Author's Note: So yeah, I'll probably run out of story soon and should be studying. Since I'm failing, what does it matter? I'd rather try to entertain you.

zzz

Luis followed Diego into the entry hall and picked up one of the few pieces of luggage the couple had brought. "Your regular room is open. You're lucky on such short notice. Good thing I'm a forgiving sort, letting you stay here with no warning," Luis complained as he started up the stairs.

Diego shook his head, his own thoughts keeping him silent. He set Victoria's bag by the window of his room, opening the shutters to smell the ocean breeze. He was always happy to come here, where he could be himself and not worry about things for a while. He leaned back against the open window and crossed his arms as he surveyed his home away from home and Luis continued to set up the room.

Would he be sleeping here tonight? His eyes skirted over the bed as his body warred with itself: excited at the possibilities, terrified at the possibilities. She was still like a frightened colt. He'd need to be gentle, patient; on the other hand she was his wife, and he wanted her to share his bed more than he'd ever wanted anything in his entire life.

His arms tensed before he forced himself to relax and hold onto the window sill. "I'll need another room, at least for tonight."

Luis spilled some of the water he was pouring into a bowl as he sharply looked up at his friend. He calmly set his bucket down on the ground and mimicked Diego's stance, leaning against the dresser. Luis saw Diego glance at the bed before his eyes fell to the floor and remained there. "Can you say that again?"

Diego barely looked up, feeling his neck turn pink as he admitted something so personal. "Victoria's young. She never knew I cared for her. Never imagined I wanted to marry her. I promised if she married me, I wouldn't force her to move faster than she was ready."

"Still the perfect gentleman, even when she's your wife?"

Diego bristled and narrowed his eyes at Luis. "There's nothing wrong with showing a woman some respect. Not everyone wants a secret wedding followed by crossing an ocean to escape family who wants you dead."

"So you had the perfect wedding? Bride's family approving of the rich dowry and your father beaming at his perfect son finding the perfect wife?"

Diego tried to shrug at some of the tension in his shoulders. He ignored his 'friend' and walked into the hall to steal one of the flowers from Rebecca's vase. He smoothed out the pillow, one of two on the large bed. He folded the blanket down himself and smoothed out all the wrinkles before he set the flower on the pillow.

"Some things are worth waiting for." Eventually he pulled his eyes from the bed and faced Luis again. "For that you can carry both bags to the other room." Diego nodded at the two bags he'd left at the door. "Where is it?"

Luis shook his head. "I don't have one."

"Now is not the time for games," Diego growled.

Luis held up his hands in his defense. "I swear. Chase me around the courtyard waving your sword all you want. Ask Rebecca. We have two guests already. All the rooms are full. Unless you think I should kick someone out so you can keep your fool's promise to not share a room with your wife."

Diego stared at his friend for a long while, but decided he was telling the truth. He glanced around his room and ran a hand through his hair. "Fine. I'll sleep on the couch. Put my bags in your room till she's gone to bed, I don't want her to know."

"Diego, tell her. You're married. You're her husband."

Diego shook his head. "She'll invite me when she's ready, not because I don't have a place to sleep."

"Diego…"

"The subject is closed." Diego bent down to pick up a bag and waited for Luis to follow him out of the room. He glanced inside once more, then closed the door. He really hoped he didn't have to sleep on the couch tonight.

"And while we're at it, don't talk about fighting. No mention of swords or anything, okay?" Diego grimaced inside. "It upsets her, so I don't want to talk about it."

"Upsets her?" Luis chuckled to himself as he stowed Diego's luggage in his own bedroom. "Suit yourself. I was black and blue for a week last time."

Diego rolled his eyes. "It wasn't my fault you fell over the fence."

Luis shook his head. "Sadly, my wife agreed with you, so I didn't get much sympathy from her, either."

Diego chuckled, then paused at the sound of racing feet. Luis laughed as he bent down and scooped a small boy up and hefted him over his shoulders. "What did Señora Rebecca tell you about running in the house?"

The boy's only response was a giggle as Luis tickled him. "Diego, this is Charlie. Charlie, say hi."

Charlie shook his head.

Luis wasn't surprised. "Charlie doesn't like to talk much." Luis looked at Diego. "Don't worry, though, if you keep sleeping on the couch you won't be bothered with any children."

Diego watched Luis as he played with the child, his friend's past bringing up his own fears for the future.

Luis shrugged away the sympathy he saw in Diego's eyes. "We might not have our own, but we have Charlie and other children running around all the time." Charlie pulled on Luis's hair and Luis threw the boy over his shoulder to go down the stairs.

"Victoria wants children." Diego watched Luis dig through a basket of junk and hand Charlie some contraption. The boy smiled and took off running, since apparently he wasn't here for a social visit. "I do, too. But… I'm sorry about Zara. You shouldn't have had to travel with a newborn baby."

"Stop, Diego. It's not your fault Zara died." Luis shook Diego's shoulder. "You gave us a new life. There was nothing in England for us anymore. It only hurt Rebecca to stay. We're happy in California."

"I didn't give you a new life, just paid for passage. You made a wonderful home here, even after you lost a baby. I'm not sure I could be that strong."

"That doesn't sound like you. Marriage made you soft already?" Luis grinned and glanced around his home, which Diego had helped finance and build. "We do what we have to do. I took Rebecca's family from her, so I'm all she has. I have to be strong for her. One day, maybe we'll adopt Charlie and start our own family."

Diego glanced at the door where Charlie had disappeared. "Why don't you?"

Luis shook his head. "She keeps trying to fix herself. Rebecca feels guilty. Any doctor or shaman comes near, she goes to see him. She thinks it's her fault Zara died, her fault we haven't conceived again."

Diego sunk into a chair and rested his head on his hand. "Sometimes all I can think about is everything that can go wrong. This morning I just knew if I left for a week, Victoria would be gone when I got back. Now I could still lose her. My mother died in childbirth. Victoria's mother was shot. I needed to get her away from Los Angeles for some reason, but anything can happen anywhere."

"You're pathetic."

Diego glanced up from his misery and grimaced as a blush crept up his neck.

"It's not Victoria who's uncomfortable with talk of dueling, it's you. What happened to the confident, never take no for an answer man who got me out of jail? Who jumped into a fight without a sword and beat three men?"

Diego shrugged. "I guess today has been a perfect day. I'm afraid something is going to come along and ruin it."

Luis kicked Diego's boots. "Okay, now you're even depressing me. If this is your attitude, I do want a chance at you. I'll have you on the ground before you know what hit you."

Luis smiled when he saw some of the spark come back into Diego's eyes.

"You know that would never happen."

Luis held up a finger. "I knocked you in the dirt once, and I can do it again."

"Because you cheated," Diego said as he stood to glare at his friend.

"Cheating is a harsh word."

Diego put his hands on his hips. "You faked a sprain. I thought you were hurt."

Luis shrugged, unconcerned. "There's that chivalry again. Love a woman in secret, marry her and don't touch her, lose a duel and whine about it later. Like I said. Pathetic."

"Fine, let's see you do it again."

Luis wagged his finger as he backed toward the kitchen. "Ah ah ah, you don't want to upset your fake-wife."

Diego launched himself at his friend and had Luis in a headlock before he reached the kitchen. "Real wife. And you're going to help me make sure she thinks I'm the perfect man for her, or I'll have to tell Rebecca a few things."

In this position many times before, Luis tried to pull Diego's legs out from under him, but quickly gave up. Diego let him up and Luis stood and backed away, straightening his clothes and thinking maybe it wasn't so bad Diego wouldn't want to fight this trip. "Go play with your wife. Leave me in one piece this time."

Diego lunged again, but Luis dodged him, tipping over a small table in the process. They both stood staring at the broken statue shattered on the floor. "She didn't like that, anyway."

Diego fixed his collar and glared at Luis. "I gave that to her last year for her birthday. What do you mean she didn't like it?"

Luis decided he'd had enough and escaped to the kitchen, stumbling a bit to avoid Diego's attempt at catching him.

Zzz

Author's note: Diego still hasn't talked to Victoria. Shame on him. There might be some Diego/Victoria time coming up…maybe. I'll think about it.

Hope you liked it :) Little somber, but it sets some things up. Things will actually get better before they get worse in this story. Don't worry, no children or babies are going to die. I have several friends who have lost children. It's not something you recover from, and it's not something I would attempt to write about.

If you enjoyed, please review. Two exams today, two more on Friday, some more junk due Wednesday. Maybe somewhere along the line I will try again to pass an exam. Knowing you are enjoying this story will make me smile when I don't.