A/N: Thanks for reading! Only 2 more chapter left! Please review.
[one month later]
"Let's go, Taylor," Randy yelled up the stairs. He was waiting for her to emerge from her bedroom so she could get to school. Reby and Michael were already in the car; they had already had breakfast. Taylor, however, was lagging behind; she hadn't eaten anything.
Thankfully, Liz had already gotten Lucas up; otherwise, Randy would have been skinned alive if he had woken the one month old with his yelling.
Liz had enough of Randy yelling at Taylor, so with Lucas in her arms, she barged into Taylor's room. The 10-year-old's back was turned. "You need to hurry up, Taylor. Your brother and sister are already in the car. All of you are going to be late if you don't get a move on," she said.
"Yes, ma'am," she said. When she turned around, Liz was outraged.
"What is that on your face?!" she yelled.
Taylor hung her head in shame. "Make up," she said quietly. "I just wanted to look pretty like all the other girls," she said.
Liz stammered; she didn't know what to say; she had so much on her mind. As Taylor got closer, her mother shook her head. "I can't deal with you right now. Go downstairs," Liz followed her.
"Randy, please talk to her. I can't do this right now," she said.
"Taylor Elizabeth…" Randy seethed. "I'm going to give you 1 minute to wash that stuff off your face," he said. "Hurry up!" he yelled when she walked slowly to the kitchen sink.
Liz handed Lucas over to Randy so she could help Taylor get the makeup off. "You're a beautiful girl, Taylor. You don't need makeup to be pretty," Liz said as she gently wiped away the array of colors that were smeared over her daughter's face.
"But you wear makeup," Taylor said.
Liz sighed. "You're right, I do. How about you and I do a little shopping after school today?" she suggested.
Taylor smiled. "Okay," she said.
"Alright. I made you some oatmeal. You can eat it on the way to school. Promise me no more makeup for a while, okay?" Liz asked when all the makeup was gone.
Her daughter nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I promise," she said.
Liz smiled and kissed her forehead. "Get your breakfast and head out to the car. Your dad will you right behind you," she said. When Taylor was gone, Liz folded her arms and leaned on the countertop. "Randy…" she whined.
He chuckled. "I know. I'll talk to her later this evening," he said referring to Taylor.
"Thank you. Maybe you and she can spend some time together this weekend. You could take her to get her hair done, take her to lunch, see a movie… something like that. Treat her well. I don't want her growing up seeking attention from guys," she said.
Randy nodded. "Sounds good; I'll look into some fun stuff to do," he said.
Liz smiled. "Thanks, babe. Hurry; you don't want them to be late," she said, taking Lucas from his dad. "Oh! I might not be here when you get back. I'm going back to the office today; I'll have Lucas with me," she said.
Randy nodded. "Okay. If you want, I can swing by and get him when I drop the others off," he suggested.
"That would be great!" she said.
oOo
When Randy dropped off the three older children, he went by Liz's office as promised to pick up Lucas.
Bo grinned when Randy walked into the lobby. "Hey, Randy," he said in a sing-song voice.
Randy smirked. "Hey, Bo. Is Liz with a client?" he asked.
The receptionist nodded. "Yep. She shouldn't be much longer, though. Have a seat," Bo said as he motioned to the newly added chairs in the lobby.
When Randy sat, Bo sighed. "So tell me, Randy… when are you going to marry her?" he asked.
Randy chuckled. "Why? Are you going to take her from me?" he asked.
"Trust me, sweetheart, I would steal you from her if I could. Seriously, though, have you even thought about it?" he asked.
The father of 4 shrugged. "It's been on my mind…" he answered vaguely.
Bo narrowed his eyes at Randy. "Go on back," he said when he realized that Randy wouldn't give up any details.
"But you just said she's with a client," Randy said confused.
Bo scoffed. "You really think she would see a client and have Lucas in there?" he asked rhetorically. "I only kept you here to see if I had a chance," he said; half-joking.
Randy shook his head and started towards Liz's office; the door was already open. "Hey, Liz," he said walking in.
Liz stood from her desk to hug and kiss her boyfriend. Lucas cooed in his carrier. Liz smiled at him and gasped. "Lucas! Look who it is! Who is it?! It's daddy!"
Randy smiled at his son and picked him. His thick black hair was in every direction. "Hey, buddy! How's my big boy doing today?" Lucas' bright blue eyes lit up when Randy spoke to him. "Let's get you home so we can both take a nice long nap," he said.
Liz laughed. "He's already had breakfast, so you can feed him in about 3 hours," she said.
Randy nodded and strapped Lucas back into his carrier. "Are you going to pick up the kids today or do you need me to?" Randy asked.
"I'm going to pick them up. I promised Taylor we would go shopping this afternoon," she said.
Randy smiled. "Okay, babe. Have a good day," he said as he grabbed the loaded carrier and diaper bag before leaving the office.
oOo
[at home]
Randy sighed as he looked at the custom made onesie. "I really want to put this on you to see how it's going to fit, but I don't want you to get it dirty before Mommy comes home," he said to his cooing son.
"What do you think she'll say?" he asked the baby. Randy shook his head. "I can't believe I'm having a conversation with a baby. I guess that's good, though since you can't understand me," he said.
Randy suddenly got an idea. "I can practice my speech to you!" he said excitedly.
[later]
Liz walked into the house with the three kids. "Randy?" she called out. Randy rounded the corner and shushed her.
"I just put Lucas down for a nap," he whispered.
Liz nodded. "I'm just going to check in on him," she said.
Randy smirked. He knew Liz would want to see the newborn even though he was asleep. He silently followed her into the nursery with his camera in hand, recording her every move. The older three children went to their rooms to start on homework.
Liz tiptoed into to the nursery and turned on the lamp. When she looked into the crib, she gasped. Lucas wasn't sleeping, but he cooed when he saw Liz.
"No way…" she said with her hands covering her mouth. She turned around to go look for Randy, but he was right behind her with his phone. "You did this?!" she asked excitedly.
He nodded and went over to the crib; he angled the camera at Lucas' onesie that read, "Will you marry my daddy?" Attached to the onesie with a string was the engagement ring Randy bought for Liz almost one year ago.
Randy reached into the crib and detached the ring from Lucas' onesie. On one knee, Randy held the ring out and took a deep breath. "Elizabeth Michelle Caro, will you marry me?" he asked.
Liz squealed and nodded. "YES!" she screeched.
Randy laughed and put the ring on her lift ring finger. When he stood, Liz kissed him deeply. "A million times yes," she whispered on his lips.
Since the recording was still going, Liz grabbed the phone and pointed the camera to the ring Randy had just put on her finger. "I'm engaged!" she said excitedly.
[one week later]
Liz had already started wedding plans; she was overjoyed with the entire process. Part of those plans included changing the Caro and Caro-Orton children's last name to Orton; she and Randy also filed an application for a marriage license. Today, she was meeting with her lawyer to go over the final draft of her amended last will and testament.
Randy was using the opportunity to spend the weekend with Taylor; Michael and Reby were spending some time with Teddy; so it was just Liz and a napping Lucas at home when the lawyer arrived.
"So, Liz, I just need you to read over it and make sure everything is correct. Everything has to be 100% accurate; even a misspelled name could cause problems," the lawyer said.
Liz nodded and read through it. Some of the changes she made were to include Taylor and Lucas; she specified that whichever daughter was closer to age 21, older or younger, at the time of her death would get Liz's wardrobe. Originally, Liz left her entire wardrobe to Reby. To include Lucas, Liz specified that whichever son contemplated engagement to a lover first would get her engagement ring.
She included Randy by initiated that he would acquire her business, office, and other properties including vehicles; Liz specified that he dictate whether or not the children have the cars. Her monetary estate would be used in the best interests of the children; Liz specified that four college funds be set aside. All four of the children's weddings would be paid for with the cash Liz specified. The rest of the money was dispersed among her 5 loved ones; Randy would acquire half, and the other half would be split evenly among the four children.
Liz nodded when she read the end of the will. "That's good. Everything is perfect," she said.
The lawyer smiled and handed Liz a pen. "Just sign on the line and it'll be official,"
Liz grinned and signed her name on the line; she ached to sign Elizabeth Michelle Orton. Soon enough, she could would be able to do just that.
A/N: Please review.