"Dad! You're home already!"

Aaron had entered the living room as quietly as possible, having the feeling that his son and his girlfriend were up to something. Sure enough, Penelope was blushing guiltily as she fought not to meet his eye, as if she knew that the jig would be up the moment their gazes met. "And why does that surprise you, Jack?" he asked quietly as he draped his jacket over the backof the couch.

The soft, plaintive, mew alerted him to the reason for their shock, and he frowned at his son. "Um, surprise?" he asked as he held the kitten up in the air. "His name is Murdock, and we have to keep him, Dad. They were going to put him down!"

Jack's lower lip began to tremble and Aaron knew that he had just lost a battle he hadn't even known he was fighting. Letting his shoulders slump a little, he came around to their side of the couch and took a seat next to Jack, carefully taking hold of the kitten. "Why were they going to put him down?" he asked, setting the small bundle of fur on his lap.

"He's blind, Aaron." Penelope's eyes were just as large as his son's, begging him to be okay with this new addition in their lives. "We went on a whim, to see if Jack could do some volunteer work there, since he knew that you weren't really keen on having a pet here, what with our hours. And while we were there, they were talking about how sad it was that all his litter mates had found forever homes, and that he would be crossing the Rainbow Bridge instead."

Large tears began to roll down her cheeks, and Aaron felt his heart melt. Reaching out, he rubbed Penelope's shoulder softly, smiling at her. She gave him a tremulous smile in return before shifting so that she could clasp his hand, rubbing her thumb over the back of it. "Did you at least call Jessica to ask if she would be all right with looking after a pet when we're not here?" he asked gently, never letting go of Penelope's hand.

"Of course, Dad! Penelope made me call her before we even signed the papers adopting him. She is totally cool with this." Jack grinned as he dragged the kitten back over to his lap, stroking his fur lightly. "Isn't he perfect, though? I love how inky black his fur is."

Aaron nodded, the smile never leaving his face. "So, why did you decide on Murdock for his name?"

"That was Penelope's idea. She said that there's a blind comic book hero, and I know how much she loves comic books. So, I let her name him. After all, we're family now, right, Dad? That's why she moved in last week."

He once more marveled at how much his son understood, and he nodded. "Yes, we're a family." Aaron listened to the shallow breaths that caught in Penelope's throat, and knew that she was close to crying once more, though this time they would be happy tears.

"Are you guys going to get married?" his son asked innocently, and Aaron met Penelope's eyes, trying to show her just how much he cared for her.

"Probably not, Jack. And that's okay. Penelope has shown me that sometimes, the strongest bonds don't require the conventional trappings of society."

She gasped a little, biting her lip as hope began to bloom in her eyes. "And sometimes it's okay to change our beliefs if something new comes along to convince us that a change is most welcome. In time."

He found himself blinking back his own tears as he nodded and Jack seemed to pick up in the undercurrent in the room. "Why don't I see if Uncle Dave and Aunt Erin want to let me come over for the night," he said as he slipped off the couch, handing Penelope the kitten before picking up her cellphone and touching it a few times. "Hi, Aunt Erin! It's me. Yeah, he didn't yell at me for the kitten, just like you said he wouldn't. But now, he and Penelope are all mushy, like you and Uncle Dave were when you came out of WitSec. Can I come spend the night with you guys? I suppose that would work, too. We'll see you in thirty minutes!"

Jack hung up and grinned at them. "They're coming over with supper and then I'm going home with them, so you can have a relaxing weekend. I'm going to go grab my bag!"

As he raced from the room, Aaron shook his head and tugged Penelope closer to him. The kitten let out a sharp mew of protest, and he chuckled a little as Penelope snuggled the animal close to her chest. "We'll have to lock him up in the bathroom at night, Aaron. He has to learn how to navigate his new world, and well, that's where I put the litter box."

"Hopefully, he doesn't keep us up all night. Don't they cry a lot when they're little like this?"

"You're thinking of babies, honey. Kittens aren't nearly as bad." She leaned in and kissed him softly. "Though you are going to have to take care of the litter box for me, at least for the next thirty weeks or so."

Aaron sat back to look at her in puzzlement. Thirty weeks was an abnormally long amount of time to get used to a cat in the house, almost a year. As he watched, the smile on Penelope's face grew larger as she realized he had no idea what she was talking about. And then, she was taking his hand and placing it on her stomach, pressing down gently. "Penny?"

"I thought Jack needed to get a sense of responsibility before his brother or sister arrives. I honestly did not plan on coming home with a pet. But, this will be the best of both worlds. Right?"

"Right," he responded quickly before kissing her once more. "More than right. Perfection." He seemed to have lost all ability to string a coherent thought together, and she giggled sweetly as she rested her head against his chest.

"Ugh, are you two being mushy again?" Jack asked as he returned with his bag, dropping it onto the closest chair. "Seriously, not even Derek and JJ are this bad."

Another giggled burst out of Penelope's lips as she shook her head. "One day, when you're in love, I'll remind you of this, Jackers." She smiled at him before taking a deep breath. "And I think your dad has something to tell you."

Aaron tightened his grip on Penelope's shoulder as he took his own deep breath. "You're not going to be an only child any longer, Jack. We're going to be adding to our family."

It took a moment before a shy smile crept across Jack's face. "Really? Really and truly?"

"Yes. I think I'm about ten weeks along, but I have to go to a doctor to have that confirmed. Do you want a brother or a sister?" she asked gently, her fingers drumming out a nervous tattoo on Aaron's chest. That was the only clue he had that she was incredibly nervous for his son's reaction.

"Can I have both?"

That simple question made Penelope squeak as she shook her head vigorously. "Why not?"

"Twins would not be the best thing for me, Jack. I'm going to be a first time mother, and I am older. One baby will be hard enough to carry to term." By the end of her words, her voice had fallen to a whisper, and Aaron knew that she had researched everything there was to know about pregnancy at her age. "So, what do you really want?"

"A sister," he answered with certainty, and Aaron smiled gently before kissing the top of Penelope's head.

"Well, it looks like we're on the same track, there, Jack. I would love to have a daughter to spoil, as well." Once more he kissed Penelope while Jack rolled his eyes and turned the television on, turning to the Discovery Health channel. Aaron had noticed that Jack was starting to spend a lot of time watching said channel, and was starting to wonder if his son was beginning to develop an interest in medicine as a possible career.

The thirty minutes passed quickly, what with them all getting engrossed in an old episode of Monsters Inside Me, and it took the loud pounding on their door to get Aaron's attention. Carefully, he disentangled himself from Penelope and got up, loping over to the door. "Hey, Aaron! We brought Boston Market, since Erin said we wouldn't have time to throw anything good together. I heard you got a kitten."

He smiled as he ushered his friend inside and then helped Erin out of her light spring jacket. "That I did. Murdock is adorable, and will be good practice for Jack in the near future."

Erin laughed with joy as she scurried over to Penelope's side, hugging her tightly. "All right, spill. What does my wife know that I am still in the dark about?" Dave asked as he brought the bags of food into the kitchen.

While Aaron got down plates and cups for them to use, he smiled widely. "It seems I'm going to be a father once more."

"Congratulations!" Dave clapped him on the back before setting the food out on the table. "When is the little bambino due?"

"In about thirty weeks," Penelope replied lowly as they joined them., so sometime between Halloween and Thanksgiving. We'll be receiving a great blessing this year."

Erin nodded as she wrapped her arm around Dave's waist. "Isn't that the truth. And not to steal your thunder, Penny, but we're going to be grandparents right around the same time. Karen told us the good news today, too. There must be something in the air."

Erin looked radiant, and Aaron knew that this news was adding a special glow to her. "Must be. Well, we should probably eat while it's hot," he said as he pulled out serving spoons, handing them to Penelope.

Once they were all ready to eat, he led them to the living room, and Jack carefully sat by the coffee table, letting the adults take the couch and lone free chair. It didn't surprise Aaron that his girlfriend and Erin huddled together as they ate, talking lowly. He assumed that Erin was telling Penelope about the things that she could expect along the way, and was grateful for that. He knew that experience could hold a lot more weight than what Penelope found on the internet.

As soon as they were finished eating, Dave helped Erin clean up and Aaron called Jack over to his side. "Now, you're old enough to know how to be good for Uncle Dave and Aunt Erin. I don't need to tell you that. What you do need to know is that when you get back, we'll need to talk about how we keep Penelope's life as stress free as possible."

"Okay. Does that include calling her Mom?"

They both looked at Jack, and Penelope reached out to rest her hand on Aaron's upper arm. "Why the sudden change of heart, Jackers?"

"Well, the baby should call you Mom, and if I call you Penelope, it will confuse them."

Quick tears brightened Penelope's eyes, and they clasped hands before she spoke once more. "That would be fine, Jack. Oh, I love you!" She opened her arms to the boy, and they hugged for a long time. Erin cleared her throat and they all looked up at her. "Yes, I suppose it is that time. Go, have fun with Aunt Erin and Uncle Dave. Kick butt at whatever game he decides to play."

"Will do, Mom." He kissed her cheek before kissing Aaron's and then grabbed his bag, following after Dave. Penelope awkwardly stood and hunched her shoulders a little. Erin sighed out a laugh and stepped forward, hugging Penelope tightly.

"You are such a silly goose, Penny. I love you, dearly."

"I know. And I'm counting on you to keep me sane for these next thirty weeks. I love you, too, Rin." They hugged once more before the woman followed her husband out the door. "Oh, Aaron, thank you for loving me, too," she whispered as she melted back against her lover.

"After everything we've been though, I would take this blindside chance at love any day. You're my sunshine, Penny." She turned in his arms, and he smiled before kissing her deeply. "And I am going to love you until the sun stops shining." She sighed and he kissed her once more, letting his arms come to rest around her waist.

"Well, that should take a very long time. Let's start by counting our days together," she said before kissing him for a third time. All he could do was nod his agreement, thinking her idea the best in the world.