"She's going to wake up," Lucky's said somberly on the other end of the line. I pinched the bridge of my nose and tried to focus on the voice. Middle of the night calls from the Spencers were becoming far too common.

"Lucky, it's Dillon. Let me wake her up," I replied. The red glow of the clock beside me indicated that it was just past midnight. Two days had passed, and nothing had happened yet. Luke had told both Lucky and Nikolas, and Lulu had spent most of the day before going over all the options with her brothers and Robin Scorpio.

"No, maybe you should just let her sleep…" his voice trailed off.

"Lu would want to talk to you. Are you sure?" I asked cautiously, knowing that there was something else in his tone.

"Whatever you think is best," he replied noncommittally.

"Lu," I murmured, setting down the receiver. I gently shook her shoulder, smoothing her golden hair away from her eyes. "Sweetie, wake up."

But this is not a stranger, this is Lulu. This is our Lulu.

"What?" she mumbled, pulling the blanket up around her chin.

"It's your brother. He wants to talk to you."

"Lucky or Nikolas?" she asked as she shot up. Very little would wake her from a deep slumber like a mention of her brothers. "Give me the phone." I handed Lulu the receiver and then crawled from the bed. Pulling a hoodie over my bare torso, I decided to give her some privacy.

"Lucky, what's wrong?" I heard her ask as I made my way down the stairs. Pausing at the foot of the stares, I smiled to myself as her melodic voice floated in the air. Walking across the room, I looked at the photographs that lined the mantle. There were snapshots of the Spencer family in different forms, before Lucky was born and then with Lulu and eventually even Nikolas. Lulu had even added a framed photograph of the two of us. Flipping on the switch next to the fireplace, the flame easily came to life.

Sinking onto the couch, I watched shadows dance across the wall. I leaned against the cushion and closed my eyes. "Relax, Dillon," I mumbled to myself as I pulled the blanket across my legs.

I can't help thinking that she got herself involved in something dangerous.

"Yeah, Dillon, relax," Lulu said from behind me. I opened my eyes and shifted them upward to meet hers.

"Hey," I retorted. "Did you talk to your brother?" She nodded silently as she collapsed next to me. Her gauzy white nightgown clung to her every curve as she crossed and then uncrossed her legs. Hands resting on her stomach, her eyes turned to watch the fireplace.

"Come here," I murmured, pulling her back against me. "What happened?"

"Lucky's worried about my mom. And he's worried about me. Apparently, he and Nikolas are afraid that this is going to have an adverse effect on me," Lulu rattled. "I don't know, Dillon. Maybe it'd be better if she never woke up. She wouldn't be ashamed of me for what I've done."

You -- you hope so? You hope so?

"She's going to be proud of you, just like I am," I promised. "Lu, I know that you are afraid to let yourself want this, but you can. It's okay to say that you want your mother back. If I got the chance to know my father – a man I don't even know – I would be thrilled. I can't imagine what you're going through, but you're not going through it alone. You have your brothers, it's okay to let them in. And you have Elizabeth and Emily, they both love your mother. And you have me, I love you."

"I can't wait for you to get to know her," she mused dreamily. "My mom is going to love you. She always wanted my brothers and me to find someone who would take care of us. Nikolas and Emily are like royalty, and there are few couples more beautiful than them. Lucky and Liz were high school sweethearts; it doesn't get much better than that. And then you have us. We don't have quite as beautiful of a story, do we?"

"I don't know, we're going to have a baby, I think that's pretty beautiful," I countered. "Maybe we don't have the conventional beginnings and I know our story isn't necessarily one that you dream about…but it's ours. To me, that makes it beautiful."

Well, I'm just trying to make sure that Lulu doesn't end up the same way.

"I didn't even know they made guys like you," Lulu giggled. "If I hadn't seen you for myself, I wouldn't believe you existed."

"I'd like to go with you to see her tomorrow," I stated as I raked my fingers through her long, silky hair. "I want to talk to the doctors; I want to understand all the details. I talked to Liz and Emily, and we all agreed. This isn't just happening to the three of you, it's happening to us, too. We love you, and we're apart of this family now."

"You've been conspiring behind my back? You really are apart of the Spencer family now."

Yes, I do care about Lulu and it somewhat concerns me that you spend so much of your time making her life miserable.

"Hey, you Spencers don't have the corner marketed on conspiring. Lest you forget, I am a Quartermaine, a byproduct of Tracey Quartermaine and grandson of Edward Quartermaine. I'm not sure, but I don't think either of them is known for being nice and upfront."

"I love how your family throws around your name like it's supposed to impress anyone. I mean, come on, no one even knows what ELQ does."

"We throw our name around? Your family uses your last name to explain everything. Not only that, but you all act like you created the rules for survival."

"We did!" Lulu exclaimed proudly.

"You're so cute," I murmured as I captured her lips. She moaned against my mouth before parting her lips. Our tongues battled for control until I relented to her sensuous touch. Her arms snaked around my torso as she turned over on top of me. Ceasing control, I rolled over so that I was on top. Her back arched as she reached up hungrily to meet me again. Lifting off my hoodie, she traced her finger down my chest.

Look, I do care about Lulu, okay? I don't want her to get hurt again.

Parting her legs, I sunk back against her body and kissed her again. The silky material of her nightgown rubbed against me as her hands roved my back. Sitting up, I lifted it off her body and admired the bare beauty beneath me. She blushed as I gaped at her. Her hands yanked me back toward her. Brushing kisses in the hollow of her neck and across her shoulder, I am caught up in the moment when the phone rings.

"Ignore it," she mumbled as her fingers played with the soft hairs at the nape of my neck. I nodded against her shoulder as my mouth rose to meet her swollen lips. The phone rang a few more times before the answering machine clicked on.

"Lulu, sorry to call so late. It's Nikolas. Are you there? If you're there, pick up!"

"Dammit," she muttered as she pushed me off. Jogging across the room, she pulled the receiver off the hook. I ran my hands over my face to soothe the excitement pulsating through my veins. "Hey, Nik, it's me. What's wrong?"

"Slow down, I can't understand you," she said after a minute. I watched her carefully as the muscles tensed in her back. Something was going on. I jumped off the couch and walked up behind her. Wrapping my arms around her waist, I tried to give her my support. She turned around in my arms, tears welling in the corner of her eyes. Wordlessly, she handed me the phone before falling against me.

"Nikolas, it's Dillon. What happened?" I asked breathily.

"She's awake."