Victoria Marshall entered the front door to her home to the sounds of laughter. A happy contented smile spread across her face.

"Momma!" Trace barreled down the long hallway and jumped up. Tori grabbed him in midair and braced against the little guy's weight. "Hey, buddy. Where's Daddy?"

Trace pointed toward the family room. "I'm hungry. When's dinner?"

Tori laughed at her little bottomless pit. "Soon. Didn't Daddy give you a snack?"

"I did, and he ate most of Tanner's too." Jacob swooped Trace out of her arms and tossed him into the air. Trace's shrieks of laughter echoed through the hallway, bringing three more boys to the door.

"Momma!"

Tori dropped down so she could be smothered in hugs.

Jacob gave them a few seconds before he sat Trace down. "Okay, Talon, Tanner, Trace and Tristan, clean up time, then dinner. That means put away the toys and wash your hands. Inspection in ten minutes!"

A chorus of disgruntled hemming and hawing followed the boys down the hall, but they went. Jacob watched them until they disappeared into the family room before he snagged Tori's waist and pulled her against him. "Welcome home." His lips descended on hers, and she sighed into his embrace. She shivered when his fingers skimmed the bottom of her silk shirt and lifted it, sliding his warm fingers along the waistband of her skirt. Jacob noticed and smiled into their kiss before he pulled away. "Somebody needs me."

Tori reached up and caressed his cheek while she stared into his beautiful green eyes. Those sinfully long lashes enthralled her just as much today as they had years ago. "I do. I'll always need you."

A shriek of laughter pulled them apart a few inches. Jacob glanced over his shoulder toward where his sons had gone. "That does not sound like cleaning up to me!"

Another bout of laughter echoed down the hall.

"They are terrified of you."

Jacob tried to hide the smile that tugged at his lips. "Damn straight. I'm the enforcer of the family."

"You're not. You're my fifth child." She winked at him as she headed down the hall. She stalled in the family room doorway and put her hands on her hips. Talon saw her and tapped Tanner, who tapped Trace. "Tristan, honey, the blocks go in the basket, not over your head. Boys, help him, don't encourage him.” Tristan twisted to look at her and smiled the exact smile Jacob used when he tried to appear innocent. "I'm watching you, mister." She pointed at him and then threw the room a kiss. The boys grabbed at the kiss and disintegrated into giggles again.

Jacob put his arms around her as they watched the boys make a light-hearted attempt at picking up the toys strewn around the room. He whispered in her ear, "Jade better have a good reason for pulling you away from family time. These moments are too damn rare."

Victoria leaned back into him. "It was a damn good reason."

"Wow, cursing within fifty feet of the kids. What did she need help with? I haven't seen any mission briefs from the Dom Ops side lately, been too busy working overseas leads on Stratus." He nuzzled her neck. The scratch of his five o'clock shadow sent another shiver through her.

Tori sighed, "I'm not at liberty to say."

Jacob straightened and turned her in his arms. The boys’ laughter from the family room surrounded them. "Is she okay?"

Tori nodded. "She'll be fine. She just needed help coming to grips with something. Something between her and Nic."

Jacob blinked at her, tossed a quick glance at the boys and then focused on her again with obvious interest. "No. Really? Her and Nic?"

Victoria held up a finger and narrowed her gaze to slits. "Jacob, I swore I wouldn't say a word to you. You cannot say anything. Period. If she finds out you guessed, she'll never trust me again.”

"When are they going to announce it?" Jacob flashed a glance at the boys. "Talon, help Tanner with that cubby, please."

"Okay, Daddy."

Jacob's eyes followed the boys for a moment before he dropped his attention to her again.

"I don't think they want anyone to know." Tori grabbed his arms and broke his hold on her waist but tugged him down the hall to the kitchen. The aroma of the roast she had waiting in the slow cooker hit her hard. It was mouthwatering. "Did you put the potatoes in the oven?"

"Roger that." Jacob grabbed a handful of almonds out of the bowl on the counter and popped a few into his mouth. "When is she due?"

Victoria dropped the spoon she was taking out of the drawer. "Due? Wait you think... Jade’s… pregnant?" Tori could not wrap her mind around that concept. Oh, that would be a major event with an 'all-hands-on-deck' call to every woman in the family, in-laws, outlaws, friends, relatives of friends. It would take a village to get Jade through a pregnancy and the first six months postpartum.

"Aunt Jade's having a baby?" Talon stood at the doorway.

"No, sweetie, I guarantee Aunt Jade isn't having a baby."

"That's what Dad said." Talon pointed at his father.

"That was an adult conversation, mister. I obviously got something messed up. There is a first time for everything."

Talon blinked at his father. "What did you get messed up?"

"Something your mommy told me. Now, are you done cleaning up?"

Jacob's diversionary tactics seemed to work because Talon nodded. "I need the step stool for Tristan."

Jacob nodded to the plastic step. "Make sure he uses soap. That goes for the rest of you, too."

Talon walked out of the kitchen and yelled over his shoulder, "We know… geesh, Dad."

Jacob's head snapped to Tori. He lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "She's not preggers?"

Tori glared at him. "Seriously, what are you? Twelve?"

Jacob waggled his eyebrows. "We both know I'm older than that. So, she's not?"

"Jade pregnant? That would be a no."

"Then what is going on between her and Nic?" He snapped his eyes toward the door before he hissed, "Fuck me, did they break up?" Jacob immediately dropped his head back and stared at the ceiling. "That is going to be a fucking mess."

Tori marched over to him and hit him in the chest.

"Ouch!" Jacob rubbed where she'd slapped him. "What did I do?"

Tori glanced at the doorway and angrily whispered, "I didn't tell you this, and you can't say a word. To anyone."

Jacob lifted his fingers in a Boy Scout salute. "On my honor."

Tori glared at him. "They're engaged. " He straightened, and she clapped her hand over his mouth to stop whatever he was going to say. "She wants to surprise your mom and have the wedding on Christmas Eve afternoon. Everyone will already be there. Jewell and I are helping her do that." Jacob's eyebrows reached toward the ceiling. She could read the emotion flashing across his face like it was written in red crayon. "You got yourself under control?"

Jacob nodded. Her hand rose up and down with his head.

"And you swear not to say a thing to another living soul."

Again, his head, with her hand still covering his mouth, went north and south.

"Promise me."

Jacob mumbled under her hand. "I promise."

Tori dropped her hand and smiled. "A heck of a Christmas surprise for Grandma, huh?"

Jacob laughed and pulled her into his embrace. "If Jade can pull this off, it may be the best Christmas gift ever."

"Well, if Jewell and I have anything to say about it, it will be amazing."

Jacob dropped a long, slow, wonderful kiss on her lips before he sighed, "Anything you do is amazing."

"You are only saying that so I'll do you." Tori bit her bottom lip and looked through her lashes at the man she adored. "Early bedtime tonight for the boys?"

"You read my mind." Jacob dropped his lips to hers.

"Are you done with whatever it is that you’re doing?" Zane looked over the top of the couch. "Didn't you want to watch this?" He pointed toward the television.

Jewell lifted her eyes to the screen and nodded. "Yeah, just give me like two more minutes." She was almost done. She'd taken her wedding planning software and copied it, shortening the timeline by seven months and deleted the majority of the 'fluff' that had made her and Zane's wedding an event they'd never forget. She entered the link for the dress store and typed in the color code. She needed to get on the site and order a dress, but that could wait until after she spent some quality time with her husband. Lately, having him home was a rare event. He spent so much time at the compound in South Dakota and the one they were building in Arizona that they tended to guard their alone time. Especially with everything that was happening.

"What are you working on?" Zane's voice from over her shoulder made her jump. His hands on her shoulders settled her, but her heart still pounded against her chest. "Where were you? Lost in thought?"

"Yep. I was down a rabbit hole, that’s for sure." She laughed and reached to minimize the screen.

"Wait, why are you in our wedding program?" Zane knelt down behind her chair and looked at the document on the screen. "Well, I'll be damned."

Jewell turned toward him. "You can't say a word. Jade asked Tori and me for help."

Zane swung his eyes from the document to her. "No problem, babe, but I think you need to change the date.”

Jewell glanced at the document. "No, I got it right."

Zane looked back at the sheet and grabbed her mouse. He highlighted the year. "Shouldn't that be next year?"

"If we were dealing with a normal woman, yes."

"Holy Fuck, no way."

"Yeah, way. Now you know why she called Tori and me in on a Saturday."

"Who else is helping?" Zane scrolled through the multitude of tasks that remained unfinished.

"Right now? No one. She wanted to do this as a surprise gift for Mom. When Tori and I started identifying some of the things she didn't think of, she kind of had a meltdown. She wants to talk to Nic before we go farther, but you know." She reached out and opened the file Jade had given her.

"You couldn't wait to make that mess functional and digital." Zane smiled at her.

"Bingo." She glanced at the tab that was open. "The ring he gave her was beautiful. I've never seen firestone opals on an engagement ring before."

"No diamond?"

"Oh, hell yes, there was a rock included. It was beautiful, but nowhere close to mine." She leaned over and kissed Zane. "I have the best husband in the world."

"I love you, too. Now, put this to bed. You're supposed to be resting today." Zane stood and used his big hands to rub her shoulders.

"Oh, gawd, that is faaabuuulous." Jewell let her head loll as Zane continued to minister wonderful pressure to her sore muscles.

"You promised to slow down." Zane dropped a kiss on the top of her head.

Jewell tipped her head back and gazed up at him. "I am. This is fun, and it is for family. The work stuff stays at work these days."

"Caffeine?" He lifted an eyebrow.

"Ha! I had three cups of coffee today. No energy drinks, no soda." She stuck her tongue out at him. He spun her chair around and reached down, scooping her out. She squealed and wrapped her legs and arms around him. He carried her to the couch and sat down. She moved so she was straddling his lap. "And yes, while you were gone, I've eaten breakfast, lunch and dinner, every day. Lunch and dinner had veggies and breakfast had fruit."

Zane pulled two pencils from her hair and tipped them into an ornate cup on the end table that he'd put there for that purpose. "Anubis has the helm at the ranch now. I still have the Arizona project, but unless shit goes downhill fast, I should be able to limit my trips out of town. Dixon and Drake were originally supposed to oversee the construction of the Shadow Facility in Arizona, but…”

Jewell snorted. "Yeah, that went to hell in a handbasket."

He made an affirmative sound, agreeing with her before his hands wandered up the inside of his massive hoodie. "I worry about you when I'm not here."

"Right back at you, darling." She reached up and traced a faint scar on his cheek. "Want you." She ground down against him, and he groaned. Zane tipped her to the side, and she shrieked out a laugh as he pounced on her. She grabbed him behind the neck and pulled him down. "Come here, tiger."