A/N: I've never really thought of my stories as the type that lend themselves to sequels, but I got such nice feedback on the Shepherds, and some really great suggestions for a sequel, so I figured I'd go for it. Plus, I really liked writing Addison, Derek, and Willa's family dynamic, so I'm happy to be picking that up again.

If you haven't read The Shepherds, you don't need to read it in order to understand this story (although, I would never discourage you from reading it). For those of you that have read The Shepherds, this story is set about two years after The Shepherds ends. Addison and Derek are the main couple in this story, but I also thought it would be fun to add in some Izzie/Alex and some Mark/Lexie. And, as I write this, I realize that all three couples, in this story, don't have a snowball's chance in hell on the show…how sad (both for my sake and the show's). Anyway, here's the first chapter; I hope you like it, and thanks so much for reading!

The Shepherds: The Life We've Made

Through the years, I've never been afraid.
I've loved the life we've made.
And I'm so glad I've stayed, right here with you
Through the years.

Addison got down on one knee, and opened a small box to reveal a stunning, square-cut diamond ring. "Will you marry me?" she asked.

"No, no, it's all wrong," Alex insisted, shaking his head firmly. "That's not the right ring."

"Alex, I've proposed to you eight times already," Addison sighed. "People are starting to stare."

"So let them stare," Alex shrugged. "This is important. I can't propose to Izzie with just any ring. It needs to be perfect."

"You know, I should have known something was up when you invited me out for lunch and shopping," Addison muttered.

"Hey, I treated you to lunch," Alex defended. "And we technically are shopping. What do think of that ring?" he asked, pointing to a princess-cut diamond ring in the glass display case.

"I like it," Addison nodded. "You won't. It's too similar to the third ring you looked at. And you didn't like that ring at all when I proposed to you with it."

Alex nodded in agreement. "I knew I made the right choice bringing you," he smirked.

"Oh, like there was really another option," Addison laughed. "Hey, what about that one?" she asked, suddenly growing serious, and pointing to an oval-cut diamond, surrounded by several smaller diamonds.

"I like it," Alex smiled.

"Would you like to see it?" the woman behind the counter asked.

"We would," Alex nodded, accepting the ring from the woman. He turned to Addison. "Here," he said, handing her the ring. "Propose to me."

Addison chuckled, and got down on one knee. "Will you marry me?"

A wide smile spread across Alex's face. "That's the ring," he declared. "That's definitely the one. Thank you, Addison," he grinned, pulling his friend into a hug.

"It's a beautiful ring," Addison complimented. "Izzie's going to love it."

"I think she will," Alex agreed.

"I can't believe you're getting married," Addison smiled.

"Me either," Alex admitted. "But, I don't know, this feels right."

Addison nodded. "You and Izzie are a great couple. It's right. So, have you thought about how you're going to pop the question?"

"Well, she kind of knows it's coming," Alex explained. "We've been talking about it a lot, so it's not like my proposal is going to be that surprising. I mean, she's already started looking at those Bride magazines."

"All women look at Bride magazines," Addison laughed.

"Yeah, but we've talked about it, and we've already started to make wedding plans, because we don't want to waste a lot of time with a long engagement."

Addison raised an eyebrow. "Any particular reason for that?" she asked coyly.

"What are you talking about?" Alex asked.

Addison shrugged innocently. "I don't know, it's just, usually when people plan a wedding quickly, there's a reason…like a baby on the way? So…"

"What? No!" Alex exclaimed.

"Hey, I was just asking. I wasn't judging," Addison insisted, putting her hands up in protest. "You know as well as I do that accidents happen all the time."

"Accidents?" Alex smirked. "Are you really going to use that word? I mean, I hate to point out the obvious, but Willa-"

"Was unplanned," Addison cut in quickly. "But not an accident." She looked Alex and chuckled. "Point well taken, though. So, no baby?"

"No baby," Alex confirmed, as he handed the woman behind the counter his credit card to pay for Izzie's ring.

Addison smiled as she watched Alex carefully put the ring in his pocket. "Come on," she told him, "I'm taking you out for a celebratory drink."

Alex grinned. "See, things like this are exactly why you're going to make an incredible best man."

Addison raised an eyebrow. "You want me to be your best man?" she asked in surprise.

"Why do you sound so shocked? You're the obvious choice."

"You have a brother," Addison pointed out.

"We don't get along," Alex shrugged. "And you're my best friend-"

"Now that's a sentence I never thought I'd hear come out of your mouth," Addison smirked.

"Me either," Alex agreed. "But you kind of are, so will you do it?"

"I'd be happy to," Addison smiled. "Come on," she chuckled. "Let's go get drinks. We have a lot to celebrate."

xxxxx

"Hello?" Addison called out, as she let herself and Alex into her house.

"We're in the playroom," Derek called back.

"Hey," Addison smiled, as she walked into the playroom to find Derek, Mark, and Willa sitting around Willa's play table, having a tea party.

"Nice hats, ladies," Alex smirked, gesturing to the matching large, floppy, straw hats that Derek and Mark were wearing.

"Willa's idea," Mark chuckled.

"Mommy!" Willa exclaimed, getting up from the tea party and running into Addison's outstretched arms.

Addison picked her daughter up and smiled. "Hey, Willa. Did you have a fun day with Daddy and Uncle Mark?"

Willa nodded, and Addison gave her daughter a kiss on the cheek, before putting her back down again. Willa immediately ran over to her collection of hats, in the corner of the playroom, and looked at them thoughtfully before selecting a navy blue floppy hat and a hunter green floppy hat. "Here," she said, handing Addison the navy hat and Alex the hunter one.

"Thank you, Willa," Alex laughed, as he placed the hat on his head, chuckling as Willa took him and Addison by the hand, and dragged them over to the tea party.

"Where did she get all of these floppy hats from?" Mark chuckled. "We all look ridiculous, by the way."

"Bizzy gave them to her," Addison laughed, as Willa climbed onto her lap.

"I knew they looked too expensive to be kids' dress-up hats," Mark mused.

"Don't most grandmothers just give their granddaughters dolls or toys?" Alex asked.

"Bizzy's not most grandmothers," Derek explained. "And Willa likes hats."

"She does like hats," Addison agreed.

Derek gave his wife a teasing smirk. "I mean, you're probably largely to blame for that. Remember all of those baby hats you bought for her when she was an infant?"

"Hey, you bought her first baby hat," Addison pointed out.

"Yeah," Derek nodded, smiling at the memory. "I guess I did."

Addison smiled as her daughter cuddled up against her. "I think you two wore her out today," she told Mark and Derek. She turned to Derek. "We should probably get her fed and bathed."

"Yeah," Derek agreed. He turned to Alex and Mark. "You guys are more than welcome to stay for dinner. We were just going to order in and have a few drinks. You should stay."

"Yeah, stay," Willa murmured tiredly.

Alex gave the little girl an apologetic smile. "I wish I could, but Izzie's shift is over in an hour, so I should get home."

"Yeah, I can't stay either," Mark said vaguely.

Addison smiled. "Who's the girl, Mark?"

"What?" Mark asked in surprise. "There's no girl. I just, I can't stay."

Addison raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. "Mark Sloan?"

Mark shrugged coyly. "I should probably go."

"Yeah, you don't want to be late for Whoever-she-is," Derek joked.

"Cute," Mark said dryly. "Anyway, I've gotta run," he said, standing up and taking off his floppy hat. He turned to his niece and smiled. "Thanks for tea, Willa. See you tomorrow."

"Bye," Willa smiled, blowing her uncle a kiss.

"And you're worried about me?" Mark smirked at Addison and Derek. "Your daughter's two-and-a-half years old, and she's already a flirt."

"Yeah, but she's harmless," Derek chuckled, as he watched Willa move out of Addison's lap to give Alex a hug and a kiss goodbye. "You, however," he said, pointing at Mark. "Well, you're not so harmless."

xxxxx

"You're late," Lexie accused flirtatiously, as Mark walked toward his apartment building to find her sitting outside of it.

"I'm sorry," Mark apologized. "I was with Derek and Addison, and I lost track of time."

"You didn't tell them about us, did you?" Lexie asked nervously.

Mark shook his head. "I didn't. But I want to. They're my friends. They could be your friends too."

"Oh, no. No, no, no. Derek and Addison and I could never be friends," Lexie insisted.

"Why not?" Mark asked in confusion. "They're nice people. You're incredible. I don't see-"

"I'm a Grey!" Lexie exclaimed.

"Yeah, and?"

"I'm a Grey," Lexie repeated slowly.

"I still don't see the problem."

Lexie sighed. "Look, my sister's not exactly Addison and Derek's biggest fan. If I became friends with them, I feel like I'd be cheating on Meredith. Plus, I can't imagine that Addison likes Meredith very much…she'll probably hate me by extension."

"You're worrying about nothing," Mark insisted. "Addison and Derek have moved past what happened with Meredith. They've been happily remarried for two years now."

"I don't know," Lexie shrugged, unconvinced.

"I'm telling you, Lex, you're making this out to be a bigger deal than it really is. Addison and Derek like you."

"Yeah, as a doctor," Lexie scoffed. "And that's just because the rest of my year isn't very good."

"They'll like you as a person too," Mark chuckled. "You just need to give them a chance."

"But what about Meredith?" Lexie asked.

"What about her?"

"I can't just strike up a friendship with her ex-boyfriend and his wife. That's…un-sisterly."

"Well, I guess I can't offer you much advice there," Mark admitted. "It's just, I like you, Lexie, and I think my friends would like you too. And it would be nice if I didn't have to hide you from them."

Lexie looked at her boyfriend intently. "This really means a lot to you, doesn't it?"

Mark nodded. "Yeah."

Lexie sighed. "I guess I might be able to try."

"Really?" Mark asked.

"Yeah," Lexie nodded. "But, uh, can we take things slow? You know, maybe I can become friends with Little Shepherd first…you know, before I take on a friendship with her parents."

"You want to be friends with Willa?" Mark asked in amusement.

"Well, not friends," Lexie clarified. "But it wouldn't hurt if she liked me."

"Okay," Mark nodded. "But Willa likes everyone."

"Good," Lexie smiled. "That's exactly what I'll need to get my confidence up."

xxxxx

"Hey," Addison smiled, as she walked out of the bathroom, into her and Derek's master bedroom to find Derek sitting on the bed, in his pajamas, with what looked like a blue piece of fabric in his hands. "What's in your hands?"

Derek smiled guiltily, and held up a small, pale blue, crocheted baby hat. "I found this earlier today. Do you remember it?"

A small smile spread across Addison's face. "Of course I remember it." Derek had brought that hat and a pale pink one to the ultrasound where they found out that Willa was a girl. He had given Addison the pale pink baby hat when they learned that they were having a daughter, but she had no idea what he had done with the blue one. "I didn't know you kept that," Addison said softly, as she sat down on the bed next to her husband.

Derek shrugged. "I thought we might need it one day," he said with a smile.

Addison looked at her husband intently. "Derek…what are you saying?"

Derek gave his wife a warm smile. "I want another baby."

"I, uh," Addison stammered.

"I think it would pretty perfect," Derek continued. "I mean, the plan was always to have two kids, right? And Willa would be such a good sister. And kids need family, Addie. So…"

"I, um," Addison stuttered, suddenly finding herself incapable of forming words.

"Addison," Derek prodded gently, sensing his wife's discomfort.

"I don't know," Addison admitted. "I know that when we talked about having a family, in the past, the plan was always two kids. But I don't know. Willa's amazing…she's better than amazing. And I think, I think she's enough for me."

Derek nodded. "I just, I thought it might be nice for Willa to have a friend...someone who's always in her corner…like you and Archer."

Addison smiled at Derek's mention of her older brother. "I can't imagine what it would have been like to grow up without him," she admitted. "We always had each other to hang out with at our parents' boring parties. And we used to cover for each other all the time when were teenagers. Oh, and then there were all those summers at the vineyard. You know," Addison began, "I still remember this one time when were riding our bikes at the vineyard, and I flipped over the handlebars of my bike, and my face was all scraped up, and I was scared and crying. And Archie…he picked me up, and told me that it was going to be okay. And then he carried me the half mile back home."

"Are you sure you're talking about the same Archer I know?" Derek teased.

"Oh, shut it," Addison chuckled, playfully hitting Derek's bicep. She paused for a moment, and grew serious. "It's not that I don't want that for Willa…I just, I kind of like our family the way it is."

"I like our family the way it is too," Derek agreed. "And I'm not telling you that I want another baby to pressure you into having one, because I'm not. I want you to know that I'm perfectly happy with you, me, and Willa. I just, I wanted to put all the cards on the table."

"So, you wouldn't resent me if I said I didn't want another baby?" Addison asked hesitantly.

Derek shook his head. "I wouldn't resent you. And you don't feel like I'm pressuring you to have another baby?" he asked.

Addison shook her head. "I don't."

Derek smiled. "Good."

"I'm not saying no," Addison said quickly. "I mean, you're right, it would be nice for Willa to have a friend. I just, I need some more time to think about it."

"Yeah," Derek nodded. "I get that," he said. "It's not something we need to decide tonight."

"Right," Addison smiled, leaning in and kissing her husband softly. "Anyway, we should probably get to sleep. It's late, and we both have to be up early tomorrow."

Derek nodded in agreement, as he and Addison pulled the covers down and climbed into bed. He immediately wrapped his arms around her, as she moved to rest her head on his chest.

"Night, Derek."

"Night, Addie," he smiled, kissing her gently.

Addison was almost asleep, when she felt a slight tug at her arm. She rolled over tiredly, and saw Willa trying to climb into her bed. "Hey, Willa," she whispered, being careful not to wake Derek up, as she gently lifted her daughter up onto the bed. "Are you okay?"

Willa nodded.

"No bad dreams?" Addison asked.

Willa shook her head.

"Are you sick? Does something hurt?"

"No."

"Then why aren't you in your bed?" Addison asked.

"I missed you," Willa said quietly, as she cuddled up against her mother.

And even though Addison knew that she really should be encouraging her daughter to sleep in her toddler bed, a part of her couldn't bring herself to make Willa go back to her room. "I missed you too," Addison smiled, gently pressing a kiss to her daughter's forehead.

Willa quickly fell asleep and, as she watched her daughter, Addison couldn't help thinking about how much Willa had changed her life; she couldn't imagine her life without Willa. And, as she continued to watch her daughter sleep, Addison thought about her conversation with Derek. She had meant it when she told Derek that Willa was enough for her, but as the conversation went on, she felt herself wavering a little. She wanted Willa to have what she and Archer had growing up. She wanted her daughter to have a partner in crime. She wasn't worried about Willa adjusting to a new sibling, and she certainly wasn't worried about Derek as a father of two; she was worried about herself. Would she be a good mother to two children? Did she want to be a mother of two?

She watched as Willa stirred in her sleep, and gently stroked the little girl's back until she settled down again. And Addison didn't know if it was the peaceful look on her daughter's face as she slept, or if it was reminiscing over her own memories with her brother, or if it was Derek's eagerness to have another baby, or a combination off all three, but suddenly the idea of having another child didn't seem like a bad one.

"Hey, Derek," she whispered, gently nudging her husband. "Derek."

Derek rubbed his eyes tiredly. "Addison?" he mumbled sleepily.

"Derek," Addison whispered, being careful not to wake their sleeping daughter. "I've been thinking about it, and I-I want what you want."

"Sleep?" Derek asked tiredly. "That's all I want right now."

"No," Addison insisted, nudging her husband a little harder. "I want another baby. I want Willa to have a sibling. I've been thinking about it, and I want that."

"Really?" Derek asked in surprise, sitting up in bed. "Are you sure? Are you sure you're not just overtired? Because I meant it when I said that we don't have to decide on anything tonight."

"I'm sure, Derek," Addison said, meeting his eyes. "I want a baby."

Derek gave his wife a warm smile before leaning in and kissing her softly. "I want that too. So," he began suggestively, "I know we have to get up early tomorrow, but I'm suddenly wide awake. What do you say we get a jump start-"

"Absolutely not," Addison cut in.

Derek looked at his wife in surprise.

"Willa's in our bed," Addison explained, moving over slightly so that Derek could get a glimpse of their sleeping daughter.

"Oh," Derek stammered uncomfortably. "In that case, forget I said anything. Forget I even suggested it."

"Rain check?" Addison offered with a chuckle.

A wide smile spread across Derek's face. "Definitely."