Marriage is Murder

Jack stood with Robert he growled at his name and looked at Lee . Once all was done he moved back to Robert hearing him say about disbanding the organization he shook his head " sir, lees right don't start talking like that yet " he looked at him and sighed " please " he looked nervously at him. He hoped his words didn't make him look depleted as a member of the organization or a wear he merely wanted to let Robert know others close to him would be affected if he went down that road and he could not even thing about how he would cope if he could not be close to Robert and the others, it was there support and love towards him and his family that kept him human.

Kate came in, carrying Abbey.

"Papa!" she was delighted to see him. It immediately brought a smile to his tired face. Kate handed Abbey to him.

"Robert," Kate said. "I can feel your sadness. But isn't this..this child...what you do it for? Would you not go if there were even one child, like this beautiful child here, in trouble out there?"

"You know I'd still go," he said.

"Then you still have purpose. You have a right to be angry and hurt. But those kids have a right to hope too."

"Alright," Robert said, as Abbey snuggled into Robert's chest. "You all win. We stay."

"Let Lee do his job. Isn't that what you trusted him for?"

"It is. Jack, why don't you find your family and go take them downstairs to dinner? I'm sure they're all hungry," Robert said. "Thank you. Good work today."

Jack watched Abby with Robert when he said that they all win he breathed out and smiled a little when he told him good job Jack looked at him " I would do it all over again sir , your family is my family " he said " but I will go and find Andrew and Jess they probably are hungry" he said smiling as he left the room to find her. He found Jess in the nursery checking on the twins and a rather snuffly Andrew who just snuggled down in his bed and was soon asleep , jack took Jess buy hr hand and led her down to the dinning hall " time to eat " he said she was going to protest but just went with him feeling he wanted to be close to her. Jess grabbed some food and sat down next to him to her surprise he turned and held her close to him she held him back.

" Hay what was that all about?" she asked as he smiled at her.

" Just happy to have you here " he said and kissed her gently and felt relaxed and in control once more.

Brian excused himself and went the bedroom. He thanked Cassidy for taking such good care of Khaat and told her to go take the evening off with Steven. He said that he and Khaat were going to do that with Robert and Kate. He was about to help Khaat dress to go downstairs when Kate came over and said that Abbey was the perfect medicine for Robert to help him get his perspective back. She asked permission to have all 5 kids for the evening. For Brian, it was the answer to a prayer. He absolutely wanted her to do that so that he could spend a romantic evening with Khaat. Kate said she would speak to Angus about that.

Within minutes, Angus brought a dinner cart. He laid out a candlelight dinner for two, with white wine to go with dinner, the appetizer, salad, soup, and entree course, and a bottle of champagne to go with a special tiramisu frozen custard he'd made and some delicate mocha twill cookies to go with the ice cream. He had also included a pot of fresh brewed espresso for slow sipping by the fireside.

He lit some cinnamon scented candles for them and lit the fire, and Brian flicked his wand to start some quiet soothing Native American flute music. Angus told Brian to just set the trays outside on the floor if he got to it. Then he left the alone.

cassidy nodded and left to find Steven finding him in the nursery with Fallon and Andrew. He nursed Fallon with a bottle then burped her and placed her back in her crib. Cassidy walked over and wrapped her arms around his waist " hay Roberts told us to relax tonight " she said and saw Steven smiled as he wrote a note sending it down to the kitchen.

"Now Mrs Walker, you, me, our rooms" he said and thanked the member of staff for taking Fallon and he walked her back to their suit past Brian's room he smiled smelling the aroma coming from there room . Cassidy smelt it too and smiled knowing Brian was so romantic but so could Steven when he wanted to be.

By morning, Brian had talked Khaat into remembering what she loved in life and that it was still worth fighting for. He had talked her, at least temporarily out of throwing herself to James. She wasn't ready to fight yet, but at least she wasn't tossing herself out in hopes that James would bear off. Brian ahd been honest with her about the traitors in their midst and that Lee had taken 14 people out yesterday and taken their kids into custody for rehabilitation. Khaat wanted them returned to England, and Lee had already told Robert he would return the children once the parents were sentenced and convicted. And once Robert was back in his office.

Brian had Angus leave breakfast for them, and he skipped his workout to be with her. They had a very quiet breakfast--until someone started pounding on their bedroom door. Khaat jumped, and Brian frowned. He got up and went to the door. The instant he opened it, Abbey came in.

"Doggie!" she said to Brian.

"Doggie? Where?" he frowned.

"In my bed," she said, holding up a wad of fur in her little finger. He took the fur and looked at it. A little wad of yellow fur.

"Brian?" Khaat asked. Brian took the fur to her. The minute she took it in her fingers she said. "Its a yellow lab," she said. "That's labrador fur. Are you thinking what I"m thinking?" She knew it was Abbey's own fur. As best they could tell, sometime during the night, she'd transformed into a lab and transformed back.

"Its alright," Brian told her. "that doggie won't hurt you."

"Where doggie?"

"She's closeby," Brian smiled. "Did you have breakfast?"

She nodded. "With Papa."

"Did you show him the fur?"

"No."

"Okay."

"Daddy--snowman?"

"What?"

"Snowman, Daddy!" Khaat laughed.

"She wants you to make a snowman with her" Khaat said.

"Well, okay, sure. Lets see if Dakota wants to go along," he said. "You coming, Mama?"

"No, you have some father daughter time."

Cassidy had finished her breakfast and kissed Steven as she moved back up to check on Khaat finding her alone " morning how you feeling?" she asked and stepped in but staid at the door in case she didn't want her to stay. Jess walked past with Jack and smiled.

"Morning Khaat, you had good night I take it ?" she asked as Jack stood with her smiling " you could probably tell buy the smile on Jacks face we did too" she said and chuckled at Jacks sigh behind her " hay can't hide it with you and that sappy smile on your face.|" Jess said softly.

"It was very nice," Khaat said about her evening. She looked out the window to see Brian introducing the girls to playing in the snow. "It looks likelife is going on. Look. Brian is showing the girls about snow. Somebody put it in Abbey's head that we needed a snowman, so he took her and Dakota outside." She watched Brian just showing them the snow and watching the girls picking it up on the mittens and tasting it. They looked up at him with a somewhat confused. It made her smile. "Its hard to think they're big enough to play in the snow. I should be getting pictures. I'm gonna regret not doing that."

Cassidy accioed her camera and smiled as she took a nice picture knowing it would make a perfect gift for them all she snapped off a few and smiled she knew just what to do with them and left to the craft room. Jess smiled " perfect time in their lives I'd say " she said and smiled as she saw Andrew run out with a carrot and two pieces of coal for eyes. Jess smiled " Andrews still taken with Abby " she said smiling " hes over his cold so I said he could play out the fresh air will do him some good , besides jacks out side now, see." just as she finished he walked out wrapped in along scarf and thick jacket and gloves.

"Then lets let them have some dad time," Khaat smiled. "Brian lives for these moments. He's looked forward to spending time with his kids for as long as I can remember. I remember when we were kids he talked about all the things he wanted to do when he was a dad. Well, now he's going to start being able to do that."

"He's a good dad," Angus said, coming in, bringing a stack of their laundry. "I have a batch of sugar cookie dough in the fridge downstairs. Maybe the kids would enjoy helping to cut out cookies and decorate them later."

"What do you think?" she looked at Jess and Cassidy.

"Abbey loves sprinkles," Angus laughed. "That's why you all get a cookie every so often with more sprinkles than frosting. Don't be surprised if she tells you your cookies need a lot more sprinkles."

"I don't care if she puts a pound of sprinkles on them" Khaat said. "It sounds good to me. Isn't Dakota into sprinkles?"

"No," Angus laughed. "I tol her the colored sandin sugar was fairy dust. She likes every color of fairy dust I can buy. And she wants hers all done in sugars."

"I hope the guys are in the mood for a sugar over dose" Khaat laughed.

"I'll go brew some cocoa for them. Those boys wont' be able to keep those guys out in the cold that long. I'll go get Kate's recipe out. You lot want me to make a bigger pot of it so you all can hae some too?"