All characters that are from the TWILIGHT saga by Stephanie Meyer belong to Stephanie Meyer. All others belong to me. I do not receive profit for these stories except for the joyous enjoyment of reviews.

This story follows right after When I'm Gone: Third Installment to GONE Saga, so if you haven't read that one or the two before, please do.

The timeline of the story will coincide with Gabriel Michael Laskaris' growing up years, starting at Seth and Rosa's wedding day, April 12th and will progress from there.

AN: Kudos to my Idea-Beta, Gaby, for the wonderful idea of the aquarium. I've already got chapter eleven done and have started working on chapter twelve. And since I have internet at home again (ALLELUIA!) updates shall resume to one a week, as long as my muse continues to be inspired.

Gaby -love you so much girly! Look forward to this review as I do to every one of the ones you write.

Ses -five!

Ghostrider (or is it reader?) -just letting you know this is half Julie/Lian. Sorry that you skip Julie sections but if you start reading this, please continue considering the first part is inadvertently Collin and Lyn (imprints)

Chelsea, Lette, Moani, Gianna -you gals are amazing for sticking it out with me.

As always, enjoy the chapter as you read it and please, for my sake, review!

Chapter Ten
Third Monday of September
New York City

"I have the most amazing news to tell you! Oh my God, Firecracker! I still can't believe this is happening! I'm just…so happy!"

"Lyn…Lyn," Julie tried to stop the rushing train that was her sister's excitement, "Slow down, sweetie. You're talking so fast the only way I would be able to understand you would be under water."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I just can't…I'm so…" Lyn let out a scream, Julie jerking the phone away from her ear in time to save her ear drum from damage, the members of her band laughing at the far off sound of Lyn's excited screams.

"Okay, I'm done," Julie heard her sister take a deep breath, picturing her doing the whole hand waving thing in an effort to calm herself before she asked curiously, "Who's with you?"

"The band," Julie answered, leaning against the wall as she watched out of the glass window of the sound booth, her heart jumping into her throat as the door opened, Lian walking in followed by the members of his band, "We're recording a new song today."

"Oh gosh, Julie," Lyn apologized profusely, "I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have called you when you're working. I'm so sor –"

"Stop," she interrupted her, looking away from Lian's dark brown eyes, pressing her forehead against the wood paneling as she turned her back to him, "Nothing's more important to me right now than to listen to your news."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Great," the word came out in a breathless rush and Julie just knew her sister was bouncing in barely contained excitement, "So this last Saturday, Collin and I made plans to go out –you know, have fun and blow off some steam before midterms –"

"Oh God," Julie chuckled softly, fighting the urge to look over her shoulder, able to feel his eyes on her; "First semester of med school and you're already doing midterms."

"I know! It's been crazy, what with lectures, projects, research papers, clinicals –Human Genetics is kicking my ass but thank God, I got that midterm out of the way early this morning."

"Sounds like you're living the life, sissy," Julie teased her little sister, reaching up to pick at a seam between panels, shifting slightly to lean her shoulder against the wall, "So what happened Saturday?"

"Okay, so Collin said he would plan the whole thing –which I was so thankful for because I had to finish the third unit of my Endocrinology course –"

"Lyn," Julie interrupted her sister, not because she didn't enjoy hearing about her classes but because she was running out of time –she could practically hear Lian's frustration in the silence, "Honey, you need to get to the point."

"Right, right, I'm sorry. Okay, so Saturday evening, I get ready –he tells me it's casual so I wear jeans and a nice top because, really, I'm just too tired to put any effort into looking pretty –"

"Looking pretty comes natural to you," Julie told her softly, smiling as her sister laughed.

"That's what Collin said. Anyway, we met in the living room –"

"You two aren't sharing a room," Julie crossed her ankles, staring at the black and purple converse sneakers she wore along with washed out black jeans and a purple t-shirt three sizes too big, the hem tied in a knot at her back, the low waistline of the jeans leaving her bellybutton ring on display.

"No, it's so frustrating, seriously, but he insists on no sex until after marriage –how archaic is that?"

Julie laughed, reaching back to brush at a curl tickling her neck –she had thrown her hair up into a messy knot at the top of her head, barely taking the time to apply some mascara and lip-gloss, "I like him even more now."

"Oh, don't be such a prude;" Lyn blew a raspberry into the phone, "I happen to know you and Seth –"

"Madelyn."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry…I shouldn't have said that."

"It's alright," Julie reached up to touch her aching lip, surprised to see blood on her fingertips –she had bit down hard enough to break skin, "Just…please…tell me about Saturday."

"Okay, so we meet in the living room –I'm thinking dinner at Red Hot Mama and maybe some dancing over at Encore but instead, he drives us to the aquarium."

"The aquarium," Julie's voice had a high pitch tone of surprise to it.

"That's exactly what I thought –I mean, it's after eight pm and there's no way they're open but there's this guy waiting for us at the front entrance. At this point, I'm beyond confused as to what's going on but since Collin made all the plans, I didn't say anything while we followed the guy into the aquarium."

Julie's heart seized as she realized where this was going, her eyes filling up with tears as she took in a sharp breath, "What happened next?"

"Oh, Firecracker…it was amazing! He led us to the tunnel in the thousand gallon tank –the lights were on and it looked so beautiful, with the blue water and the fish swimming around and over us…there was a table in the middle..."

Julie blinked fast but a tear still managed to escape as she reached up to wipe it away, "Then?"

"He had our dinner catered to us –Italian because it's my favorite. We ate and there was music –all of my favorite songs. Candles on the table with yellow roses…so romantic."

"Oh God, Lyn," Julie sniffed, rubbing her hand over her chest as she dug her toe into the bottom seam of the paneled wall, rolling her shoulders back –she could feel all of them looking at her and knew by the silence they were avidly listening to her side of the conversation, "Did he?"

"I had no clue he was going too," Lyn exclaimed, her voice slightly shaky with tears of joy, "After dinner, he asked me to dance and we did…then in the middle of one of your songs –"

"Which one," Julie asked, feeling grateful to Collin that in this small way, he had made sure she would be part of such a special moment in her little sister's life.

"'If I Ain't Got You,'" Lyn let out a soft sob followed by a sniffle, "Oh, Julie, it was beautiful. He got down on his knees, took my hands and told me how I was his best friend, the center of his world –the meaning of his life and how if he hadn't found me, everything he could ever do –like becoming a doctor –would have no meaning, no purpose or passion. I was crying so hard, just listening to him and then…"

Julie listened to her little sister take a shuddering breath before she continued, "He said the most amazing thing ever –told me how he wanted to ask me right there, between his world and mine, to be his wife."

"Oh Lyn," Julie let out a soft sob, no longer able to keep the tears at bay as she felt a large hand settle between her shoulder blades.

Looking over her shoulder, she gave Adam –her bass guitarist –a watery smile, nodding when he mouthed 'Is everything okay?'

"I'm so happy, Julie. Oh God! I need to send you a picture of the ring –it's beautiful!"

Her iPhone beeped, letting her know she had just gotten a text.

Moving the phone away from her ear, she opened the text message, the attachment opening as soon as she tapped on the icon.

A gasp escaped her at the sight of a platinum ring, a square cut diamond centered with pink diamonds around the band on either side –it was beautifully simple yet classically gorgeous, "Lyn, it's beautiful!"

"Right," Lyn's voice echoed in the sound booth, the iPhone having gone automatically into speaker when Julie had opened the text, "Sienna helped him pick it out before we moved to Tacoma. I'm still amazed she was able to keep this a secret from me for so long!"

"Sienna," Julie asked as she studied the ring, able to see how it was a perfect fit for her little sister.

"Collin's little sister. You met her at graduation –Oh, Julie, I'm so happy! I thought maybe now that we're engaged, once we got back to our apartment, we would…but no, stubborn boy still won't put out!"

Julie grimaced as the guys behind her all laughed, quickly taking her sister off speaker as Lyn squeaked out, "Did you have me on speaker? Oh my God! This is so embarrassing!"

"I'm sorry," Julie tried to muffle her laughter into her hand, "I was still looking at your ring –if it's any consolation they think Collin's a wimp for holding out on you."

Lyn laughed at that, the sound of a slamming door echoing in the background, "I'm gonna tell him that –who knows, maybe the extra pressure will have him cave…I can at least hope."

"Have you two set a date," Julie asked, looking down at the silver watch on her wrist, grimacing internally at the realization she had been on the phone for almost forty minutes –the guys were probably starting to get impatient…if they weren't already.

"I want you to be there so it'll be sometime after you get back from tour…I want you to be my maid of honor, Julie…help me pick out my dress and stuff."

"I would love that, Lyn," she said with a smile, turning away from the wall, "You and Collin pick whatever date you want…I promise I'll be there every step of the way."

"I'm thinking maybe sometime in June, between spring and summer semesters –"

"That sounds great," Julie looked up from the floor, her eyes locking with Lian's –he was sitting on a stool, quietly holding a well loved acoustic guitar between his knees, one booted foot on the floor, the other hooked onto the bottom rung as he watched her, the blank expression on his face having her wonder what he was thinking, "Lyn, we've been talking for almost an hour and I've got the band here so I gotta let you go."

"Oh, shit. Of course. We'll talk next weekend –I have midterms all week so I won't be able to talk much during the week, what with studying and all. Hey, I heard you're doing a duet with that asshole Lian Young. Is it true?"

"Yes," Julie couldn't look away from his eyes, the kiss they had shared last time they'd seen each other dominating her thoughts –she prayed to God he couldn't see the memory of it in her eyes, "That's actually what I'm working on today."

"Oh, gosh, I was hoping it wasn't true. Is he there right now? I'd like to give him a piece of my mind."

"No," Julie lied, taking a deep breath as she saw something in his dark brown eyes that made her body come alive, her blood humming as small electrical currents ran along her skin, "He's not here yet. Madelyn, we'll talk later, okay? I love you."

"I love you too, Firecracker, and I miss you so much! Oh! Call mom when you have the chance –she's getting ready to take her nursing exam and could use some encouragement."

"I will. Tell Collin congratulations for me –he couldn't possibly find a better woman than you."

Lyn laughed as she repeated the words, Collin's laughter coming through the line, "He says he already knows but thanks for reminding him. We'll talk later. Bye!"

"Bye," letting out a soft sigh as the line went dead, she quickly shut her phone off before giving all the guys an apologetic smile, "Sorry about that. My little sister got engaged this last Saturday."

"We surmised as much," Adam teased her as he continued to tune his bass guitar, "She's in medical school, right?"

"First year," Julie said with a proud smile, moving towards her stool as she took her guitar from its stand, "Both her and her fiancé attend UW in Tacoma. Let's get started, then."

"We've got too many musicians in the room, don't you think, Jules," Dave –her drummer –asked as he twirled one of his drum sticks all the while giving Lian the stink eye.

"What I was thinking we could do is hodge-podge it –see what works and what doesn't. We might end up having to mix and match you guys –is that all right?"

Those in her band nodded reluctantly before looking towards Lian and his band, watching as he looked over his shoulder at them before looking back at Julie, "Sounds good to us. Let's get started."


One thirty-three in the morning

"And that's how it's done," exclaimed Micah –Lian's drummer –as he rolled his sticks across his drum kit, hitting the crash cymbal last as everyone laughed.

Julie let out a yawn, stretching her arms over her head, the sound of her back popping drowned by the guys –some from her band, some from Lian's –putting their instruments away, "Great job, guys."

"Always a pleasure, Jules," Adam squeezed her shoulder as he moved around her to place his guitar into its case, taking hers from its stand to do the same, "Marley's going to be pleased with this one."

"Marley doesn't have a say on this one, Adam," Julie rubbed the back of her neck, rolling her head as she lifted her shoulders, trying to loosen the knots there, "This one's Lian's."

Adam's eyebrows lowered in confusion as he looked over at Lian, watching the guy place his acoustic guitar into its case before turning to Julie, his voice low, "You wrote it…it's got you written all over it. Why is he getting to keep it?"

"I don't want it," Julie answered, pulling at the messy bun at the top of her head, her long hair spilling down her back as she slid the hair tie onto her wrist, "Natalie thought he'd do justice to the song and didn't give me a choice about the duet…as punishment for slapping him on live television."

Adam swallowed back a laugh as he leaned her purple guitar case against the wall alongside his, "Don't let Dave know…he's already pretty pissed about having to skip out."

"Ugh," Julie sat on a nearby stool, stretching out her long legs as she rubbed her aching neck, "We agreed on that. I so don't want to have to deal with his emo-crap."

"I'll talk to him," Dan –Dave's twin brother and one of her three guitarists –gave her shoulder a squeeze as he moved towards the open door, "He won't be giving you any bullshit."

"Thanks, Dan," Julie gave him a tired smile, the shiver running down her back letting her know that Lian was staring at her –again, "You did great."

"Thanks for keeping me," Dan grinned as he tipped his chin at Lian, "I know for a fact his guitarist is much more experienced and talented than I am."

"It was all about the chemistry," Julie tucked her chin into her chest, her hair spilling over her shoulders to create a curtain to keep Liam from seeing her flushed face –hours of being so close to him had her as tense as a cat on a high wire.

Adam reached out to place a big hand over the back of her head, long fingers burrowing into her hair to massage her scalp as the other guys gathered their things, conversations amiable while they made their way out of the studio.

Dan slapped Adam's back on his way out, "See ya at the pitch tomorrow."

"Yeah," Adam waved at his friend and roommate before turning his attention back to Julie, "Want me to take you home?"

For the first time throughout the little scene playing out before him, Lian spoke up, "We still need to do the vocal track."

Adam turned his blue eyes towards him, cocking an eyebrow, "It's almost two in the morning, man."

"Don't worry," Lian slid his fingers into the pockets of his worn out jeans, the black t-shirt he wore stretching across his broad chest in a way that made Julie's heart skip a few beats, "I'll make sure she gets home safe."

Adam looked down at Julie, his hand moving to rest on her shoulder, "You okay with that?"

She nodded, letting out a tired sigh, "I just want to get this done and over with. Don't worry about me, Adam, I'll be fine. I'm a big girl, remember?"

"Right," Adam gently cuffed her chin as he chuckled before stepping back and bending down to grab his backpack before taking his guitar case, "You're such a pussy-cat I often forget you have claws."

Julie gave him a smile, taking a deep breath as he walked out of the studio, the large room shrinking immensely now that it was just her and Lian…and Sammy –the recording engineer at the other side of the window…can't forget her.

"He seems rather fond of you," Lian's voice was quiet yet something in the way he said it made her tense up, eyes guarded as she looked into the dark brown eyes quietly studying her.

"I've gotten close to all the guys in my band," Julie's tone was slightly defensive as her jaw tightened minutely, "What's it to you?"

Lian didn't answer, simply stared at her, his breathing steady despite the way his heart was beating hard against his ribs –it had pissed him off, seeing Adam touching her with such familiarity.

The seconds ticked by in silence before he spoke up again, his voice making her think of whiskey –God, a stiff drink sounded good to her right now, "How 'bout we listen to the instrumental tracks before we start working on the vocals? It should give us an idea on how we want to work out the duet."

She lifted a shoulder, feeling a twinge of disappointment at the change of subject –she could use a fight right now, maybe that would keep her body from humming every time he spoke –grimacing at the sharp pain lancing up her neck, "Sure."

Stepping out of the sound booth, they moved towards the recording equipment outside the booth, Lian picking up a headset and handing it to her before he took one for himself, giving Sammy a smile, "Take a break, girl. You look wiped out."

"You two are fuckin' slave drivers. God, I hope fuckin' Natalie dies a horrible death for pairing you up," Sammy said with a yawn, stretching her arms up and over her head, the tiny black shirt she wore riding up her ribs, revealing a bit more of the intricate tattoo that went from the waistband of her ripped jeans, up the left side of her ribs, across a flat stomach to disappear under the hem of her shirt, "Do me a fuckin' favor and keep the volume down. I'm gonna take a nap on the couch."

As soon as she stretched out on the black leather couch, Lian pulled over another chair as Julie sat on the one Sammy had vacated.

They worked in silence, listening to track after track –keyboard, drums, acoustic, bass, electric, overhead left, overhead right –it went on and one for quite some time.

The notebook Sammy used to keep detailed notes on every track –she was obsessively organized despite her thrown together appearance –began filling up with markings as both Lian and Julie marked the tracks they like, the ones they didn't and combinations they felt could work well together.

As the last track faded out, Lian marked an X next to it before removing the headphones, glancing quickly at his watch –it was nearing four in the morning.

Looking over at Julie, he pretended not to notice the tight look around her purple eyes or the tired droop to the corners of her lips before he looked towards the couch, "Sammy?"

Jerking away, she blinked tiredly at him, "What?"

"Let's do the vocal track –we'll mix and edit on Wednesday, master the whole thing on Thursday."

"Fuck," Sammy rubbed her hands over her face as she sat up, arching her back before standing up, "Let's get this shit done. I need to go home before Sheila starts thinking I'm with some other bitch."

Lian chuckled as he set the headset to the side, moving into the sound booth with Julie trailing behind him.

Opening his duffel bag by the door, he pulled out two bottles of water, handing one to Julie as he looked into her eyes, the usually bright purple dimmed by exhaustion, "You up for this?"

"Yeah," Julie's agreement came out in a yawn as she uncapped the bottle, taking a long drink before coming up for air.

It was five twenty-two in the morning by the time they were both satisfied with the multiple vocal tracks they had recorded.

Sammy tossed her headphones onto the desk, flipping the switches to turn off her recording equipment before leaning forward to rap her knuckles against the glass.

Lian looked up, laughing as she gave him the one finger salute –as was her custom since he met her back when recording his first CD –waving good-bye with a cheeky smile on her face.

Julie watched the door close, fighting hard to keep control of her heart but it wasn't easy.

She was alone, in a closed room, with Lian Young –asshole extraordinaire and panty-dropping kisser.

"I'll walk you to your car," Lian said without looking at her, the strap of his duffel back settling over his shoulder before he grasped the handle of his guitar case.

"I don't have a car," Julie answered as she grabbed her backpack, the purple guitar case on her other hand, "I'll get a taxi."

"Where do you live?"

She hesitated for a few seconds before turning to look at him, "Asbury Park."

"Nice," Lian moved across the room, opening the door and stepping back to let her through first, "I actually go there every morning to watch the sunrise."

She tried not to let that get under her skin –she also watched the sunrise every morning, toes buried into the sand as the ocean pounded the shore, hearing it call out to her again and again.

No words were exchanged as they took the elevator down, Lian's hand on her arm halting her exit on the first floor, "I'll drive you."

"You don't have too."

"I know," he pulled her back into the elevator before pushing the button, the elevator moving down one more floor to open at the underground garage, his hand on the small of her back guiding her across the asphalt.

Lian dropped his hand to dig the keys out of his pocket, opening the trunk and placing his guitar and duffel back into it before closing it.

Taking her guitar case, he led her to the passenger side, opening the back door to slide the instrument onto the seat, closing the door before opening hers.

"This is a 1966 Thunderbird Ford, right," she asked as she looked around the interior of the car, smoothing her hand over the leather seat, missing the look of shock Lian gave her.

"You know cars?"

She nodded her head as she set her backpack between her feet, wincing at the pain in her tense shoulders –she needed a hot shower in the worst way, "I have a friend that likes old cars. If we weren't talking music, we talked cars. Derek would give his right arm for this one."

He chuckled, saying nothing as he closed the door before walking around the front, watching out of the corner of his eye as she leaned across the driver's seat to pop the lock open for him.

The ride was quiet, the traffic light as he made his way across the city towards Asbury Park.

Julie didn't say anything as he turned off of Lake Avenue and drove onto the beach, setting the car in park before he turned off the engine.

"Three minutes before the sun rises," he said without looking at her, pushing the button that would have the top fold back, letting the breeze flow into the open car.

Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, the sea-salt smell in the air filling her lungs as she let her head drop back onto the headrest, a soft groan of pain slipping past her lips.

"Turn around."

Her eyes flew open as she turned to look at Lian, "What?"

"You carry all your stress on your shoulders," Lian moved sideways on his seat, his drawn up knee nudging her hip, "Turn around."

She wanted to say no but the memory of how it felt when he had last touched her caused that disconnection again –her brain kept screaming for her to get the hell away from him while her body ignored it.

Turning her back to him, an involuntary moan escaped her as soon as his hands settled on her shoulders, his thumbs digging into the painful knots.

Letting her head drop forward, she bit her lip to keep herself from making any more noise, her face flushing in embarrassment as she felt her body responding to his touch.

Rubbing his thumbs down the back of her neck, he squeezed the muscles running down to her shoulders before kneading them, feeling the knots there slowly relaxing.

Leaning forward, his nose brushed against the side of her neck as he took in a deep breath, Julie's voice hitching, "What are you doing?"

"You smell so good," Lian's words whispered across her skin, her head tilting back without permission as his nose traced her hairline, his chest solid against her shoulder blades.

"I smell like sweat," it seemed like her mouth was the only part of her body still in accordance with her brain, "And a twenty-four hour workday."

"It suits you," he whispered into her ear, a shiver running down her back as his hands slowly followed after it, his thumbs rubbing against her spine in a way that made the screaming in her head drop to a whimper.

Julie's breathing was coming fast, her thighs clenched together in hopes of relieving the pressure that was gathering down there, her mouth betraying her along with the rest of her traitorous body as it let a moan escape, her voice husky as she whispered, "That feels good."

Lian's lips moved against her ear as he slid his hands under her shirt, his magical fingers kneading the muscles as he moved his hands up her bare back, dragging the shirt along with it.

His lips moved along the outside of her ear before he tugged at the top curve, his teeth scrapping against her skin making her whimper, his breath hot as he whispered, "You're so easy to please."

She may be over-reacting but his words just rubbed her the wrong way as she tensed up in a heated rush of anger.

Moving away from him, she shoved the door open, grabbing her backpack before stepping out.

Lian watched in confusion as she slammed the door, reaching into the back seat to grab her guitar case, her words harsh as she glared at him, "Just like a whore, right?"

"Wha –"

She didn't let him finish, walking away with her back unnaturally straight, leaving him sitting in his car with his mouth open in utter confusion.

He was trying to catch up on the whole situation but the aroused state he was in was making it difficult.

As he watched her move towards nearby condominiums, her words finally sank in, having the same effect as a cold shower.

Reaching to rub the back of his neck, he thought back to what he had said to have her jump down his throat like that, still feeling confused over the whole damn thing.

What the fuck had happened?


Second Week of October

"I made an appointment with doctor Lodhi for next week," Leah handed the washed dish to her husband, scrubbing the next one as he dried the plate before placing it into the open cupboard where she kept them, "Wednesday, at two-thirty."

Rick took the next plate from her wet hand, efficiently drying it as he gave her a smile, "I have track practice at four so that would work best if we meet her at the hospital."

"That's what I thought," Leah gave him a smile, "Which is why I scheduled to meet at her office there."

Rick laughed as she finished washing the last plate, drying it and placing it into the cupboard as she drained the sink and wiped down the counters, "Thank you for being so accommodating."

Leah laughed, folding the towel over the lip of the sink before she washed the smell of dish detergent off her hands, giving him a cheeky grin, "I've gotten used to having you with me."

Rick hung the drying towel on the hook where it belonged –he'd learned the hard way in the past three years that Leah was very particular about her kitchen –before wrapping his arms around her, "As have I, agape mou."

Drying her hands, she turned fully into his arms, wrapping hers around his neck as he lowered his head to hers, their lips brushing lightly, the tip of his tongue touching her bottom lip before she pushed her body into his, her lips sealing over his.

The kiss slowly deepened, the desire that always seemed to simmer under the surface leaping into flames as he moved his hands down her back, slipping his fingers into the back pockets of her jeans.

"Hey! None of that!"

They broke apart, looking towards the open door leading into the kitchen from the backyard, Seth giving them a stern look, his brown-green eyes twinkling, "I already have four nephews and one niece. I don't need any more so please maintain a distance of five –no, ten feet…just to be on the safe side."

Leah blushed as Rick chuckled, both turning to face her brother.

Rick kept his hand right where it was –inside Leah's back pocket –the other one resting on her stomach, his thumb hooked into the waistband of her jeans as Leah asked her brother, "What are you doing here?"

"No moon tonight," Seth arched an eyebrow in surprise, "It's our turn to babysit, right?"

"Oh gosh," Leah laughed as she reached to brush her hair back –it was starting to get long, as was usual with every one of her pregnancies, "It momentarily slipped my mind."

Seth's eyebrows rose up as he looked from Leah to Rick then back, "Well…then…where are the monsters? Rose has been working like a demon all day, getting things ready, pureeing carrots and apples and making banana pudding. She even went to the store this morning and bought a crib for the twins, which I just finished putting together –no thanks to those useless instructions."

"She didn't need to do that," Leah bit her lip, letting out a huff as a shriek echoed in the house, several seconds passing before Gabe ran into the kitchen, his face set on a dark scowl as he looked up at his mother, "Emmie won't leave me alone!"

"What is she doing," Leah asked, crouching down to eye level, very familiar with these particular situations -Gabriel and Emerie did such a wonderful job of driving each other crazy...and her.

"She's staring at me," Gabe stomped his foot in agitation, "I told her to stop but she won't!"

"Honey," Leah tried to think of something to say but she couldn't figure out how to resolve this issue –she couldn't exactly scold Emmie for staring.

At that moment, Emmie skipped into the kitchen, stopping next to her older brother, blue eyes wide as she stared up at him.

"Stop it," Gabe fisted his little hands, his jaw tight as she kept at it, "Stop staring at me!"

"Emerie," Rick's quiet voice caught her attention, the little girl blinking as she looked up at her father with a sweet smile, her eyes twinkling, "Your brother doesn't want to play the staring game. You know he doesn't like it so please stop."

Pursing her lips, she looked at her brother then up at her father before turning to look at Seth, "Can you play staring with me, Uncle Seth?"

Seth gave her a big smile, "Sounds like fun. Hey, Tornado, go get your bike and meet us up front."

"We're sleeping at your house today," Gabe exclaimed, remembering his mother telling him about it last week.

Gabe ran out of the opened back door, Emmie heading towards him as Zaky toddled into the kitchen, his serious little face breaking into a smile at the sight of his uncle, "Unca Eth!"

"Hey, there, Zak," Seth laughed as the little boy moved across the kitchen, raising his little arms to be picked up.

"This should be interesting," Rick whispered into Leah's ear, laughing along with his wife as Seth set Zakery on his shoulders before looking down at Emmie, "Climb on up my foot and hold on tight, cutie pie."

Emmie giggled, her small feet planted firmly on Seth's left foot as she wrapped her small arms around his leg, little hands gripping tightly at his jeans.

"Now all I need is for someone to hand me the little terrors in the living room," Seth walked across the kitchen, Emmie giggling with every step as Leah and Rick followed behind him, "This should be an interesting night for us –I'm thinking with all these kids under one roof, Rose might get baby fever."

"Either that or she'll swear off having babies forever," Leah leaned into the playpen where Alyx and Andrey were happily –and noisily –playing with each other.

"Either one's fine with me," Seth wrapped his left arm around Andrey as soon as Leah handed him over, then took Alyx in his right arm, the yanking of his hair letting him know Zaky was holding on tight.

"Seth," Leah looked up at her soon to be two year old, her stomach flipping at the idea of him falling off Seth's shoulders, "Maybe I should help you –"

"No, no," Seth gave her a smile meant to reassure, "He's got a tight grip –besides, his feet are tucked securely under my arms. See?"

Leah bit her lip as she checked to be sure, letting out a breath before looking up at her boy, "Zaky, don't let go of your uncle's hair, okay baby?"

"'Kay, mama," Zaky nodded his head, that serious little look of his letting her know he understood what she was asking of him.

"I should have given you the duffel bag first," Leah shook her head as she looked around, finding the bag near the door, "Give me Alyx and I'll sling it over your shoulder."

"Uncle Seth," Gabe yelled from the front of the house, "Hurry up! Vivi's waiting!"

"Why do I have the feeling we'll be hearing that a lot in the future," Seth teased his sister, having learned from her his nephew's plans to marry his Ladybug, "Alright, all set. Hand Alyx over and we'll be ready to get out of your way."

Leah laughed as Seth headed to the front door, following behind him with her eyes on Zaky, making sure he was securely sitting on the broad shoulders, "Are you walking?"

"I'm just down a couple of streets and around the corner," Seth reminded her as she moved around him to open the front door just as Gabe yelled out again, "Uncle Seth! We need to go now!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Seth walked out of the house, giving his oldest nephew a look of fake exasperation, "Hold your horses, dude. She's gonna be there all night."

"Gabe, stay next to your uncle, okay," Leah leaned down to kiss his forehead, then kissed Emmie's cheek before straightening to give the twins and Zaky –the little boy leaned over his uncle's head so she could reach him –kisses as well, "You guys behave for your aunt and uncle, okay?"

"'Kay, mama," Zaky and Emmie said in unison, Andrey and Alyx simply giving her dimpled smiles that had her working hard not to laugh.

At ten months, those two were already well known to be trouble-makers.

It should be a fun night for her brother and his wife.

Rick wrapped his arms around her, pulling her back into him as they watched Seth heading down the sidewalk, Gabe pedaling his bicycle next to him, the well-used training wheels hardly touching the concrete, "What should we do first?"

Leah smiled as she tilted her head back to look into his blue eyes, "Let's take a nap…oh! Let's take a bath. I got new candles and in a few months, we won't be able too. Yes?"

Rick kissed her nose as he walked backwards into the house, pulling her along with him before reaching over her head to close the door, turning the lock as he turned her towards the bathroom, "I never turn down the chance to get you naked and wet."

Leah's laughter as they headed into the bathroom filled his heart to overflowing.

He was one hell of a lucky guy to have her –his best friend, his wife, his lover and the mother of his children.