He wasn't sure he could remember the last time he had been up this late, but also, with the time difference and all, he was sure he'd now been up longer than 24 hours straight. Even when Lisa was in the hospital while pregnant with John, he'd gotten brief spurts of shut eye, but today had been a very, very long day. He might have closed his eyes at brief moments, but Jack hadn't slept since that very short night of sleep that was just last night now but felt like months ago.

He stroked John's back as he rested, waiting for Lisa to finish in the bathroom. It felt so good to be stretched out on a bed, and he had to admit, it was a pretty comfortable one, not that it should surprise him. Of course, Ben would have a nice place, a downtown condo, something so different than anything in Jack's world, but it fit Lisa's, and right now, Jack wasn't even complaining about being in the middle of a city. At least it was a city in his home country, and that itself, was something that made him relax just a little.

Jack let his mind wander, but only after he shifted slightly, moving John further up on his chest. John made some of his sweet baby sounds and seemed to be otherwise unaffected by the slight shift. He curled up even tighter on Jack and went back to sleep. With their impromptu stay, they had discussed what to do with John. Neither was thrilled with the idea of his sleeping in his car seat, but it seemed to be the safest option. His stroller was too big to fit into the bedroom, and they didn't want to put him in the small hallway where he could be a bother to Ben, even though Ben had told them to do whatever they needed to do. Jack had told Lisa he'd just let John curl up with them, between them for the night. She was terrified of the idea, citing some books and articles she'd read about parents rolling over on their babies. Jack knew it was one night, one short night with the late arrival, and he was doing everything to keep John close.

Jack continued to stroke John's back, as his mind drifted back to seeing Ben after several years. Lisa was so thrilled to see her nephew, and Jack was happy for her. Ben traveled a lot for work, and he knew she hadn't seen Ben in a couple of years. That was confirmed as they discussed it on the drive back to Ben's place. He'd last stopped to see Lisa at the house in France two years prior when he was in the area finishing his MBA and traveling. Ben was smart, really smart, and he'd decided after his time in Hudson, which he'd fondly reflected on as a changing point in his life, to pour himself into school and now work. He was an investment banker now, a big-time one, traveling to far away places like Hong Kong and even to countries Jack hadn't known existed. It was really good, no great, to see him, and Jack was genuinely happy with the turn of events leading them to his place tonight.

Jack opened one eye and glanced to John when he started to move, wondering if he was going to wake up, but John just made a few more little sounds and continued in his blissful sleep. A smile formed on Jack's face; it seemed like John was dreaming, and he hoped his son was having sweet dreams of feeling loved.

He closed his eye again, his mind wandering back to seeing Ben.

"Jack," Ben said, a firm handshake and a huge smile. Jack took in Ben, a grown man now for sure, in crisp jeans and a dark black t-shirt with an open jacket over it. He hoped Lisa hadn't pulled him out of bed for their arrival, but by the look on Ben's and Lisa's faces, that wouldn't have mattered. "I suppose," he said grinning at his beloved aunt who was still attached to his arm with hers looped through hers, "it's Uncle Jack now, ehh?"

Jack chuckled too, nodded, and his gaze briefly met Lisa's as she reached for Jack's hand with her one free one, her other still on Ben.

"I suppose it is," he nodded with a warm smile.

"Congratulations to you both," Ben added warmly looking at the couple. "Great news. Jack, you're just as I remember you all those years ago. Really great news."

"We think so," Lisa squeezed Ben's arm and released herself from his grip. She looked to Jack and gestured, "Ben moved back to Toronto, what, six weeks ago?" She looked up at her nephew, Jack did too, and he could see the same family resemblance in Ben. He hadn't studied Ben's face before, all those years ago, partly because he had no reason, but now, with his beautiful wife's face etched into his mind, it was easy to see the family resemblance.

"Yeah, about six weeks ago," Ben nodded, "spent the last year living in Tokyo for business. I'm glad to be back home, at least back in Canada, and Lisa and I have been trying to cross paths, which," he clapped his hands together and grinned at the two of them, "reminds me that I have someone to meet."

Jack smiled at the same time Lisa looked up at Ben and just beamed a huge smile at him. She tugged on his arm, pulling him around Jack to the stroller. "Meet your cousin, John."

Jack froze at that, and he didn't hear anything that was said between Lisa and Ben as Ben greeted his tiny relative. Cousin. Uncle. It really hit Jack that Ben was family, actual family to him. It wasn't a bad thing, actually not at all. It was a very unfamiliar thing. Jack had never had a nephew, and he supposed, as he thought about it with Lisa's sister, a sister-in-law. Everyone who had come into Jack's world up to now had been on their own, and maybe that was why he felt such a deep pride in a big family. Lyndy had been alone, no siblings, and parents had died prior to his meeting her, which was one of the reasons she was such a free spirit. Marion was an only child, not necessarily by choice, maybe to some extent because Lyndy felt she had a full life with one daughter and a career she wanted back. Tim had come to them too, even on his own, somewhat of the same story as Lyndy, which as Jack analyzed it now, maybe that was one thing that Marion liked about Tim, that somehow his free spirt reminded her of her own mother. Those close to the family, like Ty, well, he had a sorted past with parents, but that was a total mess. He was just as much on his own as anyone and had lived the foster life to prove it. Mallory was often alone with her parents traveling, another only child. Lisa, he realized, was the first in the family to have any family attached to her, and that wasn't much either. He'd never officially met her dad before he passed away; he knew of him, but they ran in very different circles in town, and while it was a small town, he just never had crossed paths with him. He'd seen him in town, sure, with a polite nod here and there, but both lived their very different lives, and that had been it. Even as he thought about it now, he was sure he would have come across Lisa in town, a much, much younger version of her, probably accompanying her dad, and he wouldn't have given her a look then with to start Lyndy being alive and their obvious age difference, crazy how that had worked out. Lisa's mom, who had passed away when Lisa was a teenager too, had brought something out in her that he was sure was the reason she was just so wonderful with the girls. She had a connection not many had, a connection no one wanted, a girl who had lost her mom way too early, and now, as he hovered between wake and sleep, it really hit him that he was an uncle, and his son had a cousin, a real one, and that was just something he'd never thought about.

He opened one eye when he heard the door creak, and a hint of light came into the room. He didn't need to ask who was joining him. He almost chuckled, thinking that back home, that might be a valid question with all of the girls needing things at night and even stupid Tim once trying to suggest that sleeping on the couch one of the nights he'd fallen asleep at Heartland, was bad on his back and could he just bunk with Jack.

Jack turned his head just slightly to see her silhouette now trying to get into bed. He smiled at her, but he was sure she couldn't see it after closing the door. The bed shifted slightly as she got into it, and she let out a long, exhausted sigh, as she turned on her side to get situated, putting one arm under her pillow.

"Where is John?" Lisa asked, whispering, but somehow just knowing Jack was awake.

"He's right here, on me," Jack said, reaching blindly for her hand and putting it on John's back. He's been sleeping soundly since I got into bed. I really think he'll be okay between us for a few hours, Lise. I won't budge from this spot."

She let out a low hum, an almost disapproval, but they didn't have a ton of great options. He was really little still, and perhaps it was that neither wanted to consider other options. The stroller, the only other real option, had been discussed but left downstairs folded in the back of Ben's SUV. The thought of him too far from them was not something either wanted to mention in this strange, but family-owned home.

Lisa ran her hand up and down John's back before moving her hand to grip Jack's arm there, and she chuckled quietly.

"Do I dare ask what is so funny?" Jack whispered.

"Well, I was going to say it's too bad you are rooted in your spot, as you said. Thanks for the use of one of your button down shirts. I didn't have anything else to sleep in since I need my spare outfit for tomorrow, but I found you had three of your shirts packed in the bag."

He quietly groaned, but she continued to laugh, reaching over gently to kiss his cheek. She settled again on her side, her hand still gripping his arm, "Want to tell me about earlier?"

"What do you mean?"

She continued to chuckle, having a little laugh at his expense apparently, "Umm, well, let's see," she continued to laugh as she tried to whisper. Jack shushed her when John shifted again, "You were tied in knots at the airport waiting for Ben to pick us up, and I know you, Jack. You had these wild images in your mind of some young, well," she paused looking for the right word, "stud that was going to sweep in like a knight in shining armor or something. You had all these jealous ideas that I had some man waiting in the wings."

"No, I-" Jack paused and sighed. She did know him, probably better than he knew himself, honestly. "Fine, yeah, it was driving me crazy thinking I was about to meet some guy that should be on the cover of some stupid women's fold-out calendar."

At that, Lisa burst out laughing and instantly covered her mouth. That did wake John, and she gripped Jack's arm even harder, realizing she'd awakened the baby.

They were both silent and possibly holding the breaths while John resettled and went back to sleep, both let out little chuckles as he made more little noises. When it was safe to talk again, Lisa patted at his arm.

"Jack Bartlett, how in the world could you be jealous? I'm not sure where to start. Let's begin with I married you, you, Jack, the love of my life. You are holding the son I gave you, another unexpected but absolutely wonderful blessing. I've been by your side, through all the ups and downs for the last seven years. I told you right away, early on, that I wasn't into casual, modern dating, if you can call it that. I told you I valued a relationship, with a lot more depth than most people seem to understand these days. I've also told you over and over that I never see our ages, other than to acknowledge we are both too old to be parents to a newborn," she laughed. "I've told you that after my divorce I wasn't interested in even looking at a man, and when I tried a couple of dinner dates, I decided to throw myself into work, until you stepped into my pathway, that the conversation we had on our impromptu first picnic date was better than anything I'd discussed in the few fancy dinner dates. You should realize that I'm not even batting an eye at some of these so-called centerfolds, but the only man that did catch my eye was a genuinely handsome cowboy I watched flipping burgers all those many years ago and just had to get to know. So the fact that you are the slightest, no," she corrected herself, laughing again, "you are EXTREMELY jealous, well," she squeezed his arm, "it's a bit flattering, but I also must say know your wife, Jack. I'm yours. I was a goner a long time ago, despite all those obvious flaws," she leaned over to kiss his cheek again, Jack finally chuckling at the reference to their first fly fishing date when she'd asked him to call her again. Luckily, that day, he'd picked up on her flirting, even if Mallory claimed over and over he was too dense to do so, and he had called her, just an hour later that day, to 'just make sure she'd gotten back home' and to suggest coffee the next day 'since they both mentioned needing to be in town.'

"I'd hardly call it impromptu," Jack grumbled, not wanting to admit total defeat in Lisa's assessment. That had Lisa giggling; she was in a really good mood for it being so late, and he knew she was genuinely happy being here with her nephew and honestly, he had to admit, him. It felt good to admit that to himself that she was happy with him. "I mean, impromptu doesn't suggest a planned meal," he said stressing the world planned. "You had that bag packed to the nines with sandwiches, cookies, grapes, cheese, and that huge thermos of coffee, not to mention the perfect picnic blanket."

"Okay," she admitted, patting his arm, "maybe I did have motives that day. I really did want to see a horse. I sure did find a stud." Lisa started into an uncontrollable laughter then, and Jack groaned at her joke, gently patting at John's back again as he shushed her.

"I'd have thought you snuck off and had an entire bottle of wine tonight with your light and carefree mood right now. You're going to wake him up."

"Well, I'm sorry. Maybe I wasn't showering but was having that bottle of wine with that centerfold stud you were imagining." She laughed again, and he finally had to laugh too. It felt good, even in the middle of the night in a strange place for Jack, to lie there and laugh with his wife and soothe his son. "Speaking of watching that stud of a cowboy flipping burgers all those years ago, I'm starving! I could go for a good burger right now."

"What is it with you and burgers now? I thought that was some weird pregnancy craving," Jack asked.

"Suppose it's just me now as the wife of a beef rancher, yes? Man, that sounds good now. We have to have some burgers after we get home. If it was still summer, a cookout would be lovely, but maybe just a quiet night with some burgers and a hockey game on tv, or whatever you want to call that, back all those years, telling the girls I was coming over to watch hockey and not the 'fooling around' you joked about."

"You are some kind of good mood tonight," he said with a slight laugh. "Must be the food deprivation." Lisa laughed quietly. The two settled into a quiet silence for a few seconds.

"It didn't dawn on me until Ben said it," Jack offered up some of his thoughts, "that I am an uncle. I've never been an uncle, and John having a cousin, Marion never had a cousin, neither have the girls."

"Oh, wow," Lisa said, propping her head up now on her raised arm. "I suppose I never thought about that too. It so good to see Ben. I've missed him living in Canada and am glad he's back and seems to be settling into his new job."

"It is good to see him," Jack, said reaching for her free hand and clasping it in his. "Never had a sister-in-law either."

"Beth?" Lisa asked. Jack now chuckled.

"I mean, unless you have other sisters I don't know about, but you don't mention her a lot. She's not been to visit you, not that I know about, and I'd only know of her from your brief mentioning of her and of course, Ben."

"Well," Lisa huffed slightly, "after Mom died, she just decided to, ahh, take off I guess. I mean, we are eight years apart. She was a young adult, and everyone grieves differently. It was just Dad and me for so long. Beth and I have an okay relationship, but yes, she doesn't come around a lot. She closed the chapter on Hudson years ago and is just very content living in Brussels."

"Has she been to the house in France?" Jack asked.

"A few times, but the last was, gosh, I don't even know how many years ago. I've always told her when I would be there, you know, texts and emails here and there, but we aren't ones to chat a lot. She's on her fourth husband, so that is another area where we are so different. I was glad to help with Ben after she divorced then. That was her first husband, and she's been flying through them these last few years, which is just crazy to me. I barely know their names, and she's married and divorced again. Never a wedding per say, just an email that she's remarried. It's a life I don't understand, but she and I struggle with that idea, she struggles with the notion that I was by your side, just with you for so long. I need to let her know we got married. I'm sure Ben will tell her, but it should come from me. I was thrilled when he texted me back tonight that he was in town, not that he wouldn't have had us use this place if he was out of town. The doorman would have had access to this place, but I just knew from our last talk, which has been way more frequent than Beth, that he was excited to be back in Toronto to stay put and maybe put down some roots here. I think Ben is turning out a lot more like me, looking for a solid person, his person, and not the carefree lifestyle Beth has adopted."

"I should have asked you about Beth more. I'm sorry for that," he sighed. "I forget others have families and all, and that's not right. I'll do better."

"I appreciate that," she said, squeezing his hand. "I never met Beth's third husband, and only met the fourth one like the first month they dated when we all met up in Paris for lunch, and that was it. It's a very different relationship than something like Amy and Lou have. One of the reasons I love your family, Jack, is that it is a warm, loving, extended family, and yes," she said with a slight sigh, "it's sometimes a lot to take in. I don't want to live all on top of one another, but at the end of the day, it's all new for me, and I don't know what I would do without all of you now."

"Our family would not run the way it does without you," he said, pulling her hand up to kiss it. "It's going to be an adjustment, even with as much as you've been around over the years, for everyone to see us now married."

"It will, but I'm really excited to tell them," she said, running her hand on the side of his scruffy face. "Lots of changes when we get home."

"Yeah," Jack agreed. "Lots of changes."

"Why don't we get John settled. I know he's sleeping well on you, but I don't like the idea of him on your chest all night."

Jack silently agreed, shifting slightly. Lisa did too, moving closer to the edge of the bed and giving John a space to sleep. Jack pulled him from his chest, John all balled up, and he flipped him on his back to put him down on the bed. There was just enough faint light they could see him trying to relax and settle, his little arms and legs all pulled up tightly from where he'd been balled up on Jack. He finally relaxed, putting his arms above both sides of his head and stretching out his legs. Lisa grinned at Jack, and he leaned over to kiss her goodnight, but at this point, it seemed to be almost good morning.