A/N: First, I LOVED the season premiere. Hard. Anything where they give Lindsay and actual story line is big. But this? Merry early Christmas! I'm in bliss. Second, yes, seeing Dantana on screen is weird. However. When it comes to the actual show, I am Dantana all the way. When it comes to fic, I am not. Third, I will have more grandmas in the next chapter, I promise.

"We've got to get going hon. We're gonna be late."

"I know," Lindsay said, rooting through the diaper bag. "I just want to make sure we have everything."

"You've packed that four times. I don't think you forgot anything the first time, but you might forget something if you repack it again."

"A three week old should not need this much stuff," she commented. "Should we take the stroller?"

Adam raised his eyebrow and settled Colton in the carseat, then tucked a few blankets around him.

"We don't need the stroller. It'll take up too much room in the car and then we won't have space for the grandmas suitcases."

"You make a good point."

"That's what I'm here for. Now finish that so we can get out of here."

"We won't be late. It's New Years Eve, no one is going to be out on the road."

"This is New York City, not Bozeman Montana."

"Adam, shut up," she said with a chuckle, standing up from the couch.

"Ready for the Invasion of the Baby Snatchers?"

"The Invasion of the Cheek Pinchers."

"The Invasion of the Infant Spoilers."

"The Invasion of the Unwarranted Advice Givers."

"The Invasion of the Invaders."

"Way to encompass it all."

"Yeah, I figured that between your mom and my mom and their shared love of telling really long stories, by the end of the week we're going to be begging for someone to encompass it all."

"You make me saner."

"More sane?"

"That as well."

"Good. Ready?"

"Yeah, let's go."

They made their way out of the freshly cleaned apartment and down to the car, only struggling a little with Colton's carseat. He was out for the count and would be for most of the afternoon.

"You want to stop and get hot chocolate on the way?" Adam asked, turning the heating vent in the car so it would blow on her more.

"Do I ever!" she said enthusiastically, moving to put her feet against the dashboard. He smiled and took her proffered hand, sliding his fingers in between hers.

"You know, I had a thought."

"Oh did you? And what pray tell might that be?" she asked, lifting her eyebrows and grinning.

"I was thinking that since both grandmas are going to be here, and they are both more than capable of taking care of a baby, I was thinking that maybe you and I could slip away for a couple hours, have dinner, see a movie, pretend we're dating again."

"That sounds perfect."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"But?"

She sighed and glanced into the back seat.

"I don't know."

"You're going to have to leave him at some point."

"I know. But he's so little. I just don't want to miss anything."

"We don't have to go."

"No, I want to. I really do, like you wouldn't believe. But… I'll think about it."

"Okay."

"I'm sorry honey."

"It's okay. It's not like you stood me up for the prom. Besides, I get to sleep right next to you tonight, so I am pretty sure I'm still on the winning end of this one."

"Alright."

"I'm not gonna give up though. Because you are the beautiful and totally out of my league co-worker, and I am the guy who finally got up the nerve to ask you out."

"And you don't take no for an answer?"

"Oh, I'll take no. I just have to figure out a question you'll say yes to."

"Adam, you're awesome."

"Hey, thanks babe."

"Hi honey!" Anne greeted, rushing across baggage claim and pulling Lindsay into her arms. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too, mama."

"Where's that grandson of mine?"

"Adam found the arcade."

"Start them young raise them right?"

"Doesn't just apply to the 49'ers anymore."

"I'm not surprised."

"No lecture on how video games lead to hard drugs?"

"If we're counting Mountain Dew as a hard drug."

"Man mom, you're getting really lax in your old age."

"I figure if I can let my daughter learn how to shoot when she's five, I can't be uptight about video games."

"No one likes a hypocrite."

"No they don't Annie Oakley."

Smiling, Lindsay grabbed her mother's carry-on and they made their way over to the baggage carousel.

"What time does Sue's flight get in?"

"Any minute. She might have landed already, the readerboard said it was early."

"We're meeting her down here?"

"Yeah. As much as the two of you talk, I'm surprised you didn't know that."

"We didn't talk about that as much as we talked about finding a really expensive salon and letting our husband's credit cards treat us to a day of pampering."

"And what about me?"

"You'll be busy doing pampering of your own."

"Very nice, mother."

They grabbed her bag and were making their way over to the small arcade when they ran into Adam's mom. She too was eager to see Colton, and the three of them went in search of the boys.

"Guess who's a big fan of the Mortal Kombat music?" Adam asked as he came out of the arcade, with the proudest look on his face that any of them had ever witnessed.

"He is definitely your child," Lindsay said with a roll of her eyes while trying to hide the fact that she was pretty proud too.

Greetings were exchanged and they all headed out to the car, Colton crying from the cold and the fact that it was time for him to eat. He wailed loudly as they got into the car and kept screaming while Lindsay found a bottle for him. It was still warm and she popped the cap off while his screams reached a level that she had never heard before.

"Oh my word Colton Matthew. Would you like a big chill pill with this bottle?"

He grunted and tried the bottle, then refused it, letting out another shriek. Lindsay sighed and wrinkled her forehead, less annoyed with the noise than she was confused about what his issue was. He wasn't that big of a fan of the bottle, but he would take it if he was hungry enough. It was possible the he wanted out of the carseat, but she wasn't really able to do that for him now. Tears streamed down his face and she brushed them away, hating seeing him like this. His screams slowed and he breathed heavily, opening his eyes to stare at her.

"Did you just want mama?" she asked, leaning down to kiss his cheek. "You have a silly way of showing it, but I love you too."

He calmed down a little and she tried the bottle again, which he took happily. She made sure he was warmly bundled again, then handed off the bottle to her mom so she could get into the front seat.

"Well that was weird," Adam said, sliding into his seat and shutting the door.

"He's so high strung," Lindsay replied sarcastically. Colton was probably the most laid-back baby they could have asked for, so his little outburst left them amused and befuddled.

The traffic was bad getting home and despite every grandma trick in the book, Colton was making everyone in the neighborhood aware of his presence. Lindsay and Adam felt bad for the laughing they were doing over it. It wasn't funny as much as it was completely absurd.

"Apparently you two did not bring enough gifts," Adam said, unbuckling Colton from his carseat.

"If that's his reaction son, I think the two of you spoil him enough already," Sue remarked with a grin.

"Here Linds, fix it."

She made a face and took her screaming son, holding him close and bouncing him just a little until he started to quiet down.

"Mama's boy," Adam commented.

"Shh, you'll give him a complex," Lindsay chuckled, walking towards the bedroom. "I'm going to go change this particularly wet diaper and then we'll be back."

She took him into the bedroom and changed his diaper quickly, leaving him in the cradle while she washed her hands. By the time she came back he was fussing again, a cry that meant he was hungry, not just mad.

"Are you serious? You just had a whole bottle."

She sat down on the bed and fed him anyway, noticing how relaxed he became. Maybe they had just been out of the house for too long, or maybe it was too cold. Either way, he seemed pretty happy to be home now.

He was done soon, awake and almost giving her a smile as she stood up and took him out to the other room.

"Is he done being an emotional wreck?" Adam asked, taking Colton from her and kissing his head.

"I think so. Go let the grandmas hold him, then come in here and help me make dinner."

"Yes ma'am. Let's go and fill your cheek pinching quota for the day, little man," he said as he walked into the other room. Lindsay chuckled and pulled some chicken out of the freezer and put it on a plate, then stuck it in the microwave to defrost. She was just finishing washing her hands when Adam came back in and jumped up on the counter.

"What'cha making?"

"Not sure yet," she said with a shrug. She was never quite sure what anything was until it was done. Adam found great joy in naming her concoctions, and she didn't have to follow a recipe, so it worked for them. Of course the pregnancy cravings had thrown a wrench into the works, but they had been able to move beyond that.

"Hey, c'mere," he said, sliding off the counter and opening his arms to her. She smiled and rested against him, closing her eyes and letting out a soft sigh. No words were exchanged as they stood there, holding each other as close and as tightly as they could. His hand ran up and down her spine and she felt completely taken care of and safe and happy.

"I love you," he said, tilting her chin up to look her in the eye.

"I love you too. And hey, is that offer still good?"

"What offer?"

"The offer for a date."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Tomorrow night?"

"Yeah."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. We need it."

He smiled and kissed her, keeping his lips on hers even when he spoke.

"I miss you."

It didn't take a degree in psychology to understand his meaning and she could feel a slight blush creeping up her cheeks.

"Ditto."

"You'd best not look at me like that, honey," he warned, raising his eyebrows. "Not for a while at least."

"You're dirty," she teased, slapping his arm softly. He grinned and kissed her once more before letting her go.

"Okay, you said something about me helping you. What do you need me to do?"

"Stand there and look cute while you chop vegetables."

"Done."

They spent the next hour giggling and cooking, getting in each other's way and mock fighting. By the time dinner was ready and the table was set, they could hardly look at each other without laughing. It reminded them both of their very first date, the night that had started it all.

"Breaker, breaker 1-9, man your battle stations, we've had an explosion," Lindsay whispered loudly, to be heard over Colton's cries. Adam groaned and rubbed his eyes against the lamplight, searching for the clock. Two a.m.

"Huh?"

"We have poop, I repeat, we have poop."

"Linds-"

"This is not a drill," she said dramatically, turning to look at him. He caught the amusement in her eyes and climbed out of bed, joining her at the cradle. Colton had definitely made a mess of himself and was not very happy about it.

"What… what do we do?"

"I'm not really sure. Is it wrong that I don't want to pick him up?"

"Gross."

"Now fielding any and all suggestions."

"I'm not sure, but I think we might have to pick him up."

"If I hold him at arms length, is it gonna scar him for life?"

"I'm glad that you've assumed that you're going to be the one picking him up."

"Hey wait a sec. We didn't even do rock paper scissors!"

"Too late. I'll go run him a bath."

Adam escaped into the bathroom and Lindsay grimaced.

"Your daddy is kind of a chicken," she said, picking Colton up. "Oh bud, no wonder you've been cranky all day."

She took him into the bathroom, not quite sure what to do next. Adam had some warm water in the tub and for a second they just looked from each other to Colton to the tub.

"I think we need to strip him down and maybe use some baby wipes to um… clean off the excess?"

"Excess? Adam, this is all excess," Lindsay said, holding back a laugh at their predicament.

"What do you suggest then?"

"I think we should rinse him off in the sink first."

"Less expensive than wipes. Got it."

They managed to get him de-clothed and de-diapered and were rinsing him off when Lindsay let out a half groan, half laugh.

"What?"

"He's peeing on me!" she managed to explain before the laughter took over. She snorted once before calming down, taking deep breaths and focusing on the task at hand.

"Be quiet, there's grandmas sleeping," Adam said, grinning.

"Whoops," she whispered with a quiet giggle.

"Think he's clean enough to take a bath now?"

"Man he is gonna hate us in the morning."

"By the amount of crying I am pretty sure he already hates us something fierce. Let me have him and you can go change."

"Okay."

She stood up and went into the bedroom, returning a few minutes later in clean pajamas. Colton was whimpering in protest of his bath, something he hated anyway, but to have an extra one in the middle of the night was just pure torture. Adam and Lindsay couldn't help laughing at the situation and were near tears by the time he was clean again. He screamed his head off when they pulled him out of the tub and wrapped him in a towel.

"Can you go and get a diaper for him?" Lindsay asked, knowing they needed to warm him back up.

"Be right back."

She leaned against the counter and held Colton tightly, bouncing him and shushing, certain that his cries were waking up the whole building.

"It's so rough bein' a baby," she commiserated. "I'm so sorry buddy."

He quieted at the sound of her voice and she moved into the bedroom where it was a little warmer. Adam had already laid out a fresh pajama outfit and handed her a diaper before taking all the blankets out of the cradle. She made quick work of dressing him again, then climbed into bed and wrapped the blankets around him while Adam gathered all the soiled linens and threw them in the washer.

"He's clean and warm," Lindsay said once Adam returned to the bedroom. "I don't know why he's still crying."

"Think he might be hungry?"

"Probably. It's later than I thought it was. Mama fail."
"Tired mama," Adam corrected, rubbing his eyes and laying back on the bed. "Tired daddy."

"Go to sleep," Lindsay said, leaning down to kiss him. "I think we're under control."

"Man," he breathed, closing his eyes. "How crappy."

Their soft chuckles joined together and broke the new silence of the still of the night.