I won't make you wait with a long author's note. Thanks for coming back and without further ado, Chapter 17: Letting the Sparks Fly!

The news of the stolen samples lingered in the backs of both Owen and Claire's mind the rest of the day. Neither could find time out of their day to do much, once the news broke, the media seemed to inundate their emails and phone with requests for interviews.

The research staff on the island also were abuzz with the news.

Owen's happy mood soured with the barrage of questions from the scientific community asking about his thoughts on the potential of the concept of weaponized dinosaurs. He wanted nothing to do with the topic, and thought that his prior statements sufficed with answering people's questions.

Apparently not. He tried to keep his cool; Claire had been clear about keeping a tight lip on their opinions and experiences. The world may have seen the video of their Raptor field test, but they didn't need to know all the details.

Somehow he found his opportunity to escape the mass of professional dinosaur aficionados. When he returned to the site of his remodeled and expanded bungalow- well, it looked more like a house now- the setting sun began to slowly color the sky. The metal trailer- gone, moved up closer to the Raptor compound so if he ever needed to spend the night, he could and in its steed came a proper frame for a house. His old trailer now functioned as his very own man cave, or as close to one as he would get.

The deck of the main wooden structure remained, and more rooms added on to give Claire some of her necessary spaces- like a home office, a larger kitchen, expanded bathroom and he even built a place where all his lab equipment found a more solid home. It was a good upgrade that remained faithful to the original reason for having a home located further from the park center - the peace, the ease and the freedom.

The planning and building process blended their needs and tastes- in some ways, the surprise of their compromises and similar ideas brought them closer. Their home created a mix of her modern and his appreciation of simplicity and nature. Most would think the two clashed something awful, but in their own way – much like the two people who had the place their home- it worked.

Owen found the house empty- marking him as the first to arrive home. Sadly the trend over the last few evenings would become the norm more and more often as the park grew. Claire, while more relaxed, still had her workaholic tendencies. He too could be that way, remembering long sleepless nights at the Raptor compound when one of his girls was sick or injured. He respected Claire and her need to do her best, even if he missed her.

Making a simple meal that could easily be reheated, he noticed that the sun was still working on departing the sky, the last of its rays stretching their last on the horizon. Taking a glass of tequila with him, he walked out of the house and down the deck towards the dock. An over-sized chair sat in the center of the personal wooden pier, waiting for him.

Sitting back in the chair, he let his mind clear, enjoying the sunset.

It wasn't too much longer when he heard the sound of a vehicle approach. Her high heels tapped on the wood as the woman he wanted to see walked towards the place where he rested.

"Long day at the office?" Owen asked as she bent down and crossed her arms around his neck. Nuzzling her nose into the crook of his shoulder, Claire felt relieved to be home. "Come here." His invitation to sit with him finally registered in her weary mind and she moved to sit on his lap without a second thought.

The two didn't speak for a time, content to be close and watch the sun complete its nightly ritual.

"I figure it is pointless to worry too much about Dr. Wu and whatever he got mixed up in." Claire broke the silence.

Owen nodded his head in agreement letting his lips rest on her clothed shoulder- the soft scent she always carried wafting into his nose. Besides shoring up their own online security and adding more restrictions to the vital information, there really wasn't anything they could proactively do.

"It will take several years for whoever to actually do anything with those samples." She continued to voice out her thoughts. "If they even have the facilities, personnel, and money to work with them. I have Lowery working on adding to our security and going over a list o known places Wu might have stored more of his remaining research."

"Looks like you've got a good handle on the situation, Ms. Park Manager," Owen replied, knowing that she would have a plan forming or already in place. This was Claire after all.

"We can't do much else," She admitted. "And I don't think it would be worth getting too much in a frantic tizzy."

"Plus, if someone does try it, they will soon find out that the likelihood of it actually working for a sustainable program is quite small. I mean, I doubt Blue and Delta would follow a command when I'm not there. So the trainer is the key really. And the bond with the animals... I can't imagine anyone who raises a creature from birth could send it off to its death."

"Let's hope you're right, Mr. expert Dino Trainer."

"Well, I might not be right as often as my beautiful girlfriend, but I have my moments." His lips moved to press lightly against her scalp.

"That you do." Her voice sounded sleepy, resting against him on their chair. "Before I forget, how do you feel about the boys coming to stay for a while next month?"

Owen sat silently for a moment, a bit surprised to hear that Claire's nephews wanted to return to the island.

"I'd say it was a good thing you requested we build those extra rooms." He laughed.

"Karen is going on a cruise or something, and the boys don't really like their dad's new live-in girlfriend. She didn't officially ask yet, but I wanted to run it by you first."

"I'm okay with kids, just as long as we make sure Zach doesn't go off roading with the gyrosphere this time. Maybe we should get those kid leashes or something." He paused for a moment, smiling at the thought of Claire keeping a kid from running off with one of those. "Are they sure they want to come back here?"

"Karen said they've recently asked to come back or when we're heading to the US next. They practically worship you. And since we don't appear to have much of vacation coming up soon..."

"I'm glad it sounds like they're doing better. I've emailed Gray quite a bit; school seems to be getting better. Sounds like your sister used some of the government funds to get him into a science-focused school."

"Yeah, she ever would have been able to do that without your help." Claire smiled as he gave her a gentle squeeze.

"What can I say, when I extort the government, I've can be ruthless." A chuckle rumbled in his chest. "Should have also asked for a nice lump for ourselves too. We could have added a second floor to the place or expanded the Raptor pen even more."

"You got an expansion on the pen. And I don't think we really need a 5 bedroom, 2 office home." Claire moved her hands to cover his that rested on her chest.

"Not really, but you never know."

"Kind of on that topic…" She began but stopped.

"What topic?"

"Expansions." Her slightly annoyed tone also sounded a bit anxious to Owen.

"Of the Raptor compound? Oh, that's nearly complete. Blue and Delta have a much larger paddock now, but not as large as I would have liked."

"That's good news; but not the topic I really wanted to discuss."

"Fine, fine," He knew she was trying to broach a topic, one that seemed to be weighing heavy on her. And it was not the Dr. Wu topic. Claire's normal closed mouth, internal processing appeared slightly increased in the last week or so. He had his suspicions, but he didn't want to push her too hard. She would eventually share the news when she had things confirmed. "You were saying?"

"Well, the reason I didn't get to sneak away from work today for lunch wasn't due solely to the news story."

He wanted to interrupt and tease her a bit, but Owen kept his mouth shut, letting her spit it out.

"I met with the island doctor about a week ago and we finally got some new results in." She stopped and took a deep breath before turning in the chair so she could see his eyes.

"And I'm pregnant." She blurted out.

Owen smiled. He had a feeling on what could be happening. Ever since the first week of their relationship, the pair took steps to make sure they didn't have any surprises. And Claire had been on the pill for years, except when things got so mixed up during the construction and pretty much everything got lost in the clutter... neither figured that they would win the baby lottery for those few nights when they continued their nocturnal activities.

Taking his hand, he ran it along her cheek tenderly, looking into her eyes.

"How do you feel about this?" He asked her.

"Me?"

"Well, yes. You're the one going to be dealing with the majority of the work for the next eight months or so." He elaborated. "I mean, if I could, I'd do more… but biology knew us menfolk were not good with pain tolerance."

Claire laughed at the situation. She tried to rehearse how this would all go about; however, living with Owen for a time, she kicked herself for not factoring in how he twisted even her most planned out scenario. Resting her forehead on his, she closed her eyes.

"I mean, I want this for us. But I want you to know if you aren't ready for this or don't want to try and balance the insanity… I'd understand."

"Isn't this conversation going all backward? Aren't I the one to be asking you that?"

"This is the 21st century my dear and I'm just that progressive." He kissed her lips, stopping her retort; she had one, he knew it. "So, we going to make a go of this? A happy little family of three?"

"I guess it sounds like we're both all in for this crazy little addition." She returned another kiss, a feeling of joy washing over her.

"So, you want to celebrate?" He raised his eyebrows a few times, insinuating the only way that this night could improve.

"You are such a simple man." She snickered as he suddenly picked her up and spun her around in his arms.

"Simple, but happy." The reply was full of happiness as he began the short trek towards their bedroom.

Later that night, as the couple cuddled in their post-coital glow, Owen's hands gravitated around her flat abdomen. All that he gained in such a short time, truly amazed him at times..

A year ago he would have never thought about the concept of starting a family. He was pretty sure Claire figured the same.

Looking over towards the bedside table that held his stuff, he felt emboldened to do something he needed and wanted to do for some time. It had been on one of their last trips to the U.S. mainland that he made a special stop to collect his things from his storage unit in California. It made sense to clean that out and bring things to Isla Nublar. Putting down permanent roots entailed dealing with odds and ends elsewhere.

The contents of the drawer, hidden in the way back, under some papers he knew a black box sat.

His intentions were to ask her to marry him shortly after the construction of this house ended. The timing never seemed to work or it just wasn't 'the' moment.

However, now felt right. They were together, connected by much, much more than a very active sex life or amusement in each other's personalities… their bond now took on a new physical form. And soon that physical form would cause them headaches and havoc, but that would be good for them.

His lips placed a chaste kiss on her lower stomach before moving to his knees and reaching over to the drawer.

Claire dozed lightly feeling exhausted from much more than just her day at work. It was unfortunate that they couldn't call in sick the following day, she felt as if she could stay in bed for a prolonged time.

Feeling the mattress shift slightly at his movements, she wondered what Owen was up to. Slightly opening one eye, she saw him digging through his clutter drawer. What he was looking for was beyond her and soon she decided to close her eye once more.

The pleasant tingle that still held on to her mind and body lulled her to sleep.

When his warm body finally returned to her side, she rolled into his shoulder- her favorite pillow. Instead of him falling asleep or soothingly touching her bare skin, he poked her instead.

"What?" she groaned, wanting to just fall asleep.

"I think you might want to wake up for this babe." He coaxed, kissing the side of her cheek that wasn't buried in his shoulder.

"Can it wait?" She asked, not really knowing exactly that he wanted to show her. With the man she had chosen to live, the possibilities of what he wanted to show her were endless.

"I suppose it can, but I've already waited a bit too long as it is." The smile on his face caught her gaze as she rolled on her back and opened her eyes. He looked like a giddy school boy or someone with a secret they were bursting to tell.

"So, just so you know, I've had this for quite some time. It's not like I feel forced to do this or anything… and I kind of don't want to do this all shotgun style, but… Claire," He stopped his words and held out the little box.

"You can't be serious." Her words stopped him cold in his tracks.

"But I thought you and me…"

"Oh, sweetie, not that- Yes, I love you, but in the buff?" She shook her head and scooted up against the headboard of their bed. Her arms went around his neck and she pulled him in for a kiss. "Of course I'll marry you stupid. It's just that a proposal in the nude isn't the kind of story one can tell to others easily."

Owen smiled before kissing her back. She had said yes.

"I don't know, it just felt right. You got to tell your secret, now I got to tell mine." Opening the box, the bright diamond sparkled in the moonlight from their open window.

"I expect a work and family friendly proposal to come in the next few days so I can actually tell people about it without blushing something awful… and I get final say in the wedding plans." She mumbled envisioning him tying the rings to Blue's back and training her to walk down the aisle or something as idiotic.

Owen smiled as he took the ring out of the box and placed it on her finger.

"I promise to let you have all the fun in planning that event."

"I'd say." Claire took a moment to look at the ring on her finger. It was an odd sensation. Rings typically had little appeal to her, but this one, she didn't mind wearing it. Before she could say anything more, Owen was on her, gently easing her back down onto their mattress.

Their lips and tongues battled with a fury renewed by two life-changing and magical things they had shared. Both allowed the clouds of potential future events pass them by as the sparks of love and a shared future flared to life once more.

And that dear reader is the end of this tale. As I mentioned, if the plot bunnies converge against me again, there might be a sequel in the future. I hope you enjoyed the ride and didn't mind the spelling issues and creative use of grammar (of which I tried to catch). The steamy bits were fun to write, and the characters, even more amusing to command. Thank you for your patience with some longer update times than anticipated and for the reviewers- I enjoyed your reactions to the randomness!

Until next time!