"The vic was out by herself, in the middle of the night, wearing slippers and pajamas. I can see running down the street to the store like that, but she was four miles away from her house," Jo said with a sigh before leaning back in her chair.

"It doesn't track," Lindsay agreed from her spot on the rarely used office couch. "I mean, maybe it does for her, but I'm just not that lazy. Usually. Sometimes when I'm pregnant. But not usually."

"Well now that we've cleared that up," Jo chuckled. "Are you laying down on the job?"

"I didn't mean to," Lindsay yawned, rubbing her eyes. "I just sort of have this problem with being upright too long. My ankles swell up, my knees swell up, my hips… well let's just say that if Adam calls me Shakira one more time, I'm gonna smack him."

"The seventh month is a friend to us all. Insomnia?"

"I've been reading a lot late at night."

"When I was pregnant with Tyler I walked up and down the hallway for hours every night. I slept fine during the day, but at night it was a lost cause."

"Exactly. Plus they started me on some kind of steroid or something that I can't even remember right now so the baby's grown a little faster than my body can handle."

"Why steroids?"

"Colton was six weeks early and they want to make sure that the baby's going to be alright if I go into labor early this time too. It's not much but it's enough to make a difference."

"I didn't know he was early."

"Yeah. I have to see my doctor every two weeks now to make sure everything is alright."

"Stressed?"

"Not entirely. Adam's stressed enough for both of us. He's been doing dad math."

"Our kids better be smart because they're not going to college unless they get scholarships?"

"Exactly. And he's already worried about how he's going to take care of both kids while I'm at work."

"He's got a long time before that happens."

"I plan for things, he worries about the plans falling through."

"You two really found each other didn't you?"

"Guess so. And now I can't lay down anymore because I can't breathe," she said, carefully sitting up. She was dizzy for a second, but took a deep breath and regained herself while the phone rang.

"Danville. Oh hi Adam. Yeah, she's right here."

Jo tossed the phone to Lindsay who took it and yawned.

"Hey honey."

"You weren't answering your cell."

"I left it in the other room. What's the matter?"

"Now don't freak out…"

"Darling if you want me to not freak out don't preface what you're going to tell me by warning me not to freak out. It's counterintuitive."

"Before I start, just know that he's okay."

"Adam, what happened?" she asked, panic rising in her chest.

"Okay so I was only in the other room for a second and Colton was playing and I'm not sure exactly what happened but he jumped off the chair and fell against the bookcase and got a big gash in his ear and his arm's pretty banged up. He's okay though, he's not crying anymore."

"Where are you?"

"We're in the emergency room. He's got a lollipop laced with somethin' and a big goofy grin on his face. They'll be back to do stitches soon and then they're taking him up for an X-ray."

"I'm coming down there."

"Babe, don't panic, he's fine."

"I'll be right there."

"Linds-"

"I am not going to let my little boy sit there and get stitches without me."

"Okay, I'm just asking you to please not freak out because you need a clear head to drive."

"I know."

"Be safe."

"I will. I love you."

"I love you too."

"Everything okay?" Jo asked once the phone had clicked off.

"Yeah. Sometimes I just don't take into account the fact that my son is a boy."

"And that he has his father's clumsiness and your penchant for finding trouble."

"I wonder if the emergency room has a punch card. Between Colton and Isa, I am sure we're all going to get very familiar with the place."

"Probably. Go take care of your baby."

"Thanks."

"Now just what were you doing?" Lindsay asked, brushing Colton's hair off of his forehead and checking out the stitches on his ear.

"I play Superhero mama. I fall."

"Yeah, I know."

"In trouble?"

"No, I think you learned your lesson. No jumping off the furniture anymore."

"I jump on the big bed?"

"You can jump on the big bed, but not by yourself. Fair enough?"

"Okay. You see my pictures?" he asked, pointing to the wall where his X-rays hung on the light board. "Not broken."

"They said it's not fractured but they want to keep it wrapped with a splint for a week." Adam explained, picking at the stray threads on the elastic wrap. Lindsay reached over and placed a hand on his back, knowing that he was feeling guilty.

"I sleepy," Colton said, rubbing his eyes with his free hand.

"Why don't you rest your eyes for a bit until we can go home."

He nodded and she kissed his cheek before moving from the bed to sit down next to Adam.

"You okay honey?"

"Yeah."

"You sure?"

"First time I felt like I failed at something important. Keeping him safe. When I heard him scream Linds, my heart stopped. And then the blood… I wasn't sure where it was coming from or how bad it was and he was crying so much."

"Adam," she started softly, scooting over and settling herself gently into his lap, not an easy task considering her temporary girth. "You didn't fail. This kind of thing happens all the time. It's what kids do."

"I couldn't make it better."

"You're not Doogie Houser."

"Very funny."

"I'm not trying to be funny. So he fell down and got hurt. No big deal."

"It wouldn't have happened if you were home."

"It could have. I don't watch his every move either. I command you this instant to stop feeling guilty. Okay?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Now kiss me and forget it."

"You always say that. You really think your kisses can fix the world?"

"Maybe not the whole world. But they can definitely rock your little corner of it."

"We need to work on our PDA problem. It gets worse the longer we're together."

"I think we just care less. We barely even held hands in public until after we were married. Austin once asked me if we were just getting married so we could play video games whenever we wanted."

"Well that was part of it," he said with a shrug. "I didn't get the ring until I knew for sure that you could beat Super Mario Bros. without cheats."

"I earned this sucker."

"You did, with three lives left over."

She smiled and leaned against him letting herself be calm and hoping he would take her cues because she could still feel the anxiety in his body. He poured every bit of himself into being a good husband and a good father and she knew how hard it was on him when something like this happened. It wasn't a big deal, but the love of her life was a closet perfectionist and he saw himself as the protector of their family, the one responsible for their day to day well-being. Not that the guilt would eat at him, it would go away soon, but she didn't want it to get worse.

"We should get milkshakes on the way home," she said, her voice bright. "That cures every bump and bruise you could imagine."

"Very true."

"Did you drive?"

"I called a cab. I was holding a towel to his ear and I didn't think I could drive and do that at the same time."

"Good thinking. I would probably have sat there freaking out and ended up calling you to come get us."

"Maybe."

"Is there um… blood everywhere?"

"Nah, I caught most of it with my shirt. Don't look."

"I won't. Hey, tonight's family dinner, should I call Austin and cancel?"

"Nah, as long as he doesn't run around too much he should be fine. We can always leave if it's too much for him. Besides, he hasn't seen the girls in weeks, it might make him feel better."

"It always seems to."

"I think it's good for all of us. I'm glad we started doing it."

"You know, I think the kids are going to grow up thinking they're actually related."

"We're family by choice. Best kind there is."

"Hey it's the most recent member of the emergency room club," Austin greeted later that night. "Gimme five dude."

Colton giggled and smacked her hand with his good one before she pulled him into a hug.

"Were you a brave boy?"

"Yep. I not scared. Daddy fix it all better."

"Oh he did huh?"

"With the doctor. I can go play now?"

"Are you forgetting something?" she asked, holding her pinkie out. He grinned and hooked his tiny finger with hers and they shook a few times before she released him.

"Isa!" he shouted. "Lookit, I got owwie!"

"Hurts?" she asked, staring at it in awe. She fell down a lot and got bumps and bruises, but nothing a band-aid couldn't cure.

"It not hurt now. I fall down and I cry. But I got candy."

"Candy?" she asked, her face brightening at the prospect.

"Uh-huh."

She looked down at the splint then smiled and took his other hand, pulling him over to the pile of books that she and Sarah had made on the floor.

"See Colt?"

"Lotsa books. We read?"

"Okay."

They sat down and began to flip through the books quietly and calmly, a far cry from how they normally were together. Sarah stumbled over to them, having just mastered the art of walking a few weeks prior at her birthday party. She crouched down and teary-eyed patted the splint, then gently touched the small bandage on his ear.

"I okay baby Sa'ah," he assured. She nodded and sat down next to him and shared the book he was reading while their parents all worked in the kitchen.

"I have," Isa said suddenly, taking the book from him. "Colt have."

He took the offered book and opened it, making sure to show Sarah the pages before he turned them.

"Hey, who's ready for dinner?" Danny asked.

"Me!"

The kids got up and rushed into the kitchen, Sarah grabbing the leg of her high chair in anticipation of food, while Isa and Colton climbed up into the kitchen table chairs.

"You two had better be careful," Danny warned, putting a hand on each of them to keep them from falling. "We can't handle no more accidents today."

"I tough, Unca Danny."

"We don't want you to use up all your toughness before you're three, sport."

"Oh, okay. I careful."

They all sat down to dinner, eating and talking while Isa and Colton played musical laps until they figured out which adult they wanted to sit with.

"Dum-Dum?" Isa said, jamming a spoon into Adam's mashed potatoes.

"What princess?"

"Eat."

"No thanks. You can have that."

Austin glared at him good-naturedly from across the table. She would have preferred a much less girly nickname for her much less girly daughter.

"Hey, until you teach her that my name is not Dum-Dum, I'm callin' her that out of spite."

"She knows that's not your name, it's just how she says it!"

"With much encouragement from her mother."

"Lindsay thinks it's funny too!"

"Sorry babe, it's really cute."

"You got a cool nickname like Indy and I am stuck with mocking."

"I got called Leonard until I was… well my brothers still call me that. In high school they called you the Flash. Some of us don't get cool nicknames like that."

"They only called me the Flash because right before I burned my eyebrows off that time my mix of chemicals made a huge flash, so really that was mocking too."

"Cupcake," Danny chuckled finishing off the lemonade in his glass.

"Okay, moving on to the part where we're not seven anymore, it's time for dads to do the dishes."

"We helped you guys set the table."

Austin just shot her husband a look and he sighed and stood up, gathering the plates and taking them to the sink.

"Adam?" Lindsay said, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm goin', I'm goin'."

"Let's retire to the parlor for cigars and brandy," Austin teased, wiping Colton's face off and setting him on the floor before turning around to get Sarah.

"Looks like someone is ready for bed," Lindsay remarked. Sarah was slumped over in her chair, sleeping with her head resting on a dinner roll.

"What is it with my children and their strange sleeping habits?"

"They're slowly starting a revolution."

"I'm so proud."

Austin went and tucked Sarah into bed, then joined Lindsay on the couch. Normally they would have sat on the floor to play with the kids, but since neither one of them could get up on their own, the floor wasn't an option anymore.

"So did I tell you?" Austin started, cracking her neck.

"What?"

"I have a feeling this is going to be our last baby."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Three seems good for us. Just chaotic enough but not so insane that it doesn't make sense."

"Three seems good. I can see you with three."

"When are you guys gonna be done?"

"Eh, someday. Whenever."

"As long as you at least get a boy and a girl."

"Yeah."

"So is that what you're going to end up with, a boy and a girl?"

"Austin, I am not going to tell you. I've kept it a secret for months now and I promised Adam so… sorry."

"You guys are just mean."

"Noted. Colton, would you stop chasing Isa?"

"She runnin' away!"

"Yeah because you're bugging her," she said as Isa climbed up onto the couch.

"But I play," he grumped.

"No," Isa growled. "Go bye."

"Sometimes girls just think boys are icky," Austin commiserated, pulling Colton into her lap. "It's one of the things that will always drive you nuts. Don't worry, Isa still loves you."

"I love Isa," he yawned.

"Who else do you love?"

"Mama. Daddy. Tater. Baby Sa'ah. Unca Danny. And Au'tin!"

"You really love all of us huh?"

"Yep," he confirmed, snuggling into her lap.

"My mommy!" Isa whined.

"You have my mama," Colton grinned. Isa looked up at Lindsay and smiled, climbing into her lap and snuggling against her happily.

"My Indy."

"My Au'tin."

"Well that's the most precious thing I've ever heard," Lindsay said, kissing the top of Isa's head.

"I think my heart just exploded. I love it."

"Me too."

The kids continued their conversation with each other sleepily as it was getting close to their bedtime. They smiled and reached out to hold hands a few times, perfectly content with where they were, being held by someone other than their mothers. Sometimes it didn't really matter.

"We'd better go," Lindsay said as Colton started to fall asleep. "I'm not sure how we're going to do this whole changing clothes thing with that stupid splint."

"You'll figure it out. Or he'll go topless for a week."

"Like spring break."

"Exactly."

They got up from the couch carefully, swapping kids, despite the protests. Adam and Danny were deep in discussion about fantasy football, a subject neither of the girls could get into, no matter how much they loved regular football.

"Are we gettin' outta here?" Adam asked.

"Yeah, he's suddenly wiped out."

"Failing at heroics can have that effect on a guy."

"Our place next week?" Lindsay offered, adjusting Colton in her arms so most of his body weight wasn't resting on her stomach.

"Sounds good," Austin agreed, reaching over to hug her. "Thanks for bein' the sister I never had."

"Thanks for bein' mine too," Lindsay replied with a grin.

"Take care of that boy."

"I will. Colton say bye."

He gave a yawn and a wave and was out like a light.

The two families that were really more like one said their goodbyes and the smaller half headed out into the night.