A/N: I just have to thank Julia/Piper for giving me this little addition to my twist (don't say it, it's too easy kid). This would be quite pithy without it. I heart your face and cardboard and the fact that my facebook inbox is all you.

It was raining again, as Adam stared out the window of the silent apartment. Lindsay had escaped a bit ago to do the grocery shopping, leaving him alone with both boys. Of course she had waited until nap time, so Colton was currently on the floor, his sock monkey under his head and other various toys scattered around him. Ben was asleep too, stretched out on Adam's chest and breathing lightly. It was a completely relaxed way to spend an afternoon, but Adam's couldn't relax, so full was his mind of current events.

Tomorrow morning he was going to meet his brother. Sometimes the thought brought excitement, but other times he dreaded it. It could be a good thing, and he knew that. But he also knew the ramifications of having anything to do with anyone that had anything to do with his father. Several times he had told Lindsay that it might be better if he put the whole thing off. She hadn't helped his decision making, saying that she trusted him to do what was best for all of them. What he secretly wanted is for her to give him the perfect answer. But he knew she wouldn't even if she had it. He had to decide or it would be the wrong answer.

A little advice didn't hurt though, so he picked up the phone and stared at the numbers, his thumb touching each one in practiced succession, a number he had known for so long, but one he rarely used. He pictured the connection being made, from New York to a busy accounting office in Phoenix.

"Dave Nicklas."

"Dad, answering your own phone."

"Hey, Adam," Dave chuckled leaning back in his chair. "The secretary's on her lunch break. I gotta do some work around here once in a while."

"Yeah, you always told me that was good for a man."

"Keeps us humble. So what's up son?"

"I uh… just wanted to say hi. We don't really talk much, you know. I mean, we don't really need to I guess. But, I dunno, I just thought that while I was home I would say hey."

"What's goin' on son? You knock Lindsay up again already?"

"No," Adam chuckled, rubbing Ben's back to keep him asleep. "We've got our hands full with just the two for now. I actually was kinda… I wanted to tell you… I think I should tell you that is… um… well I got this e-mail last week. This guy, he said that he thought he might be my half brother."

There was a silence from the other end of the phone.

"You think your father had another kid?"

"He had the same name. We ran a background check. I had someone do a little investigating outside of that. Barring a DNA test… he's my brother."

"Wow. Have you written him back?"

"Yeah, a few times. I'm going to meet him for coffee tomorrow. I don't know if that's the best decision though, dad."

"You think it might be your father trying to get to you?"

"In a way. I don't know if he's that underhanded."

"Yes you do, Adam."

"I just don't want to think he's going to use this to… I don't know. Manipulate. I want to think he has nothing to do with this other than the fact that we're tied to him biologically."

"You want to know what I think?"

"Always."

"Think that you have to go into this hoping that it's going to be good, but you're going to have to be prepared if it's not."

"I wish I'd never opened that e-mail."

"No you don't son. You've always wondered if you had a brother or sister out there somewhere. No taking that back now."

"I know, I just… I guess this would be easier if it wasn't so difficult."

"You sound like your mother."

"Thanks dad."

"Son, I think you're just going to have to be extra cautions about this. You're not dumb and you're not going to do anything stupid, but be careful, alright?"

"Yeah."

"Did you tell your mom?"

"No. I don't want to get her all upset and this would make her really, really upset. I'm going to wait until I'm sure."

"Probably the best course of action. What does Lindsay say about all this?"

"She says that she's going to support me and be there for me no matter what I decide and no matter what happens. But she's not been giving me any opinions."

"She knows you well."

"Yes, she does."

"How are the boys?"

"They're fine," Adam answered, glad for the change in subject. "Ben's spoiling us by sleeping through the night. But Colton's taken it upon himself to wake us up around two by crawling into bed with us."

"It's not parenthood if you're getting a full night's rest."

"I guess not."

"Colton still taking to Ben okay?"

"Yeah. We've had a few issues where he'll throw himself on the floor and beg Lindsay to play with him when she's busy with Ben, but we don't think he's held that kind of thing against anyone but us. He's still as protective and loving to Ben as he ever was."

"It'll be nice when they're older and can play together."

"Yeah, we're looking forward to that," he said. "And I see what you're doing there, dad. Get me talking about the boys being brothers and all that."

Dave chuckled.

"Just offering a little perspective son."

"I think I get your meaning. Thanks dad."

"That's what I'm here for."

"I'd better let you go. I know you're busy this time of year."

"Yeah, I've got a few calls waiting."

"Thanks for taking the time."

"Whenever you want, son. I promised you."

"Yeah, you did. Thanks dad."

"You're welcome. Call back if you need anything."

"I will. Bye."

"Bye son."

He hung up the phone and looked down at Ben, who was awake and staring at him through sleepy eyes.

"Are you hungry little man? Mama left a bottle for you that I bet you would love to have right about now."

"I feed Ben, daddy," Colton said, yawning and sitting up from the floor. "Please?"

"Yeah, let my just warm up his bottle, okay?"

They went into the kitchen and Adam heated the glass bottle for a few seconds in the microwave, letting Colton have a cookie while he waited.

"Alright, go sit in your spot."

Colton ran out to the other room, sitting down on the couch and making sure he had a throw pillow under each arm.

"Okay, ready."

Adam made sure both boys were situated, then handed the bottle to Colton.

"Remember be gentle."

"I know daddy. Boy, he hungry today."

"Looks like it. He's going to have some big burps."

"Yep," Colton agreed, leaning down to kiss Ben's forehead.

"Do you love him, buddy?"

"Yep. He's pretty good."

Adam smiled and sat down, settling his arm on the back of the couch, watching his boys as they looked at each other. He couldn't explain the feeling that washed over him at that moment and he didn't really want to miss out on the present by trying to figure it out.

"Daddy, he all done," Colton reported after a while, handing him the bottle. "Help burping please."

"Alright. Let's see what we can get outta the little man."

"That a puny one, Ben. Try again."

Ben grunted and yawned, obviously done with the whole ordeal. Colton sighed and gently moved Ben so he was sitting up a little more.

"Now we watch some cartoons?"

"Well, I guess that couldn't hurt."

That's how Lindsay found them when she returned home an hour later, laden down with groceries.

"Need help?"

"Nah, I did the thing where you hang ten bags on each arm. And I am going to sit my tired behind down for a while so maybe you can put them away," she answered, plopping all the bags on the table.

"Yeah, I'll get to it in a bit."

She smiled and sat down on the couch with a sigh. Ben looked up at her and gave her the teeniest of smiles and she reached over to take him into her arms.

"Hey Benjamin. Did you miss me?"

"He had a big yucky, mama. Daddy got the air spray."

"Oh that bad huh?"

"It was nasty."

Lindsay giggled and kissed Colton's cheek.

"And what did you do while I was gone?"

"Nothin'."

"Nothing? Nothing at all?"

"I was sleepin'. Then I waked up. Then you come home."

"Sounds like a full day my friend."

"I not your friend, I your big boy."

"Oh right. How silly of me to forget."

He smiled and slid off the couch, bored with conversation when he could be playing.

"And what about you, daddy-o?" Lindsay asked, reaching over for Adam's hand.

"Oh, you know, played with the boys, watched cartoons, did a little soul searching. The usual."

"Everything alright?"

"Yeah, it's alright," he said, pulling her feet up into his lap and taking her shoes off. She wiggled her toes at him and giggled while his hands gently massaged her feet, a little bit of pampering that he rarely ever gave her.

"That feels good."

"You play your cards right and I might pay attention to something more than your feet."

She opened one eye and looked at him with a lopsided grin.

"I'm sure you will."

He chuckled and leaned over to kiss her quickly.

"Alright, I'm going to go and put those groceries away and then maybe we can get some dinner going?"

"Get back to me on that in twenty minutes."

They spent the next several hours doing a whole lot of not much, enjoying the chance to just be them without anywhere to be or any responsibilities. It was nice to get lost in Colton's imagination or try and decode all of Ben's coos and gurgles and not have to worry about what they could be doing instead. The dishes would be dirty tomorrow, the laundry was going to pile up anyway, but there was only one today.

Once the boys were tucked into bed and the heat had kicked back on, Lindsay turned on the stereo softly and joined Adam in the kitchen where he was wrestling with a cookie package to get it open. Smiling, she placed a hand on his back and took it away from him, setting it on the counter. He gave her a puzzled look, but she just smiled and kissed him, then wrapped her arms around him and held on. He sighed, a long puff of air across her neck, burying his face in her hair as they swayed slowly to the music.

"It's going to be okay," she said finally, pulling away to look at him. "Everything tomorrow is going to be just fine."

"You think so?"

"I do. What I'm more worried about, honey is that if you don't do this, it's going to bug you for the rest of your life. Even if it turns out that the two of you don't get along, or something even worse than that, at least you'll know."

"How come this is the first time you've said anything?"

"Because you had to decide this on your own or it wouldn't work. If I told you not to do it, you would have called the whole thing off without another thought just because you wanted to make me happy. That's not fair to you, baby. You had to decide for yourself."

"Okay."

"Are you mad at me for that?"

"No. It's just that we're a team. We're supposed to do it all together."

"I was right there with you. Remember when I had to go back to Montana for the trial? You sent me out there alone, but it didn't mean you'd left me. It just meant that I needed to do something for myself. This is the same."

"Okay. I get it."

"If I really thought this was going to be a bad thing, if I had serious reservations, I would say something. And I'm not telling you that I think it's going to be the easiest thing in the world, because I don't. But sometimes… sometimes you just have to do hard things."

"You make me a better man, Lindsay. Do you know that?"

"Well I don't know if I agree with that, I mean you're pretty perfect just as you are. But I'll take it."

He chuckled and leaned down to kiss her, almost in disbelief that this wonderful woman was all his.

"Cookies and milk in bed?" she asked with a grin. He nodded and released her, getting two glasses of milk while she finally got the cookies open.

"Hey Linds?"

"Yeah?"

"You're amazing."

She grinned and leaned up to kiss him.

"C'mon, let's go."

He grinned and followed her, knowing that no matter what happened tomorrow, hers would be the smile he would be coming home to.