Chapter 6

Sara was checked out by the paramedics and given the green light; she had slightly injured her ankle when she'd broken her shoe and except for some residual trembling, she was fine. Neal was also given the once over as Peter watched over the couple anxiously.

The Mexican Maniacs had been shackled up and driven away and an ambulance had taken away the unfortunate lone casualty. The loading dock was cordoned off and agents began the job of piecing together all the events before the case could be put to bed. Things slowly began to return to normal as guests were allowed back into the hotel and staff returned to their duties.

Neal and Sara made their way home, arriving just before dinnertime and taking a few minutes before heading over to pick up Hope at the Masons. The phone was ringing as they stepped into the house.

'Hello' said Sara, slightly breathless

'Sara, you're home! Are you okay?' said Donna Mason on the other end

'Yes, we're fine. We'll be over to get Hope in a few minutes, okay?'

'Never mind that. Hope is fine. I saw the news...' said her friend in a worried voice

'Oh, yeah, I guess it would be on the news' echoed Sara 'Hope doesn't know, does she?' she added suddenly worried that her daughter might be traumatized by hearing that both her parents had been held hostage in a Manhattan hotel.

'No, of course not. The kids are playing out in the yard. Look, you guys take it easy and I'll bring Hope home after dinner, okay' she offered

'Thanks Donna, that would be great. I could use a shower and a glass of wine' she answered as she spied Neal giving her a dirty look. 'Or at least a cup of tea'

Neal put the kettle on and insisted on drawing a bath for Sara before they had dinner. It had been a very angst filled day and although he was used to going undercover, Sara was most definitely not.

He sat on the toilet and chatted with her as she soaked in the tub, with Neal rubbing her feet.

'I don't know which one of us was more shocked when I walked into that room' he said with a smile

Sara laughed sardonically. 'Well, I have to say that if I had to be tied up with someone, I'm glad it was you'

'Ditto' added Neal

'You were amazing, Neal. I always knew you were great at your job but seeing you in action like that was really something. You stayed so calm the whole time'

'All subterfuge, ma'am' he responded 'I was shaking like a leaf thinking something could happen to you. I'll tell you something - I'm never gonna comment on your choice of shoes again' he added with a grin.

He suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to hold his wife in his arms and he reached down placing a gentle kiss on her lips.

'So - how much time do we have before Hope comes home?' he asked with a twinkle in his eye

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Hope arrived shortly after Neal and Sara had finished 'dinner' and Sara held her close as she welcomed her home. The thought that she could be separated from her daughter was overwhelming and she squeezed her so tight that Hope finally squirmed out of her grasp so she could go watch some TV before bedtime.

Neal and Sara put her to bed together, feeling the need to hold on to all that was good in their lives. On their way to bed, they stopped in to check on her once again and stood silently watching her sleep for a good five minutes before going to prepare for bed, themselves.

'Hi' said Sara, quietly as she stepped into the bedroom

Neal was lying in bed, staring at the ceiling, going over the events of the day, thankful that they were finally both safe and sound at home.

'I got my period' Sara said sadly as she made her way to the bed

'Aww, I'm sorry' said Neal as he sat up to take her in his arms

'It's shitty, I know' said Sara as she buried her face in his shoulder. He could feel her trembling slightly and he wasn't sure if it was from the news she had just shared or the after effects of the events of the afternoon.

'Are you okay?' asked Neal, concerned

'No. It's never okay. Neal, maybe we should stop trying; it's just too hard to go through this every month' Sara said as she looked up at him

'I'm sorry this is so tough on you. Maybe if we just relax and I stop pushing so hard' Neal conceded as he looked into Sara's eyes

Tears were welling up and although she didn't often let her emotions get the better of her, she was exhausted from her little adventure and she was upset so she let herself go and began to sob as she melted into Neal's arms.

'We have a beautiful little girl; we are so lucky' said Neal, trying his best to console her

'I know, I know...' sobbed Sara

'Come on' Neal whispered as he pulled her into bed and reached over to turn off the bedside lamp

'Let's not look at the calendar anymore. We'll just have sex whenever we feel like having sex... and I promise not to make you lie in bed for twenty minutes with your ankles hanging from the ceiling after each time' he said, trying to make Sara smile

'And... I won't bring up the subject until you do. Would that help?' he asked, holding her close

He could feel Sara nodding against his shoulder and start to relax.

It had been a hell of a day, with unexpected danger and excitement and Neal began to realize the enormity of what he held in his arms. Suddenly, all that mattered was that he was holding Sara against him, that she was out of harm's way and that Hope was safe in her bed a few feet away.

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Sara took a deep breath as she stepped into the Kent Hotel at eleven o'clock on Thursday morning. The place looked nothing like it had the day before – not a police car in sight and plenty of staff, busily going about their business.

She made her way to the Fountain Room as she gingerly walked past the Ballroom, glancing in and seeing the art collection all around the room. There were guards at all the doors as well as a few more milling around and she could see patrons walking around the room, admiring each other's treasures.

The Fountain Room looked gorgeous. Her instructions had been painfully precise and the hotel staff had done an excellent job of setting it up exactly as she'd asked. The tables were set beautifully with party favors in front of every place setting and tasteful decorations throughout the room. She made her way to the front, checking out the podium, making sure the microphone was in good working order and intercepting the staff responsible for catering to go over the details of the meal.

The luncheon went off without a hitch leaving everyone in a feel good mood as they exited, thanking Sara for her hard work. Mr. Bosch approached her on his way out, pleased at the outcome of the event.

'Excellent work as usual, Miss Ellis' he said as he walked past her, a small comment but large out of the mouth of her boss who didn't give compliments easily.

Sara smiled, pleased that she had managed to pull it off. The staff were happy and her bosses were happy, what more could she want...

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'Oh, my God, this is so graphic!' said Sara as she began thumbing through the book Neal had picked up for Hope

Neal was standing by the stove, stirring the spaghetti sauce and he looked over at his wife, eyebrows raised : 'Really Sara?' he said, deadpan 'How old are you?'

'I mean, are we really ready for her to see this … and know this?' she asked, eyes glued to the pages

'Sara, it's a book intended for 3 to 5 year olds, it's fine' said Neal, trying to reassure his frazzled wife

'Oh!' gasped Sara, turning another page and seeing the drawing of a couple engaged in sexual intercourse

'Seriously?' said Neal 'We can't let her go on with some half-baked notion that men pee inside their partners to get them pregnant'

'What?' she asked, shocked

'The other night... that's what started the whole thing. Olivia told Hope that daddies peed inside mommies to make babies' Neal said, tending to the pasta

'Oh my god! Why didn't you tell me?' Sara said, horrified

Neal glared at his wife once more. For a strong, secure, independent woman who had always taken charge of her sexuality and had no compunction about running the show in the bedroom when it suited her, she could be such a prude.

'Look, if she's old enough to ask, she's old enough to know the basics - ' said Neal

Suddenly a noise could be heard from the front of the house putting an abrupt end to their conversation.

'Is dinner almost ready?' Hope called as she made her way down the stairs

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'Daddy got you a new book, did you see?' Sara asked as Hope slipped into her pajamas

Hope glanced over on the bed where she could see the book laying there unopened. She had begun to recognize words and could read simple texts. Sara saw her squint as she tried to understand the title of the book.

'A book about babies?' she asked, seemingly confused

'Well, Daddy said you had some questions the other night about how babies are made so we thought you might like this book' answered Sara, feeling slightly nervous yet encouraged to be holding a book that held the answers to all the questions her daughter might possibly have.

Hope settled in and Sara opened the first page of the book revealing drawings of an anatomically correct naked man and naked woman. They began discussing the body parts, which Hope knew well – Sara and Neal, although by no means exhibitionists, had never been shy about nudity after a bath or shower and Hope had grown up knowing the proper names and functions of boys' and girls' body parts.

Sara would have been happy to just call it a day at that point and close the book only to re-open it when Hope hit her teens but her daughter had other ideas and she took the book from her mom's hands and turned the page, continuing to glance at the pictures and asking questions as she went.

'Does Daddy do this to you?' she asked, her eyes bright and fully interested as she glanced at the picture of the couple engaged in sex.

'Well, not… well, he doesn't do it TO me, honey. See, the mommy is smiling in the picture. It feels good when Daddy holds me in his arms and kisses me….'

'But the other night, you were making those noises. Did it hurt?' she asked, genuinely concerned

'No, of course not' said Sara not wanting to leave her daughter with the impression that Neal would ever do anything to hurt her

'It was a happy noise' she said rather awkwardly as Hope continued studying her face

It was one thing to talk about the mechanics of sex and its role in making babies but talking about her own sex life with Neal to her four year old just wasn't sitting well with her.

'You know that ice cream you had at Grandma June's – the one you really liked?' she asked, deciding on a different approach

'The fudge chocolate supreme with chocolate chips?' asked Hope, smiling as she remembered

'Yeah, well the other day when you were having it, you were making some moaning noises too: Mmm, mmm. Remember?' Sara said as she gave her daughter a gentle shove with her shoulder.

Hope just smiled.

Finally, Sara could see Hope's mind wandering and she hoped she wasn't going to ask for any more details about what she'd seen when she'd walked in on them a few nights before. But Hope had moved on, like every normal four year old whose mind is running on all pistons and she finally closed the book, looking up at her mom.

'Tomorrow night, could I have the dinosaur book?' Hope asked, finally tiring of the new acquisition and setting it aside.

Thank heavens for short attention spans, Sara thought as she gladly took the book from Hope and set it on the nearby bookcase.

'You can have any book you want' said Sara, hugging her daughter

La fin