AN: I did not plan to take this long to update, but life happens. Just know that this fic has always been close to my heart. My goal is to finish it. I just cannot say how long it will take. Hope you guys will stick with me until the end. With that stated, be warned for this swearing in this chapter and more than likely there will be more throughout the story. Without further interruption, I give you Chapter One.

Chapter One

There were many things Eliot Murtaugh enjoyed in life, but there were three things that he loved doing. The first, being with his family. The second, was anything that had adrenaline coursing in his veins. The third, but certainly not the least was spending time with his girl, Sarah Baker.

Well she wasn't his girl anymore…hadn't been for years, but that didn't stop him from thinking of her as his Sarah because in many ways she still was. She had been his first love and almost his first everything to be precise. She had seen him at his best and at his worst and through it all she had stuck with him until he fucked it all up.

One drunken mistake.

One that he could have kept a secret.

But not only was she his first love, she was his best friend.

He couldn't keep it from her and he wasn't surprised that she broke up with him.

It had hurt like hell, but he had accepted it.

And yet even after breaking up she had miraculously stayed as his best friend. He loved her even more because of it.

His love for her was the cause of many of his relationships failing, but he didn't give a shit. If none of those women could understand and accept that Sarah was someone important in his life then he didn't want them in his life.

He once told Sarah that and she had called him an idiot.

So it came to no surprise that he suspected something was wrong when he knocked on Sarah's apartment door and she answered it in PJs and hair in utter disarray. His suspicions were further confirmed when she didn't want to go out and eat a burger for lunch.

"You never say no to a free burger and french fries."

"I don't feel like going out." Sarah sighed with her arms crossed as she leaned against her door.

Well there was an exception to that rule. "Are you on your time of the month?" The question slipped out without thought. He knew he fucked up royally when her arms uncrossed and her eyes narrowed on him. Eliot could only grunt in pain when she delivered a swift punch to his gut. He should have known better.

"You fucking jerk." She hissed venomously.

Eliot cupped himself quickly after remembering that he had once witnessed the woman before him deliver a kick to a man's balls when he kept making derogative comments about females to her face. "Sorry."

Her anger vanished just as quickly as it had reared its head. "I just don't feel like going out today."

"Can we order pizza?" he asked not wanting to leave just yet. Not when he knew something was bothering his best friend.

"Sure." Her lips curved into a smile when she saw the hope in his gaze.

"Ice cream?"

"I ran out."

"I can go buy some."

"I'll order the pizza."

"Deal." He winked at her before walking off.

Eliot smirked flirtatiously at the cashier and was about to say something smooth when his phone began to ring with JT's 'Sexyback'. He felt his face grow warm when the young lady began to chuckle. He made a mental note to get Calvin and Daniel back for screwing with his phone again. At least this time they didn't set his ringtones as sex tones.

He pulled out his cell phone and hissed into it. "Calvin, I swear to all the things that are holy I will end you."

"Well, it's a good thing I'm not Calvin."

The anger and annoyance he felt quickly vanished when he recognized the male voice. "Well, well, well, if it isn't my main squeeze—"

"Please stop calling me that. I'm tired of people getting the wrong idea."

"What can I do for you cupcake?"

"I knew calling you was a mistake."

"Awww, you know you don't mean that." Eliot winked at the cashier as he took his bag and practically strutted out of the market. "You must be hella desperate if you're reaching out to me instead of the other way around."

"You can say that to a certain point."

Eliot frowned. There was something off. "Frieze, what's wrong?"

"Are you busy tonight?"

"I don't have any plans so far unless Sarah wants to have dinner... but if you need me I'll be at your place tonight."

"There's something I want to discuss with you and the others."

"Alright, what time should I be there? After the munchkins go to bed?"

"After the munchkins go to bed."

"I'll see you later, love." He blew a kiss into the phone, and cracked up when he heard Frieze curse, before ending the call.

"I was wondering if you had gotten lost on the way back." Sarah said in greeting as she took the bag from Eliot's hand and left him standing in her doorway.

"Haha, very funny." He grinned as he stepped in and closed the door behind him.

"The pizza arrived before you did."

"Lies."

She smirked as she entered the kitchen to put the ice cream in the freezer.

"Sweet!" Eliot called out when he entered the dining room to see pizza boxes on the table. "So what movie are we watching?"

"I was leaning more toward TV shows." Sarah took a seat on the couch and curled her legs under the blanket she brought from her room. "It's been a while since we marathon one."

"We usually don't unless we wanna postpone thinking about our problems." He took a seat beside her and tugged some of the blanket over his lap. "I didn't know we were having problems we wanted to avoid dealing with."

She shrugged and took a bite of her slice of pizza.

"What kinda problems are we having?"

"It's nothing that you should worry about." She told him simply.

But he saw the way her hand trembled as she used the controller to choose a show. "You know that's not possible especially when it concerns you."

She shook her head.

"Sarah."

"Not now."

"You'll tell me once you're ready?"

"Of course."

He scooted closer to her and tried not to grin when she rested her head against his shoulder. Instead he turned his head and kissed the top of her head. Her response was to smack his arm as he tried to take a bite from his slice of pizza.

Eliot rubbed his hands together trying to ward off the chill of the night as he waited for someone to open the door.

"Hey Eliot." A woman with dark chocolate colored hair and auburn eyes greeted him with a warm smile.

"Tiff!" He pressed a kiss to her temple and wrapped his arms around her. "I had no idea you were visiting"

"It was supposed to be a surprise visit." She pulled away slightly to place her hands on his cheeks and squeezed. "I have missed you dearly."

"Likewise." He pinched her cheeks and chuckled when she lightly smacked his hands.

"Come on in. The boys are waiting." Tiffany stepped to the side to give him space to walk in. "How's Sarah doing?"

"I think she's ok." Eliot frowned as he remembered the way she was acting.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not exactly sure. I think she's hiding something."

"A woman is allowed her secrets." She smirked as she led him to the dining room. "Boys," She strolled in and took her seat next to a blond haired man with sapphire eyes. "Eliot has arrived."

"About fucking time." A man with raven colored hair and steel blue eyes grinned.

"Get your ass over here." Another man with light brown hair and forest green eyes waved to the empty chair beside him.

"Flayme. Frey. Language." Frieze warned as he appeared behind Eliot and placed a hand on his shoulder. "If the little ones wake up and hear you…" He let his words trail off and let them imagine what the consequences will hold.

Eliot placed a hand over his heart. "You never fail to scare the shit out of me, cupcake."

Flayme snorted amused. Frey cleared his throat when he almost laughed out loud.

"So I see Alex," He waved at the blonde haired man. "But where's Zack?"

"I knew you'd miss me." A man with raven spiky hair and sky blue eyes stepped out from the kitchen and into the dining room holding two beer bottles. He blew Eliot a kiss and a wink before taking his seat next to Flayme.

"Always." Eliot smirked as took the seat next to Frey.

Zackary slid the bottle across the table to him. "So now that everyone is here," He looked toward Frieze who stood at the head of the table and had yet to take a seat. "What is it that you wanted to discuss with us?"

Frieze took his seat at the end of the table aware of the attention directed toward him. He knew what to say, but was drawing up blank on how to go about it.

When the silence continued Flayme glanced at Zackary who met his gaze and shrugged before he looked toward Eliot who seemed just as confused. Eliot nudged Frey with his elbow and motioned his head toward Frieze who seemed to be lost in his thoughts, wordlessly telling him to say something.

Frey shook his head and looked toward Alexander who quirked an eyebrow in amusement. The blonde man's gaze swung to his wife.

Tiffany sighed. The men were hopeless. "Frieze."

Icy blue eyes narrowed on her.

"What's going on?"

"I need a wife." The looks of disbelief his brothers, cousins, and friends were giving him were priceless. If the situation wasn't serious, he would have laughed at their expressions. As it so happened to be, the situation was no laughing matter. The fact of the matter still remained… he needed to get married in order to get what he has worked so hard for.

Frey was the first to bust laughing. "You're joking, right?"

"No." Frieze glanced at him before looking at his twin who had yet to say anything.

"Does this have something to do with dad?" Flayme frowned. "I know you had that meeting with him earlier today."

"Why would David want Frieze to get married?" Alexander looked toward the twins concerned. "Does he have someone in mind? Is this another power play?"

"It's for the company's image. If I am to become CEO then I would become the face of company. Our company promotes family, loyalty, and unity."

"But you already embody those things." Frey sighed.

"Not really." Zack took a sip from his beer. "To us he does and that's only because we're close to him and know him so well, but to the public eye… it's a different story."

"That's not true—"

"But it is." Frieze cut his twin off. "We all know it is. I don't like my personal life being under the scrutiny of the public eye. I don't mind when they ask about my achievements involving the company, but my life outside of work is a shut book. "

"You were trying to give our niece and nephew a better childhood than the one we had."

"And now I'm going to be the one to take that away from them."

"That's not true. They will continue to have a roof over their heads and food in their bellies. They won't ever have to wonder if they are loved. Their lives will change when they go out in public, but it will remain the same in doors." Tiffany smiled softly at Frieze. "If this is want you really want then we'll support you. If you're worried about how much exposure the paparazzi will have to the little ones then we can do damage control."

"I don't want to be a burden—"

"Hold up," Zackary cut him off with a glare. "You can never be a burden to us. We're family."

"No truer words have ever been spoken." Frey lifted his beer and held it out across the table.

Tiffany followed Frey's move and looked at the men affectionately as they each lifted their beer bottles. The sound of glass clanging lightly against one another echoed in the room.

"So I've been thinking about the reason why I was even invited to this meeting." Eliot who had remained silent through most of the conversation decided that now would be a good time to contribute.

"This is gonna be good." Flayme whispered to Zackary.

"You want me to help you choose a wife." Eliot grinned at Frieze.

Zackary snickered while Frey busted out laughing. Flayme repeatedly smacked the table as he laughed.

Alexander shared an amused smile with Tiffany who shook her head.

"What's so funny?" Eliot lightly punched Frey on the arm. "I can find him a good one."

"Says the one who can't keep a relationship for more than a month."

"Hey!" He growled. "I was able to keep one for three years."

"Sarah doesn't count." Flayme wiped tears from his eyes. "She was an exception."

Frey grinned. "More like a freaking saint for dealing with your ass for such a long time."

"Screw you haters. I was the saint in that relationship."

"Don't let Sarah hear you say that."

"She'll come after you with vengeance."

"Whatever. Let's get back to the subject at hand."

"That you can't keep a relationship going for more than a month."

"You can keep making fun the lifespan of my relationships, but you can't deny I know how to pick them."

"On looks they're gorgeous."

"Personality is a hit or miss."

"Screw you guys."

Frieze thought it was time to cut in when Eliot crossed his arms over his chest and glared at his twin. "I was hoping that you would spread the news to the rest of the family," he cleared his throat. "That I'm trying to become the CEO, but not the part of seeking a wife."

"I can manage that." Eliot grinned clearly over the fact that his other cousins had been messing with him. "Although my offer to assist with the wife hunt still stands."

"Oh god, that sounds so creepy."

"Can we call it something else?"

"Well he is searching for a wife."

"Let's just call it a wife search."

"That doesn't make it sound any better."

"How about 'Getting Frieze Hitched'?"

"Much better."

"We can call it 'Operation G.F.H" in public."

"I would prefer that none of you speak of this in public."

"I hope you know that you're asking for the impossible."

Frieze bit back an amused smiled. "Eliot, I'll take you up on your offer." The enthusiasm they were showing was contagious. "I don't have anyone in mind and I'm going to need all the help I can get to pull this off."

"Don't worry, I got you." Eliot threw him a thumbs up.

AN: I hope you guys like the chapter. I want to give a huge thank you to JohnMonty and Nina for reviewing along with everyone who added this fic to their favorites and/or alerts.