Eleven. (I wrote it….but the whole chap is pretty much JB's idea)! Thanks, sista!

As usual, Caroline made too much food for her Sunday dinner and also as usual, everyone stuffed themselves and stared forlornly at the plates and serving dishes that now contained mere dregs of the meal. In the decades-old, hand crafted high chairs, Maggie and Wyatt sat back against the headrests with dazed expressions. Noah played with his half-eaten dessert, wishing he had the capacity to finish the gigantic piece of chocolate cake which Caroline made especially for him.

Needing to move, Olivia started clearing the table over Caroline's objections. Ed watched her stride back and forth from the dining room to the kitchen. Her jeans deliciously hugged her thighs. As she picked up plates, forks, and glasses, Ed's heart fluttered at the sight of her rings, the bracelets he'd gifted her over the past few years, and, as he let his eyes drift upward, the Valentine's Day Cartier, perhaps his most extravagant gift. She'd pulled her hair back in a chignon, and her neck and jaw were extra pronounced as he viewed her in profile.

At one point she leaned over him for the gravy boat and whispered, "Stop staring."

He slapped her thigh in response.

"Caroline," Olivia said, "Are you doing anything fun for St. Patrick's Day?"

"Ah, I'll probably have a little drink with my card club," she said, "Noah, your school will probably say to wear green, but you should wear blue. St. Patrick's color was blue."

"Da Irish like blue and green, Gramma Careline! That's what you told me!"

"You're right, dearie."

"So I'm gonna wear both!"

"Fine idea! And you tell your class all about being Irish."

"I could read 'em a story from da book." Noah looked at his parents hopefully.

"Sure, bud," Ed said, "You can bring the book, but make sure you put it back in your bag after you show it to everyone."

"I will."

"Caroline," Olivia said, "Have you been back to Ireland since you came here?"

"I haven't," she grumbled, "Came here at the age of ten…always talked about going back for a visit, but it never happened, and all my family ended up here."

Olivia frowned. "I bet there are fairly inexpensive flights this time of year."

"Noah," Caroline said, "Why don't you use that new fancy computer of yours and find Grandma a flight and a hotel? Our ancestors from a little village outside Cork, so we'll need a car, too."

"I go to Ireland with you?" Noah asked, wide-eyed.

"Sweetie," Olivia interjected, "You'll go someday. But you have school, remember?"

"Oh yeah," Noah murmured, "Mr. B. say, when you're absent, you haveta make up your work…that would be a lotta work!"

"Ed," Olivia said, "Why don't you research prices? You could go…maybe take John and Margie, too?"

Bewildered his wife was so assiduously advocating him taking a trip without her, Ed nodded and mumbled something about looking into it. Later that night, after the children were bathed and asleep, he broached the subject again and asked if she was serious.

"Of course I was," Olivia said.

Ed twisted his lips and stared blankly at the wall in front of their bed. "I suppose…damn, I never thought to ask her about wanting to go back. I must be the most inconsiderate asshole son on Earth."

Olivia hung the next day's blazer—blouse—pants combo on a bureau knob. "You are not the most inconsiderate asshole son on Earth."

"Maybe I should take her. She mentioned a car…she's not gonna drive. She can't go alone. And," Ed rubbed his face, "Gotta face reality…I dunno how much time she has left."

Olivia looked at him sympathetically. "That's true…but I hate to think that way."

Ever the pragmatist, Ed replied, "She's had a good, long life."

"She has," Olivia sauntered over to his side of the bed and leaned in for a kiss.

Ed grabbed her hand. "There's one silver lining, though," he said, "I have half her genes. You could be stuck with me for thirty, forty more years."

Concerned, Olivia sat on the edge of the bed. She stroked his cheek with the back of her hand. "I'd planned on that," she said softly, "I love you, Ed Tucker."

"I love you." He puckered his lips and kissed at her fingers, "You sure you don't mind me goin' away for a week or so?"

"I will miss you terribly. But it's important. I want you to go. Be at your mother's beck and call."

"Sure we can't all go?"

"It's not exactly the best time," Olivia said ruefully, "And, us, your mom, maybe your brother and sister and three kids, two of which are not yet two…that would be a little much, don't you think?"

"You're right…but the three of them, alone, is also a little much…"

"I can handle it," Olivia said, "And, if you're gone the night of the fundraiser, I'll get one of the girls or G to watch the kids. They like her."

Ed raised his eyebrows. "Who's gonna be there?"

Olivia planted a sloppy kiss on his lips, "A bunch of boring old men."

"I know you can handle yourself," he said, "But I hate you goin' alone."

"I'll be fine. And if anyone bothers me, I'll get their names and you can deal with them when you return."

Ed smirked, "Deal. But, there's one other thing…"

Olivia cocked an eyebrow, "I know…but…you're here now, Captain."

His smirk grew naughtier.

"C'mere."

….

The horde of police officers and press blocked Mrs. Amaro from view at first, but Olivia managed to catch a glimpse of her. She carved a path through the suits, and Nick's mother brightened at the familiar face. Olivia gave her a quick but detailed update, and, once assured her son's life was not in danger, took a deep breath and sat down in the waiting area. Rollins brought her coffee, and, as soon as Nick was out of surgery, she parked herself at her son's side. Nick was still out from the anesthesia and it was getting late, so Olivia excused herself and promised to check in first thing in the morning.

She strode out, head down, text messaging Lucy, and intending to appear very busy so any lingering reporters would leave her alone. Steps away from the double doors, she heard a familiar, gruff voice say her name.

"Tucker," she said, "You're still here."

It was a statement, not a question, and he smirked at the suspicion in her tone.

"He alright?"

"He's fine. Sleeping off the meds now."

"Good news," he mumbled, almost dismissively, "Thought you might need a ride home."

Olivia suddenly remembered she didn't have a vehicle. In the chaos following the courtroom shooting, one of the patrol officers had given her a lift to the hospital. "Oh, um, I do actually…thanks…hadn't thought about that obviously."

The ride uptown took a while, and Olivia could tell Tucker wasn't in the biggest of hurries.

"I'd ask ya if you wanna stop for a drink, but you probably wanna get home to Noah."

Hearing him say her son's name filled her heart with unexpected warmth. "I do," she said, "And…I'm also…" she held out her arms, "…in need of a change of clothes. Some other time?"

"Sure."

"You'll talk to Amaro before I will, so, let him know, we're not gonna jam him up. Even if anyone cared about that guy, we wouldn't."

"It may not matter all that much," Olivia replied, "Depending on what they could do with his knee. But…thank you. He'll appreciate that."

"And…uh…" Tucker hesitated and stammered, unsure whether or not this was the time to bring up the obvious reality that Noah's only known biological relative was dead, "The DNA…that, uh, that was never gonna be an IAB investigation anyway, but, it's, uh, definitely not gonna be now."

Olivia pressed her lips into a polite, knowing smile. "It'll take me a few days to process all this," she said, "In minutes my entire life…got a lot less complicated."

Silence engulfed the sedan for a few blocks. Ed knew what she meant, and she knew that he knew. Ed admired her for being so transparent about Warner's findings; he wasn't positive he would have made the same call. It was ironic—the last couple times she got jammed up, it was Olivia who occupied the moral and ethical high ground.

"I…" Ed continued, "…I couldn't let ya go home without you knowing that…that, as far as IAB is concerned, it's over."

"I appreciate it," Olivia said, "I really do," she chuckled self-deprecatingly, "I…like I said…it's going to take a while. This whole year I've been walking on eggshells around ACS workers, the Judge, Dodds. And then this whole thing with Nick—he was…pissed—at first, about Sergeant, but now? Honestly? I think he's going to have to hang it up. At least be on a desk or reassigned for a long, long while. But I could be wrong."

"You're probably right."

"So, the two things weighing on me…aren't so heavy anymore. Because of…tonight. It's kind of hard to be happy."

Ed hoped what he was going to say would not be perceived as condescending. "You deserve to have something be easy for a change," he said.

He needn't have worried. His words dripped with sincerity. "Maybe I do," Olivia murmured, staring out the window.

Ed turned onto her block and came to a stop in front of her building.

"Thanks for the lift," she said.

"Anytime. Have a good night. Uh, well, let me know when Amaro's up to giving his statement. We can come to you."

"Will do." Olivia still had not opened the door. She wanted to say or do something else, show him she noticed the change in his demeanor and she liked it…she liked him. "So, we'll have that drink soon?"

Tucker smiled. "Absolutely."

It was past midnight when Olivia finally dragged herself to bed. So many thoughts and possibilities cycled through her mind—Noah, the shooting, Amaro, the Lieutenant's Exam, and, she had to admit, Tucker. Recently he had been so kind and understanding, sympathetic…a little unsure of himself and also unsure what to do with all the chemistry developing between the two of them. Yet, he maintained a certain degree of confidence because they also come to a synergetic consensus—they both acknowledged their mutual attraction, though they didn't want to act on much of it quite yet.

….

The morning of the Ireland flight, Ed took Noah to school then returned home to finish packing. They were only going to be gone a week, and he congratulated himself on fitting all his items in their smallest suitcase. The twins wandered around the bedroom while he double checked everything and Olivia got ready for work. Wyatt tossed his toys into the bathtub and Maggie was trying to climb onto the bed.

"Was Noah okay saying goodbye?" Olivia asked.

"He was fine. I told him I'd bring him something nice, so that went a long way."

"And there's only four hours' difference," Olivia said, sounding more like she was assuring herself rather than anyone else, "We'll Face Time at night."

Ed closed the suitcase and sat Maggie on top. She grinned and giggled. "Alright, princess, help Daddy close the suitcase. Ziiiiiiiip!"

Maggie bounced as much as she could while maintaining her balance. "ZIP!"

"C'mere, sweetheart." Ed wrapped her in a bear hug, "Daddy's gonna miss his little girl." He kissed her head and held her until she started squirming. "Oh-kay. Down ya go. Love you."

"Ooooooo!" Maggie cooed as she darted into the bathroom where Olivia was applying lipstick. Maggie smacked her own lips together when Olivia touched the tube to Maggie's mouth.

Ed grabbed Wyatt next, tossed him in the air, and gave him an embrace of his own. "Love you, big guy. You help Noah be the man of the house while I'm gone." Wyatt babbled excitedly. Ed kissed his chubby, pink cheeks and mussed his hair. "We may need to get a haircut when I get back."

"Oh…" Olivia whined.

"It's gettin' kinda long, Liv."

"I know…"

"Anyway," he put Wyatt down and enveloped her in his arms. "I better get goin."

"Let me know when you land. And…have fun. I'm so glad you're doing this for your mom."

"It'll be good for me, too. The last time I was in Ireland I drank too much…I barely remember it."

Olivia chuckled and put her hands on his chest, memorizing its contours.

"And the next time…we'll go. You and me and the kids."

"Sounds like a plan," Olivia replied, her voice starting to shake. "Let's um…let's call around ten Ireland time then each night?"

"Promise."

"And I made sure your phone plan will work there."

"Thanks for doin' that."

Ed opened his mouth to say something else, but he kissed her instead. They kissed and whispered to each other for several minutes.

"I love you, Liv," he played with her hair, "I love you so much."

"I love you," she said before playfully shoving him, "Now…go. Have a good time and send pictures and don't wish the whole week away."

"I don't like bein' away from you."

"We'll be fine."

"That's not what I meant."

"I know." She kissed him once more, "Have a good flight. Don't forget to text me when you land. And…I'll talk to you tonight."

"Yes you will."

….

The Tuckers' annual month at the beach began on rocky footing and didn't get much better as their first week came to a close. Much to Olivia's displeasure, Noah called the night before they departed with news he was staying at school another week to finish a project with his advisor. Under normal circumstances, this would not have bothered Olivia, but Noah hadn't been home much this year and had missed both Thanksgiving and Christmas having studied abroad in London. Since receiving the news he'd been accepted to Brooklyn Tech rather than his preferred Stuyvesant, Wyatt had been stewing. He had the option of remaining at their private school, but he desperately wanted to attend what was, arguably, the city's most elite public high school. High school was the last thing on Maggie's mind. Her best friend who usually came to the beach for a week or two was attending a summer fine arts camp in Montreal. When Maggie asked her parents if she could also attend, both Ed and Olivia had to work very hard to stifle laughter. Their daughter was not at all musically or artistically inclined, and the cost of the camp was several thousand dollars. Ed and Olivia were not used to such an overwhelming tide of discontent in their family, and it unsettled them. The drive from New York to Bethany Beach was almost completely devoid of conversation.

The week began with the same infrequent communication. Wyatt awoke early, went for a run on the beach, and parked himself somewhere—either on a chaise or on the back porch—with a book and his journal. Maggie slept late, lazed around, and refused to do anything that involved even a miniscule amount of family interaction. Every night and morning, Ed reassured Olivia everyone's angst would soon iron itself out, Noah would arrive, and they could enjoy their summer together. Though she appreciated his attempts at comfort, Olivia sulked.

"Maybe it'll be better when Brooke and Sonny get here," she said during one late-night gripe session, "Maggie can hang out with Sofia."

Ed nodded, but he was pessimistic. Sofia and Maggie, though they'd grown up together, were at a tricky school-age gap. Maggie had always been mature for her age, and now that she was entering high school, had extra attitude and a sudden, tacit aversion to hanging out with middle schoolers, even if they were family.

"And Noah'll be here soon and Wyatt, hopefully, can snap out of his funk."

Ed kissed her head and tightened his hold on her. They had given their kids everything, and it was frustrating when even that wasn't enough. He was able to shake things off and patiently weather the storm; Olivia took everything to heart.

"We'll head out on the boat tomorrow," he said, "Maybe that'll help."

Olivia chuckled, "Or trap us all together and make things worse."

Ed kissed her and smirked, happy her sense of humor hadn't entirely disappeared. Propping himself on his elbow, he slowly traced her jawline and gazed at her adoringly. Kid discontent had put a damper on their beach house sex life; the one time they'd made love had been robotic and almost felt obligatory. Ed wanted to erase it from his mind.

He kissed her forehead. Cheeks. Neck.

He stopped to gauge her reaction.

Olivia didn't like the pause. She scratched the back of his head and clutched his hip—there was something about that particular place on his body that was extra erotic for her. Whenever she touched him there, Ed knew what she wanted.

They kissed deeply. Wriggled out of their clothes. At one point, Olivia held his face in her hands. She smiled, kissed his forehead, and looked into his eyes—they were eyes that, over the course of their almost seventeen years together, had managed to brighten the darkest of days. Maggie was grumpy. Wyatt was bummed. Noah was absent. But…they were at their beach house. Together. A team.

Even when all was not well, Olivia appreciated and cherished everything she and Ed had.

….

It felt strange leaving the apartment without Ed's arm to hold. Olivia left the kids in G's care and attended the fundraiser solo. Her phone was never far from her grasp, and G made sure to give frequent updates since Sarah had already informed her that Olivia and Ed were the epitome of helicopter parents. At one point G asked if it was okay if she took the kids for a walk, and Olivia gave her approval. Spring had been unpredictable, and the kids loved to be outside. One day snow blanketed the city only to be melted by the next day's sixty-degree temperatures.

"G, we go to da river sidewalk," Noah said after the babysitter informed him his mother okayed the plan. "You put these babies in da stroller and I take my scooter. Can't take da bike 'cause I go too fast! I know how ta' get there."

The next day when she and Sarah debriefed, G would marvel at Noah's navigation skills. She had lived in Brooklyn and lower Manhattan, and didn't know the West Fifties well. Noah, however, expertly led her from their building to the Hudson River path.

"We go dis way, G," he said once they were on the riverfront. He was pointing uptown and G nodded.

"Following you, Noah."

He led the way to a part of the path that jutted out into the river. It was wide with benches on either side, and Noah, apparently used to a little more freedom in the locale, sped toward the end. When G and the stroller caught up, Noah smiled triumphantly.

"Now we can see everrthing"

"What do we see?" G glanced at Maggie and Wyatt. They had been so content she thought they were asleep, but they were wide awake and apparently tracking their brother, maybe a bit apprehensive about their new caregiver.

"We see New Jersey, thatsa diff'rent state, its capital is Trenton, and da tower, usedta be TWO TOWERS there but someone knocked 'em down, then there's da Upper West Side…Sare Bear says that's too far away, den, if ya go like dis," Noah craned his neck over the railing and G instinctively moved to grab him, "You can see Empire. And we see all da boats, too!" Noah rested his forearms on the railing and looked out into the water. "S'agood spot."

Maggie and Wyatt spontaneously erupted into chatter as several boats came into view.

"You like the boats?" G cooed at them.

"They LOVE those boats. It's okay here. We can get 'em out."

G followed Noah's instructions and, as he said, Maggie and Wyatt ran around playing their own little game and, eventually, Noah joined in. It was a picturesque locale, and G took a couple of photos and sent them to Olivia. She texted back immediately.

Noah will want to have a snack at the café, I'll reimburse you.

Sure enough, Noah declared they were all thirsty, and they had their snack at a table overlooking the river. Maggie fussed when G tried to get her back into the stroller, so G sat Maggie in her lap. Noah happily sat in his chair, legs dangling, sipping his frozen lemonade. Wyatt was perfectly content in the UppaBaby.

"Good drink?" G asked.

"Yup!" He said, "G, we haveta walk that way," he pointed south, "Then we get our other snack at the pizza shop."

"I thought you already had dinner?"

"We did," Noah replied, "But in da spring we have a walk and a snack!"

"Oh…okay," G didn't want to fight him. "Well, let's go."

They continued on the path until they encountered an old locomotive, a historic site from the west side's days as a railroad hub.

"G," Noah said as he climbed the stairs, "Dis an old train!"

"It is," she said, sizing it up, "But I don't think you can go in."

"Nope," he said, "But I see inside. Da wheel and da controls…" Noah gazed out at the expanse of the river, "Used ta be a lotta trains here. A lotta trains now, but it's da subway mostly."

"You really know this city well."

Noah hopped down the stairs, "Yep! I know all da trains, well, Sare Bear gonna take me on all a' dem. Or maybe Justy, too."

"Justy?"

"Yep! That's Sare Bear's hubbind, she usedta have Jeff but now it's Justy. They gonna get married in a church! And I getta wear a tux-eee-do! With a yellow tie!"

"I bet you will look very handsome."

"That's what Mommy says!"

Maggie was fussing again, and it was getting dark, so G nudged Noah to the crosswalk. He was still adamant about a snack and insisted that, after a workout, they needed food. They stopped for pizza to go. At the Tucker apartment, G cut a few pieces for Maggie and Wyatt, but Noah insisted on eating his slice whole.

Wyatt ate a few bites and wandered to the toys. G saw him dozing and immediately knew he would be the easiest to get to sleep. Maggie munched and babbled. Through mouthfuls of cheese and pepperoni, Noah suggested they watch cartoons.

"Sure," G said, "Lemme clean up Wyatt and Maggie." She eyed the time, "And maybe put them in bed."

"Small sister's not gonna go to bed," Noah declared.

"Why not?"

"She doesn't like goin to bed."

G smiled at him but proceeded to wipe Wyatt's face, change his diaper, and dress him in pajamas. Out of necessity, she dropped Wyatt in his crib. He grabbed his Wubbanub and immediately started drifting off to sleep. G shrugged and tried to do the same for Maggie, but when she tried to put the little girl in the crib, Maggie latched onto G and wouldn't let go. Maggie didn't cry, she silently declared she was not going, willingly, at least, into her crib.

"G," Noah said, "Small sister can sleep with me 'til Mommy gets home. S'okay."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Noah said, "Jus' get her baby."

"You're going to go to bed, too?"

Noah smiled sweetly, "You haveta read us stories, then we sleep."

"Okay," G said, "I'll follow you."

…..

Ed scraped the barbecue grates and wiped down the rest of their outdoor kitchen. The winter cover had done its job, but he resolved to give the area a deep cleaning in the morning. Nevertheless, the area was more than useful for grilling hot dogs, and he thought their Friday night dinner had gone well, even if Maggie and Wyatt were still not their usual selves.

Olivia sipped wine on the porch swing and watched Ed work. Maggie came onto the porch, and Olivia made space for her on the seat. The swing had always been one of Maggie's favorite places but, tonight, the teenager had other ideas.

"I'm gonna go to the bonfire," she said.

Ed raised his eyebrows, "No, you're not."

"Maggie," Olivia reached out for her.

Maggie jerked her arm away, "Dad, you're always doing what Mom wants, and Mom, you think I'm gonna get killed or something, and I Just. Want. To. Go. To. The. Bonfire. I'm not gonna drink or do drugs or even go in the water! I just wanna go and listen to music and…be there!"

Olivia was firm in her resolve. "You're not going."

"Noah goes."

"And when he gets here, you can go with him. Or, you can go tonight and your Dad will go."

If Maggie hadn't been so angry, she would have burst into laughter. She scowled at her mother and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right."

Olivia shrugged.

"Mom, ugh, I…" Maggie balled her hands into tight fists as she'd done so many times before, "I HATE YOU!"

Maggie slammed the screen door on her way into the house and stomped up the stairs. Wyatt's eyes followed the sound of her footsteps. Olivia buried her face in her hands. Ed followed his intractable daughter.

Maggie tried to slam her bedroom door, but Ed was on her heels and caught it. She dove face first onto the bed and pretended to cry.

"Sit up," Ed said.

Maggie sniffled.

"Sit. Up."

She sat.

As Ed predicted, there were no tears.

"Ya know," he began, "Maybe we did you wrong."

Maggie scrunched up her face and didn't bother with the strands of sun-streaked brown hair plastered to her cheeks. "What?"

"I dunno," Ed continued, "We give you and your brothers two nice places to live, a private school education…food, clothes…I don't understand. What the hell else is it you want?"

"Some freedom."

Ed shot her a sarcastic smirk, "Freedom? You live in Manhattan for Chrissakes."

"And when I get here it's like I'm in prison."

"Stop."

Maggie glared at her father. Every bit of teenage angst poured from her blue eyes and her Tucker-esque jaw clenched in defiance.

"There are rules. Here and in New York. And you are expected to follow those rules. We already said earlier, you can go to the bonfire, but you have to be back by ten."

"Ten?"

"Yep. Ten. Or don't go."

"But—"

"—yep, when Noah gets here and you go with him, midnight."

"You think Noah doesn't drink there?"

"Your Mom and I aren't that stupid."

"Mom thinks everywhere I go I'm gonna get raped."

Ed returned her glare with one of his own, but he could tell Maggie immediately regretted what she'd said. "Stop talking right now," he said, "You and your brothers are your mother's, and mine, you're our most important possessions—"

"—possessions.." Maggie murmured.

"—yes," Ed grabbed her forearms, "You are ours. And, believe it or not, we know more than you know. You have absolutely no idea what your mother has been through…to have you, to have our family. You can be mad. You can disagree with rules. But you will not—WILL NOT- be mean and disrespectful. Do you understand me?"

Cowed, Maggie averted her eyes.

"And you will sit up here the rest of the night, think, and apologize to your mother."

"I—"

Ed held up a hand, "Nope. Sit up here. Think. I don't want to see you for the rest of the night. And don't even think about going out through the window because I swear to God I will hold you under lock and key until you're eighteen."

Maggie detected a hint of jest in his voice and she collapsed back into her pillows with a smirk on her face. "Fine," she muttered, albeit with a conciliatory tone.

"I love you."

She rolled her eyes and mumbled a reluctant, teenaged, "I love you, too."

…

#Tuckson