I would like to thank everyone for all the great reviews I have received :)

Nine

"Patrick…"

"I'm fine."

Her green eyes studied his. Searching for answers pertaining to his mood. She wanted to beg and plead that he would open up and talk to her.

"It was something I said, wasn't it?"

He shook his head, "No, no, it has nothing to do with you," he waved his hand, lightly telling her not to let it bother her. She crossed her arms over her chest, eyes narrowing.

"But it has to do with something," he sighed, he wanted to tell her the truth, he really did. Something as usual was holding him back from doing so, "Tell me," she asked.

"Please," she said once more softly.

He shook his head, "It's nothing."

That did it.

She flared up, anger erupting in her eyes. She moved closer to him, this was the time she really wanted to kill him, "Damnit Patrick! Don't you see people actually care about you, who need you. I want to be able to tell my daughter that her father was a good man!"

That did it for him.

"She is just as much as my daughter as she is yours!"

"You're not carrying her for nine months!"

He looked over his shoulder then back at her, "Would you for once in your life just listen to me woman! This is nothing!" he yelled at her. She refused to back down. She did not feel intimidated by Jane's sudden outburst.

"Get out!" he blinked.

"Get the hell out of my apartment!" she pointed towards the door, "NOW," her voice was dangerously low, not caring if she were to hurt his feelings.

"No," he said simply.

"Jane!" she yelled moving herself away from him as if he were some unwanted, vile object, "Just get out!"

"I can't…"

She crossed her arms over her chest once more and cocked her head to the side, "Why not?"

He moved closer to her, now only inches away from her face, "Because I promised Peter that I would not let anything happen to you," a lump formed in her throat as a result of his harsh tone, "And there is so much more to it," he looked more closely at her. Crystal like tears formed in her eyes, she quickly brushed them away and straightened her appearance.

"Like what?" she challenged, her voice wavering a bit.

He held her gaze, contemplating his options. He could achieve many things from this moment; this could also set them apart for the rest of their lives. She shifted her footing and placed her hands over her swollen belly. He placed on hand over hers, entwining his with hers and resting it on the swell. He leaned down closer towards her. He felt her quiver a slight bit, tensing with anticipation. Her heartbeat sped up and her lip trembled.

"I love you…" he told her.

Her eyes enlarged, she gasped and moved away from him. Pulling herself out of his grasp. His eyes were on her the entire time. She ran her hand through her hair and kept the other on her belly. She breathed deeply before turning back to her.

"Jane I-."

He refused to give her a chance to finish. He made his way closer to her, placed his hand behind her head delicately and grasping her hand in his other as he placed his lips softly onto hers. She froze, unmoving. She squeezed his hand and brought her current hand entwined with his and brought it to her belly as she took her other hand and placed it behind his head. He placed his free hand on her waist, keeping her as close as possible.

The kiss was sweet and long. Passion and undying love flowed between them. Both their heart rates sped up as he tugged on her bottom lip. She opened her mouth and he ran his tongue along hers. She moaned and massaged his scalp. The hand entwined with hers moved around in a soothing motion, the baby was calm, almost as if it were content.

They broke apart slowly, both had hazy vision, half-opened eyes. He leaned forward pressing a soft kiss on her lips and leaning his forehead against hers.

"I love you too," she breathed against him, leaning as much as she could into him and she kissed him again.

He breathed in, cinnamon, one of the many things he loved about her.

"Ummm, M-mister P-p-pat-r-cik," the two moved slightly apart at the sound of a small boy, "W-what's for, um, dinner?" Jane looked down at Lisbon and smiled before turning back to the small boy.

"Ray, how would you like pancakes for dinner?"

"B-but Mister P-patrick….that's…um break-kfast!" Ray scratched the side of his head curiously and shook his head in disbelief.

"That's all right," and with new confidence, Jane picked up Ray, swinging the boy around. Ray laughed happily. A true, content laugh. Full of glee. Lisbon's heart melted at the very sight as she watched the two men in her life enjoy…life.

She placed her hands on her belly, "We're the only girls in the house now," she felt a small kick and she smiled.

God she hoped Jane was right about the baby being a girl. She had not yet tested to make sure his 'theory' was correct. A small part of her was telling her so. She smiled and made her way into her kitchen, muttering a quick 'careful' as the boys moved around the fairly large apartment.

Jane set Ray down on the ground as the two went around to gather the pancake batter. Lisbon leaned against the icebox, watching the delightful scene in front of her. Jane turned back at her and winked.

Maybe life was getting better. Maybe he shouldn't live the life full of the desire to kill Red John. Ray, Lisbon, and their unborn daughter changed his outlook….so did Peter when he threatened to do physical harm to Jane if he were to hurt his sister…

But nevertheless, things were shaping up.