Author's Note: Okay, I hope you guys like this one! It took me a while to complete because I just wasn't sure where I wanted to go with certain parts but I'm really happy with the way it turned out. Just remember...the more reviews, the happier I am, and the happier I am, the faster I update! ;-)
ENJOY!
~JP

True North
By Jaclyn Parker

We all have changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance.
~Harrison Ford
************************************************************************************************************************************************

Friday night came much sooner than anyone expected and it showed by way of the absolute chaos that was going on in Milltown.

"Mom, I can't find my suit jacket!"

"J.J., it's on the coat hook by the front door where you asked me to put it when I finished ironing it!"

"Dad, I need to borrow black shoes. Mine are all scuffed up!"

"Parker, you have more than one pair of black dress shoes. Check in the back of your closet…if you can find your way back there!"

"Hey, Parker, did you pick up the thing for me like I asked when you went to go get Mattie's?"

"Dude, for the millionth time, yes! You gave me money, told me what flower, and even what color ribbon to ask for. It's just a corsage for a fall dance. You're not marrying the girl!"

"Okay, could you just please be nice to your brother? It's his first high school dance."

"Oh, of course! I'll be nice to the mama's boy!"

"I heard that, you moron!"

"Hey, guys, knock it off! You can always tell Becca and Mattie that you were both suddenly grounded if that works better for you!"

"Aw, come on, Dad! Like Mom said, it's my first high school dance! Besides, he started it!"

"Oh my God, dude, what are you…five?"

"Boys, enough! I mean it!"

"Fine! Sorry, Dad! Sorry, J.J.! Sorry, Universe!"

"Wow, that was heartfelt...jerkwad!"

"Bite me, Sophomore!"

"Boys!"

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry!"

"Yeah, me too...even if he did start it."

"Ugh! Carly, whose fault is it, again, that we have teenagers?"

"Don't look at me, Jack, I wanted puppies. And apparently you can't make an exchange this late in the game because trust me...I asked."

"Wow, you guys are freaking hilarious! Not!"

"I don't know, I thought your mom's comment was pretty funny and…Parker, you cannot wear Converse sneakers with your good suit, even if they are black!"

"But, Dad, I told you…"

"Fine! Go get a pair of black shoes from my closet! Just…don't ruin them too!"

"Mom, seriously, I need my jacket!"

"J.J., for the last time! Front door! Coat hook!"

"Oh…well…why didn't you just say that before? There's no need to yell."

Sage, who was avidly watching from the living room couch as the rest of her family ran around the house like headless chickens, calmly covered her ears as her mother let loose a scream of frustration.

Perched on the coffee table, a startled Emmy jumped in her baby bouncer and stared up at her big sister with wide blue eyes.

"It's okay, Emmy. I think they're nuts too." Sage said reaching out to tickle the baby's feet through her pale yellow sleeper with fuzzy 3-D ducklings on them. She laughed when Emmy gave her a drooling smile in return for her efforts.

Two minutes later it sounded like a hoard of elephants was coming down the stairs as both teenaged boys rushed to grab their suit jackets and the corsages that sat waiting on the desk by the door.

"We're leaving!" Parker called up and Carly appeared on the lower landing of the stairs, dressed in her bathrobe.

"So, when the dance is over you're going to go to IHOP with your friends?"

"Yes." They replied together with barely concealed tolerability.

"And you know that weekend curfew is only extended a half hour tonight? Which means home by 12:30, not heading home by 12:30."

"Yes."

"Cell phones are charged?"

"Yes."

"Emergency money and medical information are in your wallets?"

"Yes."

There was a pause and then Carly sighed softly. "You both look so handsome and grown-up. Let me get one more picture!"

"Mom!" Parker said and his eyes practically bugged out of his head with irritation.

"Mom, we're gonna be late meeting the girls at Jason's house." J.J. said with a slight whine as he shifted impatiently.

"Relax, it's just three houses down. Besides, I still don't see why you all couldn't come here to get picked up by the limo." Carly said, sniffing her disdain as she moved down the stairs to adjust both of their ties one final time.

"Um…hello? In case you haven't noticed...you're in your bathrobe." Parker pointed out with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, alright, go! But I want copies of any pictures that you take at Jason's house!" Carly said, making due with one more hug each.

The boys yelled their goodbyes up to Jack and then, with quick kisses to Emmy and hugs for Sage, they disappeared out the door before Carly could corner them with more questions or worse…her camera again.

With a long sigh, Carly shut the door behind them and leaned against it for a minute. Then giving Sage a smile, she walked over to bend down to kiss her, then Emmy.

"How are things down here?"

"Fine. I'm ready to go." Sage said pointing to the corner by the door where her sleepover stuff waited. "By the way…Parker has a point."

Carly raised an eyebrow at her for an explanation and Sage waved a hand in front of her.

"Lanie's mom is going to be here in like, 10 minutes, which means it's almost time for your date with Daddy, and you are still only in your bathrobe."

"Ugh, everyone's a critic." Carly said, rolling her eyes but tapped Sage's nose lightheartedly before bounding upstairs to finish getting dressed.

A few minutes later there was a knock on the door and before Sage could get up, it opened by itself and Emma poked her head in.

"Hello? I'm here."

"Hi, Aunt Emma, come on in. Mom and Dad are still getting dressed." Sage said standing to greet her with a hug.

"Your friend's mom isn't here yet?" Emma said hugging her back and kissing her forehead.

"Nah, but she should be here any minute. I've just been playing with Emmy until then." Sage shrugged and gestured to the baby who had, once again, discovered the magical appendage that was her left fist. Emmy eyed at her fist in concentration, before quickly proceeding to stuff it into her mouth with enthusiasm.

"Well, hello there, Angel! How are you?" Emma cooed.

The baby froze then immediately turned her head towards the new voice. Dropping her fist from her mouth, Emmy babbled loudly and waved her extremely wet hand in Emma's direction.

"Well! You're doing that good, huh?" Emma replied back, sitting down on the couch and reaching out to take Emmy's hand, drool and all.

"Isn't she smart? It's like she knows what you're saying to her." Sage said proudly.

As if to back her big sister up, Emmy turned her face in Sage's direction with a wide smile and reached out her other hand. Sage didn't hesitate before leaning forward and kissing the tiny slender fingers that were opening and closing in front of her face.

"Hmm, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were enjoying this whole big sister thing." Emma said and Sage turned to grin at her.

"I love it!" She said but then wrinkled her nose. "Well, except when she has a really dirty diaper. They smell so nasty!"

"Yeah, Mom and Dad aren't so thrilled with them either since we're usually the ones who have to change them." Jack's voice came from behind them and they turned to see him start down the stairs.

Looking like he had just stepped off the cover of GQ magazine, Jack was wearing a well cut, jet black suit with a graphite gray button down shirt underneath, completed by a simple black silk tie. His hair was neatly trimmed and he was adjusting a pair of silver and black cufflinks when he leaned over the back of the sofa to kiss Emma hello.

"You just missed the boys." He said, finally getting the cufflinks right and beginning to fiddle with his tie.

"No, I caught them as they were about to get into their little rented limo." Emma said and gave a small little motherly smile as she reached out and fixed Jack's tie for him. "I'm pretty sure I embarrassed them, though, when I made them let me take a picture with my camera phone."

"No, that's good." Jack said and leaned forward to kiss her cheek again when she deemed his tie was now straight. "Carly and I were worried we hadn't done enough to mess with them before they left."

"No, Jack, you wanted to mess with them. I was just being a mom." Carly said, her words accented by the sound of her stiletto heels on the hardwood to announce her incoming arrival.

"Whoa, Mommy! You look amazing!" Sage said, exchanging a look with Emma who winked at her and inclined her head towards Jack. Sage looked over at her dad and bit her tongue to keep from laughing as he just stood there with his mouth agape while Carly descended the stairs.

She was also dressed to the nines in a form fitting, deep wine colored, satin dress that came to just above her knees. There was a wide band of black lace with scalloped edges starting at just under her bust to end at her waist. The dress was strapless with a square neckline but around Carly's shoulders was a black lace bolero jacket with short sleeves that matched the lace on her dress. Her curls were pinned back at the sides and a pair of chandelier earrings made of small black shiny beads echoed the delicate strand of similar beads that rested at her collarbone.

"Thank you, Sweetie. It's something that I had done for the formal collection but decided not to show last minute." Carly said, sweeping her hand down the front of her dress in a semi-nervous gesture.

"You designed that?" Sage said, her eyes wide as Carly nodded.

"Beautiful and talented; quite a dangerous combination." Jack's said and Carly found herself blushing. The intoxicating scent of his cologne reached her nose and she fought the instinct to close her eyes and breathe in deeply again. As it was, her stomach was doing silly little flips and she found that she was struggling to remember that her knees were not made of jelly.

Another knock on the door came and Jack moved to answer it, revealing a pretty little girl with caramel colored skin and two thick French braids in her jet black hair.

"Hi, Elena. Do you want to come in?" Jack said and the child smiled shyly.

"No thanks, Mr. Snyder. My mom's waiting in the car."

"Hi, Lanie!" Sage said, smiling as she rose from the couch at the sight of her friend.

"Hey, Sage." Elena smiled back sending a small wave in her direction.

"It's okay, Daddy. My stuff is right there." Sage said and turned to give Emma and Carly both hugs, before kissing her baby sister repeatedly. "Bye-bye, Emmy, I love you."

Sage hugged Jack too and then went to throw on her coat. Carly walked over to help Sage with her sleeping bag while Elena bent down to help grab Sage's duffel bag and pillow.

"Bye! Have fun tonight!" Sage said, her eyes twinkling as she looked from one parent to the other.

"You too! See you girls tomorrow. Be good!" Carly said giving her older daughter a quick look as Sage and Elena both waved back.

As they left, the two girls' voices floated back to them.

"Girl, your mom looked like a model!" Elena said, her voice a loud attempt at a whisper. "That dress was so hot!"

"I know and guess what? She designed it." Sage's voice carried back and the pride rung out in the crisp October air.

As Jack closed the door, he turned to see Carly standing there with a small surprised smile on her face.

"If you're looking for a public relations person, I think Sage could do the job easily." Emma joked playfully, having heard the young girl's words too.

"She's proud of her mom. We all are." Jack said, brushing a hand down Carly's arm and making her shiver. Their eyes connected and for a moment, everything else just disappeared. Only the clearing of a throat behind them caused them to remember where they were and who they were with.

"Right!" Carly said, turning to look at Emma and trying desperately to re-focus.

"Um, Emmy's going to probably want to eat within the next twenty minutes or so and her bottles are in the fridge ready to go. She has a slight diaper rash so there is a tube of cream on both the changing table on the playpen and the one in her room. Her bedtime is usually around 9 or so and if you turn the mobile over her crib once and just rock her while the song is playing, she's typically asleep before it's over. Uh, the emergency numbers are on the counter, but both of our cell phones will be on if you need us. She usually doesn't cry unless there's a reason so if she gets fussy just check her diaper or she might have a little gas but…"

Carly trailed off finally as she noticed both Emma and Jack watching her with amused expressions.

"...why am I telling you all of this? You've done this like, a million times." Carly said, rolling her eyes to cover her embarrassment but Emma just shook her head.

Walking over, the older woman placed her hands on either side of Carly's face and smiled warmly at her.

"Because, you're a mommy and that's what mommies do." Emma said and then leaned forward to kiss Carly's cheek before releasing her and stepping back again. "Okay, now scoot, you two. I know you have eight-fifteen reservations at that fancy Italian restaurant you like so much and I don't want you to be late."

Carly and Jack got their stuff together and went to say goodbye to Emmy. Since most babies don't even develop separation issues until they are at least 7 or 8 months, both Carly and Jack knew that they were having a harder time than Emmy was. In fact, she was babbling away and waving her hands in the air without a care in the world when Emma finally shooed them out the door.

The night started out a little bit awkward with the conversation mainly about the kids or the house and at one point, it even ventured to the weather. However, by the time their meal came around, they were laughing and talking as easily as they had done years ago. Jack actually managed to convince her to dance with him to an old Dean Martin song while they waited for dessert and both of them realized that they had forgotten how nice it was to simply just sway while being in each other's arms. After dinner they found themselves winding up at the local Starbucks to bring the night to a close but before either of them knew it, ten-thirty had rolled around and they realized that they needed to head back home.

Still, when they arrived back at Milltown, they were reluctant to head inside just yet and hovered out on the front porch for a few moments longer. Together they stared up at the night sky with Carly leaning back against Jack's chest and his arms wrapped around her waist.

"You were right about tonight, Jack." Carly said, her arms lying over top of his as they hugged her tight. He rested his chin atop her right shoulder and nuzzled her hair away from her neck as he listened to her speak. "I had a great time."

"Yeah, you just liked it because I bought you that giant slice of triple chocolate cake you wanted at La Bella Luna." Jack teased. Carly leaned her head back and to the right to look at him, her eyes sparkling in the porch light.

"Hmm, maybe." She teased back and let out a small laugh when he squeezed her harder around the stomach in retribution. "What? It was amazing! I swear I can still taste it!"

"Oh, really?" Jack's eyes darkened and he suddenly released her from his hold. Turning her around so that she was now facing him, he tilted his head as he looked down at her. "Let's test that theory."

He bent his head down and while the thought to stop him crossed her mind momentarily, it was gone the moment his lips ghosted hers.

The kiss was soft and feather-light at first, just basically a small nibble, but as soon as she felt the tip of his tongue trace the crease where her two lips met, Carly immediately granted him the access he was seeking. Before either of them knew what was happening, Jack had her back pressed up against one of the pillars to the porch railing and she was pulling him as close to her as humanly possible. Carly's hands slipped up under his suit jacket to alternately press and claw against his upper back while his hands gripped her waist tightly with one leg nudged in between her two. His thumbs were moving in concentric circles at her hips, gathering the satin material of her dress, and indirectly causing her hemline to start to creep its way up her thighs. The alternating feel of the heat from his body and the cool night air against her newly exposed legs was driving her out of her mind.

It was only the soft hoot of an owl and the snap of a twig nearby that broke Carly out of her blissful state and made her aware again of their surroundings. However, when Jack moved from her lips to that one spot at the base of her collarbone, for a brief moment Carly thought 'to hell with public decency'.

Yet, Jack must have sensed a change in her body language or else he was also becoming conscious again of where they were standing because he stopped his actions and pulled away slowly, his breathing as heavy as her own.

As she willed herself to ignore the incredible heat that was still pooling in places it shouldn't while standing exposed on their front porch, Carly felt herself become more and more nervous. While the date had gone fantastic and she had been hoping to end it with a romantic gesture, she certainly hadn't meant for things to escalate as far as they did.

Granted, she had her appointment with Dr. Schiller on Monday afternoon and was confident she was going to be medically cleared, but it was more than that. Sex between her and Jack had never been "just sex", no matter what they might have said or done afterwards. The emotional ties and history between them ran too deep and Carly knew that when the time was right, they would have their moment to intimately connect again.

She just didn't know if she was ready for it to be tonight.

"Um…" Carly said, trying to make her voice sound relatively normal even as she delicately pulled her dress back down to its intended length. "Maybe we should head inside."

Although everything in him screamed to return to the warmth he had found in her arms, Jack held back. He had seen the display of conflicting emotions that had crossed Carly's face in the moments after they had pulled apart. He loved her with every fiber of his being and going off of that love, he would never want to push her into doing something that she wasn't ready for.

"Oh," Jack said, stepping away from her within a tasteful enough distance to let his body start to calm down. "You mean, now that we've given the neighbors a free show?"

At his joking he could instantly see Carly's entire body relax. She chuckled and the husky sound of it made Jack want nothing more then to grab her and carry her upstairs like a caveman but again he restrained himself.

"That and the fact that your aunt is 50 feet away inside our house and I kinda feel like a teenager who's about to get caught making out on the porch."

"Oh, right, her." Jack said, but he smiled when he said it and threw his arm around Carly's shoulders. Pressing a kiss to the side of her head, he smiled wider when he felt her arm slide around his waist.

Carly narrowed her eyes as she studied the small cloud that formed when she exhaled her breath, her mind drifting to what had just happened. Smiling inwardly at the decision she came to, she slipped in front of Jack and placed her hands up on his chest.

"But she's going home now, right?"

Jack looked down into Carly's upturned face and studied her intently.

"Yes…she is." He said slowly and Carly smiled, rising up on her tip toes slightly to kiss his lips again.

"Good. Then we won't have to worry about being caught anymore." She said softly against his mouth. Jack tentatively placed his hands at her hips and frowned.

"Carly," He said, his fingers pressing into her sides lightly. "Are you sure?"

Carly didn't respond, only re-settled back down onto the porch and with a flirtatious smile tugged Jack's jacket back into place. Taking the keys from his pocket, she turned and opened the front door leaving Jack no choice but to follow her with a stupid grin on his face.

"Hi, Emma, we're home." Carly said as she entered the dimly lit living room.

"Welcome back, you two." Emma said rising from the couch and stretching with a book in one hand.

"How was she?" Jack asked, helping Carly off with her coat and then removing his own.

"She was perfect. A little fussy at first when she realized that the voice talking to her during her feeding wasn't her mommy or daddy but she quieted down relatively easily." Emma said and moved to pick up her coat from the hook. "She's been asleep since about nine-thirty, but she must have been tired because she didn't drink that much before she conked out."

"Thank you for watching her, Emma. I'm sorry we're back so late." Carly said and Emma waved her off as she shrugged her coat on.

"It's fine, dear. I finally got to finish my book." Emma leaned over and kissed her goodbye, before barely covering up a yawn herself. "Although, I probably shouldn't have. My eyes aren't what they used to be and I'm afraid I gave myself one heck of a migraine."

Carly stared at her in concern and placed a hand on her arm. "Are you going to be okay to drive? I know that when I get migraines I can barely move, let alone tolerate headlights in my face."

"No, I should be okay. It's not far." Emma said, but now that they were looking more closely both Jack and Carly could see the tightness of the older woman's facial expression. They exchanged a troubled look between them and Carly nodded discreetly to Jack. The rest of their night would still run fine even with a slight detour.

"Hey, you know, it is pretty late. Why don't you lemme drive you back to the farm tonight?" Jack said frowing.

"I'm fine, Jack." She said and then shook her head, although she couldn't hide the small wince that followed the movement.

"Emma, you can barely keep your eyes open and I know your head must be killing you. It's only an hour round trip and after the espresso I had with dessert, I'm more than awake enough to take you." Jack argued more and this time it was Emma who frowned.

"Don't be silly. What about my car?"

"I'll have Parker drive it to the farm in the morning and then we'll swing by to pick him up after we drop off Sage's friend at her house." Carly said, firmly. "Come on, Emma, please. We're just going to worry about you the whole time otherwise."

Emma was about to protest but seeing the truth of that last statement in both their faces, she relented. After everything that had gone on in the past couple months, the last thing this family needed was more reason worry, even over something as normal as her thirty minute car ride home.

As soon as Jack and Emma left, Carly went around the house turing off all of the lights except the one on the desk in the living room and the outside light to the front porch. Then, after taking a quick ten minute shower, Carly happily wrapped herself up in the thick, powder blue bathrobe that Jack and the kids had bought her as a welcome home present and started to go downstairs to make some tea. She was at the top of the stairs when she heard the first tentative cry coming from the nursery. She paused, wondering if Emmy was going to quiet down and go back to sleep but when it quickly escalated instead, Carly immediately changed direction.

The amount of light that lit the room from the full moon outside combined with the soft glow of the nightlight in the corner of the room allowed Carly to bypass the main light switch as she entered the nursery, heading straight for the crib and picking up her howling daughter.

"Hey, no need to be so dramatic there, Pumpkin." Carly said, cradling Emmy and the baby let out a frustrated wail, bringing her fist to her mouth and sucking hard. "Well, now, see, that's what happens when you don't eat all your dinner when it's first offered to you."

Carly settled into the glider and instantly Emmy turned her face towards her chest, her cries becoming more demanding.

"Oh, I get it! You were just waiting for the real thing, huh? Lulling your poor Aunt Emma into a sense of false security because you knew the full dairy bar would be home in a couple of hours." Carly said and drew aside her robe to expose what Emmy really wanted.

Emmy immediately latched on and began to eat eagerly, one of her tiny hands reaching up to firmly splay itself on Carly's breast as if claiming it as her own property. Chuckling, Carly began to rock slowly while drawing a finger down a round cheek as it furiously moved in and out. In the moonlight that seemed to land specifically on the mother and daughter duo, she could see that Emmy's little lashes were wet with her former tears and her blue eyes stared directly up into Carly's face as she drank. When a tiny dimple appeared in the same cheek that Carly was stroking, she couldn't help but laugh full out. If she didn't know any better, Carly would swear that she was being played by a three month old.

"Don't think that this little ploy is going to work all the time, Miss Thing. Mommy is on to you!"

Thirty minutes later, Emmy had switched sides and been properly burped twice. Draping the burp cloth over her left shoulder, Carly lifted Emmy to lie against it, while covering her with the small pale yellow receiving blanket that constantly hung over the one arm of the glider. Now that the baby was settling into a true deep sleep, Carly readjusted her bathrobe and relaxed too. Leaning her head back against the glider, she gently patted the tiny tush while she rocked slowly. Humming under her breath, she listened to the sound of Emmy's breathing become even before closing her own eyes, a wave of completeness washing over her.

A few minutes later, sensing that she and Emmy were no longer alone, Carly opened her eyes to see Jack leaning against the doorframe of the nursery. She gave him a warm smile and he sent one back as his eyes drank in the sight before him.

"Hey, you." Carly whispered, even though she knew that Emmy was completely dead to the world.

"Hey, you." Jack said back and started towards them. He stopped by the rocker and looked down into their sleeping daughter's face. "She looks happy."

"Why wouldn't she be?" Carly said, chuckling lightly as she also took in the small dimpled smile on Emmy's rounded face. "She just had a very satisfying meal and she's probably dreaming about waking me up at 4 AM to do it all over again."

Jack laughed and then reached down to carefully lift the baby into his own arms. Carly arched her back and stretched in the glider as she watched Jack rock Emmy soothingly for a moment before laying her down in her crib.

"You know, this is perfect."

Carly looked at him, slightly bewildered by the sudden statement and then smiled.

"Yeah, it is." She agreed and walked over to stare down at their daughter with him. Jack put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close, kissing the side of her head. His expression was thoughtful and Carly just waited, knowing that whatever was on his mind wasn't too far from coming out of his mouth.

"Carly, for the past few years our lives seem like they have had one crisis after another. But the past couple of months have been amazing. We're starting to become family again, especially with the addition of this little girl, and I feel like I'm complete now. Plus, you're healthy and everyone is getting along so well…" Jack said and although she nodded, Carly didn't say anything back. When he cleared his throat she pulled away slightly and stared at him, waiting for him to continue. "What I mean is…"

Sighing Jack turned to face her fully and took both of her hands in his, looking down into her puzzled expression.

"Carly, I love you and I know you love me so what I want to know is…will you marry me?"

Carly's eyes widened and filled with tears. She pulled one of her hands free from his and placed it over her mouth as it formed a surprised "O". Swallowing hard, she took a deep breath and placed that same hand on his cheek.

"Oh Jack, you're right. I do love you." She said and leaned forward to kiss him softly on the lips before pulling back again to stare into his eyes. "I love you so much."

Jack felt a smile start to spread across his face but then the fingertips that had been against his cheek moved to cover his mouth and the look in her eyes caused him to freeze.

"But my answer…is no." Carly said, shaking her head sadly and moving her hand, she gave him one final kiss. "I can't marry you again."

Without another word she slipped around him and out of the nursery leaving behind a peacefully slumbering infant and an incredibly stunned Jack.