"Have you ever noticed how parents can go from the most wonderful people in the world to totally embarrassing in three seconds?" – Rick Riordan

"Dave," Emily says, turning to face me for a moment and opening her arms up for a hug. "Thanks for coming," she says with a smile.

"Of course," I say, returning the hug. "I'm happy to. Besides, it's not like I could break my promise to Tegan and Matthew. They'd never let me hear the end of it."

"That is very true," she says with a hearty laugh. "Here, have a seat," she finishes, gesturing to a chair.

"Thanks," I say, taking a seat next to her. "Where are the two troublemakers, anyway?" I ask, looking around, surprised by the lack of excited twins. Usually the two of them are yelling with excitement whenever I'm around.

"Ah, they forgot their water bottles on the kitchen table so Derek went back with them to get them."

"Too excited to get here?" I guess.

"Yes. And Derek wasn't listening when I told him to grab them before we left."

"Uh oh. Somebody's in the dog house."

"Nah, I'm letting him off the hook."

"So easily?"

"He's paying his penance," she says with a laugh. "He had to walk back with those two. And they were definitely not happy about having to leave the field."

"Like true soccer players."

"They're 3, Dave. I'm not sure 'true soccer players' exist at that age. Frankly, it's a miracle when they run the right direction and actually get involved in the game."

"Nonsense. With Morgan's DNA running in their veins, they're probably born athletes."

"I do remember thinking just that while I was pregnant with them, what with their constant kicking…" she concedes. "But for now, they're just excited to be running around."

"Well, I guess that should count for something."

"Not according to Derek."

My brows furrow at her comment. "What do you mean?"

"He was a star football player in college…he has very high expectations for them as athletes."

My eyebrows rise this time, genuinely surprised by her words. "He can't be that bad…I've seen him playing with them in the yard."

"This is a game though – it's a competitive environment," she explains.

"And that makes him a little crazy?"

"It makes him a lot crazy," she corrects. "I swear he's going to be asked to leave one day. If Matty and Tee didn't absolutely love it when he can make their games, I'd ask him to stay home myself."

I let out a chuckle. I know Derek Morgan is stubborn, and fiercely competitive, but I've also seen him with his kids. He would do absolutely anything for them, and he's got the biggest heart I've ever seen when it comes to Emily and them. The agent persona drops when he walks through the door and into their house. He becomes Daddy, and he becomes Derek, Emily's husband. He becomes the man who tucks his kids in at night, and reads to them in funny voices to make them smile. I have a hard time believing that he would be so fiercely competitive in this kind of situation.

"So tonight is going to be entertaining on many levels is what you're telling me."

She laughs. "Oh yeah."

"Uncle Dave!"

I turn and see Matthew and Tegan running quickly ahead of Morgan, huge smiles on their faces.

"Uncle Dave, you come see me play?" Matthew asks happily.

"You bet."

"And me?" I hear Tegan ask shyly.

"Of course, Teganina," I say with a warm smile. "I came to watch both of you."

"Okay you two, you better get going. Coach is calling you in," Emily says, taking the water bottles from Derek's hands and stowing them by her feet. "Derek, try to behave yourself today, please."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he says dismissively, leaning over to press a quick kiss the top of her head. "Hey, Rossi," he says as he swings his gaze to me.

"Hey, Morgan. How many goals are you expecting from your progeny today?"

"I'm hoping for at least a couple," he answers honestly.

"Derek," Emily admonishes, clearly unimpressed by his answer.

"Is it too much to ask that they get involved in the play?"

Emily lets out a sigh. "They're 3, babe. Coordination is not their strongest suit, so asking them to be able to kick a ball into a tiny little net is a bit much, I think."

"Tonight's the night, Em. I can feel it. They were focused on the walk back here."

"Focused? God, Derek. Let it go."

I raise a brow in amusement and let out a chuckle at their banter. Some things never change.

Before I can make a comment, I hear a whistle and I look over to find the game has started. A quick scan of the field tells me that Tegan is starting the game on the field, while her brother is on the sidelines with the remainder of his teammates.

"All right, Tee!" Morgan yells as he claps. "Let's go!"

Emily claps along with him and offers her own cheers, though admittedly less intense than her husband's. I join in, yelling "Go Tegan!" loudly. My voice must capture her attention, because she looks over at us and grins widely before she starts to run toward us.

"No, Tegan, go get the ball!" Morgan yells, traces of frustration in his voice.

"Hi, Uncle Dave!" she says when she reaches the sideline where we're sitting, grinning madly.

"Tegan! You're supposed to be playing. Come on!" Morgan says firmly.

Tegan's expression falls at her father's words, and Emily immediately jumps in. "Go on, Boo. Have some fun," she says with a warm smile. "We'll talk after the game. Your Uncle Rossi wants to watch you play now."

Tegan smiles and then skips away, much to Morgan's chagrin.

"Derek," Emily admonishes, a glare flashing on her face. "Don't pressure her."

"I'm not. She's supposed to be playing. That's what we're paying for."

"Derek," Emily says with a roll of her eyes. "It's not like we dropped 10k on this. If she wants to skip and jump around, then let her."

"But-"

"But nothing," Emily warns, and I find myself a little wary of Emily's tone. I can tell she means business.

I watch as Tegan just jogs and skips beside the group of players chasing the ball, seemingly disinterested in the actual game. I glance over at Morgan, and find him watching intently, his face a bit taut with stress. Eventually Tegan does show a flash of interest in the game, kicking the ball when it comes to rest in front of her.

"YES TEGAN!" Derek yells, clearly ecstatic that his daughter has finally decided to participate.

Inexplicably, I find myself echoing his sentiments, cheering loudly for her. The first round of substitutions is made just after her kick, and Tegan skips off the field, to be replaced by her own brother, Matthew.

Luckily for Morgan, Matthew seems to be significantly more involved in the game than his sister. He runs along with the play, and makes efforts to get the ball, even getting possession of it a couple times.

Morgan continues to watch intently, yelling encouragement and instructions to Matthew. "Come on, Matty! Yeah! Kick it! Yes, there you go! Atta boy!"

"It's ridiculous how into this he gets," Emily says, shaking her head at her husband's antics.

"Hey! Matty, c'mere!"

Matthew jogs over quickly and grins widely at his dad. "Did I do good, Daddy?"

"Yeah, buddy, you're doing good. Listen though, I'm thinking you need to shoot a little earlier. The defenders are getting in your way because you're taking too long to shoot."

"Derek!" Emily says, her eyes widening in dismay. "Quit bugging him and let him play."

"He's right," I say quietly.

"Oh god, not you too," Emily groans, holding her head in her hands.

"What? I'm just saying – he's right. If he shoots a little earlier his chances of scoring go up."

"Go ahead and play, Matty. I think your coach is calling you," Emily says, turning her attention to her son, smiling as he runs off to join his team. "And as for you," she says scathingly, her gaze fixating on her husband, "leave the coaching to the coaches, please. Just let them play. The last thing we need is them developing some sort of complex because of your strange need to see them excel in sports."

Morgan frowns at his wife's words and turns back to the game immediately, crossing his arms. Clearly he's not impressed by her message and is pouting to an extent. I suppress a chuckle, knowing it'll get me in more hot water with Emily.

We continue watching the game, cheering loudly and encouraging Matthew and Tegan to keep trying and to have fun. Both had become more involved in the game as it went on. Near to the end of the game, the score is tied, and Matthew is on the field. He's keeping up with the game well, and is getting closer and closer to scoring, but seems to somehow miss each time he gets in front of the net.

"Come on, Matty!" I yell along with Morgan as Matthew gets the ball again and begins running toward the net.

When he finally gets close enough to the net to shoot, we watch as he winds up to shoot, and then suddenly is knocked over by a player on the other team.

"OH COME ON!" I yell as I rise to my feet. I hear Morgan yelling similar sentiments as he gestures wildly.

"Would you two, sit down and shut up," Emily hisses, clearly not impressed by our actions.

"THAT'S A PENALTY!" I yell.

"They're 3. There are no penalties. They don't even keep score for god's sake," Emily says, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"HE TOOK HIM OUT ON PURPOSE!" Morgan yells.

"Sit down," Emily hisses, this time grabbing both our arms and yanking us back. "And shut up, or I will forcibly make you shut up in ways that you will not like."

Morgan and I share a glance as we sit down and fume at the injustice of it all – poor Matthew was deprived of the opportunity to win the game.

"Mama!" Matthew yells happily as he sprints over to us, apparently oblivious to the drama at the end of the game. "Did you see? Did you see?"

"Yes, baby, I saw you. You did great!" Emily says as gives him a tight hug and hands him his water bottle.

"Daddy, Uncle Dave, did you see?!"

"Yeah, I saw, little man," Morgan says.

"I did, Matthew," I agree with a nod. "You have fun?" I ask, seeing Emily's expression.

"Lots!"

"Where's your sister?" Morgan asks.

"I here, Daddy!" she says proudly as she appears in front of us. "Did you see me too, Uncle Dave?"

"I did, Teganina."

She tugs on my hand and gestures for me to bend over so she can whisper something in my ear. "Did I do good?"

"Yes, Tegan, you did very well," I assure her, much to Emily's relief, who had overheard Tegan's whispered question.

She grins widely at my answer and then runs toward Morgan and jumps into his arms. "Daddy! Did you see me kick the ball?"

"Yes, Baby Girl, I did," he says with a smile as he twirls her around, much to her delight.

"You know what, I happen to think you both did so well that it's time for a treat," I say, having impulsively decided to try and make up for my gaffe of being far too intense for a three year old's soccer game.

"Treat!" the twins say happily, jumping up and down in excitement.

"But only if it's okay with your parents," I add hastily, forgetting that I hadn't cleared this with Emily and Morgan.

Emily smiles. "Fine by me."

"Well if Mama says it's okay, then we're good to go," Derek says, flashing his wife his trademark grin that she shakes her head at.

I grin as Tegan and Matthew each grab one of my hands and begin to lead me back toward their house. Seeing their excitement at just getting to play, and then at having people watching them play has a wave of happiness washing over me. Their innocence is so refreshing in a world that seems so jaded. I can't help but share in their enthusiasm as they launch into tales of different instances in the game, making sure I'd seen every single moment they each played.

Emily catches up with me, having handed off everything she brought with her to Morgan to carry. "Thanks for coming, Dave. It made their day, as you can tell."

"My pleasure, bella. You know I can't get enough of these two."

"You come again?" Tegan asks suddenly, looking up at me.

"Sure, Teganina."

"Only if you promise to behave," Emily warns. "Derek does not need any encouragement. His behaviour is terrible enough as it is."

I laugh at her words, which are unfortunately somewhat true. "I promise," I say, knowing full well that asking an Italian to curb his enthusiasm for the beautiful game is utterly and completely foolish.

"I'm so screwed," Emily moans, clearly having noticed the lack of conviction in my promise.

So...did you chuckle at Morgan's intensity? Groan along with Emily about his and Rossi's behaviour? Smile at the adorable Morgan kids?