The following morning, Lee made a point of acquiring some more candy, and planned a trip over to Galactica. He quickly checked in with his father before heading toward Helo and Sharon's quarters to see Kacey. He wasn't going to be friends with Sharon anytime soon, but he'd seen firsthand that his father's trust in her didn't seem to be misplaced. He could be civil.

"You want to come take a walk with me?" Lee asked Kacey as he knelt next to her seat on the Agathons' couch. "I've got a surprise for you." She nodded, putting down her toys.

Lee led her through the ship to the Galactica's observation deck; the room's large window offered a wonderful view of the fleet and the CAP that was on patrol. "You see those ships out there?" he asked. "Your mom's flying one of them."

Kacey smiled. "Viper!"

"Yep. Okay, for your surprise…" he pulled the little bag of candies out of his pocket. "These are called peppermints. And we'd better save a few for your mom this time, okay?"

"Okay. She'll be happy."

Lee smiled. "Yeah, I'm sure she will be…She hasn't been happy much lately, huh?"

Kacey shook her head. "My fault."

"Why do you say that?"

"I was bad…and he no like me anymore."

"I bet that's not true…When I was little, I used to think that my father didn't like me and my mom and brother all that much. He would be away for long periods of time, and I would miss him a lot."

"He leave you?"

"I thought he had, but really…he loved space, but he loved his family, too. He just couldn't have them both at the same time."

"So he leave?"

"Yeah. It might be hard to understand now, but I bet things will work out, okay?"

Kacey quietly contemplated that for a long moment, and then smiled up at Lee. "Mommy will be happy," she told him. From the look on her face, Lee wondered briefly if she knew something he didn't.

By the time they'd finished talking and stargazing, Kara's shift had ended and Kacey was getting sleepy, so Lee took her back to her quarters. Kara opened the hatch when he knocked. "I think it's someone's naptime," he quietly told her, gently transferring Kacey's half-asleep form from his arms to hers. She got her daughter tucked into her bed, then rejoined Lee by the door.

"Thank you for taking her," she told him. "I really mean it. Kacey likes you and…I know how big of a thing this is for you to accept her, to care about her."

"She's changed you, too," Lee replied. "You're a different person, Kara. I know things haven't been easy – "

"When are they ever?"

" – but you're really lucky to have her."

Kara turned back to look at her sleeping little girl. She WAS different now, in how she thought and her priorities. Someone else completely depended on her. It was terrifying and truly magnificent at the same time.

"Thank you," she told Lee, turning back to face him and realizing exactly how close they were standing to each other. Her hazel eyes met his blue ones, and on a frightening sudden impulse, they each moved forward slightly and their lips touched. Hesitant at first, the kiss deepened until both of them almost simultaneously realized what they were doing. "Oh my Gods…"

"I-I should go," Lee told her, and all she could do was nod.

Lee headed down the hallway, and Kara shut the door. There were so many reasons that what had just happened shouldn't have happened. Both of them were married for frak's sake! And yes, she was having problems, but that was no excuse. However, there'd been something so right about that moment, like a piece of the puzzle that had been missing for months suddenly clicked into place. And it kind of scared her.

That evening, Kara and Kacey were playing on the floor with the little girl's blocks when the door opened and Sam came in. "Hey, there," he told them.

Kara smiled, albeit a little apprehensively. "Hi," she replied. Kacey was silent, and Sam noticed.

"Hey, kiddo, I got something for you," he told her, reaching into the small duffle he was carrying. He pulled out a small honey-colored stuffed animal and offered it to her. "We don't really have an animal that represents the C-Bucks so well, but I used to have a dog that looked kind of like this when I lived on Caprica." Still without saying a word, Kacey reached up and took the toy.

"Thank you," Kara told her husband on behalf of her silent daughter. He nodded. "How was your trip?" she cautiously asked.

"Good. It was good to be able to see the guys – what's left of us."

"So…what happens now? You going to disappear again anytime soon?"

Sam sat down. "I'm sorry I left like that, I just…I wasn't sure how to say goodbye without it turning into a fight. And I don't want to fight with you, Kara, I really don't. You belong here, and there's no changing that…"

"But you don't?"

"I was talking with some people over on the liner…The president wants to put together a new civilian police force. Hopefully it'll stabilize day to day life on some of the ships. I think it would be a good opportunity."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah. I've kind of gotten in the habit of having something to work for, something more than just winning some stupid games. I want to try this, see if it works out. There's so much more to life in this fleet than just what happens on this ship. I could still stay here with you and with Kacey, but just have a job to go do during the day…What do you think?"

Kara wasn't sure what to say. They'd had a small police force in New Caprica before the Cylons came, but it had largely been unneeded. The NCP that had been set up during the occupation had been a joke, a source of more problems instead of a cure. Sam's job could possibly be more dangerous than her own. And yet…this was his olive branch. He'd tried to find a solution for them, and she couldn't throw it back in his face. She'd already messed up enough things, especially that afternoon.

"Sounds like it could work," she finally told him. "W-when do you start?"

Sam smiled. "I've got a couple more days to recuperate, spend some more time with you and Kacey. Maybe we can get off the ship for an afternoon, go visit the Intersun Liner or something?"

Kara nodded. "Maybe. I can check the schedule tomorrow."

She went running in the morning, traveling through the ship's halls at a punishing pace. The pain felt good, reminded her that she was still alive and she still could feel. When she got back to her quarters, she grabbed a shower and got dressed in her flight suit, then got clothes for Kacey.

"Time to wake up," Kara told her as she knelt beside her bed, shaking the toddler's shoulder. Instantly she realized that the little girl felt warm. "Hey, sweetie, when did you start feeling sick?"

"Mommy?" she whimpered, before dissolving into tears. Kara picked her up.

"Shh, everything's going to be okay. The Doc's going to make you feel better, I promise."

TBC...