A/N: Thanks for continuing to read, review, and follow! I appreciate it. Sorry for the later post. I will freely admit that it's due to me watching the Olympics. My fingers are crossed for a safe and competitive games. Best of luck to all of the athletes. This chapter picks up where the last one left off. Hope you enjoy this update!
/
With the others distracted, Marissa caught Greenlee's attention and nodded towards the kitchen door before she exited the room. Greenlee nodded in return. It was the signal she had been waiting for since she had arrived. She discreetly pulled out her cellphone and sent a quick text to Ryan. From her vantage point near a kitchen window, Greenlee could see her husband pull out his cellphone and read the text she had just sent. He then glanced towards the house and met her gaze. She saw him say something to Zach who simply nodded. Ryan then jogged around the side of the house as Greenlee followed Marissa down the hall to couple's office. In her text, Greenlee had told her husband to go around to the front of the house to come back inside in order to avoid any questions from those in the kitchen. She knew if he come in that way that the others, especially Kendall, would get suspicious. Greenlee wasn't ready for that yet since she really didn't know what Marissa was going to tell them.
Ryan met Greenlee standing just outside of the office. "Are you ready?"
Greenlee nodded. "I am. I'm just nervous. What if Marissa tells us …"
"Personally, I don't think it's going to be bad news. If it is though, then we'll deal with it, together. Okay?"
"Okay. I guess Marissa wouldn't give us bad news on a holiday with all of our family around."
"Why don't you come in and ask her?" Marissa called out from the office.
The couple chuckled and went inside.
"Hey. Have a seat. Could you close the door, Ryan? I'm sure you want the privacy."
Ryan nodded and did as suggested. "Good idea."
As Greenlee and Ryan got settled, Marissa pulled out a thick folder she had locked in her side of the desk.
"Like I told you earlier when you first got here, I have some news on the adoption front."
/
"First, you need to check out the new bling Jo is sporting." Kendall said.
Rafaela smiled as she did as Kendall suggested. "Oh my! That is a beautiful ring! Almost as beautiful as the smile on your face. Congratulations!"
Maura nodded. "She's right. You're absolutely glowing. Congratulations. I wish you all the best."
"Thank you both."
"Tell us about it. When did he propose?" Rafaela asked excitedly.
"Last night at our place. It was perfect. Marissa helped him with the set up there." Jo stopped. "Speaking of Marissa, where is she?"
The other women looked around and couldn't find the redhead.
"She's probably checking on Danny." Bianca offered. She had actually seen Marissa leave a few minutes earlier and noticed the silent exchange her wife had with Greenlee. Bianca wasn't sure what was going on, but decided to keep whatever it was to herself since it looked like they wanted to speak privately.
"I don't see Greenlee either. Does anyone know where she is?" Maura asked.
"I saw her on her cellphone. I think something must have come up with Fusion, hopefully nothing bad." Kendall offered as excuse for her friend's absence. She glanced over at her sister. Like Bianca, she had noticed Marissa and Greenlee slip out of the room. The same thought suddenly occurred to both sisters, and they hoped it was nothing but good news.
The others seemed to accept the offered excuses and continued on with their conversation.
/
Marissa smiled at her friends. She could see how anxious they were, and she wasn't going to drag this out for them. "I apologize for not getting back to you sooner."
"We understand. The last few days have been anything but quiet or normal for you. We're just really glad that you're okay." Ryan said.
Greenlee looked at her friend. "You had me worried, Rocky. Don't let it happen again. We all really need you here. Along with Bianca, you keep us in check."
"Thank you. Okay. As you know, I had Mitch handling your home study. He was very thorough, and it was a great help to him that you were so open with everything. I hate to say that some people aren't. They hold things back that they don't believe are important when in fact it's the exact opposite. They are very important, and not having that information could derail the entire process for them."
"Well, you said to be honest about everything, and Ryan and I took that to heart. We both know that you wouldn't just make something like that up and have us go through that for no reason."
"You're right. I would never do anything like that. Getting back to our home study. Mitch didn't find any red flags on our end. We were able to respond quickly to any questions that Social Services had as a result of his work. Mitch knows one of the investigators with Social Services and was able to get an unofficial update from them the other day which he then passed on to me. I didn't say anything to you at the time because I wanted to wait until I had the official report. This is too important to settle for less than that. It's not worth the risk until it's official. I got this late yesterday." Marissa took the folder she had retrieved earlier and slid it across the desk to Greenlee. "This contains the official results of not only the home study from Social Services but also the results of their home visit. I wanted to review it before I gave it to you. I wanted to be ready if you have any questions."
Greenlee glanced nervously at the folder. She was pretty sure she wouldn't be able to make heads or tails out of it due to her nerves. "Could you …"
Marissa nodded her understanding of the question. "I'll summarize for you now, and the two of you can read the report in full later, if that's all right. Then if you have any questions, you just have to ask."
Ryan nodded and looked at Greenlee who nodded as well.
"Yes, please."
"You passed."
Greenlee and Ryan glanced at each and then back to Marissa. They were in complete shock, and neither was positive they had heard the lawyer correctly.
"What?"
Marissa smiled. "I said you passed! Not only did you pass, but you did so with flying colors. They were very impressed with both of you, and in particular, they were extremely impressed with you, Greenlee."
"Me? Seriously?"
"Yes, you. The relationship you have with Emma and Spike showed them that you wouldn't have a problem with caring for another child. The caseworker believes that you are and would be an excellent mother. That's something I already knew though. I highlighted that part for you."
Tears of joy started to flow from Greenlee, and Ryan hugged his sobbing wife.
When she collected herself, Greenlee took several tissues from the box Marissa offered her and took a deep breath. "Thank you. So, what's next?"
"Now comes the hard part. We wait for a child to become available. There are a few people on the list ahead of you, but given that you are open to gender, age, and ethnicity of the child, it shouldn't be too long."
"Which is good and bad. Good for us, but bad that a child will be in a situation where Social Services is needed." Greenlee said sadly.
"True, but that child will be lucky because he or she will have you. The two of you are wonderful parents and have so much love to give. There's not a doubt in my mind that you will give them all the love and support they will need."
"I don't even know how to thank you. You're helping to make a dream come true, and I can't think of the words to tell you how grateful I am, how grateful we are."
"Greenlee's right. Saying 'thank you' doesn't seem to be enough."
"You're welcome, and it's more than enough."
Greenlee smiled at Marissa's sincerity and knew she meant every word. The redhead had been a godsend to her and Ryan, and had held their hands through this long process. They weren't finished with it yet, not by a long shot, and Greenlee knew that Marissa would continue to be there for them. The brunette had meant what she had said earlier. Marissa and Bianca were the glue that held them all together and kept them sane. "When we go around the table and say what we're thankful for later, I know exactly what I'm going to say."
Ryan grinned. "Me too. Oh, we should probably talk to Emma and Spike before we do that though. They should know before everyone else."
"Definitely."
"I tell you what. The two of you stay here, and I'll go get them and bring them back. You can talk to them here. That way you'll have privacy and can take all the time that you need."
"I would really appreciate that. Would you mind asking Kendall and Zach to come back as well? We should tell them because this impacts Spike, and they might as well bring Ian too. Plus …"
"Kendall's your person." Marissa grinned.
Greenlee laughed, immediately getting the 'Grey's Anatomy' reference. "Exactly!"
"No problem." Marissa turned to leave but stopped when Greenlee called out.
"Marissa, wait!" Greenlee stood and hugged Marissa tightly. "Thank you so much."
Ryan quickly followed suit and hugged the lawyer too.
"You're welcome."
/
Before heading back to the kitchen to get Kendall, Marissa stopped by Danny's room to check on him and Lexie. The site that greeted her made her smile. Her wife, her youngest son, and her youngest niece were all on carpeted floor and playing together.
"Hey."
Bianca glanced up and smiled. "Hey. I was passing by and heard these two having a party so I decided to join them."
"Ah, you rescued them from Danny's bed." The two had been placed in the boy's baby bed for a nap earlier.
"Yep. They were up and wanting out." Bianca looked at her wife. "Is everything okay? You were gone for a while."
"I'm sorry about that. It really couldn't be helped. To answer your question though, yes, everything is great."
"Yeah?" Bianca smiled. Without giving away any particulars, Marissa had told her everything she needed to know.
"Yeah. I was just going to get Kendall and her crew. Is she still in the kitchen?"
"When last seen, yes, she was, and Zach and the kids were outside."
Marissa nodded. "Are you good for a few more minutes?"
"I am."
"Okay. I will go get them and then be back to join you and the other party animals." Marissa bent down and gave Bianca a quick kiss before she headed out in search of Kendall and the others.
"We'll try and keep the party under control until you get back, but I can't promise anything. You know how these two are." Bianca called out after her wife before she started to make funny faces for Danny and Lexie.
/
Marissa entered the kitchen and found Kendall standing just inside the door. It was obvious that her sister-in-law had been waiting for her.
"Kendall."
"Marissa. You've been gone awhile."
"Have I? I hadn't noticed." Marissa smirked.
Kendall rolled her eyes. "Right. Is there anything I should know?"
The redhead lowered her voice even more than she had when this particular conversation began. "Well now that you mention it, Greenlee and Ryan are back in my office would like you, Zach, Emma, and the boys to go back and talk with them."
Before Kendall could say anything, Zach came in from outside holding out their youngest son with his arms fully extended. Ian was covered almost entirely from head to toe in mud. The boy was also wearing the biggest possible grin.
"Oh my god! What did your son do?"
"Why is he always my son when he does something like this?"
"Do you really need to ask, Zach?" Erica chuckled.
Zach sighed. "All right, I'll give you that. Ian somehow managed to find the only mud puddle in the backyard."
Jessica laughed. "Oh, Ian baby. Look at that smile."
Kendall shook her head. "This is why I brought a change of clothes for him."
"Yeah, I totally get it now." Zach turned to Marissa. "Where should I take him to clean him up?"
"AJ's bathroom is probably the best."
"Ma?"
Marissa glanced up and saw the other kids enter followed by Greg and Jack. "What's up, Buddy?"
"When are we eating?" AJ asked.
"Not for some time, I'm afraid. Are you getting hungry?"
"Yeah, kinda."
"I think we can arrange a snack of some sort for all of you to tide you over."
"Why don't I take Emma and Spike to get them cleaned up?" Kendall suggested. This gave her the perfect opportunity to take the kids back to Bianca and Marissa's office and talk with Greenlee and Ryan without anyone else being the wiser.
Marissa nodded. She knew exactly what Kendall was doing. "Since they're not covered in mud like someone else, go ahead and use the one guest bathroom by our office. AJ, Miranda, and Gabby, go on upstairs and clean up. I'm going to help your Uncle Zach get sorted out with the mud monster."
Ian giggled when he heard his new nickname.
"While you're doing that, we'll get something together for everyone to snack on." Jessica said.
"Thank you. Follow me, gang."
Kendall stopped Zach once they were out of the kitchen. "When you're done, meet me in their office. Greenlee and Ryan want to talk with us."
Zach raised an eyebrow. "They do, huh? All right. It could be awhile."
"If we finish before you, I'll come to you."
"Kendall, do you want to tell me where Ian's change of clothes is? I'll grab them and meet Zach upstairs. Then, I'll throw what he's wearing in the washer."
"I have them in Lexie's diaper bag which is back in your bedroom."
The adults separated and went about their assignments.
/
"So, when will you know?" Emma asked. She had listened to Greenlee and Ryan as they explained everything that Marissa had told them. When they started this process, Greenlee and Ryan had sat her down and told her what they were hoping to do. Emma was onboard with it. Yes, Spike was her half-brother, and he would come over on the weekends and sometimes during the week when they would spend time together. He didn't live with them though. Spike lived with Kendall and Zach and spent the majority of his time with them, Ian, and Lexie. For all intents and purposes, Emma felt like an only child, and she wanted nothing more to have, what she deemed, a full-time brother or sister like the Slater and Tasker-Montgomery children had. It was something she envied. So when Greenlee and Ryan approached her with the idea of adding to their family, Emma was over the moon. The following months had been excruciating, but now, an end to the waiting seemed to be in sight.
"We're not sure. There are other people ahead of us." Ryan explained.
"But we passed so that's a good thing, right?"
Greenlee smiled. "It's a very good thing."
"So, we don't know if it'll be a boy or a girl, baby or older?"
"No, we don't. Are you okay with that? We talked before about this."
Emma nodded. "Yeah, I'm okay. I just can't wait for it to finally happen."
"Me too! Do you have any other questions?" Greenlee asked.
"No, I'm good for now."
"What about you, Spike?"
The boy shook his head after thinking for a moment. Spike was pretty easygoing and also onboard with the idea of a new sibling. "No, I'm okay."
"Good. Greenlee and I would like it if you didn't say anything to the others just yet."
"Why?" Emma asked.
"We want to tell everyone at the same time and do it when we all go around saying what we're thankful for." Greenlee explained.
"I guess that makes sense. Okay, I won't say anything."
"Me either. What about Ian?"
Kendall stepped forward to answer. She had been standing to the side letting Greenlee and Ryan handle this conversation. "I'll take care of telling him and Zach. Do you have any other questions for your Dad or Greenlee?"
Spike shook his head.
"Okay. Why don't the two of you go get something to eat? We'll be right behind you."
Once the kids were gone, Kendall hugged Greenlee first and then Ryan. "I'm so happy for the two of you. I know this wait has been hard on you. It's almost over though."
Greenlee sighted. "I know. You've been great though. I'm sure I haven't been the most pleasant person to be around during this. I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I understand. It's nothing I'm not used to though when it comes to you." Kendall smirked at that last comment.
Greenlee rolled her eyes. "You're one to talk."
Kendall laughed. "True. We both do have our moments. Come on. I have to tell Zach and then get something to eat before we finish getting things ready for later."
/
A/N: Questions for you. Should Greenlee and Ryan get a boy or girl? What age range do you think the child should be? Any suggestions for names? See you soon!