As the early morning sunlight flooded into their room, her eyes fluttered open. After they made love last night, she fell asleep in Patrick's embrace, which is where she still laid. Only now, he had moved his hand over her abdomen, holding her and their baby.

Without a second thought, she turned over delicately so as not to disturb him, deciding to lay there and watch her husband sleep a bit. She wanted to memorize every dimple, every curve, and every line of his face as the sun caught the golden hues in his hair. Of course, she knew what the love of her life looked like. She wanted to commit this moment to her memory because it really was the beginning of their new chapter.

The first day of this new year held so much promise. The funny thing was that a year ago, she couldn't even imagine any of this. Having a family was something that maybe she wanted but wasn't sure would ever be in the cards for her. Yet, on this first day of this new year, she woke up for the first time as Mrs. Patrick Jane. Granted, she'd never actually let anyone call her that. It was sexist and erased her existence, but that didn't erase how she now saw herself: as Patrick's. Teresa Lisbon Jane: wife to Patrick, mom to Annie and baby, friend to a few, and leader of a rather capable team of CBI agents. She was many things to many people, some in ways she had never fully imagined.

"You just going to watch me sleep, honey?"

She grinned. "It's the only way I can get any quiet time in."

"Ouch! Already tired of me?"

"Not a chance! Did you sleep well?"

"Well, let's see. I had my beautiful wife and our new baby in my arms."

"Uh huh."

"And I feel well rested. Though, I suppose a few orgasms before bed will do that to you."

She tapped his chest. "I suppose it can."

He grinned. "I'm very well rested, Teresa."

"Good! Because you know as soon as we're out of this bed, you have a full day of beach time with Annie ahead of you."

"I do?"

She nodded her head. "I believe you were the one making all of the promises about sandcastles and showing her how to paddle on a board."

"That's true." He stretched his arms out and over his head. Admittedly, she didn't love the loss of contact. "I could use more...rest...before starting my day."

If his words weren't clear enough, that he snaked his arm behind her and pinched her bottom made his intent very clear. She smiled as she reached in to kiss him and he held her chest flesh against his own.

"I'm pretty sure Annie is already awake."

"She has her iPad to keep her company for the next 10 minutes."

She cocked her eyebrow. "10 minutes?"

"Yeah. We're married now. Anything longer than that counts as an exercise class."

She giggled. "Oh bullshit!"

He kissed her as he held her close. "Come on, Teresa. A little quickie for your poor, deprived husband."

She feigned shock and hurt as she scoffed. "My husband is not now, nor will he ever be, deprived."

"Yeah? Show me."

He flattened himself on the bed, using his hand to encourage her to drag her knee over him and prompting her to bring her hands to his chest. As she leaned down to capture his lips, there was a knock on the door.

"Mommy Reese, are you up yet? I'm hungry."

She quietly laughed in his face. Of course, Annie was already up and ready to get her day started. What five year old, especially on a vacation, wouldn't be?

"I'm up, Annie! I'll be out to make you breakfast in a bit!"

"Ok! Then, can we go to the beach?"

It was Patrick's turn now. "After breakfast! Don't you want to watch your cartoons for just a bit while mommy helps me with something?"

"Is it going to take long? I'm hungry!" Her words carried a petulant edge, making it clear that her hunger was the real deal.

"Give me just a minute!" She kissed his cheek before whispering in his ear. "Later, husband."

He gave a fake pout before letting it give way to a grin. "I guess our kids always come first, as it should be."

She dressed quickly, heading straight to the kitchen to start their pancake breakfast. Hopefully, while they were outside later, she could sneak off to the store.

Of course, Annie was already sitting at the table with her iPad. "Did you sleep well last night, sweetie?"

"I did! I wish I got to do the new year thing!"

"Well, maybe next year!"

Patrick came dashing into the kitchen as though he were late to an important meeting, causing Annie to giggle a bit. "Yeah, as you grow up and get stronger, you will be able to stay up later on special occasions."

He ruffled the little girl's hair as he made his way to start the electric kettle. He was already dressed for the beach. She couldn't help but take him in for a moment—her man was definitely made for beach living.

"Morning, daddy!"

In some ways, it hurt to hear Annie call any man besides Tommy her dad. Yes, he was a fuck up, but Annie had always meant so much to him. In hindsight, that's probably the problem with expecting that a child would settle someone down and help them grow up. That wasn't the child's responsibility.

Though, watching her husband with Annie lessened the hurt a bit. He was so good with her, and they got along so well. She quickly took to calling him "daddy." It made sense because he was only Uncle Patrick for a few months—after she came to live with them. She'd been Aunt Reese a lot longer, so it was a bigger adjustment, one that she wasn't entirely sure she was ready for. But she would be whoever Annie wanted her to be. Besides, Patrick was a natural born father. If Tommy couldn't step up, she was glad Annie had Patrick.

He nudged her hips with his own. "I thought you were supposed to be teaching me how to do that."

"Babe, it's just pancake mix. You follow the instructions on the box. Put a little oil in the skillet, let it get hot, and let them cook. It's that easy!"

"That easy? Ok let me try!"

Upon further review, as the stove was coated in pancake batter and their pancakes broken in half or burnt, she realized maybe it wasn't that easy. The bubble technique didn't seem to come that easy to him. It took every fiber of her being to tamper down the need to control the situation unfolding before her by nudging him out of the way, but he was so eager to help. Luckily, he remained eager to help with clean up.

"Can we go to the beach now?"

She turned to Patrick. "I was going to go to the grocery store in town. Do you want me to take Annie?"

"Oh come on! We're here for the beach, not the stupid grocery store! We have one of those at home!"

"We do, and because we all like to eat, I need to grab a few things."

Patrick grinned. "Annie, go get your suit on! We have a date to build a sandcastle!"

Just like that, Annie disappeared. He still had that silly grin on his face. "Lisbon women, huh? They're all 'feed me now' or 'take me to the beach'! They never miss a beat to make me do what they want."

"Oh be quiet! You love it!"

"I do." Somehow, that grin got bigger. She loved that smile.

"Do you want anything special to eat later?"

"You're asking me?"

She shrugged. "I was thinking that I could make a few pizzas.

"Those should get us through a few days."

She raised her eyebrows. "A few days?"

He grinned. "No, I suppose not. You make such delicious pizza that we eat it all in one sitting."

In another one of those "it's amazing he didn't catch on sooner" moments, she devoured nearly an entire pizza by herself the last time she made it a few weeks ago. Only 300 extra calories a day her ass!

"I'll do pizza tonight." He started to interrupt, but she waved her hand to cut him off. "And I will show you how I prepare the dough. Though, I noticed that fire pit that looks like it doubles as a barbecue outside. Hamburgers don't sound bad either."

"Just get the fixings for whatever! I'm easy!" He winked at her. "But you already knew that."

She rolled her eyes. "Please." He took her hand and kissed it. Though it was a little difficult to finish her pancakes with her left hand, she did it anyway so she could keep his hand. She liked the feel of his wedding band rubbing against her hand.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Her trip to the grocery store was rather interesting. Well, it was as interesting as a trip to the grocery story could be. It was an old school grocer that went along with the small town vibe. She had been to plenty of these in rural California towns while working. Being able to casually peruse the store and gather supplies for her family set a different tone.

As she walked the aisles, she couldn't help but pick up different things. The reason she wanted Patrick to tell her what to get earlier was because everything sounded good to her! By the time she got to the baking aisle, she went a little crazy, deciding s'mores were happening after dinner tonight. Filling her cart with supplies, she was once again thinking about how surreal this all felt when she caught a glimpse of her wedding band.

She actually married him! Of course, she loved Patrick and the life they were building together, but it was hard not to think of a past life where she promised herself to someone else.

She and Mikey Ryan had talked about marriage a lot, even as he was in and out of Chicago, off to play football as she cared for her brothers and attended school in the city. One summer night, they were out drinking way too late and beyond the time they should've stopped. She knew that when she had to pull him away from a few fights. He ended up at her house, and of course, in her bed. They usually spent as much time together in the summer as possible.

For as long as she lived, she would never forget how he looked over at her that night and said "You're the best I'll ever do, Teresa. Let's get married."

She laughed a bit, still feeling the effects of her own drunkness. "What am I supposed to say to that? Yes, I'll marry you?"

"That would be great. Make it easy for me. Be my wife. My Mrs. Ryan. Have my kids. We're great together. It's not like we have anything else going on."

She scoffed in disbelief. "Yeah. Ok."

It was weird, and he was asleep moments later. She just shrugged it off, figuring he'd probably forget in the morning. They'd dated on and off since they were kids and pretty much had an unwritten rule that when he was home for the summer, they were exclusive. She just rolled over, away from him, and went to sleep.

Though, the next morning, when she woke, he kissed her and slid a golden ring onto her left hand. Not only did he remember, but he was serious the night before. Even as the heavy weight of panic set in over her chest, she went along with it. He was right; she didn't have anything else going on. He was probably the best she could do, too, and it would be nice to finally get on with life and out of this house. She should be happy and thankful that Mikey wanted to marry her and that she would marry soon like she was expected to do.

As school started back, she visited him a few times that year. He always took her around and introduced her as his fiancé—and with that started the expectations he had of her. He wanted her to dress up when they were out and didn't like if she engaged any of his friends in conversation when they were talking about sports. She could only speak to the other girlfriends. Only, she didn't have much in common with the other girlfriends, so she spent a lot of time sitting in silence.

He also loved talking about how his house would be: he would help his dad with the family businesses and she would stay home. She was expected to start having their children and basically manage their home. He never checked in on what she wanted to do or what she felt. She loved kids, but she didn't want them right away. She had dreamed of maybe traveling a bit after college and maybe having a career of her own. He didn't want to leave the neighborhood for any longer than necessary.

When she tried several times to talk to him and assert herself, and Mikey wouldn't even entertain a conversation about what she wanted, the feeling that it was all wrong set in. He certainly didn't support her investigating her new found interest in criminology. While she'd majored in social work, she took a few criminology classes in her last year that really caught her interest. She wanted to maybe follow up on that, but that didn't fit his vision of who Mrs. Ryan was and what she did.

In the end, she left his ring with a letter when she went to join Uncle Evan in San Francisco. When he got the number to their house, he called a few times, begging her to come home so they could work things out. The last time he called, he broke down in tears and asked her why she was doing this to their life. She felt like a bitch and spent a lot of time second guessing herself for refusing to go back, but marriage was serious. She felt horrible for breaking his heart and didn't show her face in the neighborhood for some time after, focusing on building her life in California. She decided to only look forward—and when she finally did show her face again, Mikey's dad hugged her and told her he was proud of her for taking care of herself.

Marriage wasn't about finding the best you could do or meeting any expectations about being a wife and belonging to someone else's ideals. She wanted to love and be loved for who she was. She wanted happiness.

And she had found it with Patrick. When Patrick mentioned the idea of marriage, she never felt that same panic or that he wanted her to fit some vision of a wife that she was not. As much as she anticipated that he would walk away so she tried to keep him at arm's length, he didn't. He pulled her in and held her close. Patrick wasn't the best she could do; he was everything. Even with her wedding day jitters, his unconditional love and support, along with the way they could see each other, showed her this was right. New memories certainly put the old ones in context.

She was lost in thought until an older woman brought her out of her reverie. "Excuse me, honey. Can you give me a bag of those marshmallows?"

"Oh, sure!"

She handed the woman her marshmallows. "My grandkids are coming in a bit, and they just love fudge!"

Fudge also sounded good. She'd never made that for Patrick. After the cookie making business a few weeks ago, she determined she was done with Christmas sweets. But on second thought...she grabbed another bag of marshmallows and chocolate chips. If anything, they could just pack it all up and take it home.

"Well, that sounds great! I'm just getting a few things for my family. We're visiting for a few days."

"That's lovely! How many children do you have?" She smiled a bit. One of her favorite parts of the CBI gig was always getting out of the city and talking to actual people sometimes.

"One."

"Does that include the one on the way?" Was she showing already? She took a quick look down at her belly, as the silver haired woman laughed. "Oh honey, it's not always the look that gives you away! All of that for a few days with one child?"

She blushed. Perhaps she had gone a bit overboard. "Yes, I guess that was obvious."

"Don't worry, honey. As you know, the cravings come and go. I don't blame you for stockpiling!"

"Well, actually it's my first pregnancy. Not much has come and gone yet. It's just that everything sounds good."

"I see. There are worse things to happen. Each one is different. With my third, I couldn't eat hardly anything!"

She chatted with the woman as they made their way to the checkout line. She was nice, and it was always great to check in with everyday people. As she settled into her car, she hoped she'd someday be the grandma who made the trip to the store to prepare her grandkids' favorite treats.

Though, that led to another revelation. Annie had never known her mother, nor would the new baby know her. No trips to grandma's house for her delicious fudge, or in her mom's case, bread pudding. They had no grandparent's house to visit for treats, wisdom, or as a refuge from their "strict" parents. Were she, Patrick, and their children truly alone? Could they provide everything their family needed?

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Catching sight of Annie and Patrick from the driveway made those nagging doubts disappear. Not only did she see Patrick kneeling in the sand, but she could hear Annie's giggles from the driveway. She got the groceries inside and put away before getting her own suit on to join them. Well, before heading out, she made a small container of fruit and cheese to take out to the beachfront.

"Look at our sandcastle, mommy!" As she approached them, Annie sputtered in excitement. Patrick was helping her sculpt a magnificent little castle.

"That's quite the castle you have there!"

"Annie told me she wanted a princess castle, and since she's my princess, I felt obliged."

Annie nodded steadily at his words. She had him wrapped around her little finger. "What does obliged mean?"

Without hesitation, he answered her question. "It just means something we have to do, like an obligation, but we do it happily."

"Hmm. Ok. Do you want to help us now?"

"I think you guys are already doing a great job."

She wrinkled her nose. "Really? We're still missing two towers!"

"It looks nearly perfect and put together nicely!" She held up her book. "I was going to read for a bit."

Annie shrugged. "Your loss!" She smirked as Annie took the pale and ran to the waves to collect some more wet sand and she took a seat on the blanket not far from where Patrick continued sculpting. She already had one parent to do her bidding.

"I see Annie has put you to work."

"Like I said earlier: Lisbon women. Very demanding."

"Hush!" She reached out and caressed his cheek. "Besides, you love it."

He placed his hand over hers and kissed her palm. His sweet blue eyes met hers, making her heart full. "That I do."

When Annie returned, she let him get back to his work as she settled into her book.

"All right! What do you think, Annie?" She looked over her book. Together, they had built a moderately large castle with towers and a moat.

"I love it! Mommy, what do you think?"

"No windows? Where's the garden?" She laughed. Patrick looked flustered as Annie nodded along to her questions, obviously thinking of ways to make these new improvements. She decided to end this before it got too far. "I'm kidding! It looks great!"

"Can we swim now?"

"We can, but the water is really cold! It's not as warm as our pool."

She shrugged. Kids don't seem to have the same concern about the elements as adults. She wondered when that went away. "It's cold at home, too."

She went still in her seat. Home. Home meant Chicago. She felt another pang of sadness. Annie, at five years old, was still trapped between two worlds: two cities, two homes, and two different sets of parents. Things shouldn't be this complicated for a child.

"Maybe we should go make lunch and then come back for some more beach time!"

"Ok! I have to go to the bathroom anyway." And with that, she scampered away.

He wrapped his arm around her. "What is it, Teresa?"

"Nothing."

"You're lost in thought."

"She misses home."

"She's still adjusting."

"I know. But it's so much for her."

"It is, but it doesn't mean she doesn't like being with us."

She scoffed. "No, of course not! You follow her every whim and deny her nothing!"

He grinned. "Like I said…"

"Lisbon women!" They finished the sentence in unison.

She turned to face him. "But don't you think…"

"No."

"You didn't let me finish!"

"I don't need to let you finish that thought. You know, I don't believe much in faith or anything I can't see like you do, but if I did? I'd think this is how everything was meant to be. Annie has us, and we have her. We're all better for it in different ways. You just feel guilt over your brother. You think if you'd been there, in Chicago, maybe things would be different. Maybe you even think if you brought him out to California, it would be different. As much as it's not Annie's responsibility to keep him going, it's not yours either. People have to stand on their own two feet. If they need help, they have to seek it. You can't manage everything for everyone all the time."

"I can't help but think that I should have done more. Tommy...he always loved Annie. When he found out Mel was pregnant, you couldn't get him to shut the hell up about it. He swore he'd never be like dad. He always doted on her and was so proud of her. She was daddy's little girl. I don't know what the hell happened to him, and I don't think we'll ever really know what this has done to her: to go from being so special and loved...to being thrown out like trash."

She felt her tears well in her eyes as her voice grew shakier. He wrapped his arm around her and kissed her shoulder.

"Teresa, you're doing exactly what you can do. As much as it is for her now, think of all the shit you went through that she's going to avoid. We are going to make sure she still has a good childhood and that she knows she has parents who love her. Annie's not trash, and we will spend the rest of our lives showing her that she's not. If Tommy cleans himself up and wants back in, he can, but it will be on our terms and what works best for Annie and our family. If she needs more help working through this, we will make sure she has it. But you also have the right to feel angry about what he's done. I know you're not angry she's here, but you are pissed off at him."

Annie knowing that she was safe and loved mattered above all else, but in many ways, she felt like she'd just lost her brother. Patrick would never know the kind of sorrow that carried. Maybe Tommy avoided her in shame, maybe it was something else. In any case, it would be a long time before they were ever good again. Maybe Annie could work through things and move towards a relationship with her father again if it were right for her, but she wasn't sure if she could ever forgive her brother for what he put Annie through. She tried to practice compassion, but there was only so much she could do.

She nodded. "I suppose you're right."

"I usually am." She laughed, as he wiped her eyes for her before hopping up out of the sand.

He reached for her hands. "Let's get inside. Annie is waiting on us." With that, she let him pull her up from the sand.

xxxxxxxxxxx

After their afternoon swim, and brief paddle board instruction, the early sunset sent them in a bit early. Annie went for a nap—on her own!—as she started to show Patrick how to prepare her pizza dough.

"Don't touch anything!"

"I'm a hands on learner!"

She closed her eyes. "Ok, but knead it gently. This is a process!"

Admittedly, he handled it well for his first time. Next, she showed him how to ground sausage—which was nice considering he just took up the space immediately behind her, snaked his left arm around her waist, and held his hand over hers on the spatula. Perhaps teaching him to cook had its benefits afterall.

She made up their pizza sauce and showed him how to roll out the dough before layering on the sauce and sausage.

"Now, you layer the other toppings in a concentric circle."

For tonight, she bought pepperoni, olives, and mushrooms. She didn't want to fool with chopping veggies.

"Ok, concentric circle layering of toppings. Why does that matter?"

She felt he was questioning her authority, but she did her best to keep her voice even. This was a learning activity and something that they were doing together. "It makes the pizza even."

He chuckled softly as he flicked an olive at her. She slapped his arm. "You want concentric circles, and I want to do this!"

He pulled her in for a deep kiss. "Have I messed up your pizza?"

"Not really."

"Good. I'd hate to really displease you. I know how you feel about being in control."

"Ha ha."

"Thank you for sharing your wisdom with me." He kissed her again, and she decided she wanted him now.

Breaking away abruptly, she looked into his eyes. "Patrick, finish getting your toppings on that pizza so we can layer the cheese on there. Quickly. I promise your reward will be great if you do."

He nodded and quickly returned to his work. After she seasoned the pizzas, she took his hand and led them to their room, locking the door behind them.

As she turned around, she noticed he'd already made quick work of his own clothes and was lifting her swimsuit cover over her head. Perhaps the lack of real clothing made this easier. Maybe that's why he looked like he was made for beach living. He captured her lips as he reached for the string on her bathing suit top.

He pulled back and looked into her eyes for a moment, causing her to bite her lip to suppress her quickening arousal. "Is this the reward you were talking about?"

"Absolutely." He quickly pulled the strings on her bottoms, lifting her up and carrying her the few feet to their bed. It was silly that he thought she needed to be carried places, but he loved doing it. And well, she didn't want to discourage him from things he loved doing.

The way he made love to her made her truly believe she might lose her mind. He always knew the exact touch that she needed to go over the edge. Like now, he knew that she'd meant for him to take charge. When they were both sated, he rolled over onto his side.

"My reward really was great."

She laughed as she squeezed her eyes shut. "I'm sorry. That was so corny!"

"I believe the word you're looking for is 'horny.'"

She kissed him. "Not horny. That makes me sound like a college co-ed on the prowl."

"Then, what would you like to call it? You were very clear on what you wanted done." He wriggled his eyebrows.

"I call it being magnificently in love with my sexy husband."

"Hmm. That's a lot to unpack."

"I'm sure you'll find time to unpack it all." She wasn't entirely sure what prompted her to say the next part. "I'm glad you love me."

His eyes found hers. "Of course. I don't think there's really any other option for me. You're a captivating woman of many beauties and talents. In many ways, you've taught me what love is."

She placed her hand over his heart, playing with a few stray hairs on his chest. "I don't think that's true. The way you treat people...you came with a big heart."

"Maybe, but I never knew the kind of love I could expect to receive until I met you."

"It's the kind of love you deserve."

"I love you, my green eyed girl."

"'Green eyed girl' kinda sounds like 'green eyed monster.'"

"I hear pregnancy does interesting things…"

"Oh hush! I love you too, blue eyes."

He held her into his chest as she dozed off to sleep. When she woke, he was gone. She put her shorts and sweater on before heading out to the living area.

"What are you guys doing?"

"Well, Annie wanted to show me Beauty and the Beast. She's telling me all about her favorite parts."

"You know, I'm not sure I've ever seen the entire movie."

"Really, mommy?"

"Really! By the time it came out, I wasn't watching many princess movies!" Not that she ever had.

"Adult movies sound boring! If there's no princess, what's the point?"

Patrick laughed as she sat down next to him and took his hand. "You see, Annie, there's always a princess. She just isn't always called that."

"Why?"

He shrugged. "Some women don't like the idea of princesses. The idea of who a princess is changes as they grow up. Some still love their princess movies, but they don't like to admit it, like her."

"Please!"

"Is that why you look like an angry little princess, like someone stole your tiara, sometimes?"

She wanted to slug him in the shoulder, but setting a good example for Annie was more important. "I've never been much for princess stuff, but you're right. A lot of adult movies use the same princess concept."

"So then which princess movie is your favorite, mommy?" For the first time, she realized that Annie was calling her "mommy." When did that start?

"Hmm. I'm not really sure."

"I don't think that's true." She glared at Patrick.

"Fine. It's Pretty Woman."

"What's Pretty Woman? Are there lots of princesses in it? Can we watch it?" Annie's green eyes were wide with anticipation.

"No!" She shrieked as her cheeks turned red. Patrick laughed again.

"Maybe when you're older. It's a very grown up movie."

"Ok. Are we going to have dinner soon?" Thankfully, Annie didn't have much interest in anything labeled "grown up" just yet.

"Of course!"

She caressed Annie's cheek and kissed her forehead. Annie grinned widely at her as she stood to get the pizza cooking started. Every day, it never failed: Annie always added something special to their lives. She just hoped they could make her life special, too.

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They sat outside, listening to the waves brush against the sand, as they enjoyed their pizza. She caught a glimpse of Annie. She was contentedly lost in a pizza coma, chomping down on another slice of pizza before slurping some of the orange pop that was a treat for the special occasion. Even if she worried about her niece being caught between two worlds, in many ways she was still in the same spot. Chicago would always be home. Memories made would always exist.

"Teresa, why don't you let me handle the dishes? Stay here with Annie for a bit."

She nodded and grinned a bit, rubbing her abdomen. It was a nice gesture—but there were not many dishes to do tonight.

"Did you have fun today, Annie?"

"Yes! Daddy said I might be a natural at surfing!"

"A natural at surfing?"

She nodded. "He said maybe next time we visit we can paddle more. He might even get me my own board!"

A moment of pause took over her body. She really wished he had talked to her before making that promise. Surfing could be dangerous, especially for a child. Though, she didn't linger on that too long. If this was something for the two of them to do, maybe that was all right.

"I don't know when we will be back, but I'm glad you enjoyed surfing."

"Can't surf in Chicago! Or build sandcastles in Chicago! Just snowmen." The little girl frowned.

She held her arms out, and Annie found her way out of the chair across the table and into her arms. "What is it, sweetie?"

"Who's going to build a snowman with daddy this year?"

"I don't know, Annie."

She rubbed Annie's back. Really, she didn't know what Tommy was up to. He still hadn't returned any calls since the day she received that letter from the State of Illinois, not even on Christmas Day. As much as it upset her, she tried not to let that seep through in front of Annie.

"I liked building a sandcastle with daddy, but I also like building snowmen with...well, what do I call him now?"

She could sense the anxiety starting to creep into her voice. "Annie, he will always be your father. You're Annabeth Sarah Lisbon, the daughter of Thomas Christopher Lisbon, Jr. No one can ever change that."

"But I'm your daughter now."

"Because we want you to join our family, but that doesn't make your birth parents go away. It just means we get to build a new idea of what family means and make new memories. When you're a big girl, even just a year from now, you'll think about this time differently."

"That's a long time."

"It is, but we all grow and change all the time, even adults!" Annie started to fidget a bit, so she tickled her sides, making her giggle before leaning over and meeting the green eyes that looked like her own. "But we love you very much and want you to be a part of our family. We will make new memories together."

"I like being here too, mommy. You and daddy are very nice."

"Oh, is someone praising me while I'm not here to hear what's being said?" Patrick reappeared carrying the supplies for s'mores.

"Annie was just saying how she loves how much you spoil her."

"No, I didn't say that!"

Annie leaned forward as she whispered into her ear: "just teasing."

He grinned a large, false smile before tapping his right hand over his heart, making a show of it. "Lisbon women: I aim to please!"

"Jane."

"Hmm?"

"Well, at least one of us is a Jane woman now."

His eyes twinkled. "That she is."

They held each other's gaze for a few moments longer. In the old days, he would've had her down on the table by now. That wasn't their love language anymore. Well, they were still very much into sex, but their love language had grown and blossomed into something so much deeper. Sometimes, she wondered if they were extensions of each other.

Sensing Annie's boredom set in, she determined they should get this party started. "Should we get this fire started?"

While the pizza had cooked, she and Patrick figured out how to get the fire pit going for later. While California stayed pretty moderate year round, nights could still be quite cool.

About an hour or so later, the three of them sat around the fire pit. She leaned her back into his chest with Annie to her side, and he'd brought an arm around each of them. Perhaps this would've been the perfect Kodak moment with all of them here in front of the fire, content and ready for the chapters—the new memories—to come as their family continued to grow and their love became their own.

A/N: Did you catch that Friends reference? I hope you did ;) I'll see you back for the next chapter!