Mark and Liz's Wedding Anniversary

Lux is nine.

"Happy Anniversary," Mark said, holding up his wine glass.

"Happy Anniversary," Liz replied, clinking her glass against his.

He'd taken her to one of the nicer steakhouses in Portland that night. Lux was at home with a babysitter.

Lux hated being left. She always had. She hadn't wanted Liz to leave her on the first day of pre-school. She'd thrown a temper tantrum and refused to participate when Liz dropped her off at a ballet class at age four. She had run away the first time they left her with a babysitter. Fortunately, she hadn't made it far and the babysitter had found the toddler right away.

Liz and Mark had finally taken Lux to a child psychologist. The psychologist had quickly realized Lux was afraid they would leave her and not come back for her. The poor kid had abandonment issues as a result of being adopted.

Liz and Mark had explained again that they would never leave Lux. They'd been very patient with her. Lux had gotten slightly better, but Liz knew Lux still hated to be left. They rarely left their daughter alone, but they'd really needed a night out by themselves.

They'd hired Lux's favorite babysitter and rented movies for her. They'd left money for pizza, Lux's favorite food. Lux had whined a little bit, but she'd been pretty good all things considered. Mark was grateful. He knew if Lux had really acted upset, Liz would have given in.

Liz would do anything for her daughter. She went out of her way to make the child happy. Lux was definitely spoiled, but she didn't act bratty like many kids who got whatever they wanted. Lux truly appreciated everything her parents did for her. She was always very sweet and grateful.

"How's your wine?" Mark asked.

"Very good," Liz replied. "How's yours?"

They'd gotten different kinds. Mark wanted red wine and Liz only drank white.

"Good." Mark smiled. "What are you going to get?"

Liz glanced at the menu. "The filet mignon. What about you?"

"Ribs," Mark replied.

"Lux loves ribs. She'll help you eat your leftovers," Liz said, smiling slightly. She loved being a mom and she'd absolutely adored Lux since the day she'd helped deliver the child.

Mark studied his wife. "Do you ever think about having another child?"

He knew how much Liz loved being a mom. How much she loved kids.

The subject of having another child had never come up. They'd had their hands full getting Lux adjusted, a feat that had taken several years.

Liz thought for a moment. She'd thought about it before. She wanted more children, but she always came to the same conclusion. It would be very hard on Lux if they had a biological child.

Liz had spoken privately with the psychologist they took Lux to years ago. He'd told her adopted children often had abandonment issues and that they never fully went away even if the children had great adoptive families. He'd also warned her that they tended to struggle with the idea of being unwanted if adoptive parents had children of their own after adopting.

Liz sighed. "No. I don't think it would be good for Lux."

"Liz, we always planned on having more than one kid," Mark reminded his wife.

"We never knew the first would be adopted," Liz said softly.

Mark frowned. He loved Lux, but he hadn't realized that adopting her would change everything. Adopting a kid was more of a commitment than simply having a kid.

Lux was such a sweet little girl. But she acted so badly when they left her that Liz rarely wanted to go out anymore. This was their first night out in months. Now they couldn't have another child because of Lux.

"Are you mad?" Liz asked sadly.

Mark reached for Liz's hand. "Not mad. Just disappointed."

"I'm sorry," Liz said softly, squeezing Mark's hand.

Mark met Liz's gaze. "You don't have anything to be sorry for. We decided to adopt Lux together."

Liz looked troubled. "Do you regret adopting her?"

Mark sighed. "I don't know. I love her. You know that. But sometimes I think it would have been easier to have a biological child."

"It would have been easier, but I've never known you to take the easy way out," Liz said lightly, smiling lovingly at her husband. He was so good to her and Lux. She knew he wanted another child, though. He would never force the issue. He was patient to a fault.

Mark smiled reassuringly. "Lux is an awful lot of work, but she's worth it."

Liz brightened. They enjoyed the rest of their dinner. They exchanged gifts at the end of the night. Liz had gotten Mark an expensive watch. Mark had made a photo album with family pictures for his wife and gotten her a new camera.

Mark would have liked to have another child, but he mostly felt bad for his wife. She was so selfless. She would do anything for Lux, he knew, and she would sacrifice her own wants in a second to please that child. It was one of the many qualities that made her such a great mom. He just wished she'd have the opportunity to have the big family she'd always wanted.