**A/N: So... It has been quite a while! So sorry about the delay- truthfully my life has been turned upside-down. I almost lost my husband on the operating table, and he was sent home with a lung abscess, and his heart working 15%. He has been SOOOO very sick, and during the hospital stay, our family moved us out of our house, and to our new house since I couldn't leave him. I am up to my ears in boxes, and after almost 2 months, I literally just found my shoes 3 days ago. Until then, I had a pair of flip-flops, and a pair of Ugg boots. lol. Anywho, thank you so much to the people who have left sweet, and encouraging messages, and reviews- and to the absolute jerks who left the mean, and hateful messages, no- I didn't abandon my story, I hope to update more regularly- sorry my real life situation inconvenienced you ;) lol**

**Characters are property of Janet Evanovich, all mistakes are mine. I make no money from this**

We made the trip back to RangeMan in relative silence-Carlos, and I in our respective zones, and Julie attached to her phone.

As we got out of the car, Carlos sent Jules upstairs to finish her homework for the weekend, and we headed to the conference room to meet my Dad.

The first thing I noticed when we walked in the room was that my Dad looked extremely exhausted, and his eyes looked so sad that it took my breath away.

I sat down in the chair beside him, with Carlos on my other side holding my hand. Daddy looked up, and squeezed my hand.

"Pumpkin, I don't really know how to say this, so just give me a second before interrupting. I have contacted a lawyer, and am filing for divorce. This has been a long time coming, so I don't want you to think any of that has anything to do with you. Your Mother has been off the reservation for a long time now, and I can't deal with it anymore."

I looked at him with tears in my eyes, and just gave him a slight nod. He may say it isn't my fault, but I still feel responsible for breaking a marriage up. I just wish I knew why I am such a failure in my Mom's eyes.

"Secondly, I just want you to be aware that your Mother is attempting to stage an intervention with Joseph Morelli, and they want to essentially kidnap you, and let you 'decompress' from the apparent brainwashing that you have been exposed to-her words, not mine. She has no idea I have been listening in on her conversations. Quite frankly, I think they have both lost their marbles, and you need to be very security conscious especially since you have Julie. I don't want anything to happen to you, Pumpkin."

I just sat, and looked at him a second. My Mom, and Joe are a match made in heaven, or hell... however you want to look at it. What kind of sane minded person plans to kidnap their adult child to get them to date the person that physically, and mentally abused said child. That woman needs mental help. I am really starting to realize she has a serious problem, she isn't run of the mill crazy, that woman is a laugh away from a tear.

"Thank you Daddy for letting me know... I'm really starting to worry about her mental health. I really, and truly think something serious is going on in her head. I don't even know what to say. I will definitely be adding more security, and making sure Val gets an even more elaborate security system. I can't risk Julie, and I have no idea what Helen Plum, or Joseph Morelli are capable of- clearly they have no conscience, or a sense of what is right or wrong. I won't risk my child, and I won't risk the rest of my family. I hope she is ready for a war, because I won't roll over, and die like I used to."

We spent the rest of our conversation talking about the new apartment that Daddy found in Hamilton Township, and our engagement that of course Daddy already knew about. Who knew that Carlos was such a traditionalist in asking my Daddy for my hand in marriage? It makes me all gooey inside.

After Daddy left, we made our way back to the apartment to check on Julie, and start packing our things. We have decided to move Saturday morning, but we wanted to spend a few hours everyday packing so we weren't overwhelmed when the weekend creeped up on us.

The next week passed faster than I could have ever imagined. Between packing, homework, and getting everything ready for the big move we were truly exhausted. We were going to need a weeks vacation to recover from the move.

We have a large amount of big burly helpers, but Carlos, Julie, and I really wanted to be hands on so that we could have everything exactly how we wanted it- we are hoping this is going to be our forever home. There is room for Julie to have privacy as she gets older, and room for us to expand which we haven't really discussed other than the fact that we both want at least one more child... kind of in the abstract, no real timetable.

The wedding is being pushed to the back burner a bit, just until we are settled, because that is where we want the wedding. We don't want it to be super cold outside, so that will be the first thing on the agenda once we get in the house.

The thought of being settled with Carlos, and Julie gives me a feeling that I never thought I would feel. I never realized how incomplete I was until now. If only Helen Plum, and Joseph Morelli would move to South Dakota or Alaska, somewhere far away, life would be perfection.

Morelli has lost his job, and is spending his time at my Mom's house, and I have to admit that it's a little creepy. Now that Dad is out of the picture, maybe they will get together and leave everyone alone. If only.

There have already been two attempts this week at half-assed abductions on myself, and Jules. Obviously, we have a large amount of security, and it never gets far enough to even warrant losing sleep over. I am confident in our security, our instincts, and the fact that I have been so insistent on our self-defense lessons since Julie became my daughter.

We have our restraining orders in place, and if there is another attempt, they will both be jailed. For the life of me, I can't understand what they would want with me- they have both been so demeaning to me over the years, they don't even think I'm a competent human being- why not cut their losses, and be glad I'm not embarrassing them any longer?

It's clearly not something I am going to figure out, I guess that is the thing about mental illness, and/or alcoholism which they are both suffering from... you can't get in their heads, it's impossible.

As we did a final sweep of the Haywood apartment, Carlos stood behind me with his arms wrapped around my waist, and his chin resting on my head. We just stood there motionless for a few minutes soaking up the fact that we are about to take our first steps into a brand new life as a family. Our first home... it seriously blows my mind. Silence used to make me uncomfortable, but in this moment... this perfect perfect moment, I have never felt more comforted, and loved in our quiet embrace. There is no need for words to make this moment more real, or perfect- we can just be.

**A/N 2: Please leave me a comment, or review after reading... I need all the encouragement I can get these days ;) **

xoxo

Brit*