A/N: I hope this New Year finds all of you happy and healthy. Thanks for continuing to read, review and follow this story! As always, it's appreciated. I also want to thank all of you for doing the same for the one shots I've posted recently, All I Want for Christmas and What Are You Doing New Year's Eve. I hope you liked them. The site was a little wonky when I posted the New Year's Eve story, and it took me several tries to get it up. I purposely left it vague as to what drama they face in the future. I will tell you that it's based on an idea that popped into my head at the same time as the one shots. Who knows? Maybe, I'll come up with some more future glimpses into the lives of the Tasker-Montgomery family.

As soon as I read a review for the last chapter, I knew I had to respond here. Thank you, jamierubinstein, you made an extremely valid point, and I completely agree. What David did to Bianca is the lowest of the low. In my mind, and this is my fault for not writing it this way, Erica viewed this as a new low for him where it concerns how is treating his own child, in this case Marissa. Erica certainly knows what he is capable of and what he's done, and she will never forgive him for his role in everything that Bianca went through. I think the hope was there that he would not do something like this to Marissa, but his true nature won out. I agree that karma will eventually pay him a visit. So again, thanks for pointing that out for me. I'll try and make sure what's in my head gets written down clearly. I really do appreciate you all keeping me honest.

As for this chapter, I need to put this out there. I'm not a lawyer so you'll just have to go with me on anything dealing with legal issues. Timeframe wise, it's probably late March. I think I have everything covered. Hope you enjoy this update!

/

"Mr. Cortlandt, you have a call from someone who wishes to be a client."

Caleb paused at his secretary's desk on the way to his office. "Have them make an appointment, Doris, just like everyone else."

"I have a feeling that it's going to be hard for him to get down here by himself. You really should take this call now."

There was something about the tone in her voice and the expression on her face that caught his attention. She looked downright amused, and that was rare for the woman. "Fine. Give me a minute, and then send the call in."

The lawyer had just gotten settled when Doris sent the call through. "Caleb Cortlandt."

"Hi, Caleb!"

"AJ?!"

"Yep! How are you? The Moms always say you should ask how someone's doing first when you call them and haven't talked to them in a while."

Caleb was as amused as he was curious. "Well, they're right. I'm good and yourself?"

"I'm good too. I was hoping to hire you to be my lawyer. I can't pay you a lot right now though because I don't get my allowance for a couple of days. Would that be alright?"

"Why don't you tell me what you need first and then we'll figure the rest of it out?"

"Okay, but if you're my lawyer, you can't tell the Moms what we talk about, right? It's lawyer …"

"Lawyer/client privilege." A young girl whispered.

"Yeah, lawyer/client privilege."

"Is that Miranda?"

"Yeah, and Gabby. They wanna hire you too."

"Alright. Yes, Miranda is right. It is lawyer/client privilege, and that means I have to keep private what we talk about. Before we do all of that, why don't we start at the beginning? What are the three of you up to?"

Caleb could hear a brief, muffled debate on the other end of the line before AJ came back on.

"Okay. I'm going to put you on speaker so all three of us can talk to you. Can you hear us?"

The lawyer smiled. "Yes, I can."

Miranda took the lead. "Okay, what do you wanna know first, Caleb?"

"Let's start with how you got my number."

"Oh, that was easy. You and Ma work together, and we keep the firm's main number up on the refrigerator in case of an emergency. We just called that and asked for you instead of Ma." Miranda answered proudly.

"Of course you did. Your mothers are telling the truth when they talk about how smart the three of you are. Alright. Why me? Not that I'm not honored. I'm just curious. I dare say you know a great many lawyers, your Ma at the top of that list. Any one of them would be more than happy to help you with whatever you need. Although, I will have to warn you that if this is something really serious that I will have to talk to your mothers since you are minors."

"Yeah, we know. We figured as much. It was Gabby's idea to ask you." AJ answered.

"Oh, it was, was it?"

"Yep! You're Mommy's lawyer. If she trusts you, I know we can too." Gabby's answer was simple and to the point, and it had Caleb speechless for a moment with its utter sincerity.

Caleb knew there was no way he could refuse to help the three kids who were a little like grandchildren to him. "Okay then. What do the three of you need my help with?"

/

His conversation with AJ, Miranda and Gabby had Caleb shaking his head in amazement and in need of information. The lawyer knew where he needed to start.

"Doris, I need to ask you something, and it absolutely has to stay between us. This cannot go out on the office grapevine, understood?"

The secretary nodded. "I understand. This will stay just between us."

"Good. I need to know who on Marissa's team is the best one to keep a secret. I'm going to need their help with something and will need their discretion."

"I take it neither Marissa nor Bianca should know about what it is?"

"You would be correct."

Doris had to admit she was intrigued but knew better than to ask further questions. "Then, I would say it would be Lisa Walsh. She can keep a secret like nobody's business, almost as good as Marissa, and the two of them are close. There's not much Lisa wouldn't do for her. I think that could be said for all of her team, but Lisa's the one."

"Very good. I need you to discretely ask Ms. Walsh to come to my office."

The secretary nodded and stood to exit.

"Oh, and Doris, thank you."

/

Lisa was finally able to slip away and made her way to Caleb's way unnoticed. When his secretary caught up with her in the break room and told her that Caleb wanted to see her, the young lawyer was extremely anxious at first to say the least. Doris telling her that he needed her help with something and that it had to be kept private did help her feel a little less wary, but not much.

Doris smiled when she saw the young lawyer. "You can go on in. He's expecting you."

Lisa did as instructed and found Caleb sitting behind his desk. He glanced up hearing her approach and removed his glasses.

"Ah, Ms. Walsh, please have a seat. I'm sure you're curious about what's going on."

"Yes, I am. Doris said you needed my help?"

"I do, and what I'm going to tell you and ask of you must be kept just between us. No one else can know about this, especially Marissa."

"Could I be honest?"

Caleb lifted his hand, gesturing her to continue. "Please."

"I don't know how comfortable I feel keeping something from her. She is my boss after all. And yes, I know you're a partner and technically my boss as well, but I report directly to her. So, it just doesn't feel right to keep something from her, especially if it could hurt her."

"What makes you think this could hurt her?"

"Why else would you be talking to me in private and wanting me to keep something from her?"

Caleb smiled. "I like you. You don't back down and are showing great loyalty. I'll tell you this much and then you can decide if you want to help. Sound good?"

"Alright."

"Earlier today, I had a call from AJ, Miranda and Gabby. They want to hire me, and after learning what they wanted, I agreed to represent them."

Lisa was confused to say the least. She knew without question that the kids loved and adored both of their mothers. Finding out that they called Caleb and wanted to hire him was something she couldn't wrap her head around. Lisa also knew how Caleb felt about the women, and that he'd helped them deal with JR on numerous occasions. If the kids wanted his help with something and he agreed, it didn't strike Lisa as something that would hurt Marissa. "Do I have your word this won't hurt either Marissa or Bianca?"

Caleb nodded. "You do. I give you my word."

"Alright, I'm in."

"Excellent." Caleb smiled. "We don't have much time, but here is what's going on."

/

"Hey, Lisa. I was just going out to grab some lunch. Interested in joining me?" Brian asked as he saw the blonde walking down the hallway with purpose.

"Oh, hey, Brian. I'd like to, but I can't. I've got a case that's scheduled for a hearing in a couple of days, and I've got some research to do. I'll just eat what I brought in today."

"Want some help with your research?"

"I'm okay right now, but I'll let you know if I do." Lisa hated not being able to tell Brian what was going on, but Caleb had sworn her to secrecy.

"Alright. You know where I am if you do."

"I do, and thanks."

/

Bianca paused in the doorway of the couple's bedroom and smiled at the sight that greeted her. Marissa was sitting on the window seat underneath the bay window gazing outside. The redhead was bathed in moonlight and wore a peaceful expression as she caressed her baby bump and talked with their little one. Marissa was actually glowing, and Bianca was so mesmerized by the sight that she couldn't speak.

"It's hard to believe that you'll be here soon, and I can't wait to meet you, Sparky. Neither can your Mommy and your brother and sisters, your Aunt Kendall and Uncle Zach, your Uncle Jack and Grandma Erica. Don't tell her I used the 'g' word. But you want to know something? I know she can't wait to meet you either, and I know she's going spoil you rotten. There are a lot of people that are going to love so much and spoil you. You will be so loved. I only wish that your Grandma Lydia and Grandpa Roy were here to meet you. They would be over the moon. I'll make you this promise. I will tell you all about them." Marissa sighed. "You missed out on this winter, but we'll make up for the next one. Now that it's spring, we'll go for walks down by the pond, and we'll go to the park too when it gets warmer of course. This summer, we'll go to zoo, and you can see all of the animals there. Your sister Gabby loves it there. It's her favorite place. We're going to have so much fun."

Marissa paused, feeling the loving gaze of her wife. "You're staring again."

Bianca chuckled knowing she had been busted and crossed the room to join her wife. "I can't help it. You are absolutely beautiful."

The redhead rolled her eyes and turned to her wife. "I sure don't feel like it sometimes. I feel like a bloated whale and think you should get your eyes checked again."

"My eyes are just fine, thank you very much. They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and to me, I've never seen anyone more beautiful, and you take my breath away. So, no more arguing."

"Okay, you win."

"So, you and our little one are making plans, huh?"

Marissa sighed happily and leaned back into Bianca's arms. "Yep. Sparky will be here soon. My due date is just around the corner."

"I know, and I can't wait to meet our little one. Don't worry. I won't tell Mom you were calling her 'grandma'."

"Thank you!" Marissa laughed. "She likes me, but that could change if she ever heard me say that."

Bianca snorted. "It could change if she heard me call her that."

"So, do the kids seem like they're acting a little weird to you?"

"You mean like they're up to something? Yeah, but I don't think it's anything bad because of how they're smiling. It's a mischievous smile."

"Yeah, like the kind Kendall and Greenlee get sometimes."

"Exactly! I have to tell you that it's a little scary."

"What do say we give them until the weekend and then we call them on it?" Marissa suggested.

Bianca nodded. "I think that'll work. Are you ready for tomorrow, for Sam's case?"

"Yeah, I am. Sam and the Walkers are excited, and are really glad you're going to be there."

"I'm honored that they asked me. That was sweet of the Walkers to invite the kids to the party they're having after."

"Good thing it's an in-service day for all of them."

Bianca sensed her wife had something on her mind. "You okay?"

"Huh? Yeah. I'm just, I'm just thinking about my last day in court for a while. I'm going to miss it because I do love that part of my job."

"I understand. You're really good at it."

"It's the right the thing to do though. According to Dr. Abbott, I really could go any time, and it wouldn't be fair to my clients to have to hand off their case in the middle of a trial." Marissa then smiled. "You know though, no matter how much I love my job, I love my family more. This little one is someone I can't wait to meet, get to know and watch grow. It's going to be a great adventure."

Bianca smiled and hugged her wife a little tighter. "Yes, it is, the best kind."

/

Marissa smiled as Sam and the Walkers entered the courtroom. The family was all smiles. It was a day they had been looking forward to for a while. It would've happened earlier, but the hearing date had gotten bumped for more pressing cases. Now that it was here, the delay was forgotten and no longer mattered.

"Sam, Gail, Alex, Carol. It's good to see all of you."

"It's really good to see you, Marissa!" Sam beamed as she hugged her lawyer.

Gail's smile was just as bright as the teen's. "I can't believe this is happening."

"Well, believe it because it is." Marissa reassured.

"How are you doing, dear?" Carol asked.

"I'm good. This is my last official case until I get back from maternity leave. I like the fact that I'm going out on a high note."

"Thanks again for everything, Marissa. We'll never be able to repay you and Bianca. Speaking of your wife, where is she? She's still coming today, right?" Alex asked.

"She'll be here. Your hearing doesn't start for another 15 minutes. Do you want to go over everything again?"

Sam made a face. "Could we maybe go over it one more time?"

"Sure." Marissa smiled and patiently went over everything again. When she was finished, the lawyer double checked that Sam understood everything. "Any questions?"

Sam released a breath. "I'm good now. Thanks."

"You haven't started yet, have you?"

Marissa glanced up and saw Bianca. The brunette was slightly out of breath. "Nope. We have a couple of minutes."

"Good. I was afraid I might be late. I had a hard time finding a parking space. Hey, Sam. You ready for this?" Bianca asked.

"Yeah, I am. I'm glad you're here."

"There's no place else I'd rather be."

/

"All rise. Court is now in session. The honorable Sonya Kagan presiding." The bailiff announced.

Judge Kagan rapped her gavel. "Be seated. Good morning, Ms. Tasker. I see we're here for a good thing today."

"Good morning, your honor. Yes, we are."

"Good morning, Miss Robinson. I see you want to change your name."

Sam stood next to Marissa and glanced at the redhead who nodded before addressing the judge. "Good morning, your honor. Yes, I do."

Judge Kagan smiled. "Well, this is definitely a good way to start off the day. Alright. To be clear, you want to change your name to Samantha Marie Robinson-Walker, correct?"

"Yes, your honor."

"And you are doing so of your own accord?"

"Yes, your honor, I am. This was my idea. Gail, Alex and Grandma have never pressured me to do anything I don't want to." Sam paused thinking she had said too much.

"Go on. I'd like to hear more."

"They've been there for me, gave me a home and a family. I want to share their name." Sam turned to her adoptive family. "I love them, and I want to be a Walker." Turning back to face the judge, she continued, clear and confident. "Nothing would make me prouder, and there's nothing I want more."

"Then, I'm very happy to help make that a reality." Judge Kagan lifted her pen and signed the papers in front of her. "Let me be the first to congratulate you, Sam Robinson-Walker. Case adjourned."

Sam bounced on her feet and hugged Marissa before turning to her family and jumping into their embrace.

Marissa began to shuffle papers into her briefcase as the clerk called the next case.

/

"AJ Chandler, Miranda Montgomery and Gabrielle Montgomery."

Bianca's and Marissa's heads snapped to the clerk, then to each other and finally to the courtroom's doors. As they opened, their three children appeared followed by Caleb, Lisa, Erica, Kendall, Greenlee and Susan.

"What's going on?"

"I think you and Red should have a seat at that table, Binx." Kendall winked at her sister.

Bianca quickly joined her wife, and the couple stared dumbfounded as their children took their seats in between Caleb and Lisa.

"Mr. Cortlandt, it's been a while since I've had the pleasure of having you in my courtroom."

"Your honor, it's a pleasure being here, especially on a day like today."

"Excuse me, your honor, but could I ask what's going on here? Why are our children here?" Marissa finally found her voice.

Gabby smiled brightly. "It's okay, Mommy."

"It's good, Ma. Trust us." Miranda added.

AJ nodded. "I think you and Mom are gonna like this."

Judge Kagan did her best to maintain her poker face. She had been clued in on exactly what was going on. "Please have a seat, Mrs. Tasker-Montgomery."

Marissa did as instructed and gripped Bianca's hand.

"I think it's best if we get started, Mr. Cortlandt."

"I couldn't agree more, your honor." Caleb handed some legal documents to the bailiff for the judge before he continued. "My clients are petitioning for adoption and name change. AJ would like to be adopted by Bianca Tasker-Montgomery while Miranda and Gabby would like to be adopted by Marissa Tasker-Montgomery. All three would then like to change their last names to Tasker-Montgomery, matching their mothers'."

"What?! How? Is this possible? I … I …" Bianca couldn't seem to form a coherent sentence.

Marissa wasn't faring much better than her wife. "I … I don't understand."

"I think it best if you explain further, Mr. Cortlandt."

"I think you're right, your honor. Actually, I think I have a better idea. Miranda, would like to explain?"

Miranda smiled brightly and nodded.

"Why don't you come up here and have a seat in the witness stand?" Judge Kagan suggested.

"Okay." Miranda then hurried to the seat indicated. "Do you need to swear me in or anything?"

"Do you know the difference between telling the truth and telling a lie?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Do you promise to tell the truth here?"

Miranda nodded. "Yes, ma'am."

"Alright. That's all I need. Go ahead."

"Well, we were talking to Sam about how the Walkers adopted her and how she was changing her name." Miranda waved to Sam who waved back with a big smile on her face. The teen was thrilled she was able to help with this moment. "We got to thinking. Mom and Ma are already our moms, at least to us, but it's not really legal. I mean it is for AJ and Ma, and for me, Gabby and Mom, but not for all of us. Ma's not legally our Mom, and Mom's not legally AJ's. Ma says that it's always best if you can make things legal. It could save headaches down the road. It's kind of like how before they were married, they had each other's power of attorney. So when Ma was in the hospital, Mom was able to make decisions for her. We want the same thing for us."

"Very smart. I see we have a young lawyer in the making."

Marissa could only nod proudly while Miranda beamed.

"We figured then that if they could adopt us that we should change our names too, so they could match. We know we're a family whether that happens or not, but this way everybody will know because there are still some people that don't think we are."

"There are?"

"Yeah, but they don't know any better so …" Miranda just simply shrugged.

"And all three of you came up with this idea?"

"Well, it was AJ's idea first. His dad has hurt him a lot and our Moms. Even though he loves his Uncle Stuart and his cousin Scott, AJ doesn't want to have that last name anymore."

Judge Kagan addressed the young boy. "Is that true, AJ?"

The boy nodded. "Yes, ma'am. My grandpa's gotten better, but him and my dad have done a lot of bad things and want me to be like them. I don't want to. I want to be different from them. I wanna be like my Moms. With my dad and grandpa, they don't really listen to me, and it's all about what they want. With my Moms, they just want all of us to be happy. As long as we try our best, our Moms are good with that."

"That's very admirable, AJ. Gabby, you want this too?"

"Uh huh."

Lisa whispered something to the little girl.

"Sorry. Yes, ma'am."

Judge Kagan smiled. "That's quite alright."

"They're my Mommies so why shouldn't I have both of their names?" To Gabby, it made all the sense in the world.

"Why indeed? So, Miranda, after the three of you talked, what did you do next?"

"Oh, we called Caleb. He's Ma's lawyer. We figured that if she trusts him that we could too. We told him what we wanted, and he agreed to help us. He told us he would need some help so he got Lisa to help him. We knew we could trust her too because she works for Ma."

Caleb stepped forward at this point. "Ms. Walsh and I verified that Marissa was the sole custodial parent of AJ, and Bianca was the sole custodial parent for Miranda and Gabby. The parental rights of Mr. Chandler and Ms. Williams had been terminated due to certain actions on their parts. Therefore, their permission is not needed for adoption to take place."

"Miranda, you did very well and can take your seat again." Judge Kagan then looked to the couple. Both had tears in their eyes, and neither could believe what they were hearing. "I have a few questions for both of you. Bianca Tasker-Montgomery, would you like to adopt AJ?"

"I would love nothing more." Bianca choked out as she wiped away a stray tear.

"Do you give your permission for Marissa Tasker-Montgomery to adopt Miranda and Gabby?"

"I definitely do."

"Marissa Tasker-Montgomery, would you like to adopt Miranda and Gabby?"

"I would love to."

"Do you give your permission for Bianca Tasker-Montgomery to adopt AJ?"

Marissa cleared her throat as she tried to fight the emotions that were overwhelming her. "Yes, I most certainly do."

"AJ, Miranda, Gabby, would you like …"

"Yes!"

Everyone present in the courtroom laughed.

"I'd say they know what they want. Are there any objections?" Hearing none from those present, the judge continued as she gathered the papers Caleb had prepared. "Very good. Let's make this legal then." Judge Kagan handed some papers to the bailiff who in turn handed them to the couple. "By signing those papers, you are agreeing to the adoption of and name change for AJ, Miranda and Gabby."

With quick glances at their children and then at each, Marissa and Bianca signed all the necessary papers with smiles that could not be wiped off their faces if anyone had tried. They were returned to the bailiff who handed them to the judge to review.

Judge Kagan nodded and then added her signature. The courtroom was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Everyone was just waiting for the final announcement to let loose. "Bianca Tasker-Montgomery, you are now the mother of AJ Tasker-Montgomery. Marissa Tasker-Montgomery, you are now the mother of Miranda Tasker-Montgomery and Gabby Tasker-Montgomery. Congratulations to all of you! Case adjourned."

Everyone in the gallery erupted, cheering and clapping loudly. The kids rushed over to their mothers who were waiting with open arms.

Judge Kagan looked on. "Days like today remind me exactly why I love my job so much." With a quick nod to the couple who had tears of joy in their eyes, the judge took her leave for a break. Her docket had been cleared to allow for a little time for this surprise.

/

"Did we surprise you guys?" AJ asked.

"Oh, you definitely did, and this was the best surprise ever." Marissa hugged her son again.

Bianca nodded. "Your Ma is right. You three are something else. I can't wait to hear everything."

"Me too." Marissa looked at the others. "So all of you knew about this, huh?"

The question was answered with smiles and laughter.

"Now, I understand why you were so anxious to get us out the door this morning, Susan." Bianca shook her head remembering the babysitter's behavior earlier. Both she and the kids couldn't wait for them to leave.

Susan chuckled. "Yeah, sorry about that. The kids wanted to change their clothes for court, and we needed to meet up with Caleb and Lisa to go over things again."

"I really want to hear everything, but I think we should get out of here. Judge Kagan has other cases to hear, and Bianca and I are expected back at the office."

"We can celebrate all of this later at our house." Sam offered.

"Sam, that is so sweet, but this should be your day. This definitely needs to be celebrated too though." Bianca looked to her wife who seemed to know what she thinking and nodded. "How about we have our adoption celebration next Saturday? This way Sam can have her day which she really deserves. By waiting a week, this will give us a little time to invite a few more people for our celebration. How does that sound, guys?" Bianca looked at the kids who nodded, happy with the compromise.

"Could we maybe invite a couple friends?" Miranda asked hopefully.

Marissa chuckled. "Sure, I think we can manage that. All of you are definitely invited." The redhead looked over at Lisa with a playful glare. "As for you, we'll be talking later."

Lisa grinned as she recognized that she didn't have anything to worry about from her boss. She knew Marissa was teasing her by the sparkle in her eyes. "Whenever you want, boss."

"I think we'll take our leave now. Congratulations and we'll see you tonight." Gail smiled.

Bianca nodded. "Definitely and thank you."

With that, the Walkers left for a small private celebration before getting ready for the larger celebration later that day.

The redhead shook her head at Lisa and chuckled before turning to address the man who engineered today. "Caleb, is it alright if Bianca and I are a little late for the lunch?"

"You know all about the surprise back there, don't you? Given all of this, I think everybody would be just fine with you being a little late."

"Thank you."

"Mom?"

"Yes, Miranda."

"We made some brownies after you left."

Bianca looked at the kids, knowing exactly what those expectant looks they were giving her meant. "Why don't we all go back home and have some before your Ma and I have our lunch?"

"Yes!" The kids pumped their fists and exchanged high fives.

"That invitation includes all of you." Bianca noted to the others.

"I'll take a rain check on the brownies. I need to wrap up a couple of things at the office." Lisa needed to help with the prep for the couple's shower.

"I have to take a rain check as well. I have to drop these papers off at the clerk's office and let the others know you'll be a little late. I must say that the three of you have been my most favorite clients. Congratulations." Caleb winked at the kids before taking his leave along with Lisa.

"Well, I'm looking forward to brownies."

"I'm with Kendall. Chocolate is always a great way to celebrate." Greenlee smiled.

"Mom?" Bianca looked at her mother.

Erica nodded. "I would love to celebrate with all of you. I'm quite impressed with you three. You are definitely your mothers' children."

"Come on, minions. Let's go celebrate." Marissa smiled as they all left to head back to Minx Manor.