs.

Maddie wrapped her arms around Danny's shoulders, resting her cheek against his neck. "You are amazing," she smiled.

His arms went around her and he smiled to himself, breathing in her scent. "I am, aren't I?"

She looked up at him and grinned. "And so modest…"

He laughed and kissed her gently. "So you like the nursery?"

"It's perfect, right down to the plastic model of a DNA molecule next to the sonogram," she teased.

"Well, what do you expect for a couple of scientists?"

She smiled happily and kissed him again. "You are so wonderful," she told him. "I know I'm getting a lot of the attention, and my hormones are going crazy so I'm not exactly easy to live with…but I couldn't do this without you."

He held her close, stroking her hair. "I couldn't have a family with anyone else."