5
Their first night was spent at Tim's aunt's place in Houston and the four of them went to bed early and were up again early, hitting the road and heading to Tulsa where Troy and Ellie, who owned FifGen, lived. They went out for a night on the town and both Jess and Jen danced and sang all night. When the band finished they went back and sat up talking to Ellie for a while before heading to bed. When they got up in the morning, Ellie had packed them food and Jess a birthday present. Her birthday was three days away but they wouldn't be able to make it for the party. Tim and Austin had obviously called to ask them to come. Jess felt horrible that she couldn't stay longer to thank Ellie so she wrote a note thanking both her and Troy for everything and that they would have to plan a trip back over to spend more time with them.
Late that evening they arrived at their new house and Jess was struck by how beautiful it really was. She had fallen in love with the pictures but the real thing was so much better. When they got out of the car she walked over to Jen and they shared excited squeaks and whispers. They were finally starting their new lives and they couldn't wait to settle in. The container would arrive the next day and then the real fun would begin. Tim and Austin had cancelled the lease on their house in town and they would be picking up their stuff in the morning so with another long day ahead of them, they set up their sleeping bags and all went to bed early.
While the boys packed their place up the next morning, Jess and Jen went shopping for paint and curtains. They were redecorating before they moved their furniture in and they wanted everything to be perfect. The four of them had chosen a neutral colour scheme and they would add colour with curtains and rugs. Once they had everything they needed the went to meet the boys at the diner for brunch and then went home. When they arrived the container was sitting out the front waiting for them. They knew they had a week to have it unpacked before the truck came to pick it up. Inside they got straight to work painting, Tim and Austin were painting downstairs while Jess and Jen worked upstairs. It took them two days but they were happy with their work. With the curtains and rugs laid out they started with the furniture. Jess and Tim were taking the master upstairs while Jen and Austin took the second master downstairs. Once their bedrooms were done they relaxed for the rest of the afternoon and had an early night. The lounge and dining rooms would be done the next day and while Jess, Tim and Austin set up the guest house, Jen would unpack the kitchen boxes.
The truck came that afternoon and just as they finished setting up the guest house the first car arrived for Jess' party. Rob, Kelsie and their beautiful Labrador Penny Lane got out and Kelsie gushed at how beautiful the houses were. Chris, Adam, Erika and Melissa all arrived together and Adam carried a large box with pink and green ribbons all over it. Jess shook her head as she took the box and was shocked at how heavy it was.
"You have to open that one now, it can't wait I'm afraid." Erika smiled and told her as Adam winked. She opened the box and screamed causing Tim to come flying around the front and Penny Lane to bark loudly as she chased him.
The Merimah puppy looked up at her and tilted his head as his tongue fell out the side of his mouth. He was the cutest thing she'd ever seen.
"Oh my god guys, you got me a puppy?" she squealed and hugged Adam and Erika tightly. Chris handed her another box and Rob opened his car boot. The box from Chris contained a collar, lead and bowl. Rob pulled a bed and food out of his car. Jen and Austin blindfolded her as they walked her around the back yard. Jen took the blindfold off to reveal a doghouse and box of toys. Tim brought out a large box as well as the present from Troy and Ellie. Their present was an invoice with lifetime registration paid and the prepaid vet appointments for the next vaccinations. Tim's present had two parts, one was a smaller box with a key inside and the other was a new saddle for when Jetson arrived. Jess wondered what the key was for and when she asked he told her she had to be patient. She would find out when the time was right.
The party lasted the full weekend and Jess had chosen to name her puppy Satchmo. She finally had just about everything she could ever want. The only thing missing at that point was her beloved stallion Jetson and her mischievous mare Charlie. Alex rang Monday morning to wish her a happy birthday and to let her know that Kennedy had been cleared for travel and that he and Jeremy were taking the horses down to Sydney that afternoon. She and Jen would have their horses in three short weeks and they set themselves to preparing the stables and ordering feed ready for their arrival.
The next three months flew by, and they had finally finished unpacking boxes and setting up their house. Rob and Kelsie had come to visit and stayed until the horses arrived. After helped settle the excited horses in, they left to go and see Kelsie's parents. They had wonderful news not long after, both Kelsie and Erika were expecting babies. Austin and Jen had got engaged and were busy planning a spring wedding while Tim and Jess worked with Kennedy. Satchmo had settled in and was a bonafied horse dog. He'd grown so much in just three months that Jess laughed and told people he was part horse.
On the first day of spring Jess was riding when Tim rode out to meet her and down by the creek he got down on one knee and asked her make him the happiest man alive and marry him. She practically jumped on him and told him she would. They were married three weeks after Jen and Austin, down by the creek in the shade of the willow tree under which Tim had proposed. The four of them went to Hawaii for their honeymoon and spent the two weeks soaking up the sun, surf and culture.
When they returned, Chris, Rob and Adam were there waiting to welcome the newlyweds home. Kelsie and Erika were both extremely pregnant by then and Home Free had arranged for the first shows of their Spring tour to be in Tennessee and Alabama so that the two women could be in one spot and have family around them to have their babies. They really were one big happy family and Jess and Jen had never felt happier. Kelsie gave birth between shows in Alabama and Nashville and Erika had given birth the day before the Nashville show.
At their Nashville show Jess and Jen were standing backstage when Tim started Story Time. He told of how Erika and Kelsie had brought two new Fries into the world. Erika had a daughter named Georgina and Kelsie a son who she named Joshua. He then went on to invite Jess out on stage and for the first time ever he got the group to sing during his Story Time. They sang Mom and Tim placed his hand on Jess's stomach as Chris sang about an angel waiting to meet her little baby. The crowd erupted in cheers and they all stopped singing suddenly. Rob clapped and congratulated both Jess and Tim.
Austin laughed and when the others looked at him he asked Jen to come out too and said "They really are sisters. They do everything together. Jen's pregnant too." That caused everyone to laugh and Tim hugged Jen. Chris then spoke, "This must be a thing right now because Mel is pregnant as well. There's something in the water in Nashville." Jess told him that she'd fallen pregnant on her honeymoon so that was Hawaii. The three women were due within a month of each other and once Kelsie and Erika had joined them onstage the boys restarted Mom and sang to their wives.
Later that year Home free were performing in Mankato when Tim once again sang during Story Time. Jess was due any day now and Jen the following week. Melissa had given birth two weeks beforehand, there was another little Rupp boy running around. Jess had joked about God having to help them all. Mel and Chris named him Logan in memory of Jess and Jen's friend and former group member who had been killed in active service the week before their son was born. When Tim sang Mom again he put extra emphasis on the last line. He was getting impatient and couldn't wait to meet his son. Jess laughed backstage when she heard his tone.
Later that night they were singing Ring Of Fire and when Tim sang the last note of the song Jess felt her water break. She'd been having contractions all night but knew that they were too far apart to go to hospital yet so she waited, thinking that she could just go in after the show. Jen sent Austin a text and he said "Finally! Tim your son is well and truly on his way." The audience cheered and clapped while Tim walked offstage to see Jess. She told him to continue the show and they could go into hospital after, the contractions were still 15 minutes apart. If anything happened Jen would call an ambulance.
He tried to talk her into going to the hospital then but knew that when she'd made a decision there was no point trying to change her mind. He conceded and went back out onstage to finish the show. Six hours later Timothy Marcus Foust was cleaned and nursing. Dena had arrived late in the night and now sat helping Jess adjust him into the right position. The smile hadn't left Jess' face the whole time, though she was exhausted. Tim had cried like a baby the second he saw his son and he kissed Jess passionately when he handed Junior to her.
Three days later Jess was ready to leave hospital and they all travelled to Minneapolis for their next show. Dena went back to Nashville to get things set up for her grandson and help out when they got home in two weeks. At the show that night Tim introduced his son to the Fries, the amount of pictures taken that night was astounding and Jess could only imagine how many would be posted to social media. A feeling of Deja vu hit her as they sang Ring Of Fire and Jen went into labour.
She ran out on stage and shouted "The Hoover Dam has sprung a leak!" Chris turned to Tim and just said "Dude! you have got to raise everything up an octave. That's twice in one week that you've sent someone into labour." They all laughed. Luckily Ring Of Fire was the last song at this show so Austin and Jen could go straight to the hospital. The next day Jess went to the hospital to meet her niece, Sophia Grace Brown. She was beautiful and looked so much like Austin that Jess couldn't help but smile. "At least you don't have mummy's nose. She can use the money for your college instead of a nose job." Jen smiled and fake slapped her sister.
Two weeks later Home Free were set to be on The Tonight Show and they had asked Kenny Rogers to be there and sing the song they'd collaborated on. They sang Children, Go Where I Send Thee and during the last chorus Mel, Erika, Kelsie, Jess and Jen walked out carrying the newest members of the Home Free family. Jimmy Fallon was very interested to know what was in the water in Nashville as all children were born in the same year. They stayed afterwards to hang out with the fans that had come to see them and everyone gushed over the little Fries, including Kenny. Tim asked if it would be possible to get a photo of Kenny with all the children as a promo for the song.
He agreed and held Tim Jnr as the other children were held by their fathers. They then took a photo of just Kenny and the kids. Georgie and Joshua sat on the ground on either side of him and he held Sophia and Tim Jnr with Logan resting on his lap.
They all arrived back in Nashville to spend the next two months relaxing and spending time together. Tim and Austin had suggested they all just live together on the property and the others agreed it would be easier. That way their wives weren't separated by the country and they were all there to support each other while they were on tour. They'd all moved in and were now truly living as a big happy family. Dena had been a massive help for Jess and Jen in their first months of motherhood and she had only returned to Texas when she was satisfied that both women were adjusted and coping well.
A month later, and with everything progressing nicely, the boys went on their fall tour, leaving their women at home to care for babies and help each other out. Tim, Rob and Austin had designed another three-bedroom house for Rob and Kelsie to live in so that Adam and Chris had rooms for their children. The builders arrived a week after the guys left for Alaska and by the time they returned, there would be three houses on the big beautiful property. The girls had started teaching their kids to swim down in the creek and Josh and Georgina had been fishing for the first time. They couldn't wait for their husbands to be home, they got lonely during the months they were away. Tim and Austin skyped with Jess and Jen every night and they were amazed at how much their babies were changing in such a short time.
One October evening the phone rang while the girls were sitting outside around the fire pit. Jess raced inside to answer it before it woke Sophia and Tim Jnr up. Ellie spoke quietly, worried at first that Jess had just pressed the speaker button.
"It's ok Ell. The kids are asleep and I'm on the cordless. What's up chicka? How are you and Troy? The boys are still away." Jess said as she sat down on the couch and threw a blanket over her. She pulled it close to her face and inhaled deeply. It smelt of Tim's aftershave and she felt the sudden ache of loneliness. She desperately wanted him to come home. Ellie asked if they could come and visit when the guys were home from their tour. They had some exciting news regarding a brand new tour. Luke had called them and they wanted to see the family to give everyone the news. Jess was excited to see them again and told them to come whenever they wanted. There was always room for family at the Home Free ranch. Once she got off the phone, Jess went back outside to tell the other girls about the phone call. They were all curious as to what this brilliantly exciting news was and they spent the next few hours coming up with ideas that seemed more and more farfetched with every suggestion. Jen thought that perhaps they had finally scored a tour 'across the pond' as Austin had wished for numerous times and Jess actually agreed with her. They had been trying to organise a tour of the UK for nearly a year now.