I'm so sorry it's been so long! I need to rewatch this season and also have been trying to decide how I want this to end, so please bear with me!

Lexi and Ryan hadn't had much of a plan when they left.

Even after they left so abruptly, Ryan still had to go to the ranch to work the next day. And Lexi, unable to screw over her boss and friend who had helped her out so much, continued to go into the office. It was their plan "until something else came up." Whatever 'something else' was, it was taking its time.

Lexi knew what her odds were anyway if she tried to start somewhere new. She didn't want to work in a practice, she wanted to do what she was trained for in emergency medicine and surgery. No one was going to want to hire her while she was pregnant though. And, worse, she knew it would be harder for her to get a job over someone that didn't have kids.

Either way though, she held firm she didn't want to be at the ranch, at least not right now.

John would come by the office when he was in town to see his daughter, apologizing and asking her to come home. He knew how small Kaycee's new place truly was, only 3 bedrooms, so it wasn't going to be a place for newborn twins. John promised that Beth and Rip had moved back into the foreman cabin. Lexi felt for her dad, in a huge lodge alone, when the whole reason he fought for the ranch was for them. She couldn't go back there though, not wanting to even catch a glimpse of her sister, among her other traumas.

Nick was sentenced, as expected, to life without the possibility of parole. His previous felony conviction hadn't helped and it seemed to make no difference that 1) there were no victim statements after Claire and Warren tore out of town and 2) that Ryan and Laramie had showed up for their dad at the hearing.

The airport project, as Beth had so indelicately put it, was as dead as Matt; for a time anyway. Claire put in what was ultimately a forced resignation and Warren was let go; after questions of his conduct, no other firm would have him and the DA office certainly wouldn't take him back. Matt's father and other brothers kept their heads down until the storm would inevitably pass.

What they did though was regroup. Claire sold her shares in Market Equities to Caroline Warner. It didn't take a ton of digging to find out that Claire and Caroline were sisters, but it was deep enough that no one really looked into it.

It wasn't long before the twins were born that Jamie sold his ranch and moved into a place closer to town. Lexi and Kaycee both figured his bio dad had bailed, but Beth knew the truth. Garrett had a hand in what happened to the Duttons and Jamie did know after the fact; she blackmailed him into murder. Ryan didn't know the full extent of what Jamie had done, but he had a pretty good guess as Beth said she forced Jamie to "handle it."

The twins were born in the dead of winter, just after the new year. They had a boy and a girl, just as Ryan had long before predicted; their little boy came first then their girl, just like their uncle and mom before them. Their names were Tyler Lee, after their uncles, and Lilah Evelyn, after their grandmothers.

John came to see the new babies in the hospital, of course. While holding Lilah he made one more attempt to get his daughter to come home. This time, she accepted. Kaycee's house didn't have the room for them anymore, not to mention how cold it could get. The lodge was sturdy and warm. Plus, she had intrusive thoughts about Ryan making the icy drive after a long night with the babies. So, upon release from the hospital, they took the babies back to the ranch instead of back to Kaycee and Monica's.

For a while, things were a lot better. There weren't any present threats to the ranch and the family. The babies were growing happy and healthy. Lexi was getting along with all of her siblings; she and Beth had come around, and Jamie was even coming around more to see the kids.

She found it odd that Ryan didn't want Jamie around the kids alone, but she didn't push it. Tensions had run high for a long time and he had every right to say who could and couldn't be around their kids. She still didn't know the full extent of why Ryan didn't trust Jamie though.

Around the time the twins turned two was when there was another shift. Market Equities was back with their airport plan, with Caroline now in charge. John had another plan though; Lynelle was leaving her position as governor for the Senate and he planned to run for governor in a special election that spring.

Only Beth knew why John had taken the endorsement from Lynelle; it was so Jamie couldn't have it. She watched happily as her father accepted the endorsement that Jamie had expected. And, by the early summer, John was being inaugurated.

The entire family was there for the inauguration, except for Kaycee who was following a livestock case up near the Canadian border; Rip, of course, was running things at the ranch. Beth and Jamie were with their dad before the inauguration while Lexi, Ryan and Monica sat with their kids in the front row.

Lexi was in a long floral dress and a cardigan, similar to what Beth often wore. She got Ryan into a shirt, tie and jacket for the day as well; he would have much preferred work at the ranch with Rip, but he obliged his wife and Beth.

Lilah was in a white dress covered in blue flowers, sitting in her dad's lap. Tyler wanted his own seat, asserting that two and a half year old independence; he had on khakis and a polo while he sat between Lexi and Monica, who was about to have a baby any day. Both twins were minis of their mother, with dark hair and eyes to match; Lilah's hair was already down her back, like her mother's.

Lexi was impressed with the twins staying quiet through the anthem and then her father's swearing in. When her father stepped up to the microphone to make his address though, a bit of hell broke loose.

"IT'S POP POP!" Lilah exclaimed.

"HI POP POP!" Tyler cheered.

The crowd laughed; Lexi hushed the kids as she fought off a smile, Ryan was laughing a little as well. John caught Lilah's eye and winked at her. Lexi knew the grandchildren were a lot like John's children. He loved all of his kids, but his daughters were special. And Lilah, as the only granddaughter, was the apple of John's eye.

"Those two," John began his speech. "Their cousins, their generation," he continued. "Are why I took this job. To preserve our way of life for their future."

Everyone clapped.

Lexi listened as her dad detailed his plans as governor. Cancel the airport. Higher taxes for out of state residents. The list went on and on. She noticed Jamie shifting uncomfortably as he listened.

After the speech, Beth and Jamie followed their father back inside. Lexi, Ryan, Monica and the kids all got up and went inside as well.

"Congratulations daddy," Lexi told him as she kissed his cheek, though they all knew he didn't want this position. Lilah squirmed away from her dad to see John, who took her happily. Tyler had already attached himself to John's leg, often sitting on his foot and holding on while he walked.

"Why did you drag Ryan here?" John asked and Ryan gave Lexi a look as if to say I told you so. She made a playful face back.

"Your daughter's orders," Ryan informed him.

"Which?"

"Optics daddy," Beth reminded him. "Can't just have one of your sons here, one who legally has to be here," she said. And no one wants here, she felt like adding.

"Short straw then," John said lightly as he handed Lilah back to Ryan.

"We'll see you back at the ranch," Beth said, nodding that they had to go. Jamie went with them.

"You'll need this one," John said with a laugh as Tyler was still attached to his leg, laughing as his grandfather had started walking. He giggled as he let go before running over to his mom.

"We're going to get back too," Monica was saying to Lexi.

"You're not coming tonight?"

"I don't think I should," Monica said lightly, noting how far along she was.

"Please come stay," Lexi insisted. Kaycee put her in charge of Monica until he got back. "Until Kaycee is back at least."

"We'll be fine," Monica assured her, nodding for Tate it was time to go.

"Call me with anything!" Lexi emphasized as Monica left. They went out to her car soon after, loading up the kids and making the drive back to the ranch.

"Can we go to the park momma?" Tyler was asking as they were driving back to the ranch late that morning, seeing that they were on the edge of town.

"I don't know baby," Lexi told him from the passenger seat. "We have to get home and pop pop's party is tonight-"

"PLEEEEEEEEASE?" Both twins begged from their car seats, with wide matching eyes and stuck out lips.

"Party's not till tonight," Ryan shrugged from the driver's seat, keeping his voice low. "And it might be good to wear them out before their nap."

"You're always a sucker for the lip," she teased him of their pouting face. She nodded for him to take the appropriate turn and, seeing what street they were on, there was a chorus of "yays," from the back seat.

As they parked at the playground, Lexi changed both kids out of their nicer clothes into a spare set from the diaper bag. No reason to let their inauguration/party clothes get ruined with a grass stain. Lilah was first, changed into black leggings and a pink t-shirt, taking off as soon as her legs hit the ground. Tyler was next in a red t-shirt and jeans.

"Got anything in there for me?" Ryan joked as Lexi tucked the dress clothes away.

"Sorry cowboy," she chuckled, adjusting his tie for him. He slung an arm around her shoulders and kissed her head. The twins were chasing each other on the playground, climbing up the steps of the equipment to get to the slide when they came across another kid.

"Hi!" The little boy greeted them in the way all little kids said hi to each other, without a trace of shyness. He was a little bit older, Lexi guessed maybe four.

"Hi, wanna play?" Tyler asked and the little boy nodded. "I'm Tyler."

"I'm Lilah!"

"My name is Jamie!"

"Honey, where did you go?" Lexi heard a familiar voice calling, a mom that had looked away for a split second and lost sight of her kid.

"I'm here mommy!" Jamie announced. Sure enough, Christina came around the other side of the equipment to where Ryan and Lexi could now see her.

"It's almost time to go honey," Christina was telling him.

"Can I play with my friends longer, please?" He asked, using that same pouting face the twins had. Christina saw the little ones then noticed Lexi and Ryan standing nearby.

"Your dad is gonna be here soon," Christina reminded him, nodding for him to keep playing for now. Little Jamie grinned and took off running towards the slide with the smaller kids.

"Small world," Christina said lightly as she came over towards Lexi and Ryan; there was no use avoiding them.

"Who would've thought," Lexi shrugged in agreement.

"I'm meeting your brother here, it's his weekend," Christina was saying. "He, um, told me that you knew."

"Looks like she was the only one," Ryan was saying, shocked by the revelation that Jamie had a child. He had never even met Christina before, introducing himself.

"Duttons and secrets," Christina said, watching the kids play.

"It wasn't my secret to share," Lexi said, a bit annoyed at the swipe.

"I'm sorry, that wasn't fair," Christina immediately apologized. "Your brother just…" She trailed off, shaking her head. "He's been different since Garrett left."

"More so than usual," Lexi agreed. "But, he's got his dream job, a beautiful boy," she said as Ryan had gone to help push the kids on the swings, alternating between the three. "What's one less piece of shit?"

"Not that I was crazy about him," Christina agreed. "But, it is his dad."

"I guess," Lexi shrugged. She knew Christina also wasn't crazy about her father.

"Plus, there's the whole governor thing," Christina went on.

"What governor thing?" Lexi questioned.

"Your brother wanted to be governor," she said like it was obvious.

"Why would Governor Perry give the endorsement to him over my dad?"

"That was the plan," Christina explained. "That conference that day? She was supposed to announce Jamie. I guess your dad told her he wanted it and she gave it to him instead. Jamie found out at the announcement." Christina studied Lexi. "You had no idea."

"Well, it explains why he's been particularly pissy since the winter," Lexi said, though she did feel bad Jamie got the rug ripped out from under him like that.

"You didn't hear it from me," Christina said as they saw Jamie pulling into the parking lot. Lexi nodded to reassure she would keep the secret.

"Daddy!" Jamie called from the swing.

"James!" Lilah was yelling at the same time. They heard their mom call him that once and it stuck. Kaycee got Kase and Beth was Beffy as they had a hard time with the TH.

"That's my daddy," little Jamie said as the swings came to a stop.

"He's our uncle," Tyler was saying now, the kids explaining things plainly, the way only little kids could be fully honest. Little Jamie looked at his dad, perplexed.

"Yeah bud," Jamie was nodding. Lexi knew the fake smile when she saw it. "Their mommy is my sister. Like how Uncle Mike is your mom's brother," he explained.

"We're cousins?" Little Jamie asked, mouth dropped, as he had met Christina's baby niece when they came to visit over Christmas.

"Mhmm," Jamie nodded.

The kids excitedly ran off towards the slide again. At the word "cousin," Lilah and Tyler started talking about Tate, who they thought was the coolest kid ever.

"What are you two doing here?" Jamie asked Lexi and Ryan.

"Hello to you too," Lexi said sarcastically, back fully to the kids so she could give Jamie the finger.

"You're also late," Christina pointed out to him, meaning if he had been on time they wouldn't have run into his sister.

"I can't control how long inaugurations go," he snapped at her. He was met by a shove from his sister. "The hell?"

"Maybe some respect for your child's mother?" Lexi asked back; he rolled his eyes at her, holding his hand out for little Jamie's bag.

"It's over here," Christina was saying, turning like she was going to walk over to the bench to grab it. Lexi held up a hand to stop her.

"Jamie can walk over and get it," she told her. "Chivalry and all." Jamie rolled his eyes at his sister again, though he did go to get it. Ryan went to follow him.

"Give me your phone," Lexi was telling Christina and she handed it over. "Let me know if you want to get the kids together again," she said as she put her phone number in. "And if Jamie continues to be a pain in your ass-"

"You'll take care of it?" Christina said lightly as Lexi handed her phone back.

"Ryan will," Lexi nodded over to where Ryan was talking to Jamie at the bench.

"Your kid learns how to treat women from you," Ryan was telling Jamie about how he had talked to Christina.

"Guess we'll be waiting on your prison sentence any day now," Jamie quipped sarcastically. Ryan let out a deep breath, determined not to take a swing at Jamie at the kids' playground of all places. "You're not going to say anything, right?" Jamie's tune changed a little, noting that Ryan now knew his big secret.

"What's another secret of yours Jamie?" Ryan asked. "At least I don't have to keep this one from your sister," he tacked on. The flash of hate in Jamie's eyes told Ryan all he needed to know about what he long suspected; Jamie had killed Garett to keep his knowledge of the attacks those years ago quiet.

"Jamie, time to go!" Father called to son and little Jamie ran to his dad.

"Bye mommy!" Little Jamie called as his dad carried him to the car.

Lexi and Ryan left with their kids soon after as it drew close to nap time. The kids, exhausted, were pretty quiet in the back seat. Lexi was grateful they didn't fall asleep though as then it would be harder to get them to nap properly. They always seemed to wake up at the house and not go back down.

"Which room are you sleeping in?" Lexi asked as they got into the house. They slept separately at bedtime but together during naps.

"Mine!" Tyler announced and they ran upstairs, Lexi and Ryan close behind.

"Momma, is Jamie gonna come to the party?" Lilah asked her as they were tucking the kids into Tyler's twin sized bed.

"He's fun," Tyler agreed. "He should come!"

"You know what guys," Lexi was saying gently as she sat on the edge of the bed, Ryan standing nearby. He wasn't sure where she was gonna go with this. "Jamie is really fun, but I don't think he can come tonight. He's busy with his daddy."

"Oh," Tyler said simply. Lilah wore a bit of a pout. Seemed easy enough, Ryan thought.

"And you know what?" Lexi continued. "I don't think we should talk about Jamie so much."

"How come?" Tyler asked.

"Because Tate might be sad he didn't get to meet him," she reminded them of their other cousin. "I don't want to make anyone sad, ok?"

"Ok momma!" Both twins agreed.

"It's a secret?" Lilah asked in a whisper.

"More like a surprise," Lexi said, feeling Ryan's disapproving eyes.

"Get a good nap in you two," Ryan said, putting an end to this. He kissed the top of each child's head. "We've got a long night tonight.

You ain't lying, Lexi thought as she followed him out of the room after kissing the kids herself, closing the door behind her.

"What was that?" Ryan asked in a low voice.

"Ryan-"

"A lot goes on in this family," he said. "But asking our toddlers to lie?"

"I didn't ask them to lie," Lexi said defensively.

"Just not to tell the truth," Ryan countered. "When do you keep secrets for Jamie anyway?" It wasn't a secret that things had been tense with them the last few years, despite their visits.

"It's not for Jamie," she reasoned. "Do you know what that kid's life is going to look like if it comes out that the new governor's attorney general son has a secret love child with his former campaign manager? And not a baby, but a preschooler?"

Ryan was quiet.

"Ever since the adoption shit," she went on. "Jamie breaks my heart, just a little more each time I see him," she blinked back tears. "But despite what he thinks, he's still my brother. So that kid is my nephew. And I will do whatever I have to to keep him safe and happy."

"Ok," he agreed with her gently. "Ok, I'm sorry. I didn't want them to start lying or think that's ok or whatever."

"No, I know," Lexi said in exasperation, not with Ryan but with herself. "I'll talk to my dad, ok? I just…"

She trailed off and Ryan knew what she meant. Beth had come to the hospital to see the new babies with Rip, but had to leave after holding just Tyler. Rip confided in Ryan that they couldn't have kids, though only Lexi, John and Jamie knew why.

"Let's get through this party first," Ryan changed the subject.

"Oh God," she half laughed and half complained.

Ryan was with the other cowboys during the party, some dancing, some just chatting or having a drink. He was with Walker and Colby, which made him miss his sister. She was on the road right now racing but should be back soon. As he was thinking about Laramie (and when she and Walker would just go ahead and get married) Colby's laugh broke his train of thought.

"What are you laughing at?" Ryan asked Colby skeptically.

"Your wife," Colby smirked, nodding behind Ryan. Ryan looked over to spot Lexi chatting with the singer from the band, Abby. He and Abby had had a brief fling while Lexi was out in California; he'd never told Lexi about it though.

Lexi had been put in charge of the music for the party, so was introducing herself to the lead singer during one of their set breaks.

"It's so nice to meet you," Lexi was saying.

"You too!" Abby grinned. "Thank you so much."

"Oh, no problem," Lexi assured her, sipping from her wine glass. "You've been great."

"Thank you," Abby said sweetly. She had been standing along the fence, watching the cowboys.

"You window shopping?" Lexi joked, leaning against the fence with her.

"I actually already got my eye on one," Abby grinned back, hoping to rekindle something. When she got the job, she had wondered if Ryan still worked at the Yellowstone.

"Oh yeah, which one?" Lexi laughed; Ryan was coming over now.

"Hey," Lexi and Abby said to him at the exact same time. Lexi realized who Abby had her eye on; and, noticing Ryan's wedding band for the first time, Abby realized he was very much taken.

"Hey Abby," Ryan nodded at her, uncomfortable but knew it would be wrong to just ignore her. "I just needed to borrow my wife for a second."

"Right, yeah," she nodded, feeling her face flush with embarrassment at having told his wife she was checking him out. "I've actually got another set so…" She trailed off as she excused herself.

"So, I guess we should have put you in charge of the music," Lexi said once Abby was out of earshot.

Not only was this girl checking Ryan out, but they were on a first name basis? She was obviously willing to give Ryan a chance to explain himself, but she couldn't help the twinge of jealousy.

"When did you meet her?" Lexi asked now, finishing her wine.

She wondered if Abby had maybe been performing in a bar where the guys went out to one night. And, what, Ryan didn't tell her he was married?

"She's very pretty," Lexi couldn't help but add, saltiness in her voice.

"It was years ago," Ryan emphasized. "You had already left for California-"

"Why didn't you tell me you had dated someone else?" Lexi asked curiously.

"….I wouldn't exactly call it dating," Ryan admitted as it had been more of a friends with benefits situation. "And when would I have said anything anyway? Lee died maybe a week after you got back? I wasn't going to say, yeah this is awful, also by the way I was screwing a country singer while you were gone whenever she was in town-"

"Ok," Lexi cut him off with a slight giggle; he was so flustered. "I'm sorry," she said now, setting her wine glass on top of the nearby fence post before putting her arms around his middle. "I didn't mean to make you all flustered, I just…got a little jealous," she admitted.

"Yeah?" He smiled a little, putting his arms around her now and she nodded.

"I mean, the audacity of sleeping with someone else while we weren't together," she joked, obviously meaning she had been seeing Matt during that time frame. "Next you're going to tell me you weren't a virgin when we got together," she continued.

"I really hate to tell you this," he joked back. She knew he had slept with a few women before they had gotten together; he was 23 at that point after all.

"Yeah, me either," she smirked back, though that was a lie. If it hadn't been for Matt, Ryan would have been her one and only.

"What?" Ryan said in an exaggerated way, knowing she was kidding, squeezing her around her waist to tickle her, making her laugh.

The twins weren't long for the party, with Ryan taking them up to the lodge to tuck them in. Carter offered to sit downstairs and listen in case they woke up, not that Lexi hadn't fully baby proofed the house, including a gate at the top of the stairs. The big party wasn't really his thing though, so he said he would yell down the hill if either parent was needed, saving Lexi from carrying around the baby monitor. As much as they loved their kids, Ryan and Lexi needed some time just the two of them.

As the party wore on and people were dancing and drinking even more, Lexi caught Ryan's hand at one point, pulling him from the party tent towards the bunkhouse. Thinking someone might come in though, she pulled him around the side to where his truck was parked.

"What are you doing?" Ryan laughed. She answered by pulling open the truck door and climbing in the back seat. "How old are we?"

"Would you prefer I swap out with your screw buddy on stage?" She asked, a little buzzed.

"No," Ryan insisted. "I wouldn't wish your singing on anyone," he smirked. She leaned forward and grabbed him by the shirt. "Hey," he laughed as he gave in to being pulled into the truck, shutting the door behind him.

He settled himself over her, leaning down to kiss her. They struggled to find a comfortable position as they kissed, but all that did was make them laugh.

"There is a king sized bed at the top of the hill," Ryan reminded her.

"That got moved up from being queen sized because of two little ones that like to end up in there," Lexi reminded him.

"Fair point," he agreed, kissing her again, hiking up the skirt of her dress so he could more easily settle against her. At some point, her phone had fallen from her sweater pocket and it was now buzzing on the floor of the truck. Doctor's instinct, she reached for it.

"Mm-mm," Ryan shook his head, catching her hand and playfully pinning it to the seat. "Keith knows what tonight is," he said as he moved to kiss her neck.

"Ryan," she half laughed, the light from her phone catching her eye; the picture on the screen was what startled her. "Shit, Ryan," she jerked instinctively and he immediately let go and sat away.

"Did I hurt you?"

"No, it's Monica," she said, scrambling as she grabbed the phone in time to answer it. Monica wouldn't call her this late unless it was an emergency. "Hello?"

"Lexi," Monica grimaced. "It…it's the baby, my water…"

"Ok, ok," Lexi said reassuringly; she motioned to Ryan they needed to get up front so they could drive. "Have you talked to Kaycee?"

"He's hours away," Monica winced. "I….I'll meet you at the hospital."

"No, no," Lexi said urgently. "You're in labor, you need to stay where you are." The adrenaline sobered her up. "I'll be right there."

Lexi had sent a text to Beth about where she and Ryan were off to. Beth said she would let their dad know, who Lexi knew would rather stay at the house with the twins versus heading to Helena the next day as planned anyway.

The following morning, John was sitting at the head of the table while the twins occupied Beth and Lexi's typical seats. Gator made chocolate chip pancakes, their favorite, and their faces were sticky with syrup and chocolate as they sat in their pajamas still.

"Morning daddy!" Lilah announced as she took a bite; Tyler, mouth full, waved enthusiastically.

"Pancakes?" Ryan asked excitedly as he went over to kiss the top of their heads.

"What happened?" John asked as Ryan seemingly came home alone.

"Mom and baby are healthy," Ryan assured him as he stood behind the twins' chairs. "Lexi is waiting at the hospital with Monica until Kaycee can get there. It's a boy," he added on, though he hadn't gotten cleared about sharing the name. John nodded appreciatively.

"I know you've been up most of the night," John was saying to Ryan now. "But, would you be able to make a run for me?"

"Sure," Ryan shrugged, not sure what it could be. "Where am I heading?"

Nick had gotten the news the previous day that he had gotten pardoned and was being released the following morning. He hadn't heard anything from the Duttons, but knew that John had just had his inauguration. Ryan would come to visit when he could with updates about Lexi and the kids, but other than that there wasn't a lot of communication. As he changed back into his street clothes and prepared to leave the prison he thought he was going to be in for the rest of his life, he wasn't sure what was next.

"Dad!" Ryan called to get his attention and Nick turned and saw him waiting outside his truck. Nick went over to greet him and was surprised when Ryan pulled him in to hug. They had come a long way though, he knew that.

"I've got your in laws to thank for this," Nick said lightly as they let their hug go.

"Let's go home," Ryan told him. "You can tell them yourself."

Lexi got home late that morning, dropped off by one of her friends at the hospital as their shift was over. She figured Ryan would be sleeping off the night before and was more than ready to join him. She carried her heels from the party in her hand as she walked up to join her father on the porch where he was watching Lilah and Tyler play in the grass.

"You and Kaycee used to be just like that," John commented on the playing. "Two peas in a pod."

"Hmm," Lexi smiled in contentment, curling her feet up on the seat with her. "I'm sure you know, but you have a new grandson," she said, cleared by Kaycee and Monica to share the name. "John Alexander," she grinned, adding a bit of a dramatic hair flip as if to say she was all that with the middle name.

"That's a good name," John said, laughing a little at her. "Alexander adds a strength to it."

Lexi smiled at him before looking out at the kids.

"Their daddy sleeping?" She asked John to confirm.

"I had him go pick someone up for me," John said.

"Who…" Lexi trailed off as John nodded to Ryan pulling up to the house now; she saw who his passenger was and looked to her dad in surprise. They hadn't talked about him pardoning Nick.

"I had the papers drawn up so I could sign them as soon as I was sworn in," John told her as Ryan and Nick got out of the truck. John stood when Lexi did, but she was already down the front steps to hug her father in law.

"It's good to see you too honey," Nick assured her as he gave her one more squeeze. John came over now, extending his hand to shake. "I don't know what to say," he admitted. "Thank you doesn't seem to be enough…"

"No thanks necessary," John assured him. "What you did for our children, their children, this place," he reminded him. Nick had been willing to spend the rest of his life in prison to protect Ryan and, subsequently, the Duttons. "I should be thanking you."

"It's not much," John continued. "But, there's a bed in the bunkhouse with your name on it, if you want it."

"It's more than enough," Nick said thankfully, everyone stopping as the twins had come running over.

"Daddy, who's that?" Tyler asked first.

"C'mere," Ryan said, picking him up. Lilah, having a shy moment, stayed behind the skirt of her mother's dress. "You know how pop pop is mommy's dad?"

Tyler nodded.

"This is my dad," Ryan explained. "So, you have another pop pop."

"Two pop pops?!" Tyler exclaimed. To the twins that meant one thing: double the spoiling. Double the ice cream when their mommy worked late, double their favorite foods for breakfast and dinner, double the grandparent fun.

"Yep," Lexi nodded now, holding Lilah's hand as she slowly came around. "Pop pop John and pop pop Nick." She looked between the grandfathers. "I hope that's ok," she said, meaning about adding their first names into what the kids would call them.

"More than fine sweetpea," John assured her.

"It's perfect," Nick agreed as Tyler held his hand up for a high five.