Hello folks! Sorry about the huge hiatus... I am finally free! Watch this space for very frequent chapters from now on. Also apologies for the angst in this chapter and a lot of questions I'm sure you'll be asking. All will be revealed.

oxoxoxoxoxoxo

Claudia woke up the next day to an empty bed. What made up for this was the amazing smell of newly baked bread. She practically floated out of the bedroom, slipping on some jeans and a t-shirt, before heading downstairs to greet her wife. Leena was sat at the table, surprisingly, sipping a cup of tea. She only looked up when Claudia sat down next to her, a strange, inquisitive look on her face. "How come you let me sleep in?"

Leena shrugged and showed a smile, "Thought you needed it."

Claudia pondered that and nodded slowly. What she needed was her morning make-out session. She stood up and went to the fridge to pour herself a glass of orange juice, smiling instinctively at the sonogram clipped by a question mark magnet. Sitting down again, she tapped her fingers against the table. "You want me to come shopping with you this morning?"

Leena looked up from the magazine she was reading and narrowed her eyes. "What's the catch?" She smirked.

Claudia, baffled, held up her hands and shook her head. "No catch… just wanted to see if you wanted some company."

The innkeeper's eyes softened and she caught Claudia's hand. "Okay… That'll be nice."

Claudia blinked. "Okay," she nodded. "So we're really doing this. You moving to the Warehouse with me while Danny's over."

"I'm really doing this." Leena smiled. "But bedtime only, you know Artie doesn't like pregnant women around the Warehouse, it makes him all jittery." At that, Claudia let out a huge smile and stood up, leaning over the wide dining table to deliver a kiss to the woman's lips.

Leena grinned. "C'mere," she cooed and pulled her wife by the hand until the Caretaker was sat in her lap. "Hi."

"Hi there," Claudia grinned back and kissed her again. Finally. The sigh of relief fluttered across Leena's lips before the other woman pulled her even closer and the tiny grazes of their tongues meeting spurred them on.

A clear of the throat landed Claudia on the kitchen floor. She looked up at the old man who was standing at the corner of the kitchen with his eyebrows quirked. Artie took a firmer hold of his walking stick and shuffled towards the table. "Well I heard the good news." He smiled when Claudia eventually got up to make him some coffee. He turned and looked at Leena, placing a hand on her forearm. "Are you okay?"

Claudia grit her teeth, her hands shaking as she put two teaspoons of sugar in the mug.

Leena cleared her throat and nodded. "I am now," she rubbed her nose. "Thanks though…"

He rubbed her wrist and nodded, then helped himself to a slice of the still warm bread on the table. Sounds of wailing filtered through the air as Lillian told the world that she wasn't enjoying her morning very much.

"Morning," Vanessa chirped, entering the vicinity as Leena began to move some of the food from the fridge onto a tray to bring to the dining room. "Feeling better?"

"Much," Leena smiled. "A little queasy." Vanessa grinned back and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I'm afraid I'm gonna have to go," she said, clipping her phone to her belt. "There's been an outbreak of what they think is E. coli in Madison but they don't know where it's coming from." She frowned and shook her head. "Kinda strange… you might even see me later," she grinned and bent down to give Artie a peck on the lips. "Don't let Danny tire you out," she chuckled and petted his shoulder.

"You ever gonna retire?" Claudia smirked and took a slurp of her coffee.

Vanessa snorted and gave a shrug. "Maybe… been thinking about it." she shared a shy smile with Artie and shrugged her bag over her shoulder. "See you soon." She turned to Leena and looked her in the eye. "And you… you tell me if anything else comes up, okay? And I'll be on the next flight over." She pulled the woman close for a hug.

"I will," Leena nodded. Suddenly she looked very focused on something, then looked up and excused herself to go and be sick.

Claudia sighed and stirred her coffee, only looking up when she felt eyes on her. She frowned. "What?"

Artie quirked his eyebrow. "Oh! Oh… right, right." Claudia pushed herself up off the chair. "My cue to be a good wife, right…" She rolled her eyes and disappeared off towards the downstairs bathroom.

After Leena's stomach had settled, the couple decided to go shopping whilst Myka left Helena with Lil to help Pete move his things to one of the spare rooms in the B&B. The B&B itself contained seven bedrooms. Previously, Daniel's visit would have caused more hassle but now, the lay-out of bedrooms would pretty much remain untouched.

Leena and Claudia shared the very front bedroom. Admittedly, it was the largest room and had a great view of the Badlands, especially in the morning. Above this, was the loft which as the group decided, would be converted into a loft for one of the children. The room next to theirs, was Helena and Myka's spacious bedroom. Next door was the nursery, where Daniel would be sleeping along with Lillian, and opposite that was Artie's room. Over the years, the B&B had changed from being an inn full of friends, to a family house.

Leena sighed, drumming her fingers against the dashboard, distractedly looking at her home and how much it had changed. Claudia jumped in the car and slammed the door with a grin, "Okay, ready!" she said brightly.

"Finally," Leena smirked, but a hint of disappointment was laced in her tone. She cleared her throat and started the car.

Claudia rolled her eyes, "Geeze, lighten up!" She frowned. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing is wrong with me." Leena muttered. "I… I dunno," she sighed. "I'm just irritable I guess."

Watching as her wife drove, Claudia slowly reached up and placed a hand on Leena's shoulder. "Tell you what, let's stop for coffee, just chill…okay? Before all the shopping."

Leena swallowed. "Okay." She nodded and rubbed her nose with a fist. "Okay, let's go for coffee." She let out a gentle smile, keeping her eyes on the road.

Coffee, it seems, didn't help. Leena was getting beyond snappy as they made their way around the supermarket, and Claudia had quite frankly had enough. Keep it in. Keep it in. "Oh hey, we're running out of milk, want me to jog over?"

"Sure, whatever…" The innkeeper muttered and threw some Cheetos into the cart.

"Okay!" Claudia gave a bitter wrinkle of the nose and held her hands up in defeat, shaking her head. "Fuck this… I'm outta here."

"What?" Leena frowned. "Claud-"

"Nope," Claudia shook her head again, harder this time. "I'm through with you treating me like shit today."

"Claudia-"

"I'm through!" Claudia stressed again and sniffed. "See you whenever." She turned and simply walked off. Unfortunately, she hadn't thought this bit through. She ended up getting a cab from Rapid City to Univille which cost her a small fortune and then found herself wandering along the streets, scuffing her feet angrily across the paving stones. Something was on Leena's mind and despite asking, the woman remained closeted and highly-strung.

She grumbled and entered the ice-cream parlor to calm herself down, getting an extra scoop because she deserved it, right? Sure, Leena's body was pumping a ridiculous amount of hormones in her body, and sure, she couldn't help how she felt at times… But Claudia was trying. So hard. And trying, being the good, sympathetic wife she was being just wasn't working. She was getting trodden on. Suddenly realizing that she was muttering herself while attacking the bowl of rum fudge ice cream with her spoon, she quietened down and tried to think about the next strategy. She needed to seriously talk to Leena about their sudden fights and try and find out what it was that her wife was keeping from her. The baby was fine, Vanessa had proved that. Leena was healthy, or at least that's what the doctor had said…so what was it? What was so hard for her to say? Before she knew it, tears of frustration rolled down her cheeks and dripped into the sweet concoction. She sighed and brushed more away, then gulped down another spoonful of her ice-cream.

Leena, having finished shopping, made her way back to Univille with a fixed frown on her face. Something needed to be sorted out and fast. After packing all the shopping away, she decided to leave again and go for another drive. Finding her favorite lake off the 240, she sighed, unravelled her cardigan and sat down on the sand with her head in her hands. She wished she could feel the baby move… to make this all real. To make it look like they weren't fighting for nothing, that these hormones were actually for something because frankly right now, she was feeling completely cruddy. She looked at the time. 2pm. She really should have been back at the B&B but she'd do anything to avoid Claudia right now. She sighed again and looked up at the calming water. The ripples were moving slowly, strange but also comforting for this particular lake.

"I thought you'd be here," came the gruff voice. It made Leena jump and as she turned, she immediately rolled her eyes.

"She told you to come, didn't she?" Leena sighed at an old man who gripped a walking stick in his left hand. He was roughly in his sixties, had a short, white sprinkled beard making a sharp contrast against his dark skin. He let out a smile and lowered himself down slowly to sit on the sand with a light-hearted groan.

"She's concerned about you." He said and turned to look at the woman, only younger by two decades. Her face told a different story, mind. "Did you and Claudia have another fight?"

Leena huffed and turned her head away from him, looking at the water. "Yes." Her voice broke and she sniffed away a tear. "I don't know what to do, Tim. I just…" She huffed, "I don't know what to do," she murmured sadly now sat once more with her head in her hands.

He set a calloused, wrinkled hand on her shoulder and pulled her close. Timothy was a wise man, experience lined by deep dents on his face. He was comforting and despite their past, Leena cuddled close and let out her tears of frustration. "Shhh, hey," he hushed, and rubbed her back slowly. "Oh sugar, you're gonna be okay." He kissed the top of her head. "You're gonna be okay." He let her cry for a while before a giggle was forced out of him. "Darlin' you're acting like you don't wanna have a baby."

At that she quickly sat up and wiped her tears. "No, no… I do." She nodded her head hastily. "I do, it's what I want. I want it so bad." She said, her eyes almost pleading. "I need it so bad."

He smiled and wiped the tears away from her cheeks. "You are going to have this baby, and bring your child up to be one helluva loving, kind and generous kid, okay?" His hands shook slightly from age but he held her chin steadily, watching her eyes darting away from his face.

Her lips quivered and she looked down to fiddle with her hands. "I'm scared," she whispered sadly.

"I know, precious." Tim sighed. "I know…" He squeezed her arm and went quiet, looking out at the water. His silence was broken by a disturbed thought. "Do you ever think about it? Us?"

Leena's eyes closed in pain and she nodded slowly. "All the time," her voice cracked and her shoulders shook. His arm left her shoulder and he distanced himself.

"It was a long time ago," he said hoarsely. She nodded. "So you know what? I don't want you to be scared… because what happened…" he heard the woman's breath hitch and swallowed thickly. "Was not our fault, okay? It just wasn't time." He sighed heavily. "It wasn't the right time."

"It still feels like a punishment." Leena shrugged vacantly. "I was pregnant, I wasn't supposed to be… nature punished me."

"No," the old man shook his head and took her hand. "No, it was not. It was a learning curve, and you know what, honey?" He paused and closed his eyes. "You need to tell Claudia everything."

Leena stood up suddenly and began to pace, scuffing her feet against the sand. "And tell her what?"

"The truth." Timothy said gently. He gripped his walking stick, rolling it around his aged palms. "Telling her is the only way to move forward."

Leena sniffled and shook her head, placing a hand on her abdomen as she thought about her wife's child, comfy and warm inside her. Her face wrinkled as she got closer to completely losing it. "And she's going to react to that, how? How is she going to…" She found it hard to breathe and paced around the shore, reaching up to grip her hair. "She's going to leave me."

Tim sighed and shook his head, sympathetic eyes peering at her with unconditional care. "She loves you. She is about to become a mother… I am pretty sure that she won't leave you." Leena's pacing stopped and she looked at her old boyfriend, staring him in the face. She had been so young. Well, she was 26, but she was naïve and immature. Tim had been older, mature… He was kind and thoughtful. Endearing. And there was so much history between them. He had gotten older, she had stayed the same. She sniffed and tried to stop her lip from quivering.

"I'm scared."

"I know," Tim stood up slowly, pulling himself up with the walking stick. "But sweetie, you need to tell her, because she knows something is going on with you and I don't think she thinks it's just hormones."

"Mrs. Frederic tell you that too?" Leena mumbled, kicking a rock sullenly.

"Maybe." Tim smiled and caught the woman's hand. "Go… now. Tell her the truth."

She felt like she was about to burst into tears again and clutched him in a tight hug. "Don't be a stranger, okay?"

"I'll try," he smiled and pecked the top of her head. "Go on… I hate people being angry at each other." He sighed and watched the innkeeper wave goodbye then toddle off before he did the same.

When Leena got home, she felt waves of guilt attack her gut and sat down on the couch with a heavy flop. What she didn't expect was Claudia to wander into the room, whistling to herself half naked in a towel. "Oh." Leena squeaked and her eyes widened. "I uhh… I thought… I didn't-"

Claudia held up a hand to stop her and shook her head. "You wanna take this upstairs?"

Her wife's tone was cold and quite monotonous. Leena rubbed her eyes and nodded, before heading up the stairs. Claudia followed where she began to get changed when they were in their bedroom, scrubbing at her hair to dry it. "You wanna explain? What's with the fucking bitchiness?"

Leena sat in the middle of the bed and crossed her legs. She wouldn't cry. Not again… She was not allowed to cry. "I…" she looked down at herself and felt her throat become tight. "Claud, I have a lot of stuff to tell you, okay?" her voice went a little higher as she tried not to let her emotions run wild. "And it's gonna be hard for me to tell you some of it. But I want you to know that I didn't tell you because I didn't think you would understand, and a lot of it is so painful that I can't even… even think about…"

"Hey," Claudia's brow furrowed as she watched her wife get more and more distressed. "Don't take it out on yourself okay? We want the little nugget nice and safe…" She frowned and sat down, taking hold of Leena's hand. "Whatever it is you've got to tell me, I'm gonna listen, okay?" Claudia said gently. She was freaked, she wasn't going to lie. Even her hands had begun to shake and if she was honest, she partly knew what this as about.

"I…was 26." Leena mumbled.

"When… you lost the baby?" Claudia said slowly. A sad nod was her answer.

"Mrs. Frederic had pretty much kept me on my own most of the time, and I was running the inn, you know?"

"Okay," Claudia soothed, more than a little confused. That's when Leena went silent. She seemed as if she'd never speak again until a sudden bout of confidence caught the young caretaker off guard.

"I had an affair with a man called Tim. He was quite a bit older than me… in his forties." She smiled. "He was so handsome and mysterious and I met him strolling through Univille this one time…" she blinked a few tears from her eyes. "Without a care in the world… And he stole my heart there and then."

Claudia grit her teeth. She tried not to be jealous… she really did, but each time she heard about one of her wife's exes, she got a little territorial. Nevertheless, she squeezed Leena's hand hard and gave a thin-lipped smile. "Claudia… he was her son. He is her son."

"Whose?" Claudia was now completely confused.

The secret came out as a hoarse whisper, thirty years of repressed feelings causing Leena to let out a sob. "Mrs. Frederic's."

Claudia frowned as it sunk in and left the bed swiftly grabbing her wet hair in shock. "No…" She sucked in a breath and shook her head, letting out a scoff of disbelief. The crying woman on the bed made things so unfunny it gave her a headache. "But… but she's your mother. She adopted you."

"She did." Leena spluttered. "But she dissolved it in 1992, two months after she found out about us." Claudia paced around the room and got her stuff ready. "Claudia… Claud, please-"

"Oh now you beg? You just told me your brother got you pregnant thirty years ago and after…" she took a heaving breath. "After ten years of us being together? You tell me now. When you're carrying my child. Fuck, Leena…" She got a bag together, still shaking her head in disgust.

"He wasn't my brother!" Leena screeched. "He was a guy I met who happened to be my adoptive mother's son. She hadn't told me about him, she brought me up as a single child, he was twenty years older than me! How was I supposed to know, Claud? Huh? How?"

Claudia sniffed and stopped packing for a second. "I dunno… maybe I'm being completely irrational, but when my wife suddenly tells me she used to do her brother by law, I think I'm allowed to be a little squicked." Leena stayed silent. She merely hung her head low and tried not to think. Maybe it wasn't worth it. Maybe, if Claudia couldn't understand something like this, maybe they shouldn't be parents together anyway. "Going to the Warehouse now." Claudia exhaled. "You stay here, I dunno if I wanna see you for a while. Text me if Danny gets here safe." And with that final bitter tone, she left the room and the B&B soon after.

TBC.