Kiliane was tired.

And despite the fact that she had tried to hide it, it had been painfully obvious to James the last time he'd been home. There were dark circles under her eyes and the fire that always burned in them wasn't quite as bright.

Not that it was surprising. With 18-month-old twins running around causing as much trouble as possible, and a husband who spent most of his time chasing bad guys across the galaxy, it was pretty much given that she'd be losing some sleep. The question was what he was going to do about it.

James had quite a bit of downtime during his current mission, so he did some thinking and a plan slowly began to formulate in his mind. He started making calls.

Kiliane was tired.

So when Hackett called and said that he and Karin wanted to take the twins for a couple of days, she gratefully accepted. But, after sleeping for twelve hours straight, she found herself at a loss. She was used to being busy, and suddenly the house was entirely too quiet. The universe seemed to know just what she needed again, and Miranda called to say she'd ended up with two free gift certificates for the local day spa.

Both Miranda and Kiliane had made a point of trying to learn how to relax after the war. Neither of them was very good at it, but they had managed to stick to a semi-monthly spa day together. At least, they had until the twins were born. This was the first time she'd been able to go in close to two years, and she couldn't turn it down-even if it did all seem a little suspicious.

Her step was lighter than it had been in months by the time she made her way home that night, trying to think of a proper way to thank her husband when he got home. She knew he had to be behind this-it had his name written all over it. He wasn't due back for another couple of weeks at least, so she'd have time to come up with something good. Kiliane was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't notice the flickering lights in the front window until she had the front door open.

She stopped with one foot in the door as she took in the sight before her. The first thing she noticed was the huge bouquet of red calla lilies on the small table in the entryway. They were her favorite flower and the only thing she'd insisted on for their wedding. No doubt who sent them, but how did they get in the house? And why? Then she saw the flickering lights at the end of the hallway.

Closing the door behind her, she slowly made her way down the hallway and into the dining room. The table was set for two, another bouquet of the deep red flowers in the center, and the only light in the room came from the candles on either side of it. There were tantalizing smells coming from her kitchen and she started towards it but stopped short when James poked his head around the corner, giving her a sheepish grin.

"Hey, Lola. Uh, sorry. Miranda overestimated how long it would take you to get home from the spa. Just... have a seat, relax, and dinner will be out in just a minute."

He placed a quick kiss on her lips and then disappeared back into the kitchen. She was too stunned to do anything but obey.

When it came to life with Kiliane Shepard things rarely went as planned. So if her arriving home fifteen minutes earlier than he'd expected was the biggest wrench that had been thrown into his plan, James would gladly take it.

It had been relatively easy to get his leave pushed up a few weeks. After all, his children called his boss 'grandpa'. He rarely took advantage of his relationship with Admiral Hackett, so he didn't feel bad doing it this once. Dr. Chakwas had been thrilled at the idea of taking the twins for the weekend, and Miranda had jumped on the chance to get back into their spa ritual. James decided that he would need to make sure they continued it this time.

The time on the stove went off, drawing his attention back to the sauce bubbling in the pan. He gave it a final stir before pouring it over the steaks he had prepared earlier. After adding the roasted vegetables he had just taken from the oven, he grabbed the plates and headed into the dining room.

James was completely unprepared for the sight that greeted him. Kiliane sat at the table, her head in her hands, crying. Why was she crying? She shouldn't be crying. This was in no way part of his plan. He set the plates down and knelt next to her, grabbing her hands and pulling her to face him.

"Hey, hey. What's wrong?"

"I'm just...I can't figure out what I forgot. I mean, I know I've been forgetting things lately-the twins have just had me so frazzled. But it's not our anniversary, right? And it's not my birthday-I think I'd remember that. I just can't figure it out, and that's not like me!"

James couldn't help it, and a small laugh burst forth. When she pouted at him, he turned serious again and cupped her face in his hands, looking up into her eyes.

"Kiliane. Is it so hard to believe that I-we-just wanted to do something nice for you? You give of yourself constantly. You did it throughout your whole career and now, as a wife and mother. I love you, Hackett and Chakwas love you, Miranda loves you, and we just wanted to do something nice for you. Consider it a thank you for everything that you do and have done. That's it."

She sniffled. "I didn't forget something important?"

James chuckled and pulled her head down to kiss her forehead. "No."

"Okay."

"Hey, remember back during the war? When I had to remind you that you can look to other people to carry some of load with you?" She nodded and he continued. "That's still true. Our little rugrats require a substantial amount of energy to keep up with, and I'm not around as much as I wish I could be. But there are other people you can turn to, and they would gladly help out. It's okay to take a day for yourself once in a while."

She smiled. "Today was nice. Really nice." The sparkle that he loved returned to her eyes as she continued, "About to get even better."

She stood up and grabbed his hand, pulling him towards the door.

He looked back at the set table. "But, dinner-"

Kiliane smirk and pulled him down the hall towards their bedroom.

"Dinner can wait. It's my turn to say thank you."

She winked and his eyes fell to her hips as exaggerated their sway for his benefit. Well, he wasn't going to argue with that.