Author: Andrea

Title: There's a Way (unfinished)

Rating: NC-17

Category: MSR, Scully POV

Disclaimer: I wish...then there would be no ninth season,
never mind a semi-Mulderless eighth.

Archiving: I'd be honoured, but I'd also like to know.

Notes: Thanks go out to Dan, Aly, Angela and Denise for beta
reading. I'd also like to thank Lavinia and Gayle for
their support and encouragement.

Spoilers: through season six.


***********************************

The Wednesday morning after Mulder and I officially became legal
guardians to Jordan and Megan, I received an unexpected phone call.
It was 9:30 in the morning and Mulder always called around 11. My
mother usually waited until the afternoon to call knowing the kids
would be asleep and I'd have time to talk. My heart began to race
immediately, fearing either something was wrong or that Lisa's
parents had decided to make trouble for us after all.

"Mrs. Prescott?" a female voice asked when I answered the phone.

"This is Dana Scully, may I ask who's calling?"

"I'm sorry, I must have dialed the wrong number," she apologized.

"No, this is the Prescott residence," I assured her quickly.

"Oh," she paused briefly. "This is Mrs. Bothwell from the Fairfax 
Academy."

"Fairfax Academy?" I was confused.

"Yes, Lisa Prescott enrolled her son Jordan in our preschool program 
last spring. He was supposed to begin on the 11th."

"I had no idea. I'm Jordan's legal guardian," I explained.

"Legal guardian?" Mrs. Bothwell's voice rose in surprise.

"Yes," I paused. There was never a good way to break this
news, so I decided to be blunt. "Chris and Lisa Prescott were killed
in a car accident last June."

"Oh, my...I'm so sorry," she stuttered.

"That's all right, you had no way of knowing." I didn't
want to dwell on the subject, so I ploughed ahead. "If Lisa enrolled
Jordan in preschool, I think he should go."

"Do you not want him to?" Mrs. Bothwell sounded concerned.

"I honestly hadn't even thought about it," I assured her. "I'd like 
to discuss it with my husband, but I'm sure he'll want to respect the
Prescotts' wishes as well."

"Since you are now legal guardians, you and Mr. Scully will
have to come down and fill out some paperwork."

"My husband's  is Fox Mulder and just name a time -- we'll be there."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have assumed," she apologized again.

After assuring her it was quite all right, we agreed that I should 
take a couple of days to prepare Jordan and on Monday, September
18th, he would start school. Mrs. Bothwell told me there was no rush 
for the paperwork, and if Mulder was free on the 18th, we could fill 
everything out then.


When Mulder called at 11, I told him about the call. He agreed 
immediately that if Chris and Lisa had wanted Jordan to attend, 
then we should honor their wishes.

"And how do you feel about it?" Mulder could read me like a book, 
even over the phone.

"I don't know," I sighed. "At first I thought he wasn't ready, 
but then I began to wonder if it was actually me that wasn't ready."

"I think it will take some adjusting for everyone, Scully, but I 
think it's a good idea for Jordan to get some socialization."

"I know," I heaved another sigh.

"Give it some time, see how Jordan adjusts. If it's not working, 
we can always pull him out," Mulder's tone was gentle. "What does 
Jordan think?"

"I haven't mentioned it to him yet. I was waiting until I talked to
you. I'll talk to him at lunch time."

I decided to make Jordan's favorite, grilled cheese sandwiches, 
in case he didn't take to the idea very well. I'm not sure who I 
thought the food would calm down more, him or me. For Megan I 
cooked some peas. She loved to eat them by picking them up one 
at a time with her chubby little fingers. For the main part of 
her meal, I heated up some chicken soup. Originally I'd thought 
soups and stews would be too difficult to make, but after spending 
about 15 minutes on the internet I'd discovered it was really very 
easy. Since then I'd made all of Megan's food myself. Soup was the 
kind of food I was *allowed* to feed to her. If I tried to give her 
the peas, she would turn her face away, her little mouth firmly 
shut.

While Megan was happily feeding herself, I broached the subject of 
school with Jordan.

"Do you remember going to visit a school?"

He furrowed his brow thoughtfully while he chewed.

"Yes, my mom said I would be going there in the fall. Is it fall?" He
was very matter of fact.

I'd been worried that discussing it with Jordan would bring up some
bad memories, but he seemed unconcerned.

"Yes, it is," I smiled.

"Do I start today?" his eyes lit up.

"No, not today," I laughed. "Not until Monday. Tomorrow we should go
and get you some new clothes and a backpack."

"And a lunch pail?" he added eagerly.

"You won't be staying for lunch, Jordan. You'll only be going for the
morning," I explained.

"Okay," he shrugged and took another bite of his
sandwich. He was obviously more comfortable with the whole idea than
I was.

While we were talking Megan had been busy with her peas. When
she finished them she began to coo to herself. I had just finished
talking to Jordan when I heard a distinctive 'maa' from her. When I
turned to look at her, she was holding her plastic dish upside
down.

"Finished are you?" I chuckled as I reached for her soup.

Jordan was still calling us Mulder and Dana, but whenever we
talked to Megan we called ourselves mommy and daddy. Megan tended to
babble a lot, but I couldn't help wondering if she'd purposely tried
to get my attention.

Once the lunch dishes were done and both kids were down for their 
naps, I went to the study to do some work. When Mulder had first 
gone back to work, the reams of paperwork had quickly gotten the 
better of him. I'd always done the majority of it and to top it 
off, he was having to do more of the legwork in the investigations. 
When he told me he was going to have to start working at night and 
on the weekends to catch up and then keep up, I'd quickly offered 
to help. I'd put in two full days one weekend to catch him up and 
by putting in a couple of hours every afternoon, and a couple on 
the weekend, I was able to keep up with the load.

Since our marriage, Mulder had only gone out of town twice. The first
case had only been overnight, so that hadn't been too bad. But the 
second had been three nights. Even though we talked every night, I
was beside myself with loneliness. Megan and Jordan had kept me 
very busy during the day, but once they were in bed, the house seemed
huge and empty. I couldn't figure out how my mother had survived 
months at a time; after two days I was ready to pack up the kids and 
fly out to Nevada to be with Mulder.

"Don't do all of your work during the day," my mother had suggested 
when I'd called to moan. "I always did the laundry at night. And 
contrary to what you kids thought, you weren't wearing handmade
sweaters due a lack of funds -- I had to do something to keep myself 
busy."

I'd felt a little less sorry for myself after talking to my mother, 
but not much. When Mulder came home late in the evening on the fourth
day, he'd tackled me in the foyer. The first words we'd spoken were
each other's names as we'd made love up against the archway that led 
into the livingroom.

"Welcome home," I'd chuckled breathlessly, my body still quivering
From my tremendous orgasm.

"Mmm," he'd breathed as he nuzzled my neck. "Have a mentioned how
happy I am that the kids are sound sleepers?"

"I seem to remember you telling me that at least one other time," I'd
grinned.

"I have a vague recollection," he'd tried to keep his voice serious.

"You just want me to remind you later," I'd accused.

"Would I be that transparent?"

The loudest we'd ever been when having sex was the first time I'd
given Mulder a blowjob. He'd bellowed my name so loud when he 
came, I'd been half expecting the neighbors to call the police on us.

The kids, however, had slept peacefully through Mulder's 
vocalization.

"Yeah, you would," I'd affirmed while exploring the underside of his
jaw with my lips.

"Does that mean you won't remind me later?"

"I didn't say that," I'd lowered my voice.

"Wow," he'd drawn in a shaky breath. "I like this coming home thing,
But even though the sex was fantastic, I don't ever want to be away 
from you this long again."

"Everyone was impressed with how quickly you solved this case,
Mulder. Skinner called to tell me." My legs were still wrapped 
around his waist.

"Incentive," he'd waggled his eyebrows at me. "And it wasn't
an X-File. There was nothing unusual about this serial killer, except
for his brutality. It was actually you who helped me put all the
pieces together, Scully -- after you looked at the autopsy reports. I
don't understand why no one else saw it."

"I had some incentive of my own," I'd confessed as I nibbled on 
his neck. "I think the coroner was daunted by the condition of 
the bodies. It took fresh eyes to see the killer was making his 
true intent with all of that post-mortem brutality."

"Once you told me the ring finger had been removed
pre-mortem, it all fell into place. All of that carnage because of
infidelity," he'd shaken his head.

"I think it went deeper than that, Mulder," I'd contradicted. "This
man must have had a long history of being hurt by women. His
 wife's affair was just the last straw. Didn't the fact that he was
one of the team throw you off?"

"It helped actually. He'd been asking me a lot of questions
about our marriage and if I trusted you to be by yourself."

"So the ring finger was the last piece of the puzzle," I'd nodded. 
"Did you find why it escalated beyond his wife?"

"It had become almost like a crusade to him. At first it was women 
he knew were being unfaithful, then he only had to suspect and he 
suspected pretty much every woman," Mulder had explained as he set me
down.

That had been two weeks ago and Mulder was still receiving pats on
the back. VICAP was trying to woo him, but Mulder still preferred to
investigate the cases everyone else discarded. I was beginning to 
wonder if VICAP was pretending their cases had paranormal leanings 
just to get Mulder's help, but I kept that thought to myself.

My cue to wrap up my work was Megan's voice on the monitor. Once the
kids had their afternoon snack, I had an hour or so to play with them
before Mulder got home. Megan was always the first to hear the car
pull into the driveway; laughing and clapping her hands. The kids
knew that I always got the first kiss, but then Mulder was all 
theirs.

Regardless of what had happened at work, Mulder always left it at the
door. While they played, I would get supper. Initially I worried that
the wrestling matches were too much for Megan, but she was feisty 
and held her own. She'd invited herself into the rough play. At first
she'd just watched and laughed as Mulder and Jordan wrestled, but 
then one day she'd crawled into the breech and smacked Mulder on the 
head with her rattle. His reaction of "Hey!" had only made her laugh 
uproariously.

Jordan understood that he had to be gentle with Megan,
even if she was a little rough. After she'd brought him to tears once
by hitting him on the head with a toy, she'd never done it again.
Seemingly, she'd learned quickly what was acceptable and what wasn't.
She was never rough with me and only played that way in the hour
before dinner.

I'd been afraid that she might play rough with other
kids at the park, but she'd always been as gentle as a lamb. In fact,
one day she'd been playing with another little girl nicely at the
beach when the little girl had decided to swat Megan over her head
with her shovel. Megan hadn't cried or retaliated, she'd just looked
up at me with a very puzzled look on her face. It was almost as if
she'd been saying, "Doesn't she know it isn't rough play
time?"

Megan, however, had become quite concerned when the little
girl had her hands slapped by her mother. When the little girl began
to cry, Megan had looked up at me in horror, tears welling up in her
own eyes.

Now that Megan was crawling and pulling herself up, I'd
occasionally had to speak to her sternly about touching things. She
would obey me immediately, but more often than not she would try the
same thing with Mulder, to see what his reaction would be. She would
watch him intently and as soon as his eyebrows shot up, she would
stop what she was doing, grin at him and then move on to something
she knew she was allowed to touch.

Jordan was a breeze to discipline. He couldn't stand the idea of
either Mulder or me being angry with him. Once I'd had to speak with
him about not coming in from the backyard when he was called. He'd 
broken down into tears and had been exceptionally well-behaved for 
the rest of the day, continually looking for my approval. I'd had a 
sneaking suspicion about what had been bothering him, so when I 
tucked him in that night I assured him that no matter what happened, 
Mulder and I were staying.

"But you could get...hurt in a car accident, too," his bottom lip
began to quiver.

"That's true, Jordan, but we would never choose to leave, and neither
did your parents. I don't want you to think that I might leave
because I'm angry with you. And you must never think that you had 
anything to do with what happened to your parents." The tears that 
had been gathering in his eyes began to spill onto his cheeks.

"I was mad at them for leaving me with a babysitter," his little
voice had trembled as he spoke.

I'd gathered him into my arms quickly, assuring him that most kids
didn't like being left with a sitter and his behavior had nothing to 
do with what had happened.

After that Jordan was still extremely well-behaved, and I'd worried
that Mulder and I might need some help in dealing with his fears.
 I'd finally decided to ask my mother what she thought.

"You were always eager to please, too, Dana, and you seemed to turn
Out okay," she'd chuckled.

"Some of the things I did when I was teenager might surprise you,"
I'd contradicted.

"What? Like stealing my cigarettes?" Amusement was evident in her
voice.

"You knew about that?" I was astonished.

"I'm not stupid, dear. I knew how many cigarettes I'd smoked."

"Then why didn't you say anything?"

"You were growing up, spreading your wings. I trusted you
to make the right decision about smoking and you did. If I'd jumped
all over you, you might have kept smoking just to spite me."

"I had no idea," I'd shook my head in wonder.

"Melissa was an entirely different story," she'd sighed. "You two
were like night and day."

"I'm already seeing that with Jordan and Megan."

After talking with my mother, I'd decided that Jordan was only going
through a reasonable stage in his grief and I should give him some
more time.

I'd been making supper while I'd been thinking about my fears. I
Realized that considering how parenthood had been thrust upon us, 
Mulder and I were handling things fairly well.

Over supper, Jordan told Mulder about school and how we were planning
to do some shopping the following morning.

"So you're looking forward to going to school?" Mulder smiled.

"Yes," Jordan nodded solemnly. "Will I get to go on a school bus?"

"Not this year, Jordan," I tried to smile. "I'll be taking you."

"Maybe in a couple of years," Mulder promised. "And then a few years
after that you can take the car."

The way Jordan's face lit up at Mulder's joke made us both
laugh, and after that I was much more relaxed. I loved that Mulder
knew instinctively when to make me smile. Clean-up after supper was
quick, thanks to the dishwasher, and the evening passed quickly. By
8:30 both of the kids were sound asleep.

This part of the day was the only time Mulder and I had to ourselves
and we guarded it jealously. I missed the conversations we'd had at 
the office, so I always looked forward to 'our time'.

"Anything new at work?" I almost always asked.

"Well," Mulder answered hesitatingly.

That was not his usual response, so my curiosity was piqued. I was
leaning on him, my head on his shoulder, his arm around me. I lifted 
my head up to look at him, waiting for him to explain.

"Something has been going on for about a week."

"A week, and you're just telling me now?"

"I was hoping nothing would come of it. I fought tooth and nail, but
to no avail," he sighed.

"What?" I couldn't decide if I was mad at him for holding out on me
or dying to know what was going on.

"They've assigned someone else to the X-Files."

"They've what? Who? Why? Where does that leave me?" I straightened up
in shock.

"You aren't being replaced, Scully," Mulder assured me gently,
pulling back against him. "That was never the intent. It's only a
temporary assignment, but I've thought the X-Files were *ours*for a 
long time. Anyone else working on them is nothing more than an 
interloper."

Mulder and I rarely spoke of the time that we'd been taken off of the
X-Files. Despite everything we'd been through we both thought of it
as our darkest hour.

"Why did they decide you needed help all of a sudden?"

"In case I have to go out of town. Skinner pointed out that even when
you're back, we both won't be able to leave."

"Have they told you who they're giving you?"

"Some kid who's barely out of the academy. I met him today.
Apparently, he asked for this assignment. I'm supposed to be
mentoring him, Scully, but it'll be more like babysitting."

"What's he like?"

"He's like a younger, clean-shaven Byers, but I gather from talking
to him that he thinks the government is above reproach."

"And he asked for this assignment?" I chuckled.

"He is a strong believer in paranormal phenomena, but I doubt I'll
ever be able to convince him that our duly elected government has 
anything but his best interests at heart," Mulder sighed.

"I'm sure you and the Gunmen will tarnish his rose-colored glasses
soon enough. It certainly took you no time to convince me."

"We'll see," Mulder sounded skeptical. "I don't want to think about
it anymore. How was your day?"

"Aside from the call from the preschool, it was quiet."

"Are you still upset about that, Scully?"

"A little," I admitted.

"I know you're worried about him, Scully, but I think this will be
good for him. Honestly, I'd be more worried if he hadn't been 
affected by his parents' deaths. I think coddling him will only 
make matters worse."

"I know," I couldn't hide the dejection in my voice.

"If he'd been reluctant, Scully, I wouldn't have forced him, but I
think he'll love school. You've created a loving, stable home for
him, Scully. Now it's time to let him start exploring the outside 
world."

"We've created a loving home, Mulder, not just me," I contradicted.

"I couldn't have done this without you, Scully. I knew that even if
you didn't love me, I'd never be able to find a better mother for
those kids."

"I wonder how long it would have taken us to realize how we felt
about each other if this hadn't happened," I could barely remember 
what it was like before Mulder and I had admitted our feelings for 
each other.

"I can't even bear to think about what it was like before I could
hold you like this," Mulder lowered his voice and pulled me onto his 
lap. "Or what it was like when I couldn't kiss you whenever I wanted 
to."

I opened my mouth to him and melted against his chest when he
began to plunge his tongue into my mouth. No matter how many times
Mulder kissed or touched me, my reaction was always the same -- my
desire overwhelmed me immediately. I loved the way his hands felt as
they slid under my shirt. When he nipped at the tender flesh on my
shoulder, I couldn't help moaning.

"I don't want to remember the times I wasn't allowed to squeeze your 
breasts," he breathed as he unclasped my bra.

"You were always allowed to, Mulder. Always!" I pressed my hips 
against his growing erection.

"Before I knew I was allowed to," he corrected himself.

As I leaned in to plunder his mouth with my tongue, I was mildly
surprised to feel his hands slide out from under my shirt until I 
felt him lift his hips to push off his pants. Soon his hands were 
working on my clothes and before long we were naked on the couch.

"Look at you," Mulder breathed, leaning back to see me better. You
are so beautiful," he reached up to stroke my cheek. "I love you,"
he whispered as he pulled me into another kiss.

While our tongues explored, I lifted my hips. I felt Mulder
reach to position himself, and I couldn't stop myself from groaning
when I felt his cock pressing against me. Mulder's words, kisses and
caresses had me more than ready for him. He slid inside of me easily.
At first I kept the pace slow, savoring each stroke.

"Mulder," I was breathing fairly hard even though we were moving 
slowly.

"Mmm?" his voice rumbled in his chest.

"You tell me I'm beautiful all the time."

"You are beautiful, Scully."

"I don't think I've told you how beautiful you are."

"Men aren't beautiful."

"You are beautiful, Mulder. Everything about you is beautiful. Your 
eyes amaze me, so soft at times, and other times they practically 
burn." We had stopped moving and Mulder was watching me intently 
as I spoke. "Your mouth, Mulder, sometimes the most incredible 
things come out of your mouth and other times you *do* the most
 incredible things with your mouth. A few of your words can put me 
at ease and all I have to do is touch my lips to yours and I'm 
overcome with desire for you." I brushed my mouth softly against his,
 tugging slightly on his full lower lip.

"Your hands are amazing, so big and yet you touch me with such
tenderness," I lifted his hand to press a kiss against his palm. "But
I think the most beautiful thing about you is your heart. It never
ceases to amaze me that you can love me as much as you do -- as much
as I love you." I realized that as I'd been talking, I'd begun to
slowly rotate my hips.

"Scully," Mulder groaned.

The slow pace was suddenly no longer enough for me. When I began to 
speed up, Mulder dropped his hands to my hips and began to thrust
into me. I was able to match his rhythm easily. In no time at all I 
felt my orgasm beginning to swell. It burst through me in a hot 
tingling wave. Mulder was pulsing inside of me, and that feeling 
was as good as, if not better, than the feeling of my own orgasm. 
Knowing that he'd come filled me with more satisfaction than my own 
climax had.

I was still leaning against his chest catching my breath, when Mulder
hugged me so hard it surprised me.

"What was that all about?" he asked quietly.

"You tell me I'm beautiful and that you love me all the
time. I thought I should tell you how I feel. I don't think I tell
you enough," I explained.

"Oh, Scully," he kissed my forehead softly. "You tell me all the
time." He stood up with me in his arms and began to walk toward the 
stairs. "Every time you smile at me, or kiss me back, or sigh when 
I touch you;  those things tell me that you love me more than any 
words could convey."

Once we were upstairs, Mulder kissed me softly again as he laid 
me on our bed. "But any time you want to tell me like that again,
Scully..."

Without intending to, I'm sure, Mulder had once again
shown me how deeply he loved me, making me love him even more. I'd
heard people say their love had grown stronger with every passing
day, but until now I had thought it was merely a foolish sentiment.
I'd never been so happy to be wrong.

*********************


The room was dark; my heart pounding and I
wasn't sure why I was awake. Mulder was sound asleep beside me, his
soft breathing an instant comfort to me. Blinking my eyes rapidly, I
tried to focus on the clock. When the red numbers came into focus I
knew immediately what had woken me up. It was 3:30. Megan normally
woke for her bottle at 2.

Flying out of bed, I was already in the
hall when I heard Mulder calling my name in confusion. I wanted to
answer him, but I had no voice. The night-light in Megan's room cast
enough light for me to see her in her crib. The blood rushing in my
ears prevented me from hearing her breathing, but the adrenaline
coursing through my veins allowed my brain to quickly process the
fact that her chest was rising and falling. It seemed like I'd been
standing there for ages, making sure my eyes weren't deceiving me,
when I felt Mulder's arm wrap around me. Turning in his arms, I
collapsed against him, my body shaking.

"It's okay, Scully," he murmured into my hair.

When I tried to say something, all I could do was sob. Mulder 
gathered me into his arms and carried me back to our room.

"She's fine, Scully," Mulder sat on the bed with me still in
his arms, rocking back and forth slightly.

"I know," I drew a shaky breath, my body still trembling violently.

Mulder said nothing. Stroking my hair lightly, he continued to rock
me. When I stopped trembling he slid back on the bed and laid us 
down, cocooning me in his arms. He chuckled when I pushed feebly 
at his chest, knowing what I wanted. With him on his back, I draped 
my body over his.

"You okay now?" he was gently caressing my back.

"Better," I sighed.

"You knew she was going to sleep through the night eventually." It 
wasn't a question.

"I know, but I still..." I was afraid to say what I was thinking.

"She's fine," Mulder whispered, hugging me tightly.

As if to confirm his words Megan snuffled over the monitor as
she moved in her sleep. I lay awake listening to her soft 
breathing on the monitor after Mulder had drifted back to 
sleep. If I'd stopped for a moment earlier I would have heard
her breathing then, too, but I hadn't exactly been thinking 
clearly.

When I woke next, the bed was empty and sunlight was 
peeking in at the edges of the curtains. Rolling to look at 
the clock I was amazed to see it was 8:30. After throwing
back the covers, I stumbled to the head of the stairs.

"Mulder?"

"Good morning, sunshine," he appeared at the bottom of 
the stairs with Megan in his arms.

"You're late for work."

"I noticed," he laughed. "I called Skinner and told him I'd
be late."

"Isn't it, um, I don't think you told me his name."

"Andy."

"Isn't it Andy's first day today?"

"I asked Skinner to have him start reading files."

"I bet Andy'll be thrilled," I chuckled.

"He asked, no begged, for this assignment," Mulder
shrugged.

"Still," I started to head down the stairs.

"You go shower, Scully. I'm feeding Meggie and Jordan's 
already dressed and waiting to go shopping."

"Did you point out that the stores don't open until 10?" 
I laughed.

"Yes, but he's still anxious to get going," Mulder smiled.

Normally I didn't have time to take a leisurely shower 
on weekdays so I took full advantage of Mulder's  late call 
and lingered. By the time I got downstairs Mulder had Megan
dressed and my breakfast waiting.

"You smell good," Mulder murmured after giving me an 
enthusiastic kiss goodbye.

"How do I usually smell?" I grinned at him.

"Really bad," Mulder wrinkled his nose. "It's all I can do to 
get close to you."

"She does not!" Jordan protested. "You always smell good,
 Dana," he leapt to my defence.

"I was teasing, Jordan," Mulder smiled at him. "And you're right, 
Dana always smells good, but today I think she smells especially
nice," he bent to kiss me again.

When we came up for air, Jordan was looking at his feet, his ears 
faintly pink. I'd been concerned about these displays of affection
in front of the kids, but my mother kept assuring me that it was 
healthy for them.

"Although they might not realize it, it gives them a sense of 
security knowing they are part of a loving family. It seemed to
bother your brothers more than it did you and Melissa," she'd 
chuckled.

When I thought back, I remembered my parents kissing and 
hugging in front of us all of the time. My brothers used to 
sigh and roll their eyes, but I remembered it did make me 
feel safe somehow. Being on the move for most of our
young lives, knowing my parents loved each other was the best
security they could have given us. My mother had reminded me that
Jordan needed that strong sense of security, too. Mulder was only too
happy to oblige.

After we'd seen Mulder off, I told Jordan that I'd
like to walk to the store. It was an older mall and fairly small, so
there wouldn't be a lot of traffic to contend with. They did however
have a couple of kids' clothing stores. Considering the neighborhood,
it would be bad business not to. It was a nice day, and I thought it
would help to burn off some of Jordan's excess energy. After packing
the diaper bag with some food for Megan we set off on our adventure.
It was a little over a mile, but Jordan had no problem.

As an added treat, I let Jordan have lunch at the food court. My only
miscalculation was how I was going to get all of the packages home.
I'd ended up buying as much stuff for Megan as I did Jordan. The rack
under the stroller was bulging with bags and I had a couple swinging
from my arms. It was quite a sight.

That night Megan slept through again. I awoke at about 2:30, but 
after hearing her through the monitor, I went back to sleep quickly. 
I'd expected her to give up her morning nap, but instead she woke 
in the morning about a half hour earlier and started to droop at 
about 10, slept until 12:30 and shortened her afternoon nap by 
about an hour.

On Saturday, after the first night that *I* slept through, I was 
amazed at how much difference an uninterrupted sleep made. My 
mother even commented at our now traditional Saturday get 
together.

"You probably didn't even realized that you weren't 100 percent.
 It's like our bodies were designed to cope," she mused.

Jordan loved Saturdays because Grandma always spoiled him 
with an extra long story. She was reading him "The Neverending 
Story" and despite the fact that he was loving it, only Grandma 
was allowed to read it to him. No matter how much I tried, I
could never convince my mother to stay after Jordan was asleep.

"I have a busy day tomorrow," she would always smile.

Her Sundays were full of morning mass, lunch with her friends 
and then her volunteer work. The church had started an evening 
service designed for parishioners who would otherwise be 
housebound. At first it had been a dismal failure until my
mother and her friends realized that most of the elderly ladies 
didn't want to attend because they couldn't get themselves 
ready. Heaven forbid they should go to church looking less
than perfect. So my mother and her cohorts spent Sunday afternoons
helping these ladies get ready for church and she was enjoying it
thoroughly.

After she left I started to ask Mulder about his new partner; I'd 
forgotten to ask the day before.

"There was something else I wanted to talk about," he lowered 
his eyes.

"What?" I hadn't thought there was anything that Mulder 
couldn't say to me now.

"Do you have any fantasies, Scully?" he whispered.

"Fantasies?" I repeated. "No, Mulder, all of my fantasies have come 
true," I paused as a grin spread across his face. "Why? Is there
 something I'm not doing that you want me to?"

His eyebrows shot up in surprise, the smile vanishing from his face. 
"Oh God no, nothing like that. Every night you fulfill my fantasies, 
and every morning when I wake up with you beside me," He picked 
up my hand and squeezed it gently. "It's just..." his voice trailed 
off.

"What, Mulder? Is there something different you want to try?"

"No, it's not that. I -- I just can't help thinking about the first 
time we had sex."

"You mean when we consummated our marriage?"

He nodded vigorously.

"What about it?"

"Well, now that I know how you feel, I can't help fantasizing
about what you were thinking that first time."

"Yeah?" I grinned, my heart starting to beat faster. It had 
never occurred to me that Mulder might fantasize about 
anything like that. "I'm going to go upstairs," I stood up. 
"Give me a few minutes," I told him when he stood to
 follow me.

His eyes darkened perceptibly when he recognized
the words I'd spoken three months earlier. When I got upstairs I
began to search through my drawer for the nightie I'd worn that
night. My heart was beating as wildly as it had that night, but it
wasn't fear I was experiencing now. I was just slipping into bed when
Mulder opened the door. I watched as he walked to his side of the
bed. Instead of closing my eyes while he stripped, I watched intently
as he removed each piece of clothing. When he removed his boxers, I
had to smile at his thick erection.

"Do you want me to turn the light off?" he remembered to ask.

"No, I want to be able to see you," I didn't hide my lust.

"Good, I want you to be able to see you, too."

When he slid into the bed beside me, I could feel his erection 
pressing against my thigh.

"Before we go any further, I want you to know that I love you."

"Can I interrupt the fantasy for a second, Mulder? I want to 
clarify something."

"Okay," he chuckled.

"I'm going to tell you what I was thinking, but we're going to 
keep going as if you didn't know, right?"

"Right. I want to hear what you were thinking all the way 
through," he nodded.

"Okay," I nodded and then picked up where I'd left off. "I know 
you love me, Mulder, I just wish you loved me the way I love 
you," I whispered.

"Are you ready?"

I giggled just as I had our first time.

"What?"

"It's awkward, Mulder -- having sex for this reason when I so 
want you to be doing this because you love me."

"I'm sorry it's awkward, Scully. If I'm lucky you'll fall madly in 
love with me and there won't have to be any tension between 
us."

"It's okay. Come here, Mulder. I want you inside of me so 
badly."

When he was between my legs he bent to kiss me again, 
whispering softly that he loved me.

"Oh God, I love you too, Mulder."

My words elicited a grunt from him as he began to ease into me. 
I pulled my legs back so he could slide into me. Again I gasped at 
the sensation.

"Did I hurt you?" he stopped moving.

"God no, it feels incredible, Mulder, don't stop," I panted. I 
skipped my clinical analysis of penis in vagina thrusting.

"You're so hot and tight, Scully. I knew you would feel
heavenly."

Mulder kept his pace slow, as he had the first time.

"I love the way you smell and the way your skin feels 
against mine," I breathed. "I wish I wasn't wearing this 
nightie."

"Why?" his voice was raspy.

"Because I want to be able to feel your skin against mine.
 I have wanted this for so long."

"You feel so good, Scully."

"I love how it feels to finally have you inside of me, Mulder. 
I love how hard you feel."

At my words he picked up his pace. My body responded 
instantly; my belly beginning to tingle.

"Oh, my God," I groaned.

"What?" he was breathing hard.

"I'm going to come."

"Jesus, Scully," he was beginning to tremble.

I slid my hands down to his ass to encourage him to thrust harder.
When I felt Mulder's lips descend on my neck I was gone. I 
clenched around him, my back arched, my body shaking as my 
orgasm surged through me.

"Mulder," I shuddered.

"I love you," Mulder whispered hoarsely when he climaxed, his 
body quaking above me.

Before I could say anything, his mouth covered mine and he 
kissed me deeply.

"Did you, did you really come the first time?" his words were 
punctuated by kisses.

"Yes, I really did, but not like that, because I was holding 
back."

"That was incredible," he sighed. "You didn't mind, did you, 
telling me how you were really feeling?"

"Not at all. It was incredibly sexy, actually," I admitted.

"I thought so too," he eased off of me and then pulled me on 
top of him.

"And don't be afraid to ask me to fulfill your fantasies, Mulder.
 Isn't that one of the benefits of a long-term monogamous 
relationship? We can ask each other anything."

"Anything?"

"I'm not saying I'd say yes to anything, I have my limits, but I 
would never think less of you for asking me for something. It's 
kind of arousing."

"Despite what you might think, Scully, I'm not all that kinky. 
I have, however, had thoughts about making love somewhere 
else."

"Well, now that Megan is sleeping through the night, I 
wouldn't feel so bad about asking my mother to watch her 
for a night or two."

"We never really had a honeymoon," he pointed out.

"Let's get Jordan settled into school and then we'll plan a 
weekend, okay?"

"As long as it's warm enough to make love to you outside," 
he mumbled sleepily.

"It's always warm somewhere," I chuckled, but my words 
were met with soft snores.


Sunday passed quickly. I spent the afternoon doing 
paperwork and the rest of the time telling Jordan how much 
time was left until he could go to school. It made me wonder 
how excited he was going to be about Christmas.

Monday dawned gray and rainy. Mulder had taken the 
morning off to fill out the paperwork at the school. We 
left the house earlier than we needed to, because we'd
never been to the school and I wasn't sure what parking would be
like. Once we were there Mulder convinced me that we counted as
visitors that day because we had business, we weren't just dropping
off Jordan.

The secretary was expecting us and had all of the
necessary paperwork ready. We were in the middle of filling it out
when a young brunette woman appeared in the office.

"Ms. Scully, Mr. Mulder?" she extended her hand. "I'm Allison 
Bothwell."

"Oh, it's nice to meet you," I smiled. She shook my hand and then
Mulder's.

"And this must be Jordan."

Jordan nodded solemnly, making me smile.

"Would you like to see the classroom?" she asked
him.

"Yes, please," his eyes lit up.

"Good," she held out her hand to him. "His class gets 
out at 11:45," she informed me with a smile.

"Bye Dana, bye Mulder," Jordan let go of her hand to run back
and give us each a quick hug.

"Have fun," Mulder called as he dashed back to take Allison's 
hand again.

"Bye," I choked out, my throat tight.

Mulder gave me a squeeze and then turned back to the
paperwork.

"Why do I wish he'd been a little more reluctant?" I
whispered.

"I'm not sure," he smiled softly at me. "Because if he
was, I'd think he wasn't well adjusted. It never occurred to him that
we wouldn't be here waiting for him when he's done. Just like we're
there every morning when he wakes up. I think we should be happy
about his behavior considering everything that's happened to him."

I knew that everything Mulder was saying was true, but part of me 
still wanted to be there to protect him.

"You have lots of time with Meggie," he pointed out.

"Don't start me thinking about her going to school," I laughed.

"If there are any problems, we'll call you right away," the s
ecretary smiled at me.

I blushed, wondering if she thought I was being foolish.

"And I'd think you were a bad parent if you were just anxious to 
get Jordan off your hands," she consoled me. "I see enough
 parents like that."

"I guess," I sighed heavily.

Megan was asleep by the time we got home, but even though
Mulder and I basically had the house to ourselves, all I could do was
pace around, waiting until I could go and pick up Jordan. Mulder
tried to relax me, but backed off when I jumped about ten feet when
he touched me.

"Sorry," I murmured.

"That's okay," he laughed. "I'll wait until Jordan gets home to 
touch you."

I was about to wrap my arms around him when the phone made me
 jump again. I answered it before it got to the second ring.

"What's wrong?" I squeaked, when Allison Bothwell introduced
 herself.

"Nothing's wrong, Ms. Scully, I just wanted to give you a heads up 
about something."

"Okay," I took a shaky breath.

"When a new student starts we have them introduce themselves 
and then the other students ask them questions. It helps them 
put a few names and faces together," she explained.

"Okay," I was nodding vigorously to the phone.

"Well, one of the kids asked what Jordan's parents did."

"Oh," I caught my breath. "What did he say?"

"He leaned over and whispered something to the teacher and
then he said that his mother looked after him and his sister and his
father caught bad guys. And then he added that his father helped to
take care of him when he wasn't at work," she chuckled.

"He did?" I felt tears welling up in my eyes.

"Yes, I asked the teacher later what he had asked, and she said 
he'd wanted to know if it was okay to say that Mulder and Dana 
were his mom and dad."

"Thank you for letting me know," I whispered, afraid I was going 
to start to bawl on the phone.

When I hung up, I repeated what she'd said to Mulder through my 
tears. I finally relaxed, letting him hold me and kiss me.

"Catch bad guys?" I looked up at him.

"What was I supposed to say?" Mulder shrugged.

"You didn't want to tell him you were a government 
pencil-pusher?"  I laughed.

"Nah, it didn't sound as good."


Jordan talked non-stop when I picked him up, telling me
about all of the friends he'd made and everything they'd done. Mulder
had stayed at home, because Megan was still sleeping. When we got
back, he repeated everything to Mulder. By the time he'd finished his
lunch he was starting to wind down. He was asleep before Mulder left
for work. Shortly after Megan went down, the phone rang again. It was
my mother, wanting to know how things had gone.

She listened patiently while I recounted the events.

"I knew you'd have a hard time, but I also knew nothing I could say 
would make any difference. Are you feeling better now?"

"Yes," I replied meekly. "I feel kind of foolish."

"You love him, Dana, you shouldn't feel foolish about that," 
she reminded me. "Oh, I was wondering what you were planning
to do with Megan when you have to pick up Jordan?"

"Take her with me, what else could I do?"

"I could come over," she offered. "That way Megan's nap 
wouldn't be disturbed."

"Every day?" I laughed.

"I don't have anything else to do."

"Mom, I couldn't ask you to do that." 

"You didn't. I'm offering and I wouldn't offer if I didn't
mean it."

"That would be great, Mom, as long as you're sure."

"I'm sure," she assured me, and I knew it was settled.


That night at supper I was surprised when Jordan told 
Mulder and me about what had happened at school that 
morning.

"So is it okay that I said you were my mom and dad?"

"Of course," Mulder smiled.

"Da da da da," Megan interrupted, banging her spoon on her 
highchair.

"Yes, Meggie," Mulder turned to her and smiled.

She held a chubby hand out to him, a pea between her thumb 
and forefinger. When Mulder held out his hand to take it, she 
shook her head, still holding out her hand.

"Oh," Mulder chuckled and leaned toward her, opening his mouth.
 "Mmm, cold peas," he rubbed his stomach making Megan chortle.

"Mulder?" Jordan asked when Megan returned to her peas.

"Yes?" Mulder turned his attention to Jordan again.

"Do you like it when Megan calls you dad?"

My eyebrows flew up. I didn't think Jordan would make the
connection between Megan's babbling and calling us mom and dad. This
was something Mulder and I hadn't talked about and I had no idea how
he was going to handle it.

"Yes, I do," Mulder smiled.

"Do you want me to call you dad?"

"You know what, Jordan?" Mulder put his fork down. "I would be 
thrilled if you called me dad, but only if you want to."

"I do," his brown eyes were very serious. "But I might forget
sometimes," he added.

"That's okay. It'll take a while to get used to," Mulder smiled 
assuredly.

"And I can call you mom, Dana?" he turned to me.

All I could do was nod; the tears streaming down my face 
prevented me from speaking.

"Why are you crying?" he looked puzzled.

"Because I'm happy," I managed to sputter.

"Oh," he turned to look at Mulder in confusion.

"It's a girl thing," Mulder shrugged.

"Oh," Jordan nodded sagely, making me laugh through my
tears.


Once the kids were settled into bed, I told Mulder about my
mother's offer.

"She's okay with that? It seems like a big imposition." Mulder 
sounded amazed.

"I think she feels like she hasn't been imposed upon enough," 
I chuckled. "Up until now, her grandchildren have been so far 
away."

"True," Mulder nodded. "So? Are you going to be okay 
tomorrow?"

"I'll be fine," I snuggled against him.

"You were really cute today."

"Oh, shut up," I poked him in the ribs.

"But you should really stop confusing poor Jordan
with your tears," he kissed the top of my head.

"I guess I should have prepared myself for that after 
what happened at school. I had no idea that he'd want 
to call us mom and dad so quickly."

"I'm happy that he doesn't have any problem asking us 
questions," Mulder sighed. "And the questions are only 
going to get harder."

"Not for a few years, I hope."

The following morning my mother pulled into the
driveway just as Mulder opened the door.

"You mom's here," he called to me.

"Already?" I was still in my pajamas.

When I got to the door, Mulder was thanking my mother 
and giving her a kiss on the cheek. Before he left, he turned 
and kissed me again.

"See you tonight."

With my mother's help the morning went very smoothly. I
only felt a minor twinge when I dropped off Jordan, but when he said,
"Bye, mom," I choked up, managing to hold off the tears until he was
out of sight.

The week passed without incident and I was enjoying my
mother's company. I was surprised when she brought up the subject of
me returning to work.

"I hadn't thought about it," I told her honestly.

"I'm here in the morning, anyway," she pointed out. "I wouldn't 
mind."

"But who would pick up Jordan?"

"If you went back part-time you could pick him up on your way 
home," she'd obviously been thinking about this. "Megan's 
awake in the morning, so I could drop him off."

"True," I nodded. Even though I hadn't considered it, the thought 
was appealing. Since my mother was offering to help I had
no reservations about the kind of care Megan would be getting. I was
getting more sleep now, Jordan was in school all morning and Megan
would be asleep.

"Only if you're ready," she must have been watching me thinking.

"It sounds perfect," I admitted. "I wouldn't mind going back to 
work. I miss it now and then."

"Talk it over with Fox and let me know what you decide," she 
smiled.

"Oh, he'll be fine with it, but I'll discuss it with him. And I'll 
have to talk to Skinner, too. It'll be his decision, really."

"It will?"

"About coming back part-time," I clarified.

After lunch I called Kimberly to make an appointment and then I 
called Mulder.

"That's a great idea," he sounded overjoyed. "When do you see 
Skinner?"

"Monday morning." 

"I can't wait to get the X-Files back to ourselves."

"Hang on, Mulder. I'm just talking about part-time. You'll still 
need someone who can go out of town with you. It probably isn't a 
good idea for us to do too much field work together," I reminded 
him.

"It'll still be good to have you back, Scully. Even though I see you 
every night, I miss you here. There is only so much ass kissing I 
can take."

"Mulder!" I hissed. "Andy's not there, is he?"

"Yeah, but he's oblivious."

"You know, Mulder, we should have him over for dinner before I come 
back. See if he's busy Sunday."

"Scully," he whined.

"I'll call and invite him myself if you don't do it."

"Okay," he gave in.

"Well?"

"You want me to ask him now?"

"Yes, Mulder."

Andy readily accepted the invitation much to Mulder's dismay.

"I'll make it up to you later," I promised him before I hung up.

I was amazed at how quickly things had fallen into place. All I 
needed now was Skinner's approval and then maybe by the 
middle of next week, I'd be back at work.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Saturday morning while Jordan and Mulder played outside and Megan 
slept, I finished all of the computer work. I usually 
split it up between the weekend days, but since I'd invited 
Andy over, I knew I'd be fairly busy on Sunday. Mulder would've 
helped me with the  meal if I'd asked, but he wasn't thrilled that 
his new partner would be joining us, so I didn't want to rub it in. 
 
I was surprised that my mother still wanted to come over on Saturday
after being here all week. 
 
"I don't get to see much of Jordan during the week," she
explained while she helped me in the kitchen. 
 
Mulder was busy watching a baseball game. When it was over, he did
the one thing I'd asked of him to prepare for the barbecue; he went 
out and mowed the lawn. My mother offered to take care of the 
kids when they woke up, so I was in the kitchen alone when Mulder 
finished with the lawn. 
 
A September afternoon in the D.C. area was still warm enough for him
to have worked up a sweat. At some point he'd taken off his shirt 
and he came into the house carrying it. There must be something in 
our genetic code that makes a glistening chest appealing; some link
between sweat and a good provider perhaps. For whatever reason, 
my genetic code responded immediately. I didn't hide the fact that I 
was looking at him appreciatively. 
 
"You women are all alike," he huffed as he reached into the fridge 
for an iced tea. "I'm more than a sex object, you know. I have a 
mind." 
 
I said nothing, instead I watched as he downed his drink without
pausing for a breath. After he tossed the empty bottle into the 
garbage, he started to close the distance between us. 
 
"How do you think it makes me feel when you look at me like
that?" His gravelly voice made me shiver. 
 
"Um, cheap?" He was only inches away from me. 
  
"Not even close," he breathed before hecaptured my mouth with
his. 
 
As soon as Mulder pressed himself against me, I could feel his 
sweat soaking through my shirt. I probably should have pushed
him away, but he was half-naked and plunging his tongue into my 
mouth. I didn't give a rat's ass about my blouse. After my fingers 
explored the muscles on either side of his spine, I stopped myself 
from squeezing his ass. 
 
"Do you need any help in here?" 
 
My mother's voice startled us out of our kiss. She
was standing in the doorway with Megan on her hip. 
 
"I guess not," she chuckled. 
 
"I should grab a shower," Mulder announced and left
the kitchen, but not before giving me another quick kiss. 
 
"I guess I should change my blouse," I picked at where it 
was sticking to my skin. 
 
"I'll start the potatoes," my mother winked at me as I 
walked by. 
 
There was something very disconcerting about being 36 and having
your mother find you cute. By noon on Sunday I was beginning to
think that Mulder may have been right about not having Andy over,
although our reasons were vastly different. Only last night the 
house had been in reasonable order, and with the way it looked 
now,Andy was sure to think we were barbarians. 
 
To his credit, Mulder was trying to help by entertaining the kids. 
But the Duplo that was covering the living room floor looked more 
like  another obstacle in my way to having a clean house before our 
company arrived. 
 
"Don't worry about it, Scully," Mulder tried to calm me down when
 I heaved a sigh at the sight of the previously tidy room. "It won't 
be hard to clean up and we have kids; no one expects the house to be
immaculate." 
 
Forgetting why I'd gone into the living room in the first place, I 
forced a little smile and returned to the kitchen where I was still 
cleaning up the stew that Megan had dumped onto the floor. I didn't 
bother telling Mulder that my mother's house had always been 
immaculate and she'd had four kids. I have no idea how she did it. 
The house was always perfect, we were always cleaned to
within an inch of our lives and she always seemed to have time to
listen to our tales of childhood triumphs and tragedies. I'd have to
remember to ask my mother how she did it. 
 
Once the kids were down for their naps, things started to fall 
into place. Mulder picked up the toys in the living room and I
had the kitchen fairly  clean. I'd made both green and macaroni 
salads, which were cooling in the fridge. The steaks were ready
 to throw on the grill and I was putting some peppers, onions, 
mushrooms along with some garlic and butter into some tin 
foil to throw on the barbecue while the  steaks were cooking. 
I'd bought some crusty rolls and beer, essentials in rounding
Out  the outdoor meal. My mother had unwittingly supplied 
dessert. She'd brought two pies with her on 
Saturday; I'd saved the cherry one deliberately. 
 
I was upstairs
changing when the doorbell rang, fifteen minutes
early. When I got downstairs Mulder was showing Andy the house. 
He was taller than I'd expected. When Mulder had compared him to 
Byers, he must have thought their personalities were alike. When 
he saw me he introduced me immediately. 
 
"Andy, this is my wife, Dana Scully." 
 
"It's a pleasure," the tall young man smiled. "I've heard
so much about you," he paused and I could tell he didn't know what 
he should call me. 
 
"Dana's fine, Andy," I smiled. 
 
"I prefer Andrew," he lowered his voice, glancing at an oblivious 
Mulder.  "If that's all rightwith you." 
 
"Of course it's all right with me, I was just assuming,"I glared 
at Mulder. 
 
"How about a beer, Andy?" Mulder started toward the kitchen. 
 
"Sure, thanks," Andrew began to trail after him. 
 
"I'll work on him," I called after them. 
 
The weather cooperated and we had a great afternoon outside. 
When the kids woke up, I covered them with sunscreen and then let
them loose in the backyard. We'd barbecued enough this summer that 
both Megan and Jordan knew to stay clear of the barbecue. While 
Mulder took charge of the cooking, Andrew played watch with Jordan. 
Mulder had made sure that Jordan had a glove and they'd played 
often. 
 
"You've got quite an eye," Andrew commented as Jordan caught yet
another ball. "Are you going to be a ball player when you grow
up?" 
 
"Yes, first baseman for the Yankees," Jordan answered very
seriously. "That way I can support my parents in their old
age." 
 
"Mulder!" 
 
"What? It was just a suggestion," he shrugged and winked at 
me as he took a swig of his beer. 
 
"You can do whatever you want to do, Jordan," I smiled at him. 
 
"If I was a lefty I'd be a -- a shoo-in," Jordan continued. 
 
All I could do was roll my eyes. I'd have to consider supervising
play time from now on. Megan was sitting in her sandbox in the 
shade. When I'd bought it, Mulder didn't understand why I'd 
insisted on buying one with a cover. When I explained it, he'd 
wrinkled his nose. 
 
"I don't think my sandbox had one when I was a kid." 
 
"Mine either, and we used to find little buried treasures all
the time. We never told my mom though. We were smart enough to 
know that would have been the end of the sandbox." 
 
I couldn't help smiling at the memory of the look on Mulder's
face. Megan was busily filling a pail with sand, dumping it out, 
and then filling it again, her little tongue sticking out the 
entire time. 
 
"How do you like your steak, Andy?" Mulder called. 
 
"Medium-well, please," the young agent called back. 
 
Keeping an eye on Megan, I strolled over to join Mulder at the
grill. Grinning at me, he bent and gave me a quick peck. 
 
"This isn't as bad as I thought it would be." 
 
"Why are you being such a pain in the ass, Mulder?" I asked 
after I'd returned his kiss. 
 
"What?" he looked genuinely confused. 
 
"He doesn't like to be called Andy, Mulder. Why do you persist
when you know that?" 
 
"What's the difference?" he shrugged. "Andy --
Andrew?" 
 
"I guess you're right," I shrugged, watching Megan dump a
bucket of sand onto her leg. "It shouldn't matter what he wants to 
called, should it, Fox?" 
 
"Sure, throw that in my face," he stuck out his bottom lip. 
 
"Why are you making an issue out of it?" 
 
"I dunno, Scully," he hung his head. "I guess I want things back
the way they were." 
 
"You mean like before we were married?" I was shocked. 
 
"God, no," he assured me quickly. "I want the X-Files back to
the way they were; just you and me." 
 
"As long as we have children, Mulder, things will never be
exactly the way they used to be," I reminded him. "I liked it the 
way it used to be too, but I'll gladly live with a minor change in 
personnel in exchange for everything we've gained." Megan 
was still contentedly burying her leg. 
 
Sorrow filled his eyes immediately. "Shit, I'm sorry, Scully,"
he whispered, "I'd never give up what we have, never. I was being
selfish." With his free arm he pulled me close to him and kissed me
softly. "Is it wrong to want it all?" 
 
"Just give him a chance, Mulder. Besides, how often do you get to
work with someone who thinks you're a god?" 
 
"You mean aside from you?" he laughed and kissed me again to quiet
my protests. 
 
"They do that all the time," I heard Jordan telling
Andrew. 
 
"How's your beer, Andrew? Would you like another?" Mulder asked
after he'd released me. I chuckled and went to sit down beside 
Megan again. 
 
"Uh, yes please," he looked over at me in awe. 
 
"I'll get it, Mulder, you're busy." I scooped up Megan and
took her with me. "Jordan, you come too so I can clean you up for
dinner." 
 
"Okay, mom," he threw the ball back to Andrew. 

When I got back with the beer and the clean kids, Mulder announced 
that the steaks were done. With Andrew's help the food was soon on 
the  picnic table. It had been a long time since I'd fed a man in 
his mid-twenties. I'd forgotten how much they could eat. 
 
"Don't they pay you enough to buy groceries with?" Mulder asked as 
Andrew helped himself to more salad. 
 
"Mulder!" I kicked him under the table. "You go right ahead, 
Andrew." 
 
He was holding the spoon in mid-air, not sure what to do. 
 
"I was kidding, Andy -- drew. I'm just jealous that I can't eat like 
that anymore," Mulder assured him with a smile. 
 
"My dad always says it's going to catch up with me," Andrew smiled 
as he added more salad to his plate. 
 
"My dad always says I have a hollow leg," Jordan piped up. "I eat 
more than mommy." 
 
I flushed a little at the use of 'mommy'. It was the first time 
Jordan had used it. 
 
"Maybe you'll be a linebacker with the Redskins instead of a
first baseman," Andrew winked at him. 
 
It wasn't long after we'd finished dessert that it was time to get 
the kids into the tub. Mulder said he'd take care of cleaning up and 
Andrew offered to help. By the time I got back they were sitting in 
the backyard again,drinking beer in the twilight. 
 
"Mulder was just telling me how you ended up with the kids; they're 
really cute. How hard was it to adopt them?" 
 
"We just became legal guardians on the 11th," I informed him.
"To be honest, I haven't had time to stop and think about anything
beyond that." 
 
"What's the difference?" Mulder looked at me. 
 
"Jordan and Megan would have our last name," I pointed out. 
 
"What? Mulder-Scully, Scully-Mulder?" Mulder looked unconvinced. 
 
"Mulder." 
 
"What?" 
 
"No, their last name would be Mulder," I chuckled. 
 
"Why just Mulder?" he looked puzzled. 
 
"Well, aside from the fact that it's less confusing, I consider my 
last name to be Mulder now. Again, since it's less confusing, I'll 
continue to use Scully professionally." 
 
"So you'll be Scully Mulder at home?" Mulder grinned making Andrew 
almost choke on his beer. 
 
"Something like that," I laughed. 
 
"Well, it's getting late, I should be going," Andrew announced after 
he'd finished his beer. 
 
"You don't need to rush off," I assured him. "And how are you 
getting home?" I asked, recalling the amount of beer he'd had. He 
was a good couple of  inches  taller than Mulder and broader at 
the shoulders, but I still thoughthe'd had too much to drive. 
 
"The bus," he shrugged. 
 
"The bus? I'll drive you home then," I offered quickly. 
 
"I don't want to be any trouble," he waved me off. 
 
After much debating, and Mulder telling Andrew he might as well give 
in, he agreed to let me take him home. The drive was fairly quiet. 
I could only get one or two word responses any time I tried to start 
a conversation. 
 
"Something wrong?" I finally asked. 
 
"Not really." 
 
"Why are you so quiet?" 
 
"I dunno, I guess I'm trying to figure out why Mulder doesn't like
me." 
 
"What makes you think he doesn't like you?" 
 
"Oh, I meant to thank you for asking him to call me Andrew," he 
turned to smile at me. 
 
"You don't think he didn't like you because of that, do you?" 
 
"No, there's more than that," he shifted around uncomfortably
on the seat. 
 
"Like what?" I pressed. 
 
"Well," he hesitated. 
 
"If he's being a jerk, I could help," I offered. 
 
"It's not that, I don'tthink he takes me seriously." 
 
"Why?" 
 
"He's always rolling his eyes at things I say," Andrew sighed. 
 
"Oh Andrew," I started to laugh. "Mulder is always rolling his 
eyes at things I say, and I get the general impression he kind 
of likes me." 
 
"Really?" he perked up. 
 
"The way to win Mulder's respect is to be honest. Don't
sell yourself out to win him over, it won't work." 
 
"I'll remember that," he smiled. 
 
After that he chatted a little more freely. 
 
"Will I see you tomorrow?" he asked when I pulled up to the curb
in front of his building. We'd been talking about the fact that I 
was coming in to talk to Skinner the following morning. 
 
"I'll pop down to say hello," I promised. 
 
When I got home Mulder was lounging on the couch watching Chariots 
of the Gods on tape. He'd watched it so many times, I almost knew it 
by heart. I was surprised when he stopped the tape. 
 
"Aren't you going to finish watching it?" I was standing beside the 
couch. 
 
"I know how it ends," he grinned. "And I had other plans," he 
reached out and took hold of my hand. 
 
"Oh yeah?" My stomach began to tingle immediately. It was sad how 
easy I was; I wondered if he could tell. 
 
"I was thinking," he paused and pulled me closer, "about what you 
said the other night." 
 
"What did I say?" My brain was having trouble remembering what I'd 
said two minutes ago. 
 
"You said that I could ask you anything," he reminded me. 
 
"You can," I was almost breathless. "What do you want?" 
 
"Well, I want you to put on the sheer black nightie that I like so 
much," his eyes had grown very dark. 
 
"Okay," I was sure my pupils had dilated as much as his had. 
 
"And I want to watch you change," he added, his voice low
and mellow. 
 
We hadn't done anything yet and my knees were already so
weak I could barely walk up the stairs. Mulder stripped to his boxers
quickly and settled onto the bed to watch me. I was wearing jeans 
and cotton print blouse; I wasn't sure how sexy I could be taking 
those off. I settled for doing it slowly; watching Mulder's face as 
I went. His eyes had grown even darker and his lips were slightly
parted. 
 
Once my blouse was off, I decided the most alluring way I
could slip off my jeans was to turn around. When I bent to push 
them down, I heard a groan from the bed. Since it had worked so well,
I removed my panties in the same fashion. Before I turned around, I
unhooked my bra. As soon as I was facing Mulder again, I let the last
scrap of material that was covering me fall to floor. 
 
Slipping the nightie on wasn't quite as sexy, but Mulder sighed in 
appreciation once I had it on. 
 
"C'mere," Mulder's smoky voice sent shivers through me. 
 
While I was walking to the bed Mulder put a couple of pillows 
against the footboard. 
 
"Sit there," he nodded towards them and I did as he asked. "After we 
recreated out first time the other night, Scully, it made me think." 
 
"About what?" I had no idea what he had in mind. 
 
"About you touching yourself and thinking about me -- did you ever 
do that?" 
 
My heart started to race instantly and I could feel my face 
flushing. I never imagined that I might be talking to Mulder about 
this. 
 
"I did," I confessed. "You almost caught me once." 
 
"When?" he looked shocked. 
 
"I was in the tub and you'd just come back from your run." 
 
"You were masturbating?" 
 
"I was," I nodded. 
 
"Tell me about it." 
 
As I told him about how I'd touched myself while I'd remembered how 
he'd kissed me and how his cock had felt in my hand his breathing 
became increasingly labored. 
 
"Show me," he panted when I finished. 
 
"I can try, Mulder, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to come, not 
with you watching," I was honest with him. 
 
"That's okay," he assured me. 
 
Spreading my legs slightly, I slid my hand between my legs. Then I 
dipped two fingers inside of myself and used the moisture that had 
been gathering there to lubricate my clit. When my fingers grazed my 
already pulsing bundle of nerves, my eyes slipped shut at the 
sensation. I heard Mulder let out a slow breath. 
 
"I used to think about you too, Scully, all the time." 
 
Heat surged through me at his words and I moved my fingers a little 
faster. 
 
"I used to think about making love to you in my bed." 
 
I sighed and opened my legs a little more to give myself more
access. 
 
"But I didn't just think about making love to you. I used to
think about hot, sweaty sex, Scully. Sometimes right on my desk, or
in a rental car. I'd dream that we'd tear off each other's clothes
because we were so anxious to touch each other." 
 
Listening to Mulder raspy narrative was working, I could feel my 
orgasm building. 
 
"I'd dream about burying myself between your legs and I'd wonder 
how you'd sound when I kissed you there." 
 
"Oh God," I moaned, moving my fingers frantically. 
 
"I dreamt about how tight and hot you wouldfeel and I dreamt how 
you would sound calling my name when I made you come." 
 
His last words sent me over the edge, his name on my lips
just as he'd dreamt. As soon as I opened my eyes, Mulder dived 
toward me and began to kiss me hungrily. As we kissed he pulled me 
flat onto the bed and knelt between my legs. I could feel his cock, 
hot and hard, pressing against my still throbbing clit. With one s
mall wriggle, I had him inside of me. 
 
"I'd dream that it would be just like this, Scully," he panted as 
he began to thrust into me. "That you'd love it just as much I as 
did." 
 
"I do, Mulder," I told him breathily, "maybe even more than you." 
 
"That, Scully, is not humanly possible," he panted and thrust even 
harder. 
 
I wanted to argue, but he covered my mouth with his. It was the only 
way he could win the argument. Mulder began to groan into my mouth 
and I knew he  was about to come. His muscles tightened and he began 
to shudder. I loved the way he came; like every time was better than 
the last. 
 
When we were breathing somewhat normally again, we crawled back up 
to the  head of the bed and collapsed. 
 
"You know the one thing I never fantasized about, Scully?" Mulder 
pulled the covers over us. 
 
"What?" I mumbled sleepily. 
 
"I never fantasized that you'd be willing to fulfill my
fantasies," he slung his arm over my waist. 
 
Before I could tell him that I'd loved being able to do that for 
him, he was snoring softly in my ear.

While driving home, I'd been thinking about adopting Jordan and
Megan, but Mulder had made me forget to talk to him about it. I'd
have to ask him in the morning. 
 
The hectic pace of early morning made me forget to talk to him 
again. My mother's arrival, Jordan's breakfast requests, Megan 
banging her spoon on her cereal bowl and Mulder looking for his 
briefcase had all combined to give me a form of amnesia I hadn't 
studied in medical school. 
 
While Mulder was putting on his shoes, I found his briefcase and 
brought him some coffee in a travel mug. 
 
"Thanks, Scully," he smiled at me softly and 
kissed me tenderly. He was almost at his car when he turned 
around again. "I'll call my lawyer today about adopting the kids." 
 
I was glad he was too far away to see the tears that had sprung to 
my eyes; it would have made him late if I'd had to explain. "Okay, 
see you in a few hours," I managed to smile. 
 
After I'd dropped Jordan off at school, I drove straight to the 
J. Edgar Hoover Building. I still had my pass, but going in through 
the main entrance was the easiest way to get to Skinner's office. 
 
"Agent Scully!" Kimberly smiled broadly when I walked into the outer 
office. "How are the children?" 
 
"They're great," I smiled and pulled pictures out of my purse as 
I began to tell her about Jordan's first day at school. I'm not 
sure how long we'd been chatting, but Skinner looked a little bit 
perturbed when he opened his door. I suspect he was checking to 
see what time our appointment was, but his face changed to a smile 
when he saw me. 
 
"Come in and have a seat, Agent Scully." 
 
Once I was seated, I explained how things had settled down quite a 
bit, and how I'd like to return to work part-time, in the mornings. 

"I see," Skinner said thoughtfully and opened up a thick file that 
had been sitting in front of him. "Do you remember Holly from
records?" 
 
"Yes." It was hard to forget the petite brunette who'd kicked my 
boss's ass. 
 
"When I asked for your file she told me something that I hadn't been 
aware of." 
 
"What was that, sir?" 
 
"Did you know that the government has software that keeps track of 
how much time employees spend accessing the Bureau's LAN from 
home?" 
 
"I think I knew that, it's built into the software that lets you 
through the firewall," I had no idea why I knew that piece of 
information or why Skinner was mentioning it. 
 
"Were you aware of the fact that someone has been logging a great 
deal of time using your password?" 
 
"Oh," I laughed. "That was me." 
 
"I thought you were on parental leave." 
 
"I was, I mean, I am, but Mulder was getting behind on his 
paperwork. I didn't want him to have to work evenings and weekends, 
so I did some of the work for him." 
 
"We aren't in the habit of accepting volunteer services, Agent
Scully." 
 
I didn't answer. I was totally confused. It seemed like Skinner was 
upset that I'd been helping Mulder. 
 
"To cut to the chase here, Agent Scully, I can't agree to letting 
you work part-time hours."  
 
"But sir," I was shocked, "I thought the Bureau encouraged
agents to take time to raise their families." 
 
"They do, Agent, and they also have a strict policy regarding 
reimbursement for hours worked." 
 
"I'm not sure I understand what your saying, sir," I was on the 
verge of tears. I couldn't believe he was going to deny my
request. 
 
I watched in total amazement as a smile spread across his face. 
"The only way I'll agree to this is if you are paid for the hours 
you work, both here and at home." 
 
I felt relief wash over me in a wave. "Sir," I protested with a 
laugh, "You scared me." 
 
"You didn't really think I'd say no, did you?" he chuckled. 
 
"Not initially, but then I didn't know what to think." 
 
"Oh, Holly had a check cut for you," he handed me an envelope. 
"From now on your computer hours will be part of your regular 
pay, now that payroll knows to look for it." 
 
"I didn't know it would be an issue, sir." 
 
"Since you and Mulder are raising a young family, you should
have all of the money you're entitled to." 
 
"Thank you, sir," I smiled. I didn't tell him that with Mulder's 
inheritances from thePrescott's and his parents in combination 
with our salaries, money was not a concern. 
 
"When did you want to start at the office again?" 
 
"Next Monday?" Most of my work clothes were still in boxes
in the basement from when Mulder and I had packed up our 
apartments last month. I would need to make a trip to the 
cleaners. 
 
"I'll see you Monday then," he stood to shake my hand. 
 
Things were coming together better than I'd hoped. The last thing 
I'd expected was to have Skinner joking with me. His whole demeanor
seemed to have changed. As I walked toward the elevator I formulated 
my evil plan. I was going to string Mulder along exactly like our 
A.D. had toyed with me. It must have been the grin I was wearing 
that made people do double takes when they passed me. Well, they 
were going to have to get used to it, because I wasn't about to 
conceal my joy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It had only been minutes since I'd made arrangements with Skinner
to come back to work and already I was feeling a little guilty. 
But as soon as the elevator doors opened onto that basement 
hallway, I knew I'd made the right decision. It had been almost 
three months since I'd been down here, but the smell made 
memories come flooding back to me.

I had to smile to myself at the most prominent of these memories.
I could smell Mulder; not just his cologne, it was more than
that. Every time I smelled it the same thing happened; my pulse
quickened and I flushed slightly. All those years I'd been
secretly in love with Mulder. Stealing looks at him when I
thought he wasn't looking, drifting off into little fantasies.
Those flights of fancy hadn't ended up being too far from our
current life.

That thought made my stomach flip-flop. Sometimes I still
couldn't believe what had happened. But the feelings that I'd
had for Mulder then were nothing compared to how I felt about
him now. I never thought I'd love Mulder more than I had when I'd
kept my feelings hidden. My love had seemed so pure and intense
to me, but in fact, it was little more than a crush. Love was
what Mulder and I had now, not the solitary longing that seemed
to be so many lifetimes ago.

I'd been thinking all of this as I stood just outside of the
elevator. As I began to walk slowly back to the office I knew
in an instant that I needed to come back to work. I loved being
at home with the kids, but I loved my work as well. Mulder rarely
spoke about work at home; it had been a tacit agreement between
us. For the first time I was starting to miss talking to him
about cases. Working half days was the perfect solution for me.
I could get back into the investigative work that I loved so much
and still have the afternoons with the kids. Of course, they'd
be asleep for part of it, but being there when they woke up meant
so much. And there was some retro-housewife part of me that
really enjoyed being there when Mulder got home from work.

When I got to the office door I found it slightly ajar, so it
made no noise when I pushed it open. I was surprised to find the
office empty. I'd decided that Mulder and Andrew must be out on
a case and was heading toward the door when I heard a slight
rustling noise coming from the back room. Peaking around the
corner, I spotted Andrew sitting amidst some cartons, using one
as a chair, a pile of magazines on his lap.

"Good morning," I greeted him.

"Agent Scully," he stood up quickly, spilling the stack of
magazines onto the floor. "I mean Mrs. Mulder, I mean Dana."

I tried to suppress my smile as I watched his face and neck grow
red.

"Mulder asked me to sort through these boxes. I was trying to
figure out what case these magazines were related to," he nodded
toward the scattered copies of Celebrity Skin and Hanky Panky.

"Those are from Mulder's private collection," I tried not to
laugh. "I didn't realize that he'd boxed them up though."

"His private collection?" Andrew sounded surprised. "And you
knew about it?"

"Sure," I shrugged. "His collection used to be far more
extensive, but I told him that I wouldn't allow pornography in a
house with children."

"But other than that you don't have a problem with it?"

"Like what?"

"Don't you think it's demeaning to women?"

"With the money that these women are earning, I'd hardly call
it demeaning. There are always exceptions, but no one forces them
to make movies or have their picture taken. If they can make
money off of the male predilection for voyeurism, more power to
them."

"Wow," Andrew laughed. "Leigh would kill me if I brought
something like this home."

"Leigh?"

"My girlfriend," he clarified.

"Oh, I didn't realize you had a girlfriend. Where does she live?"
I assumed they'd gone to separate schools or she was still in
school.

"Um, we live together."

"Oh, I had no idea." I wondered right away if Mulder did.

As if on cue, I heard him walk into the office.

"Hey!" he smiled, joining us in the back room. "How'd it go?" he
slipped his arm around my waist and gave me a squeeze.

"Well..." I hesitated.

"What?" Mulder looked surprised.

"Skinner isn't willing to let me work part-time."

"It isn't up to him," Mulder began angrily. "The Bureau has
policies about this kind of thing. He can't overrule that."

"Apparently there is also a policy regarding pay for work
performed."

"Is he saying that he doesn't think you'll actually put in
the required number of hours?" Mulder was indignant.

"No, he was talking about the work I did from home."

"Huh?" Both Mulder and Andrew looked perplexed.

"Skinner said he'd only agree to let me come back if I was paid
for all of my work," I finally broke into a smile.

"Scully!" Mulder protested my teasing. "I thought you were
serious."

"Me too," Andrew's eyes were wide. "Skinner scares me."

"Skinner?" Mulder laughed.

"He's a teddy bear," I chuckled.

Andrew just stared at us in disbelief.

"I see you found my magazines," Mulder nodded toward the floor.
"I forgot they were here. I meant to give them to Frohike. Do you
want them, Andrew?"

"Me? My girlfriend would kill me," he laughed.

"She needs to loosen up a bit," Mulder chuckled.

"Mmm," Andrew replied non-committally.

Sensing a bit of tension, I changed the subject. "Well, I should
get going. I have to drop some clothes off at the dry cleaner's
before I pick Jordan up." It was a white lie. I had plenty of
time to run my errands.

"I'll walk you out," Mulder kissed the top of my head, making
Andrew flush a little. "Be right back."

I waited until we were on our way up the stairs and out of
earshot before I began to talk to Mulder.

"Did you know that Andrew had a girlfriend?"

"He might have mentioned it, I wasn't paying a lot of attention,"
he looked contrite. "Why?"

"I wish we'd invited her to the barbecue, that's all," I squeezed
his hand.

"I didn't think of that, Scully. I'm not even sure if I knew
whether or not he had a girlfriend when I invited him. I'm bad
at those kind of things."

"That's all right, we know now."

"So when are you starting back to work?" Mulder changed the
subject.

"Monday," I smiled.

"And you're okay with that?" Mulder must have been remembering
the conversation we'd had early in our marriage when I'd told
him that I felt societal pressure about returning to work.

"I am," I smiled up at him. "I miss work and working with you."

"Don't you see me enough?"

"I think we saw each other more before we were married," I
laughed. "We were joined at the hip, Mulder, don't you remember?
The only thing we hadn't done is have sex."

"That I remember, all too well," he pulled me into a hug. We had
reached my car and were standing beside it, embracing.

"I think working part-time will give me the best of both worlds."

"You want to have your cake and eat it too," he grinned.

"I do," I grinned back.

"I want you to do whatever makes you happy," his voice was gentle
as he gazed down at me. "I've missed having you at work too, but
I don't want you to come back to please me."

"I didn't realize you missed me that much," I cocked my head.

"I do," he tightened his hold on me. "At first I thought I missed
you because of how much I used to think about us when we were in
the office, but soon I realized how incredibly well we work
together. I've worked with enough partners to know."

For some reason his words sent a flush through me. I'd been
worried that our marriage would put a strain on our working
relationship, and although the truth was yet to be seen, I had
the feeling that our partnership was going to be stronger than
ever.

"Did you ditch them all of the time too?"

"Nope, only you -- well, I ditched Krycek a couple of times too.
You because I was trying to protect you and Krycek because, well
because he was Krycek."

"I suppose that isn't going to change, is it?"

"Nope," he pursed his lips. "Krycek will always be Krycek."

"You know what I meant," I smacked him on the ass.

"Ooo, a little slap and tickle, Scully? I didn't know you liked
that kind of thing," he bent and began to kiss my neck.

"Mulder, you're avoiding my question."

"Me?" He moved his lips from my neck to my mouth.

I opened my mouth to him as our kiss deepened. When I felt his
hands caressing my ass I knew we'd gone too far.

"Good morning, agents," I heard a familiar voice rumble.

My cheeks were flaming as I returned the greeting to AD Kersh.
Mulder appeared to take great delight in the fact that we'd been
caught kissing.

"Why him of all people?" I sighed when he disappeared into the
building.

"We weren't doing anything wrong," Mulder pointed out. We both
knew the policy -- no consorting on Bureau time or on the
Bureau's dime.

"We're teetering on the brink, Mulder. If someone wanted to push
the issue, I've been working all along."

"He doesn't know that."

"Holly knows that. Payroll knows that. Skinner knows that. It
won't take long before everyone knows."

"Payroll knows?" Mulder looked surprised.

"Skinner had them cut me a check for all of the time I put in," I
explained.

"Still Scully, I don't think it will be an issue. I don't think
we're 'hot' right now. Well, people are asking a lot of
questions about our marriage and the kids, but I don't think
anyone is campaigning to shut down the X-Files right now."

"People are asking about our marriage?"

"Yeah and a few guys even asked how you were in bed."

"What?" I stiffened. "Who? What did you say?"

"What do you think I said? I said you were the best piece of ash
I'd ever had," he winked at me.

"Mulder..."

"I dealt with it, Scully," his tone was terse.

"You didn't hit anyone, did you?"

"No."

"Did you threaten to?"

"I threatened a lot worse than that." I could feel his muscles
twitching under his shirt.

"I'm sure it was just a couple of jerks with nothing better to
do with their time," I tried to console him.

"Yeah, I know," he relaxed a bit. "Most people have been really
cool about it, asking to see pictures of the kids."

"To be on the safe side, Mulder, I think we should refrain from
any contact at work."

"I used to touch you all the time," he reminded me.

"True," I nodded, "but I think a 'hands off' policy would be
best. Why give anyone ammunition?"

"Fine," he sighed. "So much for my desk fantasy."

"Maybe there's another fantasy I could help you with," I lowered
my voice, hoping to cheer him up.

"Now that you mention it..."

"Yes..."

"I'd like to watch you in the shower," he leaned to whisper in my
ear.

"Just watch me?"

"Well, it might lead to other things." Since we were still
holding each other I could feel his arousal beginning to grow.
"Would that be okay?"

"Mmm," I tried to give him my best bedroom eyes. "I'm rather fond
of other things," I pressed my hips against him and felt his
erection surge. No matter how many times he told me that he loved
me, I was still amazed that I could have this effect on him. If we
hadn't been in a parking garage I would have taken care of that
erection for him.

"How much time do you have?" he asked me breathlessly, pulling 
away from me.

"I have an hour and half until I have to pick up Jordan," I
informed him after checking my watch. "Why?"

Mulder pulled out his cell phone dialed it quickly. "Yeah, it's
Mulder. Look, if anyone asks for me, I'm taking an early lunch."
There was a brief pause before he nodded and said good-bye.

"What are you doing?"

"We are going somewhere private," he took the car keys out of my
hand.

"Okay," I said quietly as I looked up at him. The darkness of his
eyes revealed his lust. I must have pushed him a little too far.

"Get in," I'd been so lost in thought, I hadn't noticed that he'd
opened the door for me.

"You're right, Scully," Mulder was talking as he pulled out of
the parking spot. "No touching at work. It's different when I
know I can have you."

I nodded, but remained silent. Mulder's level of arousal had
created a definite throb between my legs.

"Is something wrong?" We'd pulled out of the underground parking and
Mulder turned to look at me with his brow furrowed.

"No."

"You're awfully quiet. You aren't mad, are you?"

"Quite the contrary, Mulder. Sometimes your passion overwhelms
me."

"Is that a good thing?"

"Yes, Mulder," I chuckled. "That's a good thing."

"Okay," he took a long breath. "It's just that sometimes I make
it sound like you don't have a choice, but you know that I'd
never do anything you didn't want to do."

"I know that, Mulder. You've never asked me to do anything
I wasn't more than happy to do," I grinned slyly at him.

"Have I mentioned recently that I love you?" he breathed.

Before I could answer, I looked up and realized where Mulder was 
taking us. "The Watergate? How much will this cost?"

"Who cares?" he shrugged as he pulled up to the front doors.

A valet opened my door and I stepped out feeling very
conspicuous. I thought everyone must know why we were here.
Soon Mulder's hand was on my back, propelling me forward; my
car was moving off toward the parking lot. Once at the desk of
the brightly-lit lobby, Mulder asked for a room.

"Do you have a reservation?" The front desk clerk inquired.

"No, is that a problem?" Mulder sounded undaunted.

"I think we have some rooms, but check-in time isn't until
noon," she informed us cheerfully.

"We can't have a room now?" I could hear agitation in his voice.

"You'd have to pay for two nights," her smile seemed to be
plastered on her face.

"Whatever," Mulder handed her his credit card.

After hurriedly filling out the paperwork, Mulder took the
keycard and we headed toward the elevator. As soon as Mulder
pressed the button for the eleventh floor and the doors had
closed behind us, his mouth was on top of mine.

"Mulder," I broke out of the kiss. "There are cameras in here."

"So? We're married."

I couldn't argue with that, so I stood on my tiptoes to resume
our kiss. I was just beginning to enjoy the feeling of Mulder's
hands on my ass when the doors opened again. We found our room
quickly. The door had barely closed behind us before we were
tugging at each other's clothes. When I had Mulder's pants around
his ankles, I sank to my knees in front of him, my shirt and bra
already on the floor.

Mulder groaned loudly when I pulled his cock out of boxers.
Knowing what he liked, I began to slowly run my tongue along his
shaft. Before I took him into my mouth, I kissed him tenderly. He
was moaning steadily. Since I couldn't even come close to taking
all of him into my mouth, I used my hand in concert with my mouth
to have contact with more of him. I was letting my tongue and lips
run lightly over his hot flesh, teasing him really, when he
suddenly pulled away.

"I'm very close," he explained.

"That's okay," I smiled and took him into my mouth again.

"Scully!" He pulled away again. "I want to make love to you."

"Mulder, I'd rather do this -- for two reasons."

"What reasons?"

"Well, I was thinking about doing this back in the parking
garage," I confessed.

"You were?" his eyes were round with amazement.

I nodded, grinning.

"And your other reason?"

"It isn't nearly as sexy," I warned him.

"That's okay, spill."

"I'm not prepared to have a shower and I don't want to take a
whore's bath before I go to pick up Jordan."

From the look on his face, I gathered that Mulder didn't 
understand what I was trying to say.

"I don't have deodorant, make-up, a hairbrush or clean 
underwear," I tried to make it clear. 

"You're right, that isn't very sexy," he chuckled. "But you
have a point."

"So we agree?" I leaned toward him.

"Not completely," he dodged my mouth.

"What?"

"Come over to the bed."

"Why?" I was confused.

"What's good for the gander..."

"We might not have time," I hesitated.

"We'll have time," he contradicted. "I know how to push your
buttons," he winked at me.

Groaning at his joke, I walked over to the bed. After he'd helped
me remove the rest of my clothes I lay down on the bed. I was
surprised when Mulder lay down beside me. After kissing me
softly, he moved his lips to my breast. While he nipped and
tugged at my nipple his hand slipped between my legs. As soon
as his fingers began to caress my sex, my hips were off the bed.

I was already very wet, allowing his fingers to slip into me
easily. As he gently rubbed my g-spot he used the same rhythm on
my clitoris with his thumb. He was right, we *were* going to have
time. We'd done this before, but we hadn't been in a hurry and I
wished we weren't now. It felt exquisite; his mouth on my breast;
his fingers inside of me and his thumb stroking the current
center of my existence. My orgasm swelled quickly. When Mulder
felt me tense, he pressed his fingers into my g-spot firmly and
held his thumb on my clit. Clenching my legs around his hand, I
arched my back. I could feel my clit pulsing against his thumb
and my vaginal walls contracting around his fingers. Mulder
made a contented little humming noise that vibrated through my
nipple.

It took a couple of minutes before I recovered from the body
fatigue that accompanied my orgasm. When I opened my eyes Mulder
was sporting a cocky grin.

"See?"

"I thought you meant oral," I defended myself.

"That takes too long. Your orgasms seem better when I use my
hand, anyway."

It was true. Maybe I was wired differently than most women, but
my most powerful orgasms happened when Mulder used his hand on
me. Like most men, his best orgasms were from blowjobs. I shifted
my position on the bed to pick up where I'd left off. Mulder was
still hot and hard. It thrilled me that he was turned on by
making me come. If we'd had time I would have been more
leisurely, bringing him to the brink several times before finally
taking him over the edge, but we were all about speed. In no time
at all his body tensed and I felt his cock throb in my hand and
mouth. I would never tire of the taste of him or how he shuddered
and called my name when he came.

As I had, he lay quietly for a few moments before he opened his
eyes. "That was the best 400 dollars I've ever spent."

"And you won't breathe a word of it to anyone," I arched an
eyebrow at him in warning as I crawled up the bed toward him.

"I wouldn't dream of it," he grinned.

"I'm sorry to say, sweetie," I kissed him lightly on the lips.
"I have to go."

"Sweetie?"

"Sorry, I'll stick to poopyhead, but I still have to go," I got
off the bed and began to pick up my clothes.

"Sweetie might grow on me," he chuckled as he watched me dress.

"Are you staying here?" He was still naked on the bed.

"Nope, I was momentarily distracted," he smirked, climbed off the
bed and began to dress quickly. "I'll wait until the valet brings
the car around and then I'll catch a cab."


I left Mulder standing in front of the Watergate and hurried to
the dry cleaner's. I was terrified that I was going to be late
picking up Jordan, but I made it to the school with five minutes
to spare. I sat in the car, caught my breath and calmed myself
down. When I'd collected myself I climbed out of the car to wait
for Jordan.

The children began to trickle out slowly, greeted by moms, dads,
grandparents and babysitters, but Jordan wasn't among them. I was
about to go into the school to see what was holding him up when he
appeared with his teacher. Jordan looked very upset.

"We had a problem this morning," Miss Chisolm informed me
solemnly.

Tanya Chisolm was a young African-American woman and Jordan loved
her dearly. He talked about her constantly; it was as if every
word she uttered had been handed down from God.

"What happened?" I was worried that Jordan had been hurt.

"Jordan got into a dispute with another child over a toy, and
when I asked him to give the toy back, Jordan refused," Miss
Chisolm explained. "He spent the last hour in the time-out chair
because he would not apologize."

When I turned to look at Jordan, his eyes were downcast and his
ears were bright red.

"Thank you," I gave her a tight smile. "I'll talk to him."

"See you tomorrow, Jordan," Miss Chisolm smiled at him.

"Bye," he answered in a small voice.

I said nothing to Jordan as I buckled him into his booster seat.
It wasn't until I started the car and pulled away from the school
that I finally broke the tense silence.

"Well?"

"I had the truck first. Dane took it away from me," his anger was
apparent.

"I believe you, Jordan, but that wasn't the problem," I kept my
voice calm.

"Yes, it was. Why should I say I'm sorry when I didn't do anything
wrong?"

"Because your teacher asked you to."

Jordan remained silent.

"It doesn't matter who was right or wrong, Jordan. You didn't do
what Miss Chisolm told you to do. That's why you were punished."

"But I told her that I had it first," he was fighting back tears.

"You should have given the toy to Dane and then quietly gone to
Miss Chisolm and told her what happened." I tried to reason with
him.

"But I had the truck first," he repeated.

"Was that truck special enough to be worth all of this trouble?"

There was no reply from the back seat.

"I bet if you'd given it back to Dane he would have forgotten about
it in five minutes and then you could have played with it again."

The silence from the back seat was deafening.

"Instead you spent the last hour of school in the time-out chair
and your dad and I are going to have to punish you."

"You are?" His voice quivered.

"You can't behave like that at school, Jordan and expect nothing
else to happen."

"What kind of punishment?" his voice had grown small again.

"I'll have to talk to your dad when he gets home. We'll let you
know after supper."


Lunch was very quiet. My mother knew something was wrong, but I
could tell she was waiting until the kids were sleeping before she
asked. Once they were in bed, we settled onto the couch and I
explained what had happened.

"I'm glad he's got a little spunk," my mother smiled when I'd
finished.

"Yes, but he has to learn to obey his teacher even when he
doesn't want to."

As I spoke I heard a creaking sound on the stairs. From the
living room I could see Jordan creeping down the stairs.

"What are you doing, Jordan?"

"I can't sleep."

"Why not?" I got up and walked to the foot of the staircase.

"I'm scared," he whispered.

"Of what?"

"That I won't be allowed to go back to school." Two large tears
stood in his eyes.

"Because of what happened today?" I couldn't help laughing.

He nodded making the tears run down his cheeks.

"I still want to talk to Mulder about this, Jordan, but I was
thinking that you wouldn't be allowed to watch Rugrats for the
rest of the week." I climbed the stairs and pulled him into a
hug. "We won't take you out of school."

"Okay," he took a shaky breath.

"Do you understand why you are being punished?" I asked as I
carried him back to his room.

"Because I didn't give the truck back," he nodded.

"It is mostly because you didn't obey Miss Chisolm. You have to
learn to do what she says without arguing. That rule is there
to keep you safe."

"It is?" he looked puzzled as I set him down on his bed.

"Yes, she has to protect you when you are there and she can't do
that if you won't do what you're told."

"Like in the fire drill?" he asked as he lay down.

"Exactly," I smiled.

"I'm sorry, mommy," his eyes filled with sorrow.

"It's not me you have to apologize to. You have to tell Miss
Chisolm and Dane that you're sorry."

"Dane, too?"

"Yes, honey, Dane, too," I leaned over and gave him a kiss.

"And you aren't mad at me anymore?"

"I was never mad at you, Jordan. I was concerned that you
weren't following the rules, but I think you understand now," I
tucked the covers in around his shoulders.

"I do. I have to do what the teacher says, even if she's wrong."

I had to bite back my laughter. "Like I said, the best thing you
could have done was to give the toy back and then tell Miss
Chisolm what happened. If you'd done that, she would have thought
you were a very grown-up boy. She can't see every little thing
that goes on in the classroom. All she saw was two boys fighting
over a toy and one little boy making a big fuss about it. What
would you have thought?"

"That I was acting like a baby," he sighed and nodded.

"And don't be surprised if Dane doesn't try to get the same
reaction out of you again," I warned him.

"He won't," Jordan's voice was firm.

"Good. Now close your eyes and try to get some sleep," I smiled
and headed toward the door.

"Do I still have to miss Rugrats?"

"I'm afraid so, Jordan."

"Stupid truck," I heard him mutter as I closed the door.

I had hoped to wait to talk to Mulder about Jordan's punishment,
but I hadn't realized he'd be so worried about it. I hated having
to make him miss his favorite show, especially since I was sure
he understood what he'd done wrong. But I couldn't set the
precedent of going back on my word -- that was a slippery slope
that I had to avoid. As I walked back downstairs I felt like a
weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. This was the first
real obstacle we'd encountered with Jordan and it already seemed
to be resolved.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Jordan woke up from his nap I didn't mention the incident
from school. I thought we'd been over it enough. I wasn't even
planning to tell Mulder until Jordan was in bed for the night,
unless Jordan brought it up himself.

We were in the living room playing with Jordan's zoo set waiting
for Mulder. I was trying to keep Megan occupied with a shape
sorting toy she usually loved to play with, but she was far more
interested in the zebra figures that Jordan had living with his
lions. When she crawled over, plucked one out the enclosure and
began to chew on it Jordan snatched it away from her.

"If you want to play, play! Don't eat the animals."

"Jordan," I was trying not to laugh, "You know Megan can't play
your game. She just likes the animals."

"She's ruining it," he whined. "She has her own toys, why does
she have to play with mine?"

"Jordan," I cautioned him with my voice.

"Why do I have to share here, too? It's not fair that Megan is
allowed to ruin my game just because she's a baby." He was
standing with his hands on his hips.

I was trying to come up with a better answer than 'because I
said so' when Megan began to clap her hands.

"Da, Da, Da," she cried gleefully, blissfully ignorant of the
struggle I was having with her big brother.

"Daddy's home!" Jordan's face lit up and he ran toward the door.

I, too, was happy that Mulder was home. Maybe he would be able to
reason with Jordan. I had picked up Megan and was walking to the
foyer when I heard Jordan shout with joy.

"A puppy!"

I couldn't believe my ears. Surely Mulder wouldn't have brought a
dog home without asking me, especially not today. When I got to
the archway I discovered I was wrong. I couldn't believe my eyes,
Mulder was standing just inside the door holding a puppy; a very
large puppy.

"Is that a ...?"

"It's an Irish Wolfhound," Mulder grinned, obviously pleased with
himself.

"They're huge," I stared at him in disbelief.

"You didn't want some tiny thing like Queequeg, did you?"

"We'll talk about it later," I sighed.

"Why not talk about it now?" he looked puzzled.

"Because what I have to say should be said in private," I glanced
toward Jordan.

"Okay," Mulder said hesitantly. It was clear he didn't have the
slightest clue as to why I might be upset.

"Can I play with him? Is it a him?" Jordan asked excitedly.

"Yes and yes," Mulder chuckled. "Here you go," he set the puppy
down.

The dog immediately trotted into the living room, with his nose
to the floor.

"Mulder, I think the dog needs to --" I stopped as the dog 
squatted. "No!" I said loudly and sharply, making Megan start to
cry. "Here," I handed her to Mulder and went after the dog. He
had moved on from his original choice on the carpet and was
sniffing out an alternative. "No!" I repeated loudly when he
began to assume the position again. Scooping him up, I headed 
toward the back door.

"I'll clean that up," Mulder nodded toward the dark spot on the
carpet. The dog had managed to pee a little before I scared him
off.

I didn't even acknowledge that he'd spoken, because if I had
all I would have said is, "Damn right you will."

As soon as I put the dog down in the yard, he squatted to pee.
When he was done he began to explore the yard. He was sniffing
the grass by the back fence when Mulder joined me, Megan still
in his arms.

"Sorry about that, Scully. I should've brought him straight
outside," he slid his arm around my waist and gave me a squeeze.

I saw surprise register on his face when I looked up him, not
smiling.

"What's wrong?"

"I said we would talk about it later," I replied tersely.

Before he could say anything else, Jordan came running outside.

"Where's the puppy?"

"Over there," I pointed him in the right direction. "Where's the
rest of the stuff?" I turned to Mulder once Jordan had dashed
off.

"What stuff?"

"The kennel, the dish, the dog food, the brush, the collar, the
leash, the pooper scooper," I nodded toward the puppy who was
squatting again.

"Kennel?"

"How do you plan to train the dog, Mulder?"

"What does a kennel have to do with training?"

"How many dogs have you trained?"

"Umm..."

"So I'm going to be training the dog? Well, me and my mother.
Once I go back to work, she'll have to deal with the puppy in
the morning. It was very thoughtful of you to take that into
consideration," I informed him tartly.

"Scully, I --" Mulder began.

"I said we'd talk about it later," I cut him off.

"Yes, but you --"

"I think you need to go and do some shopping," I interrupted
him again.

"Fine," he sounded angry now too. "I'll take Jordan and Megan
with me."

"And I'll watch the dog."

"Hey Jordan," Mulder called to him. "Do you want to come with me
while I buy some stuff for the puppy?"

"Sure," he ran back toward us. "Are you coming to, Mommy?"

"No, someone has to stay with the dog."

"Oh," he looked at me and then at Mulder. I guess he could tell
that I was angry.

"Let's go," Mulder guided him in the direction of the gate that
led to the front yard.

"Is mommy mad?"

"Yes."

"Because of the puppy?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," Mulder shrugged.

Pressing my lips together, I refrained from saying what I was 
thinking. I still couldn't believe that Mulder would do something 
like this without asking me first. Leaving the dog in the yard, I 
went into the house to get the baby gate that I'd seen in the
basement. When I had it set up, blocking the kitchen off from the
rest of the house, I brought the puppy inside. He was still very
young, but not all that small. I shuddered when I looked at the
size of his paws. This dog was going to be huge.

Trusting that he would be fine for a few minutes, I started to
get supper ready.

"What are we going to call you?"

From his position against my leg, he cocked his head at me.

"We can't call you puppy forever."

Kneeling down, I gave him a little scratch behind his ear.
Leaning into the contact he tilted his head to give me better 
access. 

"Don't tell anyone," I whispered, "but I'm thrilled to have a 
dog again. This just happened to be the worst possible day."

He just yawned and began to pant.

"Are you thirsty?"

When I moved to get a bowl from the cupboard, he moved with me,
like he was a burr. After filling the bowl with water, I put it
he came bounding back to lean against my leg. Misjudging
how much room he'd need to stop, he ended up crashing into me,
almost knocking me over. It was going to be a long night.

Even with the dog glued to me, I managed to have supper ready when
Mulder and the kids got home.

"It'll take me a few trips to bring everything in," Mulder told
me as he handed Megan to me over the baby gate.

"Start with the kennel, the rest you can bring in after supper."

"Okay," he smiled a little tentatively.

"Jordan, you go and wash your hands. I'm going to take the dog
outside again. Once we have the crate together we can take the
gate down. But until he's trained, he's only allowed outside, in
the kitchen or in his crate."

So with Megan in one arm, I picked the puppy up and took him
outside. When Mulder called me to tell me the kennel was
together, the puppy still hadn't gone for a pee.

"The crate is huge," Mulder warned when he opened the door for
me and reached for Megan. "But they assured me this was the size
I should get."

"It is," I nodded. "It has to fit him when he's full grown."

After I'd secured the puppy in his kennel, I washed my hands and
we sat down to eat. I tried to be civil to Mulder during the
meal, but from the way he kept glancing at me, I could tell he
knew I was still angry. Jordan, thankfully, was oblivious. I
didn't want to drag him into this.

When we were finished eating, I asked Mulder to get the dog some
food while I took him outside again. Jordan tagged along, eager
to be wherever the puppy was. I'm sure he'd totally forgotten
that it was almost time for Rugrats or that he wasn't allowed to
watch them for a week.

This time when the dog squatted and peed, I praised him and patted
him on the head.

"Does this mean you aren't mad at the puppy anymore?" Jordan
looked up at me hopefully.

"I was never mad at the puppy, Jordan," I began, "And I don't
want you to worry about things like that, okay?"

"Okay," he shrugged, apparently more interested in the puppy than
my mood. "I thought boy dogs lifted their legs to pee."

"They do," I smiled. "But he's still too young to balance on 
three legs."

"Oh," he was watching as the puppy trotted through the yard. 
"Can I play with him now?"

"Well, I think he needs to have something to eat first. After
that you should have a few minutes to play with him before bed."

"Soup's on," Mulder called from the kitchen door.

Once the puppy had scarfed down his food, I took him back outside
for about half an hour. Megan watched while Jordan and the dog
played with a squeaky ball they'd bought. She'd squirm and wiggle
when they were on the other side of the yard like she wanted to
get down, but as soon as they got close to us, she'd hide her
face against my shoulder.

"Is she afraid of the dog?" Mulder asked as he watched her
performance.

"I think she can't decide. She's excited and scared, but I'm sure
she'll be fine."

At eight o'clock we trouped back inside. Jordan kissed the dog
goodnight and chortled when the dog kissed him back. I couldn't
help smiling at how thrilled Jordan was. I caught Mulder looking
at me with his eyebrows raised in an almost 'I told you so' way
making me instantly angry again. He must have recognized the
change in my expression because his eyes grew wide in surprise.

Once we'd settled both kids into bed we met in the living room,
as had become our habit.

"So are you finally going to explain why you're so pissed?"
Mulder confronted me as soon as I walked into the room.

"I don't even know where to begin," I shook my head.

"You're right, I didn't even think about your mother. Is that
why you're mad?"

"That's a small part of it."

"Look, Scully, can we stop the guessing games? If you're angry
about something, tell me."

"I guess I'll have to," I snorted. "Because you obviously have
no clue."

"No, I don't," his voice was tight.

"Why don't you start by asking me how my day was?"

"I thought the morning went fairly well," he lowered his voice.

"It did, but it was all downhill from there."

"What happened?" he almost sounded concerned.

"That's something you should have asked me before bringing a
dog home," my tone was harsh.

"God damn it, Scully, I can't discuss this when I don't even
know what we're talking about."

"I just told you," I informed him, thinking he'd understand, but
the look on his face told me he still hadn't joined the party.
"How could you even consider doing something this big without
consulting me first?"

"What are you talking about? Months ago we agreed that after the
court decision became final we'd get a dog." He was standing with
his hands on his hips.

"We agreed in principle. We didn't agree that you would show up
with a dog whenever the mood struck you. This was the worst
possible time," I sighed.

"Oh, come on, Scully, you know there would never be a perfect
time. How long were you planning to put it off?" his tone was
dripping with disdain.

"At least until we'd solved Jordan's discipline problem," I
narrowed my eyes.

"What discipline problem?" he crossed his arms in front of his
chest.

"If you'd had the common courtesy to call and ask me before you
brought the dog home, I would have told you."

"Jesus Christ, Scully, would you cut to the fucking chase!"

As I was drawing a breath to answer him, a sound behind me made
me wheel around. To my horror, Jordan was standing on the stairs,
about a third of the way down, eyes wide with fear.

"Shit," Mulder whispered.

Without even having to look at each other, Mulder and I both
headed toward the stairs.

"C'mon Jordan, you're supposed to be in bed," Mulder's tone was
gentle.

"Why were you yelling at each other?" he looked up at us, worry
still evident on his face.

I cringed at his words. I'd been so angry I hadn't realized that
we'd been raising our voices.

"Your mom was just explaining a mistake I made," Mulder told him
with a straight face.

"So you *are* mad at the puppy?" he looked back to me.

"No, Jordan, I'm not. I like the puppy. He's very cute. A little
large, but cute," I assured him as he crawled back into his bed.

"Did something happen today that I don't know about, Jordan?"
Mulder asked, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

"Are you going to take the puppy back?" Jordan's lip began to
tremble.

"No Jordan, the puppy can stay, but I think you need to tell
your dad what happened today," I told him gently.

"Everything?"

"I'm afraid so."

In a quiet voice, with his eyes lowered, Jordan began to explain
to Mulder what had happened at school. When he was finished he
looked to me for approval.

"What about what happened with your sister this afternoon?"

Heaving a sigh, shoulders sagging, he told Mulder about the zoo
toy incident.

"And what was your punishment?" Mulder inquired.

"I'm not allowed to watch Rugrats for a week."

"I see," Mulder nodded thoughtfully. "And you didn't care that
you missed it tonight, did you?"

"No," he admitted in a small voice.

"Well I'm not very happy about your behavior, Jordan. When I
brought the puppy home, I trusted that you'd been a good boy."

"I'm sorry," tears began to fill his eyes.

"Big boys don't fight about toys, especially with their baby
sister," Mulder continued. "I had a little sister too, Jordan. I 
know they can be a pain sometimes; they never want to play the 
same games you do. But I thought you were a big boy now. Big boys 
know how to get along with their baby sisters and only big boys 
can help take care of puppies. Was I wrong to think that you were 
a big boy?"

"No," Jordan shook his head vigorously.

"Well, I trusted you before, but now you have to prove it to me.
If I hear that you have been squabbling about toys, you won't be
allowed to help with the puppy. Do you understand?"

"I'll be good, I promise," he was very solemn.

"Okay, you go to sleep now, Jordan," I smiled at him.

Both Mulder and I gave him a hug and a kiss before we moved
toward the door.

"What are we going to call the puppy?" Jordan asked as Mulder
and I were about to leave the room.

"I'm still thinking about it. I have a couple of ideas, but we 
can talk about it tomorrow," Mulder smiled. "Goodnight Jordan."

"Night," Jordan sighed and snuggled under his covers.

Not a word was spoken between us until we were back in the living
room.

"I'm sorry," Mulder tried to pull me into his arms, but I held 
back. I thought we had more to talk about, but the look of sorrow
in his eyes almost made me give in.  "You're right, I should have 
called. But..."

"What?" I put my hands on my hips, immediately irritated again.

"You should have told me as soon as I got home."

"I didn't want to fight in front of the kids," I defended my
decision.

"So all of that tension and the yelling that got Jordan out of
bed was better somehow?"

"I guess not," I lowered my eyes.

"If you didn't want to say anything in front of Jordan you could
have sent him to his room for five minutes."

"You're right, I'm sorry," I hung my head.

"Can we establish some ground rules then?" he took a step closer
to me.

"Okay."

"I'll always check with you before I do anything like this."

"Right," I nodded.

"And you will tell me right away when I've screwed up."

"Mmm hmm," I agreed.

"And you won't pull any more of that guessing game shit."

Once again I pulled back a bit to look at him, my eyes wide.

"I'm sorry that I'm not a mind reader, Scully, but if I say I
don't know why you're mad, I don't know. Will you please just
come out and tell me in the future? This wasn't the first time I
screwed up and it won't be the last, but I'd rather deal with it
right away then have to go through another evening like tonight."

"I really was just trying not to fight in front of the kids," I
drew a long breath.

"I know, and by the way, I promise to let you know if you screw
up again, too," he smiled softly.

"Thanks," I had to laugh.

When he reached for me again, I let myself collapse into his arms. 
Relief washed over me as his arms wrapped around me. I hated 
fighting with him; I always have. I've never been good at 
confrontation. I've never been secure enough in any other 
relationship to stand up for myself. Even though I knew our 
relationship was strong enough to handle this conflict, the 
argument had made me queasy.

"I hate this, Mulder. I don't like the way it makes me feel."

"God, Scully, I felt like someone had punched me in the stomach,"
he tightened his grip on me. "I know this won't be our last
disagreement, but let's try to talk about it before it gets to 
this stage again. Okay?"

"I won't," I snuggled against his chest.

We stayed like that for several minutes; not moving, simply 
holding each other, until Mulder finally broke the silence. 

"I guess I messed up Jordan's punishment."

"Well, he did seem to be upset that you were disappointed
with him, so it'll probably all work out. I just don't want to
be seen as the bad guy," I explained my concern. "You completely
undermined my authority with him."

"I'll talk to him in the morning and tell him that I totally
agree with the punishment you gave him. Okay?"

"Okay," I sighed again. I wanted this fight to be over. I didn't
like the feeling it gave me in the pit of my stomach. In my heart
I knew that Mulder was used to being independent and having to
check with me about anything would not come easily to him. I was
positive that this was an issue that would come up again, but I 
could deal with each issue as it arose. I just wanted to make
Mulder aware of the significance of ruining the punishment I'd
given to Jordan.

"Does this mean we can kiss and make up now?" Mulder's fingers
were under my chin, tilting my face toward his.

"Please," I smiled up at him.

At the first touch of his lips against mine, I opened my mouth
to him. Sliding up his body, I tried to make myself as tall as 
I could. I was feeling like I couldn't kiss him deeply enough. 
His fingers were woven into my hair, holding my face still while
he plundered my mouth.

I had the vague sensation that we were moving, but my mind was
concerning itself more with the erection that was pressing 
into me. Ignoring the loud thump when we hit the wall, I ground 
my hips against him, silently reveling in the groan I'd elicited. 

When I felt Mulder's hands slipping under my shirt, I couldn't
help moaning into his mouth. Suddenly his knee was in between my
legs; forcing them apart, creating a wave of heat in my belly.
I was faintly aware that I'd been tugging his shirt out of his
pants and I'd begun clawing weakly at his back. The way I 
shuddered when he pushed my bra off my breasts without undoing it
brought a modicum of sense back into my head.  

"Upstairs," I managed to say into his mouth.

"Mmm," he backed up fractionally and then bent to pick me up. 
"If we aren't careful we're really going to screw up that boy."

"He may not even be back to sleep yet and I think once in a 
lifetime is more than enough for anyone to see their parents 
having sex," I chuckled, somewhat breathlessly.

"Yes, but we'll have to be all smoochy for him tomorrow, just to
reassure him," Mulder pointed out as he carried me up the stairs.

"No other reason?" I grinned.

"Well, maybe one other," his eyes were growing dark.

He set me down just inside our door and turned to lock it. When
he turned to face me again, I was unbuttoning my shirt. He put
his hand on mine to stop me.

"What?" I thought I had a good grasp on our plan.

"I know we started on the path toward some hot and sweaty make-up
sex, but I was wondering..." The way he was looking at me was
making my heart flutter.

"What were you wondering?" I was as breathless as I'd been 
downstairs.

"You know what we talked about in the parking garage, that shower
fantasy of mine?"

"Yeah," my stomach began to tingle as I realized what he was
asking.

"Would it be okay if we did that tonight?" his eyes were burning
into me. "I was thinking about it all day."

"What do you want me to do?" My already damp panties grew wetter.

"Go and get undressed in the bathroom. Leave the shower door
open so I can see you in the mirror. I fantasized about catching
you in the shower so many times when we were on the road," his
breathing had become altered.

Following his instructions, in no time at all, my head was under
the shower. I only gave my hair a cursory shampooing; it wasn't my 
hair that Mulder wanted to see me wash. When I opened my eyes 
again, I could see him watching me in the mirror. Pretending I 
hadn't, I reached for shower gel and my puff. Once I was suitably 
lathered I began to use my hands instead of the ball of netting.

Letting my hands linger on my breasts, I peeked to see what
Mulder was doing. When I saw him stroking the prominent bulge in
his pants, my stomach flip-flopped. Without realizing what I'd 
been doing, the sight of him had made me begin to squeeze my 
breasts and tug on my nipples. Over the rush of the water, I 
heard him groan.

Leaving one hand on my breast, I let the other skim slowly over
my stomach. With my eyes closed, I began to slide my fingers
between my thighs. Before I touched it, I could feel my clit
throbbing. There was something about fulfilling Mulder's
fantasies that had a powerful effect on me. Maybe it was that he
spent time thinking about me at work. How he managed to get any
work done was beyond me. Maybe it was the thrill of having this
effect on him or it could have been the idea that he'd been
thinking about me before I knew he loved me. Whatever the reason,
I was in heaven.

When I dragged my eyes open again, Mulder had moved closer to me.
His pants were undone, and his penis was in his hand. At the 
sight of him leisurely stroking himself, I couldn't help sighing. 
There was nothing leisurely about the way he was looking at me. 
My eyes slowly drifted shut again as my fingers circled my 
swollen flesh. Knowing that Mulder was right outside the shower 
door watching me was sending little jolts of pleasure through me. 
My fingers were barely grazing my clit, but the contact made me
gasp.

When I dared to look again, Mulder had stripped. His cock was
still in his hand and his eyes were focused on me. His mouth
opened slightly when he saw me looking and I could see his chest
heaving. With my eyes still locked on his, I continued to lightly
stroke myself.

"Scully," I saw the word on his lips.

I could feel my orgasm building. When Mulder took another step
closer to me, it only took one more swirl of my fingers to send
me flying.

"Jesus," I heard him groan through the white noise of my climax.

Once I stopped quaking, I opened my eyes to find him standing in the
now open shower door.

"You knew I was watching you."

From the tone of his statement I quickly figured out that Mulder
wanted to pretend that we were out on a case somewhere and not
romantically attached. I had no qualms about doing that for him.

"I saw you in the mirror."

"Why did you leave the shower door open?"

"I was hoping you'd come in here and see me." It was true. There
had been so many times I, too, had fantasized about this
situation.

"And you came because I was watching you."

Nodding, I reached out to take his hand. Mulder wasted no time.
His mouth was devouring mine in an instant; his hot, hard cock
pressing into my belly. I wanted it a little lower. Standing on
my tiptoes with my arms around his neck, I tried to lift myself
so I could put my legs around his waist. When he realized what I
was doing, he put his large hands under the curve of my ass and
lifted me up.

"Is this what you wanted?" he asked in a low, gravelly voice as
he lowered me onto his shaft.

"God, yes," I sighed as he gradually slid into me.

"I love you, Scully," he breathed as he began to take slow
strokes. "Never doubt that."

"I never have, not once," I knew he was no longer in the fantasy.

From the way his muscles were tensed, I could tell his orgasm
wasn't far off. I was desperate to feel him pulse inside of me,
desperate to rebuild that connection that had slipped away, even
if it was only a miniscule gap.

"Some part of me has always known that you've loved me. Maybe 
that's why I had all of those shuddering orgasms in more motel 
showers than I can remember."

"Unh -- Scully --" he grunted and began to tremble.

"I always hoped that you were stroking yourself while you thought 
about me -- thought about being deep inside of me, just like 
this," I was panting as I spoke.

"Yes, Christ, yes," he growled as he held my hips so he could thrust 
into me with abandon.

I loved watching his climax overtake him. The way his head was 
thrown back and the look of rapture on his face, in combination 
with his forceful final strokes sent me over the edge with him. 
Before he'd even recovered his breathing his lips were on mine, 
his tongue plunging into me. While he was ravaging my mouth, he 
had the presence of mind to reach behind me and turn off the 
water.

Stepping carefully out of the shower onto the towels I'd placed
there, Mulder gently set me down.

"Stay there," he turned to grab a towel off the rack.

While I stood still, he began toweling me off, stopping to kiss
my newly dried skin frequently. When he finished he dried himself
quickly and tossed the towel into the hamper. Then, once again, he
scooped me into his arms.

The bed was already turned down and waiting for us. After placing 
me carefully atop the sheet, he crawled in behind me.

"Did you really used to think about me while you showered?" he
asked as he pulled the covers over us.

"Yes, but not only then," I confessed, wiggling my bottom against 
him.

"I love you so much," he sighed into my hair.

"I know, and I love you, but you still have to break the news 
about the dog to my mother in the morning."

"Yeah, but your mom will take my side. She loves me," he mumbled
sleepily. 

I was about to debate it with him further, but from the soft snores
that had begun to tickle my ear, I knew it would be pointless.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I hadn't realized I'd been staring at my computer screen without
reading the report Skinner had sent me until the ringing of the
phone nudged me back to reality. It was Leigh, Andrew's
girlfriend. She'd begun to call the office a lot and it was
starting to get on my nerves. After telling her that Andrew was
out of the office and promising to have him call her, I hung up.
What could she possibly have to say that couldn't wait until he
got home? Scully and I were managing to raise two kids without
talking to each other every hour. I'd have to requisition a cell
phone for Andrew so I could stop playing secretary.

Although I only usually talked to Scully once a day from work, I
did spend a lot of time thinking about her. In fact, the phone
call had interrupted my pondering of recent events at our
house. Our first fight had scared me; I'd never seen Scully that
angry before. For a few minutes I'd thought I might have really
screwed things up, but it quickly had become clear to me that
Scully was only after some behavior modification and an apology.
I was happy to oblige. As bad as the fight was, I thoroughly
enjoyed the making up. I'm pretty sure Scully did too, because
she wanted to make up again this morning. She did get a little
irked when her mother arrived. As it turned out, I was right;
Maggie did take my side in the argument saying that a dog would
be good for the kids.

Thinking about our first fight made me think of other firsts in
our relationship. I'd asked Scully to give up a lot of the
traditional aspects of getting married when I proposed to her.
She'd never complained about having missed out on anything.
Anytime I'd broached the subject, she'd insisted I'd given her
more than she'd ever hoped for. There was still so much she'd
been cheated out of when we'd married quickly. Perhaps little by
little I could make those things up to her.

In an instant I decided what I wanted to do. I was sure I could
make it work. It was close to the time that I normally called
her, so I picked up the phone.

"Is this Dana Scully?" I asked in a nasally voice when she answered
the phone.

"May I ask who's calling?" she sounded hesitant.

"I'm not sure if you'd remember me," I kept my voice slightly
disguised, "but we work together."

"Oh?"

"Yes, my name is Fox Mulder and I was wondering if you'd consider
going out on a date with me?"

"Mulder! Is that really you? Why are you talking like that?" she
laughed.

"Oh, you *do* remember me?" I kept playing the game. "I've been
watching you for a long time and I think you're very pretty. If
you don't already have a boyfriend and you aren't busy on Friday,
I'd like to take you out."

"No, I don't have a boyfriend, but if I'm going to go out on
Friday night I'll need to make some arrangements," she reminded
me. "Oh, and I will have to ask my husband if it's okay for me
to date."

"I'll take care of all of the arrangements," I assured her.
"Assuming your husband doesn't mind, can I pick you up at 7?"

"What about the --?"

"I'll take care of it," I cut her off.

"Okay," she chuckled. "Is that the only reason you called?"

"Well," I switched back to my regular voice, "how is the puppy
doing?"

"He had one accident in the kitchen, but I managed to cut him
off and take him outside. Other than that he's been fine. Megan
is really enjoying him and he puts up with a lot from her. I've
been trying to teach her to be gentle, but it's really hard when
the dog keeps coming back for more abuse."

"And how are you doing?" I lowered my voice.

"I'm fine," she giggled. "That voice gives me chills, Mulder."

"Good chills, I hope," I chuckled.

"Very good chills," her voice had dropped now, too.

"What are your plans for the rest of the day?" I leaned back in
my chair and put my feet up.

"Well, once the kids are asleep, I was going to go do some
shopping. My mom said she'd stay."

"Are you buying anything interesting?" I smiled to myself.

"Mostly things I need for coming back to work; some pantyhose,
some new blouses. Is that interesting?"

"Not really," I muttered.

"Sorry, Mulder," she chuckled.

I was about to tell her what I'd like her to buy when Andrew
walked into the office. Since having a sexy conversation with my
wife while he was in earshot didn't seem like a good idea, I told
Scully I had to go and I hung up. As I was telling Andrew that
Leigh had called I couldn't help wondering if she wanted to have
a sexy conversation with him. I quickly dismissed that thought.
I'd heard enough of Andrew talking to her to realize their chats
weren't sexy at all. Unless, of course, they had a far different
concept of what was erotic.

The rest of the day dragged. I spent most of my time thinking
about other things that Scully might buy and how she would look
wearing them. Then with an hour left before I was due to leave,
I realized that if I didn't finish up this report, Scully would
feel obliged. By working like a man possessed I managed to
wrap up the report and send it off to Skinner. I didn't want
Scully to feel like she had to work tonight. I wanted to do some
more making up.

When I got home, instead of our usual rough housing in the
living room, Scully suggested I take both kids and the dog
outside until she had supper ready. From Jordan's squeal of
delight, I gathered that he concurred.

"How was school today?" I asked him once we were outside.

"I was a good boy today, I really was," he looked up at me, his
eyes wide.

"There was something I meant to talk to you about," I told him
as we were watching the dog cavorting in the yard. Megan kept
trying to keep up with him, but as soon as she was heading in the
right direction, the dog was off chasing a scent in a different
direction. It didn't seem to bother her at all; she'd simply
change her course. "Last night your mom was mad at me, not at
the dog. Do you know why?"

He shook his head solemnly.

"She was angry because she had given you some punishment and
when I brought the dog home, you forgot all about it. I should
have called her before I came home. If I'd known what had
happened at school, I wouldn't have given you the puppy last
night. Do you understand?"

"Are you going to take the puppy away?" His eyes began to well
up.

"No, Jordan, the puppy is staying. I'm trying to make sure that
you understand that your mom and I still aren't happy about what
happened yesterday. We expect you to be a good boy at school."

"I'll be good, I promise," his voice was earnest.

"Okay," I smiled. "Now I think we have something else to
discuss."

"What?"

"We're going to have to call this dog something. Have you thought
of any names?"

"Nope," he shook his head. "What should we call him?"

"You don't have any ideas?" I was surprised.

"Umm," he was watching the dog galloping around the yard.
"Fred?"

"Fred?" I had to laugh. "Is your heart set on that?"

"No. I thought you couldn't think of a name," he looked puzzled.

"I did think of one, but I thought you might have already thought
of something," I explained.

"We were just calling him puppy," he shrugged.

"So would you mind if we called him Guinness?"

"Guinness?" Jordan repeated. "What does that mean?"

"It's an Irish name and since he's a Irish Wolfhound, I thought
it would be a good name for him."

"Okay," Jordan smiled and started to chase after the dog.
"Guinness, c'mere Guinness. Guinness!"

When Scully called us in for dinner, Jordan immediately told her
the dog's name. Her eyebrow shot up instantly.

"You named the dog after a beer?"

"Well, Irish beer," I defended my choice.

"That may be the one thing in the entire world that you'll have
in common with Bill. There may be hope for the two of you yet."

"I'd be happy if he'd stop calling me names," I chuckled as I
sat down.

"Well Ahab's not around to disapprove so Bill thinks it's
his job," she winked at me.

"Do you think your father wouldn't have liked me?" I was
surprised.

"Well," she hesitated.

"What?"

"I didn't get my skepticism from my mother, Mulder," she took a
mouthful of salad.

"He would have judged me based on my beliefs?" I dug into my
steak.

"Probably initially, but your loyalty and determination would
have made a very good impression on him," she assured me once
she'd swallowed. "Remember, he did love Melissa and she had you
beaten hands down when it came to flakiness."

"Do you think Bill would love me if I reminded him of that?" I
laughed.

"I think you should start small. He's still not happy that we're
sharing a bed," she warned me.

"So sharing details wouldn't be a good idea," I teased.

"Always the daredevil, aren't you, Mulder?" she shook her head.

"What's life without a little excitement?" I lowered my voice.

"Well," she paused for a second. "If you'd like some excitement
tonight, you get the kids ready for bed."

"Do you have plans for me?" My pulse had quickened already.

"You should plan to be sitting on our bed at 9 o'clock. Can you
handle that?" she raised an eyebrow at me.

No longer capable of speech, I nodded. Although there were
only two and a half hours between supper and my surprise, I could
have sworn days passed. After we'd eaten I tidied up the kitchen
and then took Guinness and the kids to the backyard for a little
while. Once the dog was back in his kennel, it was time to start
the bedtime ritual. Since Scully had bought Megan a little chair
for the tub we'd started bathing them together. Outwardly it
seemed efficient, but cleaning up afterward took longer than the
bath. Then I had to give Megan her bottle while Jordan waited
patiently to be read his bedtime story.

By the time I was done, I thought I might be too tired for
Scully's scheme, but when I opened the bedroom door and
found the room lit by candles, I got my second wind. Scully was
nowhere to be seen, but the bathroom door was closed and I could
hear some rustling noises coming from the other side. The clock
on the night table read 8:58. I wasted no time moving to my side
of the bed and making myself comfortable. I was still in my work
clothes, but my tie was long gone, my collar open, and my sleeves
rolled up.

I'd no sooner settled in when the door opened and Scully peeked
out.

"Ready?" she smiled. All I could see was her head.

"Yup," I nodded. I was already breathless in anticipation, but
when Scully opened the door completely and walked into the
flickering candlelight, all hope of catching my breath was lost.
She was approaching the bed slowly, her hips swaying more than
was normal for her. I'm surprised I noticed her hips. My
attention was riveted on the lacy black thing she was barely
wearing. Patches of material that might or might not have been
designed to conceal her nipples were being held up by spaghetti
straps. Her midriff was covered by some netting that the thong
panty was attached to. As I studied the panty carefully I
realized that she must have done some strategic work with a razor
while she was in the tub. That thought on its own would have
been enough to get me going. Combining it with the vision of her
in that lingerie would have been risky had it not been for my
excellent health.

"Wow," I let out my breath.

"Do you like it?" she smiled a little shyly.

"Like it?" I laughed. "That would be a huge understatement," I
shifted around on the bed try to give my burgeoning erection more
room. "When did you buy that?"

"Today," she tugged at her bottom lip with her teeth, making more
of my blood rush south.

"I thought you were buying blouses and pantyhose."

"I changed my mind."

"I can't tell you how happy that makes me," I waggled my
eyebrows. "C'mere."

"Are you sure?" she lowered her voice. "This wasn't the only
thing I bought."

"There's more?" I almost choked.

"Would you like to see?" she asked coyly.

"Please." To my ears I sounded pathetic, but if Scully noticed
she didn't let on. Instead she turned and began to walk back
toward the bathroom. As she moved I was mesmerized by the effect
that the thong panty had on her ass; accentuating how round and
firm she was. Before she got to the door she looked over her
shoulder at me.

"You might want to make yourself more comfortable."

An eternity must have passed before I shook myself out of my daze
and took her advice. When she opened the door again, I was
sitting on the bed in my boxers. This time she was wearing a
sheer white robe. It hid nothing. Beneath it, all she was wearing
was a white thong. Scanning her body from top to bottom, I
discovered she was wearing extremely high heels. Although I
hadn't noticed the first time, I assumed she must have being
wearing them with the black thing. They seemed to be responsible
for that extra swing in her hips. As she got closer I could see
her nipples standing out against the sheer fabric.

"Do you like this too?" her voice was sultry.

"Yes," I squeaked.

"Good," she smiled and undid the single button that was holding
it closed. Letting it slip off her shoulders, she caught the robe
with one hand and then let it drag behind her as she walked
slowly back to the bathroom. While she was gone, I closed my eyes
and leaned my head back. By taking long slow breaths I hoped to
avert embarrassing myself by coming in my shorts.

When she emerged next any progress I'd made vanished. Her latest
offering was a pale purple bustier with matching thong panties.
There seemed to be a trend developing. In the frills around the
cups of the bustier I could see her nipples peeking out. There
was something about the apparent accidental nature of that sight
that made me light-headed.

"Another good choice?" she did a slow turn to give me the full
view. The cinching effect of this garment combined with the panty
made her waist seem even tinier than I knew it was. It was
an effect I was quite fond of. This time I couldn't keep my hand
off my cock.

"That good?" she chuckled.

"How many more are there?" I knew I wouldn't last much longer.

"Only one," she grinned.

"Thank God," I sighed.

As much as I wanted to touch myself while she was changing, I
wanted to touch her more. I had to clutch the bedspread to
prevent my brain from being overruled. I tried to concentrate
and relax by breathing slowly, but my attempt at biofeedback
seemed to have little or no effect.

Scully took much longer this time and I was about to see if she
was all right when the bathroom door opened. Before she took two
steps I think I burst a blood vessel. I'd had many a dream of
Scully dressed like this, but I never in a million years expected
to see it. There was something about her red hair and black
leather that almost made me succumb to spontaneous human
combustion. The teddy fit her like a glove and her breasts
were spilling out of the half-cups. This outfit, too, was tight
at the waist and cut very high at the hips. When she turned to
show me the back, I think I groaned. The blackness of the leather
highlighted the creaminess of her skin and my hands were aching
to touch her.

When she's completed her spin, I let my eyes travel up and down
her body again. Part of me wanted to gaze at her breasts and
the rest was captivated by the need to know how much she had
shaved. My blood was buzzing so loudly in my ears, it took me
a minute to realize that she'd been talking to me.

"Wha...?" I stammered.

"Do you want me to stay in this or would you prefer one of
the other outfits?" she was smiling broadly, apparently pleased
with her success.

"This one will be fine. Now c'mere," I growled.

I let her make it onto the bed before I pounced. I was on top
of her with my tongue halfway down her throat, my cock throbbing
against her hip. When I came up for air I was shocked to find that
I had Scully's hands pinned over her head.

"Sorry," I apologized quickly and released her.

"Huh?" she looked somewhat dazed herself.

"Your hands, I had them pinned," I explained breathlessly.

"I hadn't noticed," she grinned slyly.

"I was afraid I might be hurting you."

"Don't worry, Mulder, I'll be sure to let you know if you
go out of bounds," her eyes were twinkling.

Her words and her coy little smile made me lose control all
over again. Our kisses were almost brutal and I was squeezing her
breasts roughly. From the way she was moaning, I gathered I was
still well in bounds. When I slid my hand behind her to squeeze
her ass, it triggered something. All I could think about were
the panties she'd been wearing. When I pulled away from her and
sat on my heels, she blinked up at me in surprise.

"Let me see," I panted.

"See what?" she was confused.

"I want to see how much you shaved."

An 'oh' formed on her lips, but no sound came out. It was my turn
to be surprised when she reached between her legs and popped three
snaps. If I'd known they were there, I would have taken care of it
myself. Quickly pushing the leather up around her waist, I flopped
to my stomach to get a closer look. My pupils must have dilated
when I saw that all she'd left was a thin strip on her mons.

"Is that okay?" her voice was quiet.

Instead of answering her, I decided to show her just how okay
it was. Maybe it was too many years of triple X movies, but
there was something about the clean-shaven look that I found
incredibly arousing. I didn't ponder the question long, I'd seen
enough. I wanted to taste.

As I began to suck and lap at her voraciously, she started to
writhe. When I slid two fingers into her, she clenched her
muscles around them. She was very close, but I wanted her to
be in the same frenzy I was. I backed off and teased her by
nipping and sucking at her lips, only gracing her clit with a
flick of my tongue occasionally. I kept this pattern up until
she was clutching at my hair.

"Please," she panted.

"Please, what?" I barely lifted my lips from her.

"Please, Mulder," she whimpered.

"Say it," I flicked my tongue over her clit.

"Please let me come!"

I wanted to stay between her legs forever, but when she started
to beg me, I had to give in. It only took the tiniest pressure
from my tongue to start the waves and then she shuddered and
shook under me. Each time I thought she was done and I pushed
a little harder on her clit, the shuddering would begin again.
Finally, when I thought my tongue couldn't take any more, I
pressed on her swollen nub firmly with my thumb. Her back arched
off the bed and she went taut. Under my thumb, I could feel her
clit throbbing. When it finally subsided she went limp on the
bed.

After I shed my boxers, I crawled over her and kept myself
perched above her until she opened her eyes. As soon as she
focused on me, she grabbed me and pulled me into a kiss. When I
felt her legs wrapping around me, I needed no other sign. It
wasn't until Scully's body rocked beneath me that I realized how
forcefully I'd entered her. Before I had a chance to worry, her
lusty groan assured me she was still enjoying what I was doing.

Her orgasm had left her hot and slick, allowing me to move in and
out of her easily. Scully and I often had very passionate sex,
but in the three months we'd been married it had never been this
intense. I was pounding into her so hard her body was moving
toward the headboard. In the back of my mind, something was telling
me it was too much, but I couldn't stop myself. Surely Scully
wouldn't have been saying, "Yes, God, yes," if I was hurting her.
When I was taking my final strokes, I felt her body tense and
quake again. The pull of her internal muscles only magnified
the orgasm that was ripping through me.

It had to have been several minutes before I opened my eyes again.
Beneath me, Scully's eyes were still closed.

"Are you okay?" I whispered.

"Mmm," she sighed.

"You're sure I wasn't too rough," I caressed her pink cheek with
my thumb.

"Mulder," she opened one eye and squinted up at me, "I would
have been completely devastated if you hadn't reacted exactly like
that after all of the trouble I went to."

"You wanted me to do that?" I was amazed.

"I did," she smiled that coy little smile again.

"Wow," I shook my head, making her chuckle. "If you ever want that
reaction again, just saunter around the bedroom in one of those
thongs, and I'll be happy to be of service."

"Thanks for the heads up," she laughed.

My body was starting to feel heavy and I knew sleep was going
to overtake me soon, so I rolled off Scully and onto my back.

"What are you doing?" Scully's voice dragged me back to 
consciousness.

I opened my eyes to see her struggling out of her teddy.

"Falling asleep?" I yawned.

"Think again," she got off the bed and began to extinguish the
candles.

"What?" I had no idea what she was talking about.

"There's a puppy downstairs that needs to be taken outside before
we go to bed."

I knew better than to try to talk her into doing it, I'd made my
bed. She laughed as I moaned in misery and hauled myself up.

"Something wrong?" she asked innocently.

"Yeah," I sighed. "I hate it when you're right."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

With each passing day that week Scully had grown more and more 
annoyed that I wouldn't tell her where we were going on our date.
When I'd left for the office that morning she was almost frantic.

"Mulder, if I don't know where we're going, how will I know 
what to wear?"

"You always look nice," I'd grinned at her.

"Mulder!" her eyes had narrowed and I knew it was time to stop
joking.

"Dress casually -- where we're going, jeans will be fine."

"Jeans?" she'd almost sounded disappointed.

"It's our first date. I want to see if I really like you before
I spend any serious money on you," I'd laughed.

"You mean you want to see if I put out," she'd chuckled wryly.

"That too," I'd grinned and dashed out the door before she could 
connect with her right. She'd landed it before and it packed a 
wallop.

I spent the morning trying to finish up as much of the paperwork
as I could. I didn't want Scully to have to worry about it on the
weekend. If I hadn't had a department meeting that afternoon I 
would've managed to get it all done. As it was I cleared
up the majority of it. At eleven I made my daily phone call home.

"May I speak to Dana Scully, please?" I asked in my nasal voice
when she picked up the phone.

"This is she," Scully sounded a little hesitant.

"This is Fox Mulder calling. I just wanted to make sure we were
still on for our date tonight."

"Mulder," she sighed, but I could hear her smiling.

"I'm going to pick you up at 7, right?"

"Yes, but aren't you coming home for supper?"

"Well yeah, but I'm still going to pick you up. And I know it's 
not our normal routine, but could we have supper as soon as I get
home? I have some stuff I need to do before 7."

"Okay..." she sounded confused.

"Great -- I'll see you about five."

I had one other confirmation call to make to solidify my plans.
Once that was done I went for an early lunch and then actually
prepared for the meeting. Having read the agenda and brushed up
on some of the items, I was able to go into the meeting feeling 
satisfied with what I'd accomplished.

Usually I went into such meetings with a sense of impending doom.
It wasn't that anything significant or horrendous ever happened 
in these meetings, I usually just went in having no idea what was
going to be discussed. It was sort of like that recurring dream I 
used to have in high school where I'd get to school and not be
able to remember my locker combination and then realize in horror 
that I was naked, too. Taking a few minutes to look at the agenda
left me feeling in control. It seemed Scully was starting to rub 
off on me.

Thinking about Scully rubbing against me began to have other 
affects so I had to quickly push those thoughts out of my mind.
The agenda of the meeting easily changed my mood and by actually
focusing on what was being discussed, the meeting went by fairly
quickly. Surprising everyone in attendance, I even participated.
Skinner was shocked enough to stop me after the meeting.

"Mulder!" he called as I was about to walk through the door.

"Sir?" I stopped and turned to face him.

"I was surprised to see you here. I was expecting you to send,
uh,..." 

"Agent Guernsey?" I offered.

"Right," he nodded. "I didn't expect to see you here. Why the
sudden interest in department meetings?"

"Actually I was more interested in not scaring Andrew out of
the FBI so early in his career," I lowered my voice.

"Scaring him?" Skinner wrinkled his brow.

"These meetings are enough to make anyone consider flipping 
burgers an exciting career option," I chuckled. 

"It's all part of the job, Agent," Skinner didn't seem amused.

"I was kidding, sir. Scully reminded me about the meeting this
morning and asked me to come and take notes -- something about 
staying in the loop," I shrugged.

"Right," Skinner nodded. "She starts again on Monday," he said
as if he was explaining it to himself.

"It'll be nice to have her back," I smiled at the thought of
having Scully back in the office with me again. It would be
different with Andrew there, but at least Scully would be there
too.

"Mulder," Skinner chuckled, "You see her all the time."

"No I don't," I shook my head. "I don't see her all day."

"You've got it bad," Skinner laughed and walked away shaking his 
head.

He obviously didn't understand that I didn't see Scully now as
much as I used to. We used to see each other all day at work and
then almost every night after work too. If we didn't see each 
other we were on the phone. I didn't have it that bad, I was
just used to seeing her all of the time, that's all. But before
I could explain that to him he was gone, not that it was any of
his business anyway.

After shaking off my boss's comments I headed back to my
office. Andrew was sitting in front of my desk poring over a
document.

"New case?" I asked as I sat down.

"Uh, no," he folded it up and tucked it into his jacket pocket.

"Oh," I shrugged and fired up my computer. "Looked official."

"Mmm," he mumbled. "How was the meeting?"

"It was the most excitement I've had in the last -- 2 hours."

"Boring, huh?"

"Yeah, but Scully wanted me to go. I'm just going to type
up my notes and then head home. We've got big plans tonight," I
smiled at him.

"Okay, it's a pre-nup," he sighed.

"I beg your pardon," I stopped typing to look at him.

"The document, it's a pre-nup," he clarified.

"Oh," I was a little taken a back. "I didn't realize you were 
getting married. Congratulations!" I held out my hand to shake 
his.

"Yeah, I asked her two weeks ago," he nodded. "Yesterday
she said yes, but handed me that."

"Her family is wealthy?" I was curious.

"No."

"Then why does she want a pre-nup?" I was confused.

"If we divorce she wants a guaranteed income," he pulled the
paper out of his pocket to look at it again.

"Okay," I shook my head and began to type again. "Where is
she expecting that to come from?"

"My family has money," Andrew's voice was muted.

"I see," I glanced over at him. "I guess you have some thinking
to do."

"Not really," he took the paper and tore it up. "It's a moot 
point. My family would never have agreed to it. I'm just 
surprised that I didn't see it sooner."

"See what?" 

"That she was only interested in my money," he sighed again as
he tossed the scraps of paper into the garbage.

"At least you found out now," I pointed out. 

"She's not going to take this well," he tugged at his bottom
lip with his teeth. 

"I don't think I'd be worrying about that," I raised my eyebrows
at him.

"I'm not sure how to tell her," his fingers were drumming on his 
leg. "And then what? She has no place to go. She followed me 
here."

"Look Andrew, she's the one that was looking for the pre-nup. 
She brought this on herself," I reminded him.

"I know," his shoulders slumped. "I guess I'll move out."

"So now you're going to let her put you out of your home?" I
was amazed.

"I can't put her out on the street," he picked at his shoe.

"And where will you go?" I tried to play the pragmatist.

"I'll get a hotel for now," he suggested.

"And then what?" 

"Then I'll look for a place of my own."

"Good thing your parents have money," I chuckled.

We fell silent as I continued to peck away at the keyboard. I
couldn't help thinking about how lucky I was to have someone
like Scully. It had never occurred to me how rare unconditional
love is. Thinking about her made me smile to myself.

"What?" Andrew interrupted my thoughts.

"What what?" I held up my hands.

"You sighed."

"Did I?" I smiled. "Just thinking about my wife."

"Yes, you're very fortunate," he nodded. "Dana is beautiful and 
smart and one of the nicest people I've ever met."

"And taken," I reminded him, making him laugh. But his words
only reinforced how lucky I was feeling. His comments about
Scully being nice reminded me about how ticked off she'd been
that I'd been giving Andrew a hard time.

"Hey," I spoke up suddenly, making him jump. "You could stay 
with us until you get a place."

"I wouldn't want to put you out," he shook his head.

"No, we've got a spare room. And besides, Scully would kick my
ass if I let you go to a hotel," I informed him.

"Shouldn't you ask her first?" he cocked his head at me.

"I'll tell her at supper. I'm sure she'll be fine with it," I 
assured him.

"Thanks, Mulder," he reached out to shake my hand. "I really 
appreciate this."

"It's no problem. But how are you going to get out to Arlington?"
I remembered that he'd taken the bus to the barbecue.

"In my car," he shrugged.

"I thought you didn't have a car. You took the bus last time," I 
furrowed my brow.

"Leah had it that day, so I took the bus," he smiled sheepishly.

"And you're not going to leave that for her too?" I laughed.

"Uh, no," he grinned.

"You know, Andrew," I began after a few seconds, "I'd make sure
I got the name changed on the lease if I were you."

"Good idea," he nodded. "I'll call my lawyer."

After a bit of cajoling, I convinced Andrew to take off early to
deal with his life. Shortly thereafter I left to enjoy mine.

Supper was ready when I got home. Maggie was still there -- I'd
asked her to stay to sit with the kids. I could have asked our
neighbor, but I wasn't sure how late we'd be out. Throughout the
meal Scully kept giving me puzzled looks. I loved that she had no
idea what I was planning. When we were finished I took a few 
minutes to play with Megan and Jordan before I dashed upstairs 
to change.

"Bye," I grinned as I pulled on my shoes.

"Fox," Maggie laughed at me. "You've had Dana in a tizzy all
day."

"Why?" I played innocent.

"Because you won't tell her where you're taking her on this 
date," Maggie sighed in exasperation.

"Date?" I feigned shock. "You have a date tonight, Scully? Is
there something I don't know about our marriage?"

"See, mom," Scully shook her head. "See what I have to put
up with?"

"Have fun on your date," I gave Scully a quick kiss. "And
don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"I don't go that far on a first date," Scully tossed her head.

"First date?" Maggie looked confused.

"We never actually dated, mom. Our relationship just sort of
happened," Scully tried to explain her way out of what she'd 
said. As far as her mother knew, Scully and I had been together
for a while before we got married. I doubted that she now wanted
to explain to her mother that we'd fibbed about that part.

"I see," she nodded. "So you're making up for lost time?" she
smiled at me.

"Well, apparently Scully is," I tried to look hurt.

"Get out of here, Mulder," Scully pushed me toward the door.

"And now she's kicking me out. Why is it the husband's always 
the last to know?"

"Argh!" Scully growled and thrust her hands into her hair.

"Bye," I grinned again as I opened the door. When I left
Maggie was laughing and Scully's cheeks were getting red.

It was six o'clock when I pulled into the Gunmen's alley. Earlier
in the week I'd arranged to borrow the van. None of them were
thrilled about letting me use Ruby for something as mundane
as a date, but I threatened to sic Scully on them if they
didn't. When it occurred to Frohike what we might be using the
van for, he agreed instantly. I could hear the wheels is his
perverted little brain spinning. When I picked up the keys
I didn't tell him that all he'd get pictures of was some necking.
How stupid did he think I was?

Before I went home again, I stopped off at a car wash to clean
up the interior. It wasn't filthy, but it was hardly Scully 
clean. After spending half an hour vacuuming and cleaning I
drove home. When I turned onto our street I was surprised to
see an unfamiliar car in the driveway. I had planned to just
honk from the curb, but I decided I should see who was at the
house.

"Hey," I called when I opened the door.

"Hi, Mulder," Scully called from the kitchen. "We have company."

It was then I saw the suitcases against the wall of the foyer.
I'd forgotten to tell Scully about Andrew.

"Shit," I muttered under my breath and immediately wondered how 
mad she was.

When she walked out of the kitchen her eyebrows were raised, but
she didn't look that angry. 

"I'm sorry," I whispered as soon as she was close enough to hear. 
"I meant to tell you, but I was thinking about something else.
He needed a place to stay because --"

"That's okay, Mulder. He already explained. He just about left 
again when he realized you hadn't said anything, but my mom
convinced him to stay. She's feeding him," Scully chuckled.

"Thanks," I breathed and bent to press another kiss against her
lips. "I'll just apologize and then we can go, right?"

"Yeah, I wasn't sure if we should, but Andrew insisted. He said
if he felt like he was interfering, he'd leave."

Good man, I thought to myself. After I apologized, I left Andrew
in Maggie's capable hands and escorted my date out to our love
mobile.

"The van?" Scully laughed as soon as she saw it. "Is there a 
mattress in the back?"

"No, but I could get one if you like," I grinned.

"I'll pass," she looked at me sideways.

"No movies for Frohike?" I asked as I opened her door.

"Is there a camera in here?" she gasped and looked around.

"Frohike knew why I was borrowing it. What do you think?" 

"Part of me wants to torture him, Mulder," Scully lowered 
her voice when I'd walked around and opened my door.

"And that's the part I love the most," I waggled my eyebrows at 
her.

"Does that seat move back?" she asked as soon I sat down.

"Yeah," I grinned and pushed it back as far as it would go. I'd
barely straightened up when Scully climbed onto my lap. Her 
hands were in my hair, her tongue was in my mouth and I was in
heaven. As she continued to kiss me she wiggled around on my
lap and moaned into my mouth. Her kissing me alone would have
been enough to get me going, but her little act had my cock
throbbing. I couldn't imagine what it would do to Frohike.

"Okay," she pulled away from me, breathing hard.

"Are you sure you don't want to torture him some more?" I kissed
her chin.

"Maybe later," she smiled slyly as she scrambled off my
lap and sat down. "We should go before my mother comes to 
see why we haven't left yet."

"Probably," I grinned and started the engine.

"So are you going to tell me where we're going now?" she
asked as soon as we were moving.

"Nope," I grinned and re-adjusted my jeans, trying to make
myself more comfortable.

"Has anyone ever told you that you're a pain in the ass, Mulder?"
Scully glared at me.

"Yup."

"Fine," she sighed. "Surprise me."

"That was the general idea," I flashed a smile at her.

"How about a hint," she lowered her voice and her eyelids.

"That's cheating," I warned as I turned onto the ramp that led
to I-66.

"I-66? Where are we going? Work?" she rolled her eyes.

"Nope," I informed her brightly. "But I will give you a hint. I'm
taking you someplace that I think you've slept before."

"That's a big help. Where haven't I slept?"

"Touche," I chuckled. "Okay, I'll try to narrow it down. You
probably slept there in pajamas."

"I guess that narrows it down a bit," she smiled.

"And you weren't in a bed," I grinned.

"I wasn't in a bed?" she repeated. "Did you see me?"

"No."

"Then how do you know?" she furrowed her brow.

"I'm not positive, but I'd be willing to put money on it," I was
enjoying myself thoroughly.

"This is worse than not knowing," she huffed.

"I love you," I beamed at her.

"Shut up, Mulder," she tried to sound indignant but she couldn't
stop herself from smiling.

After that she stopped trying to figure out where we were going 
and began to tell me about her day with the kids. She was in the 
middle of telling me how Megan had shown her displeasure with
her lunch by tossing it onto the floor when I pulled off the
Beltway.

"Okay, now I have absolutely no idea where we're going. We're
in the middle of nowhere," she looked around.

"I just thought it would be nicer not to take the highway and we 
have plenty time," I explained. 

"It's been a while since I've been on a country drive -- for
pleasure," she remembered to add. "This is nice. Thanks, Mulder,"
she smiled at me.

Suddenly the distance between us seemed like a yawning chasm. I
wanted to touch her, to hold her hand, something.

"There is only one problem with this van, Mulder. The seats
are too far apart," she smiled softly at me.

"Stop that!" my stomach flip-flopped.

"Stop what?" her eyes widened.

"Stop thinking the same thing I am. We haven't been married long
enough," I winked at her.

"Seven years as partners may have helped a bit," her smile 
broadened.

"Just a bit," I chuckled. "But I think you knew everything I
was thinking two minutes after we met."

"Only about some things," she smiled.

"We got there, Scully. It took us a while, and the ride was
bumpy, but we got there," I wanted to hold her again.

"Even though the ride was rough, I was right where I wanted
to be," her face was serious. "I prayed it would smooth out 
eventually, and it did."

She turned to look out of the window. I knew she didn't want me 
to see the emotions on her face. Before I could tell her that
I felt the same way she screeched and I almost lost control of
Ruby.

"Oh my God, Mulder. Pull over."

With my heart racing, I pulled the van onto the shoulder.

"What?" my hands were shaking.

"Back up," she was craning her neck to see behind us.

After putting the van into reverse, I backed up until we pulled 
in front of a house.

"Okay, stop," she looked at me excitedly and hopped out of the 
van before I'd come to a complete stop.

"What?" I got out to follow her once I had the van in park.

She said nothing, she just pointed to a sign in front of the 
house.

"The house is for sale," I nodded slowly.

"It's gorgeous isn't it?" her face was alight.

"You scared me to death because you like this house?" I was 
incredulous.

"Sorry," she looked at me apologetically and briefly.

All I could do was reach for her hand and give it a squeeze. The 
next I knew she was pulling me toward the driveway.

"What are you doing, Scully?"

"I want to see inside," she looked at me like I was a moron.

"Scully, you can't just go barging in," I tried to slow her 
down.

"I was going to knock," she shook her head.

Before I knew it Scully had talked the owner, Mrs. Patel, into
showing us the house.

"We're having an open house tomorrow, but I don't see the harm,"
she'd agreed.

The house was older and Victorian in style. The rooms were large
and had hardwood floors. There were five bedrooms upstairs and
two baths, like we already had. Scully couldn't see all of it 
fast enough. She practically dragged me from room to room.

"What do you think, Mulder?" she asked once we were back
in the kitchen, looking out into the back yard. Mrs. Patel
stood in the entrance of the kitchen while we talked.

"It seems nice," I smiled.

"Nice? I love it!" her eyes were dancing.

"I noticed," I chuckled. "But I didn't know we were looking."

"I wasn't really, but I don't really want to live in that house
forever. I was staying there for Jordan," she explained.

"I was never all that comfortable there, either," I confessed.

"Well, they are having an open house tomorrow. Why don't we bring
him by to see the house without saying anything first. See what
he thinks?" she suggested.

"He's only four, Scully. I think he'd get over it even if he 
didn't want to move," I reminded her.

"I know, but I'd rather he felt like he had some control," she
squeezed my hand.

"Let's talk about this in the van," I lowered my voice.  Scully
looked a little confused, but nodded in agreement. "What time is 
that open house tomorrow, Mrs. Patel?"

"It starts at one. Are you going to come back?" she smiled.

"Yes, we're going to bring the kids back to look at the house,
too," I smiled.

After saying our thank yous and good-byes, Scully and I walked 
back out to the van. Once we were settled, Scully turned to me.

"What did you want to talk about?" she sounded concerned.

I paused for a moment before I began to speak. I wasn't sure
how to tell her what I was thinking, so I just started to talk.

"Look, Scully, I know you're concerned about Jordan and how
changes might affect him, but you can't let him control our
lives. If you want to buy the house, we'll buy the house."

"I know, Mulder, but if the idea really upsets him..." she
didn't sound convinced.

"I doubt it will, and don't you think it would be easier on him
to move now rather than later? Once he starts school and makes
friends, moving will be harder on him," I wished we weren't 
having this discussion in the van. I was having a hard time 
judging her reactions.

"True," she said softly.

"And I really don't want him getting the idea that he can control
major decisions. If we do that, we'll be creating a little 
monster."

"I know," she sighed. "Can we at least break it to him gently?"

"Of course," I chuckled. "We could bring him tomorrow, see what 
he thinks and then tell him that we are thinking of buying."

"Yeah," she agreed and then fell silent. We drove on in silence 
for a few minutes. Suddenly Scully drew a quick breath. "Mulder? 
Do you think I coddle Jordan too much?"

I quickly looked in the rearview mirror, and seeing no one behind
me, I pulled off the road again. Scully stared at me in surprise.

"C'mere," I patted my lap when I'd stopped the van and moved
the seat back.

Without pausing for a second, she popped her seatbelt and 
immediately got into my lap. I put my arms around her and held
her tightly. 

"I never meant to imply that you were coddling him, Scully. 
Jordan needed your love and attention. I think it's the only
thing that got him through this," I pushed her hair out of her
face to look at her. She smiled at me, but her eyes still looked
sad.

"But you think it's time for me to stop coddling him," her
weak smile faded.

"Not exactly. I think that it's time for Jordan to learn that
his sense of security comes from us, not from a house," I tried
to explain what I was thinking.

"I guess that makes sense," she admitted and leaned more heavily
against me.

"You moved a lot when you were a kid and you felt secure, didn't
you?" I kissed the top of her head.

"Okay, Mulder, you've made your point," she chuckled. "And you're
right. Jordan should feel attached to us, not a place."

"I'm right?" I lifted my head and leaned back to look at her.

"Yes, Mulder, you're right," she rolled her eyes at me.

"You admit I'm right? My life is now complete," I grinned and
gave her a quick kiss.

"So are you going to tell me where we're going now?" she changed 
the subject.

"Nope," I quickly stole another kiss. "But I'll show you." I 
pointed to the northeast.

"What am I looking at?" she turned in my lap.

"Over there," I gave her chin a soft push in the right direction.

In the setting sun it was hard to see, but the big screen was
visible over the wooden fence.

"A drive-in?" she laughed. "God, I haven't been to a drive-in 
since..."

"Since you were a kid?" I offered.

"Yeah, and my mother would make us put our pajamas on before we
left. I never even used to make it through the kid's movie," she
chuckled and snuggled close to me again.

"Somehow that doesn't surprise me," I laughed, "But try to stay 
awake tonight, okay?"

Ten minutes later I had the van parked toward the back of the
drive-in's lot and Scully and I were both fiddling with 
speakers. 

"Want some popcorn?" I turned to her after I had my speaker
hooked onto my window.

"Sure," she smiled. "Want me to come with you?"

"No, you stay here and guard Ruby," I winked at her. "Want 
something to drink, too?"

"Yeah, diet whatever, please."

By the time I got back the previews had already started. Judging
by the number of cars, I shouldn't have worried about parking at 
the back.

"I didn't even see what was playing," Scully announced when I
got back into the van.

"Apollo 13."

"I guess that explains why no one is here," she laughed.

"I didn't come here for the movie," I explained as I handed
her the soda.

"Oh yeah?" she arched an eyebrow at me. "Then why did you come
here?"

"For the drive-in experience," I told her seriously. "The movie
is irrelevant."

"I see," she nodded her head slowly. "And what exactly is
involved in the 'drive-in experience'?" she made quotes with
her fingers.

"This is it, Scully. Being in a car, eating popcorn, bad 
sound..."

"That's it?" she grinned slyly at me.

"What else would there be?" I tried to sound innocent.

"I don't know," she shrugged. "I always thought making out was 
a big part of the 'drive-in experience'," she made the quotes 
again.

"Well that might be your experience," I tried to sound aghast.

"Okay, if you don't want to," she took a sip of her soda and
looked up at the screen.

I watched her staring intently at the screen for a few seconds.
I could tell she was trying not to smile. I was waiting patiently
for her to put her drink down, but she didn't. And I could see 
her lips curving up around the straw. She was teasing me on 
purpose and I wasn't going to stand for it.

"Can I have a sip of your soda, Scully?"

"You hate diet drinks," she looked at me askance.

"I try them every now and then to see if my opinion has changed."
It sounded perfectly rational to me.

She looked like she didn't believe me for a second, but she 
handed me the drink anyway.

Without taking a drink, I opened the door of the van and tossed
the cup onto the ground.

"Mulder!" Scully gasped. "Why did you do that?"

"It was distracting you," I told her calmly.

"Distracting me? From what?" she'd turned in her seat to face 
me.

"From me," I reached out quickly and pulled her onto my lap.

My lips were on hers before she could protest. If she'd been 
planning to resist, she must have changed her mind immediately. 
She practically melted in my arms. As our tongues began to slip 
into each other's mouths, I closed my hand over her breast.
Through the fabric of her shirt and bra, I could feel her
nipple harden. I groaned into her mouth. She must have felt
my erection against her hip because she was rubbing against
me.  

"Don't you want to watch the movie?" she panted when we 
broke for air.

"Movie? What movie?" I began to nuzzle her neck. 

Talk of a movie made something click in my brain. In an instant 
I had a flash of a little man wearing a leather vest, eating 
popcorn and leering at a TV screen. My hand fell away from 
Scully's breast and I straightened up. 

"Goddamn Frohike and his mini cameras."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was after midnight when Mulder pulled Ruby into the driveway.
I'd spent the rest of the time at the drive-in on Mulder's lap,
but since we hadn't wanted to provide Frohike with masturbatory
material for the next ten years we'd had to restrain ourselves.
Mulder's hands had still wandered and I hadn't been able to
resist the occasional kiss, but we'd definitely held ourselves
back. Somehow I had the feeling that it would still end up being
enough fuel for Frohike.

I was surprised to see a light on in the living room when we got
home. I'd told my mother not to stay up, so I assumed Andrew must
be a night owl like Mulder. In case he was like Mulder in other
ways and had fallen asleep on the couch with the TV on we crept
into the foyer and peeked into the living room. There we found my
mother sitting on the couch with a cup of tea in her hand. A
black and white movie was flickering on the TV. Guinness jumped
down from her lap and trotted over to greet us.

"What are you doing up, Mom? Where's Andrew?" I asked as I bent
down to pat the dog.

"I wanted to wait until you were here before I went to sleep and
Andrew is upstairs sleeping," she explained quietly.

"You were supposed to take the bed," I protested.

"The poor boy just broke up with his fiance, Dana. He needs
a good night's sleep," she defended her decision.

I could feel Mulder standing behind me, his hand on my hip and
the heat of his body warming my back. Guinness was sitting on my
feet.

"Mom," I sighed, "He's young, he could sleep on a clothesline."

"I already had this debate with him and won," she paused to take
a sip of her tea. "And I'm not so old that I can't sleep on the
couch," she continued dryly.

"You won't win, Scully," I could feel Mulder's breath against my
ear.

"Good thing I have you to fight with then," I turned my head to
grin at him.

"You don't win all the time," he argued.

"Enough of the time," I shrugged and turned back to my mother.
"How were the Jordan and Megan? Did they go down all right?"

"Megan was a little angel, but I had a hard time getting Jordan
to settle. We made brownies after you left and between him and
Andrew they're all gone."

"You made brownies and didn't save any for me?" Mulder cried
behind me. "I'm going to have a word with Andrew. Kicking my
mother-in-law out of her bed is one thing, but scarfing my
brownies..."

"Now, Fox," my mother shook her head. "Don't worry. I can make
more."

"He was just teasing, Mom," I chuckled.

"Was not," he pouted.

"I should have warned you about Jordan and sugar, Mom. He gets
a bit wound up," I continued after giving Mulder a poke with my
elbow.

"He fell asleep eventually. I read to him for a while and then
Andrew took over. He was really good with him. Apparently he
has a big family -- lots of nieces and nephews," she explained.

"That was nice of him," I poked Mulder in the ribs again.

"He still ate my brownies," Mulder grumbled.

"We're going to head up to bed," I ignored his grousing. "I'll
just grab the monitor," I eased the dog of my foot.

"I'll keep it," she waved me off. "You two sleep in."

"What about you?" I shook my head.

"I never get more than 6 hours these days anyway. You go ahead,"
she nodded toward the stairs.

"Fine," I gave in. "Does the dog need to go out before I put him
in his crate?"

"He was just out and he'll be fine with me, won't you, Guinness?"
she patted the couch beside her. Finally leaving my feet, the dog
loped over and jumped onto the couch, his tail wagging furiously.

"You're only supposed to spoil the kids, Mom, not the dog," I
ran my fingers through my hair in frustration.

"He's fine," she began to scratch his head.

"Okay, we'll see you in the morning. Sleep well," I smiled,
deciding that Mulder was right. I wasn't going to win, so I
might as well stop trying.

"Good night, Maggie," Mulder was already heading to the stairs.

"Sweet dreams," my mother smiled as I turned to follow him.

As soon as we got upstairs I went straight to the bathroom.
Mulder was sitting on the edge of the bed when I came out.

"Why do I bother?" I asked as I walked over to him.

"Dunno," he shrugged and put his arms around my waist. "You
never win," he smiled up at me.

"And I never learn either," I smiled back and leaned in to kiss
him.

Our kiss deepened immediately and I found myself thrusting my
tongue into his mouth. His hands had slipped under my shirt and
he was working on the clasp of my bra. With my tongue still in
his mouth I began to work on the buttons of my shirt.

When I dropped my shirt, Mulder pulled back to look at me. My bra
was hanging loosely in front of me. Reaching out quickly, he
pulled it off and threw it on top of my shirt. Then his dark eyes
slowly scanned me from head to foot. I grew warmer under his
intense gaze.

"Have I told you recently how beautiful you are?" he breathed, and
then pressed a hot kiss against my stomach.

"Yes," I whispered. Mulder didn't let a day pass without telling
me how much he loved me or how beautiful he thought I was. He
never left any doubt in my mind about how he was feeling. Taking
his head in my hands, I tilted his head back so I could kiss him
again. "I love you," I paused to tell him, and then began to
practically devour him.

As I was busily ravaging his mouth I felt him begin to undo my
pants. Soon I was standing completely naked in front of him. He
pulled out of the kiss and pulled me closer. I melted against him
when his lips closed over my nipple. It was then I noticed that
he was still dressed.

"Hey!" I pulled away. "Your turn," I reached for his hand.

"Huh?" he looked at me in confusion, but held his hand out to me.

"Lose the clothes," I explained as I helped him to his feet.

Grinning, he pulled his shirt over his head. I sat down on the
bed and went to work on his jeans. As soon as they were at his
thighs I became completely distracted by the bulge in his boxers.

"Mmm," I sighed and began to stroke him through the material.

He drew a sharp breath and his hips reflexively moved toward me.
I loved the way Mulder reacted to my touch. I loved it more when
we weren't separated by anything so I pushed his boxers down
until they were stopped by his jeans.

"God, Scully," he murmured when I closed my hand around his
shaft.

"You like that?" I smiled up at him as I began to move my hand
up and down his length.

"Unh," he nodded. His eyes were closed and his lips were slightly
parted. It was his pleasure look. It created a tingle between my
legs whenever I saw it. After running my hand over him a few more
times, I decided it was time to move on.

Holding his cock against his body, I let the tip of my tongue
glide lightly from base to tip. He shivered in response. Starting
at the base again, I repeated the same motion, but used the flat
of my tongue instead. When I reached the tip of his cock there
was a glistening drop of lubricant waiting for me. After quickly
licking it off, I let him fall away from his abdomen. While
holding him still with one hand, I began to kiss the head of
his cock gently.

His hands were twitching by his sides. I knew he wouldn't be able
to keep them still much longer. When I took him into my mouth his
knees buckled slightly and he put one hand on my shoulder. The
other hand went to my head and he rested it lightly there. I knew
he was resisting the urge to control my head, to move me the way
he wanted me to. Sometimes I wished he would just let go and do
it. I wanted him to feel free with me -- feel free to just do
what felt good. But for some reason Mulder felt that would be
inappropriate. I'm not sure why.

I took my free hand and placed it on top of his and pressed down.
"Show me how you want me to move," I whispered after I'd let his
cock slide out of my mouth.

"Nnn," he shook his head, his eyes still closed.

"Why not?" I asked, my voice louder.

"Scully," he shook his head. "I couldn't do that."

"Does it bother you when you're going down on me and I hold your
head when I start to come?" I challenged him.

"That's different," he opened his eyes to look at me.

"How?" I kept gently stroking his cock.

He opened his mouth to speak, but changed his mind. "Why do you
want to do that?" he finally asked after a few seconds of silence.

"Because *you* want to," I explained softly.

"I respect you too much to do that, Scully," he cupped my face as
he spoke.

"You respect me too much to enjoy yourself? To do what comes
naturally to you?" I cocked my head in hand.

"What if I hurt you?" his eyes grew sad.

"Then I'll stop you, okay?" I bargained. "Mulder, please let me
decide what I will and won't do. If I don't like it, I'll stop
you."

"Are you sure?"

"Very sure," I promised him. "I hate to see you holding back. You
wouldn't want me to hold back, would you?"

"But," he hesitated.

"But what?"

"I want to make love to you tonight."

"Mulder, you never let me bring you to orgasm this way," I
complained.

"I do too," he countered.

"Once or twice," I shrugged. "You make me come all the time.
Please let me."

"Scully," he pouted.

"Mulder," I lowered my voice. "We get to sleep in tomorrow. We
can make love in the morning."

"Oh, that's right," his eyes darkened again. "And you'll stop me
as soon as you don't like it?"

"Cross my heart," I grinned.

"Okay," he nodded.

"You know, Mulder," I began to chuckle. "I'd put money on the fact
that this debate isn't going on in any other bedrooms tonight."

"Probably not," he winked at me.

Smiling up at him again, I bent to take him into my mouth again.
Once I began to suck the head of his cock lightly and let my
tongue play around the rim I felt his hand begin to fidget on
my head. I put my free hand on his testicles and caressed them.
He groaned and his hand became heavier on my head. I didn't move
to take any more of his cock into my mouth. I was going to make
him do it. It only took him a few seconds to realize what I was
doing. He groaned and weaved his fingers into my hair. Then with
the slightest amount of pressure he slowly pushed my head
forward.

Relaxing my jaw, I let him slide his cock into my mouth while
I continued to gently massage his balls. Then I moved my other
hand and rested it on his thigh. As he pulled out again slowly,
I let my tongue dance along the underside of his shaft. He moaned
and thrust into my mouth more quickly. His reaction sent a wave
of heat right to my center and I groaned against his hardened
flesh. I loved that I could make him feel this way.

"Scully," he panted as he pulled out again.

I'd thought that as soon as he was given permission, he'd let
go and he did. As he continued to guide my head, I caressed his
thigh to assure him that I was okay. It seemed to work, because
he began to thrust faster. Before long, I couldn't use my tongue
anymore; he was moving too quickly. I pressed my lips as firmly
around him as I could and squeezed his balls gently. He shuddered
making me moan again. That was all he needed. He grunted and
thrust into my mouth one final time. I felt his cock pulse
against my tongue and my mouth was filled with his salty
ejaculate. As soon as I'd swallowed, he pulled out of my mouth,
collapsed to his knees and pulled me on top off him.

"Scully," he kissed me softly. "Are you sure that was okay?"

"Want some proof?" my voice was raspy.

Without waiting for affirmation, I took his hand and put it
between my legs. When he felt how wet I'd become he growled,
deep in his chest, making me even wetter. He stood up, taking me
with him and lay me on the bed.

"Scoot up," he instructed after he'd kicked off his jeans.

I scrambled further up the bed and waited breathlessly to see
what he was going to do. I had a fairly good idea, but with
Mulder you couldn't always tell. As I'd anticipated he plunked
down on the bed and settled himself between my legs. He didn't
waste any time. I felt two of his long fingers slide into me and
his mouth covered my clit almost immediately. I reacted instantly.
My hips were off the bed and I murmured his name. I'd expected
him to make me come quickly. He knew what worked for me and he'd
told me that he loved to make me come fast and hard. I was
surprised when he started to slow down. I was even more surprised
when he slid his fingers out of me and lifted his mouth off of
me.

Before I could lift my head to look at him to see if anything was
wrong I felt the flat of his hand on my sex. I couldn't help
pressing myself up against him. He slowly moved his hand up over
the curve of my mons and the slid it down again. He repeated the
same motion several times and each time he passed my clit
the sensation became stronger.

"Does that feel good?" his voice was gruff.

"Yes," I panted and wiggled against his hand.

"Mmm," he sounded pleased.

Before continuing he paused and it felt like he was adjusting
his hand. On his next stroke I knew what he'd done -- he'd
arranged his hand so that my clit was between his first two
fingers. Every time he moved his hand he was massaging me.
My hips were still off the bed and my legs were starting to
tremble at the approach of my orgasm.

With every pass it felt like he was squeezing his fingers
together harder and I felt like I was going to explode. My legs
were shaking, I was holding my breath and my clit was so
stimulated it almost hurt. It felt like I was going to burst
before I actually came. Each time he moved his hand I thought I
wouldn't be able to stand it any longer. Every time I almost
begged him to press down on my clit and make me come. But I could
barely breathe, there was no way I could talk.

"You're about to come, aren't you?"

Mulder's question in his lust-roughened voice was the last straw.
My clit began to pulse against his fingers. My head was arched
back into the mattress and all of my muscles were quaking. As I
rode out the waves of my climax I could feel Mulder's hand still
moving, prolonging my pleasure. When I finally stopped shaking
I began to slowly lower my hips to the bed, but the change of
angle must have made his fingers contact a different part of
my clitoris because I began to quake all over again. When the
pulsing subsided again, I tried to lower my hips, but Mulder must
have squeezed my clit a little harder because I came again. Each
time was a little less violent than the first, and when my hips
finally reached the bed, my shuddering had almost stopped.

When my body finally stilled, I felt the bed move as Mulder
crawled up to lay beside me.

"That was interesting," I felt his breath against my lips before
he kissed me. I still hadn't managed to force my eyes open.

"Mmm," I agreed, still lying limply on the bed.

"Are you all right?" I felt him shift on the bed.

"Tired," I mumbled.

"I'll bet," he chuckled. "You came pretty hard."

"Mmm," I nodded, darkness creeping into my already closed eyes.

"I love it when I make you come like that," he pressed his lips
against mine again.

"I know." Our lips were still touching.

"Sleep now," I felt his hand stroking my hair.

"'Kay," I agreed, and I think I nodded.

When I opened my eyes sunlight was streaming into the room.
I was under the covers and a warm, naked Mulder was snuggled up
to my back. I should have felt glorious, but my stomach was
bothering me. It served me right for having such powerful
orgasms. It had taken a lot out of me and I needed food to get
my strength back. I thought I'd been lying there without moving
but I must have stirred, because Mulder mumbled and pulled me
closer. I thought if I was still Mulder might fall back to sleep.
It wasn't often that we got to sleep in and I didn't want to take
that away from him.

"Morning," he murmured in my ear.

"Shh, go back to sleep," I whispered.

"Don't want to."

I felt his lips on my neck. My stomach began to feel better
immediately.

"How did I get under the covers?" I asked as I wiggled my rear
end against him.

"I lifted you up and pulled them back," he explained as his hand
closed over my breast.

"And I didn't wake up?" I was amazed.

"Nope. You came pretty hard. It must have worn you out," he
chuckled as he ran his thumb over my nipple.

"Yeah, I noticed," I laughed. "And I remember you mentioning it
last night."

"Well..."  I felt him fidget behind me.

"You were proud of yourself," I filled in the blank and turned
in his arms and kissed him softly.

"Is there something wrong with that?" he pulled me close to him
and I felt his erection pressing into my belly.

"Nothing at all," I assured him and began to trail small kisses
along his neck.

I had just placed my first kiss on his bottom lip when a small
knock sounded at our door. Mulder and I both seemed to deflate at
the noise.

"Who is it?" Mulder called.

"It's me...Jordan," a small voice announced.

"What can I do for you, Jordan?" Mulder's voice sounded serious
but he was grinning at me.

"I want to come in and see you and Mommy," he explained.

"One second, Jordan," Mulder told him when he saw me looking
under the covers at our naked forms.

I had a nightgown stashed under my pillow and Mulder jumped up
to grab a pair of boxers from his dresser. As soon as we were
decent he told Jordan to come in. Jordan immediately dashed to
the bed and climbed in between us.

"Good morning," I gave him a squeeze. "Did you have fun with
Grandma last night?"

"Yes. We made brownies and I got to lick the bowl," he smiled
up at me, but his smile faded and he clapped his hand over his
mouth.

"Was that supposed to be a secret?" Mulder laughed.

With his hand still covering his mouth, Jordan nodded.

"It's all right, Jordan," I chuckled. "Grandmas are allowed to
spoil you."

"So why did you want to see us?" Mulder tousled his hair.

"To make sure you were here," he burrowed closer to Mulder.

At his words, my stomach fell and I felt like all of the wind
had been knocked out of me. We had gone out, just like his parents
had and I hadn't prepared him at all. It was no wonder my mother'd
had a hard time getting him to sleep. It hadn't even occurred to
me. He was worried that we would leave the same way his parents
had. Mulder must have seen the stricken look on my face because
he began to speak cheerfully to Jordan.

"Yup, we're fine, Jordan. We went to see a movie and then we
came home to find out that you and Andrew had eaten all of the
brownies," Mulder jokingly accused him.

"It was mostly, Andrew," Jordan whispered. "He eats even more
than you do, daddy."

"He's a big boy," Mulder nodded.

"He's not a boy!" Jordan laughed. "He's a man."

Mulder and Jordan continued to laugh and debate the brownie issue
and by the time Jordan turned back to me, I'd managed to calm
myself down.

"I'm glad you're home again," he put his arms around my waist. My
eyes instantly began to fill with tears again.

"C'mere," I choked and pulled him onto my lap. He snuggled his
head into my shoulder and sighed. I rubbed his back lightly and
kissed the top of his head.

"Hey, I want some of this snuggle action," Mulder pulled Jordan
and me onto his lap and hugged us both. "I love you," he kissed
me tenderly. "And I love you too, brownie thief!" he kissed
Jordan's cheek.

"Your kisses are scratchy," Jordan complained, putting a hand
to his cheek. "Mommy's kisses are soft."

"I have to agree with you there, Jordan. Your mommy has very soft
kisses. That's why I kiss her so much," Mulder pressed another
kiss against my lips.

"There you are, Jordan," I heard my mother's voice. "I hope you
didn't wake your mom and dad up."

"We were already up," Mulder assured her with a smile. My back
was to the door.

"Good morning," she smiled. "Did you sleep well?"

"I think Dana slept particularly well," Mulder grinned and
I gave him a poke with my finger.

"That's good to hear. I have your breakfast ready, Jordan, and
if you don't hurry, it'll be cold," she used the same firm voice
I remembered hearing when I was slow about getting to the
table.

"Coming," Jordan scrambled off our laps and jumped down from the
bed.

"Are you ready for breakfast?" my mother asked when I turned
in Mulder's lap.

"I'd like to have a shower first," I told her. "But I am hungry.
So hungry I'm nauseous."

"Are you okay?" Mulder was instantly concerned.

"I'm fine," I assured him. "It's just that we ate supper early
last night and someone, who shall remain nameless, gobbled down
all of the popcorn at the drive-in."

"I forgot to ask last night. Is that where you went? I didn't
know there were any drive-ins left," she smiled with a far away
look in her eyes. "Do you remember piling into the station wagon,
Dana?"

"Yeah and I remember Bill complaining that he was too old and
I always fell asleep," I chuckled.

"And your sister refused to fall asleep. She was always afraid
she'd miss something. Your dad and I never got any privacy," she
laughed.

"Mom!" I was shocked. "Did you go to the drive-in to neck?"

"Isn't that why you went?" she turned the tables on me.

I was about to say that it was different in our case, but I knew
it wouldn't fly.

"She's got you there," Mulder laughed.

"Shut up, Mulder," I was still trying to put the image of my
parents necking at the drive-in out of my head.

"Go have your shower," she laughed. "I'll have your breakfast
ready when you come down."

"Thanks, Mom," I smiled as she was closing the door.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Mulder asked as we got out of
the bed. "You look a little pale."

"I'll be fine as soon as I have something to eat. I didn't
eat much supper and I didn't get much popcorn, then I used up
a lot of energy when we got home, and I'm excited about the house
and worried about Jordan," I explained.

"I think Jordan's fine," Mulder took my hand when we reached the
foot of the bed. "I think it would have been worse if we'd
thought to say anything beforehand. It would've just given him
more to worry about."

"You're probably right," I sighed as we walked into the bathroom.
"But I still feel horrible that I didn't even think about it."

"Scully, your whole life is spent taking care of those kids. And
you may not like to hear this, but I'm glad you didn't think of
it. Would you have been able to have a good time if you'd been
worried about Jordan the whole evening?" he asked me firmly.

"Probably not," I had to agree.

"And it's not like we go out on the town every other night. Don't
beat yourself up because we had some fun. We had to do this
eventually and I think it all worked out for the best," he turned
the water on as he spoke. "Jordan is fine. I think we more than
reassured him this morning, don't you?"

"Yes," I had to smile as I pulled my nightgown off.

"So who are you really worried about? Jordan or yourself?" he
asked when we'd stepped into the shower.

"What do you mean?" I looked at him in shock.

"Scully," he pulled me close. "You're worried that you aren't
being a good parent." It wasn't a question. As always, Mulder
had immediately known what was bothering me.

"I guess I am," I admitted, tears burning in my eyes again.

"Oh, Scully," he sighed and kissed my forehead. "Whose
expectations are you trying to live up to? I think you're doing a
fantastic job. Every time I see you with those kids my heart
swells. You love them so much, just like I knew you would. If
anyone is falling down on the job, it's me. I don't spend as
much time with them as I'd like to."

"No, Mulder, that's not true. You're great with them. Of course
you can't spend as much time with them as I do, but you have to
go to work. You probably actually play with them more than I do,"
I countered.

"Is that what you're worried about, Scully, going back to work?"

"A little," I confessed.

"Then don't. Stay home. I want you to do what feels right for
you."

"Part of me wants to get back to work, but then something like
this happens and I worry that I won't be there when they need
me," I tried to explain.

"It's only half days, Scully and they'll be with your mom," he
reminded me.

"I know," I leaned more heavily against him. "That's the only
reason I was comfortable going back to work in the first
place."

"This was a tiny bump in the road, Scully and we've smoothed
it out already. Don't beat yourself up about it," he lifted
my chin with his finger to kiss me.

"I love you," I murmured against his lips.

"Mmm," he opened his mouth to kiss me more deeply. I responded
by standing on my tiptoes so I could get my tongue into his
mouth.

"Hey! Stop that!" he pulled back. "You don't have the energy,
remember?"

"Right," I muttered. "And my mom is expecting us."

"But I'm not forgetting that you owe me some morning sex," he
grinned. "I'm planning to take you up on it."

"I don't doubt that at all," I laughed.

"I'll just make sure you always eat well, then you won't be
able to use this excuse again," he leaned his head back into
the water.

"It wasn't an excuse," I protested. "And I thought we were going
to make love, but Jordan interrupted us."

"I know, Scully. I was teasing, but I do have big plans for you
tonight," he lowered his voice.

His innuendo created a tingle between my legs and I instantly
forgot about my queasy stomach. He had quite a knack for making
me forget my problems. We finished up in the shower quickly and
I went down to breakfast with my hair still wet. I was surprised
that the smell of breakfast cooking didn't make me hungrier. It
actually made me even queasier.

"There you are," my mother sang when she saw us. "Breakfast is
all ready and I made your eggs the way you like them, Dana, with
the yokes nice and runny."

As soon as the words were out of her mouth I felt my stomach
start to churn. I'd never been so hungry before that it made me
feel like this. Once I was in my seat my mother bent to set my
breakfast down in front of me. As she did the food slid across
the plate and yolk began to ooze through the white of the eggs.
Even though the back door was open and a September breeze was
blowing into the kitchen, I could feel sweat beginning to bead on
my forehead. I looked up to see Mulder dunking a piece of toast
into his egg. Some of the yolk dripped back to his plate as he
brought it to his mouth. My stomach suddenly lurched and I felt
a pang at the back of my jaw. I knew what it meant. As I was
getting to my feet I saw a look of concern on Mulder's face. I
could see his mouth moving, but I couldn't hear what he was
saying. I was too busy worrying about the fact that my mouth was
filling up with saliva.

I barely made it to the downstairs bathroom.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As I was bringing the slice of toast to my mouth I froze when I 
saw Scully turn a sickly shade of gray.

"Are you okay, Scully?" I asked immediately, but she didn't
answer. Instead, she scrambled to her feet and ran out of the
room.

After exchanging shocked glances with Maggie I jumped up to
follow her. When I got to the bathroom, Scully was on her knees
in front of toilet. Every time she retched, I felt like I was
being punched in the stomach.

"Tell me what I can do?" I knelt beside her and rubbed her back.

"God, Mulder," her voice was quivering. "I have nothing to throw
up. Could you please get me a glass of water?"

"I'll be right back," I jumped to my feet and started toward the
kitchen. When I got to the door I almost knocked Maggie over. She
was heading to the bathroom with a glass of water.

"Thank you." I took the glass from her and spun around.

Scully was sitting with her back against the wall when I got
back. She was still a ghastly shade of gray and the hair around
her face had become wet with sweat and was sticking to her
forehead and cheeks. As soon as she saw me she grabbed for the
glass and took a big gulp.

"Slow down," I tried to warn her but it was too late. She
groaned, thrust the glass back at me and lunged toward the
toilet. The few ounces of water she'd managed to ingest came
right back up.

"I should have known better," she muttered as she slumped against
the wall again.

"Take sips," I instructed and handed the glass back to her.

"Okay," the corners of her mouth turned up into a tiny smile. It
would have made me feel better if her lips hadn't been blanched
and trembling.

Kneeling down in front of her, I began to brush away the hair
that was becoming plastered to her face. She sat quietly, making
no protests about my attentiveness. With trembling hands she
brought the glass to her mouth to take small sips.

"How are you doing?" I heard Maggie's voice behind us.

"Still a little shaky, Mom," Scully's voice quaked.

"I brought you a cold cloth."

Feeling her hand on my shoulder, I turned and took the cloth. I
looked up to see Maggie gently smiling at me.

"Where do you want this, Scully?" I held out the cloth to her.

"I'll put it on the back of my neck. That should help me not to
feel so shocky," she explained as she took the compress from me.

Her reversion to Dr. Scully, even when she was feeling like this,
made me smile. I turned to wink at Maggie, but I was surprised
that she wasn't there anymore. So I stayed on the floor in front
of Scully with my hands on her knees, feeling totally helpless,
while she slowly drank her water.

"Could you run this under the tap again, please?" She handed the
cloth to me.

"Sure!" I took it and jumped up, delighted to be given something
to do.

After I'd run it under the water and wrung it out, I put the
cloth back on her neck. It was then I noticed that some of the
color was starting to return to her lips.

"Would you like some more water?" I asked, seeing her glass was
almost empty.

"I think I just need to sit for a couple of minutes," she shook
her head.

"Okay," I nodded and sat down again. "Are you feeling any
better?" I reached for her free hand. I was surprised to find it
even icier than was normal for her.

"Much," she tried to force a smile. "Maybe some fresh air would
do me good." She tried to stand up, but she didn't seem to have the
strength.

"Here." I took the glass from her hand and set it on the vanity.
Then, holding out my hands to her, I helped her to her feet. It
was difficult to maneuver in the half bathroom, but I managed to 
hold her by the waist with one hand and hold her hand with the 
other.

Once again she accepted my assistance and let me guide her to 
the back door. As we passed through the kitchen, I was surprised 
to see that all traces of our breakfast had been removed and 
Maggie was wiping the table down with a dishcloth.

The backyard turned out to be a hive of activity. Andrew was
playing catch with Jordan and Guinness while Megan sat in the
grass and watched the tumult. When she saw us come outside she
immediately began to crawl toward us. I was amazed at the ground
she was covering. It seemed like only yesterday that she would
get to her hands and knees, rock back and forth and then collapse
to her stomach again.

"Mm -- mm -- mm," she looked up at Scully once she'd reached the
chairs.

"Hi, Sweetie," Scully smiled down at her.

"Mm -- mm -- mm," Megan reiterated, and began to inch up Scully's
leg. In no time she was standing holding onto Scully's pants.

"When did she start pulling herself up?" I turned to Scully in
amazement.

"A few seconds ago!" Scully's face seemed to get some color back.

After a couple of seconds of standing there Megan began to tap
Scully's knee with her chubby hand.  "Mm -- mm -- mm," she
repeated.

"I'll take her." I reached over to pick her up.

"No, that's okay, Mulder. Could you just lift her up for me,
please?"

As I was setting Megan on Scully's lap, Jordan finally realized
that we were outside and came bounding over to us, the dog
trailing after him.

"Daddy! Mommy!" he shouted as he ran.

"You aren't going to get much peace out here, Scully. Are you
sure you don't want to lay down?"

"I think all the chaos out here keeps my mind off my stomach,"
she smiled at me.

"Are you okay, Mommy? You don't look very good," Jordan looked
at Scully quizzically.

"Jordan!" I admonished him. "That's not very nice."

"Sorry." He looked down at his shoes.

"That okay, Jordan," Scully chuckled. "And you're right, I don't
feel well. And I probably do look pretty bad, too."

Jordan looked up and cast worried glances at both of us, unsure
what to say.

"It's okay to ask Mommy if she's not feeling well, Jordan, but you
shouldn't say that she doesn't look nice. Can you understand how
that might make her feel worse?" I tried to explain it to him.

"Don't worry about it, Mulder," Scully kept her voice low. "He
was concerned, that's all."

Jordan was still standing in front of us, looking back and forth
between us, a puzzled expression on his face.

"I know you were worried about Mommy," I patted my knee and he
climbed up.

"But I shouldn't have said that she looked bad," he nodded
slowly. "Do you feel bad, Mommy?" He turned to Scully.

"Yes, Jordan. I'm not feeling very well this morning," Scully
smiled at him.

"That's probably why she looks bad," he informed me earnestly.

His expression was so serious that I had to laugh. Scully
followed me and soon Megan was chortling because we were
laughing.

"What's so funny?" Jordan frowned.

"Nothing, Jordan," I shook my head. "Why don't you go and play
with Andrew? He looks lonely."

"Okay." He slid off my lap and ran back toward our lanky guest.

"I think Jordan's too young to understand what you're trying to
say," Scully said once Jordan was out of earshot.

"Maybe," I nodded. "But he has to learn that he just can't go
around saying whatever is on his mind."

"And when do you think you'll learn that lesson?" she asked me
dryly.

Before I could defend myself the back door opened and Maggie
came out carrying a cup and a plate.

"Here's some toast and tea, Dana," she smiled.

"I'll take Megan," I brought her onto my lap.

"Thanks, Mom," Scully smiled gratefully. "Sit down for a minute.
We have something to tell you."

Maggie pulled a lawn chair over and sat down with an expectant
look on her face. I, too, was curious about what Scully wanted
to announce.

"Last night when we were on our way to the drive-in we passed the
most gorgeous house and it was for sale! We stopped and the owner
took us through. It's absolutely perfect, isn't it, Mulder?"

"It's a great house," I concurred. With all of the events of the
morning I'd completely forgotten about it.

"It's between DC and Baltimore," Scully added, "so we'll be much
closer. And there's an open house this afternoon. Would you like
to come with us to look at it?"

"Are you shopping for a bigger house? I had no idea you were
looking." Maggie's eyes widened.

"Neither did I," I chuckled.

"Well, I wasn't actively looking," Scully started to explain,
"But I never intended to stay in this house. It's never felt like
home. I feel out of place here," she squirmed in her chair.

"I can understand that," Maggie nodded. "I felt the same way at
every base house we ever lived in. The only house that ever felt
like home to me is the house in Baltimore."

"I never knew that," Scully sounded surprised. "Our houses always
felt like home to me. It never took me long to adjust to a move
because you always set everything up basically the same way."

"I didn't have much choice," Maggie chuckled. "And no choice at
all about the color schemes or the flooring. I was so happy just
to be able to paint the kitchen when I wanted."

"That never occurred to me," Scully shook her head a slowly. "And
it didn't bother you."

"I knew what I was getting into when I married your father. I 
was mostly too busy to worry about it, Dana. I had four very
energetic redheads to keep me busy," she rolled her eyes.

"I wouldn't want to think that you were unhappy," Scully's face
fell.

"No, Dana, I was never unhappy -- not in the least. I was often 
frustrated, I'll admit that, but at the end of the day I always 
had something to smile about," Maggie assured her.

"I guess Missy and Bill were a handful," Scully smiled again.

"Missy and Bill?" Maggie's eyes widened. "You have a very 
selective memory, Dana."

"I thought I was quiet and well-behaved," Scully looked shocked.

"Tell me more, Maggie," I leaned forward.

"I'll save those stories for some other time," she winked at me.
"I think you asked me a question -- the answer is yes, I'd love 
to come and look at the house. And I'd love to help you decorate 
it, if you'll let me," Maggie laughed.

"We haven't bought the house yet," I cautioned her with a smile.

"But we will," Scully's expression became serious.

"Yes, dear," I said meekly, making Scully and her mother start
to laugh again.

Megan was apparently bored sitting with us because she 
started to climb off my knee on her own. Before she toppled onto
her head I set her down and she crawled off toward the boys.
Something told me we might have a tomboy on our hands. She was 
not content to sit and watch the action from the sidelines.

Maggie insisted on getting a bowl of cereal for me, even though 
I said I wasn't hungry. The words had barely left my mouth when 
mother and daughter spoke in unison. 

"You have to eat something!"

Why did I even bother? I was defenseless against the Scully
women. I was also beginning to notice that a certain 10 month-old
had me wrapped around her little finger, too. I was in big 
trouble. Maggie only sat long enough for me to finish the cereal 
so she could take the bowl back inside. After that she stayed in the 
kitchen busily doing some mysterious task that neither Scully nor
I realized needed to be done. 

It took about half an hour, but Scully managed to slowly eat the 
toast her mom had brought out. When she was done, Andrew came over 
to sit with us. 

"Feeling better?" he asked as he lowered his long frame into the 
deck chair.

"You could tell from over there?" Scully sounded dismayed.

"No," he chuckled. "Jordan told me. And he also told me not to 
tell you that you looked bad," he grinned.

I could only shake my head, but Scully started to laugh again. "I
guess he was listening to you after all, Mulder."

"And I told him it was never right to tell a lady that she didn't 
look nice, especially your mom," he winked at Scully.

"That's sweet," Scully smiled. "But don't let him take up all
of your time. I'm sure you have other things to do."

"Not really," he shrugged. "But I guess I should go and get a 
paper so I can start apartment hunting."

"Don't rush on our account," Scully assured him. "Why don't you 
take a break -- relax a little."

At that very moment some squalling erupted in the yard. It looked 
like Megan wanted the football that Jordan and Guinness had been
playing with. Guinness, however, didn't want to stop playing with 
it and snatched it back from her. Megan was yelling at him in 
protest and the dog began to bark to show his disapproval. Jordan
just stood there covering his ears.

"If he needs to relax, Scully, maybe you should let him get that
apartment," I laughed over the uproar. 

"What?" Andrew laughed. "That's nothing. When the whole clan gets
together at my grandparents' place in Old Greenwich it's complete
bedlam. This is peaceful." 

The squabble in the yard ended when Megan relinquished control of
the ball and crawled back over to us. 

"Mm -- mm -- mm," she said to Scully earnestly as she began to 
pull herself up again. 

I was about to lift her up for Scully, but she bent over and 
scooped her up while she continued to chat with Andrew about his
family.

"It looks like she's ready for her nap," Scully smiled as Megan
settled against her.

"Want me to take her up?" I offered.

"I'm okay now," she smiled and patted my knee. "But you could 
get a bottle and bring it up."

"I think I will go and get a paper," Andrew informed us. "And I'm
not rushing to leave," he held up his hands to quiet Scully's 
protest before she could make it. "I'd like to see what's out 
there. I could take Jordan and Guinness with me. They both look
like they have energy to burn."

"Don't feel like you have to," Scully sounded concerned as she
stood up with Megan in her arms. "I mean, if you want to, that's 
great, but I don't want you to feel obliged."

"Don't worry," he grinned. "If they start to get on my nerves, 
I'll bring them straight home to you."

When he went out to the yard to tell Jordan his plan, I went to
get the door for Scully.

"That woman is an idiot," she kept her voice low.

"What woman?" I looked around.

"The one who let him get away," she nodded toward Andrew.

After I'd made the bottle for Megan, I met Scully upstairs. Megan
took the bottle from me herself and began to drink eagerly. I 
watched her for a moment and then excused myself to use the 
bathroom. When I got back both Megan and Scully were asleep. I 
was afraid Megan would wake up when I tried to take the bottle 
from her, but she let it go easily. Once I had her tucked into
her crib I turned back to my wife. Her head was leaning against
the back of the rocking chair and her hands were limply upturned
in her lap.

"I think you should lie down," I whispered as I tried to ease 
her out of the chair. I expected her to wake up, but like Megan
she stayed sound asleep as I carried her to bed. Instead of 
trying to struggle with the covers I lay her on top of the 
comforter and folded it over her. I left the room, quietly 
closing the door behind me. Knowing Scully, it would be the 
snick of the door latch that would wake her up. I listened for a
few seconds to make sure, but heard nothing.

"Where's Dana?" Maggie asked when I got back to the kitchen.

"I think there's a far more pressing issue at hand, Maggie," I
stood with my hands on my hips. "Is that brownies I smell?"

"Yes, Fox," she laughed, "I'm making your brownies. They should 
be ready in about ten minutes." 

"Good," I rubbed my hands together and sat down at the table.

"You didn't say where Dana was," Maggie sat down at the table 
with me.

"She fell asleep while she was feeding Megan," I slumped a bit
in my chair with one arm slung over the back, the way my mother 
always hated. "I put her in our room -- she needs the rest."

"Does she have any idea why she was ill this morning?" Maggie 
looked concerned.

"She thinks it's a combination of a lot of factors," I tried to 
put her at ease. "Not eating well yesterday, being overtired, 
worrying about how Jordan handled our going out last night, being
excited about the house..." I gave her a modified version of the
list Scully had given me.

"She thinks those things would make her that sick?" Maggie looked
doubtful. 

"Do you think it's something else?" I was beginning to get 
worried.

"I have no idea," she hesitated briefly. "But Dana runs herself
ragged all the time and it's never made her sick before. Maybe
Jordan brought a bug home from school with him," she didn't sound
like she was even convincing herself.

"Or maybe it's all catching up with her. She can't be superwoman
forever," I speculated aloud, but Maggie's doubts were starting
to make me think that something else might be wrong. My anxiety 
must have shown on my face because suddenly Maggie's hand was on
mine.

"I'm sure it's nothing serious, Fox. I didn't mean to worry you."

As I was about to lie and say I wasn't worried at all, the timer 
on the stove buzzed.

"Hey, that wasn't ten minutes," I looked at her accusingly.

"They do have to cool, Fox," she shook her head at me as she 
stood up to take them out of the oven.

"I knew that," I looked everywhere but in her eyes. She laughed
as she slipped on the oven mitts. I was thankful that the tension
had eased.

Scully ended up sleeping for about an hour, and although she 
looked a little rumpled when she came downstairs, she looked
a hundred percent better than she had not two hours earlier.
The next couple of hours flew by in a flurry of lunch preparations 
and afternoon planning. After much debating, Andrew and I managed
to convince Scully that Megan could safely be left with him while
we went to the open house. 

Instead of trying to draw a map for Maggie, Scully decided it 
would be easier to ride with her. Jordan and I would meet them
there. Scully wouldn't leave the house without quizzing Andrew
and making a list for him. Against all odds we managed to have 
everyone on the road by 1:30.

When Jordan and I pulled into the driveway, Scully and her 
mother were inspecting the gardens at the front of the house. 
Our cars were the only ones there. On the way over I had
told Jordan that we were going to look at a house. He'd said 
okay and hadn't asked any other questions. Once we got out of the
car and he saw his mom and grandma pointing at various things
on the house and smiling, he seemed to get confused.

"Why are we looking at this house, Daddy?"

"We're thinking about buying it," I smiled down at him.

"Oh," he frowned. "Why?"

"So we can live in it," I laughed.

"Who?" his frown deepened.

"All of us; you, Megan, Mommy and me," I explained. It hadn't 
occurred to me that he might not understand what was going on.

Jordan and I were still standing on the sidewalk leading up to
the veranda. The Scully women were already at the front door
talking to Mrs. Patel and the woman I assumed to be the real 
estate agent. I could see Scully pointing out who everyone was.

"Oh," he nodded, his face brightening. We'd started to climb the
stairs when stopped short. "What about Guinness?"

"Of course we'll bring Guinness," I patted his head. "Your mommy
loves him too much to leave him."

"Is Grandma going to live with us too?" he cocked his head at
me.

"No, Jordan," I reached for his hand to hurry him up the stairs.
"Grandma likes her house in Baltimore, but we'll be a lot 
closer to her now."

"Hello again, Mr. Mulder," Mrs. Patel extended her hand. "Hello,
Jordan," she ruffled his hair when we'd shaken hands.

"Nice to meet you," the real estate agent reached for my hand
as well. "I'm Elsa Schmidt," she smiled and then handed me her 
card and a sheet of paper that contained all of the pertinent
information about the house.

Maggie and Scully were already in the kitchen talking. From the 
way they were both smiling and nodding I knew it was a done deal.
We were buying this house. Scully was just taking her mother 
through to show her. As we trailed after the women, Jordan and I
stayed quiet listening to them talk. Upstairs they had to
go into every bedroom and discuss whose it would be. When we left
the room they'd decided would be Jordan's I looked down to see 
what he thought and was shocked to find tears streaming down
his face.

"What's the matter?" I knelt down quickly.

"What's wrong?" Scully hurried over to us when she saw Jordan
crying.

"I don't know," I looked up into her concerned face. "All of a
sudden he was crying."

"What is it, honey?" Scully knelt down beside me.

"I don't like it," he snuffled.

"The house?" Scully sounded disappointed.

"No," he shook his head. "My room."

"What's wrong with it?" I was confused. "It's big and bright. 
There's a big tree right outside your window."

"The walls have flowers on them and I don't like the bed. I want
*my* bed and my toys," he stuck out his bottom lip.

"Oh, Jordan," Scully laughed. "We won't be keeping this 
furniture. Mrs. Patel will be taking her furniture with her. And
we can do whatever you want with the walls. You can pick out 
paint or wallpaper -- whatever you like."

"Yeah," Jordan blinked rapidly. "I can pick it out?"

"Yes, you can," Scully smiled as she stood up. "And maybe we
can get a swingset for the backyard."

"Really?" he grinned.

"We might have to wait until next spring, because we won't be 
moving right away," she explained soothingly.

"Why not?" he started to frown again.

"It's complicated, Jordan," I smiled as I stood up. "There are
lots of arrangements to make. It takes time."

"Oh," he sighed.

"Do you want to go and look at the backyard?" Mrs. Patel asked.
"There's lots of room to run out there," she smiled at Jordan.
"And the shed's out there if you want to take a look, Mr. 
Mulder."

It sounded like a good idea to me, but I glanced over at Scully 
to see what she thought.

"Go on," she nodded. "I'm sure this is boring you both."

"Let's go," I smiled at Jordan.

The backyard was enormous. When Scully and I had looked at it
from the kitchen the day before we had only been able to see a
portion of it. It was about 150 feet wide and extended back from
the house about 200 hundred feet. I was surprised to see that the
entire backyard was fenced in. It must have cost a fortune. As
Jordan began to explore the large yard, I pondered why they would 
go to the expense of a fence when they didn't have any neighbors 
within shouting distance. As I thought about it, I scanned the
back of the property. A small wooded hill rose up behind the 
fence. From what I could see the woods extended up and over the
hill a fair distance back. When the leaves started to change it
would be very picturesque, making the fence puzzle me even more.

"Here's the shed," Jordan called. "Can I open it?"

"Hang on," I began to walk over to him.

The shed sat in the southwest corner of the yard. Beside it was
an extremely well cared for garden. The plants were lush, the 
earth was dark and moist. There was not a weed to be seen. When
I opened the shed, I was greeted with the smell of dried grass 
clippings and fertilizer. The small building was filled with 
various lawn and garden care tools. If we were going to keep
the garden there were a few things we were going to have to buy.
Apparently the Patel's used a small power mower for this huge 
lawn. I planned to invest in a riding mower to cover this ball
park.  

Jordan quickly bored of the tools and began to chase a squirrel
toward one of large oak trees. I was still contemplating the 
fence when all four women joined us in the back yard.

"What a lovely garden," Maggie walked over to it immediately.

"Gardening is my passion," Mrs. Patel smiled sadly, "But my 
arthritis has taken all the joy out of it for me. And now that 
Frank has passed, there isn't that much pleasure in this house
for me anymore."

Scully bit her lip and looked at the ground.

"Oh, I'm sorry, dear," Mrs. Patel apologized. "I think this 
house will be perfect for you and your family. It makes me happy
to think that it will be put to proper use again."

Scully tried unsuccessfully to smile.

"Why did you put a fence all the way around the yard?" I was
happy to change the subject.

"The deer," Mrs. Patel nodded.

"The deer?" I repeated in confusion.

"They like my garden as much as I do," she winked at me.

"Oh," it suddenly became clear to.

"Mommy, Daddy," Jordan came running over to us. "This yard is
so much bigger than our yard. Guinness will be able to run around
like crazy and Megan will never catch up to him."

"Just give her a few months," Scully laughed. "She might surprise
you."

"And Andrew is going to like too. He's got long legs and he
can run fast," Jordan continued happily.

"Jordan," I stopped him. "I don't think Andrew will move here
with us."

"Why not?" Jordan's face fell.

"I'm sure he'll have his own place before we move," Scully 
explained.

"His own place?" Jordan crinkled his forehead. "I thought we
were adopting him too."

"Why would you think that?" Scully laughed. "He's just staying
with us for a little while."

"But Grandma said that both you and Daddy like to take in 
strays," Jordan cocked his head at her.

Mrs. Patel and the real estate woman both choked and turned away.
Scully turned to her mother, with her hands firmly planted on her
hips.

"This one's yours, Mom."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After my mother had tried, with limited success, to explain what
she'd meant by her 'strays' comment to Jordan, Mulder and I 
talked to Ms. Schmidt about an offer on the house. Mulder told 
her that our lawyer would be getting in touch with her on Monday 
to make our offer official. Once we'd said good-bye to my mother, 
we got into the car and I looked back over my shoulder as we 
drove away from the house, still clutching the feature sheet in 
my hand.

"Don't worry, Scully. I'm sure it'll be ours soon," Mulder's hand
was on my knee.

"I know," I covered his hand with mine. "Monday's such a long way
away."

Despite the fact that I was looking out of the window I could feel
Mulder's eyes on me. 

"Fine," he sighed and I was surprised when he pulled the car onto
the shoulder.

"What are you doing?" I looked at him in amazement.

"What you want me to do." He reached into the glove compartment
and pulled out his cell phone.

I glanced into the back seat to see Jordan looking just as 
confused as I felt.

"I'll try the office first, just in case." He began to dial the
phone.

"Hey, Brent, it's Fox Mulder. I didn't really expect to catch you
there on a Saturday."

Brent Garrow was Mulder's lawyer and now mine too. I hadn't had 
a regular lawyer before we were married. There hadn't been any 
need. Brent had been a part of almost every aspect of the 
roller coaster ride that Mulder and I had been on since he'd gone
to that reading of the wills last June.

"That's too bad," Mulder chuckled. "Maybe you should think about
getting a partner."

"Yeah, as a matter of fact I am," Mulder said apologetically 
after a brief pause. 

While cars whipped by us, we sat on the side of the road and 
listened to Mulder explain to Brent why we needed his services 
yet again.

"I could fax it to you when we get home," Mulder offered.

"Uh, I'm not sure, hold on a sec," he lowered the phone and 
turned to me. "What are we offering?"

"She's asking $189,000, right?" I double-checked the sheet.

"Right," Mulder nodded.

"Then offer $189,000," I shrugged.

Mulder opened his mouth to say something, but changed his mind.
"Apparently we're offering the asking price," he spoke into the
phone again.

"No," Mulder shook his head. "Yeah, I know, but from the look on
my wife's face I can tell she has no intention of bartering."

Raising my eyebrows, I put my hand to my chest to say, "Who? Me?"

"You got that right," he chuckled after a couple seconds and
winked at me.

"I will, Brent. Thanks again," Mulder closed his phone.

"What did Brent have right?" I inquired as I took the cell
from Mulder to put it away.

"That my life would be easier if I just did whatever you want,"
Mulder grinned at me before putting the car back into drive. 

"He's a smart man," I couldn't help grinning back at Mulder
once we were safely on the road again. "So is he going to take
care of this?"

"Yeah, I'm going to fax him all of the information when we get
home. He's really busy right now, but he said he should be able
to get an offer together by Monday."

"Oh." All of the excitement drained out of me.

"Scully," Mulder reached for my hand, "They can't really do 
anything with an offer before Monday anyway." 

"I guess," I squeezed his hand. "I'm not sure why, but I have 
this feeling that I need to hurry."

"Are you having premonitions again?" he glanced over at me.

"I've never had premonitions, Mulder." Exasperation must have 
been evident in my tone.

"Well, feelings then, whatever you want to call them. What is
this feeling you're having?"

"For God's sake, Mulder, I like the house, that's all. I guess 
I'm just worried that we'll lose it to another buyer," I tried 
to explain.  

"You're sure that's all it is?" He didn't look convinced.

"Mulder, you know how I am when I see a suit I like. I want to 
have it right away, okay?" I was sorry I'd said anything.

"Well then don't worry, this will be in your closet before you
know it."

Ignoring the way Mulder was patronizing me, I turned to say 
something to Jordan about what he wanted to do with his new
room, only to find him asleep in his bucket booster seat.
He'd had a busy day playing with Andrew in the morning and
looking at the house in the afternoon. I'd thought maybe Jordan
was only still napping because it was routine, but I guess he
still needed the rest. 

"I'm impressed, Scully," Mulder smiled at me as we pulled into
the driveway.

"About what?" I undid my seatbelt.

"You resisted the urge to call home," he squeezed my hand.

"Why are you teasing me?" I pulled my hand away. "That was really 
hard for me."

"Hey," he said softly as he reached for me again. "I was serious
when I said I was impressed. I know it's hard for you," he pulled
me toward him. 

"I'm sorry," I melted against him and sighed when his arms 
wrapped around me.

When I felt his lips on my forehead, I lifted my face toward him.
"I'm sorry," I repeated as his mouth was descending to mine.
As soon as his tongue flicked against my lips, seeking entrance, 
I knew I was forgiven. We kissed softly and slowly. I stayed 
nestled in his arms as our mouths moved languidly against each
other. It wasn't until we heard a car pass on the street that we
reluctantly parted.

"I'll take Jordan upstairs," Mulder told me gently as he smoothed
my hair away from my face.

"I love you," I murmured as I pulled him back for one more kiss
before we got out of the car.

Everything was fine at home, just as Mulder assured me it would 
be. Megan was still sleeping and Andrew was in the living room
watching baseball. After Jordan was in bed, Mulder joined Andrew
in front of the TV. I sat down to read the Saturday paper, but
the constant bickering kept distracting me. From what I could 
make out they were disagreeing about the teams playing. One was
Mulder's Yankees and the other was the Red Sox, I think. Several
times I thought the disagreement might come to blows, but then
one of them would ask the other if he wanted a beer "while I'm 
up." I gave up trying to read and went into the kitchen to
start making supper.

After supper, once the kids were in bed, I told Mulder I was
going for a bath. It was only 9:30 when I got out of the tub, but
I pulled on a nightie and slipped into bed anyway. Only a couple
of minutes later I recognized Mulder's footfalls on the stairs.

"Going to bed early?" he asked softly when he opened the door and
saw that I was awake. "You do need the rest."

"Are you going to help me fall asleep?" I patted the bed beside
me.

"Sure," he grinned, and quickly stripped to his boxers. I'd
often told him that his presence beside me was very comforting.

I pulled back the covers for him and when he climbed into bed
I snuggled up to him immediately. He was on his back and I was
on my side, with one leg thrown over his. I felt him take a deep
breath as his arm tightened around my waist. As we lay there 
quietly, I began to trace patterns on his chest with my fingers.
Fingers that soon wandered to his belly. With my head on his chest
I could feel his heart beating faster and his breathing rate had 
increased as well. When my fingers made contact with his thighs, 
he finally spoke up.

"Scully, what are you doing?" His voice was raspy.

"Well, Mulder," I began, "I know from previous experience how you
respond to my touch, so I was hoping that this contact would 
stimulate the flow of blood to the spongy tissue in your penis."

"Scully!" he choked in protest.

"Oh look!" I slid my hand into his boxers. "It worked."

"You had no intention of going to sleep, did you?" his voice was
gravelly. 

"I didn't," I admitted as I stroked his erection.

"And you got me into the bed for the sole purpose of your sexual
gratification?" His hips shifted as I continued to caress him.

"That's not true," I retorted with a huff. "I had your sexual 
gratification in mind, too."

"I love the way you think," he breathed.

"C'mere then," I slid my hand out of his boxers and tugged on his 
arm.

Mulder needed no further encouragement. As his lips were covering
mine, he slid his hand under the hem of my nightgown. 
Instinctively, I parted my legs to give him better access to me.

"God, Scully," he groaned when his hand first touched me. "You
shaved when you were in the tub."

"I did," I lifted my hips off the bed. "I thought you liked me
this way."

In answer his mouth began to devour mine. 

"Like you this way?" he panted when he pulled back. "Scully, you
don't have to shave yourself for me to like you."  

"I know that, Mulder," I cupped his face with my hand. "I meant, 
I thought you found it sexy."

"I do, but believe me, it's far sexier to know that you think 
about what I might find sexy," his fingers were gently teasing 
my smooth skin.

"Don't you think about things like that?" My eyes had drifted 
shut as I enjoyed the sensation of his touch.

"Honestly, Scully, not really," he paused to press a tender kiss
against my lips. "I tend to think more about how beautiful you 
look when you're naked, or the way you look at me when we're 
making love, or the blissful expression on your face when you 
come."

"God, Mulder," I groaned and parted my legs even further. 

"And if I'm not thinking about that, I'm thinking about how
soft your lips are, and how I love the way they feel on my cock.
I also think about the way you touch me. You touch me a lot. Did
you know that, Scully?"

"Do I?" I felt him shift. I opened my eyes in time to see him
positioning himself between my legs.

"Yes, you do," he bent to kiss me again. "You are always 
touching my face, or my hands and you can't seem to keep your
hands off my ass."

"Yeah?" Grinning up at him, I hooked my thumbs under the 
waistband of his boxers and pushed them down as far as I could. 
While I squeezed his well-developed muscles, he absently pushed
his boxers the rest of the way off.
 
"I also spend a great deal of time thinking about how fantastic
it feels to be inside of you," he sighed as he pressed the head
of his cock against me.

"I think about how wonderful it feels to have you inside me, 
too," I confessed breathily.

My admission had barely passed my lips when Mulder began to slide
into me. I couldn't help moaning and arching my head back.

"You are so amazing," he growled as he began to ease out of me
again.

"That feels so good, Mulder," I opened my eyes to find his 
burning down at me.

"You like that?" his eyes seemed to darken even further.

"Yes, it's incredible to feel every inch of you like that,"
I shuddered.

"Christ," he grunted as he took his time pushing into me again.

"Mmm," I savored the way his cock felt as he slowly filled me.
I could feel every contour of him inside of me. "All the way
out," I pushed at his belly when pulled back again. 

"Like this?" he held back for a moment and then entered me again. 

"Yes," I nodded feverishly. "And pause here for a second," I 
grabbed onto his ass when he was all the way inside of me again.
I shuddered at the sensation.

As we continued this almost torturous pace every nerve ending 
inside of me became sensitized. Each one practically screamed 
for Mulder's touch and when this need was deliciously fulfilled
a new ache would begin. Even though neither of us was moving 
quickly, we were both panting and beads of sweat were forming on
Mulder's forehead. My entire body was trembling and I was 
starting to get dizzy. I doubted that we'd be able to keep this
up much longer. 

With his next stroke, Mulder began to quake. "Scully?" he sounded
like he was pleading with me.

"Yes, now!" I hoped he would understand that I wanted him to
speed up.

My concerns were quickly put to rest when Mulder began to thrust
into me with all of the vigor I needed to send me over the edge. 
As my body became taut and I began to shake, I heard Mulder call
my name. He seemed to pulse endlessly inside of me. 

"Scully," he whispered my name again as he collapsed to the bed 
and pulled me on top of him.

"Was that okay?" I asked as I settled myself against him.

"Okay?" he chuckled. "That, Scully, was phenomenal."

"Mmm," I snuggled against him. "I thought so, too, but I was 
worried that I might be slowly driving you crazy."

"You were," he tightened his hold on me. "But in an extremely 
good way."

I knew it wouldn't be long before I drifted off. I assumed that
Mulder would wait until I was asleep and then slip out of the bed 
to join Andrew downstairs. He needed far less sleep than I did 
and I never expected him to stay in bed with me when he'd end up 
laying there staring at the ceiling. So I was quite surprised to 
hear him snoring softly in my ear before I'd had a chance to 
succumb myself.

I was equally surprised to find that Mulder was still in the bed
when I woke the next morning at 6:30. I was dismayed, however, to 
find that my stomach was upset again. When I got downstairs I 
starting boiling water for tea, popped some bread into the 
toaster and let the puppy outside. My stomach was beginning to
churn like it had the previous morning. Taking deep breaths, 
I tried to prevent yesterday morning's nausea from repeating 
itself. 

When the toast popped up, I took it to the table and began to 
nibble at it. By the time the kettle began to boil the queasiness 
in my stomach had started to wane. 

It took me two trips to cart everything I needed, but soon I was
out in the fresh air with my toast, tea and the baby monitor. I
was glad that I'd grabbed my robe before I came downstairs,
because it was decidedly fresh outside. Guinness seemed to like
the chilly morning air and settled happily at my feet while I
ate.

About half an hour later Mulder joined me outside. He still 
looked a little rumpled, but he was dressed for a run.

"I didn't think you'd sleep this long," I smiled up at him.

"Neither did I," he chuckled and stretched his arms over his
head. "I'm going to head out for a run," he bent over to give
me a quick kiss.

"Did you check with Andrew? Maybe he'd want to go, too," I
wondered.

"I stuck my head into his room, but he was still asleep with his
pillows over his head," he shrugged.

"How can he breathe like that?" I started to worry right away.

"I dunno, but I checked, and he was breathing," Mulder assured
me.

"Weird," I shook my head.

"How are you feeling this morning?" Mulder squatted down to look
at me.

"Fine," I lied with a smile. I had no idea what was wrong, but 
I didn't see any need to worry Mulder over what was probably a
mild stomach flu.

"I'm glad," he tucked a stray strand of hair back behind my ear.
"You look so much better than yesterday."

"Thanks, sweetie," I laughed. "Now get going. The sooner you
go, the sooner you'll be back."

Not long after Mulder left, the rest of the house began to wake
up. With Megan's company, I got dressed and then brought her 
downstairs. Shortly after that Jordan and Andrew had joined us 
in the kitchen.

"How'd you sleep?" I smiled at Andrew when he wandered into the 
kitchen.

"Like a baby," He gave Megan a tickle.

"Do you always sleep with the pillows over your head?" I laughed
as I handed him a cup of coffee. 

"What?" He looked up at me in surprise. His cheeks grew faintly
pink.

"Mulder went by your room to see if you wanted to go out for a 
run with him. He said you were sleeping with pillows over your 
head," I worried that I'd brought up a touchy subject.

"Oh, I got into that habit in college -- loud dorm. It was the
only way I could get any sleep," his cheeks flushed further. 

"I never had any problems," I chuckled. "But I'm sure Mulder would
love to tell you how I can sleep anywhere, any time."

"You're lucky," he sighed. "Thanks for the coffee."

"No problem. I'm making pancakes. Would you like some?" I nodded
toward the batter.

"I don't want you to go to any trouble," he held up his hands.

"I'm making them for the Megan and Jordan. It's no trouble," I
assured him.

"Megan eats pancakes?" he seemed surprised.

"Yeah, I make her little dollar cakes and she eats them with
her fingers," I explained as I began to pour batter onto the
griddle.

"She must get awfully messy," he remarked as he poured some cream
into his coffee.

"I don't give her any syrup," I laughed.

"Oh," his cheeks started to grow pink again.

The back door opened and a sweaty Mulder burst into the kitchen.
"Mmm, pancakes," he sniffed the air.

"Not until you have a shower," I quirked an eyebrow at him.

"I thought you liked me when I was hot and sweaty," he began to
walk slowly toward me.

"Mulder..." I giggled as I felt a blush creeping up my neck.

"Admit it," he waggled his eyebrows.

"Don't you dare get me all sweaty," I pointed my spatula at him.

"Admit it," He was inches away from me.

"Okay, okay. I like it when you're all hot and sweaty," I 
laughed.

"Thought so," he leaned in and kissed me. "Save some pancakes
for me," he grinned as he turned to leave the room.

When I looked at Andrew to shake my head, I was amused to find
him staring at his coffee, blushing furiously.

When breakfast was over Mulder decided he should return the
Gunmen's van before they concocted some covert recovery 
operation. Jordan had commented on the van several times so
Mulder took him along. I left the cleaning of the kitchen for 
later and played with Megan, knowing that she would fall asleep 
in about hour. I brought her toys to the living room to play 
with her. She seemed content to simply remove the toys from the 
laundry basket and hand them to me. Each time she handed me a 
toy I'd thank her, and say something about the toy. I'd either 
tell her what color it was or I'd say the name of the toy. When 
the basket was empty she filled it up again. 

By the time Mulder and Jordan got back, Megan was asleep and
I had started to clean the kitchen. 

"I'll do this," Mulder slipped his hands around my waist. "Why
don't you do something with Jordan?"

"My pleasure," I turned in his arms and gave him a kiss. "Are
you going to make lunch too?"

"If you like," he returned my kiss. "Anything in particular?"

"Nope," I smiled and after another quick kiss I left to find
Jordan.

Apparently, he'd enjoyed taking the dog for a walk the previous 
morning, because he wanted to go again. It was almost noon when 
we got back. Luckily, I'd brought a plastic bag with me. Once I'd 
disposed of my doggie treasure and washed my hands I helped 
Mulder with lunch. 

After we'd finished the meal, Andrew offered to clean up. 

"There are four of us and one of you, Andrew," I pointed out. "You
shouldn't be cleaning up after us."

"I feel like I should be doing something," he explained.

"You sat with Megan yesterday," I reminded him. "Now get out 
of here."

"Okay," he laughed. "I do have a few errands I have to run."

With Andrew gone and the kids napping, the afternoon seemed 
very quiet. I retrieved the Sunday paper and sat with my back 
against the arm of the couch and my feet in Mulder's lap while 
he watched the Redskins game.

I was in the middle of an article about preserving woodwork in 
older houses when the phone startled both of us.

"Probably my mother," I said as I got up.

"Hello," I smiled when I answered expecting to hear my mother's
voice.

"Put Andrew on," a terse female voice ordered.

"Uh," I was taken aback. "I'm sorry, he's not here. Could I take
a message?" I assumed I was talking to the charming Leigh.

"I'm not stupid, bitch. I know he's there. Put him on," she
spat.

"Excuse me? You have no call to speak to me like that."

At the astounded tone of my voice, Mulder flicked off the TV and
sat up.

"I'll talk to you any fucking way I please, you lying whore --"

I stopped listening and hung up the phone, my hands shaking
with rage.

"An obscene phone call?" Mulder was on his feet.

"You could say that," I unclenched my teeth. "I think it was 
Leigh."

The phone began to ring again as I finished speaking.

"I'll get it," Mulder moved toward the phone. "Hello?" he sounded
cautious. He paused only for a moment.

"Look, Leigh," the anger in his voice surprised me. "I don't care
what's happened between you and Andrew, you have no right to 
speak to my wife like that."

Mulder had no idea what Leigh had actually said to me, but I 
surmised that the look on my face must have given him a fair
indication.

"Somehow I doubt that you are a stupid woman, so I trust that
you know how foolish it is to make threats like that against a 
federal officer," he put the phone down heavily.

I was glad that Megan and Jordan weren't around to hear Mulder
speak in that tone of voice. I was sure he would have scared them
both. The phone was barely back in it's cradle when it rang 
again.

"What?" Mulder practically yelled into the phone. His face fell
almost instantly. "I am so sorry, Maggie. We just had a couple of
nasty phone calls."

Taking the phone from Mulder, I explained the saga to my mother.
She, too, was perplexed as to why this woman would've let a man
like Andrew slip through her fingers.

When Andrew returned he was mortified to hear what had happened.
He promised to talk to Leigh and make sure she didn't bother us
again.

"I don't think she'll be calling back," Mulder chuckled. "I
don't think she realized at first who she was talking to."

"If I were you Andrew," I jumped in, "I wouldn't bother calling
her back. She wasn't calling to apologize or make amends -- she
was spewing venom."

"I am so sorry that you got dragged into this," he sat down and 
put his face in his hands. "I don't know why I didn't break up
with her a long time ago. She kept saying things would be
different, but they never were."

"Women like that don't change, Andrew," Mulder shook his head.
"The sooner you realize that the better. I learned that lesson
the hard way. Sometime I'll tell you about my experience at
Oxford, when Scully's not around. She's heard it often 
enough already."

"You can say that again," I chuckled. "But seriously, Andrew,
I think you are well rid of that woman."

"You sound like my mother," he grinned. "She can't stand Leigh."

The mood in the room seemed to lighten dramatically and the rest
of the day passed smoothly. Before I went to bed that night I
remembered how queasy I'd been that morning. I decided it might
be prudent to eat something light before I went to bed. Opting
for some yogurt and a banana, I ate in front of the TV. If 
Mulder thought there was anything strange about it, he made no 
comment.

Being that the next day was my first back at work, I set the 
clock for six. When the alarm went off, both Mulder and I 
groaned. I'd slept for 8 hours and I still felt exhausted. As I
was staggering to the bathroom, I felt that familiar twinge at the
back of my jaw. It was the only warning I got.

Since I'd eaten before I went to bed, I had plenty to throw 
up. Mulder was at my side almost instantly with a glass of water
and a cold cloth. When my stomach finally stopped convulsing, I
slumped against him. He put the cloth on my neck and held the
glass to my lips. After a few minutes I was able to sit up on
my own.

"What's going on, Scully? You were so much better yesterday," 
Mulder lifted up my chin to look at me.

I shook my head slightly.

"What does that mean?" He sounded wary.

"I'm sorry," I took a shaky breath. "I didn't want you to worry."

"What happened?" He sounded more concerned than angry.

"My stomach was upset when I woke up, but after I had some
toast I was fine. I didn't mention it because I thought I was
getting better," I felt tears welling up in my eyes.

"Well you obviously aren't better," he wrapped his arms around
me. "I think you should go see your doctor."

"Today is supposed to be my first day back at work," I 
protested. "I'll be fine once I have some toast."

"How long are you willing to let this go on? So you call in
sick. Who cares? Your health is more important. I want you to 
see your doctor -- and I want you to see him today."

In the three months we'd been married, Mulder had never spoken 
that emphatically to me. I suddenly realized that he was as 
scared as I was. I couldn't stop the tears from spilling onto my
face.

"I'm sorry," I buried my face in my hands and wept.

"It'll be okay," Mulder pulled me onto his lap. "You'll be okay.
But you have to see your doctor."

As much as the security of Mulder's arms comforted me, they 
could not stop the anxiety from building inside me. I didn't 
share his certainty that as long as I saw my doctor, I'd be 
fine. He hadn't helped before.

"I'll call Dr. Zuckerman's office as soon as it opens," I 
promised him, my voice still shaking.

"It'll be all right," Mulder pressed his lips to my forehead.

I tried to take comfort from Mulder's assurances, but even 
his gentle touch was not enough to stop the dread that had 
begun to spread through me.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When my mother arrived at the house half an hour later, she was
surprised to find me still in my robe.

"Is something wrong?" she asked immediately.

"I'm still sick, Mom," I admitted quietly. I didn't like anyone
knowing when I wasn't feeling well, but especially not my mother. 
She still liked to treat me like a ten-year-old. She'd want me 
back in bed with a hot water bottle and a Nancy Drew mystery.

"Shouldn't you be in bed then?" she hurried over and put her hand
on my forehead. "You don't feel warm."

"I'm not running a fever, Mom," I gave Megan another spoonful of
cereal. "It's the same thing as the other morning," I thought it 
would be best not to go into the gory details at the breakfast 
table.

"She's going to the doctor later," Mulder informed my mother.

"That's probably a good idea," she nodded. "I'm sure it's 
nothing to worry about, but you should find out for sure," she
was still looking at Mulder.

"Hello," I waved at them. "I am still in the room."

"Sorry, Scully," Mulder smiled at me. "Yeah," he turned back 
to my mother, "We thought she should get into see Dr. Zuckerman
as soon as possible."

"Dr. Zuckerman," her eyebrows shot up. "Isn't he your --?"

"Yes," I cut her off and looked toward Jordan. "Just to be on 
the safe side."

At the mention of my oncologist the color drained out of my 
mother's face. I'd assumed that she'd been thinking the same
thing that Mulder and I had been thinking, but maybe she'd 
thought it was just a bug. I began to regret saying anything.
As quickly as her face fell, she recovered and started to
chat with Jordan about school. It was clear to me that I'd
come by my coping capabilities honestly. 

By 7:30 Mulder still hadn't left for work. I was in the front 
hall with him, trying to get him out the door.

"You're going to be late," I chided him. 

"I don't care if I'm late," he pulled me into his arms. "Are
you sure you don't want me to come with you?"

We'd had the same debate at least ten times already and we'd
only been up for an hour and a half.

"Mulder, I have no idea when I'll be able to get an appointment.
Besides, it will be less stressful for me to go alone," I tried
to explain.

"Less stressful?" I saw hurt in his eyes.

"Mulder," I stood on tiptoe and kissed him softly, "If you 
come with me I'll spend most of my time trying not to make
you worry. If you came with me, every time I shifted in my
chair you'd be asking me if I was all right. Can you understand
how that might be stressful for me?"

"I wouldn't, Scully, I promise," his tone was earnest.

"So you're saying you wouldn't be worried?" 

"Well -- no," he frowned.

"This might be selfish of me, Mulder, but it would be easier
for me if I went by myself," I straightened a wayward lock of 
hair on his forehead.

"Okay, Scully," his shoulders slumped. "I don't want to make
this any harder on you." 

"Thank you, Mulder," I gave him another soft kiss. "I'll call
you as soon as I know anything."

Mulder clung to me tightly for a moment before he practically
threw himself out of the door. I couldn't see his face. The
door made a hollow thunk when it closed. I stood there staring at 
it; not seeing anything. Suddenly I had the urge to pull the door 
open again, but Mulder was already driving away. My throat 
tightened and I felt very alone. After taking a long slow breath,
I turned and walked back to the kitchen to help my mother get
Jordan ready for school. 
 
From experience I knew that Dr. Zuckerman's opened at nine. My 
mother hadn't returned from taking Jordan to school when I 
called. When I explained my concerns to the receptionist she
told me to come right down and they would fit me in. As soon
as my mother came home I drove to Dr. Zuckerman's offices beside
Trinity Hospital.

Once upstairs, I went to the front desk to let the receptionist 
know I'd arrived.

"Dana Scully to see Dr. Zuckerman," I smiled and handed her my
insurance card.

"It says Mulder here," she looked at the card. 

"Right. I was married in June, but I haven't seen Dr. Zuckerman
since then to have my records updated," I explained.

"Has anything else changed? Address? Phone number?" she smiled
up at me.

"Yes, all of it," I chuckled and gave her the information. She
updated the information on her computer as I told her.

"Have a seat and Dr. Zuckerman will see you as soon as possible,"
she instructed as she handed the card back to me.

I tried to keep myself occupied by reading one of the women's
magazine's that adorned the tables in the waiting room. Even 
though the magazines were recent, my attention kept wandering.
Several times I found myself just staring off into space. I was
expecting a long wait, but it didn't seem long before a nurse
called me back to an examination room.

Since this was a consultation, she didn't ask me to undress, she
simply pointed me toward the chair beside the doctor's desk. 
Before she left she slipped a file into the holder on the door --
my file. For what had seemed like an eternity to me, my life 
had revolved around the contents of that file. For many months
now, those slips of paper, the notes, the test results, the 
diagnoses were all but forgotten. My life had begun to revolve 
around other things; more important things -- things I had always
wanted. For the past two days I had tried to ignore the possibility
that this file might start to play a pivotal role in my life 
again. Only it wasn't just my life anymore.

Mulder had never understood why I had pushed him away during my
battle. I hadn't wanted to drag him into it with me. I thought
he couldn't be a source of strength for me if he was weighed
down by my problems, but all I succeeded in doing was creating
a rift between us. He'd felt that I didn't love him or trust him
enough to share my pain with him. 

Down the hall I heard a door close. The sound triggered 
something and in my mind's eye I saw Mulder leaving the house
and the door closing behind him. Had he left, or had I pushed him
away again?

A rustling noise stirred me out of my reverie and I looked up
to see Dr. Zuckerman looking at the name on my file.

"Dana -- it's Mulder now?" he smiled at me.

"Yes," I smiled.

"Isn't that the name of your partner?" he put the file on
his desk as he sat down.

"One and the same," I felt myself blushing.

"Well, congratulations," he reached out to shake my hand. 

"Thank you," my blush was full blown.

"What brings you here today, Dana?" he opened up my file.

"Well it started Saturday morning. I woke up very nauseous
and then I vomited. After I was able to eat something I felt
fine for the rest of the day. Then again yesterday morning I felt 
queasy, but it went away when I had something to eat. Last night
I thought maybe I should eat before I went to bed, but that 
didn't work," I gave him my recent history.

"You vomited again this morning?" he began to jot some notes.

"Yes," I nodded.

"And how was your health before that?"

"Fine," I turned my hands palms up. "Almost perfect, no 
headaches, good appetite, my strength and endurance were fine,
no problems sleeping, well after Megan started sleeping through 
the night."

"Megan?" he repeated, looking up from his notes.

"It's a long story," I smiled, "but Mulder and I became legal
guardians to two beautiful children."

"That's wonderful, Dana," he smiled broadly. "Now, I'm sure all
that's going on here is some kind of virus, but I'll run some
tests just to make sure." 

"Thank you," I relaxed back into my chair. 

"Just take this requisition to the lab at the end of the hall.
When you're done you can come back here to wait. That way we 
can get this all sorted out ASAP," he spoke as he filled out 
the form. "I'll come back to see you when I get the results 
back."

In less than five minutes I had my sleeves rolled up and a 
tourniquet on my arm. Before she started to draw my blood the
nurse took another look at my requisition form.

"You look familiar," she commented as she put the form down and
picked up an alcohol swab. "But not the name," she furrowed her 
brow.

"I've been here before," I watched as she cleaned off my arm. 
"But my name was Scully."

"Scully...Dana Scully, oh that's right," she uncapped the 
syringe. "You're the one with the guy."

"The guy?" I laughed as she loosened the tourniquet. I hadn't 
even felt the needle go in.

"Yeah, all the girls at the hospital talked about him for 
months," she grinned down at me.

"They did?" I assumed she was referring to Mulder.

"Yeah," she popped out another vial, I was starting to lose 
track. I'd seen the lavender CBC vial, the red and black CMP 
vial, and the undifferentiated tumor panel vial, but I may have 
missed a vial. "When you were in the hospital, he was there 
almost all the time. They said he was like two different people."

"Two different people?" I wasn't following her.

"Well, when you were awake he was smiling or giving the nurses
and doctors a hard time," she began.

"That sounds like Mulder," I laughed.

"But when you were sleeping, he wouldn't leave your side. 
Apparently one night he cried himself to sleep at your bedside,"
she smiled down at me.

"Yeah?" I bit my lip and blinked rapidly.

"You married him, huh?" she smiled as she exchanged yet another
vial.

"I did," I managed to smile.

"He sounds like a keeper," she grinned. "You're all done."

"Thanks, Annette," I checked out her nametag.

"Oh, you're very welcome, Dana, and give that hubby of yours a 
big squeeze for me," she bandaged my arm and folded it back.

As I walked slowly back to the examination room my heart was
breaking. I couldn't believe what I'd done to Mulder. All he 
wanted was for me to be happy. That was all he'd ever wanted.
In the past I wouldn't let him get close enough to help me. I'd
ignored what it might be doing to him. And here I was doing it 
again. In an instant I knew what I had to do. I needed him to
be with me. I reached into my pocket for my cell phone. As I 
opened it and pressed #1 on my speed dial the phone went blurry.

The next thing I knew I was back in the exam room, lying on my 
side on the exam table. There was a cold cloth on my neck.

"How are you feeling, Dana?" an unfamiliar voice asked.

"A little woozy," I tried to sit up.

"You need to lay down a little longer," I felt a hand on my 
shoulder. "You're still a little pale."

"What happened?" I asked the voice.

"You fainted," she informed me. "It happens sometimes after you
give so much blood."

'Not to me,' I thought to myself, but I didn't say that.
"Where's my phone?"

"Never mind that right now, dear. You need to rest."

"I need to call my husband," I tried to explain.

"No, you need to rest," she patted my arm.

Deciding it would be in my best interest, I closed my mouth and
bided my time. I wanted Mulder here immediately, but it 
wouldn't be long before I'd be allowed to sit up. I closed my
eyes, took deep breaths and willed my blood pressure to rise.
Sure enough, in five minutes, I was allowed to sit up. My head
was still spinning a little, but I still managed to read my
nursemaid's nametag. 

"Do you still need your husband, dear?," Jean smiled 
patronizingly at me. "I'll get your phone if you like." 

"Yes, thank you," I forced myself to be polite. 

As I was about to dial again, I heard a loud voice coming from 
the waiting room.

"She was trying to call me! Someone here told me she fainted.
Where is she?" We both turned toward the sound.

"That's him," I smiled at Jean and started to slide down from
the table.

"No!" Jean spoke sharply, pointing me back onto the table with
her finger. "That's who?"

"My husband," I explained as I slid backwards.

"How hard can she be to find? I can start opening doors myself
if that makes it easier for you!" the ranting continued.

"That man bellowing at the front desk?" her eyes widened.

"Yeah," I admitted, trying to hold my smile back.

Jean sighed, stood up and walked to the door. "The name's 
Mulder?" she looked back at me. I nodded my head vigorously, 
making it swim a little. "She's here, Mr. Mulder," Jean leaned 
her head out into the hallway.

I saw Jean's eyes widen and she suddenly flattened herself 
against the door. In a matter a seconds the doorway darkened and
Mulder came flying into the room.

"Scully," he panted when he saw me. "Are you okay?"

"She's fine, Mr. Mulder," Jean interjected. "She fainted after we
drew some blood -- not uncommon."

Mulder barely acknowledged her presence, merely flicking a glance
at her after she spoke. "Scully?"

I opened my mouth to try to tell him I was fine, but no sound
came out. I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes and I
held my arms out to him. When he gathered me into his arms I
finally found my voice.

"I'm sorry, Mulder," my voice was muffled by his chest.

"Sorry? Why? What's happened?" he pulled back slightly to look
at me.

"Nothing," I sniffed. "I mean, I don't know anything yet."

"Then what are you talking about?" his hands were cupping my 
face; his thumbs caressing my cheeks as he brushed away my tears.

"I didn't know," I tried to shake my head in his hands. "I 
didn't realize -- I was so selfish," more tears began to slide 
down my cheeks.

"Didn't know what?" his voice was gentle.

"I never thought about how my shutting you out might be affecting 
you -- how it might have affected you. I was too concerned about
myself to see what I was doing to you," I tried to explain.

"Scully, you have to deal with this in your own way. It's okay. I
understand," he leaned over and kissed my forehead.

"No, it's not okay," my voice caught in my throat. "It was just
like the last time."

"What do you mean?" he looked troubled.

"When I was sick before, I pushed you away because -- because,"
I couldn't get the words out.

"Shh," Mulder pulled me close again.  

"No, Mulder, I need to tell you," I drew a shaky breath. "You
deserve to know." 

"What do I deserve to know?" he almost looked frightened.

"The reason I pushed you away," I looked down, not wanting to
meet his eyes. "I was afraid, Mulder, -- afraid that if I let
you get too close, you'd find out."

"Find out?" he lifted my chin with his finger. His eyes held
nothing but love when they met mine.

"I was afraid you'd find out that I loved you," I confessed.

"What would have been wrong with that?" he smiled at me.

"Think about it, Mulder. What if you hadn't returned my feelings?
What would you have done? Would you have said 'Sorry babe, I know
you're dying, but I don't feel the same way about you'?"

"Of course not!" he huffed.

"No, of course not," I nodded. "So how would I have known if your
feelings were genuine? I wanted you to love me, Mulder, but I
certainly did not want your pity."

"That's all in past, Scully," he reminded me gently.

"But what if it's not, Mulder? The slightest hint that I might
be sick and I start to push you away? How could I have done that
to you? I know you love me and just want to protect me, but I
couldn't stop myself from internalizing everything."

"It's a defense mechanism, Scully," he tried to rationalize.

"I don't want to shut you out, Mulder. I need you. I asked you
not to come here with me and then I needed you," my tears started
up again. "I want you here with me."

"Scully, I wanted to be here with you so badly, but it had to be
your decision. I needed you to want me here," his voice broke.

"Mulder, I am so sorry," I clutched at him. "I do want you here.
I'm still not used to the fact that I'm allowed to want you."

He said nothing. Instead he began to place feathery soft kisses
on my lips. I easily became lost in the sensation of his mouth
on mine; so lost that I forgot where we were until I heard the
sound of a throat being cleared.

"Sorry," I pulled back.

"Mr. Mulder," Dr. Zuckerman extended his hand to Mulder when he
turned around. "I hear you've acquainted yourself with my 
receptionist."

"Sorry about that," Mulder hung his head.

"I understand that you were concerned about your wife. Why 
don't you both have a seat?" he pointed toward the chairs by 
his desk. "The first test results are back," he held up my
file.

After we took our seats, I reached for Mulder's hand. He took
it immediately and gave it a squeeze. When I turned to look at 
him, he smiled softly and winked. I tightened my grip on his 
hand and turned back to face the doctor. He had opened my file
and was looking at the test results. Initially he was smiling as
he read, but then his brow furrowed and my stomach fell. I felt
Mulder's hand clench around mine. He'd seen it too.

"I'm sorry," Dr. Zuckerman's voice was tight. "There's been a 
mix up at the lab."

"What?" I wasn't sure I'd heard him correctly.

"They've sent me the wrong results," he shook his head, his
lips pressed tightly together. "I'll be right back." He got up
and walked briskly out of his office.

"What does that mean?" Mulder sounded lost.

"Either they did the wrong tests, which I doubt -- the tubes are
all color-coded to test, or they sent someone else's results with
my name attached to them," I explained.

"Oh," he nodded slowly. "How could he tell that?"

"A result that was obviously not mine, like elevated cardiac
enzymes or something similar," I turned in my chair to face him.

"Ahh," he nodded, although I could tell he still had no idea what 
I was talking about.

Suddenly a sound from the adjacent office made Mulder and I stare
at each other. We could hear Dr. Zuckerman's voice through the 
wall and he was not happy. I couldn't make out everything he
was saying, but I heard the phrase 'gross misconduct' and a few
seconds later I distinctly heard him say 'stat'. There was a few
seconds of silence before I heard the words 'chain of custody'.
After that we only heard the normal background sounds of an 
office.

"Sounds like someone got a new one ripped," Mulder leaned over
to whisper in my ear.

"I'll say," I had to chuckle.

I was still smiling when Dr. Zuckerman came back into the office.

"Now, Dana," he sat down again, "Unfortunately we'll have to draw
the blood again."

"What?" Mulder yelped and dropped my hand. "Last time you drew 
blood, she fainted. Why can't you use the blood she already gave 
you?"

"Two reasons, Mr. Mulder," Dr. Zuckerman began patiently, "First,
the original samples were exhausted by the first tests we ran in 
most cases. And second, I still couldn't be sure they had the 
right blood."

"It's okay, Mulder," I patted his arm. "I'll be fine."

"We can do it here," Dr. Zuckerman added. "Dana can stay on the
exam table. It's that or she comes back tomorrow."

"Mulder, it's less blood than when you donate. I'll be fine and
besides, you're here now," I smiled at him.

"All right," he chuckled and relaxed back into his chair. 

"I'll go get Annette," Dr. Zuckerman smiled.

Once Dr. Zuckerman had left the office I stood up to walk over
to the exam table. Before I could take a step, Mulder reached for
my hand. 

"Hey," he smiled up at me. "Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"If I don't try to get up too quickly, I'll be fine. My blood
pressure plummeted, that's all," I tried to reassure him.

As I was scooting back up onto the exam table, Annette walked 
into the room with her basket of goodies.

"Hi again," she smiled at me. "Sorry about that screw up at the
lab. That's really weird, they're usually so good."

"It happens," I shrugged with a smile.

"Oh, hello," Annette completely ignored me when Mulder stood up.
"Are you Mr. Mulder?"

"Yes," he extended his hand to shake her gloved one.

"Oops," she peeled off her glove to shake his hand. "I thought
that must have been you earlier."

"Your reputation precedes you," I laughed when I saw the look
of shock on his face.

After Annette put a fresh glove on she proceeded to prep my
arm again while telling Mulder everything she'd heard about him.

"I don't know if I should feel honored or totally humiliated," 
Mulder shook his head.

"You're such a cutie," Annette giggled at him. "He doesn't know
how cute he is, does he?" she turned to me.

"No, he doesn't," I bit my lip, trying not to laugh. "Do you, 
sweetie?" I grinned at him.

"I'll go with the humiliation," he gave us a forced smile at us
and went back to his chair.

"Ooo, he's even cuter when he pouts," Annette laughed. "There we
go! All done," she chirped. "It was nice to meet you, Mr. 
Mulder."

"I'm a cutie?" Mulder wrinkled his nose when Annette had left 
the room.

"Well, I think so, but I may be a little biased," I winked at 
him.

"You don't think I'm devastatingly handsome?" he frowned.

"C'mere, Mulder," I crooked my finger at him.

"What?" he looked at me askance, still pouting.

"Just c'mere," I smiled.

He took his sweet time sauntering over to me, but when he was
finally within my reach, I grabbed his tie and pulled him into
a kiss.

"What's wrong with cute?" I asked when I'd freed his lips.

"Nothing, I guess," he shrugged.

"Right then, Mulder you were cute. Earlier when you came 
barreling in here you were a knight in shining armor," I smiled
as he puffed up at my comment. "Last night in bed you were a
hunk," I lowered my voice. "All of those things make you 
devastatingly handsome in my eyes."

"Mmm," he pressed another kiss against my lips. When he pulled
back, I thought he was going to say something, but he simply 
rested his forehead against mine.

"What's the matter, Mulder," I ran my hand up and down his arm.
"I really do think you're very handsome."

"Thank you, Scully," he chuckled, "but it's not that."

"Then what?" I rubbed my nose against his.

"It's what we were talking about earlier. There's something I
should tell you," he straightened up.

"Okay," I looked up at him, not sure what to expect.

"You know I've been in love with you forever," he began, warming
me to my toes. "I kept waiting for the perfect time to tell you,
but, well -- then you got sick. "

"It's okay," I reached for his hand again.

"I want to tell you, please, Scully," he pleaded with his eyes.

"Okay," I whispered.

"Okay," he took a long breath. "I was so angry when you got sick.
Angry at the men who had done this to you. Angry at the doctors 
who couldn't do anything for you. Angry at you for pushing me
away. Angry at myself for being angry with you," he shook his
head.

"Mulder, it's okay. It's all part of the grieving process," I
tried to soothe him.

"You weren't dead!" I couldn't tell whether he was angry 
or grieving again.

"It's possible to grieve for the living, Mulder. And I was dying 
-- it was a natural reaction."

"I hated myself for it," he squeezed his eyes shut. "And I hated 
myself for being such a coward. The woman I loved was going to 
die and I'd never had the balls to tell her how I really felt."

"Mulder, look at me," I reached up to caress his cheek and waited 
for him to open his eyes. "We both made mistakes in the past, but 
we were given a second chance. Do you know how precious that is? 
I don't intend to squander it and I certainly don't want to 
waste any more of it worrying about things that are in the past. 
Let's take this gift and move forward."

"Look at me," he shook his head. "I'm supposed to be here to
help you and you end up comforting me. No wonder you didn't want
me here."

"Mulder, this is a two way street. It's not only about me -- it's
about us. I thought we were in this together. If you are still
fighting demons from the past how can you help me now?"

"You're right, Scully, we are in this together, but I should 
be thinking about you right now, not about myself," he sighed.

"Mulder -- " I began.

"Scully," he cut me off. "We're thinking about you now, okay?"

"Okay," I grinned. "And what are we thinking?"

"I'm not sure. You may always know what's going on in my mind,
but I haven't got the hang of that yet, so help me out a little.
What can I do for you?"

"Do for me? Nothing -- I'm fine," I waved him off.

"C'mon, Scully, there has to be something," his shoulders sagged.

"Not really," I didn't know what to tell him.

"Look, Scully, I'm trying my best to do the doting husband thing
here, but you aren't helping me much," he sounded exasperated.

"Well," I gnawed on my lip as I thought. "I did notice a vending
machine in the lobby. I'm a little thirsty after two rounds of
bloodwork. Could you get me an orange juice?"

"I am so there," he grinned at me. "I'll be right back."

After Mulder left the room, happy to have been given a task, I 
leaned my head back against the wall. I was still feeling a bit 
woozy even though I hadn't moved after Annette had taken my 
blood. The orange juice would give me sugar and rehydrate me at 
the same time. When Mulder brought it back, he hopped up on the
table and sat beside me while I drank it.

When I finished, he took the empty bottle and put it in the waste 
can.

"You're looking better," he smiled as he walked back.

"I feel better," I sighed. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he snuggled a little closer to me.

I was about to lean over and give him another kiss when Dr. 
Zuckerman strode into the room with my file in his hand. He 
looked mildly surprised to see both of us on the exam table.

"I'm glad you're both sitting down," he began.

I'd been feeling happy and content mere seconds before, but his
words quashed those feelings in nothing flat.

"I got your tests back, and -- what can I say? The lab was 
right the first time. I didn't believe it. I thought it had
to be a mistake. That's why I made them rerun the tests," he
shook his head in amazement. 

"What?" Mulder was twitching beside me. "What's wrong?"

I'd closed my eyes. I was hoping beyond hope that it was
just a flu bug. But my heart had begun to race and my stomach
was tied in a million knots. Part of me didn't want to hear what
he was going to say and the other part just wanted it over with.

"Congratulations!" he sounded jubilant, making my eyes fly open.
"You're going to have a baby!"
  
There were a few seconds of silence in the room before I managed to 
turn toward Scully. Her face was completely white, her eyes were 
wide and her lips were slightly parted. She looked as shocked as I 
felt. 
       
"But --" she finally found her voice. 
       
"I know," Dr. Zuckerman grinned as he sat down. "That's why I had 
them rerun the test. I didn't think it was possible either." 
       
"She's really --?" I found myself feeling starting to feel euphoric. 
I thought my smile might crack my face. 
       
"She most certainly is," Dr. Zuckerman opened the file. "Two 
positive results and I have the chain of custody right in front of 
me," he shook his head as if he still didn't quite believe it 
himself. "After what I said on the phone earlier I think I owe the 
lab techs some wings and beer -- and I'll be having crow."  
       
"But --" Scully was still pale. 
       
"You know," Dr. Zuckerman smiled and cocked his head, "After what 
happened when we put that chip back in your neck, I'm not really 
surprised." 
       
"You think that chip had something to do with this?" Scully's voice 
was faint. 
       
"I couldn't say for sure," his face became serious, "But what I do 
know for sure is that two years ago you were sterile. And now..." 
       
"I'm pregnant," she put a trembling hand to her face. "We're 
pregnant," she turned to me; two large tears stood in her eyes. 
"Oh, my God, Mulder, we're pregnant." 
       
When Scully mentioned her implant I worried that she might be 
concerned about it's affect on her or our baby, but that didn't seem 
to be the case. She must have still been in shock. 
       
I was so thrilled I wanted to jump off the table, take Scully 
in my arms and spin her around -- but then images of her throwing up 
popped into my mind, so I decided against it. Instead, I gave her a 
big wet kiss and leapt to the floor. I was halfway through my 
version of Elvis' patented karate move when the room began to spin. 
The next thing I knew, Scully and Dr. Zuckerman were holding me up 
and helping me to a chair.  
       
"This was a shock for both of us, Mulder. You shouldn't have jumped 
off the exam table so fast," Scully was crouching in front of me.  
       
"We're pregnant, Scully," I whispered, not being able to manage 
more. 
       
"We are," her face was beaming as she stroked my cheek. 
       
"You have no idea how long I've wanted this for us," I covered her 
hand with mine. 
       
"I think I might," her entire face shone as she stood up. Our hands 
stayed clasped as she took the chair beside me. 
       
"Would you like a glass of water, Mr. Mulder?" Dr. Zuckerman lifted 
up the decanter on his desk.  
       
"No, I'm okay," I waved him off. 
       
"If this kind of thing is too much for you, you might want to 
consider not going into the delivery room," Dr. Zuckerman advised 
me. 
       
"I'm sure I'll be fine," I assured him as I heard Scully trying to 
disguise a laugh by coughing. 
       
"Good," he smiled. "Now there were a few other things I wanted to 
discuss," he got back to business. "All of your other test results 
look fine, but they are only preliminary. Once I have all of the 
results back, I'll call you either way." 
       
"Okay," Scully nodded, seeming unconcerned. When the doctor had 
started talking about more test results, all the joy began to 
drain out of me, 
but her response quickly put me at ease. 
       
"And you have your own OB-GYN, I assume?" he was writing in Scully's 
file as he spoke. 
       
"I do," Scully nodded again. 
       
"Considering your history and your age, I would think that you 
should make an appointment as soon as possible," he finally closed 
his file. 
       
"I will," Scully smiled and extended her hand. 
       
"I wish you both the best," he smiled genuinely as he rose to his 
feet. 
       
"Thank you, doctor," I stood and shook his hand. "What do we do 
now?" I asked her once Zuckerman had left the office. 
       
"First, I think you go out and apologize to the receptionist and 
then I  assume we're going home," she smiled up at me. 
       
"Do I have to?" I whined. 
       
"No," she stood and began to walk toward the door. "You can go back 
to the office if you like." 
       
I'd been married to Scully long enough to know that it was in my 
best interest to just apologize and get it over with. If I tried 
to argue about it, she'd only point in how many ways what I'd done 
was wrong. My only defense was that I'd been worried about her, 
but in her books that was no excuse for being rude. 
       
"Fine," I sighed. "Then I'll drive us home." 
       
"I can drive my own car, Mulder," she informed me dryly. 
       
"After you fainted! I don't think so," I ushered her through the 
door. 
       
"You almost fainted, too," she looked back over her shoulder at me; 
an amused look on her face. 
       
"I did not!" I was indignant. "I just lost my balance." 
       
"Right," she rolled her eyes. 
       
"You lost consciousness," I reminded her. "So, I'm driving. 
Besides,"I grinned sheepishly, "I have this need to keep you close
right now." 
       
"All right," she laughed, shaking her head. "But what about my 
car?"  
       
"The Gunmen can pick it up," I shrugged. 
       
"How? They don't have keys," she looked puzzled. 
       
"They don't *need* keys," I leaned over to whisper in her ear. I had 
to chuckle at the shocked look on her face.  
       
During the ride home, I think I only let go of Scully's hand twice. 
We didn't say much; we kept grinning at each other and touching each 
other as much as possible. It wasn't until we pulled into the 
driveway that Scully did more than smile, sigh and shake her head in 
disbelief.  
      
"I can't wait to tell my mother," she almost squealed when I turned 
off the car. 
       
Scully's feet barely touched the ground from the time we left the 
car until we got to the front door. If I hadn't been holding her 
hand, I'm sure she would have floated away. It wasn't until she 
had to pause at the front door that she noticed the manila 
envelopes I'd picked up off the front seat of the car. 
       
"What's that?" she asked as I tucked them under my arm so I could 
open the door without letting go of her hand.  
       
"I was just leaving the lawyer's office when you called," I 
explained as I opened the door. I handed one of the envelopes 
to her. 
       
From the kitchen I could hear the sounds of lunch being eaten. 
Jordan was peppering his grandmother with questions. Megan was 
banging her spoon on her tray and I could hear Maggie's calm 
voice talking to both of them. 
     
"The offer!" her eyes widened as she looked inside. "I'd forgotten 
all about it." 
       
"That's not all," I grinned as I held the second envelope aloft. 
       
"What do you mean?" she cocked her head at me. "What is it?" 
       
Having heard us at the front door, Maggie emerged from the kitchen 
with a pensive look on her face. "You're back," was all she said. 
      
"Hi, Mom," Scully smiled. "What is it, Mulder?" she reached for the 
envelope, but I held it just out of her reach. "Damn it, Mulder," 
she balled her hands and thrust them onto her hips. "Just tell
 me!" 
       
"Nope," I grinned at her. "You have to guess."  
       
"I can't guess," she narrowed her eyes. "I have no idea." 
       
"Okay, I'll give a you clue," I consented. Lowering the envelope, I 
held it to my forehead and did my best Carnac impression.  
        
"Mrs. Limbaugh probably regrets signing hers." 
       
I was so amused by my own joke I'd forgotten the envelope was now 
within Scully's grasp. Before I knew what had happened, she'd 
snatched it out of my hand and had spun away from me. 
      
"Oh, no you don't!" I reached around her, fishing for the envelope. 
       
Giggling, Scully thrust her butt back against me and held her arms 
straight out in front of her, taking my prize out of my reach. On 
top of that, the location of her ass was proving to be a major 
distraction. 
       
"Oh yeah?" I took the challenge and began to tickle her ribs. 
       
"No!" she squealed and collapsed against me. 
       
"A ha!" My right hand made contact with manila. 
       
"Uh uh," Scully shook her head and dodged right, still giggling and 
trying to open the envelope. 
       
Staying with her, I reached over her shoulder, trying to use my 
height advantage. When Scully tried to duck out of the way, she 
stumbled over my foot and started to fall. I lunged toward her 
in an attempt to catch her. Instead, I ended up on the floor 
with her on top of me. Before I could ask her if she was okay, 
she pinned my arms with her knees and opened the envelope. I 
was so enthralled with what was right in front of my face I 
forgot what I was supposed to be doing. 
       
"It's the adoption papers," Scully almost whispered. "Oh, Mulder," 
she released my arms and scooted back so she could bend down to kiss 
me.  
       
"Grandma?" I heard Jordan's voice. "Why are Mommy and Daddy 
wrestling in the hall?" 
       
"I'm not sure, Jordan," Maggie sounded amused.  
       
"Sorry," Scully scrambled to her feet. "Let's go the living room so 
we can talk." 
        
After Maggie had retrieved Megan from the kitchen, we all met in the 
living room. Jordan was fidgeting on the couch, anxious to hear what 
we had to say. Scully took the baby from her mother and then nodded 
at me. 
       
"Well, Jordan, your mother and I got some very good news today." 
       
"Yeah?" he started to bounce a bit. 
       
"Today when I was at the lawyer's office, he gave me the papers that 
make you and Megan officially our children," I smiled at him. 
       
"That's wonderful! Congratulations," Maggie squeezed Scully's hand.
 
Instead of looking pleased, Jordan looked puzzled. "I thought we 
already were." 
   
"These papers mean that your name will be Jordan Mulder now," I 
tried to explain.  
       
"What was it before?" he still look confused. 
       
"Prescott," Scully jumped in. "The judge said that Mulder and I were 
supposed to take care of you, and but now the judge has said that we 
are your mom and dad now." 
       
"Wasn't I supposed to be calling you that?" Jordan's eyes widened.  
       
"It's okay, Jordan," I chuckled. "This is legal mumbo jumbo. It 
probably means more to your mom and me. We have felt for a very long 
time that we were a real family -- now a judge has made it 
official." 
       
"I'm glad the judge said so," Jordan yawned, "'cause I thought we 
were a family already, too." 
       
"Sounds like you're ready for your nap," Scully smiled. "I'll take 
them  up," she smiled at me. 
       
"How did your appointment go?" Maggie asked as Scully was standing 
up. 
       
"I'll tell you when I get back," she smiled. "But I'm fine, Mom." 
       
"Okay," Maggie's shoulders slumped in relief. 
       
While we waited for Scully, I tried to clean up from lunch, but was 
shooed to the table. When Scully came downstairs Maggie had some 
lunch ready for us.  
       
"Sit down, Mom," Scully smiled. 
       
"Oh, I don't mind," Maggie smiled as she continued to fuss with the 
plates. 
       
"Mom! Sit!" Scully nodded toward the table. "I can do this." 
       
Maggie's eyes widened, but she did her daughter's bidding. 
       
"You know how I said I was fine?" Scully asked as she put our food 
on the table. 
       
"Mmm hmm," her mother began to gnaw at her lip. 
       
"Well, the doctor did find something. That's why we were so long." 
       
"What did he find?" Maggie had grown pale. 
       
"He found out why I've been so sick," Scully smiled as she sat down. 
        
Maggie's brow furrowed as she looked at her daughter's smiling face. 
"What are you saying, Dana?" 
       
"We didn't think it was possible," Scully was smiling but her eyes 
filled  with tears. I reached for her hand. 
       
"Are you --?" It was if Maggie couldn't bring herself to ask the 
question. 
       
"Yes," Scully nodded, her voice clouded by her tears. "I'm 
pregnant." 
       
"Dana, that's wonderful!" Maggie stood and held her arms open to her 
daughter. Scully stood quickly to hug her mother. "I didn't want to 
say anything before,  but I thought --" Maggie continued. 
       
"Did you?" Scully pulled back from her mother. "I wouldn't even have 
considered it if you'd said anything." 
       
"She's like that," I nodded, trying to keep my face serious. 
       
"I'm so happy for you, Fox," Maggie held her arms out to me. 
     
"I guess I better do something with that offer on the house," I 
laughed  as I accepted her hug. "We're going to need the room." 
       
 "You didn't say when you were due," Maggie turned back to her 
daughter after  giving me a squeeze. 
       
 "I haven't seen my OB yet, but based on my last period, I'd say it 
would be sometime in the middle of May," Scully grinned. 
        
 "How do you know that?" I asked with a laugh. 
       
"I figured it out in the car on the way home," she admitted with a 
shy smile as sat down again. 
       
"You knew you were late?" her mother asked in confusion as she,
too, sat at the table. 
     
"My period hasn't been very regular for a couple of years now," 
Scully explained. "So I barely noticed that I was late. I guess 
I had other things on my mind -- like the house," she nodded 
toward the envelopes on the counter. 
       
"All right, I'm going," I laughed, "but before I go, I wanted to ask 
you  about Jordan." 
       
"What about him?" Scully wrinkled her forehead.        
      
"When were you planning on telling him?" 
       
"I wasn't planning on telling anyone else for a while," Scully gave 
both her mother and I warning looks. "But you know what might be a
 good idea..." 
       
"What?" I wasn't sure if I wanted to hear her idea. 
      
"We could have Thanksgiving at our house, with Bill and Tara, and 
Charlie and Beth, if they can make it, and maybe even Skinner and 
the Gunmen. I  think that would be perfect," she beamed. 
       
"That's a wonderful idea!" Maggie's face lit up. 
       
"Yeah, wonderful," I forced a smile. I hadn't thought much about 
Bill since Scully and I got married. Bill made no secret about the 
fact that I wasn't his favorite person on the planet, but I had no 
idea how he'd reacted to our marriage. We did get a present from 
them two weeks after the wedding. It was a hard cover edition of 
"The Joy of Sex" along with a bottle of champagne and two crystal 
flutes. The card read, in a woman's hand, "The champagne is for 
now; the book, a few years from now." Scully and I had both 
gotten a kick out of it. We'd looked at the book briefly, 
but it had taken up residence on the top shelf of the closet. When 
Scully told her mother about the present, she only mentioned the 
champagne and glasses. I've had many fond thoughts about what 
Bill's reaction to the book must have been. Now it seemed that 
I was going to have to deal with him first hand. 
      
Scully and her mother were already furiously planning when I tuned 
back into the conversation. Knowing immediately that my presence was 
no longer needed, I retrieved the envelopes and got Scully to sign 
the papers. After giving her a quick kiss, I gathered everything up 
and headed for Brent's office.  
       
The rest of the day sped by. When I got home, Maggie was gone and 
Andrew had returned from work. With the kids and our houseguest 
around there was no discussion of the baby, but from the way Scully 
floated around the house, anyone who knew her well would have 
guessed her secret.  
    
I was watching sports highlights shortly after 10 when Scully 
announced that she was going upstairs. Now that she was pregnant, 
I wasn't sure what would be happening in the bedroom. It wasn't 
something they discussed in Sex Ed. I wasn't sure if I should keep 
my distance or not. What I did know was that we hadn't really been 
able to talk much since I got back. Since I was fairly sure that 
Scully was practically bursting to talk, I followed her upstairs.
For anything beyond talking, I would try to take the signals from 
her.  
        
By the time I got upstairs, Scully was already in the bathroom. I 
flicked the TV on, shed my clothes, and climbed onto the bed clad 
only in my boxers. 
       
"Hey, Scully?" I called to her through the door. 
       
"Yeah?"  
       
"I forgot to mention it, but that psycho Leigh kept calling Andrew 
at work today. We might have to get a new extension," I let her
know. 
       
"Did you report it?" 
       
"I'm hoping it doesn't come to --" 
       
Before I could finish, the bathroom door opened and my incredible 
wife appeared in the doorway and whatever I was thinking 
completely vacated my mind. I was enthralled by the vision wearing 
a sheer black nightie. It was open in the front -- held closed by 
a tiny bow between her breasts. The nightie only came down to her 
hips, giving me ample view of the sheer black panties she had on. 
Christ did Scully know how to give signals.  
       
"Scully," I finally found voice as she walked toward me. "You 
look -- that is -- wow!" 
       
"I'm glad you like it," her voice was breathy. "We haven't had a 
chance to talk about how my pregnancy would affect our sex life. So I
thought I'd show you." 
       
"I wasn't sure," I confessed as she reached the bed.  
       
"What weren't you sure about?" she asked as she crawled up the bed. 
     
"About what would be safe and what you'd feel like doing," I was 
mesmerized by the way her breasts were swaying. 
       
"It will be perfectly safe until very late in the pregnancy, Mulder. 
As for what I feel like doing -- I was pregnant yesterday and I 
still seemed to be in the mood," she reminded me. 
       
"Yeah, you were," I grinned. "And you seem to be now, too." 
       
"I am," her voice was husky. "When I think about the miracle our 
lovemaking created, I get, well, I can't help thinking about us." 
       
"Are you saying it makes you horny, Scully?"  
        
"I was trying to put it more delicately than that -- but yes," her 
breasts  were pressed against my arm and her breath was warm across 
my neck. 
       
"That's funny, because it doesn't make me horny," I kept my voice 
even as I tucked her hair behind her ear. 
       
"It doesn't?" she straightened up, her eyes wide. 
       
"No, it doesn't," I sat up. "It does make me feel something," I took 
her by the shoulders and eased her backwards onto the bed. Her eyes 
had held confusion at first, but now they were searching mine.  
      
"What does it make you feel?" her voice was barely a whisper. 
       
Before I answered, I gently parted her legs and knelt between them. 
"I don't know how to describe it," I explained as I placed my hands 
by her shoulders and lowered my lips to hers. "It's not like the 
lust I normally feel for you," I tried to clarify when our mouths 
parted. 
       
"It seems to be having the same reaction," she reached down and 
gently caressed my erection through my boxers. 
        
"Mmm," I closed my eyes and enjoyed the sensation of her touch. 
       
"So how is it different?" her hand had moved and was stroking my 
cheek. 
       
"It's more like awe, now," I bent to nuzzle her neck. 
       
"Awe?" she squirmed beneath me as I nipped at her neck. 
       
"Yeah," I moved one hand to her breast. 
      
"Are you sure you aren't talking about the difference between lust 
and love?"  she ran her right hand along my arm and began to gently 
squeeze my bicep. 
       
"I've loved you forever, Scully. This is definitely awe," I played 
with her nipple through the gauzy fabric of her negligee. 
       
"Just because I'm pregnant?" her left hand was in my hair. 
     
"Just?" I straightened up and scooted backward on the bed. Then, 
bending back down again, I began to place soft kisses on her belly. 
"All I can think about is the life inside of you. The life we 
created -- you and me, Scully. I can't believe that I'm the lucky 
bastard who got to give you this." 
       
"There was no one else, Mulder, ever. I didn't want this with anyone
but you," she breathed as she continued to run her fingers through 
my hair. 
       
"And you wonder why I call it awe," I began to kiss my way in the 
direction of her breasts. "I am in total awe of you, Scully." 
       
"Mulder," she whispered and I looked up to see her eyes glistening. 
       
"Have I told you recently how beautiful you are?" I tried to open 
the bow that held her nightie closed. 
       
"Yes, you have," her cheeks were flushed. "And that bow is a 
decoration, Mulder. It won't open." 
       
"Oh," I had to rethink my strategy. 
      
"I probably haven't told you how beautiful you are, Mulder," she 
watched  as I pushed the fabric up to expose her breasts. 
       
"Thank you, Scully," I smiled at her. "But compared to you --" 
       
 "No, Mulder, not compared to me," her voiced cracked. "You are the 
most  --"  
       
 "Shh," I put my finger over her lips. "You can have your turn 
tomorrow. Tonight is about you." 
       
"Us." She shook her head.  
       
"I don't want to have a competition, Scully. Please lay back and 
let me be in awe of you," I pleaded with my eyes. 
       
"I love you, Mulder," she whispered as I bent down to her breasts 
again. 
      
"Mmm," I mumbled as I drew her nipple into my mouth. 
       
Scully took a sharp breath and her hips rose off the bed as I nipped 
at her. While I lavished attention on her right breast I used my 
hand to make sure that her left breast didn't feel forgotten. 
       
"You have beautiful breasts, Scully," I sighed when I lifted my head 
to move to her left breast. 
       
"I noticed that you do seem to be rather fond of them," she smiled 
down 
at me. 
       
"Rather," I grinned as began to tease her left nipple with my 
tongue. 
       
"Have I told you that I'm rather fond of the way this feels?" she 
arched her head back into her pillow. 
       
"So I gathered," I chuckled. I could feel how much she was enjoying 
what I was doing. I'd stretched out and my stomach was pressed 
against the curve of her mons. The moist heat I could feel rising 
from her made my cock throb mercilessly. I tried to put the 
throbbing out of my mind as I began to trail kisses along her 
stomach toward the source of that heat. When I got to her panties, 
I began to kiss her through them instead of taking them off. 
Slipping my fingers under the leg elastics, I gently pulled 
Scully's lips apart. Then, using the gauzy material for added 
friction, I began to lick at her inner lips and clit. Her hips 
bucked off the bed and she clutched at my shoulders. I kept 
teasing her this way until her panties were dripping wet. 
       
"These are very sexy, Scully," I told her as I got to my knees, 
"but they're in the way."  
       
Through heavily lidded eyes, Scully watched as I eased her sodden 
panties off. After I'd tossed them onto the floor, I settled between 
her legs again. She was glistening wet, plump and pink with arousal. 
Knowing that I had caused this made my cock throb even harder. 
       
"Scully, did you know that your pussy is gorgeous?" I was planting 
kisses on the inside of her thighs. 
      
"Mulder," she groaned in protest. 
       
"What? You don't like that word?" I looked up at her with a grin. 
       
"Uh uh," she shook her head. 
       
"Is there something else you prefer? I can think of some others, but 
I strongly doubt you'd like those either," I teased her lips with my
tongue. 
      
"Well," she took a breath. 
       
"And nothing clinical," I warned. 
       
"Oh," she fell silent. 
      
"Nothing, huh?" I chuckled and she shook her head slightly. "It's 
not like I say it a lot, Scully, but I do reserve the right to 
tell you that you have a beautiful pussy occasionally, okay?" 
       
There was silence while she considered what I said. 
       
"And," I decided to strengthen my argument, "I let you call me 
sweetie, so I think that makes us even," I grinned as lowered my 
head again. 
       
"Okay," she giggled.  
       
With the fabric of her panties gone, I was free to nibble and suck 
at her most tender flesh. While I tantalized her clitoris by 
circling it with my tongue, I slipped two fingers inside of her. 
Easily finding the dime-sized protrusion, I began to rub her 
G-spot. Shuddering at the contact, she moved her hips to maximize 
her pleasure. I continued to lap at her clit until her breathing 
became short and shallow. Her legs tensed and I felt her internal 
muscles tighten around my fingers. Knowing what worked best for 
her, I kept the pattern and speed of my tongue the same. I felt 
her orgasm surge through her, beginning with the rippling and 
tugging of her vaginal walls. Then her entire body seemed to go 
taut and she started to quake. The last thing I felt was the 
pulsing of her clit against my tongue. I didn't lift my tongue 
from her until she'd gone limp on the bed. 
      
"You get much better orgasms than I do," I noted as I made my way
back toward her face. 
       
"I beg your pardon," she sounded amused. "You seem to enjoy yours 
quite thoroughly, Mulder." 
     
"Oh, I do," I'd reached my goal and I quickly straightened up to 
remove my boxers. Once I'd thrown them aside, I bent to kiss Scully 
before I explained myself. "But yours last a lot longer than mine do 
and you'll probably have another when I'm inside of you. It doesn't 
seem fair, somehow." My cock was resting against her soft, succulent 
flesh, aching to be inside of her. 
       
"Makes you wonder who came up with the absurd notion of penis envy, 
doesn't it?" she chuckled as she wiggled beneath me, trying to get 
me to slide into her. We both groaned when she succeeded. 
      
"You may not get your second, Scully," I warned her as I eased into 
her. "I'm very close." 
       
"That's okay," she caressed my back. "It feels fantastic just having 
you inside of me." 
      
"Nnn," I shook my head against her neck. "I want you to come again. 
I love the way you come," I was taking slow strokes, trying to delay 
the inevitable. 
       
"It's all right, Mulder. I want you to come. Don't worry about me," 
she insisted as she nipped at my neck. 
       
"But it feels so much better," my voice was tight as I increased my 
pace slightly. "I love the way your body goes stiff and you arch 
your breasts into my chest." 
       
"God, Mulder," she panted as her hips rose to meet mine. 
       
"Then your muscles tighten around my cock. You have no idea what 
that feels like," I was practically growling in my effort not to 
come. 
       
"Yes," Scully arched her back and I felt her erect nipples pressing 
against  me. 
      
"Just like that," I breathed into her ear. "Come for me." 
       
"Mulder," her voice was shaking as her internal muscles gripped my 
cock. 
       
"Come for me, Scully and take me with you," I implored her as I 
began to thrust more quickly. At my words, I felt her begin to 
quake and I couldn't hold back any longer. I came in long 
shuddering waves, made longer by the way Scully's body moved 
with mine. When I finally opened my eyes, I found Scully smiling 
up at me. 
       
"That one seemed pretty good, sweetie," she chuckled. 
       
"It was," I sighed in contentment as I flopped to my back. "C'mere 
and give me some cuddle," I held my arms open in invitation. I was 
rewarded with a soft warm body snuggling up to me. "Mmm," I sighed 
again. 
       
"You shouldn't get too comfy, Mulder," she murmured into my chest. 
       
"Why?" I was falling asleep already. 
       
"Guinness." 
       
"You shouldn't drink when you're pregnant, Scully," I tightened my 
grip on her. 
     
"The dog," she snorted. 
       
"Andrew said he'd take the dog out before he came upstairs," I 
reached over  to flick off the light. 
       
"I knew you'd get out of it somehow," she laughed. 
     
I agreed drowsily. Sleep was overtaking me quickly. The way Scully
was caressing my chest only hastened it. I realized sleepily that I 
could have been getting far more sleep all those years if I'd only 
had Scully pressed against me. Sleep had always been a harbor of 
darkness and nightmares in the past. Having Scully with me had 
changed it into a peaceful place where I was allowed to cling to 
her as long as I wanted. Oh that I could turn back the hands of 
time. I would have been sleeping soundly seven years sooner. 
Only Scully could have found a way to make paradise even better. 
  

"Love you," I heard her murmur. I think I still had the presence 
of mind to tell her I loved her, too, before I remembered no 
more.  
   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tuesday October 3, 2000

When I woke on Tuesday morning, Mulder had rolled onto his side 
and cocooned me in his arms. Sadly, I was only allowed a moment 
to relish the feeling before the alarm clock interrupted my 
morning snuggle. Mulder awoke energetic and refreshed, giving me
a squeeze and a kiss before he rolled out of bed. When I started 
to get out of bed, however, I felt a familiar churning in my 
stomach. Mulder stopped in his tracks when he heard me groan.

"Nauseous?" he grimaced.

"Yes," I groaned and sank back against my pillow. 

"Do you want to stay home?" he sat down on the edge of the bed.

"I can't stay home because I have morning sickness, Mulder," I
sighed. 

"So you'll puke your guts up and then go into work and faint?"
he reached for my hand -- a concerned look on his face.

"I have a different plan, if that's okay with you," I couldn't
help smiling.

"And I'm assuming it's better than puking and fainting?" he gave
my hand a squeeze.

"I'm hoping it will prevent all of that," I chuckled. 

"I'm all ears," he looked at me expectantly.

"Since I always feel better once I've had some toast, I was 
thinking --"

"I can bring it up here for you," Mulder read my thoughts. 
"Since you don't seem to get really ill until you get out of
bed. Would that help?" he looked hopeful.

"C'mere," I beckoned him with my finger.

"What?" he leaned closer to me.

"That would be very helpful," I curled my hand behind his neck 
and pulled him to my lips. "And very sweet," I smiled after I'd
kissed him.

"That's me," he grinned and got to his feet. "Savior of nauseous
women everywhere," he put his hands on his hips and thrust his
chin up in a superhero pose.

"Well, the nauseous woman in this bedroom is very grateful," I
smiled up at him.

"I'll be right back," he took exaggerated strides toward the door
with his chest puffed out.  

Once he'd left the room, I laughed to myself about the comic 
picture he'd presented as I pulled blankets up to my chin. I'd 
closed my eyes and was taking deep breaths -- my version of 
aromatherapy -- Mulder-aroma therapy, when Mulder startled me.

"Would you like some tea, too?" he'd popped his head into the 
room again. "Sorry," he chuckled when he saw me jump.

"Yes, please," I smiled and he was gone again.

The smell of toast started to float up to the bedroom a few 
minutes later, followed shortly by the sound of Mulder taking
the stairs two at time.

"Here you go," he hand me the plate and then bent to press a
quick kiss against my cheek. "Kettle's boiling," he informed me
as he spun around again.

He'd barely left the room when Megan began to cry in her crib.

"I'll get her," he called to me and I saw him flash past the 
door. A minute or so later he walked by again with Megan in 
his arms.

"I'll be up with the tea in a few minutes," he smiled at me.

I ate my toast slowly, letting my stomach get used to the fact
that it had food in it. Between bites, I closed my eyes and 
breathed deeply through my nose. I knew, given enough time, I
would slowly start to feel less queasy. After I'd finished one
piece, I'd closed my eyes trying to decide whether or not to eat 
the second. I'd almost decided that I probably should when a  
fragrance drifted past my nose -- my heart started to race
immediately. It smelled like Ivory soap and a freshly pressed
uniform; it smelled faintly of coffee and something vaguely 
spicy. It smelled like my father. The image that flashed through
my mind was of that night almost seven years earlier when I'd had
that terrible dream. I was afraid to open my eyes, but the scent 
was not going away. When I forced myself to open my eyes, I froze
instantly, thinking my fears had been realized. He was there. 
Standing in the doorway. It took me a second to realize that 
something was different. He was smiling. I quickly squeezed my 
eyes closed again.

"Scully?" Mulder's voice startled me. "What's the matter? You
look so pale. Isn't the toast helping?" He had my tea in one
hand and Megan in the other.

"No, the toast was working, but then my fluctuating hormones
threw me for a different loop," I blinked rapidly.

"What do you mean?" he handed the tea to me. When I reached out 
to take it my hand was shaking. "Scully, what happened?"
he set the tea down on the night table and sat down beside
me.

"It was nothing," I shook my head.

"Scully," Mulder's voice was serious, "You have the steadiest 
hands I've ever seen. Nothing fazes you. What happened?"

"Just my mind playing tricks on me," I reached out to caress
Megan's cheek.

"Scully...." 

"I thought I saw something," I shrugged. "It's just rampant
hormones," I dismissed it with a shrug.

"What was it? From the way you're shaking it must have been
horrible," he handed me my tea.

"Not horrible," I laughed, surprising him. "Just unexpected."

"For God's sake, Scully, will you just tell me what you saw!"
Mulder was more than impatient.

After taking a sip of my tea, I took a deep breath and whispered,
"My dad."

"Your dad?" Mulder's eyes widened and he looked around the
room.

"He's not here," I laughed. "Seriously, Mulder, it's not unusual
for pregnant women to have experiences like this. Most have more 
vivid dreams and some report hallucinations. It doesn't mean 
anything," I tried to assure him.

"But you've had visions before," he started to remind me when
the doorbell rang. "I forgot to unlock the door," he jumped
up; Megan still in his arms. "I don't think you should dismiss 
this so easily," he furrowed his brow. "Can we talk about this 
later?"

"In private," I warned him. "No one else needs to know."

"But Scully..." he whined.

"Mulder, I told you this in confidence, and I'm trusting you
to respect my wishes," I kept my voice low, not knowing if 
Andrew was awake.

"Fine," I heard him sigh in exasperation as he went down the
stairs to let my mother in.

After I finished my tea I felt much better and was able to get
up and have my shower. By the time Mulder and I were ready to 
leave Andrew was long gone. Since I would be leaving early we
needed two cars. Mulder would drive us in, but come home with 
Andrew. Once Andrew had a place of his own, we'd have to drive
in separately.

As soon as we were alone again Mulder brought up what I'd seen
earlier.

"Can we talk now?" he sounded anxious to discuss it again.

"What's the point?" I shrugged. "Even if I did have a vision, 
what's the point of discussing it?"

Frowning, he pursed his lips. Then he took a breath like he was 
going to say something, but he closed his mouth again and exhaled
through his nose. 

"What?" 

"Can't you just give me more details?" he pleaded with his eyes.

"Okay," I gave in with a sigh. "What do you want to know?"

"Um...where was he?" 

"In the doorway."

"What was he wearing?"

"His dress whites."

"Did he say anything?"

"No, he was just smiling at me," I felt a chill run through me
at the memory.

"Really?" Mulder's face lit up. "That's great!"

"Why?" I asked with a laugh.

"Because he was happy about something -- the baby!" Mulder 
sounded gleeful.

"Mulder, I don't think --"

"Scully," he interrupted me. "Can you just humor me, please?"

"Okay, sorry," I tried to remember that he was just curious.

"Is there anything else that struck you?" he raised his 
eyebrows. "Anything at all?"

"Well," I hesitated. I knew if I told Mulder that I'd smelled my 
dad, he would make too much out of it.

"What?" he looked at me quickly. "Was there something else?"

"I smelled him," I admitted quietly.

"You smelled him?" he repeated in awe. "Wow!"

"Wow?" I chuckled. "Why wow?"

"That usually indicates a really strong connection," his eyes 
were wide.

"Or really strong hormones," I argued.

"Maybe the hormones made you more in tune," he countered.

"Maybe," I didn't feel like getting into a debate about it.

"Will you let me know if you have any more visions?" he
reached for my hand. "Please?"

"Mulder, I don't want you to investigate me," I warned him.
"I'm your wife, not a case study."

"I won't. I promise," he squeezed my hand. "But am I allowed
to think it's really cool?" he winked at me.

"I guess," I consented. "Just keep it to yourself."

"But you will tell me if anything else happens -- anything
at all out the ordinary, right? I only want to know as an 
interested spouse. Wouldn't you want to know if things like
that were happening to me?" 

"You're right, Mulder. I'm sorry. I promise I won't keep
anything from you," I assured him by squeezing his hand.

Fifteen minutes later we were walking down the back stairs to the
office. Before we left the car I reminded Mulder about our no
contact agreement. It seemed strange walking in side by side and 
not touching. I didn't realize how accustomed I'd grown to the 
feeling of his hand on my back. I thought I might have to 
reconsider my policy.

When we got to the office door Andrew was just putting down 
the phone.

"That was Kimberly," he informed us. "Skinner wants to see us
in his office."

Skinner was waiting for us when we got upstairs. He'd already 
pulled a third chair in front of his desk and had a file open
in front of him.

"Agents," he gestured toward the chairs, his eyes only leaving
the file briefly. He didn't look up again until we were settled 
in our chairs. "Welcome back, Agent Scully," he nodded at me. "I
trust you're feeling better today."

"I am. Thank you, sir," I gave him a quick smile. I felt a little
dishonest, not telling him the real reason I'd been sick, but
everyone would know soon enough. For the mean time, it was Mulder
and my little secret. That thought made warmth flood through me 
and I wondered if Skinner noticed the flush in my cheeks.

"Good," Skinner's voice was muted . "I wasn't quite sure to make
of the call I got from Agent Mulder yesterday."

"Oh, right," Mulder recrossed his legs, and looked down at his
lap. He wouldn't meet my eyes when I looked at him. "I forgot
to call you back."

"Are you going to tell me what you're talking about?" I was still
talking to the side of his head.

"I may have sounded a little panicked when I told Skinner where
I was going," Mulder's eyes met mine briefly.

"Oh," I felt my cheeks flush even deeper. It wasn't 
embarrassment. It was the knowledge that Mulder had laid himself
bare before our boss. It wasn't something Mulder did easily.
Generally the only emotion Mulder showed Skinner was anger. 

"Mulder had said you were at the doctor's," Skinner continued,
making Mulder begin to shrink in his chair. "But then that phone
call..." he shook his head and actually smiled. "I couldn't
figure out what the hell he was talking about. He said you'd
tried to call him, but you weren't there."

Mulder had lowered his head to hand and was rubbing his eyebrows.

"I had some blood work done," I tried to explain. "And I wasn't
well to begin with. I fainted," I shrugged.

"After that I didn't understand a word of what he said. He was
a little agitated," Skinner's face was deadpan, but I was sure
I could a twinkle in his eyes. 

"I was worried," Mulder looked up from his hand.

"So I gathered," Skinner pursed his lips. I got the definite
impression he was enjoying himself. "And I'm glad it was nothing
serious," his eyes met and held mine for an instant and I knew 
the joking was over.

"Thank you, sir," my voice was quiet. From that brief look I 
knew that he'd shared the same fear that Mulder and I'd had. I'd 
forgotten how many people had been affected by the pall of my 
cancer.  I didn't realize it would shroud us this long --
perhaps it would never be gone.

"Before we get started, there was something I wanted to bring
to your attention," Skinner tapped his pen on the desk. 
"Yesterday I received a complaint from the switchboard. It seems
that one person has been making an excessive number of phone 
calls to your extension."

"Oh no," Andrew groaned. "That would be my ex-fiance."

"Has she been bothering you here?" Skinner raised his eyebrows.

"Unfortunately, yes," Andrew seemed to shrink in his chair.

"You aren't responsible for her actions, Agent Guernsey," 
Skinner reminded him. "I'll have calls from that number blocked,
and let me know if the harassment continues after that."

"I will, sir," Andrew's tone was genuine. "And I'm really 
sorry about all of this."  

"Things like this happen to the best of us," Skinner sounded
almost fatherly. 

"Thank you, sir," Andrew smiled weakly.

"I called you up here," Skinner returned to business, "because I 
was handed a new today case today." 

Mulder straightened up in his chair and leaned forward slightly.
It was obvious that he was now more interested in, or maybe less 
embarrassed by, what Skinner had to say.  

"Is it an X-File, sir?" 

"I would say it is," Skinner shrugged. "But you and I don't 
always agree on what defines an X-File." 

"That makes two of us, sir," I chuckled.  

"Well, let me give you the particulars, and you can argue about 
it on the way, " Skinner smiled and opened the file. "There's
been a complaint involving a Witch. " 

"Someone thinks a Witch is casting spells on them?" Mulder 
seemed surprised.  

"Actually, Mulder, it's the Witch who made the complaint," 
Skinner looked up from the file again. "She claims her neighbors
have been harassing her--trying to run her out of her house." 

"Harassing her?" I was suddenly more interested in the case.

"Someone started a fire in her backyard and her house has been 
vandalized on at least three occasions.  On top of that she has 
received intimidating phone calls, which she recorded, and 
someone sent her a letter threatening violence."

"Because she's a Witch?" Mulder seemed confused. 

"That's what Ms. Burke is claiming. That's why we're involved,"
Skinner passed the file to Mulder.

"I'm not following," Andrew frowned.

"Wicca is a recognized church in this country. If Ms. Burke
was Jewish and being harassed because of it, we would be 
involved. Being Wiccan is no different," Mulder explained.
"I assume she is a member of the Church of Wicca," Mulder 
turned back toward Skinner.

"It's a religion?" Andrew interjected before Skinner could 
answer.

"As an organized religion, it's only been around since the
1930s, but people were practicing Witchcraft long
before Christianity was established," Mulder nodded. "And it's 
a whole lot more civilized."

"What do you mean?" Andrew furrowed his brow. "My church always
seemed pretty tame."

"Not many Witches in the Crusades or the Inquisition," Mulder 
noted dryly as he scanned the file.

"I thought Witches did stuff like put curses on people and killed
anyone that trespassed on their property," Andrew pursed his
lips.

"How many times have you watched 'The Blair Witch Project', 
Andrew?" Mulder laughed and shook his head. "It's hardly a
primer on Witchcraft." 

Andrew's face flushed, but he said nothing.

"To answer your question, Mulder," Skinner had been waiting for 
Mulder and Andrew to finish, "No, Pamela Burke is not a member
of the Church of Wicca, but that does nothing to diminish her
claim."

"It doesn't?" Andrew was hopelessly lost.

"No even a solitary Witch is entitled to be protected against
hate crimes," Mulder was reading the file again.

"Are you planning to leave for Adamston right away?" Skinner
was jotting some notes down in a second file.

"Yeah, it'll take about an hour to drive there. We'll 
probably only have time to talk to Ms. Burke before we have to
bring Scully back," Mulder answered without looking up from
the file.

"We could take two cars," I suggested.

"After we talk to Ms. Burke and get the names of the people
she claims have been harassing her, we should come back and
do background checks anyway," Mulder pointed out.

"True," I concurred.

"Good," Skinner nodded. "Keep me in the loop. It seems Ms. Burke
has them dancing upstairs. Apparently no one took her complaint 
seriously at the field office. We have it because she has filed 
complaints against several agents there."
 
"And we're still being allowed to do the investigation?" I was
amazed.

"Someone convinced her that Mulder would take her complaint 
seriously and that it would be looked into expeditiously,"
Skinner explained.

"Who convinced her?" Mulder quickly closed the file and looked 
up.

"I'm not sure," Skinner shrugged. "All I know is that this order
came from the top."

"It's funny how they'll use me to keep their asses out of the
fire, but the rest of the time they won't even acknowledge that
the X-Files are anything more than an annoyance," Mulder's tone
was bitter.

"I trust you'll give this case your utmost attention," Skinner
held Mulder's gaze.

"Of course, sir," Mulder faked a smile. "Wouldn't want anyone
upstairs to get the hair on their asses singed. Besides, I'm
sure they'd do the same for Scully and me, right?"

"Mulder," Skinner sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Don't worry, sir," Mulder stood up. "I'll do you proud."

By the time I got to my feet, he'd already left the office.

"Have you got this, Agent Scully?" Skinner sighed.

"Yes, sir," I nodded. "C'mon, Andrew. Mulder's probably already 
at the car."

Andrew followed me but remained quiet until the elevator doors
closed behind us.

"What did Skinner mean?" 

"I beg your pardon?" I had no idea what he was talking about.

"He asked you if you 'had this'," Andrew's forehead was lined 
again.

"Oh," I laughed. "He wanted to make sure I'd be able to reign 
Mulder in -- calm him down," I explained.

"Oh," Andrew nodded and silently watched the descending light
on the elevator. "I really made a fool of myself, didn't I?"
he spoke again suddenly.

"I wouldn't worry about it. I'm sure Mulder has forgotten all 
about it," I assured him. "How many cases have you investigated?"

"Including this case -- one," he grimaced.

"Maybe you should just stand back and watch," I suggested. 
"You'll never have a better teacher than Mulder."

As it turned out, I was right about Mulder. By the time Andrew 
and I got to the parking garage, Mulder had started the car. 

"You take the front seat, Andrew," I insisted when we reached
the car. "It's an hour drive. You wouldn't be able to walk
when we get there."

"You're sure?" he asked in surprise.

"Very," I smiled.

I didn't want to explain to him that I wanted to calm Mulder
down. Every inch of me was crying out to touch him -- to
convince that his work -- his life was valued by more people
than he realized. But I knew touching him now would only lead
to places we could not visit at work. From the back seat I 
could still try to reassure him, but at least I'd be at a safe
distance.

"I was curious about something, Mulder," I waited until we'd
left the garage to work on him.

"What's that?" he looked at me in the rearview mirror.

"What makes you think you're treated differently than anyone else
here?"

"I beg your pardon?" he sounded offended.

"Do you think anyone here has their work praised? How many pats
on the back do you think are handed out?"

"Commendations get handed out all the time," he pointed out.

"That's true," I agreed. "And you have several, don't you?"

"Well -- yes," he admitted hesitantly.

"I have none," I reminded him. "Am I bad at my job?"

"Of course not, Scully. You do fantastic work," he sounded
concerned.

"No one upstairs asked me to save the reputation of the Bureau,"
I reminded him. "They asked for you -- not even us. Why do you
take that as an insult?"

"They only ask for me when it suits them," he argued.

"But at least they ask for you."

"I'm high profile, Scully. It's not that my work is better; it's
just I grab a lot of attention when I'm doing it," he tried to
reason with me.

"So consequently, when you do something they don't like, it gets
noticed as well," I began to reel him in.

He was silent for a moment and then I saw a smile quivering at
the corner of his mouth. "Skinner ask you to talk to me?"

"Yes," I admitted, with a small smile.

"You're getting too good at that," he shook his head. "Or were 
you just trying to avoid discussing this case." Mulder glanced 
over his shoulder at me; the smile still lingering on his lips. 
"I've been waiting for you to say 'There's no such thing as 
Witches'."

Andrew had remained still and quiet while I'd been calming Mulder
down, but at the change in topic he shifted in his seat and 
looked steadfastly out of his window. Apparently he didn't find 
Mulder's challenge as amusing as I did.

"That would depend on what kind of Witch you're talking about."
I replied airily.

Andrew's shoulders twitched again and there seemed to be 
something outside that had grabbed and held his attention.

"How many different kinds are there?" Mulder was looking over
at Andrew, trying to hide his smile.

"In my opinion, there are only two kinds  -- the real kind and 
the fairy tale kind," I crossed my legs and joined Andrew in
looking out of the window.

"The real kind?" Mulder laughed, making Andrew look at him
briefly before returning his gaze to what lay outside of the
window. "You believe in Witches?"

"What do you mean 'believe in Witches?'. That's like asking if
I believe in the sun," I kept my voice cool.

"What?" Mulder shook his head in confusion.

"It's a religion, Mulder, but you know that. So why did you 
think that I wouldn't believe in it?" I asked haughtily.

"Well," it was his turn to fidget in his seat. "I didn't think
you'd put much stock in it."

"On the contrary, Mulder, it's always been something I've had
an interest in," I informed him.

"Really?" he looked over his shoulder at me in surprise.

"It's a religion that gave women power -- I find that very
interesting."

"Oh, I see," Mulder sounded self-righteous, "But you don't
think they have magical abilities."

"Think about it, Mulder, these were women who spent their lives
studying nature and how it affected them. They discovered 
the secrets that plants held; healing and otherwise. The 
figured out how the lunar cycle was linked to our bodies and
to their crops. When this information was passed down from
generation to generation, it made them very powerful. Their
crops were always better, they could heal the sick and they
could help or hinder you depending on how you treated them. 
I'm sure to the uneducated, that kind of knowledge would seem
like magic."

Even from my position in the back seat I could see Mulder
grinning. "So you think only members of the Church of Wicca are
real Witches?" 

"I do," I nodded.

"Some people think anyone who practices Witchcraft is a Witch," 
I could tell he was playing the devil's advocate.

"You mean like people who were raised Catholic but don't attend
church anymore and still think of themselves as Catholic?" I 
played along.

"Yeah," I could tell he was surprised at my analogy.

"I guess I can see how there could be two schools of thought,"
I granted him.

"But you still lean toward Wiccans being the only true
Witches," he knew he hadn't changed my mind.

"I don't think everyone who practices medicine is a doctor," I
pointed out. "But a lot of alternative practitioners consider
themselves doctors. Where do you draw the line?"

"Maybe in this case there isn't a line," he suggested. "Just
a grey area."

"I can certainly see how there might be some people who don't
adhere to the Church of Wicca, who may still be Witches. On the
other hand, I don't think everyone who dabbles is a Witch," I
tried to explain my thinking.

"So you decide on a case by case basis?" I could hear him 
smiling.

"I always have," I laughed.

"You seem to know a lot about Wicca, Scully," he turned to grin 
broadly at me. "Does this mean I can look forward to seeing you 
dance naked at the next solstice?"

"The next solstice is December 21st, Mulder," I reminded him
dryly. "It'll be a little chilly for dancing naked."

"Yeah, but if our offer on that house is accepted we'll have
a fireplace in the bedroom," he turned so I could see him
waggle his eyebrows.

Andrew was still trying to pretend like he wasn't paying any 
attention to what we were saying, but I could see the tips of 
his ears turning beet red.

"That's true," I kept my voice low. "Is the rest of my coven 
welcome too?" 

"Have you ever known me to say no to naked women, Scully?"
Mulder chuckled.

"I've never known you to say no to anything," I laughed and
then we were both fell silent. I thought we should steer the
conversation in a different direction since Andrew was 
definitely embarrassed. I counted on Mulder to do the same.

"But seriously, Scully, you obviously know what you're talking
about -- why so quiet?" 

"Because I was reserving judgement until we talked to the
parties involved. Let's see what everyone has to say first,"
I suggested.

"You mean like *investigate?" Mulder feigned shock.

"I know it's out there, Mulder, but let's give it a try."


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
October 2, 2000
9:20 a.m.

Adamston was a small town and it didn't take us long to find
Pamela Burke's house.  The house was unassuming, surrounded by a 
small green fence. The entire yard was filled with gardens. Even 
at this time of year her gardens were lush. Since there was no 
work address in the file Mulder and I hoped that Pamela Burke 
would be home on Tuesday morning. The small burgundy car in the 
driveway led me to believe that our assumption had been
correct.  

Andrew had been fairly quiet for the duration of trip. In the
car it was probably because of the way Mulder and I had been 
carrying on. I hoped it wouldn't take him long to get used to
the difference between the way we behaved at home and the way
we behaved work. After we left the car Andrew remained quiet 
and walked behind us. When I looked back at him he 
was looking around the yard taking everything in.  

Once we'd climbed the stairs to the front door I noticed a
symbol made of wrought iron nailed on to the doorframe. It 
looked to me like three flower petals extended out from the 
center of a circle. 

"Do you know what this means, Mulder?" I pointed to the
object.  

"No, I've never seen that before," he studied it more closely.  

"It's not like the pentagram we saw before," I noted.  

"Not exactly, but it is similar," he ran his finger over the
design.  

"It's a protection symbol," a voice behind us explained.  

"Ms. Burke, I presume," Mulder turned and extended his hand to 
the woman who was ascending the stairs.  

"Wow, now they sent three agents? All I wanted was one person
to take me seriously," the rather buxom brunette chuckled.  

"This is Agent Mulder, and this is Agent Guernsey," I
introduced my partners after I'd turned toward Ms. Burke as
well. "And I'm Agent Scully." 

"You decided to keep your maiden name, Agent Scully?" Ms.
Burke inquired. 

"Well, yes I did, professionally, but how did you...?" My eyes
were wide with surprise.  

"You have matching rings," she smiled broadly.  

"Oh, right, I forgot," I felt myself blushing as I looked down
at my ring.  

"This is a protection symbol?" Mulder looked back at the 
symbol we'd been discussing." I thought a pentagram represented
protection." 

"The pentagram does mean protection, but it is actually more
of an identification symbol these days," she explained. "Quite 
often it's used as a way for Witches to spot each other--our 
scarlet letter, so to speak," she winked.  "Witches aren't the 
only ones who use pentagrams, but we often get lumped in with 
others who use them as well." 

"Like who?" It was the first thing Andrew had said since we'd 
left the car.  

"Satanists," she as she moved past us to open the door. "They 
call themselves witches, claim to be what the Inquisition was 
hunting. Personally, I don't think there ever were such witches.
I think the Inquisition fed on itself, on its own fear -- they 
needed to blame the Black Plague on something, so they invented 
a scapegoat and went after it. Witchcraft as wisdom-- herbology, 
psychology, weather-working, magick-- predates Christianity, and
probably predates stone tools. So how could it be based on a 
religion that wouldn't exist for millennia? Wicca, as a religion,
can only be reliably dated to the twentieth century, though we 
consider it rooted in those past practices. So you might think it
was based on Christianity...but it's not." She held the door open 
for us. 

"So why the confusion?" Andrew was curious. 

"A couple of reasons, I think," Ms. Burke directed us toward 
her living room. "Since the Satanists adopted the pentagram and 
used it for their ceremonies, it was easy for people to confuse
the two.  Others knew the difference, but used the similarity to
convince people that Witches worshiped the devil." 

"Who would want to do that?" Andrew asked as he sat down.  

"Unfortunately, the Christian church has sought to undermine
any competing faith from the day it first tried to expand into 
northern Europe. Initially the church assumed pagan holy sites 
and holidays, so many simple people were converted easily. In
order to persuade the remaining and the priesthood, the Church 
convinced the newly converted that anyone who continued to 
practice the old ways worshiped the devil." 

"What would that accomplish?" Andrew seemed to be asking all of 
questions.  

"Conformity has always been a powerful thing. The church was
simply using peer pressure to increase its numbers."

"Why would the Church want members who didn't believe in its 
doctrine?" Andrew continued to question Pamela Burke.  

"Because there has always been something that has been more 
important to the Christian church than its doctrine," Ms. Burke
nodded slowly.  

"The almighty dollar," Mulder interjected, "And with more people
there would be more money."

"That's a bit of a generalization, don't you think?" I finally 
spoke up.  

"I think it's still true of a lot of so-called Christian 
churches," Mulder crossed his legs and leaned back in the chair 
he'd chosen. 

"But there are still pious people out there, Mulder," I argued. 
"Lumping all Christians together as money hungry is just as bad 
as assuming that anyone who uses the pentagram must be a 
Satanist." 

"We're talking about the church hierarchy here, Scully.  The
same people who peddled indulgences and sold priest's wives and 
children into slavery all to fatten the coffers of the Vatican."
Mulder reminded me of some of the unsavory aspects of the 
Catholic church's history. 

"You can't think the Church still behaves even remotely like
that, can you, Mulder?" I was shocked. 

"I still think the pious Christians are few and far between, 
Scully," Mulder's tone was remained dubious.  

"As are true witches, Agent Mulder," Pamela Burke reminded him 
gently.  

"We can continue this debate later, Mulder. I think it's time
to listen to what Ms. Burke has to say," I changed the subject
abruptly.

Mulder nodded in silent agreement and opened the case file.   

"Ms. Burke, we were told that you had recorded some of the 
threats you'd received and that you'd also been sent a 
letter." Mulder leaned forward in his chair again.

"Yes, I have all of it," Ms. Burke stood and walked to a
sideboard in the dining room. From the top drawer she pulled
out some papers and several mini cassette tapes.  

"Do you mind if we keep these things for a while?" Mulder asked
when she handed him the evidence she'd collected.  

"Be my guest," she said with a wave of her hand. "As long as you
can get them to leave me alone, I won't have any need for them." 

"Do you have any idea who's been harassing you?" I asked as she 
sat down again.  

"I'm fairly certain I know who is, but I wasn't about to take 
the law into my own hands," Ms. Burke replied evenly.

"Can you give us their names?" Mulder took out his note pad.  

"Shouldn't you investigate to find out who it is?" Ms. Burke
cocked her head. "Wouldn't I'd be biasing you?" 

"We'll find out soon enough if your suspicions are incorrect," 
I assured her. "But if your suspicions are correct, we can get 
to the bottom of this much sooner."

"What makes you suspect these people?" I asked after Mulder had 
taken down the names. 

"This all started after my issue of The Green Egg ended up in
Barbara Clarey's mailbox," Ms. Burke shrugged.  

"The Green Egg?" Andrew furrowed his brow. 

"It's a magazine aimed at pagans and other earth religionists.
It's not strictly a magazine for Witches, but a lot of Witches 
to subscribe, and a lot of the articles are written by and 
directed at Witches," Pamela Burke explained.  

"So before that your neighbors didn't know you practiced 
Witchcraft?" I clarified. 

"I never tried to hide it from anyone, but I don't have a 
billboard on my lawn, either," Ms. Burke seemed a little 
agitated. "I, like you Agent Scully, wear the symbol of my 
beliefs," she tugged on a chain around her neck and revealed a 
silver pentagram pendant. "Most people to just aren't observant 
enough to notice." 

"Do you mind me asking what you do for living, Ms. Burke?"
Mulder returned to the interview. 

"Not at all," Ms. Burke seemed to calm down again. I gathered
the insinuation that she'd been hiding something was a sore 
point with her. "I sell herbs-- mostly over the Internet." 

"Is that why your gardens are so extensive?" Mulder seemed
interested.  

"I do grow a lot outside, but I also have a greenhouse, and I
grow some things in the kitchen and some in the basement," Ms.
Burke explained.  "I'm surprised Barbara Clarey didn't go to
the police claiming that I was growing pot in the backyard," 
she still seemed to have her sense of humor.

"And you can grow enough here to support yourself?" Mulder 
seemed surprised.  

"Over the years I've become expert at cultivating some rare 
plants. That expertise has made me one of only a handful of
producers of these herbs in this country. When I tried to
hold down a regular job I couldn't keep up with demand, so 
several of my buyers suggested I quit my job and raise my 
prices. They were more than willing to pay the increased 
price because the supply increased as well," Ms. Burke seemed 
almost embarrassed as she explained how she'd come to earn 
her living.  

"I wish I could find someone to pay me to stay home while I 
pursued my hobby," Mulder chuckled.  

"Are you planning on starting up your own Internet business, 
Mulder?" I couldn't help laughing.  "I think they already have 
enough sites devoted to that pastime." 

Both Andrew and Ms. Burke looked at me quizzically, but Mulder 
changed the subject quickly.  

"This afternoon Agent Guernsey and I will do background checks 
on the names you gave us and then tomorrow we'll start 
interviewing your neighbors," Mulder stood and reached for Ms. 
Burke's hand again.

"When should I expect to hear from you again?" Ms. Burke stood 
up to shake Mulder's hand.  

"By the end of the week, I would think," Mulder smiled.  

"I look forward to seeing you all again," Ms. Burke her extended
her hand toward me.  

"I hope we'll have this all resolved by then," I smiled as I 
took her hand. 

As soon as our hands touched Pamela Burke's head seemed to 
jerk and then she looked at me in awe, but then a gentle look
crossed her face. "You don't need to worry--your father is 
very happy for you; he always has been."

"P-P-pardon me?" I stuttered.  

"He visited you recently, didn't he? I can feel the presence of
someone you respected and loved. I only assumed it was your 
father. I sense that he's been visiting you often, but you've 
only been willing to see him a few times," her tone was soft.  

"But how did you--" my voice trailed off.  

"You have more energy flowing through you that I've ever felt 
before," her eyes were wide. "It amazes me that you don't feel 
it. Have you been visited by anyone else recently?" 

I shook my head, not being sure of my voice.  

"I feel other people here, and they're happy for you, too," she 
was keeping her voice low. "Try to open yourself up to them. 
There's more in the world than you can see with your eyes, hear
with your ears, and feel with your fingers. Try to see with 
your soul, hear with your heart, and feel with your skin. You'll 
be amazed at everything you've been missing." 

"Okay," I answered stupidly after she released my hand. 

"Agent Guernsey," Ms. Burke turned toward Andrew. "It was nice 
to meet you and don't worry, you did fine." 

"Thank-you," he smiled as he shook her hand.  It wasn't until 
we were walking out the door that he turned back to give her a
curious look.  

Once we were in the car again, Mulder turned to me with a 
questioning look on his face.  "What were you two talking 
about?" 

"I'll explain later," I said firmly, letting him know not to 
pursue the subject any further now.  

"How did she know that I was afraid she would think I was a 
rookie?" Andrew turned toward Mulder.  

"I'm guessing she knew a lot more than she was letting on,"
Mulder raised his eyebrows.  

"But how?" Andrew was still confused.  

"I'm assuming she's telepathic," Mulder shrugged. 

"Do you think she's telepathic, Dana?" Andrew craned his neck
to look at me.  

"After seven years of working with Mulder, I've learned not to 
rule anything out," I smiled, and let my eyes twinkle at him. 

It was after 11:30 when we got back to the office, so I barely 
had time to start a working file on the case before it was time
for me to leave to pick up Jordan.  

As much as I enjoyed being back at work, I was equally happy
to be at home having lunch with Megan and Jordan. After we'd
eaten I spent some time playing with Megan while Jordan went
outside with Guinness. Mulder and I had been encouraging him 
to work on some simple commands with Guinness. It wouldn't be 
long until the dog was far larger than Jordan was, so we thought
it would be a good idea to establish their roles early. We'd
had the dog less than two weeks and his training was going well. 
Now that I was pregnant it was more important than ever to make 
sure the dog was very well-trained and very well behaved. 

Once the kids were asleep for their afternoon naps, I started
some laundry and then spends more time on the working file I'd
started for Pamela Burke's case. I typed up all of my notes
so that Mulder could have a copy of them at the office as well.
When I signed on, I found that Andrew had been busy as well--
entering some of the preliminary background work they'd done. 

I only had time to do about an hour's worth of work before I
had to tidy my work and think about what I was going to do about
supper. Jordan loved spaghetti and it was easy to make, so I
pulled some hamburger out of the freezer and put it in the 
microwave to defrost it.  

I was halfway through chopping the vegetables when Megan woke
up. After I took her out of her crib, I brought her down to the 
laundry room with me while I put the clothes into the dryer. 
By the time we got back upstairs, Jordan was up as well. I 
made them both a snack, and while they were eating I finished
preparing the sauce.  

When Mulder and Andrew got home, we had adjourned to the 
backyard-- Jordan was playing with the dog again while Megan 
and I were occupied in the sandbox.  

"Hey," Mulder smiled from the back door, "I got a call from
Brent this afternoon-- our offer has been accepted." He was 
grinning from ear to ear.  

The whoop that I let out startled Megan and she began to cry, so
I scooped her up and then ran over to Mulder. "So what do we
do next?" I asked as I hugged him as best I could with only one 
arm free.  

"I made an appointment for us to see Brent tomorrow afternoon. 
Do you think your mother will be able to stay for a couple of 
hours while we take care of this?" he wrapped his arms around
Megan and me and gave us a squeeze.  

"I'll call her right now." I handed Megan to him and headed
for the phone. Luckily, my mother had no previous engagements
and was happy to watch the kids while Mulder and I went to the
lawyers office. 

When supper was over Mulder took Jordan and Megan upstairs to 
give them a bath. It was earlier than their normal bath time,
but Megan was covered from head to foot with spaghetti sauce
and Jordan was almost as bad. I was still cleaning up the last
of the mess off Megan's tray when I heard them trouping
downstairs again. A few moments later I felt Mulder's arms
around my waist.  

"Where are the kids?" I asked as I leaned back against him.  

"With Andrew," he informed me as he began to kiss my neck. "I 
could get used to having a live-in baby sitter."

"We won't have one for long," I reminded him as I leaned my head
to give him better access to my neck.  

"Then I'd better take advantage," he chuckled against my skin.  

"Mmm," I sighed and rubbed against his growing erection.  

While he continued to nibble my neck, his hands began to travel
up from my waist toward my breasts. Other than the way I was 
moving against his cock, I had no input into this heavy petting 
session-- and I was enjoying it. I loved that I could feel 
exactly how much Mulder was enjoying it, too. I was sure he could 
tell from the way I'd practically collapsed against him that I
had no objections at all to what he was doing. In fact, from
the way my nipples had hardened at his touch, he must have known 
how thoroughly aroused I'd become.  

At another point in my life I would never have been able to let 
my guard down and given my lover such free rein with my body,
but the trust that Mulder and I shared allowed me to savor the 
way he was making me feel without worrying about how he would 
interpret my action.  

"What are we doing here, Scully?" Mulder's whisper was harsh
in my ear.  

"I think it's technically known as fooling around," I informed 
him breathily. 

"Scully ..." he was as breathless as I was, "You are so damn
sexy." 

"All I'm doing is reacting to you," I informed him and then 
swiveled my hips to accentuate and my point.  

"Oh, it's so much more than that," his breathing was becoming 
even more labored.  

I was about to ask him to elaborate when I heard the kitchen door
swing open.  

"Oops, sorry," I heard Andrew mutter.  

When we turned around the door closing again and Andrew was on
the other side of it.  

"What was that you were saying about live-in baby sitters, 
Mulder?" I had to laugh.  

As it turned out Andrew had been trying to tell us that Megan
needed changing. Apparently his live-in baby sitter functions
did not extend to changing dirty diapers when we were home.  

While I was upstairs with Megan, I couldn't help thinking back
to what Mulder and I had been doing in the kitchen. Just 
thinking about the way he was touching me was enough to make me
warm again. I loved knowing that he had no compunctions about
approaching me that way-- and I loved the way it felt like he
totally possessed me.  

As I was carrying Megan back down to the living room, a thought
suddenly occurred to me. Mulder and I had never made love on
all fours. We'd used many positions and some had become our 
favorites, but he'd never taken me from behind before. After
our romp in the kitchen, I wanted that to change, but I wasn't 
sure how to approach the subject of Mulder. It wasn't as if I
could say 'how come you haven't fucked me doggie style, Mulder?' 
I would have to think about the best way to approach this issue.
I hoped the time between my realization and the kid's bedtime
would be enough. 

Mulder put Jordan to bed, while I settled Megan into her crib.
Since he read to Jordan, Mulder was upstairs longer than I was. 
When I got downstairs again, I went into the kitchen and waited
for him to finish.  When I heard his footfalls on the stairs I
called out to him.

"Mulder, can you come in here and help me?" 

"Sure," I heard his voice through the door. "What do you need?"
he asked as he came through the door.  

I was standing at the sink the same way I had been earlier. 
"I thought we could pick up where we left off," I smiled at him 
over my shoulder. 

"I had a dream that started like this once," Mulder waggled his
eyebrows as he walked over to me.  

"And how did that dream end, Mulder?" I asked as his arms slid
around my waist.  

"With you naked on the kitchen table," his breath was warm
against my neck.  

"Just when did you have this dream, Mulder?" I was giving him
more access to my neck again.

"About an hour and a half ago," he chuckled as he nipped at my
skin. 

"I see," I sighed as his hands covered my breasts. "Unfortunately, 
our live-in baby sitter pretty much precludes that activity." 

"We could give him 20 bucks and send to a movie," Mulder 
suggested.  

"Or we could just go upstairs," I wiggled my ass against him.  

"If I promised to be really quiet, would you consider the table?"
Mulder was caressing my nipples through my shirt.

"I would if Andrew wasn't here," I squirmed out of his grasp and
began to walk to the door. "Are you staying here, or are you
going to come upstairs with me?" 

"What if I'm really, really quiet?" Mulder was asking as I went 
through the door. "I'll take that as a no," I heard his
dejected voice through the door.  

Practically running up the stairs, I closed the bedroom door
behind me and quickly stripped off my clothes and threw them
in a pile by the foot of the bed. I could hear Mulder following
me as I climbed onto the bed. I was on my hands and knees with
my rear end facing the door. Even before Mulder opened the door
my knees were quivering with anticipation. I shut my eyes and
waited for the sound of the door. When I heard the knob turning
I took a deep breath.  

"Jesus, Scully," Mulder gasped and shut the door quickly.  

"Hi," I grinned over my shoulder and wiggled my ass at him.  

"Oh God," he groaned as he began to pull off his clothes. "Are 
you sure about this, Scully?" he asked as he pushed off his 
jeans. 

"Of course, I'm sure, why else would I be kneeling on the bed
like this?" I spread my legs a little further apart.

"No, I mean the baby-- is it safe?" Concern was written all over 
his face 

"Are we going to go through this every time we have sex, Mulder? 
If this position was unsafe the human race would have died out a 
long time ago," I had to chuckle. "I promise, Mulder, I will 
never let you do anything that would hurt the baby. Will you 
promise me to stop asking that question?" 

"I'm sorry, Scully, this is all so new to me," he apologized as 
he approached the bed.  

"I'll forgive you this time," I lowered myself to my elbows-- I
was so excited that my arms could no longer hold me up.  

"I have to ask, Scully, why are you doing this now?" he climbed 
onto the bed behind me.

"After making out in the kitchen, I realized that we had never 
made love this way before-- and then I wanted to," I admitted to 
him. 

"You--" his voice was trembling, "This is--" I felt his right 
hand gently come to rest on my ass.  

"Why haven't you ever asked me to do this before," I closed my 
eyes and enjoyed his caress.  

"I--I," his voice was still on steady as his left hand began to 
caress me as well.  

"What is it, Mulder?" I looked back over my shoulder at him.  
"Is there something you're afraid to tell me?" 

"I didn't think you'd want to," his voice was quiet.  

"Haven't I told you, Mulder, that I'm willing to try anything
with you?" I moved back slightly until I could feel the hot 
flesh of his cock against me.  

"God, Scully, you're so wet," he groaned.  

"I'm not surprised, I've been thinking about this since before
supper," I shimmied back against him again trying to get him
inside of me.  

"I love the way your ass looks," he finally slid his cock into 
me. "And how tiny your waist looks." 

"That feels so good," I moved in time with his strokes.  

From this position his cock felt larger and harder than I'd ever 
felt it before. It felt heavenly, and I loved the way this new 
angle allowed him even deeper access than we shared before.  

"Scully," Mulder panted, "There was another reason." 

"Another reason you didn't want to tell me?" We were moving with 
a fair amount of energy.  

"Yeah," his hands closed around my waist as he began to thrust 
harder.  

"Tell me," my muscles began to tighten as my orgasm approached.  

"I didn't think you'd ever want to be submissive-- to give 
yourself to me in this way," his voice was more of a growl.

I hadn't thought of it in the way, that I was giving myself to 
him, submitting to him, but hearing him say that made something
inside of me surge. My orgasm traveled through me in a long 
slow wave, curling my toes and making every muscle in my body
shudder.  

"Jesus," I heard Mulder grunt through closed teeth.  

His thrusts became even more powerful and he held me by the 
waist to keep me on my knees. I could tell by the way his 
muscles were quivering that he was close to coming, too.  

"I do want to give myself to you. I always have, Mulder," I 
panted. "Every part of me is yours, completely." 

"Yes!" Mulder's hands tightened and I felt him begin to quake.  

His final thrusts almost knocked me to the bed despite the fact
that he was holding on to me. I felt every pulse and throb of 
his orgasm inside of me. When the shuddering stopped I dropped my 
chest to the bed and tried to catch my breath.  

"Are you okay, Scully?" Mulder's voice was still shaky.  

"Oh, yeah," I breathed and pressed my ass firmly back against
him. 

"Aren't you done?" he sounded worried. "I'm sorry, Scully, I
didn't do anything for you. " 

"Oh, yes, you did," I assured him with another wiggled of my
ass. "I was just enjoying the feeling of you being inside of me a 
little longer." 

"Good," he sighed with relief. "I thought I'd felt you come. " 

"Mmm, you did," I sighed as we rolled to the bed.  

"Sorry that was so fast," he pulled me into his arms.  

"I think it was all the foreplay in the kitchen," I snuggled 
against him. "We both came pretty quickly. That doesn't mean
I didn't enjoy it." 

"I'm glad," he was beginning to sound drowsy. "Because even 
though it's early, I could go to sleep right now. " 

"Did you make arrangements with Andrew for the dog again ?" I
 asked.  

"No, I forgot," he groaned. "Maybe Andrew will do it anyway,"
he sounded hopeful.  

"Mulder," I warned.  

"Whose idea was it to get the damn dog anyway?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tuesday, October 3, 2000
10:03 p.m.

I'd already been in bed for an hour, but I was too pumped to fall
asleep. Everything was set. I doubted that the incompetent morons
at the DC field office would even notice what was missing. They
probably wouldn't even notice that I was missing. It had all been
so easy. I'd said I was staying late to finish some typing. No
one had blinked an eye. The stupid typing had been done before
lunch. Then to look busy I worked on the filing. I'd mastered
their convoluted system quickly, but pretended I was having
trouble to make it seem like I was busy. When the office was
empty I'd immediately availed myself of the ID equipment they
used for undercover work and in a matter of minutes, I'd become
Jessica Hurst.

I really hoped they tried to track Jessica down. The country club
matrons would be all a-twitter when they heard that the police
had been questioning darling Jess. It would serve her right. I'd
never been so humiliated. The dress she had graciously lent me
for annual hospital charity ball had been the same one she'd worn
the year before and she'd still expected me to be grateful. I'd
already made her regret it once, but it gave me a warm, fuzzy
feeling to know I might have the chance to make her squirm the
same way I had in that dress.

I needed the ID for transportation. I might be remembered on a
bus or in a cab, so I was going to rent a car, but I certainly
wasn't stupid enough to do it in my own name.

That had been Friday night.

Using the same excuse, I stayed late again tonight, but this
would be the last time. The geniuses at the office might figure
out that I'd been the only one left at work when the lockgun
went missing. Probably not right away, but maybe eventually.
That job had provided me with the means to an end and the finish
line was in sight. Wonder boy, Andrew, hadn't even realized that
I was working for his precious FBI too. His time as the new
Golden Boy was over. When I was through with him, his dreams of
following in that ridiculous agent's footsteps would be over.
What kind of idiot idolizes someone named Fox? If I did this
right, I'd be able to take him down as well. Special Agent Fox
Mulder and his pretty little wife, nothing would make me happier
than to tear their perfect family to shreds.

Andrew wouldn't shut up about them. Mulder this and Mulder that.
Dana is so nice. Dana is so helpful. The kids are cute, the dog
is cute. He even thought the fucking house was adorable. He never
talked about me like that. I was just supposed to look good on
his arm at the family functions and make nice to his granny. Have
to keep Granny happy -- stupid old bat. Her hands were cold and
she wore cheap flowery perfume. She could have bathed in Chanel
No. 5, but instead she smelled like a dime store make-up counter.
That family needed me to show them how to properly use all of
that money. I could have taught them real class, true elegance
and they have the nerve to ask me to sign that paper? Leigh
Neilson kowtows to no one. I didn't need them. They needed me
and they were soon to regret the day that Andrew gave me that
ultimatum.

Checking the clock, I discovered it was already 10:30. I'd set
the alarm for 4 a.m. so I really needed to go to sleep. I had to
clear my mind. Thinking about all of this was only making me
angry. I hoped thinking about how sweet my revenge would be
enough to settle me down. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day!

My alarm woke me out of a sound sleep. After a quick breakfast
of toast with peanut butter, I collected up my gear and headed
down to my rental car. Early October mornings in DC were quite
cool, so I'd dressed in sweat pants and a baggy sweatshirt. When
I got out of the car after my initial surveillance, I wanted to
be able to pass as a jogger.

The traffic on the way to the suburbs of Arlington was light and
I was parked down the street from the Mulders' house by 4:45. I
couldn't believe that Andrew thought this house was so perfect.
It was no better than my parents' house in Boston. It amazed me
that he could like such a simple house considering his
upbringing. His parents certainly hadn't taught him any taste.

My parents weren't any better, but at least they had being
middle-class as an excuse. While they may not have had taste,
they'd had the good sense to save every spare penny they had
to send me to private school. That way at least one member of
the Neilson family would have the grace to fit into any social
situation. It was a grace I'd come by naturally -- prep school
had only honed it.

I'd resented it at first -- being dragged away from all of my
friends. In grade school, I'd been so far ahead of everyone that
I was beginning to get bored. By the time I was 11, I was already
getting into trouble for missing school and playing pranks in the
neighborhood.

My parents had quickly realized that I'd needed more of a
challenge and decided that private school would be the best
thing for me. It wasn't until my junior year at Smith that I'd
finally realized they were right. Until then, I'd hated them
bitterly for sending me away. At my grade school I'd been the
smartest and the prettiest, and although we weren't rich by any
stretch of the imagination, we were far better off than most of
my friends. My parents had steady jobs and they didn't drink or
smoke. Their lives were dedicated to making sure I had all of the
things they hadn't had when they were growing up. I'd have to
remember to drop them a note some time to thank them.

Still, when I thought back to my years at Glen Warren Prep, the
same feeling of anger and resentment came flooding back making
my stomach knot. How could they have thrown me to the lions
like that? I was a 13-year-old girl from a working class
family. My classmates were all from wealthy families. The
school uniform was supposed to make us all equal, but that theory
failed miserably.

My uniforms had been the bare minimum; 2 skirts, 1 blazer, 1
sweater, 3 blouses and one pair of shoes. The other girls
seemed to have unlimited variations, but that hadn't been the
biggest problem. We'd been allowed to wear simple jewelry --
nothing showy. My parents had assumed that would mean nothing
expensive. To these people diamond studs were simple, a string
of pearls was plain and a tennis bracelet was a tasteful
accessory. My small gold hoop earrings and cross might as well 
have been costume jewelry.

My only defense had been to be clean, neat and friendly. To my
surprise almost all of the girls had welcomed me with open arms
and I'd quickly won over the ones who hadn't. Initially I'd been
pleasant, but quiet, watching and learning. The schoolwork had
been more challenging but very easy for me. It hadn't been long
before I'd begun tutoring and even writing papers for the girls
who found the program difficult. It had earned me some spending
money and given me a certain amount of power. Listening had also
proven to be a useful tool. For some reason a lot of the girls
had been comfortable confiding in me. Those confidences had also
turned out to be a valuable commodity.

"Knowledge is power," I smiled to myself.

That was the reason I was here after all, fact-finding. Why
couldn't Andrew understand that I'd only been trying to make
sure my future would be secure? I'd been thrust into this way
of life and I didn't remember how to live any other way.
If there was one thing I'd learned it was that if I wanted
something I had to make it happen myself. I couldn't trust
anyone else to do it. I thought I had it all figured out and
then Andrew took it all away. I needed a way to make him see
how it felt and I was sure I'd find what I needed inside that
house.

Over an hour after I arrived the first lights appeared in the
Mulders' house -- it was just after 6. In other houses in the
neighborhood lights started coming on in upstairs windows at
the same time. It seemed that a lot of the residents also
commuted to work.

There had been no other traffic on the street since I arrived,
but as I sat watching my target I noticed headlights in my
rearview mirror. A solitary car was making its way slowly up the
street. My heart began to pound. Had someone noticed me sitting
in the car and called the police?

Slumping down in my seat, I kept my eyes glued to the mirror. As
the car got closer I could see that it wasn't a cruiser. It was
actually a minivan driving slowly with its tailgate wide open.
Taking a chance, I inched up and looked over the back of my seat.
In the pale light of dawn I could barely make out the driver; a
woman in her mid-thirties. She was driving slowly up the street,
stopping briefly every 30 feet or so. It wasn't until I spotted
the small figure dashing back to the car and then toward a house
that I finally figured out what was going on. They were
delivering the morning paper.

When they got close to me, I lay down flat on the front seat. I
prayed that the young girl wouldn't see me in the car as she
dashed by and that her mother couldn't see me from her elevated
position. After I heard them move past, I waited a few minutes
before I risked taking a look. The car was just crawling past
number 63 and it appeared that the Mulders weren't getting a
paper.

I'd just started to relax again when I saw another car
approaching from the opposite direction. This car was moving
deliberately and pulled up right in front of the Mulders' house.
An older woman emerged from the vehicle and walked up to the
front door and let herself into the house. The Mulders, it
seemed, had some hired help. I guess when you both had
government salaries you could afford to have someone to come to
look after your kids. Judging by the number of cars in the
driveway, the Mulders had plenty of money. It made me wonder
why they chose to live in such a mediocre home.

My heart suddenly fell. If the Mulders had someone to watch their
brats, how was I going to get into the house? If I was lucky,
their housekeeper would leave to fetch the groceries or run some
other errands. If not, I'd have to keep coming back until she
did. I'd been hoping that I'd be able to do this today, but a
delay of a day or two would not ruin my plans. For now all I
could do was watch and learn. I didn't much time in the house,
so if I saw an opportunity, I'd grab it.

Half an hour after the housekeeper arrived, the front door opened
and Andrew appeared, looking like the FBI agent he'd aspired to
be. He had thousand dollar suits languishing in his closet, but
he chose to wear horrid, drab suits he'd bought off the rack. He
hadn't wanted anyone to know that his family was wealthy.

"No special treatment," he'd informed me seriously.

"Why would a decent suit result in special treatment?" I'd been
incredulous.

"The other trainees can't afford to dress in Armani suits. I
don't want to stand out," he'd shrugged.

"If you didn't want to stand out, why did you go Harvard?
There are plenty of schools that churn out students that don't
stand out? Why didn't you go to one of them? You could have
saved your parents some money," I'd huffed.

"You know that's not what I mean," he'd assured me quietly.

I hadn't known what he meant. We'd gone around and around
the issue, but it always came down to one thing. It was his
dream and it didn't matter what the cost, he was going to have
it.

His sandy colored hair was short, shorter than he'd kept it when
we met. When he'd first come home with it all chopped off, I'd
laughed at him.

"All of the other trainees wear their hair like this. It's
regulation," he'd frowned at me.

"No regulations like that on Wall Street," I'd rolled my eyes,
but he'd ignored me.

It still made me shake my head. Andrew could have done anything,
been anything, but he chose to be a government suit. Why his
parents tolerated this flight of fancy was beyond me. They hadn't
seemed upset at all when he'd told them about his plans. Maybe
they thought he'd grow bored of it eventually. Or maybe with all
of the money he was going to inherit, it didn't really matter
how he chose to fill his days. Apparently appearances didn't
matter to them. Most of his friends had become lawyers or
brokers, but not Andrew. No, he had to become an FBI agent. What
kind of career was that? What was I suppose to have said to my
friends? I'd avoided discussing it, always changing the subject.
Maybe this would all turn out for the best. I could find myself
a man with decent career goals. Once I'd destroyed Andrew's
dreams, I'd be free to do just that.

Andrew got into his car alone and began to back out of the
driveway. It appeared they weren't going to drive in together.
I wondered why. Did they not want people to know that they were
living together? Maybe there was more going on here than met the
eye. Was there was more to the Mulders than their suburban
house and their cute kids? Were they in the habit of bringing
young agents into their home? Maybe I'd find more in the house
than I bargained for. That thought made me giddy and I couldn't
help giggling.

When Andrew drove toward me, I ducked out of sight. Apparently
the rental car didn't look out of place to him. It seemed
investigators only noticed things when they were looking. How
would that work if they didn't know what they were looking for?
I guess it never occurred to him that I might have figured out
where he lived. Having a job at the Bureau had made it very
easy to find out where Fox Mulder lived.

Only minutes after Andrew drove away, the front door opened
again and I was presented with a charming scene of domestic
bliss. Agent Mulder and his wife, who still went as Agent Scully
appeared in the doorway. It seemed to me, that if they were as
blissful as they let on, she would have taken his name. Maybe
she thought if things didn't work out she wouldn't have to be
worried about being stuck with his moniker. Now there was trust
for you.

Once they stepped out onto the porch the housekeeper appeared
behind them carrying a baby. A young dark-haired boy pushed his
way out from behind her to give his parents a hug. Agent Scully
deserved a lot of credit. Her figure looked incredible
considering the age of the baby. Ostensibly, her work and her
looks were more important to her than staying home with her
children.

I watched, rolling my eyes, as kisses were exchanged. It did
make me laugh, however, when Agent Mulder sneaked a kiss from his
wife in between kissing his children. When the Mulders got into
their car, still smiling, the housekeeper said something to the
boy and they went back into the house. I didn't hide when the
car passed me. The Mulders had no idea who I was. They were too
busy smiling at each other to notice me, anyway.

It was only 7:15 when they disappeared around the corner. I
might be in for a long wait so I turned the radio on to a
morning show and tried to get comfortable in the car. I quickly
figured out why cops did surveillance in pairs. Even though I'd
had plenty of sleep, I caught my head nodding. Sitting up, I
shook out the cobwebs.

I needed something to keep my mind alert. If I'd brought a
crossword, it might have distracted me. I decided to look at
each of the houses and try to guess what the people who lived
in them were like. By percentages, some of them had to be
alcoholics, abusers or abused. Some of the people had to be
having marriage problems. A few of the families were living
beyond their means. Somebody's teenage daughter was pregnant or
soon would be. A few of the kids would sneak cigarettes or
something stronger. I was sure of one thing -- every one of them
would probably emerge from their houses looking perfectly normal.

My game proved to be quite entertaining and to my delight, I
found that time was passing quickly. I only wished I had the
time to find out if my guesses were correct. I would have to
settle for knowing that they most likely were.

I was busy deciding that the house four doors down from the
Mulders' was owned by alcoholics, judging by the peeling paint
and unkempt yard, when I saw the Mulders' front door open.
The boy appeared first with a backpack slung over his left
shoulder. He was followed by the housekeeper who carrying the
baby. My heart started to race in anticipation as I watched
them get into the van. Since both kids had to be strapped in,
it took a few minutes before the older woman got into the
driver's seat.

She was taking the boy to school! This would probably be the
only chance I had to get into the house. If I was lucky, it would
take her 15 minutes each way. Once the van was out of sight, I
grabbed my waistpack and got out of the car and stretched. My
muscles had become quite tight sitting in the car barely moving.
My surveillance of the neighborhood had proven useful. I knew
that most of the houses were empty -- the occupants had left for
their days at work or school. I was thankful for the lack of
prying eyes.

Aware that there might still be a few people around, I kept my
pace casual as I approached the house. I didn't look around
surreptitiously, knowing that it would be a dead give-away.
I strode purposefully toward the Mulders' backyard. Once inside
the fenced in area, I relaxed a little. Someone would have to
be looking out of a window to spot me.

Crossing the patio, I walked up to the back door. After quickly
retrieving my lockgun, I aimed it at the lock and pulled the
trigger. I'd practiced on apartment door and it was really
quite easy. You just had to pull the trigger slowly a couple of
times and the little probes worked the tumblers inside the lock.
I knew it had worked when I heard the lock click.

The back door opened into a kitchen. The room was spacious and
immaculate. I wonder if the Mulders' appreciated their
housekeeper -- she appeared to be very efficient. A low growl
to my left startled me. Spinning around rapidly, I discovered
something I hadn't counted on. The Mulders had a dog. I was
relieved to find it contained in a kennel, but my heart was
pounding nonetheless.  Upon closer inspection, I realized that,
although large, the dog was only a puppy.

"Shut up, mutt," I warned and gave the kennel a kick.

My threat didn't appear to the scare the dog and it began to
bark very loudly. I doubted anyone would hear it with the
door closed. Leaving the noisy animal in the kitchen, I went
through the door into a hallway. A staircase to the left led
upstairs. Deciding that the bedrooms would probably contain the
most useful information, I took the stairs two at a time.

The first bedroom at the top was the master bedroom. The first
thing I noticed when I walked in was the smell. Underneath the
perfume and the aftershave, it was there. The unmistakable
scent of sex. The window had been left open, but even the
breeze that was fluttering the curtains hadn't removed the
smell. It wasn't stale, like the Mulders hadn't changed their
sheets for a month, it was fresh.

How much sex were the Mulders having to leave a smell this
noticeable? Maybe it wasn't that they had sex often, maybe it
was just the number of parties involved. Finally it all became
clear to me. Andrew hadn't left me because of the prenuptial
agreement. He'd left because he knew I wouldn't be into this
kinky sex. No wonder Agent Scully's figure looked so good. She
was obviously getting plenty of exercise. If Andrew was into
this sort of sick sex, I was glad to be rid of him. How could I
ever have thought of marrying him?

Remembering that I didn't have much time, I quickly went through
all of the drawers in the dressers and the bedside tables. Aside
from finding the lingerie that Agent Scully wore for the sex
parties, I found little more of interest. I wondered what her
boss would think of the leather bustier that I'd come across.
Unfortunately you couldn't be fired for wearing perverse
garments. I did notice that something was missing. I didn't
see any sign of birth control. Apparently Agent Scully liked to
live dangerously. She was lucky to only have two children,
although she could be on the pill. That, however, did not
prevent disease. I could only pray that Andrew hadn't picked up
anything from this filthy woman and passed it on to me.

After I'd finished in the bedroom, I moved on to the master bath,
but I found nothing of interest. One thing was clear from my
search. Andrew may have been having sex in here, but he didn't
sleep here. None of his clothes or toiletries were in the
master bedroom. It was nice of them to keep up appearances.

Still looking for the definitive piece of evidence, I moved down
the hall, checking the doors until I found his room. As I had in
the master bedroom, I went through the drawers quickly. I'd
almost given up when I opened the drawer on the night table and
came across a small black velvet box.

With shaking hands I pried the hinged lid open. Inside, laying
on a bed a white satin, sat an antique silver locket. Opening
it, I discovered an inscription.

"For my special girl."

My heart was pounding so fast, I could barely breathe. I'd
found it. Exactly what I wanted. A small taped confession
from Agent Scully along with the necklace would be all of the
evidence I'd need to prove their scandalous relationship. It
wouldn't be long before three of them would have to resign
their positions.

I snapped the box closed and stuffed it into my waistpack.
Realizing that the housekeeper might be home at any time, I
ran down the stairs. I was going through the kitchen door
when I heard the front door open. The damn dog was barking
its stupid head off and I heard the housekeeper asking if anyone
was there.

I bolted out of the back door and across the lawn. My adrenaline
rush helped me scramble up the board fence. As I went over the
top I heard the woman's voice in the backyard, but I couldn't
make out what she was saying through the pounding in my ears.
Knowing that she'd never be able to scale the fence, I trotted
through the neighbors yard and out onto the street. I jogged
slowly down the street toward the mall. I had some shopping to
do.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Adamstown, MD
Wednesday, October 4, 2000
9:15 am

After meeting at the office, collecting the file 
and notes on the Burke complaint, Andrew, Mulder 
and I drove back out to Adamstown. We'd already 
talked to Pamela Burke -- today we were going to 
talk to her neighbor, Barbara Clarey.

We were just pulling up in front of the Clarey 
house when my cell phone rang. Mulder and Andrew 
stepped out of the car while I reached into my 
pocket to retrieve the phone. The number on the 
display was our home number. My heart began to beat 
more rapidly right away. My mother wouldn't be 
calling unless it was important.

"Hi, Mom," I answered.

"Dana," her voice sounded shaky. "I think someone 
was in the house."

"What?" I opened the car door and got out. "Why do 
you think someone was there?"

"I heard something in the kitchen and the dog 
wouldn't stop barking. The back door was closed, 
but it wasn't locked and I'm positive I locked it 
after I brought the dog back in before I took 
Jordan to school," she was speaking very quickly.

"What did you hear?" I was waving Mulder over. My 
concern must have been showing on my face, because 
his eyes widened as he rushed to my side. "My 
mother thinks someone was in the house," I put my 
hand over the phone to tell him.

"What? Did she call the police?"

I held up my finger to let him know I was listening 
to her.

"It sounded like someone running and then I heard 
the back door close. By the time I got outside I 
couldn't see anyone, but I had Megan in my arms so 
I wasn't running."

"Have you called the police?"

"Not yet -- I wanted to talk to you first," she 
explained.

I shook my head at Mulder to let him know what 
she'd said.

"And I couldn't calm the dog down. He kept barking 
at the back door, so I let him out. He ran straight 
to the back fence and jumped up and barked," she 
continued, her voice still trembling.

"Okay, here's what I want you to do, Mom," I kept 
my voice low and steady. "Take Megan and go next 
door to the Wesley's. Sheila should be at home. 
Call the police from there and wait there until 
they get there. Okay?"

"Okay," I could hear her breathing slow.

"And call me once you've called the police," I 
added.

"I will," she assured me.

"Someone was in the house?" Mulder asked after I'd 
hung up, his brow furrowed.

"It sounds like it," I pressed my lips together and 
glanced at the Clarey residence.

"Andrew can interview them," Mulder read my mind.

"But how will he get back?"

"I'll call Skinner," Mulder said matter-of-factly. 
"He can send someone to pick him up."

"Is something wrong?" Andrew approached us slowly. 
It was obvious that he wasn't sure if he should 
interrupt.

"My mom just called. Someone was in the house," I 
told him quietly.

Andrew's eyes widened in alarm.

"We're going back, but you should stay and talk to 
Mrs. Clarey," Mulder began to speak quickly. "I'll 
make sure someone comes out to pick you up."

Andrew's shoulders began to twitch as if he 
suddenly found his jacket uncomfortable.

"You'll be fine, Andrew," I assured him. "Just go 
over the questions we discussed in the car."

"Okay," his nod was barely perceptible.

We left him standing on the sidewalk with an 
armload of notes. He looked the part of an agent, 
even if he didn't feel like one. That would be 
enough to garner respect from most people. There 
was no better way to learn than being thrown into 
the middle of a case. That's they way I'd felt 
investigating with Mulder, like I wasn't being 
given all the information. I think it ended up 
making a better agent out of me. No one benefits 
from being spoon fed.

My mother called back to let me know that she'd 
called the police and was waiting at Sheila 
Wesley's house just as Mulder was pulling away from 
the curb. I assured her that we were on our way 
back and told her to stay put until the police 
arrived.

"We're fine, Dana," she sounded much calmer than I 
felt. "Megan is asleep and Sheila and I are having 
coffee."

"Where is Megan sleeping?" I asked quickly.

"On a blanket on the rug in front of me, dear. 
Everything's fine."

"We'll be there in about an hour," I promised.

"Okay, dear," I could tell from the tone of her 
voice that she was trying relax me.

As soon as we were finished I called Skinner to let 
him know that we were leaving and why. After he'd 
promised to send someone out to get Andrew, I hung 
up. A heavy silence settled between us.

When my mother had said that she thought someone 
had been in the house, my blood ran cold. Mulder 
and I had been living our fantasy life, blissfully 
ignoring the demons that had always haunted our 
existence. Was someone just reminding us that they 
were still there or was there a darker agenda?

I'd been afraid to look at Mulder -- afraid that if 
I did, I'd break down. Afraid that I'd see my own 
fears reflected in his face. Afraid that if I saw 
my own dread mirrored in his eyes, it would be 
affirming a reality that I wasn't prepared to deal 
with.

The ominous silence quickly became too much for me 
to bear. We'd spent too much time early in our 
relationship burying our emotions. The habit had 
come back far too easily and that scared me more 
than whatever we might have to confront at home.

Without touching him, I could feel Mulder's 
tension. I knew that if I turned my head I'd find 
his knuckles had gone white from clenching the 
steering wheel. The muscles in his jaw would be 
bunching and unbunching. Then to rest his jaw, he'd 
bite his lip so hard he'd almost draw blood. I knew 
I had to do something.

Keeping my eyes fixed on the road, I reached out to 
put my hand on his thigh. Halfway across the gap 
between us, my hand met his hand reaching out 
toward me. We both sighed heavily and Mulder 
squeezed my hand, but we still said nothing. His 
touch was enough to ease most of my fears. We sat 
that way for several minutes and somehow I knew I'd 
had a calming effect on him as well.

"I'm sure we're overreacting," I finally turned to 
him, only to hear him saying, "I'm sure it's 
nothing," at exactly the same time. I couldn't help 
smiling.

"Whatever has happened, Scully, we can deal with 
it. You know we can," he squeezed my hand again.

"I know, Mulder," I squeezed back. "I guess I was 
lulled into thinking that we didn't have anything 
to deal with anymore."

"Anything besides three kids, a dog and buying a 
new house?" he turned to grin at me.

"Yeah, besides that," I chuckled.

Although the duration of the trip was quiet, I felt 
like, with Mulder's help, I'd be able to deal with 
whatever was in store for us. What I wasn't 
prepared for was what I saw when we turned onto our 
street. The street was teeming with people. Not 
only the police, but there were several FBI 
vehicles as well, including the forensic 
identification unit.

"Looks like Skinner was thinking the same thing we 
were," Mulder raised his eyebrows as he slowed to a 
stop at the request of one of Arlington's finest.

"This street is closed, sir. You'll have to turn 
around unless you're a resident," the officer 
informed Mulder after he lowered the window.

"Reaching for my ID," Mulder told the officer as he 
slid his hand slowly into his jacket pocket.

"Oh," the cop nodded when he saw Mulder's badge. 
"It's your house."

"Yeah," Mulder's voice was grim. "Where should we 
put the car?" He asked looking up the street -- 
there was obviously no room in front of the house.

"Park it here, behind my cruiser," he indicated 
with his head. "I'll let them know you're here."

Once we got out of the car, Mulder took my hand and 
we began to walk briskly toward the house. Skinner 
appeared from the crowd of people and walked toward 
us.

"Your mother and the baby are fine," he let me know 
immediately. "They're at the neighbor's."

"Thank you, sir," I tried to smile.

"Have they found anything?" Mulder asked as he 
slipped an encouraging arm around my waist.

"Someone was definitely in the house," Skinner 
began as we began to walk toward the house. "We 
can't tell if anything is missing. Once they've 
finished inside, they'd like you to take a look. 
It's obvious that someone was going through drawers 
in your bedroom and Andrew's bedroom. Whether or 
not that was a ruse is still unclear."

"They didn't go into the kids' rooms?" I asked as 
Skinner led us to the Wesley's house.

"It doesn't look like it, but I'm having them check 
for prints there, too, just in case," his tone was 
officious. "Did you have any paperwork at home 
pertaining to any casework?"

"Yes," I nodded quickly. "I was doing work on three 
cases. The paperwork was in the study -- locked in 
the filing cabinet."

"It doesn't look like our burglar was interested in 
what was downstairs. There is no evidence of anyone 
searching the study, but I'd like you to make 
sure," he glanced at me before he knocked on the 
door. "All we know right now for sure is that they 
escaped over the back fence. There are foot prints 
and broken branches in your neighbor's garden right 
where your mother said the dog went."

The door opened to reveal another uniformed 
officer. When she saw Skinner she stepped aside to 
let us in. I nodded politely as I hurried past. I 
was anxious to see Megan and my mother.

"Fox, Dana," my mother stood up when we walked into 
the living room. Megan was sitting on the rug 
playing with some Tupperware. She smiled broadly 
when she saw us. I couldn't resist picking her up 
and giving her a big hug. I looked up from giving 
her a kiss on the forehead to see Mulder smiling 
softly at me.

"Are you all right?" I reached for my mom's hand to 
give it a squeeze.

"I'm fine," she nodded. "But I'm glad you're back. 
When I called 911, I certainly wasn't expecting all 
of this."

"It certainly is a lot of commotion," Sheila Wesley 
agreed.

"I'm sorry, Sheila," I reached for her hand next.

"Sorry?" Sheila laughed, getting to her feet. 
"Whatever for? It's hardly your fault, Dana. I just 
hope they catch whoever did this. I don't like to 
think that there's a prowler in the neighborhood."

"I can assure you that we're doing everything in 
our power to apprehend the perpetrator, Mrs. 
Wesley," Skinner informed her solemnly as he sat 
down in an armchair.

"I can see that," Sheila laughed. "Sit Dana," she 
waved me toward the couch where she'd been sitting. 
"Fox, you sit, too."

I was going to argue, but realized quickly that it 
would be pointless. I took the seat in the middle 
and settled Megan onto my lap. As soon as Mulder 
sat down beside me, she squirmed to see him.

"Hey Meggie," he smiled and lifted her onto his 
lap. She seemed content to play with his tie while 
we continued to talk. "How long until we can get 
into the house?" Mulder looked at Skinner.

"Not long, but I wanted to ask you a few questions 
first," Skinner took a notepad out of his pocket.

"Sure," Mulder shrugged and reached for my hand 
again.

Sheila had left the room briefly and returned with 
a dining room chair. "Would anyone like coffee?"

When we all politely declined, she sat down in the 
chair and folded her hands in her lap.

"Did you notice anything unusual when you left for 
work this morning?" Skinner began his questions.

"No," we both answered. "But I wasn't on the 
lookout or anything," Mulder added.

"Any unusual phone calls? Hang ups?"

At the mention of phone calls, Mulder and I turned 
to look at each other.

"What?" Skinner prodded.

"Andrew's ex made a couple of threatening calls," 
Mulder explained. Megan was squirming on his lap, 
trying to get down, so he set her on the floor.

"Why didn't you report them?" Skinner began to 
write in his pad.

"It was under control," Mulder shook his head 
slightly. "I warned her about making threats 
against a federal officer and that was the last we 
heard from her."

"She was angry that Andrew had broken their 
engagement," I continued. "But I doubt she'd go as 
far as to break into our house."

"It still warrants investigation," Skinner replied 
briskly. "What's her last name?"

"I don't know," I looked to Mulder for help.

"We can ask Andrew when he gets back or we could 
call him," Mulder suggested.

"Since it looks like the only two rooms that were 
disturbed were yours and his, she's our best 
suspect at this point," Skinner reminded us. As he 
spoke I watched as Megan crawled over to him and 
pulled herself up on his pants leg. I glanced over 
at Mulder to see if he'd noticed and found him 
watching with an amused smirk on his face. "I'll 
call Andrew as soon as we're done here," our boss 
continued. After he replaced his notepad he looked 
down at Megan who was standing on his foot 
attempting to scale his leg. He bent to pick her up 
and set her in his lap. "I'll just check to see if 
they're ready for you yet," he began to fish for 
his phone.

Megan wasn't content sitting quietly. When Skinner 
began to dial his phone she hauled herself to a 
standing position using his tie for leverage. If 
Skinner was bothered, he didn't let on. As soon as 
Megan was standing he simply straightened his tie. 
"It's Skinner," he announced himself on the phone. 
"Yeah," he continued after a brief pause, "I was 
checking to see if you were ready for Mulder and 
Scully yet?"

Megan didn't seem very interested in his phone, 
which surprised me, but she was to be watching his 
face intently. I had to suppress a laugh when she 
suddenly reached up and snatched the glasses off 
Skinner's face.

"Megan," Mulder used his warning voice.

She turned toward him and gave him a big, wet 
smile.

"Megan," he warned her again.

Knowing that tone meant she wasn't supposed to 
touch, she let go of the glasses. They bounced off 
Skinner's lap and fell to the floor. My mother, who 
was sitting nearest to Skinner, leaned over to pick 
them up. She folded them up and placed them on the 
coffee table. Skinner was telling the person he was 
talking to about his new suspect.

"A female UNSUB lines up--" Skinner began, but as 
he was speaking Megan took hold of his nose, "--
considering the footprints you found," he finished 
in nasal tone.

Mulder threw his head back and laughed.

"Mulder!" I admonished him, but I couldn't help 
smiling.

Turning to look at her father, Megan let go of the 
AD's nose, but when she saw the reaction she was 
getting, she turned back and latched on again. I 
got up quickly, to stop her, but Skinner was 
already speaking again.

"See you in 15," his voice was distorted again.

"Sorry, sir," I smiled meekly as I bent to retrieve 
Megan.

"She's fine," he waved me off.

When I turned to sit down again, Mulder was 
grinning at me. I had to bite my lip to stop myself 
from laughing. Skinner told us that we had the go 
ahead to go back to the house in 15 minutes. The 
forensic team was almost finished dusting for 
prints. While we waited, we took Sheila up on her 
offer of coffee.

When we got up to leave, I took Megan back from 
Skinner. As I turned to go to the door, my mother 
put her hand on my arm.

"Can I talk to you for a second, Dana?"

"Sure," I furrowed my brow, wondering what she 
wanted to say to me in private. Mulder turned to 
see what we were doing. "I'll be right there," I 
nodded.

"I know I probably shouldn't have done this," my 
mother began quietly once we were alone, "but 
before I came over here I went upstairs."

"Mom! Someone could have still been in the house," 
I chided her. "You could have been hurt."

"I realize that, Dana, but I wanted to warn you," 
she continued, unconcerned about my rebuff.

"Warn me?" I was taken aback.

"Whoever was in the house went through your 
dresser," her eyes were wide.

"I know that -- Skinner said," I shook my head, not 
understanding her point.

"Some of your lingerie had been pulled out," she 
whispered. "I was going to put it back, but I 
thought that was the wrong thing to do. Now a 
hundred people have been traipsing through your 
bedroom," she looked mortified. "I should have put 
it away."

"No, you did the right thing, mom," I assured her 
quickly. "You shouldn't have been there in the 
first place. Tampering with the scene would have 
been worse," I sighed.

"Are you sure?" she looked unconvinced.

"Do I want to know which lingerie it was?" I 
cringed inwardly.

"Well, there were some panties on the floor and 
another lacy thing, but --" she paused, not meeting 
my eyes. "There was a leather camisole sitting on 
top of the dresser."

"Great," I rolled my eyes.

"You know, dear, it really isn't anyone's business 
what you..., well, what you and Fox choose..." her 
voice trailed off in embarrassment.

"I know, mom, but it looks like it's going to be 
public knowledge now," I sighed heavily. "Mulder 
and I were always good fodder for the office rumor 
mill. This will give them something to really sink 
their teeth into."

"But you're married, why would they care what you 
do?" she asked as we walked to the door.

"Mom, I bought those things because Mulder likes 
the way I look in them. If pictures of the leather 
bustier get out, I'm sure there will be all kinds 
of wild stories flying around."

"What kind of stories?" she looked puzzled.

"Given my reputation around the Bureau, I'm sure 
they'll be saying that I'm a dominatrix," I 
frowned.

My mother's mouth opened into a silent O.

"Don't worry, we'll just do what we always did -- 
ignore them."

Mulder and Skinner were waiting for us in the 
kitchen. Guinness was tied up in the back yard, 
barking at all of the activity. Almost every 
surface in the kitchen held smudges of red latent 
print powder. I wanted to scrub the house from top 
to bottom.

"May I start cleaning up, Mr. Skinner?" My mother 
must have felt the same way I did.

"Yes, they're finished," he nodded with a smile. 
"Unfortunately cleaning up isn't in their job 
description."

"That's all right," my mother smiled. "I've been 
going crazy just sitting there. This will keep me 
occupied."

"Let's go upstairs," Mulder took my hand. "We won't 
be long," he turned to tell Skinner.

When we got upstairs, Mulder closed the door behind 
us immediately. The room wasn't as bad as I thought 
it would be. Only a few things were out of the 
drawers.

"Skinner warned me about this, Scully," Mulder kept 
his voice low.

"My mother told me," I rolled my eyes.

"Your mother? She came up here?"

"Yes, but she didn't touch anything. Now she wishes 
she had," I smiled weakly.

"No, it's good she didn't," he assured me quickly.

"It is?" I asked in disbelief.

"They lifted three sets of prints off the bustier 
and we know who two of them belong to," he smiled.

"Yeah, that's just great," I grimaced. "Mulder, 
aren't you worried about all of the people who've 
been leering at my lingerie?"

"Part of me is, the other part is happy that people 
know I'm married to a hottie," he winked.

"I'm serious, Mulder," I handed Megan to him and 
folded my arms across my chest. "I don't want 
everyone knowing about what goes on in our 
bedroom."

"All a few people know is that you have some sexy 
lingerie, Scully," he tried to reassure me.

"I assume there were crime scene photos," I 
reminded him dryly.

"When Skinner and I were walking over here, he told 
me what to expect, Scully," Mulder reached for my 
hand.

"That's great. Skinner's seen my underwear, too."

"Scully," Mulder pulled me close to him. He was 
cradling Megan with one arm and me with other. 
"Skinner assured me that he'd read everyone the 
riot act. He said there be hell to pay if he found 
out that any crime scene details or pictures ended 
up anywhere but in the file."

"Do you think they'll listen?" I looked up at him.

"Yeah," he bent to press a soft kiss against my 
lips. "He scares the crap out of most people."

It didn't take us long to ascertain that nothing 
was missing from our room. It was obvious that 
someone had rifled through the drawers, but 
everything seemed to be there. We checked in 
Andrew's room, but we weren't able to tell for 
sure. When we got back downstairs we told Skinner 
that we'd have Andrew call in a report after he'd 
had a chance to look himself.

Once Mulder assured Skinner that we would get some 
added security and we were didn't need a police 
presence, the AD left after telling the last 
uniform that he was free to go. Mulder walked him 
out to his car. My mother had cleaned up all of the 
powder in the kitchen, so I put Megan into her 
highchair.

"Everyone has cleared out," Mulder announced when 
he returned.

"Thank God," my mother sighed.

"It's a lot like a three ring circus, isn't it?" 
Mulder smiled.

"Yes," my mother shook her head. "And I was never 
fond of the circus. Are all of the cases you 
investigate like this?"

"Not all of them," I smiled, "And if they are, it's 
only like this at the beginning. Most of our work 
takes place after -- following up on the evidence 
gathered at the crime scene."

"But those other people do this kind of thing all 
the time?"

"Yup," Mulder shrugged. "They probably don't even 
notice the commotion anymore."

"I don't think I could ever get used to it," my mom 
shook her head.

"Some people don't, they burn out. Other people 
thrive on it," Mulder opened the back door. "I'm 
going to let the dog in."

"Look at the time," I gasped. "If I don't hurry, 
I'm going to be late picking up Jordan."

"Do you want me to come?" Mulder stopped in his 
tracks.

"I think I'd rather you stayed here, Mulder."

"Okay, see you in a bit," he smiled as he strode 
over to me. "Everything's going to be fine," he 
pulled me into a hug and kissed me softly again.

"I know," I leaned into him. "But I like your 
reassurances just the same."

When I arrived at Jordan's school, the first of the 
children were starting to trickle out. Jordan came 
out about a minute later, his face lighting up when 
he saw me standing by the van. Once he'd told me 
all about his morning, I told him what had happened 
at the house.

"Will Daddy catch them?" I could see his wide eyes 
in the mirror.

"Not Daddy, but someone who does the same job," I 
assured him. "Our job right now is to make sure 
that you and Megan are safe. Daddy can't do that 
and catch the bad guy, can he?"

"I guess not," he frowned.

I was worried that Jordan would be concerned about 
a stranger having been in the house, but he was 
more interested in other things.

"Will I be able to see the red powder?"

"Yes, there's still a lot of it all over the 
house," I assured him.

"Can I bring some in for show and tell?" he asked 
excitedly.

"Well," I hesitated.

"Please, Mommy?"

"How about this?" I thought of a bargain. "Why 
don't we take your fingerprints off something 
you've touched. And then you can show everyone what 
your fingerprints looks like."

"Really?" he sounded gleeful as we pulled up in 
front of the house. "That would be great!"

"But I'll have to get some things from work 
tomorrow, okay?" I got out of the car and walked 
around to help him out of his seat.

"Can we take Megan's, too?" he asked as slid out of 
the car.

"We'll see," I promised.

He was about to continue bargaining with me when 
someone called to us from across the street.

"Hey!"

I looked up to see a dark-haired woman jogging 
across the street toward us.

"Can I help you?" I put myself between Jordan and 
the woman.

"Did you think you could fool me, whore?" she spat.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," I 
recognized her voice. "And I would appreciate it if 
you would watch your mouth around my son, Leigh."

Her eyes widened at my use of her name. "I don't 
give a fuck about your little bastard," she 
recovered quickly.

"Go into the house, Jordan," I instructed without 
turning my head. "Tell Daddy that Leigh is here," I 
kept my eyes fixed on her.

"Mommy?" I could hear fear in Jordan's voice.

"Mommy is fine, but I need you to run to the house 
now," I kept my voice low and steady.

He didn't say anything, but I heard his footfalls 
heading up the driveway.

"What do you want, Leigh?" I narrowed my eyes.

"I want you to explain this," she reached into her 
waistpack.

Reaching behind my back quickly, I retrieved my 
gun, and held it behind my l

eg. Leigh was too busy looking in her pack to 
notice. "This," she shoved a small black box into 
my face.

"Daddy! Daddy!" I heard Jordan's voice behind us 
and he began to bang on the door.

"It looks like a jewelry box," I answered 
cautiously.

"I know that, you stupid bitch," she screamed. "It 
says 'For my special girl'. What do you have to say 
about that?"

"Andrew bought it for his niece," I shook my head. 
"So what?"

"Scully!" I heard Mulder call in panicked voice.

I saw Leigh's eyes flicker over to Mulder. Before I 
could stop her she ran at me screaming, knocking me 
to the ground with a thud.

"Shit," Mulder cursed as he knelt down beside me.

"I'm fine," I assured him. "Go after her."

"No," he said firmly. "We know for sure now. 
They'll catch her eventually. Right now I'm worried 
about you," he scooped me up in his arms.

"I'm fine, really. You could have caught her," I 
struggled to look down the street in the direction 
she'd run.

"Scully, there is a little boy inside who's very 
worried about his mommy. I think that is our first 
concern. We'll catch up with Leigh soon enough," he 
spoke to me gently.

"Oh, my God, Mulder. I'm sorry," tears began to 
fill my eyes.

"It's all right," he gave me squeeze. "And Scully," 
he paused to search my eyes. "Jordan isn't the only 
one who's worried."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Arlington, VA
Wednesday October 4th, 2000
12:25 p.m.

When Jordan had told me that Leigh was outside yelling at 
Scully, I'd quickly asked Maggie to call Detective Murrilo.
He was Skinner's contact with the Arlington PD. Maggie was 
still on the phone when I carried Scully into the house.

"Mommy!" Jordan rushed over to us.

"I'm okay, Jordan," Scully's voice was gentle. 

"He wants to talk to you," Maggie held the phone against her 
chest.

"One sec," I set Scully on the couch.

"C'mere," she held her arms open to Jordan. 

He practically flew into her arms and curled into a little ball.
I wished I could have joined him, but I had to tell Detective 
Murrilo what had happened. As I took the phone from Maggie, I 
could hear Jordan snuffling quietly and Scully's voice softly
soothing him.

"Hey, Tony."

"Hey, Mulder. I was just calling to tell you that we got a hit
on the fingerprints, but your mother-in-law says that wingnut
showed up at your place," Tony Murrilo wasn't one to pull any 
punches.

"Unfortunately," I sighed.

"Is everyone okay? Do you want me out there?"

"I think everyone is mostly shaken, but we'll be fine. Maybe 
you could step up the patrols?" I suggested.

"Beat you to it," I could hear him grinning.

"Yeah, I heard you were quick off the mark," I couldn't resist.

"Always the wiseass, Mulder," he chuckled. "Did you want to
hear about the prints or not?"

"Let me guess, brunette, about 5'5", first name Leigh."

"And last name Neilson," he filled in what I didn't know.

"So who did she stalk before?"

"The hit wasn't NCIC, Mulder. She's employed by the FBI, at
the DC field office."

"You must be kidding!" I was stunned. "I can't believe
someone like her could get through the screening process."

"It doesn't matter how many background checks you do, or how
many personality tests you give 'em, a few always slip through,"
Tony reminded me. "Look at that nut job, Dunlop, we had last 
year. That freak cut his own dick off, for Christ's sake. And 
the fibbies did let you in, after all."

"Very funny," I was still wincing at the thought of Dunlop.

"Well, I'm going to see what else I can turn up about your
wingnut. I just love questioning feds," he chuckled. "If she 
turns up again, call us right away."

"I will, and thanks, Tony."

"Not a problem. Just take care of that family of yours," his 
voice had become serious. "If that crazy bitch hurts one hair on 
Agent Scully's head, she'll have me to answer to."

"She already has, Tony," I kept my voice low, not wanting Jordan
to hear. "She knocked Scully to the ground, just now."

"What? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I am telling you," I pointed out.

"I'll be right over."

"Tony, wait," I tried to slow him down. "Can we do it tomorrow?
I think we need some time to ourselves. Let's do this at the 
office. I don't want the kids dragged into this more than they 
already are." 

"Is Dana all right?" his voice was tight.

"A little shook up, but she says she's fine," I looked over
at her snuggling with Jordan on the couch. She was rocking him
gently and whispering something into his ear that was making him 
smile.

"For such a tiny thing, she's pretty tough, isn't she?" I could
hear a touch of awe in his voice.

"Yeah," I agreed. It was true that Scully wanted everyone to
think that she could take care of herself. In her position she
had to appear to be twice as tough as the men. If not, they would
have walked all over her. To keep up that reputation she didn't
let anyone see her vulnerable side -- anyone but me.

"You still there, Mulder?" Tony interrupted my thoughts.

"Yeah, sorry. Just thinking."

"Okay, I'll let you get back to your family. I'll catch up with 
you at the office tomorrow."

When I hung the phone up, I looked back over at Scully and
Jordan giggling on the couch. It was a side of her that most 
people never got to see. It was clear to me now why she was so 
reluctant to let even me see any weakness for so many years. I'd 
always felt like I had to protect her and she'd always pushed me 
away, assuring me that she was fine. If she hadn't, if I'd 
thought she needed my protection, it would have ruined our 
partnership. That hadn't really changed. I saw that today. In 
our encounter with Leigh, Scully had reverted into agent mode --
not wanting to be taken care of, but to catch Leigh. It was going 
to be hard for me to separate Scully, my wife, from Scully, my 
partner. I could see the desire to protect my wife sneaking
into our working relationship. How could it not?. On the other 
hand, I knew that if I didn't make that distinction, Scully, 
my partner, would have my ass in a sling.

"Mulder?" Scully was suddenly standing right beside me.

"Yeah?" I blinked several times.

"My mom says lunch is ready," she looked up at me questioningly.
"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just thinking about what Murrilo said," I smiled.

"Do they have anything?"

"I'll tell you when there aren't as many ears around," I slid my
arm around her waist. "Let's just be us for awhile, okay?"

"That's my favorite thing to be," she smiled softly and stood
on her tiptoes to kiss me.

Scully and I tried to keep the mood during the meal as light as 
possible. Jordan told me about his day in school and then about 
his show and tell plans. When lunch was finished, Scully took 
Jordan upstairs to settle him for his nap. I got Megan quickly 
tucked into her crib and went back downstairs. Maggie offered to 
stay and help us with the clean up, so while she was in working 
in the living room, I called the three horsemen of the huevos 
rancheros.

As soon as I put the phone down, I regretted calling them. They 
seemed a little too excited about being let loose on our house. 
Figuring that Jordan should have been asleep by now, I went back 
upstairs to check on them. When I eased the door open, I couldn't
help smiling. Scully was curled up on the bed beside Jordan,
sound asleep. I closed the door quietly and went to our bedroom 
to start getting it back in order.

I began by picking up Scully's lingerie and putting it in the
hamper. The bustier, the scrap of leather that Scully turned into
the most erotic piece of clothing I'd ever seen, was still 
sitting on the dresser. Its usual lustrous sheen was marred
by splotches of red. I took it into the bathroom and wiped it off
with a damp cloth. As I turned it over slowly in my hands, 
remembering the way it hugged Scully's every curve, I knew it
would be a long time, if ever, before she'd be comfortable 
wearing it again. Sighing, I slipped it back into the drawer and 
began to wipe the latent print powder off the dressers, mirror and
bedside tables. I was just finishing cleaning up the door handles
when I heard Maggie's voice floating up the stairs.  

"Fox, your friends are here."

When I arrived downstairs, the Gunmen were still standing in the 
foyer. I was surprised to see a uniformed officer with them.

"You know these men, Mr. Mulder?" The cop looked skeptical.

"Yeah, sometimes we feds have to rub shoulders with misfits," I 
grinned.

"These clowns are for real?" He was incredulous.

"Hard to believe, isn't it?" I had to chuckle.

"A headbanger, an accountant and a --" he looked Frohike up and
down. "A vagrant? I thought they were casing your house," he
closed his notebook and slipped it back into his breast pocket.
"They were walking around the outside of the house, and peering
in the windows. When I confronted them, they said they were here
to see you, but they wouldn't give me their names. I almost took
them in, but they insisted that I talk to you first."

"What happened to being presumed innocent?" Byers looked
unamused.

"After what went on here this morning, we had to take extreme
precautions," the cop informed him dryly. 

"And I appreciate that," I assured him.

"We'll be close by if you need anything," the officer extended
his hand.

After I shook his hand firmly, he gave the Gunmen another 
disbelieving look, shook his head and left.

"Misfits?" Frohike folded his arms across his chest.

"I thought you'd take that as a compliment," I kept my face
deadpan. "Don't you pride yourselves on being non-conformists?"

"Yeah, well --" Frohike began muttering, but Langly interrupted
him.

"Put a sock in it," he rolled his eyes. "If we're going to finish
this job before it gets dark, we need to get started. No one
wants to hear your whining."

"Where's Scully?" Frohike changed his tack quickly.

"She nodded off when she took Jordan up for his nap," I told
him as we moved into the living room.

Frohike mumbled something incomprehensible as he slumped to the
couch.

"Don't worry, Melvin," I consoled him. "I'm sure she'll be
down soon."

"For God's sake, man, give it up," Langly shook his balding
blonde head. "It's not like you ever had a chance, anyway."

"I just wanted to know if she was okay," Frohike huffed. "Are
you having a flashback or did you drop some acid before we left?"

"For your information, I haven't had a flashback since --"

"Would you two please stop? We've got a lot of ground to cover
here. Mulder and Scully need our help and all you two can do is
bicker," Byers chastised them.

"Have you two ever considered counseling?" I chuckled. Before
either of them could protest, I silenced them by continuing.
"Byers is right. I'd like to get some better security installed
as soon as we can."

"So what exactly is going on? Some chick broke into your house
and threatened Scully?" Langly perched himself on the arm of the
couch.

"Yes and no. While Mrs. Scully was taking Jordan to school
this morning someone broke into the house. Then at lunch time
after Scully picked Jordan up from school, the same woman
confronted her."

"On the phone, you said she'd knocked Scully down," Byers 
frowned.

"Yeah," I nodded.

"Why didn't Scully kick her ass?" Frohike looked confused.

"Yeah, Scully's a crack shot. You think she could've at least
winged her," Langly wrinkled his brow.

"Jordan was right there. Scully could hardly come out with guns
blazing," I pointed out.

"Yeah, I guess the kiddies put a whole new spin on things, don't
they?" Frohike nodded sagely.

More than you know, I almost said out loud as I thought about 
the life growing inside of Scully, but instead I only nodded in 
agreement.

"On the way over we tossed around a few ideas," Byers began, but
stopped when we heard Scully coming down the stairs.

"Hey," she smiled sleepily at the Gunmen when she walked into the
living room. "Why did you leave me there, Mulder?" She came and
sat on the arm of the chair I was sitting in.

"I thought you probably needed the rest," I put my hand 
gently on her leg.

"Probably," she nodded as she rested her hand on top of mine.
"So you guys are going to help us set up some security?" Scully
turned to face our guests.

"Yes, and here's what I was thinking," Byers leaned toward us.
"I'd like to set up a voice recognition system. Neither of the
doors will open unless the computer has the voice in its 
database," he finished proudly.

"Voice recognition?" Scully repeated uncertainly. "Wouldn't that
be complicated?"

"Ha!" Frohike crowed. "I told you so. Here's my plan," Frohike
scooted forward on the couch. "A hand scanner."

"A hand scanner?" I repeated, trying not to laugh.

"It's much simpler than the voice recognition," he nodded toward
Byers. "You just have to scan your hand three times and then the
computer will recognize it. The voice recognition is more
finicky, like when you have a cold or a sore throat."

"Yeah, but what happens if you end up in a cast, or something,"
Langly argued. "The most reliable system is retinal imaging."

I glanced up at Scully. Her eyes were laughing, but she had her 
lips pressed tightly together.

"I'm sure Scully can back me up on this," Langly continued, "but
you might not know, Mulder, that the eyes are the one part of the
body that doesn't change as you age. The blood vessel pattern in
your eyes is just as unique as a fingerprint," he looked over at
Scully for confirmation.

"Yes, that's true," she nodded, mirth evident in her voice.

"We could even scan Megan," Langly suggested proudly.

"Megan?" Scully leaned away from him in shock.

"I think we've got our signals crossed here, guys," I held my
hands up in front of my chest to slow them down. "I think Scully
and I were thinking more along the lines of an alarm system and
maybe some motion detectors outside," I looked up to Scully to
see if she agreed and she nodded her head vigorously.

"We won't be here that much longer anyway," Scully told them.

"You won't?" Frohike looked alarmed.

"I guess I haven't talked to you in a few days," I nodded. "We
bought a house," I smiled.

"What's wrong with this house?" Langly looked perplexed.

"Too many sad memories," Scully explained. "We stayed here at
first to give Jordan some stability, but it's never really felt
like home to Mulder and me."

"Wow, Mulder," Frohike shook his head. "I thought you'd never
settle down, and now look at you -- married, kids, buying a 
house. I guess there's no going back now," he put a hand to
his heart.

"Jesus, you can be such an ass sometimes, Frohike," Langly
punched him on the arm. He looked up to see that Maggie had
joined us. "Oops, sorry," he mumbled and I was amazed to see
his cheeks grow pink.

"I barely noticed," Maggie waved him off. "I *was* married to a 
sailor after all."

I'd often wondered if Scully had picked up some of her more
colorful vocabulary from her father. From the way she described
him, I didn't picture him as the type to swear a lot. And I
certainly didn't think that Maggie was the type to allow it
in her house. I assumed she was just being gracious.

"Can I offer you boys something to eat?" she smiled.

"That'd be great," Frohike chirped up.

"I'm famished," Langly patted his stomach.

"That would be very nice. Thank you, Mrs. Scully," Byers smiled
politely.

"Be careful, Maggie," I warned her. "If you start feeding them,
they'll just keep coming back."

"Oh Fox," she chided me. "Don't be mean to your friends."

"Yeah," Langly stuck his tongue out at me.

"Maybe you could all try growing up?" Scully rolled her eyes
and stood up. "Do you want me to help you, Mom?" she called after
her mother who was already heading back to the kitchen.

"If you like, Dana," Maggie called back.

"I assume you don't need me here anymore, do you, Mulder?"

"No, I think we're in agreement about what we want," I smiled
up at her.

"Before you go, Scully," Byers stood up. "I found this outside,"
he reached into his pocket. "I think you may have dropped it
earlier," he held out a black velvet box.

"Oh," Scully reached out to take it. "This is what Leigh took
from Andrew's bedroom."

"I didn't know that," I stood up quickly.

"We haven't exactly had a chance to talk about it, Mulder," she
reminded me.

"I know that, Scully," I put my hand on her shoulder. "I only
meant that I thought that Leigh hadn't taken anything. May I
see?" I reached for the box.

When I opened it up, I recognized the necklace that Andrew had
bought for his niece's birthday. He'd showed it to us because
he was so proud of his choice.

"I don't understand," I shook my head as I turned the locket
over. "What would Leigh want with this?"

"She thought it was meant for me," Scully was completely 
serious.

"What?" I had to laugh. "For you? Why the hell would she think
that?"

"Apparently she thought I was Andrew's 'special girl'," she 
shrugged.

"What?" I heard myself repeating. "She thought that you and 
Andrew --," I couldn't say the words out loud. "Because of this
necklace?"

"I guess so," she shrugged again.

"Actually," I paused for a second.

"What?" Scully looked up at me quizzically.

"It makes perfect sense."

"It does?" 

"Yeah, it couldn't have been Leigh's fault that they broke up,"
I began to explain my thinking. "Something else must have 
caused it."

"Oh," Scully nodded, understanding what I was getting at. "So, I
must have stolen Andrew away from her. And this was the proof she
needed."

"Yup," I closed the box and set it on the coffee table. "I doubt
anything is ever Leigh's fault."

"I guess I know why I'm such a whore now," Scully chuckled.

"I beg your pardon," Maggie had reappeared with a plate of
cheese, cold cuts and crackers.

"That's what Leigh is fond of calling me," Scully explained,
a faint blush apparent on her cheeks.

"Why on earth would she call you that?" Maggie looked upset
as she set the food down.

"Mulder thinks that Leigh assumed I'd stolen Andrew away from 
her, and that's why he broke the engagement," Scully continued.

"Well, that's just ridiculous," Maggie shook her head. "Not only
is Andrew extremely young, but you're married, with children and 
another --" she cut herself off, glancing over at the Gunmen. 
She could've mentioned Scully's pregnancy and they wouldn't have
heard a thing. They were too busy chowing down. "What could you 
have possibly wanted with him?"

"Any reasonable person knows that, Mom," Scully tried to explain.

"That girl obviously isn't all there," Maggie's eyes flashed the
same way Scully's did when she was angry. "How did Andrew ever 
get mixed up with someone like her?"

"Did I hear my name?" a voice called from the foyer.

"We're in the living room," I called.

"What happened here this morning, anyway? I pulled into the 
driveway and two Arlington cops descended on me. I had to show
them my badge to get out of the car," he kept talking as he 
walked from the foyer. "Oh, hello, Mrs. Scully."

"I made a tray of --" she pointed to the coffee table only
to discover the plate was empty, save a few crumbs. "I'll get
some more," she was speaking quickly. I could tell that she was
embarrassed that Andrew had heard her talking about him.

"I don't want you to go to any trouble," Andrew protested.

"No trouble," she hurried off with the empty tray.

"Andrew," Scully smiled. "These are the guys that Mulder told
you about, the Lone Gunmen."

"Oh right," he walked over to shake their hands. "Let me guess.
Byers is easy, the suit is a dead giveaway," he smiled as he
shook John's hand. "And Langly has the hair," he glanced to the
other end of the couch, "So you must be Frohike," he shook 
Frohike's gloved hand over the coffee table and then reached
over to Langly. "I'm Andrew Guernsey."

"Guernsey?" Frohike repeated. "Like the cow?"

"Yeah, the cow comes from the island in the English Channel. We 
still have relatives there...we're the poor cousins," Andrew
chuckled.

"You're the poor cousins?" I looked at him in surprise. "Do they 
own the entire island, or what?"

"Just about," he smiled. 

"So your protege has got some bucks?" Langly grinned. "I didn't
know you liked to have your palms greased, Mulder."

"It's not like that," Andrew looked shocked. "No one at work
knows that my family has money. Well no one but the Mulders, and 
I'd like to keep it that way."

"Calm down," Frohike laughed. "We won't hold it against you. And
if there's one thing we can do, it's keep a secret."

"I thought you published that paper 'The Magic Bullet'? Don't you
print all kinds of secrets?" Andrew eyed Frohike suspiciously.

"We've got bigger fish to fry," Langly assured him. "And we
only print things that the government is trying to conceal."

"What could the government possibly be trying to hide?" Andrew
rolled his eyes. "Of course, there are certain things that have
to be kept quiet, like military advances and covert surveillances
of subversives, but other than that --"

"Wow," Frohike looked at me in amusement. "He's pretty green,
isn't he?"

"He'll learn soon enough. Scully did," I pointed out.

"What do you mean?" Andrew looked confused.

"We can talk about this later -- at the office. There's something
else I need to tell you," I nodded toward the armchair opposite
mine as I sat down again.

"What is it, what happened this morning?" his eyes grew wide as 
he sat down.

I nodded and began to fill him in on the morning's events. Maggie
came in with another tray of food while we were talking and 
Scully left when she heard Megan wake. By the time I'd finished,
the new tray of food was gone, but Andrew hadn't eaten a morsel.

"I had no idea," he leaned forward and put his head in his hands.
"Dana must hate me."

"Of course she doesn't," I assured him. "It's not your fault."

"We dated for almost two years, and I lived with her for 6 
months. How could I not have seen it? What kind of investigator
does that make me?" He looked up at me, sorrow evident in his
eyes. "And she worked for the FBI? She said she was working as
a clerk. Why wouldn't she have told me?"

"I'm not sure if we'll ever know all of the answers, Andrew, but
I think it's safe to say that Leigh fooled a lot of people. Look
at all the background checks and tests she would have gone 
through to work at the field office. Apparently she sailed 
through those, what makes you think that you should be able to 
spot something that the professionals missed?" I tried to
console him.

"I guess," he shook his head remorsefully, but I don't think I
managed to convince him. "If she was mad at me, why would she
take it out on you and Dana?"

"Because she thought that we got in her way," I explained.

"She was the one that insisted on the stupid prenuptial 
agreement. That's what started all of this. It was her own damn
fault," he began to sound angry. I'd never seen him angry before.

"This is probably none of my business," I began, "but I'm willing
to bet that nothing that happened in your relationship was ever
Leigh's fault."

"Yeah," a smile twitched at the corner of his mouth, "but I found
it was easier in any relationship just to take the blame. It 
seemed so much smoother that way."

"I guess that's true to a certain extent," I had to smile too.
"But must people will take the blame occasionally."

"I should have seen it," he shook his head again.

"Don't beat yourself up, Andrew. Leigh latched onto you because
you were a nice guy and she took advantage of that. It's happened
to the best of us," I assured him.

"Amen," Frohike piped up. "Look at what happened to Byers."

"That was completely different," Byers began to defend himself.

"Let's not get into that right now," I cut them off. "I think
it's time to get started with the added security."

"You're right," Byers apologized. "I shouldn't be thinking 
about myself. C'mon guys, we have work to do."

"Hey, Andrew," Langly gave him a friendly punch on the shoulder. 
"Want to help us beef up the security around here?"

"Sure. What can I do?" he stood up.

"Did you see the blue van in the driveway?" Langly inquired.

"Yeah," Andrew nodded.

"Bring everything in," he tossed Andrew the keys.

"Okay," Andrew agreed pleasantly.

"Langly," I began to admonish him when Andrew was out of
earshot. "You shouldn't take advantage of him."

"What? He's a healthy, young guy and he needs to do something to 
keep his mind off things," Langly explained himself.

"Yeah, you just keep telling yourself that, Ringo," I shook my
head.

"What?" He maintained his innocence as he left the room.  

Soon the house was buzzing with activity. The amount of equipment
Andrew hauled in was staggering. Jordan had awakened from his
nap and was trailing around after the Gunmen, completely 
enthralled with all of their gadgets. Scully had to keep
Megan up off the floor because of all of the colored bits and
pieces that grabbed her attention. 

"Are they going to have this all cleaned up today?" Scully
asked about two hours into the project.

"I'll make sure they do," I promised. "But I assume they'll be
here for awhile yet."

"I'll let my mother know so she can make extra food," Scully
sighed.

"Do we have that much food in the house?" I raised my eyebrows.
"For that matter, is there that much food in Arlington?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Arlington, VA
Wednesday October 4th, 2000
8:45 p.m.

The house was finally quiet. Supper had been bedlam. Maggie
had made a feast, but it was no match for our new security
experts. Even Andrew was in awe of how much food they'd packed
away, not to mention how quickly they'd done it. I'd been worried
that after they'd gorged themselves they'd end up groggy from
Thanksgiving syndrome, but they went straight back to work like
they'd only had a light snack.

It had been amazing, actually. Before supper began, the house
had been a disaster. I doubted that we would have had any kind of
added security before we moved at the end of the month. But our
security advisors, 'Paranoids R Us', had done themselves proud --
by 8:30 everything was installed and tested. There had been a few
tense moments when the outdoor motion sensors were activated and
began to alarm, but it had turned out to be Guinness. We were 
going to have to get in the habit of turning them off when he was 
outside and remembering to arm them again when we brought him 
back into the house.

By 8:45 Ruby had been reloaded and the Gunmen had left to
celebrate their security coup by going out for cheesesteaks and
beer. Scully had been shocked that they were planning to eat 
again, but I was simply shocked that they'd invited Andrew and
he'd accepted. I began to wonder if Andrew had made the right 
decision when I'd seen Langly's devilish grin and Frohike rubbing
his hands together.

"I'm a little worried about this," I confessed to Scully once
they'd gone.

"About what?" she glanced around the room in confusion.

"About the Gunmen having their way with Andrew. He's going to end
up being the Shemp, to their Larry, Moe and Curly," I
explained.

"That's impossible, Mulder," she cocked her head at me.

I walked right into it. "Why's that?"

"Because you're the Shemp to their Larry, Moe and Curly. Andrew
will have to settle for being Curly Joe," she smirked at me.
"And don't worry about him, he's a big boy. Besides, the
Gunmen need a new friend now that you aren't around as much."

"I guess," I shrugged.

"Do you want to go out with them?" her question sounded earnest,
but I had a sneaking suspicion that there was only one right
answer to that question.

"On any other night, Scully, I might be tempted to go out for
an hour or so, but tonight I'm keeping you close to me," I
reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze.

"Why haven't you gone over before? Once the kids are in bed, it
would be fine with me if you went out for an hour or two," she
smiled at me.

"Because you'd be asleep by the time I got back," I was glad
her mom was upstairs with Jordan.

"So?" she furrowed her brow.

"So -- I prefer it when you're awake when I come to bed," I
grinned.

"So why not just wake me up -- gently," a big smile spread
across her face starting a small fire in my chest.

"Wow," I couldn't wipe the silly grin off my face. "That would
be okay with you?"

"Once in a while," she was still smiling from ear to ear.
"And I'm sure you'd do the same for me," her smile had faded,
her voice had lowered and her blue eyes had taken on a
predatory gleam.

"Of course," I tried to sound nonchalant, but my voice had
come out as a squeak.

Before I could regain my composure, Maggie returned to the
living room. She'd taken Jordan up to bed early and had read
to him for quite a while to help calm him down. Scully had
gotten Megan to sleep easily. Aside from the excitement of the
extra people in the house, Megan had been unaffected by the
day's activities. Scully tried to talk her mother into staying
the night, but she insisted on leaving.

"It's only ten to nine, dear," Maggie reminded Scully.

"True," Scully began her argument, "but it was a stressful
day and it's dark --"

"I'll be fine," Maggie assured her daughter.

I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing at her comment. I'm
sure Scully would have given me a death glare. I'd quickly
learned that she did not appreciate it when I pointed out how
much she was like her mother.

When the door closed behind Maggie, Scully turned to me and
collapsed into my arms.

"It's all right," I wrapped my arms around her and pressed a kiss
into her hair. "We'll be safe, the guys made sure of that."

"I know," she shook her head against me. "It's just that I can't
help feeling violated."

"It's natural to feel that way, Scully," I rubbed her back.

"But she was going through my lingerie, Mulder. Its worse than
someone just being in the house. It's almost like she was
watching us make love. It gives me the creeps," she shuddered
in my arms.

"I know this sounds trite, Scully, but don't let her win," I
gave her a squeeze.

"I'm trying, Mulder," she heaved a sigh. "But putting on a
brave face all day has completely worn me out."

"Then let's go to bed," I scooped her into my arms and began to
walk toward the stairs.

"You're ready to go to bed?" she blinked at me in surprise.

"I'm ready to get into bed and hold you until you fall asleep.
Is that close enough?"

She nodded her head and blinked her eyes rapidly. "I love you,
Mulder," her voice trembled as she spoke.

Neither of us was long in the bathroom. By the time I was
finished, Scully was already tucked into bed. When I slipped
into bed beside her, she began to slide backward until we met in
the middle of the bed. She sighed contentedly when I slid my arm
over her waist and pulled her against me. I loved the way we fit
together. My chin ended up on her shoulder, my mouth close enough
to her ear that I could whisper all the sweet nothings I wanted.
It was like she was sitting on my lap. When I pulled my knees up,
her feet sat on top of mine.

"Mmm," I could hear the smile in her voice as she wiggled against
me.

That simple action alone was enough to make me start to grow
hard. Sex was the furthest thing from my mind, but my body
reacted immediately to Scully's presence. Initially I was
worried that she'd be upset that I had an erection, but if she
was bothered, she made no indication. Instead she squirmed
back against me again.

"Scully, there was something I wanted to ask you, but I never
got a chance because we were never alone."

"What's that, Mulder?"

"I was worried about you and the baby after you got knocked
down, but you didn't seem to be worried about it," I confessed.

"Mulder," she chuckled, "the baby is surrounded by so much
amniotic fluid that it is very well protected. It probably gets
jostled more when we make love. Okay?"

"Be patient with me, Scully. This is all new to me."

"When haven't I been patient with you, Mulder?"

I knew her little dig meant she had calmed down, so I ignored it.
"Comfortable?" I smiled and pressed a gentle kiss below her ear.

"Very," she sighed softly, placing her hand atop mine making me
hold her even tighter.

"And safe?" I whispered.

"I'm not worried," her voice was drowsy. "But I do have to admit
that I always feel more secure when I'm in your arms."

Some archaic part of my male ego was delighted to hear Scully's
confession, but I also knew that Scully was fully capable of
taking care of herself. I still liked to hear that some ancient
part of Scully felt more at ease in my arms.

It wasn't long before Scully's breathing became slow and even.
Her grip on my hand eased allowing me to slide our hands down to
her abdomen. Closing my eyes, I thought about the life that we
had created -- a life that now was probably smaller than my baby
finger. But somehow I knew that tiny life, nestled within Scully,
would end up being stronger than either of us. How could someone
that we created be anything but strong? Knowing that did nothing
to change the fact that I felt the strong desire to protect both
Scully and our baby.

It amazed me that I could feel so strongly about someone I'd
never met. I didn't feel this protective of Megan and Jordan -- I
loved them as much as life itself, but this feeling was
different. That this feeling could stay buried within me for
so long and then emerge with such ferocity stunned me. After all
of the evolution of the human race, the need to protect my
child remained as powerful as my desire to produce it.

I must have drifted off with my hand still on Scully's belly,
because the next thing I knew, my wife's beautiful firm, round,
ass was pressed up against my burgeoning erection. At first I
thought I'd pressed my morning hard-on up against Scully, but
when she began to move her ass along my now fully erect penis, I
realized what had woken me.

"Morning," I chuckled, my voice still rough with sleep.

"Did I wake you?" Her sultry voice sent another surge straight
to my already throbbing cock.

"You can wake me up like this any time you want, Scully," I ran
my hand over her hip to find the hem of her nightgown.

"I'll remember that." She lifted herself up so that I could
ease her nightgown up.

"How much time do we have?" I asked as I slipped my hand under 
the slippery fabric in search of her breast.

"It's only five," she sighed as I found my goal.

"That early?" I asked as I lowered my lips to her neck.

"We went to bed pretty early," she reminded me as she reached
around to tug at my boxers.

Deciding that helping her would be the gallant thing to do, I
put my hand over hers and soon the offending garment was bunched
somewhere at the foot of the bed.

"Mmm," Scully seemed pleased with our effort as her hand closed
around my shaft.

"I'm glad you approve," I chuckled and began to nuzzle her neck
again. My efforts were rewarded with a lot of hip action from
Scully. She released my cock and thrust her ass against me again.
Scully's ass was a thing of beauty. It never ceased to amaze me
that something so soft could still be so firm. Its curves seemed
to be have been sculpted to fit me. "God, I love your ass," I
breathed into her ear as I brought my hand down to caress her.

"I love how you touch me," her lolled back as I gently squeezed
her.

"I wish I had more hands," I complained as I slid my right hand
under her so I could use it.

"I think you do wonderful things with the two you have," her
voice sounded dreamy as my hand closed over her breast.

"That works well, doesn't it?" I kept my voice low as I continued
to lightly explore the curve of her ass.

"What works well?" she asked breathily as she drew her knees up.

"You like to be touched and I like to touch you," I explained as
I let my hand drift between her legs.

"I don't like it, Mulder, I live for it," she told me in a smoky
voice as she moved her left leg toward the bed to give me more
access.

"And you have no idea what knowing that does to me, Scully," I
practically growled as I spread her legs further and rolled her
more onto her stomach. She wasn't quite on her side but she 
wasn't lying flat on her stomach either.

"I think I might have a faint idea," she turned her head to give
me a sly grin. Her blue eyes had grown darker and they had become
heavy-lidded. It was one of the many ways I had of knowing that
Scully was aroused.

"Yeah?" I breathed as I moved my left hand to her left breast
and squeezed it gently.

"Yeah," she whispered, opening her legs even further.

"You know that I want to taste every inch of your skin?" My voice
was hoarse as I put one knee between her legs and then lowered
my body on top of hers. "Every inch," I repeated as I began to
nip at her shoulders.

"Oh God," Scully groaned lifting her hips to press her ass
against me. "I love it when I can feel so much of you."

Slipping my right hand out from under her, I slid down and began
to kiss her back.

Scully drew a long slow breath and squirmed beneath me. Kissing
and nipping as I went, I eased my way down to her ass.  Her
skin felt silky to my tongue and her every muscle seemed to be
trembling. Pausing at the upward rise of her cheeks, I brought
my hand up to squeeze her firmness as I teased her skin with my
lips.

My mouth hadn't left the rounded curve of her ass, but I could
feel the heat of her sex against my chest and the scent of her
arousal seemed to fill the room.

"You smell so good," I told her in my lust-roughened voice as I
slipped my hand between her legs. When I ran my fingers lightly
over her lips, her entire body shuddered.

"Mulder," she whimpered, her hips restless beneath me. "Please!"

Knowing that if I was going to taste her, I'd have to pull her
to her quivering knees or roll her to her back, I decided to
relinquish that delight. Scully was almost frantic in her need
and I loved nothing more than fulfilling her desires.

With more grace than I'd ever mustered before, I moved back up
to whisper in her ear. "I'm not finished tasting you yet."

This time she whimpered wordlessly, pressing her ass into me
once more.

"But I can do that later," I promised, grasping my cock to
guide it into her. I slipped into her easily, but her heat
immediately overwhelmed me. "You feel incredible," I managed to
gasp.

"This feels incredible," she tightened her internal muscles
around me. "Every time, Mulder," she breathed. "Every time we
make love it's incredible."

"How can that be, Scully?" I asked as I began to move slowly
within her. "It gets better every time -- how can that be?"

"Don't know," her hips were moving in time with my languid pace.
"I just know it does," she turned her head in search of my lips.

Scully's hands lay limply on either side of her pillow. With my
elbows on the bed, I kept most of my weight off her as we
continued to make gentle love. As I bent my head down to
capture her lips, my hands found hers and we entwined our fingers
as we kissed feverishly.

The ferocity of our kisses were in sharp contrast to the speed
of our hips. Even though we were devouring each other's mouths,
we were both content to make love slowly, prolonging our
pleasure. Our complicated life did not often allow us the time
to enjoy each other so thoroughly.

Despite our leisurely pace, I was surprised to feel Scully's
internal muscles tighten and then begin to ripple around my
cock. She moaned into my mouth as her body quaked beneath me.
With every ounce of resolve I had, I fought to keep my strokes
slow and even. Scully's orgasms usually made me move faster, but
I wanted to make this last. I savored every nuance of her climax,
every twitch, every ripple, every sigh.

"I want to feel you come again," I whispered into her ear when
her body relaxed beneath me, her head falling to her pillow.

"I love the way you feel inside of me," she squeezed her muscles
around me again.

Groaning at the increased friction, I felt the beginnings of my
orgasm tingling in my balls. My body was covered by a sheen of
perspiration and my muscles were starting to quiver as I
approached my release. Clenching my teeth, I struggled against
the almost overwhelming urge to move faster. Scully lifted her
head off of the pillow to look at me. Her breathing was fast and
shallow. Her lips were slightly parted and her eyes seemed
almost completely black. I felt her fingers tighten around mine
as she began to increase our pace. My first reaction was to beg
her to slow down, but then I saw her eyes start to roll back in
her head. She was coming again. I couldn't hold myself back
any longer. My orgasm seemed to begin at the tips of my toes and
I was positive that Scully's name exploded out of my mouth when
I climaxed inside of her.

Once we'd both stopped shaking, I rolled us back to our sides
and retrieved the blankets. We lay quietly, spooned together,
trying to catch our breath. I must have fallen back to sleep
again with Scully in my arms, because suddenly the radio was
playing and I could hear Megan gurgling through the baby monitor.
Thursday had officially begun.

The early morning routine made the time speed by and it seemed
that before I had time to blink, Scully and I were in the car
on our way to the office. Scully had been concerned about
leaving Maggie alone with the kids, but Maggie and I had
convinced her that everything would be fine. When we left the
house we spotted a cruiser making its way slowly past the
driveway, making Scully finally relax.

Andrew was anxious to talk to us about the Adamstown case
when we arrived. I knew that Scully and I would not be given
point in a case that directly involved us, so the harassment
case would be an ideal way to keep our minds off Leigh. Before
we left the house we'd talked with Andrew and agreed that there
would be no discussion of Leigh at the office. It wouldn't
solve anything and our energies would be better spent elsewhere.

"I had an interesting discussion with Mrs. Clarey yesterday
morning," he informed us once we were all sitting down.

"Interesting how?" I asked as I opened up the file.

"Well," Andrew paused for a moment, "her concerns regarding Ms.
Burke seemed to be centered around Mr. Clarey."

"Around Mr. Clarey?" Scully repeated.

"Yup. Mrs. Clarey believes that Ms. Burke has somehow bewitched
her husband," Andrew shrugged.

"Bewitched him into doing what?" I was curious.

"It was more like he was bewitched into not doing things," Andrew
clarified. "Not mowing the lawn, not taking out the garbage, not
spending time with their children, not coming home on time."

"To what end?" Scully's voice was laden with skepticism.

"I wondered that too," Andrew admitted. "I asked her if she
thought Pamela Burke was interested in her husband in a romantic
way."

"And?" I prodded him.

"And she thought that idea was absurd. She thought her neighbor
was just doing all of this out of spite," Andrew shook his head.

"Spite about what?" Scully's brow was knotting as she spoke.

"Not about anything in particular, just because 'that's what
Witches do' apparently," Andrew rolled his eyes.

"So Mrs. Clarey is really having marital problems and instead of
facing them and dealing with them, she's trying to blame it on
her neighbor. A neighbor, who conveniently, does not fit into the
tidy picture of the world that Mrs. Clarey has created for
herself," I sighed. "So what are we now? Marriage counselors?"

"Well, if we could find out what's actually going on with Mr.
Clarey we might be able to get Mrs. Clarey to point her
frustrations in the right direction. The case is about
harassment, after all, Mulder. It's not about the validity of
Witchcraft," Scully reminded me.

"Yeah, well I'm sorry that I find it a little frustrating to
have to sort out people's personal problems when I'd rather be
concentrating on my own life," I couldn't disguise my
displeasure.

"The bulk of most law enforcement work is dealing with people's
personal problems and we haven't even escaped it in the X-Files,
Mulder," Scully calmly pointed out. "Would you like me to list
the cases?"

"No," I chuckled. "I guess I didn't mind as much when I didn't
have a life."

"So we're going to go and talk to Mr. Clarey?" Andrew had been
listening to our discussion like he'd been watching a tennis
match.

"Yes," I nodded.

"I thought so," Andrew smiled. "I have his work address right
here," he held up his notebook. "He's a lawyer -- has an office
in downtown DC."

Mr. Clarey ran a tax law business with offices above a coffee
shop on a quiet side street. As always the parking in downtown
DC was atrocious and we had to park a couple of blocks away.
The stairs up to the law office were well lit and the aroma of
dark roast coffee permeated the air.

The door to the office was closed, but unlocked when I tried it.
The reception area was bright and well furnished, but empty. A
cup from the shop downstairs sat on the desk and when I glanced
at the computer on the desk I saw some sort of invoice on the
screen. Behind the reception desk another door led to what I
presumed was Mr. Clarey's office. It was slightly ajar and I
thought I could hear muffled voices inside.

Pulling our badges out, we all headed toward the inner office. I
knocked quickly before walking in and announcing our presence.

"Mr. Clarey?" I began. "I'm Special Agent Fox Mulder, and this
is Special Agent Scully and Special Agent Guernsey."

Mr. Clarey's head had been resting on the back of his executive
style chair, but upon hearing my voice he sprang forward in his
chair. His mouth began to move, but no sounds were coming out.
His eyes were wide with fear and his face had grown quite red.

"There's nothing to be concerned about, Mr. Clarey," I continued.
"We're just here to ask you some --" Before I could finish my
sentence Scully had elbowed me in the ribs. When I turned to
look at her, I was shocked to see that her face had grown pink
and she was biting her lip in an obvious effort not to laugh.
When I looked at her questioningly, she nodded toward the lower
edge of Mr. Clarey's desk. Peeking out from the six inch gap
between the skirt of the desk and the rug were the scuffed black
soles of a pair of high heels.

"Um," I wasn't sure where to look. "Why don't we give you a
couple of minutes," I said in a tight voice.

Hurrying out of the office, I closed the door behind us. Andrew's
face had grown as red as Mr. Clarey's. We all looked at each
other, not knowing what to do.

"I guess that's blown the case wide open," I stage whispered.

"Mulder!" Scully protested, stifling a laugh.

"I can't believe this," Andrew shook his head, his face growing
even redder.

As funny as it was, we were left in an awkward position. How
exactly were we supposed to tell Mrs. Clarey that the cause of
her problems were in downtown DC, not right next door?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thursday, October 5, 2000
Washington, DC
10:30 a.m.

We emerged from Mr. Clarey's law office, having explained to him 
the situation with his wife. I was feeling like I'd just been to 
a peep show. Mulder and Andrew looked as uncomfortable as I 
felt.

"Do you think he'll confess to his wife?" Andrew's hands were 
thrust into his pants' pockets and he was studying the tops of 
his shoes.

"No," Mulder sighed. "But I do think he'll make an effort to
keep up appearances for a while. And when she's not the center
of his attention anymore, I think his secretary will get bored 
and move on."

"So we're not going to tell Mrs. Clarey what we found out?" 
Andrew scuffed his shoe on the sidewalk.

"I'm not going to lie her," I spoke up.

"So we are going to tell her," Andrew looked at me without 
lifting his head.

"If she asks if her husband was having an affair, I'll tell her
the truth," I clarified. "But I'm not going to volunteer any
information."

"Isn't that the same as lying?" Andrew finally lifted his head 
to look me in the eyes.

"Andrew, if someone had told you about Barbara Clarey's 
complaints about her husband's inattentiveness, would you think
'Aha! He's having an affair!' or 'Aha! The Witch next door has 
cast a spell on him!'?"

"I would probably think affair," Andrew nodded.

"And if Mrs. Clarey was ready to deal with it, that's what she 
would have thought, too," Mulder interjected.

"So what are we going to tell her then?" Andrew looked back at
me. 

"Nothing," I informed him bluntly. "Our obligation is to Pamela
Burke."

"Are we going to tell Pamela Burke about the affair?" his eyes
widened in surprise.

"Maybe not in those words," I shrugged, "We'll tell her that 
we've talked to Mr. Clarey about his wife's concerns and her 
recent behavior and he's promised to address the matter."

"So are we going out to Adamstown today?" Andrew looked at his 
watch.

"Maybe this afternoon," Mulder shrugged.

"You won't have time this afternoon, Mulder," I reminded him.

"It's not that long of a drive, Scully," Mulder wrinkled his 
brow.

"Did you change your mind about coming to the doctor's with me?"
I asked in surprise.

"Is that today? You said Thursday."

I tried not to laugh at the consternation on his face. "It is 
Thursday," I leaned a little closer to him and whispered.

Andrew choked back a laugh and looked at his shoes again.

"It is? Mulder looked at his watch. "Where the hell did the week
go?"

"Just wait until we have three kids," I laughed.

"Am I going to turn into one of those guys whose office is 
plastered with Post-It notes and is big trouble if he forgets to
cross a day off of his desktop calendar?" Mulder wrinkled his
nose in distaste. 

"I write things down, Mulder. You should try it sometime," I
winked at him. "Let's go," I nodded in the direction of the car
and began to walk. Mulder fell in beside me and Andrew caught up
in two long strides. 

"Hey, I knew the appointment was Thursday," he defended himself.
"I just didn't know today was Thursday."

"It has been hectic lately," I consoled him. "I'm sure you'll be
fine when things settle down a bit."

"And when will that be?" he didn't look convinced.

"When the baby gets a place of its own?" I patted my stomach and
shrugged.

"That's what I was afraid of," he chuckled. "Well let's get back
to the office and get Andrew started on the report."

"I'm writing the report?" Andrew's head snapped up. "But what
will I say?"

"I'm sure you'll think of something," Mulder slapped him on the
back. 

"Didn't this case come from the top?" All of the color had 
drained out his face.

"We won't let you hang yourself," I assured him. "Jumping in
with both feet is a good way to learn, trust me."

"Yup, sink or swim, buddy," Mulder grinned.

"That's very helpful, Mulder," I chastised him. "Like I said,
Andrew, I'll go over it with you before we present it to Skinner.
Just include the facts and word the affair discretely and you'll
be fine."

"Discretely?" Andrew didn't seem consoled.

"Say something like 'marital problems or issues within the 
marriage'," I suggested.

"I'll give it a try," he sighed.

"That's all we expect," I smiled at him.

My appointment with the obstetrician was at 1 o'clock, so after
getting Andrew started on the report and grabbing a quick bite to
eat, Mulder and I drove to her office. My mother had agreed to 
stay with the kids until we got home.

Dr. Cameron's office was brightly lit. The chairs were 
comfortable, but not so squishy that a very pregnant woman would
have difficulty getting out of them. The walls were painted light
blue and were accented by a border than ran just above the backs 
of the chairs. After I'd announced myself to the receptionist we 
went to sit down. The chairs were empty. I assumed this was her
first appointment after lunch. I hadn't seen Dr. Cameron in
slightly more than a year -- since my last pap smear. I was sure
she'd be very shocked to see me under these circumstances.

When I looked over at Mulder I found him staring at nothing with
a grim expression on his face. 

"Is something wrong?" I reached for his hand. I was shocked to
find it icy cold.

"Um," his voice was tight.

"What is it, Mulder? What's wrong?" I turned slightly in my chair
to face him.

"This may come as a surprise to you, Scully, but I've never been
to an obstetrician before," he smiled weakly at me.

"What the hell are you expecting, a medieval torture chamber?" I
had to laugh.

"Well...sorta," he confessed. "With the stirrups and some of that
equipment..." his voice trailed off.

"It's not that bad, really," I squeezed his hand.

"I also don't like the thought of some guy examining you, even if 
he is a doctor," Mulder dropped his voice to confess.

"Dr. Cameron is a woman, Mulder," I rolled my eyes. 

"Really?" his eyes lit up.

"I can't believe you'd be jealous of a doctor," I shook my head.

"I'm jealous when any man looks at you, never mind someone
who'll see you naked," his ears grew red as he spoke.

"Half the hospital will be looking in between my legs when I'm
delivering, Mulder, so I suggest you get over it," I chuckled.

The look of horror that crossed his face at my words made me 
laugh harder. I was trying to regain my composure to console him
when the nurse called my name. She ushered us in an empty 
examination room and left my file on the doctor's desk. 

I was just about to try to ease Mulder's fears when Dr. Cameron
walked into the office.

"Dana," she smiled and reached for my hand.

"Hello, Dr. Cameron," I smiled. "This is my husband, Fox Mulder."

"I'm very pleased to meet you, Fox," she smiled as she reached 
for Mulder's hand.

"Nice to meet you," Mulder's voice sounded faint as he shook her 
hand. I was surprised that he hadn't corrected her. When I stole 
a glance at him I was shocked to find his face completely ashen. 
I was at a loss for what he might be worried about. It couldn't
be simply being at an obstetrician's office.

"I have to say, I was quite taken aback by the report I got from
Dr. Zuckerman, Dana. In fact, I called him because I didn't 
believe the test results," Dr. Cameron opened my file on the desk
in front of her. 

"We were both surprised, too," I chuckled. "Weren't we, Mulder?"
I turned to smile at him.

"Mmm hmm," he nodded, his face was still pale. 

Reaching over, I picked up his hand and squeezed it. It was 
still ice cold. Was he still worried about who was going to see 
me naked when I was in labor? Surely he wouldn't still be 
obsessing about that -- but then again, this was Mulder.

"Even with the blood test, I find it difficult to believe that
you managed to conceive, Dana," Dr. Cameron's voice was serious.

Her words were like a punch in the stomach. My heart was in my
throat and a chill ran through me.

"You think I might not be pregnant?" my voice wavered. Mulder's
hand jerked in mine. I couldn't bring myself to look at him. Was
this what he'd been afraid of?

"You saw the same thing I did, Dana. Your fallopian tubes were
a mass of scar tissue and your ovaries weren't much better. Even
if you managed to ovulate, I don't see how an ovum could make
it to your uterus. Or how any sperm could reach the ovum, for 
that matter," she spoke calmly, looking me straight in the eyes.

"But the hormones, and the morning sickness and my breasts --
do you think it's all wishful thinking -- a hysterical 
pregnancy?" I tried to keep my voice even, but despite my efforts
it cracked.

"Hear her out, Scully," Mulder's voice was gentle.

"It's a possibility," she granted, "One other possibility is a
tubal pregnancy. Have you been experiencing any abdominal pain?"

"None at all," I shook my head. "And why would I be having a 
hysterical pregnancy? We weren't trying to get pregnant. Neither
of us thought I could conceive," I argued the point.

"Yes, but I know you were devastated by the news that you were
sterile. Perhaps some part of your subconscious held on to that
hope and when you and Mulder married, it presented with all of
the symptoms," she leaned back in her chair.

"My subconscious made me generate high levels of progesterone?"
I found it difficult to believe.

"You know it's possible, Dana. There have been countless
documented cases," she reminded me.

"But those cases involve women who were obsessed with 
conceiving," my heart was racing. "I hardly fit the profile."

"I know, I just wanted you to consider the possibility. I'm
sure I can clear this all up with an internal exam. And if after
that, we still aren't sure, I'll do an ultrasound to rule out an
ectopic pregnancy. I want to know for sure," she closed the file 
and stood up. "There's a gown on the table. I'll give you a couple 
of minutes."

Mulder and I stood as Dr. Cameron walked toward the door. As soon
as she closed the door behind her, I collapsed into his arms.

"Shh," he stroked my hair. "She's wrong, Scully. You and I know
the truth and I'm sure her examination will prove it."

"It never occurred to me, Mulder," I fought not to cry. 
"Neither of us ever considered pregnancy, why would I be having a
hysterical one?"

"I agree with you, Scully. You're far too skeptical to have
a hysterical pregnancy," he gave me a squeeze and then gently
pushed me away so he could wink at me. "And if Dr. Cameron knew
you better, she'd know that too."

"So you don't think it's a possibility?" I looked up at him
hopefully.

"No, Scully, even I don't think it's a possibility," he smiled
at me.

His smile was all I needed. "Thanks, Mulder," I smiled up at him
and drew a shaky breath. "I'm not sure why I even considered that
I might not be pregnant."

"Because you still think it's too good to be true," he took my
hand and began to walk toward the examination table. "But we
both know that miracles do happen and in a few minutes Dr. 
Cameron will believe too."

"It is a miracle, isn't it?" I began to undo my slacks.

"The third best miracle I've ever witnessed," he grinned.

"The third?" I looked at him in surprise as I slipped my panties
off.

"They all have to do with you, Scully," he stepped closer to me 
as I folded my clothes and lay them on a chair.

"Yeah?" I smiled up at him as I reached for the gown.

"Yeah," he took a step closer to me and slid his hand under 
my hair. 

His skin felt warm to my neck. He was looking into my eyes and I 
was mesmerized by the intensity of his gaze. We'd been married 
for 5 months and my knees still got weak when he stood this close 
to me. I'm not sure if he was pulling me toward him, or if I 
leaned into him, but suddenly we were touching.

"The first one happened after you were returned to me following 
your abduction. The miracle was that you survived after 
everything you'd been through. The second miracle happened 3 
years ago, Scully," his breath was warm on my face. "When your 
cancer went into remission and you weren't taken away from me. 
They were the only things I'd ever prayed for that came true. Our
baby is the third," he closed the few remaining inches between 
our faces and covered my lips with his. I melted into him as he 
caressed my tongue with his. It wasn't until I heard the knock on
the door that I realized that I was standing half-naked in my 
doctor's office French-kissing my husband.

"One second," I called after I pulled away from Mulder. "Come
in," I'd slipped into the gown quickly and hopped onto the table.

"Should I leave?" Mulder leaned over to whisper.

"No -- stay," I reached for his hand.

"Okay," he took my hand and held it tightly.

I knew the drill, so I got my feet into the stirrups and scooted
down the table. When I was set, I looked up at Mulder again and
found the same look of horror on his face that he'd worn in the
waiting room. 

"It's okay, Mulder," I gave his hand a squeeze.

My words did nothing to calm him down. He wasn't even looking at
me. His eyes were fixed on Dr. Cameron who had snapped on the 
latex and was putting some K-Y jelly onto her fingers. I suddenly
understood why Mulder had wanted to leave. I knew how much it 
bothered him when I spoke clinically, but it didn't occur to me
that being present for an exam was going to scare him this much.

"All set?" Dr. Cameron asked as she sat on a stool at the foot 
of the table.

"Yup," I tried to sound cheerful.

"Could you just scoot forward a bit more please, Dana?" 

"Sure," I complied. I could no longer see her over the drape 
covering my knees.

Not wanting to frighten Mulder further, I tried to make it all 
appear like nothing out of the ordinary, but I couldn't help
twitching when she began her exam. His hand tightened around
mine at my reaction.

"Relax, Dana," her disembodied voice instructed.

I took some deep breaths and tried to think about being at the 
beach. I was breathing slowly and picturing waves crashing onto 
the shore when the surprise in Dr. Cameron's voice brought my
attention back to the sterility of her office.

"Your cervix is elongated and very pliable," she explained. "And,
yes, I never would have -- it feels like you're about 9 weeks
along."

"That's exactly what you thought, isn't it, Scully?" Mulder 
sounded much more relaxed.

"Well," Dr. Cameron stood up and peeled off her gloves. "I'm
still having a hard time believing it, but it seems like you're
pregnant."

"You don't sound completely convinced," Mulder sounded slightly 
annoyed.

"In some cases, patients with hysterical pregnancies have 
developed the enlarged uterus which is consistent with actually 
carrying a child. Those instances are very rare, and I would be
surprised if that was actually the case. Why don't we schedule
an ultrasound for next week. That will settle this once and for
all," Dr. Cameron smiled.

"Next week?" Mulder's voice rose. "I don't think so. Dana didn't
have any questions about her pregnancy until we came here and
now that you've created this doubt in her mind, you want her to
wait a week until she can relax? No, Dr. Cameron, you'll do the
ultrasound today."

Still holding Mulder's hand, I sat up to try to calm him down,
but before I could say anything, Dr. Cameron began to defend
herself.

"I wasn't trying to scare either of you," she kept her tone 
professional. "I just wanted you to be aware of the possibility."

"And if she is pregnant, will this added stress be good for 
either her or the baby?" Mulder's eyes were flashing.

"Probably not," Dr. Cameron acquiesced. "Okay, we'll do an 
ultrasound at the end of day. Dana, you'll have to drink a lot
of water between now and then."

"Thank you, Dr. Cameron," I smiled. "I appreciate your concern
and the fact that you're taking your personal time to ease our 
minds."

"I understand," she smiled at me. "And I honestly didn't mean
to frighten you. Sometimes my honesty overpowers my bedside
manners."

"You know I'm grateful for your frankness, Dr. Cameron," I 
assured her. I'd spent too many years at OB-GYNs who would pat me 
on the head and send me on my way to be angry with Dr. Cameron. 
Her no nonsense reputation was what had attracted me to her in 
the first place.

"I'll see you here at 4 o'clock then, okay?" she looked at Mulder
and then back at me.

"4 o'clock is fine," I smiled. "And thank you again."

"See you later," she smiled and left the office.

"You like her?" Mulder asked in surprise as soon as the door was 
closed.

"I know she's a bit brusque," I smiled. "But at least she 
doesn't treat me like a child."

"But she was going to leave you for a week," Mulder objected.

"I would have pointed out that it would be stressful to wait a
week in a less jump-down-her-throat kind of way," I winked at
him as I hopped down off the table.

"Do you think I offended her?" Mulder handed my clothes to me.

"I wouldn't worry about her," I chuckled. "I'm sure she developed
a thick skin in Med school. Most Med students do -- women even 
more so."

"You might have a thick skin, Scully," Mulder grinned. "But I
know how squishy you really are."

"Whatever," I rolled my eyes as I pulled up my slacks.

"So what are we going to do for two and a half hours?" Mulder 
looked at his watch.

"I'm going to drink a lot of water," I sighed. "And for about 
the last hour I'll probably be sitting with my legs crossed. Why?
Did you have something in mind?"

"No, I hoped you did," he shrugged.

"Well, I have to call my mom and let her know what's going on. 
Then go to that pharmacy downstairs and buy some water. After
that, I don't know," I shrugged. "There's a bookstore about
a block from here."

"I could wile away a couple of hours in a bookstore," Mulder
waggled his eyebrows at me.

"I'm not spending the entire time in the human sexuality section,
Mulder," I warned him as I walked toward the door. 

"How about an hour?" he called as I walked into hall. 

An hour and a half later we were standing in the check-out line
at the bookstore. We did end up spending more time than I 
wanted to looking at sex books, but Mulder had been so worried
about making love when I was pregnant that I thought it might 
be a good idea. We even ended up picking up a couple of books.
One was called "Congratulations, You're Going to be a Dad". The
title seemed a bit hokey, but when I skimmed through it, I found
that it was accurate and concise. Just what Mulder needed. He
picked up Dr. Ruth's guide to sex for pregnant couples. If that's
what he needed to be comfortable with having sex with me, I
certainly wasn't going to argue.

I also chose two other books. One for Jordan about becoming a big 
brother again and one for me. Granted, I knew everything to
expect during my pregnancy, but this book was subtitled 'What
Your Obstetrician Never Told you'. I figured it couldn't hurt.

By the time we got to the cashier I was biting my cheek. My
bladder was so full it hurt and I still had another hour to go. I
needed to get back to the doctor's office and sit down. The 
cashier was trying to be chatty with us and I wanted to cut her
off, but Mulder wanted to give her the story of our life.

"What's up with you?" Mulder asked when we got outside. "You
were pretty terse with her."

"You go drink 4 liters of water and then talk to me about it," I
snapped. "I just wanted to get back to the doctor's office to try
to get more comfortable and you decide to give the girl a verbal 
slideshow."

"I'm sorry, I forgot, Scully. Why didn't you remind me?" he 
looked completely forlorn.

"What was I supposed to say? Wrap it up, Mulder, I've got a 
gallon of pee on board, remember?" I huffed.

"Can I have the bag?" he reached out to take.

"I can carry it," I frowned at him.

"I don't doubt that," he took the bag away from me. "I was 
actually hoping that book you bought for me might tell me the 
right thing to say in this situation. Do you think it would be
under pee or ultrasound?"

"Mulder, don't make me laugh," I stifled a giggle. "I'll pee my
pants."

"Oh, Scully," Mulder laughed. "If I didn't know what was at 
stake here..."

"Don't you dare," I glared at him.

"I won't," he took hold of my hand. "And I'm sorry I forgot about
your bladder."

By the time we got back to the office the inside of cheek was 
completely raw, so I'd switched to my lip. I collapsed into
a chair, but it offered no relief. I tried leaning one way and
then the other but it did nothing to relieve the pressure. Mulder
didn't know what to do with himself. He usually tried to cheer me 
up with humor, but laughing would have been disastrous. Instead
he looked at me sympathetically and held my hand. 

"For God's sake, Mulder, will you stop looking at me like that,"
after 10 minutes I couldn't take it anymore.

"I don't know what to do. I'm afraid of making you laugh," he
looked totally helpless.

"Why don't you read that book about fatherhood to me," I 
suggested. "That should pass some time."

"Okay," he sighed and reached for the bag. 

He began by reading the preface and when the nurse called my name
he'd reached the part that explained how fluctuating hormones 
caused mood swings. I silently thanked author for not using humor
to get his point across.

The cart holding the ultrasound equipment was already in the 
examination room when we got there.

"Go ahead and get undressed," the nurse instructed. "Dr. Cameron
will be here shortly. I know you want to get this done as soon
as possible."

I stripped off quickly and forgoing the gown, just pulled the
sheet over myself. I sighed when I lay back on the table. Being
flat on my back was the first position that offered the slightest
bit off relief.

"Is this going to hurt?" Mulder was looking worried again.

"Aside from her pushing down on my bladder with the soundhead, 
it's completely painless," I assured him with a smile. "Well, the 
jelly is a little cold."

"I don't understand why you have to drink all of that water. What
does your bladder have to do with the baby?" he pursed his lips.

"Well at this stage my uterus will still be hidden under my pubic
bone," I began. "Filling up my bladder pushes the uterus clear so 
it can be seen with the ultrasound."

"Oh, that makes sense," he smiled.

"Yeah, it's not just the doctor being sadistic," I winked.

"Are you sure?" Mulder chuckled.

I was trying not to laugh when Dr. Cameron opened the door and
walked briskly over to us.

"Okay," she smiled at me. "I know you're in quite a bit of 
discomfort, so I'll do this as quickly as possible."

"Thanks," I took a deep breath.

While Dr. Cameron was setting up the instrument, I pulled my 
shirt up. I knew the conductive jelly would stain my shirt, so
I wanted it out of the way.

"This will be cold," she warned as she shook up the jelly.

"Eeep," I squealed when she squirted it onto my abdomen. "Very
cold."

"Watch up here, Fox," she nodded toward the monitor as she began
to pass the soundhead over me, using it to spread the jelly
around.

"Do you see this big black ball, here?" she pointed with her free 
hand as she pressed the soundhead into my abdomen.

"Yeah," Mulder cocked his head.

"That's Dana's bladder," she sounded like she was in teacher 
mode. "You did a good job. A full bladder not only pushes the
uterus into view, it also makes a good landmark."

"Thanks," I forced a smile. The relief I'd been granted by lying
down was negated by the pressure of the soundhead. 

"And here is the cervix and the uterus," she continued. "Oh, and
here's the placenta."

I squeezed Mulder's hand and smiled up at him. 

"Is that good?" he looked at me hopefully.

"Yes, you don't generally have a placenta without a fetus," Dr.
Cameron chuckled.

"I knew there was nothing to worry about," Mulder smiled as he
leaned over to give me a quick kiss.

"Tsk," Dr. Cameron frowned.

"Is something wrong?" I was immediately concerned.

"No," she laughed. "Just a baby that doesn't like having its 
picture taken. It keeps moving on me. Do you see, Fox?" she 
pointed to the screen again. "Let me get a better angle," she 
moved the soundhead toward my right side. "There."

The angle that Dr. Cameron had chosen gave us a side view of the
fetus. Even at nine weeks its arms and legs were clearly visible.

"Is that really arms and legs I'm seeing?" Mulder asked in
surprise.

"It really is," Dr. Cameron smiled broadly.

"Look at that, Scully," Mulder turned to me. His eyes shone
brightly as he whispered, "That's our baby."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thursday, October 5, 2000
Washington, DC
4:30 p.m.


"Our baby," I tried to smile up at Mulder, but my mouth was
wobbling. I didn't try to blink back my tears and I didn't care 
that Mulder bent down to kiss me in front of Dr. Cameron.

"There," I heard her say in a satisfied tone. "The baby finally
stopped moving long enough for me to get a decent picture."

"A picture we get to keep?" Mulder straightened up.

"Yes, it's yours to keep," she smiled. "I can do another scan at
16 weeks to determine sex, if you like."

Mulder looked down at me and shrugged.

"No, I think a surprise would be nice. Don't you?" I squeezed
his hand.

"The whole thing has been such a surprise; I think knowing the 
sex would ruin it," he agreed.

"Well, I'm done here, Dana," Dr. Cameron switched off the 
instrument. "Why don't you get dressed and go to the bathroom and
then we can discuss a few things," she suggested as she wiped up 
the conductive jelly. 

"Sounds good to me," I smiled wryly.

Dr. Cameron left the room taking the ultrasound cart with her. As 
soon as she was gone, I dressed and practically flew to the
bathroom. By the time I got back Dr. Cameron had returned and was
pointing out things on the picture to Mulder. He was listening
with rapt attention.

"That's the heart and there are the kidneys -- oh, feel better
now, Dana?" she smiled when she saw me.

"Much," I chuckled.

"I was just telling Fox that the measurements I took during the 
scan confirm that you are about 9 weeks along. So that puts your
due date at May 19," she wrote it down in my chart at the same
time.

"That's about what I calculated," I nodded.

"Do you have any questions or concerns?" she looked at us in 
turn.

"I can't think of anything." I felt like I should ask her 
something, but I was still too overwhelmed from the emotional 
roller coaster ride I'd be on to think clearly.

"Have you been having any trouble?" she prodded.

"Some morning sickness, but I've learned to manage it," I 
explained.

"What about you, Fox?" she turned to Mulder.

"Any questions I've had, Dana has answered," he shrugged.

"Okay," she smiled. I'll just prescribe you some prenatal 
vitamins," she began to write on her script pad. "And I'd like
to see you again at 12 weeks. I'll start weighing you then and
I want to do a hemoglobin and a blood sugar. Be sure to make your 
appointment early in the day so we can get a fasting sample."

"All right," I smiled.

"And by all means call me or come in if you have any questions or
concerns," she stood up and passed me the prescription.

"Thank you, Dr. Cameron," I smiled as I shook her hand.

After Mulder shook her hand and thanked her we walked out to
the reception area to make another appointment, but the 
receptionist had already left for the day. I made a note in my
day planner to call the next day.

"Why so quiet?" I asked Mulder as we walked to the elevator.

"I think today is the first time that it was real for me, 
Scully," his voice was muted. "I knew before today, but it seemed 
more theoretical than actual. Do you know what I mean?" he pushed
the elevator button.

"I think I do," I smiled. "Seeing the baby makes it far more easy 
to come to terms with than hearing that a pregnancy test is 
positive."

"I still find it hard to believe that little guy is jumping 
around inside of you like that," he put his hand on my belly.

"Since half of the baby's DNA comes from you, Mulder, I don't
find it hard to believe at all," I grinned at him as the elevator
doors opened.

"If he gets the right DNA from your side of the family, this kid
might have a chance at the NBA -- or WNBA," he remembered to add.

"Did you finally find a redeeming quality in Bill?" I laughed.

"He must have at least one," Mulder rolled his eyes. 

"I wonder if he feels the same way about you?" I winked 
mischievously at him.

I wasn't surprised to find supper almost ready by the time we got
home, but my mother didn't want to talk about that.

"How did everything go?" she asked breathlessly when we walked in
the door.

"Everything is fine," I smiled, glancing at Jordan. So far, my
mother was the only person who knew about my pregnancy aside from
Mulder and my doctors. I wasn't planning on telling anyone else
until I'd passed the 12 week milestone. "How was your day, 
Jordan?" I picked him up to give him a hug.

"Good," he snuggled into my shoulder. "I had fun at school and
Grandma let me help her make supper."

"You helped with supper?" Mulder made a face. "If it's one of 
your mud pies, I'm not interested."

"It isn't," Jordan giggled and squirmed to be let down. "We made
spaghetti."

"And do you promise that you didn't use any worms?" Mulder looked
at him askance.

"There's no worms," Jordan laughed. "C'mere, I'll show you," he 
tugged on Mulder's hand.

"What other tests did the doctor want to do?" my mother asked as
soon as Mulder and Jordan disappeared into the kitchen.

"Ma ma ma," Megan leaned out of my mother's arms toward me with
her hands out. 

"Hi sweetie," I smiled as I took her. "She didn't believe that I
could be pregnant, even after the internal exam indicated I 
was," I explained.

"Why not?" she looked puzzled.

"Because she's the same doctor who diagnosed me as sterile," I
smiled at Megan as she played with my necklace.

"Oh," my mother's eyes widened. 

"She wanted to do an ultrasound next week because she still 
wasn't convinced, but Mulder insisted that she do it today," I
started to head to the kitchen.

"I don't blame him," she shook her head as she began to follow
me. "Scaring you like that and then wanting you to wait a week,"
she huffed.

"Should I tell Andrew supper's ready?" I hesitated at the kitchen
door.

"Oh, he called to say not to hold supper for him. He was 
expecting to be late," she explained. 

I suddenly had a vision of Andrew hunched in front of his
monitor, sweating over his case report. I hoped Mulder and I
hadn't pushed him too hard. Heading back to the living room, I 
tried to reach him at the office to get him to call it a day, but 
I got no answer.

"You had another call too," my mother had followed me into the 
living room, but she looked like she really didn't want to tell 
me.

"Who was it?" I wasn't sure if I wanted to know.

"Your lawyer," she grimaced.

"Oh my God, we forgot our appointment," my heart was in my 
throat. We were supposed to see him the day Leigh broke into
the house.

"I told him that there had been some trouble here that day and
he completely understood. He assumed you been called away on a
case or something similar," she consoled me.

"Did he reschedule?" I asked anxiously.

"Actually, he asked if he could drop by this evening," my mother
smiled.

"Really?" I was surprised. "Did he say when?"

"I tried to get him to come for dinner, but he already had 
plans," she shrugged apologetically. "So he asked if he could
drop by around 8 o'clock."

"Thank God," I sighed. "I can't believe I completely forgot."
Next I had to tell Mulder. I wasn't looking forward to it after 
I'd given him such a hard time about forgetting my doctor's
appointment.

My mother stayed for supper since her drive would be easier if
she waited a couple of hours. I did have to remind her about the 
traffic and the fact that she'd made the food to get her to stay.
It ended up being a very boisterous meal. Megan was feeding 
herself spaghetti. Mulder was still teasing Jordan about the 
noodles, insisting that they were worms. To top it off the dog 
whined at the back door to be let inside for the entire time. 

When we were done I asked Mulder to give the kids a bath right
away since they were both almost completely covered with sauce.
After I brought Guinness inside and fed him, my mother and I 
cleaned the kitchen while she talked about her day with Megan and
Jordan. We were sitting at the kitchen table looking at the 
ultrasound picture when I heard Mulder come downstairs with the
kids.

After slipping the picture back into my briefcase, we went to the 
living room to join them. Both kids were in their pajamas; Jordan
in his Yankee pinstripes and Megan in a pink terry sleeper. She 
was sitting in the middle of the room playing with her ring 
stacking toy while Mulder and Jordan watched TV. Since Guinness
was fairly well trained I let him in the living room with us. He
immediately trotted over to Mulder and lay down at his feet.

"Keep an eye on him, Mulder," I warned as I sat down. "If he gets
restless, take him outside."

"I will," he smiled and then turned back to the baseball game he
was watching. The Yankees had made it to the post-season again, 
so I was preparing to be a baseball widow for the next couple of
weeks. My only consolation was that the World Series would be
over by the time we took possession of the house. I'd have to
remember to thank God for small miracles.

I was telling my mother that we'd hired the movers not only to
move us, but to pack everything as well when I noticed that
Megan had begun to crawl toward me, bringing her toy with her.
It was a complicated process. First she would start to crawl
toward me, then sit down and pull her toy up to where she was
sitting, and then begin the cycle again. A couple of times she
crawled too far and had to backtrack for the toy. When she was a
few feet away from me, she pulled off two of the rings and then
pushed herself into a standing position. Glancing quickly at my
mother, I discovered that she was watching Megan closely too. A
couple of times Megan teetered and I thought she was going to sit
back down, but she managed to regain her balance.

"What have you got there, Meggie?" I found myself using Mulder's
endearment more and more often.

She graced me with a full-faced smile and to my amazement lifted
her foot and took a step toward me.

"Mulder!" I whispered.

"Hmm?" he didn't look away from the game.

"Look!" I said more emphatically as Megan took her second step.

He turned his head in time to see her third step.

"Do you have something for Mommy?" I held my hands out to her.

"Ma ma ma," she grinned and held out the rings she was carrying.

"Okay, bring them here," I smiled.

"Look at her go!" I could tell that Mulder was excited from the
sound of his voice.

Megan took two more tottering steps and then decided she was 
close enough to simply fall into my arms. When I scooped her up
everyone began to cheer and clap their hands. The noise startled
Megan and she turned to look at Mulder. Her concern melted away
when she saw the huge smile on his face.

"That's my girl," he laughed as he stood up.

"She didn't practice or anything," Jordan sounded surprised. "She
just walked."

"Everything she does is practice for walking and talking, for
growing up, just like you," my mother explained.

"C'mon, Jordan," Mulder beckoned him with a nod of his head.
"Let's see if Megan will walk for us." He sat down in the middle
of the room. 

"Okay," Jordan grinned and ran to sit on Mulder's lap. 

Mulder spread his legs and began to call to Megan. "C'mere 
Meggie," he held his arms open to her. "Come and see Daddy."

I watched as a big smile spread across her face. Then she turned,
dropped to her knees and started to crawl toward him.

"Oop," I scooped her up quickly and stood her on her feet. "Walk
for Daddy."

"Yeah, Megan, walk," Jordan clapped his hands and bounced on
Mulder's leg.

Still grinning, Megan dropped to her knees again and began to 
crawl.

"Just a sec," I got up and scooped her up again. This time 
I let her hang on to my index fingers. Laughing, she began to
take small steps toward Mulder and Jordan. After she'd gone a 
little way, I slowly took one finger away. While Mulder kept her
attention by clapping and talking to her, I eased my other finger
out of her grasp.

After taking about ten more cautious steps, Megan fell into 
Mulder's hands. He was busy congratulating her with noisy kisses
when someone knocked at the door.

"That'll be Brent," he managed to stand up with a child under
each arm. 

"I can get the door," I tried to call him back.

"It's okay," he smiled over his shoulder as he rounded the corner
into the hallway.
 
Brent had hardly settled down in the living room when the front
door opened again. 

"I've got great news," Andrew called. "I found an apartment," he
informed us as he walked into the room. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't
realize you had company."

"Don't worry about it," Mulder waved him off. "Andrew Guernsey,
this is Brent Garrow, my lawyer."

"Pleased to meet you," Andrew shook his hand. "Oh, is this about
the house?" he looked down at the papers.

"Nice to meet you too," Brent smiled. "Yes, there are just a few
things to sign and then I'll be out of your way."

"There's no rush," I assured him. "I feel awful about missing our 
appointment. Especially after we bothered you on the weekend," I
felt like I couldn't apologize enough.

"I understand completely," he smiled graciously. He had just 
begun to explain the paperwork when Megan began to rub her face
against Mulder's shirt.

"I'll take her," my mother spoke up immediately. "You come too,
Jordan. As soon as I have Megan settled, I'll read to you, okay?"

"But I'm not tired," he protested as a huge yawn overtook him.

"I'll come and give you a kiss as soon as we're done here, 
Jordan, I promise. You go with your Grandma," I nodded toward her.

"But I wanted to watch the game," he pouted, making everyone 
laugh.

"I'll let you stay up later when it's not a school night, 
Jordan," Mulder promised as he set Jordan down on the floor.

"I wanna see the game tonight!" he stamped his foot.

My mother and I looked at each other in surprise. Jordan hardly 
ever disobeyed, and certainly not Mulder. He worshipped the 
ground Mulder walked on. I couldn't help wondering why he chose a
night that we had company to make a fuss.

"On the other hand, Jordan," Mulder's voice became serious, "I
could *not* let you stay up to watch a game, even on the weekend.
And if you like, you can start going to bed before Megan. Does
that sound like fun?"

"No," Jordan was still pouting.

"Then I suggest you hustle your butt upstairs," Mulder's eyes 
had never left Jordan. "Your mother and I will be up to kiss you
goodnight in a couple of minutes."

Jordan turned and, without saying goodnight, began to walk toward
the stairs. He wasn't quite stomping, but his footfalls were 
definitely on the heavy side.

"What was that all about?" I looked at Mulder when Jordan was out
of earshot.

"I probably talked up the game a little too much," Mulder 
admitted guiltily. "I'll talk to him when we go upstairs."

"I'll be out of your hair in a minute," Brent promised.

"Don't rush off," Mulder spoke quickly. "I thought you might 
want to watch the game."

"Sounds good," Brent handed Mulder his pen. 

So as soon as we'd signed the paperwork, Brent secured it in his
briefcase while Mulder and I went upstairs. Jordan was supposed
to be waiting in his room for my mother to read him a story, but
when we got there he was already asleep.

"We can talk to him tomorrow," I whispered.

We met my mother in the hall and went back downstairs. While 
Mulder was retrieving some beer from the kitchen, my mother said
her goodnights.

"See you tomorrow, Fox," she smiled when Mulder reappeared.

"I'll leave you guys to watch the game," I informed them when my
mother was gone.

"You don't want to join us?" Mulder patted the couch beside him.

"I think I'll pass," I rolled my eyes. "I have some reading to do
anyway."

Leaving the men to drink their beer, I went into the study to
catch up on some journal articles I'd been meaning to read for
some time. When I was done, I said goodnight to the guys and went
upstairs to take a bath. I'd just climbed into bed when I thought
I heard Mulder come up the stairs. It was 10:45, so I assumed 
the game was long since over and they'd been discussing whatever 
men discuss after a ball game. I was surprised when I heard him
go down the stairs again. I was about to turn out the light when
I heard him on the stairs again. This time the doorknob began to
turn slowly.

"Oh, you're still up," he looked at me in surprise when he opened
the door.

"I thought I heard you come upstairs a few minutes ago," I 
furrowed my brow.

"Yeah, Brent had too many beers to risk driving," Mulder 
explained as he stripped off his clothes. "We all figured it
would be safer for him to spend the night on the couch. I was 
getting him a pillow and a blanket."

"Did you enjoy the game?"

"Well, the Yanks won, so Brent and I did. Andrew, not so much," 
Mulder chuckled.

"Were they playing the Red Sox?" I was confused. I'd seen the two
teams and I know baseball well enough to at least recognize the
uniforms.

"No, but Andrew wants the Yanks to lose just on principal -- it
doesn't matter who they're playing," Mulder was grinning.

When he was finished undressing, he made a quick trip to the 
bathroom before crawling into bed with me. His goodnight kiss
tasted of beer and toothpaste. It wasn't a combination I'd 
normally enjoy, but any kiss from Mulder was pleasurable for me.
I was disappointed when he lay back down and closed his eyes.
Flicking off the light, I turned to face him.

"Tired?" I whispered.

"Mmm hmm, long day," he nodded.

Long day? It wasn't even 11 o'clock yet. The Mulder I knew and 
loved was a night owl. I wondered if the beer had made him drowsy
or if there was another reason he was in a hurry to get to sleep.

"Goodnight, then," I snuggled under the covers.

"Night," he murmured.

"Mulder?"

"Yeah?"

"I know you're tired, so you won't mind if I masturbate, right?"

"Wha--?"

"I just want to make sure I won't disturb you if I masturbate. I
wouldn't want to keep you up if you're tired," I kept my voice to
a whisper.

"No, uh, sure, go ahead," he sputtered.

"Mmm, thanks," I smiled and rolled to my back. If I knew Mulder,
I wouldn't be on my own for long. Spreading my legs, I
pulled my nightie up slightly and slipped my hand between my 
legs. I really had no intention of going through with it, but 
knowing that Mulder would be attuned to every sound and move I
made actually began to excite me. I couldn't stop myself from 
sighing when my fingertips grazed my clit. Beside me, I could 
hear Mulder's breathing quicken, and I felt the bed move as he 
shifted his position.

"I'm sorry, Mulder. I can tell this is keeping you up. I'll just
go into the bathroom so you can sleep," I began to slide out of
the bed.

"Stay," he grabbed my arm and pulled me back beside him. My hip 
was now pressing up against his erection.

"What's this?" I slipped my hand between us to caress him. "I
thought you were tired."

"Keep going," he rolled over to turn his light back on and rolled
back again quickly.

"What?" I hadn't been expecting this reaction.

"You're not bothering me. Keep going," his voice was rough and 
his normally hazel eyes had grown dark.

"Okay," I let my hand drift down again. 

Mulder watched my hand as it moved beneath the covers. As I was
pulling my nightie out of the way again, he startled me by 
whipping the blankets away. 

"I want to see," he explained when I looked at him in surprise. 

The hungry look on his face had rendered me speechless, so I 
could only nod. When I ran my fingertips over my clit, I drew a 
sharp breath. Mulder's reaction had brought me very close. 
Nothing was more arousing to me than his complete loss of 
control. Knowing that I could bring him to the brink like this
was almost enough to make me come. 

Dipping two fingers inside of myself, I used the abundant 
moisture I found there to lubricate my clit. My orgasm was close
and I couldn't keep my eyes open anymore. 

"What are you thinking about?" Mulder's voice was gravely.

"You," I breathed.

"Tell me," the lust in his voice made me shudder.

"I like it when you react like this," my voice trembled as my
fingers continued to circle my clit. I knew it would only take
the tiniest bit of direct pressure to make me come.

"You like that you can do this to me?" his breathing was ragged.
"You like that a few words from you can turn me on instantly?" he
rubbed his erection against me.

"Yes," I panted.

"You like that just the idea of you masturbating beside me is
enough to make me insane with lust?" his voice quivered as he spoke.

"God, yes," I groaned.

"And you like knowing that I'm going to fuck you as soon as you
come?" 

His words were more than I could take. My clit began to throb 
even before I began to stroke it in earnest. As every muscle in
my body seemed to grow taut, my hips came off the bed and I 
started to quake. 

"I love the way you come," his breath was hot against my ear.

"Mulder," I moaned as another wave surged through me.

I was still trembling and trying to catch my breath when I felt
him position himself between my legs. When I opened my eyes, I
found that his eyes had grown even darker. The predatory look on
his face made my stomach flip-flop.

"Is this what you wanted?" his voice rumbled as he began to slide
into me.

After my orgasm, every nerve in my vagina seemed supersensitive.
His cock felt exquisite inside of me.

"Yes," I confessed breathily.

"Jesus, Scully," he choked before his lips descended onto mine.

As he ravaged my mouth, he began to thrust into me. This was not
going to be sweet and slow. It was going to be exactly what I
wanted -- uncontrolled passion. 

Mulder moved his lips to my neck as he began to pump faster. I
met every stroke, our bodies colliding heavily. Every thud sent a 
delicious vibration through me. Just as I felt him begin to 
quiver, I clamped my muscles down on him.

"Fuck," he grunted. "I'm gonna --"

"I know, Mulder," I caressed his neck. "Come for me."

"Yes!" his voice was raspy. "Scully, I --" his thrusts became
almost frantic. 

"God, Mulder," I hadn't thought I would come again, but I felt
another surge building inside of me.

"Want you to come again," his words came out staccato.

"I --" I tried to assure him that I was right on the verge when
I began to shudder violently.

"God, yes," his shout was muffled by my pillow as I felt him 
pulse inside of me.

We stayed that way for several minutes just kissing. Part of me 
enjoyed this after play almost as much as having him inside of
me -- almost. 

"Why?" he wondered when he finally rolled to his back. "Why 
didn't you just say you wanted me to make love to you?" he pulled 
me on top of him. "You know I would have."

"Yes, but would you have fucked me like that?" I snuggled against
his chest.

He began to stroke my hair, not answering my question right away.
"You wanted it to be like that?" he sounded surprised.

"I did," I sighed contentedly.

"Why?" I could hear the confusion in his voice. "It doesn't mean
that I love you less if we make love gently."

"I know, but I need that lust, that loss of control. Especially
now," I tried to explain.

"I still don't understand," I felt him shake his head.

"Ever since we found out I was pregnant you've been hesitant,
treating me like a china doll. And while that is nice 
occasionally, the man that I love loses himself in his desire for
me. Do you have any idea of what a heady experience that is for 
me? To know that you love me and want me so much that it 
overwhelms you?"

"You like that?"

"Like it? I live for it. I love seeing that look in your eyes --
the one where it looks like you want to devour me. It stirs up 
something in me, Mulder, some primitive emotion and all I can
think about is fucking you."

"That's all it takes?" his voice was quiet.

"Yes, Mulder, one smoldering look from you and I'm yours," I 
pressed a kiss to his chest.

"Scully?"

"Yeah?"

"Do I give you these smoldering looks before or after you give me
your come hither look?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Friday, October 6, 2000
6 a.m.

When the alarm woke me, I had to ease my way out from underneath
a Scully blanket to get out of the bed. Neither the radio nor the
way I jostled her around had managed to wake her up. Instead, she
wrapped her arms around my pillow and sighed contentedly. 

Every molecule in my body wanted to climb back into the bed. I 
wanted to reclaim my rightful spot in her arms. A luckier pillow 
has never and will never exist. I sighed, not so contentedly, 
knowing I didn't have time to indulge myself. 

Thinking about being snuggled up to Scully's warm body, with her
soft breasts pressing up against me, only made me feel better for
a couple of seconds. Then I realized that those thoughts were
having an affect on me. Unfortunately it was an affect I didn't 
have time to take advantage of. Our day had begun and there was
little time to waste.

I'd made my way to the kitchen and began to make breakfast.  I'd
tried to be quiet, knowing that Brent was asleep in the living 
room, but he wandered into the kitchen just as the water for
Scully's tea began to boil.

"Morning," he mumbled as he took a seat at the table.

"Sorry, Brent," I grimaced. "I was trying to be quiet."

"I need to get going soon anyway," he yawned.

"Want some breakfast first?"

"Coffee would be good," he squinted at me.

"Couch that bad?" I chuckled.

"Uh -- the couch was fine," he looked down at his hands briefly
before looking up at me again. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," I was surprised by the hesitancy in his tone.

"I mean, it's really none of my business, but four months ago
you and I had several discussions about you marrying your
partner..." he was looking at his hands again.

"Yeah," I nodded, not sure where he was going. 

"We talked at length about the issues surrounding a marriage of
convenience," he reminded me.

"Has someone challenged our marriage again?" I spun around from
filling up the coffee pot.

"No, no," he shook his head vigorously. "Four months ago I never 
came directly out and asked you if it was a marriage of
convenience because I didn't want to know. But after last night,
it's obvious that's no longer an issue."

"Yeah, it's a real marriage," I smiled. "But what about last 
night made you realize?" I couldn't think of anything we'd done.

"Well," he looked at his hands again. "You really need to do 
something about that headboard. I'm surprised the kids can sleep
through it -- I couldn't," he looked up with a grin on his face.

"You're kidding," I think my mouth was hanging open. "That loud?"

"Oh yeah," he raised his eyebrows. "It's no wonder Andrew was so 
excited about finding a place of his own," he shook his head.

"Really?" I couldn't believe it was that bad.

"Really," he nodded again.

"Sorry," I couldn't think of anything else to say.

"Hey, don't be sorry, I'm happy for you. I'm glad everything 
worked out. To be honest, I'm a little jealous," he sounded 
quite serious.

"Of?" I poured the water into the coffee maker.

"Christ, Mulder, I'm single and I can't remember the last time
I rocked the bed like that," he smiled wryly.

"Yeah?" I leaned back against the counter. "As I recall the 
single life, the only time the bed rocked was when I remembered
to flip the mattress." I didn't bother to tell him that I'd
usually slept on the couch or the business about the waterbed.

"You?" he chortled. "I would've thought you'd have to fight 
them off."

I just shrugged and turned to put two slices of whole wheat bread 
in the toaster.

"So how long were you in love with her?" I could hear the grin
in his voice.

"As long as I can remember," I admitted as I retrieved her
favorite tea cup.

"Why did you seem so unsure about asking her to marry you, then?"

"Because I thought she didn't feel the same way," I explained as
I poured the tea.

"Oh, and when you asked her to marry you, she said yes and you
realized that she loved you," he thought he understood.

"Not exactly," I chuckled.

"No?"

"No, she thought I was asking her to marry her just because of
the kids -- so the Barnes wouldn't get them," I tried to clarify.

"So when then?"

"It's complicated," I sighed as I buttered Scully's toast.

"The Social Worker was convinced," Brent sounded confused again.

"Because Jordan told her that he saw us making love," I chuckled.

"So he saw you after you'd straightened it all out," he nodded.

"Nope, that was before. We'd consummated the marriage because we
didn't want to have to lie," I reached for a cup for Brent's 
coffee.

"And he walked in the night you decided to consummate? That's a
big coincidence -- although the way you rock the bed..."

"No, we started having sex regularly after the first time. I
thought Scully was obliging me, and she thought I was just 
enjoying the sex," I couldn't believe I was telling him this.

"Hell, I wish someone would oblige me," he snorted. "So when
did you finally clue in?"

"Look, if Scully ever finds out that I'm telling you this --"

"My lips are sealed -- attorney/client privilege," he grinned.

"Okay," I sighed. "I was about to do something for her," I raised
my eyebrows to make him understand.

"Yeah..."

"And she said I shouldn't feel obliged and I said I thought she
was obliging me..."

"Aww," he laughed.

"I swear, Brent, if you breathe a word of this --"

"A word of what?"

Scully's voice made me freeze. I was supposed to be bringing
her breakfast upstairs.

"I thought I was bringing you breakfast in bed," I stalled.

"I thought I'd come downstairs today," she smiled. "Breathe a 
word of what?"

"I told Brent about the baby," I prayed that Brent would play 
along.

Scully's eyebrows flew up, but she said nothing.

"I know you wanted to keep it quiet for a while, but --" I paused
because I was having trouble thinking of a convincing lie. Beads
of sweat were starting to form on my forehead. I couldn't look
Scully in the eyes.

"He wanted to ask me about changing the wills. It's more 
complicated now with adopted children and natural children, and
the Prescott's money and Mulder's inheritance. It will take me
a while to sort it out," Brent's tone was apologetic.

"I hadn't thought of that," Scully's voice was muted.

"It won't go any further, Dana, I promise," he smiled at her as
I tried not to sigh in relief. "And I'm happy you know that I 
know, this way I can officially congratulate both of you."

"Thanks, Brent," Scully smiled. "We're very happy."

"More than you know," I smiled gratefully at Brent. "Here's your 
breakfast, Scully," I put her tea and toast on the table.

"Will it be that much more complicated?" she continued talking
to Brent when she sat down. 

I left him to deal with it while I poured his coffee. A bigger
man would have helped him out, but he had insisted on knowing all
of the gory details.

"I know that you don't want to think about this, but if anything
should happen to you and Mulder, we have to make sure that Jordan
and Megan get the money they were entitled to," he explained.

"But we've named my brother and sister-in-law as guardians. I 
trust them," Scully took a sip of her tea.

"It's still better to have everything in writing. What happens
if your brother can't take all three kids for some reason? What
happens if the Barnes try to get a hold of Jordan and Megan 
again? I think we should set up a trust for them. I'll set it up
so it can only be used for school or they can have when they're 25.
I'll also put a stipulation about the benefit and betterment of
the children," Scully was nodding as Brent spoke. "Someone will
have to administer the trust, usually your lawyer, and an 
application could be made for monies from the trust if the 
children were in need."

I quietly thanked God for lawyers. No one else would have been 
able to lie so convincingly. Much to my relief, the rest of the
morning passed smoothly, although every time I looked at Andrew
I couldn't help wondering if we really had scared him off. When
Brent was ready to leave I walked him to the front door. Luckily,
Scully was still upstairs getting ready for work.

"Thanks for covering my ass," I kept my voice low as he tied his
shoes.

"God, if you hadn't spilled the beans about the baby, we would 
have been up the creek," he laughed.

"But you really are going to draw up those papers, aren't you?"

"Yeah, it really is a good idea," he assured me. "But my covering
your ass fee isn't any cheaper."

Once Brent left I had to hurry to get ready, but we still managed
to get to the office in time. We had a meeting with Skinner 
first thing and he always seemed to get annoyed if we were late.
I was hoping the meeting would be fairly short. We'd done what
Skinner had wanted -- saved some brass ass. I hadn't seen
Andrew's report since he'd finished it off last night, but he
seemed anxious to present it. 

"So?" Skinner looked at me when we'd all taken our seats. "You've
wrapped up the case already? I know they've heard from Ms. Burke
upstairs, and she was very pleased with your work."

"Thank you, sir," I smiled, mostly because Scully gave me an
'I told you so wink'.

"Is the report not ready?" Skinner must have noticed that I 
hadn't been carrying anything.

"Actually, I wrote the report, sir," Andrew piped up. "It's
right here," he opened his leather satchel and pulled out a
stack of papers the size of the DC phonebook. That was the end
of my quick meeting.

Skinner's eyes widened when Andrew passed him what would be known
thereafter in the halls of the Bureau as 'The Report'. He glanced
at me as if he hoped I might have a shorter report hidden 
somewhere. I could only give him a helpless smile.

Andrew's report began in England with the Druidic festivals 
absorbed by the Christian church. By the time the Mayflower 
landed at Plymouth Rock my eyelids were beginning to droop.
Skinner, to my amazement, seemed to be having no trouble staying 
alert. Every time I looked at him, his eyes were open and he was
nodding. Of course, every time happened to be when Scully kicked
my foot to stop me from dozing off.

I must have managed to fall asleep with my eyes open, because
the next thing I knew Andrew was recounting the recent revival of
Witchcraft in America. The time he spent going over the details
of our actual case amounted to about ten minutes, which was 
probably more time than I would have given it.

"Well, Agent Guernsey," Skinner leaned back in his chair. "Your
report was...thorough." 

"Thank you, sir," Andrew beamed.

"Although," Skinner fanned the pages of the report. "In future
I don't think you need to spend as much time on the background."

"Oh," Andrew cast a worried glance at me.

"The background was good," Skinner continued, "But not a lot of
it was directly related to the case. Do you see what I mean?"

"I think so, sir," Andrew's cheeks were flushed.

"If you want a good example to go by, you have an expert close at
hand," Skinner's tone was almost fatherly. I prepared myself for 
the upcoming pat on the back. "Agent Scully writes very thorough
yet concise reports." 

"Agent Scully?" my head snapped up. I'd always thought my 
reports edged Scully's -- marginally.

"Well, your reports tend to vary with your interest in the case,
Agent Mulder," Skinner didn't pull any punches. "Agent Scully
puts in a consistent effort, regardless of her feelings about the
case."

I glanced at Scully, but she wasn't looking at me. Apparently
there was something very interesting on her shoe. I could tell
by her face she was trying not to laugh.

"Agent Scully did offer her help," Andrew told Skinner. "But I
wanted to try on my own."

"Understandable," Skinner nodded. "And the final part of your 
report, the part that dealt strictly with the case, is what I'll
be expecting in the future."

"If you had a problem with my reports, why didn't you say so?" I
interjected.

Scully's head jerked up and she stared at me, aghast. Andrew 
dropped his head so fast, I think I heard his chin hit his chest.
I didn't regret my words. If Skinner hadn't wanted to discuss it,
he shouldn't have brought it up.

"Your reports are fine, Mulder," Skinner sighed. "I just wouldn't
use them as a training aid."

"Mmm," I grunted noncommittally.

"Just like I wouldn't send him your way if I wanted him to learn
the finer points of diplomacy," Skinner looked at me over his 
glasses.

"So when would you send him to me?" I was starting to get 
annoyed.

"Oh, I don't know, Mulder, maybe for pissing off local law 
enforcement 101, or maybe how to push the limits with your 
superiors and still manage to keep your job," Skinner's tone 
remained even despite what he was saying. "Do you really
need me to stroke your ego? You're one of, if not the best 
investigators in the bureau. You make connections no one else
sees. Agent Guernsey will be lucky if he can pick up a fraction
of that talent. Unfortunately for the rest of us, Mulder, it's
not something you can teach."

After that there wasn't much left to say. Skinner had managed
to compliment me and make me feel like a heel all in the same 
breath, but I'd deserved it. I knew Scully thought I'd been an
idiot. It was easy to tell from the look she gave me in the 
elevator on the way back to the office. I didn't say anything.
For once in my life I decided it would be best to keep my mouth 
shut.

The meeting lasted so long that Scully had to leave to pick up
Jordan almost as soon as it was over. I spent the afternoon
regretting my display in Skinner's office. Andrew spent the
afternoon reading Scully's case reports. I did spend some time
thinking about what Brent had told me that morning, but I didn't
have time to look into what he'd said until the kids were asleep.

I couldn't believe I hadn't noticed it before. The headboard had 
made a rather significant dent in the wall. After pulling the
bed back about a foot, I found bits of plaster all over the rug.
Keeping the bed away from the wall would stop the noise, but I
couldn't help wondering if there was another problem with the bed
itself. Taking the bed by the frame, I tried moving it. It 
swayed a little, making a squeaking noise.

"What are you doing, Mulder?" A voice whispered in my ear. 
It was almost like my conscience, but it was Scully's voice. I
tried not to betray my cool exterior, but I think she saw me
jump.

"Jesus, Scully," I breathed when my heart left my throat.

"Sorry, Mulder," her eyes were wide. "I thought you would have
heard me come in." I could tell she was trying to suppress a smile.

"Umm, I noticed this dent in the wall," I pointed to it. "I was
just trying to figure out what caused it."

"Uh, Mulder," she was biting her lip. "I think we made that 
dent."

"Yeah, Scully," I nodded. "I got that. I meant beyond that."

"Maybe when you guys put the bed back together, you didn't 
tighten it enough," she suggested with a shrug.

"I was thinking the same thing," I sighed. "Help me with the
mattress?"

Once the mattress and box spring were on the floor, I began to
investigate the rails.

"Would you like me to get the toolbox?" Scully offered.

"We have a toolbox?" I looked at her in surprise.

"I'll be right back," she rolled her eyes.

When Scully brought the toolbox back, I opened it up and peered
into it. 

"Was I right? Is it just loose?" she asked looking past me at the
bed.

"Yeah, I think so," I gnawed on my lip and continued to stare at
the various tools.

"So do you need a screwdriver or a wrench?" she asked moving past
me to inspect the bed more closely.

"I'm not sure," I scratched my head.

"Mulder!" she sounded exasperated. "The rails hook into the 
headboard. You can't tighten them with a tool."

"I guess that's why I couldn't find the right one."

"So what now?" she had her hands on her hips.

"We could put a pillow behind the headboard," I suggested.

"Mulder, I think we've worn the joint loose. It's only going to 
get worse, until they separate completely," she shook her head.
"A pillow will just save the wall."

"We could get a futon," I shrugged.

"Yeah, and in 7 months you'll need a crane to get me out of bed,"
she reminded me.

"Okay," I gnawed on my lip some more. "Why don't I pop over to
Lowe's and see what I can find?"

"Mulder..." Scully sounded a little skeptical. 

"What?" I tried not to sound too defensive.

"Do you even have the faintest clue about what to look for?"

"C'mon Scully, I think I know my way around a hardware store."

She just stood there, arms akimbo, head tilted to the side, lips 
pursed and eyebrows arching toward her hairline.

"Okay, so I'll ask for help."

It took me an hour and three calls home to get what I needed.

"Yes, Mulder, we have a drill."

"The rails are an inch and a half thick. The legs of the 
headboard are thicker."

"No, Mulder, we don't have any one inch wood screws."

When I got home Scully was sitting in the living room, reading.
She didn't say anything. She simply looked over her reading 
glasses at me. I held up the bag to show her.

"Angle brackets," I informed her.

"Do you want some help?" 

I decided to swallow my pride and be honest. "Yeah, because when
the guy told me to drill pilot holes first, I nodded like I knew
what he was talking about." 

"You drill small pilot holes for the screws first," she began to
explain as she put her book down and stood up. "If you tried to
just start the screw without a pilot hole, you might split the
wood."

"But how will the screw hold if there's already a hole there?" I
followed Scully into the kitchen. "Won't it just pull out again?"

"No," she shook her as she grabbed a pencil out of the jar by the
phone. "It's just a small hole, smaller than the screw. It acts
as a guide and like I said, it'll prevent the wood from 
splitting."

"Oh," I followed her out of the kitchen. "Can I ask you another
question, Scully?"

"Sure," she nodded as we started up the stairs.

"How do you know all this stuff?"

Scully chuckled. "My mother."

"Your mother?" I repeated in amazement.

"My mother did most of the 'fixing' when I was growing up,
Mulder," Scully explained as we walked into the shambles of our 
room. "And the base houses certainly needed a lot of fixing," she 
chuckled. "I guess she could have waited for my dad to come home,
but then he would have spent all his time repairing things 
instead of spending time with us. She made sure that Missy and I
learned how to handle tools. She learned mostly by trial and 
error and by using the base libraries. She didn't want us to be
in the same position."

"I don't remember either of my parents fixing anything," I 
thought back. "Maybe you should be doing this."

"We can both do it," she knelt by the bed. "Let's start by 
marking the drill holes."

Scully showed me how to use a pencil and the bracket to mark our
drill holes then quickly drill the pilot hole with a very small
bit. The screws went in easily, but I could feel them grabbing
as they sank in. 

We were just finishing off the last bracket when we heard Andrew 
on the stairs. He'd gone out after supper to do some shopping for
his new place. Since he hadn't tried to recover anything from his 
apartment with Leigh, he needed everything. 

"Hey," I called as he walked past our room.

"Oh, hi," he stopped short, hovering just outside the door.

"So any luck?" I wondered since he was empty handed.

"Too much luck," he grinned. "I have a new best friend. I went
to one store and bought all of my furniture. Bedroom, living 
room, kitchen -- I'm having it all delivered."

"I'll bet you have a new best friend," Scully chuckled. "What 
about linens?"

"That's next," he sighed. " And I'll need dishes too. Next 
weekend, I guess, tomorrow morning I'm flying home."

"You are?" Scully was surprised.

"I told you, didn't I? he looked at me. "Last week when my 
Grandmother called."

It was starting to sound familiar.

"I probably should have reminded you," he winced. "This week
has been a little crazy." 

"It's hardly a problem," Scully waved him off. "Is it a special
occasion?"

"Yeah," he smiled. "My grandfather's 80th birthday."

"That's great. Have a wonderful time," Scully beamed.

"Do you need a ride to the airport?" I offered.

"Thanks, but no. I don't get in until late Sunday, so I'd rather
have my car there," he explained.

"Have a great time with your family, Andrew. I think you deserve 
a rest," Scully chuckled.

"Thanks," Andrew laughed with her. "I should get to bed." He
widened his eyes. "My plane leaves early."

"Okay," Scully picked up the last screw. "We're almost done here.
We don't want to keep you up."

"Uh -- okay," Andrew stammered. "Goodnight," his face started to
flush.

"Yeah, 'night," I pretended to be focused on our work.

"Goodnight," Scully called after him, but I could tell she was
looking at me. 

I wasn't deterred. I was determined to finish our project.

"Mulder?"

"Hmm," I made sure the final two screws were secure.

"What made you decide to fix the bed?" 

"I told you. I noticed the dent in the wall," I reminded her 
offhandedly. I tried jiggling the frame again and it didn't budge.

"You happened to walk into the bedroom after supper and you 
happened to notice the dent in the wall behind the headboard?"
her voice was dry.

"Well," I hesitated. "I actually noticed last night."

"While we were making love?" she lowered her voice.

"Yeah -- are you up to helping me with the box spring?"

"Sure," she bent to help me. "You noticed last night and didn't
say anything?"

"What did you want me to do?" I grunted as we lifted the box 
spring. "Stop and tell you the headboard was banging against the
wall?"

"Yes," she hissed. "Especially when we have someone sleeping on
the sofa," she straightened up at her own words. "Mulder..."

"Yeah?" I moved over to pick up the mattress.

"What were you and Brent talking about this morning?" she grabbed
the other side of the mattress.

"We told you...about a trust fund for Jordan and Megan," I
tried to keep my voice cool.

"Oh, I see," her voice was tight from the effort of lifting the
mattress. "Last night you notice our headboard is banging against 
the wall and this morning, without even mentioning it to me, you
suddenly decide Jordan and Megan need a trust fund."

"Umm..." I took a deep breath. "I guess I should have talked to
you about it first. Sorry."

"Mulder, I want the truth," she looked at me across the bed. "You
should know better than to lie to me."

"Lie?" I straightened the mattress.

"Mulder."

"Scully," I whined, feeling the beads of sweat starting to form
on my forehead again.

"What wasn't Brent supposed to breathe a word of?" Her eyes had 
become steely.

"He was asking about our marriage," I hoped she would drop it.

"Our marriage?" She looked puzzled. "What about it?"

"Well, he was the one who warned us about the *very* personal
questions," I reminded her.

"What did he want to know?" Her eyes were wide.

"Well, even though I never came right out and said it and he 
never asked, he thought it was a marriage of convenience," I
explained.

"He asked you about that this morning?" She still looked a little
confused.

"Yeah," I nodded.

"Why wouldn't you want to tell me that?"

"Well, it's a little personal," I shrugged.

"Wait a second," she stopped straightening the comforter. "That
still doesn't explain what you didn't want Brent to breathe a 
word of. Exactly what did you tell him?"

"Well," I hesitated again.

"Now, Mulder!"

The beads of sweat were starting to run into my eyes. I was 
dead meat either way.

"I tried to explain how you didn't know how I felt, but I'd loved
you forever. And how you thought I was marrying you just for
the kids..." I tried to appeal to her romantic side.

"And?" she wasn't buying it.

"Well, it was hard to explain. I ended up telling him the whole
story," I almost whispered.

"Define whole story, Mulder."

"Well," I backed away from the bed a step.

"Define whole story, Mulder," she repeated loudly.

"Well, he knows about consummating the marriage and about when
Jordan walked in on us and when we finally discovered that we
really did love each other," the truth spilled out of my mouth.

I felt like my supper was about to follow.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Friday, October 6, 2000

9:45 p.m.

We were standing there, on opposite sides of the bed, not saying
a word. Mulder was as white as a sheet. I was sure he was going 
to be ill. He was going to pay, for a long, long time, but I 
didn't think my stomach could handle it if he didn't calm down 
soon. 

"Sit down, Mulder," I nodded toward the bed.

He did what I said, wordlessly.

"I don't even know where to start," I shook my head.

"I'm sorry, Scully," his shoulders drooped.

"For what? Talking about our sex life to your buddy or lying to
me -- how many times?" I tried to keep my voice down. I doubted
Andrew was asleep yet.

"For both things," he answered meekly, without lifting his head.

"What about the fact that Brent now thinks you lie to me? What
about that?" I was livid.

"It wasn't like that, Scully, really," he looked up at me 
sorrowfully. "It wasn't like that."

"Then explain it to me, Mulder. Explain what it was like."

"Christ, Scully, you're scaring me," Mulder's eyes were wide.
"Please sit here with me," he implored me with his eyes.

My feet stayed firmly planted. Instead of settling down, I was
only getting angrier.

"Please, Scully," he was begging. 

I walked around the bed and sat down heavily beside him. "Start
talking."

"I'll start at the beginning," his eyes darted toward me.

"Always a good place to start," I glared at him.

"Well, I guess first I should say that I didn't notice the 
headboard last night," he sighed pitifully.

"Uh huh. Lie number one."

"When I went downstairs this morning to make your breakfast, 
Brent came into the kitchen looking pretty rough. I thought he'd
found the couch uncomfortable, but apparently he found it more 
uncomfortable listening to us make love," Mulder began.

"Oh," I would have blushed if my face hadn't been red with anger.

"But I didn't know that right away," he continued. "First he 
asked me about our marriage, if it was a marriage of convenience.
I assured him it wasn't. He said he'd gathered that from what 
he'd heard, or something to that effect and that it was no wonder
Andrew was in such a hurry to move out."

"Then why did he ask, if he already knew?" I wondered irritably.

"Well, he wanted to know as my lawyer, because although I never 
came out and said it directly, he knew we got married to keep the
kids away from the Barnes. I think it was also the most delicate
way he knew to tell me that we made one hell of a racket when we
had sex," Mulder shrugged and then snuck another look at me.

"So why the hell did you end up talking about our sex life?"

"It started very innocently, Scully, I swear. He wanted to know
how out marriage changed from what it was in the beginning to
what he'd heard last night."

I could tell from Mulder's expression that he was being 
completely honest with me. 

"So why didn't you just say that it took us a while, but we
figured it out eventually," I challenged him.

"Well, he thought that when I asked you to marry me, you would
have realized that I loved you, so I had to tell him that it
didn't work out exactly like that," he smiled thinly. "Try
explaining it to someone, Scully. It's very complicated. I was
just trying to explain how it evolved."

"So just how personal did you get?" I realized they couldn't have
had that much time too talk.

"There were no details, Scully. None, I promise," he looked at me
hopefully.

"And I should trust you because..."

"Scully, I'm sorry I lied. I knew you'd be angry that I'd said 
anything at all," his shoulders sagged again.

"Didn't you say that you told Brent the circumstances of when
we finally realized --" I had to pause to take a breath, "how 
much we loved each other?" I still got goose bumps when I thought
about that night.

"Here's what I said," Mulder covered my hand with his. "I had
already told him that we'd been having sex regularly --"

"You told him more than that?" I shook my head. "Good God, 
Mulder."

"I said that I was about to do something for you --"

"No," I groaned in disbelief.

"And that you stopped me, saying I didn't have to and that's when
we realized." From the look of terror on his face, I could tell
he told me everything.

"I can't believe that you'd share such intimate details of our 
life, Mulder," I was still shaking my head. "But I have to be 
honest, Mulder, it's so much worse that you lied to me about it."

"What should I have done?" He looked helpless. "Told you right
then what we were talking about?"

"How about saying, 'I'll tell you later'?" I suggested.

"Scully, I know I shouldn't have told Brent. It just kind of 
slipped out and I'm truly sorry, but you still would have chewed 
me a new one if I'd told you right away," he challenged me.

"Yes, I would have, but it would have been much smaller."

Mulder began to laugh. He laughed so hard he fell back onto the
bed. "God, I love you, Scully," he managed to sputter.

"I love you too, Mulder, but that doesn't mean you're off the 
hook," I informed him dryly. "I'm going to put a lot of time and
energy into figuring out what your penance will be. I'll make
sure you'll never want to lie to me again."

"Can't I pick my own punishment?" he'd stopped laughing.

"You wish," I grinned evilly.

"When do I find out?" his brow was furrowed.

"When I've thought of something good and after you've sweated
for a bit," I was beginning to feel better.

"You know, Scully, I think you're being a little hard on me 
considering the fact that you've discussed aspects of our sex 
life with your mother," he narrowed his eyes at me.

"I don't remember telling you that," I wracked my brain.

"You didn't, until just know," he grinned victoriously.

"That was different," I defended myself. "That was because Jordan
walked in on us. I wanted to make sure we'd handled it 
correctly," I backpedaled quickly.

"You still never told me," he beamed triumphantly.

"I'd completely forgotten about that, Mulder, and I didn't lie
about it when you asked me," I reminded him.

"Yeah, well --"

"Okay, so I'll back off your penance a bit," I offered.

"But what will your punishment be, Scully?" he waggled his 
eyebrows at me as he pulled me on top of him.

"Haven't I been punished enough?" I tried not to laugh as he
began to nuzzle my neck.

"Not even close," he flipped us over quickly. "Not even close,"
he repeated as he lowered his mouth to mine.

I parted my lips and let him thrust his tongue into my mouth.

"This discussion isn't over," I warned him when we parted
to gasp for air.

"Okay." He covered my mouth again, pinning my arms over my 
head.

My body began to respond immediately to him. My hips moved 
purposefully against his growing erection.

"God, if this is punishment, Mulder," I panted when our lips 
parted again.

"Give you any ideas? he grinned down at me.

"It gives me more ideas than I can count," my chest was heaving.
"None of them, however, are related to your punishment."

"A boy can always hope," his eyes had darkened dramatically.

"And this won't change your punishment in the least," I pressed
my hips against him. "But we can worry about that later."

"I'll do whatever you want, Scully," he slipped his hand under my
blouse and began to squeeze my breast through my bra. "But right
now, I'm not finished punishing you."

The roughness in his voice made me shiver in anticipation. I was
helpless to do anything, with my hands pinned. "Let me have my
hands. I want to touch you."

"Nuh uh," he shook his head. "That's your punishment."

Taking his free hand out from under my shirt, he began to slowly
unbutton it. His eyes were fixed on mine; watching my reactions.

"Do you want to touch me, Scully?" He was running his hand
roughly over my breast.

"Mulder," I whined, tugging at my hands. I did want to touch him;
his face, his chest, his ass.

"Do you?" he asked as he pushed my bra out of his way.

"Yes," I panted, trying to wiggle free.

"None of that," he tightened his grip. "If you fight your 
punishment, I'll have to punish you again." He bent his mouth
to my nipple, making my head swim.

"Is that supposed to be a deterrent?" I breathed.

Mulder chuckled against my breast. He ran his teeth over my 
nipple before lifting his head. "Only if you want it to be."
His smoky voice made me shudder again. 

Part of me wanted to lie there quietly and take my punishment,
but most of me wanted to make sure this happened again. And 
again.

"Really, Mulder, I want to touch you. I want to feel your
ass. Please," I worded my protest carefully. I didn't want him
to think I was serious.

"Shh," he warned me before sucking a nipple back into his mouth.

"Oh God," I arched my back.

Mulder's hand was now working at my pants. He had to move his 
weight off of me to get them off. I took the opportunity to try
to wriggle free. 

"Stay still," Mulder chastised me.

I couldn't help giggling as I scooted backwards on the bed.

"I said stay still," Mulder's voice was gravelly.

When I felt his hand on my hip, I thought he was going to hold me
down. Instead I felt the elastic of my panties digging into me. I
froze when I heard the sound of fabric ripping. I should have 
been angry, but I was feeling something entirely different. My
clit was throbbing and I could feel the dampness of what was left
of my panties against my thigh. I was loving this -- thrilled 
with our game. 

When I looked up, Mulder's eyes were waiting -- waiting to see 
my reaction. I wanted him to know it was okay, that I loved to
feel this level of passion from him. It only barely occurred to
me that not ten minutes ago I'd been reading him the riot act.

Letting my eyes smile at him, I squirmed again. Mulder's eyes 
reacted by becoming even darker. 

"Will this keep you still?" he put his hand between my legs.

"No," I moaned pressing against his palm.

"Jesus, you're wet," his voice seemed to quake.

I moaned again, this time in displeasure when he took his hand 
away. I tried to lift my head to see what he was doing, but with
my arms pinned, I couldn't raise my head high enough to see 
anything. Within seconds, Mulder was on top of me again. I
groaned when I felt him sliding into me. His mouth covered mine
again and he kissed me fiercely, tugging at my lips with his 
teeth.

I didn't do as I was told. I didn't keep still. Instead, I put my
legs around his hips and moved with him as best I could. My arms
may have been immobilized, but my hips moved freely, meeting his
with every thrust. When our bodies met, something felt different.
A surge of heat shot through me when I realized that Mulder was 
still wearing his pants. I groaned into his mouth and then kissed
him back, matching his fervor. It wasn't long before we needed 
to breathe. 

"Scully," Mulder panted into my ear. "Love you." I felt his grip
loosen on my wrists. "Love you so much."

"Yes," I was breathing hard. "Yes, Mulder."

The friction of his pants against my clit was more than I could
bear. My muscles tensed and I pressed myself against him as my
clit pulsed. My body quaked and I murmured his name over and 
over. Through the haze of my climax I felt him tense and his 
cock throbbed inside of me. I wasn't expecting what I heard 
next -- Mulder's shaky voice in my ear. 

"I'm sorry, Scully. I'm so sorry."

"Shh, Mulder," I stroked his head with my now free hands. 

"I was so scared," he rolled over and pulled me with him, holding
me tightly.

"It's okay, Mulder," I assured him. "I like seeing that passion.
I know it was a game."

"No," he shook his head. "Before when you were angry. I've never
been that scared before."

"Scared of what?" I was at a loss.

"That I'd messed up really badly -- that you wouldn't forgive 
me," he was trembling.

"Oh, Mulder," I kissed him softly. "Yes, I was mad, but couples
have fights, Mulder. That's all it was."

"God, Scully," he squeezed me again.

"And I've forgiven you. But I'm still working on a really good
punishment," I chuckled. "Not like what you did. That was fun."

"I noticed that you seemed to enjoy it," he finally smiled.

"One thing confuses me, Mulder," I cupped his face. "If you were
so scared, why that game?"

"Adrenaline?" he shrugged. "I dunno, I guess I wanted to see how
you'd react. If you responded, everything would be okay. If you
didn't, if you asked me to stop, it would have been bad. Does
that make sense?"

"For you? Yeah," I chuckled. 

"So..." his hands came to rest on my ass. "I was expecting you
to ask me to stop."

"Because of the fight? I thought we'd pretty much resolved it,
except for --"

"Yeah, yeah, my punishment," he interrupted me. "You're enjoying
this, aren't you?"

"More than you know," I chuckled. "So why did you think I'd stop
you?"

"Well, we've never done anything like that before," he sounded a
little awkward.

"Like what? Make mad passionate love?" I laughed. "We do that all
the time." 

"Yeah, we do, don't we?" he grinned and squirmed happily 
underneath me.

"So what did you mean, then? I kissed his chin.

"You didn't think I was a little, I dunno, aggressive?"

"You didn't hurt me, if that's what you're asking," I kissed
his cleft. I loved that cleft. I loved how you couldn't always
see it. It was more visible when he had a five o'clock shadow.
I kissed it again.

"But the way I pinned your arms and ripped your panties?" 

I was surprised he sounded so unsure. I'd obviously enjoyed it.
"If I hadn't wanted you do to that, Mulder, you would have 
known."

"But you'd just chewed me a new one and --"

"I think just like you needed to make sure, I needed to be sure 
too. Isn't that what make up sex is all about? Being sure. You
want to be sure the other person still loves you."

"Yeah," he grinned. "So I should be aggressive more often?"

"Not all the time," I chuckled. "I still like it when we make
love slowly -- when we have the time to enjoy each other."

"I'm sorry I didn't let you enjoy me," his eyes filled with 
sorrow.

"No, Mulder," I kissed him quickly. "That's not what I meant. 
Tonight was perfect just what I needed --what we needed. But
sometimes I need to enjoy you."

"I'm enjoying this," he reached up to caress my cheek.

"So am I," I whispered and stretched to reach his lips. I 
enjoyed his lips, his cheeks, his eyelids and his cleft, again.
He helped me remove his clothes, so I could enjoy more of him.
Then I enjoyed his neck and the way his pulse felt against my 
lips. I enjoyed his chest and the way his nipple hardened against
my tongue.

I was enjoying his navel when I noticed that his breathing had
changed. I looked up to find him sleeping. I laid my head on his
belly and smiled. 

"C'mon, Mulder," I shook him gently. "Let's get under the
covers."

"Wha --?" he opened one eye. "Sorry, Scully."

"Sorry for what?" I gave him my hand to help him up.

"Falling asleep on you," he let me help him up.

"I think I was on you," I chuckled.

"Yeah, but --"

"But you were relaxed," I pointed out. "That's a good thing. Now
get into bed," I swatted his ass.

"Okay," he sighed sleepily and pulled the covers back. He crawled
into bed and watched as I removed what was left of my clothing. 
The panties went into the trash. His brow furrowed when I pulled
on my housecoat. "Where are you going?"

"To put the dog out. He's probably bursting," I chuckled.

"No, you come to bed. I'll put Guinness out," Mulder threw the 
covers back. 

"It's okay," I smiled.

"Bed," he pointed and began to walk toward the door.

"Planning on giving the neighbors a show?" I asked as I took my
robe off again.

"Huh?"

"How about at least a pair of boxers?" I laughed.

"Oh right," he turned around.

I was safely snuggled into bed when Mulder came back. His body 
was cool from the night air and he shivered a little when he 
slid into bed.

"Guinness followed me up the stairs," he informed me as he pulled
my warm body against is.

"Trying to get in here, was he?" I smiled against Mulder's chest.

"Actually," Mulder stroked my hair. "He's sleeping in front of
Jordan's door."

"Aww, what a sweetie."

"Are you admitting that getting a dog was a good idea," he
chuckled into my hair.

"I never said it was a bad idea, Mulder. You just should've asked
me first," I reminded him.

"You know what?" his voice was getting sleepy.

"What?"

"Maybe we should make love laying across the bed like that more
often. We probably didn't keep Andrew up."

"Do you really think Andrew could hear us?" I blushed at the
thought.

"Well, he was sleeping with his pillow over his head," Mulder's
voice had become very drowsy again.

"Brent was right," I murmured. "It's no wonder Andrew was in 
such a hurry to move out."

In the morning, Mulder and I both woke early. Andrew must have 
been as quiet as a mouse when he left, because neither Mulder nor
I heard him go. We were so used to waking at six, that our bodies
began to surface of their own accord. Since it was a Saturday, we
had the luxury of time. Megan was still sleeping soundly and 
Jordan probably wouldn't get up until after seven.

We didn't move from the position we'd woken in. It was a position
that remained one of our favorites. I loved that we had the time
to enjoy it, because I knew, once the children woke, we'd have
no time to enjoy each other this way until they were in bed again
for the night. 

We were still in the same position, spooned closely together, 
talking softly, when I heard Megan start to wake. It had been a
while since we'd had the chance to make love in the morning.
On weekdays there was never enough time, and last weekend I'd
been feeling ill. In the last couple of days my morning sickness
had started to abate and I was very grateful. I got the 
impression that Mulder was too.

"I'll get her," he murmured into my ear and then kissed it 
softly.

"Okay, but let me make breakfast after I have a quick shower,"
I turned in his arms to return his kiss.

"Meet you in the kitchen," he waggled his eyebrows.

Since weekday morning breakfasts usually consisted of cereal and
toast, I decided to make pancakes; Jordan's favorite. He whooped
from the top of the stairs when he smelled them.

"Pancakes," he hollered when he ran into the kitchen, making
Megan drop her spoon in surprise. She was busily eating some
applesauce while she waited for the pancakes.

"They're almost ready," I assured him.

"Goody," he plunked himself down at the table and took a big swig
of his orange juice, then wiped his mouth the back of his hand.

"Napkin, Jordan," Mulder reminded him, without seeming to look
up from his paper.

"Sorry," he picked up his napkin and wiped his now dry mouth.

"Did you have plans for today, Scully?" Mulder looked at me over
his paper.

"Yeah, both of the kids need winter coats and boots. I was 
planning to go to the mall early, before it gets busy," I
smiled as I put two pancakes onto Jordan's plate.

"Boots? For Megan?" he looked puzzled.

"Well, she is starting to walk," I pointed out.

"True," he shrugged. "So when are we going?"

"Oh, you don't have to come, Mulder," I laughed as I helped 
Jordan put syrup on his pancakes. "You'd be bored to tears."

"I wouldn't want to abdicate my duties as father," he winked at
me. 

"No, really, Mulder," I assured him.

"I want to come, okay?" he sounded defensive.

"Sure, fine, whatever," I rolled my eyes.

So Mulder played the dutiful father for two hours at JC Penny's.
Every time he caught me looking at him, he'd paste a smile on his
face, but more often than not he looked like he was enduring some
form of slow medieval torture. By the time we were ready to 
leave, the mall was swarming with people. I'm sure the expression
on my face closely matched Mulder's.

"I'm almost afraid to ask this, Scully," Mulder began when we 
were all buckled into the van. "But did you have plans for this
afternoon?"

"No," I managed, once I'd stopped laughing. "And you didn't have
to come."

"I promised you that I'd participate," he reminded me.

"That doesn't mean that you have to come to the mall every time I
go," I shook my head.

"I know," he reached and squeezed my thigh. "But I don't get
much time with them."

"We have all weekend, you could have taken some time for 
yourself. I know I'm planning to," I patted his hand. 

"Yeah?" his eyes started to shine. "Because I wouldn't mind 
spending some time--" he paused for dramatic effect, "Online."

"Are you still cruising the chat rooms, Mulder?" I tried to
sound disapproving.

"Only the paranormal ones," he assured me.

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" I shook my head.

So while the kids slept and Mulder did -- whatever, I settled 
down on the couch with the latest Patricia Cornwell novel. If
Mulder could spend his free time tracking down people in the
Twilight Zone, I could read a book about a crime solving 
pathologist. I was about five chapters in when the phone 
startled me.

"I'll get it," Mulder called from the den.

I'd just become completely absorbed again when Mulder walked
into the living room. All the color had left his face.

"What's the matter?" I jumped up.

"That was Andrew's grandmother," his voice was muted. "She 
was wondering where he was."

"He never got there?" The hairs on the back of my neck stood 
up.

"Leigh," Mulder and I whispered in concert.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Arlington, VA
October 7, 2000
14:40

Only fractions of a second after we'd both said Leigh's name, 
Mulder and I spoke at the same time again. I told him that I 
would call Skinner as he said he'd call Detective Murrilo. 

"Agent Guernsey is missing," I told Skinner breathlessly as soon 
as he picked up the phone. "His car is gone, but he didn't make it 
to Old Greenwich."

"You and Mulder stay put," he said firmly. "I'll get the APB out on 
Agent Guernsey's vehicle and then I'll assemble a team. Do you 
know what airline he was on? I know we're assuming that 
something happened on this end, but we should find out if he 
made that flight."

"I don't, sir. I never thought to ask," I admitted.

 "We can find out easily enough." He didn't belabor the point. "I'll 
be out there as soon as I can." Skinner hung up without saying 
good-bye.

"Murrilo's on his way," Mulder nodded at me after I'd replaced 
the handset. He'd been on his cell.

"Skinner, too," I told him. Every inch of me wanted to be doing 
more. I hated just waiting.

"They already know she's not at home," Mulder was thinking 
aloud. Leigh's apartment had been under surveillance since 
Wednesday. She hadn't gone back. "Where would she go?"

"What I want to know is how did she get control of him?" My 
mind had gone a different way. I'd always felt that difference is 
what made our partnership so successful. "None of the alarms 
were triggered. She couldn't have overpowered him. She's not 
that big."

"She has a gun." Our eyes met as we spoke in unison.

"I'm gonna get the Gunmen over here," Mulder pulled his phone 
back out. "We're gonna need more surveillance than we 
thought."

He didn't spend much time on the phone. The Gunmen had 
apparently agreed to come over immediately. Even though he 
hadn't been long, I still paced back and forth with Guinness at my 
heel the entire time. 

"C'mere." He held his arms open to me as soon as his cell phone 
was away again.

Despite the fact that I normally enjoy being in Mulder's arms, his 
embrace didn't make me feel any better. I laid my head against 
his chest with a sigh.

"Why don't we see if we can find out anything more about 
Leigh?" I suggested, my voice muffled by his shirt.

"Feeling like you should be doing something?" He pressed a kiss 
against the top of my head.

"I've never liked feeling helpless," I nodded against his chest.

"Do you want to look around outside?" His eyes met mine as I 
stepped out of his hug.

"We didn't notice anything this morning," I shook my head. "If 
there's anything there, it'll be trace and we shouldn't disturb it."

"True," he nodded pensively. "So you want to see if we can find 
anything else out about her?"  His mouth twitched as he 
thought. I could tell the waiting was bothering him as much as it 
was me.  "Maybe there's something in the case file that no one 
else noticed." He put his hand on my lower back to usher me into 
the study.

"Just let me grab the monitor," I nodded toward the coffee 
table. "What about my mother?" I stopped short.

"What about her?" Mulder looked puzzled.

"Should I call her and tell her to stay home?" I looked at my 
watch. It was 2:45. "She's probably already on her way." I 
dragged my bottom lip between my teeth.

"With Skinner, Murrilo and the Gunmen all here, I think we'll 
need your mom's help with the kids," he pointed out.

"I guess." I shook my head with a sigh.

"What?" He was looking puzzled again.

"I hate having to ask for her help again, Mulder." 

"Scully." He pulled me close once more. "Asking for help doesn't 
make you weak. It takes a strong person to admit that they need 
help." He hugged me tightly. "And I get the feeling that your 
mother really likes being able to help."

I couldn't remember my mother needing any help with four kids 
and a husband who was away for extended periods of time. She 
was, however, fond of pointing out that I had a selective 
memory, so maybe she was getting help that I couldn't recall. 
Regardless of whether or not she'd had help, this was not the 
time to be worrying about my parenting abilities.

"You're right," I sighed.

"I love it when you say that," he smiled and kissed my forehead. 
"Grab the monitor and then we'll see what we can dig up on 
Leigh."

By the time Murrilo arrived we had compiled a list of names and 
addresses that would be a good jumping off point for the 
investigation. We had her parents' address and phone number in 
Boston and the name of her prep school. We also had her college 
roommate, a professor from Harvard and a former employer all 
of whom she'd used as references for her background check 
when she applied to the D.C. field office. Beyond that, we had a 
list of former addresses that went back to her college years.

Mulder and I were talking to Murrilo about the best way to divvy 
up the list when a loud commotion erupted at the front door. 
Murrilo was startled momentarily and put his hand to his holster.

"That's my mother-in-law and some friends of mine, Tony." 
Mulder put a hand on his arm.

"Friends of yours?" Murrilo raised his eyebrows. "Are these the 
whack jobs Coleman told me about?"

"One and the same," Mulder chuckled.

Leaving Murrilo and Mulder in the study, I went to the foyer. I 
thought I would have to let my mother know what was going on, 
but after she'd shown her ID to an officer outside, he filled her 
in. The Gunmen had shown up right behind her, and this officer 
didn't like their looks either, but my mother had vouched for 
them. She'd been shocked to hear that Andrew was missing and  
immediately jumped to the same conclusion we had. The 
Gunmen seemed to have other concerns.

"What's with these Arlington cops?" Frohike griped.

"They're just doing their jobs, Melvin." My mother tried to 
console him.

"Yes, ma'am," he mumbled.

"Shall I make you boys something to eat?" She tried a different 
tack.

"Yes, ma'am!" His eyes lit up.

I began to follow my mother to the kitchen so I could ask her if 
she would help with Jordan and Megan, but she stopped me.

"Go," she nodded toward the study. "I can get the food," she 
smiled at me. "And don't worry about the children. I'll keep them 
busy."

"Thank you, mom," I threw my arms around her. 

"It's no trouble," she sounded confused as she rubbed my back.

I was trying to think of how to explain to her the emotional tug-
of-war I was experiencing when Mulder walked out of the study 
with the monitor.

"Megan's up," he put the monitor on the coffee table and 
headed toward the stairs.

"I'll get her," my mother and I both spoke at the same time.

"You get the food," I quieted her argument before she could 
make it. "I want to spend a little bit of time with both of them 
once Jordan is up too," I explained. "And you," I turned to 
Mulder, "need to keep the Gunmen and Murrilo apart."

"They were circling each other when I left," he chuckled.

"Were they about to start sniffing each other's butts?" I rolled 
my eyes.

Jordan's door was still closed when I went upstairs so I went 
straight to Megan's room. She'd pulled herself up in the crib and 
graced me with a big smile as soon as she saw me. While Jordan 
still remembered his parents, Mulder and I were the only 
parents Megan would ever know. Realizing she would never 
have to face the turmoil Jordan had gone through was a small 
source of comfort to me.

"Ma ma ma." She held her arms up to me.

I couldn't resist hugging her tightly when I picked her up. Even 
though I loved Megan and Jordan equally, my bond with Megan 
was definitely stronger. It had formed almost instantly. My 
connection with Jordan had been tenuous, initially. Mulder's was 
stronger, obviously, because he'd already known Jordan. In the 
past four months my tie to Jordan had strengthened and I knew 
with time it would be just as strong as the attachment I had to his 
sister. 

While Megan would never experience the same sense of loss 
that Jordan had, I wondered if some part of her psyche had still 
been damaged. While Mulder never specialized in child 
psychology, at least he would know what to look for. I hoped we 
wouldn't end up adding any more turmoil to her life. It seemed 
to follow Mulder and me wherever we went. 

Mulder's childhood had been wracked with chaos, confusion, 
insecurity and loss. It left him deeply scarred.  While my young 
life may have seemed tumultuous to some, I'd been very happy. 
I'd been blessed with something Mulder hadn't; loving parents 
who did everything in their power to make up for our pillar to 
post lifestyle. It seemed to me that Mulder's parents were never 
able to see beyond their own loss in order to try to help their son 
with his. Mulder hadn't just lost his sister that day. He'd lost his 
entire family, his childhood, his innocence and his ability to 
trust. He'd lost his ability to form a meaningful connection with 
anyone.  

I'd realized all of this very early in our partnership. While Mulder 
always maintained that he trusted me, I'd felt like I was on 
probation. He was always waiting for me to let him down. After 
baring his soul to me, he'd waited for me rip it out and tear it to 
shreds like everyone else in his life. 

 I'm not exactly sure when the probation period ended. I suspect 
it had been over before he asked me to marry him, but by his 
putting all his faith in me to help him raise Megan and Jordan, he 
told me that his trust in me was complete and irrevocable. His 
soul was more exposed than it had ever been, but also never 
more intact. I knew I'd never be able to replace what had been 
taken from him. I hoped together we would be able to build a 
loving, stable home for Jordan, Megan and our own child and 
through this, restore some of what others had ripped away.

A small part of me regretted inviting Andrew into our home 
because he'd unwitting brought with him this unstable, vindictive 
woman. I felt guilty for even thinking that way and I would never 
tell a soul. It wasn't his fault, and given the same situation in 
the future, I would probably make the same choices. I couldn't 
help it. My mother had raised me to help out when I could. 
Despite what Mulder thought, I wasn't gifted with foresight. I 
could only pray that we would be able to find Andrew quickly 
and have Leigh put away for a very long time. Then we would be 
able to return to the normal mayhem that was our everyday life. 

I wanted to keep Megan and Jordan as insulated from what was 
going on as I could. Having law enforcement swarming around 
in and out of the house would make that difficult. I knew 
Jordan would be curious, so I would have to prepare him.

While I'd been thinking, Megan had been playing with my 
necklace. She often did while I was holding her and I found it 
strangely soothing.

"Let's get you changed." I smiled at her as I lay her down on the 
changing table. All I had to do was give her a little tickle and she 
released her grip on my cross.

When I was done, I picked Megan up and headed to the 
bathroom to wash my hands. I found Jordan standing just 
outside Megan's door, looking a little apprehensive.

"Come with me while I wash my hands and then we'll talk. 
Okay?" I smiled at him.

"Okay." He nodded, following me closely.

It had taken me a while to get used to having children in the 
bathroom with me, but now I barely gave it a second thought. 
When I was done I took him by the hand and led him back to 
Megan's room. After closing the door, I set her down with a 
stacking toy and then sat in the rocking chair.

"Come and sit on my lap." I patted my knee. He scrambled up 
quickly. "You heard a lot of voices downstairs, didn't you?" I 
asked as he snuggled against me.

"Yeah." he nodded.

"There are a lot of police officers here, but there is nothing for 
you to worry about. Okay?" I kept my voice low and calm. I didn't 
want to alarm him.

"Did that bad lady come back?" His eyes were wide. My 
assurances obviously hadn't worked.

"No, Jordan, she didn't." I hugged him. "They're here because 
Andrew got lost." I tried to put it in a way that wouldn't frighten 
him.

"He got lost?" Jordan sounded surprised. "I didn't know that 
grown-ups got lost." He sounded surprised.

"Not very often, but sometimes they do." I was glad I didn't have 
to elaborate. "But the police are helping us find him." I smiled.

"Why doesn't daddy just find him?" Jordan looked puzzled.

"We'll find him faster if we have help," I explained. "But your dad 
and I are looking for him, too."

"But you're here." He was still confused. "How can you be 
looking for him?"

"We're using the computer," was all I could think to say. 

"Okay," he nodded, happy with my explanation. "Can I help, 
too?"

"Right now the best thing you can do is let daddy and the other 
men do their work. I know you'd rather be doing something, but 
daddy is very good at his job, so we should let him work. Okay?"

"Okay." He smiled and slid off of my lap. "Mommy?" He stopped 
and turned around.

"Yes, Jordan?" I began to stand up.

"Could you or Daddy get lost?" 

I hadn't anticipated this question. I didn't want to lie to him, 
but I needed to put his mind to rest. 

"No, Jordan," I shook my head. "Mommy and daddy are older 
than Andrew. We don't get lost anymore," I ruffled his hair. 
"Grandma's in the kitchen. Why don't you go and see her?"

Leaving Megan and Jordan in my mother's capable hands, I went 
to check in with Mulder. Skinner had arrived in my absence and 
he, Murrilo, Mulder and the Gunmen were all gathered around 
the computer monitor.

"Well, that confirms it." Skinner shook his head. "Now we just 
have to figure out where she took him," he said as he 
straightened up. "Agent Scully." He lifted his chin toward me.

"What did you find?" I was somewhat disappointed that I'd 
missed something. I was sure, however, that I'd been right to 
spend a little bit of time with the kids. I couldn't help wondering 
how some women managed to hold down full-time jobs and 
look after a family. How did they handle the guilt? How was I 
going to manage with three kids, not to mention that two of 
them would be in diapers? 

"The Gunmen installed cameras here on Wednesday," Mulder 
stood up.

"Oh." I was surprised. We hadn't discussed using cameras, but it 
didn't seem like the time to point that out."And?"

"And one of the cameras caught Leigh crawling into Andrew's car 
at about 3 this morning," Mulder informed me.

I shuddered at the thought of her being so close to our house 
again.

"I should've had someone on the house." Murrilo shook his 
head.

"It didn't occur to anyone that she'd go this far." I pointed out. 
"And I know you'd increased patrols, so she must have been on 
the lookout for them, or she was incredibly lucky."

"I want her luck to run out." Skinner's eyes narrowed behind his 
wire-rimmed glasses.

"I'll get onto the Boston field office and get them out to Leigh's 
parents' place," Mulder nodded.

"I think that request would be better coming from me, Mulder," 
Skinner interjected.

"I'll call Andrew's family and let them know what's going on," I 
told the room. "I assume he didn't make the flight." I looked at 
Skinner. 

"No, he never checked in. There are no reports of accidents 
involving his vehicle, nothing at any of the local hospitals," he 
shook his head.

"I'll also see if they might have any insights on Leigh," I added.

"Anything on the car yet?" Mulder looked at Murrilo.

"Nothing." Murrilo's voice was tight. "And now we know she had 
about a ten hour head start on us. She could have taken him 
anywhere."

"I checked her phone records." Mulder was staring past me. 
"She didn't call anyone besides Andrew and us; no girlfriends, no 
calls to her parents, she didn't even order take-out.  Her parents 
won't know anything. I doubt she'll be going there." His eyes 
focussed again and he turned to Murrilo. "I want someone on 
this house."

"Why?" I was surprised. Leigh had what she wanted.

"And I don't want you going anywhere by yourself, Scully." He 
ignored my question. "You or the kids. In fact, I want you to stay 
here until we catch her."

"Why, Mulder?" I was shocked to see fear in his eyes. "What is 
it?"

"In Leigh's mind, you're as much to blame for Andrew leaving her 
as he is." He stepped toward me and put his hand on my arm. . 
"She's already made that perfectly clear. She's obsessed, Scully," 
"She'll want you and Andrew both to pay."

The room went silent. All eyes were on me. I didn't want to think 
it could be true, but I trusted Mulder's instincts one hundred 
percent.

"Okay." I nodded. 

The Gunmen  heaved a sigh of relief when I consented. 

"I thought she was gonna kick his ass," Frohike said to no one in 
particular.

"You think she's still in the area?" Murrilo didn't sound 
convinced.

"I know she is," Mulder told him almost absently. "We know 
she's not at her apartment, so where is she?" He looked at 
Skinner. "Where would she take him?"

Skinner's jaw muscle bunched and unbunched as he thought. He 
shook his head and opened the file he was holding. I was about 
to go into the living room to call Andrew's family when Murrilo's 
phone rang.

"What?" He barked when he answered it. "Where?" He listened 
carefully.   "Have them tow it to impound."

The tension in the room was palpable as we waited for him to 
get off the phone.

"Patrol noticed a rental parked around the corner, on Bellwood. 
The rental agency says it's rented to a Jessica Hurst, Boston 
address, but the description sounds like our wing nut." He filled 
us in. "Boys are on their way over there right now with a 
picture."

"Fingerprints will confirm it." Skinner looked happy that we had 
something else to work with.

"I'll look into this alias," Mulder announced, but he was still 
looking at me. "Are you okay, Scully?" He lowered his voice to 
ask. 

"I'm fine." I nodded. His eyebrows furrowed at my words. 
"Really, Mulder," I promised him as I put my hand lightly on his 
chest. "Yes, the thought that she might be coming back here 
scares me, but I know this is the safest place for us to be."  

I was surprised to feel his body relax at my words. His face 
softened and he put his hand on top of mine. "I'll make sure 
we're fine," His eyes were locked on mine. "I'll make sure we're 
all fine."

If every pair of eyes in the room hadn't been focussed on us, I 
would've kissed him and told him how much I love him. Instead, I 
just nodded again. "I know you will," I told him softly and turned 
to leave. He was still holding my hand and kept holding it until I 
was too far away. If I'd turned back to look at him, I would've 
started to cry.

I went to the kitchen briefly to tell my mother to keep the kids 
inside and to get Mulder if the dog needed to go outside. I could 
tell I'd alarmed her, but she said nothing in front of the children.

"After I take these sandwiches to the study, we're going to make 
cookies, aren't we Jordan?" She kept her tone light.

"Chocolate chip!" He clapped his hands.

"And you're staying to settle him down later?" I raised an 
eyebrow at her.

"It's Saturday." She smiled. "I always stay to read to Jordan."

"I think Grandma should stay over tonight." I looked into my 
mother's eyes and nodded. "What do you think, Jordan?"

"Can you, Grandma?" He turned to her. "Please?"

"Okay, Jordan, if you want me to."

I could tell she wanted to ask me what was going on, but it would 
be a while until we'd have a chance to talk.

While I was on the phone with Andrew's family my mother took 
the promised food into the study. She had a platter in one hand 
and was holding Megan on her hip with the other. Jordan had 
peeked out of the kitchen to look at me, but all it took was a 
slight shake of my head to send him back inside.

Murrilo emerged from the study shortly after my mother 
returned to the kitchen, disappeared for a few minutes and then 
came back with a radio. After taking it to the study he left a few 
minutes later carrying a sandwich and then gave me a nod 
before heading to the door.  I was on the phone for a good forty-
five minutes. Andrew's grandmother, mother, father and older 
brother all wanted to talk to me. By the time I finally hung up, 
Skinner was getting ready to leave.

"Did you learn anything?" Skinner asked when he saw that I was 
off the phone.

"No." I sighed. "They know almost nothing about her. They told 
me various things that made them all suspect she wasn't quite 
right, but none of it is helpful. They don't think she had any 
property, or the money to buy any. Every one of them said the 
only reason she was with Andrew was because of the family 
money and the status."

"Yeah, he mentioned she wasn't thrilled that he'd joined the 
Bureau." Mulder nodded, chewing on his cheek. "He let her 
down in more ways than one."

"Okay, we're outta here." Langly appeared from behind Skinner. 

"We're going to set the cameras up on a direct feed and we'll 
have a watch schedule," Byers informed us.

"Where is everyone going?" My mother opened the kitchen 
door. "I just made a batch of cookies."

She was swarmed instantly. 

"Thank you, Mrs. Scully." Byers smiled at her.

"Ya, thanks," Frohike said through a mouthful of cookie.

"Mmm." Langly bobbed his head.

Mulder walked them to the door while my mother talked 
Skinner into taking a cookie.

"Okay, I'm going to head back downtown. We'll be running this 
investigation from there," Skinner let me know once my mother 
was gone.

"When do you think you'll be back?" I asked Mulder as he walked 
back toward us.

"I'm not going." He shook his head.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "What do you mean you're 
not going?" 

"I'm staying here," he said and then looked back to Skinner. 
"You'll keep me updated?"

"As soon as we have anything." Skinner nodded.

"Mulder." I let him know with my tone that I didn't agree with 
what he was doing.

He shook his head slightly, but didn't meet my eyes. "I'll let you 
know if I find anything more about Jessica Hurst." He nodded to 
our boss.

I pressed my lips tightly together and waited until Mulder closed 
and locked the door again. I drew a breath to argue with him, but 
he spoke first.

"I'm not going, Scully. I am not going to be that man," he shook 
his head. "I'm not going to be that husband. I'm not going to be 
that father, the one who puts his job above his family." He 
stepped closer to me and put his arms around me.

I knew at that moment he wasn't speaking generically.

"This isn't just any case, Scully. This directly involves my family 
and I'm staying here. This is where I'm needed most."

As he spoke I felt tears filling my eyes. "I love you." I put my 
arms around his neck.

"How could you think that I would leave you when I know she's 
coming after you next?" His eyes were filled with sorrow.

"Please don't look at me like that." I felt the tears starting to 
spill onto my cheeks. "I was thinking about you as an agent, not 
my husband." My voice was shaking. "I was focussed on the case. I 
know you are Andrew's best hope."

"I'll do everything I can from here, but I won't be my father, 
Scully," he repeated, shaking his head. "I made a promise to you 
and I intend to keep it. Four months ago my priorities changed. "

"I'm sorry, Mulder." I looked up at him, trying to see what his 
eyes were telling me.

Relief washed over me when his arms tightened around me. "I'm 
so sorry." I breathed. I was surprised to feel him crumpling to the 
floor, bringing me with him.

"I would never leave you." He buried his face in my shoulder.  
"Never."

"I know, Mulder." I lifted his head up. "I wasn't thinking." I 
kissed him softly. "I know." I kissed him again. I ran my tongue 
gently between his lips. I needed to know if he would let me in. 
My stomach flip-flopped when he opened his mouth to me. I melted 
against him when his tongue gently swept over mine. I knew I 
was forgiven but I still murmured "I'm sorry," every time we 
parted for air.

"Oh." I heard my mother's voice. She sounded startled. "I'm 
sorry. Jordan needs to use the bathroom."

"It's okay." I had no idea how long we'd been sitting in a tangled 
heap in the middle of the living room, just kissing. 

I found it a little amusing that Jordan didn't even question what 
we were doing. Mulder took some time to play with the kids in 
the living room, while my mother and I cooked supper, finally 
giving me a chance to let her know what was happening. 

Our evening basically followed our usual Saturday pattern, 
except that Mulder spent most of his time in the study working 
on the case. I popped in to help him whenever I could. By the 
children's bedtime, all we'd learned was that Jessica Hurst had 
gone to Glen Warren Preparatory with Leigh Neilson. Agents 
from the Boston field office were still trying to get in touch with 
her. 

Mulder left the study to kiss the kids goodnight, and once they 
were settled, we spent the rest of the evening delving deeper 
into Leigh's background. Nothing we found, however, gave us 
any indication of where she might have taken Andrew.

At 11 o'clock Mulder sent me up to bed, promising to follow 
soon. I hadn't actually expected him to, so I was surprised when 
he slid into bed with me fifteen minutes later. 

I was so exhausted, I was sure I would fall asleep quickly, but my 
body reacted to Mulder immediately. He'd done nothing. It was 
the warmth of his body, the scent of his skin, and his slow 
release of breath as he settled in beside me. It only took a quiet 
'c'mere' from me to let him know what I wanted. 

We made love more tenderly than I could ever remember. We 
kissed and caressed each other while we professed our love 
again and again. My climax triggered his and we shook together 
in long shuddering waves and then I fell asleep in the security of 
his arms.

At 2:53 a.m. my blissful sleep was shattered.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Arlington, VA
October 8, 2000
2:53 am

The first sound I heard was the trill of Mulder's cell phone. Before
I had the chance to get annoyed at being woken out of a sound 
sleep, the two way radio began to crackle. Then I really was 
annoyed, mostly because Mulder had to release his hold on me to 
deal with the disturbance. At the sound of the first gunshot, we sat 
up. The dog started barking furiously nearby. My mother must have 
brought him into her room.  Mulder was reaching for the light and I 
had just opened my mouth to ask him what the hell was going on 
when three more shots rang out.

Mulder's cell continued to ring and someone shouted his name over 
the radio. Even though Megan had been sleeping through the night, 
I still kept the monitor on my bedside table.  It, too, crackled 
as she began to cry.  I jumped out of the bed quickly, pulling on
my robe as Mulder finally picked up the radio.

"What the fuck is going on? Why are you shooting up my street in 
the middle of the night?"

"She had a gun, Agent Mulder," came the crackly response. "She 
fired on us."

I stopped my progress toward the door and spun around to face 
Mulder. My eyes flicked over to the baby monitor when I heard my 
mother's voice talking to Megan.

Mulder asked the cop in concern. "Are you hit?"

"No sir, but she is," the crackly voice told him. "She's down."

"Fuck." Mulder's voice was tight. "Is she still alive?"

Suddenly I could no longer stand the constant ringing of his cell 
phone. Scrambling across the bed, I snagged it from his nightstand. 
Mulder told the cop on the radio that he'd be right there.

I answered Mulder's phone. "Scully." 

"Holy shit!" I recognized Langly's voice immediately. "They shot 
her! I saw her sneaking up toward the house and I tried to call 
Mulder to warn him, but then all hell broke loose."

"Thanks, Langly. I'll get Mulder to call you when he gets a chance, 
but we're going to be busy for a while. Why don't you just get some 
sleep?" I suggested.

"Tell him to call if he needs anything." 

"I will. Goodnight Langly." I hung up the phone.

Mulder had pulled on jeans and a sweatshirt and was heading to 
the door by the time I put the phone down.

"Is she dead?" I asked as he began to open the door.

"Fuck, Scully, I hope not." He shook his head. By the time he turned 
his head back toward the door, it was fully open, revealing my 
mother standing just outside. She had Megan on her hip and Jordan 
by the hand.

"Sorry," Mulder murmured to my mother. "C'mere Jordan." He 
knelt down. Jordan stepped into his arms willingly.

"What was that noise, Daddy?"

"I'm just going to find out. You stay here with your mom and 
grandma. I won't be long." He gave Jordan a big squeeze.

"C'mon Jordan." I took his hand. "Let's get you back into bed. Daddy 
will make sure we're safe."

Jordan squeezed my hand as he watched Mulder walk downstairs. 
His eyes were filled with reverence. I knew exactly how he felt.

I stayed with Jordan until he fell back to sleep. My mother was just 
closing Megan's door when I emerged from Jordan's room. In silent 
agreement, we went downstairs. Even though the living room 
curtains were closed, I could see the lights of the emergency 
vehicles flashing.  I heard them arrive, but it had been at least 
fifteen minutes and I hadn't heard any sirens leaving. There could 
only be one reason for that.

"She's dead," I sighed as I we walked into the kitchen.

"Leigh?" My mother sounded surprised.

"She showed up with a gun and fired at the officers who were 
watching the house," I explained.

"But--" My mother's eyes widened in alarm.

I nodded. "I know. We'll find him." I turned toward the kitchen. 
"Let's make coffee."

"One small silver lining, at least, Dana," she remarked as she 
started to help me. "You and Fox can work together to find Andrew 
and not have to worry about the children's safety."

"I would've preferred to beat his location out of her." I didn't 
mask my anger.

My mother said nothing. Instead she filled the coffee pot while I 
retrieved the coffee.

Once the coffee was brewing we sat down at the kitchen table. I 
couldn't help wishing that Mulder would hurry up. I could've gone 
out to see what was going on, but what he was doing didn't take 
two people. I was still in my pajamas and I didn't want to leave my 
mom on her own, but my curiosity was driving me crazy.

"I've been thinking." My mother's voice interrupted my impatient 
thoughts.

"Mmm?" 

"After the children are up and we've had breakfast, why don't I take 
them for the day?"

There were a lot of very good reasons to take her up on her offer 
and only one bad one not to.

"It's perfect timing," she continued before I said anything. 
"Everyone at church has been pestering me to bring them and this 
way you can completely focus on finding Andrew."

"It is a good idea." I smiled and nodded. My only argument would 
be that I felt the need to keep them close, but I recognized that as 
an instinctive response, not a logical one.

"I could keep them overnight," she mused. "And Guinness too."

Mulder appeared in the doorway as she finished speaking. My need 
to know what had happened outside was suddenly dwarfed by not 
wanting to be separated from Megan and Jordan for so long, 
especially now.

"I don't know, Mom." I jumped up from the table and walked to the 
coffee maker. "Coffee?" I turned to Mulder.

"I think it's a good idea," he said softly as he began to close the 
distance between us. I knew he wasn't talking about the coffee. 
"The best thing we can do is not to make a big deal out of this. 
Spending the night with Grandma is a perfectly natural thing to do."

When he reached me he pulled me into his arms. My tears started 
to flow before I collapsed against him. I didn't even know why I was 
crying. It wasn't just about the kids. It wasn't even that a woman 
had been shot and killed in front of our house. It wasn't that we 
had no idea where to find Andrew and his life could be hanging in 
the balance. It was none of that, or maybe it was all of that. I 
was furious. I was frustrated and I was fed up. Those emotions 
always brought me to tears faster than sadness or grief.

Why couldn't we just be left alone to play house? Apparently when 
the usual cast of characters weren't hounding us there would be 
someone else to fill in the void.

"Don't worry, Scully." I felt him kiss the top of my head. 
"Everything will be back to normal soon."

"How do you always know what I'm thinking?" My question was 
muffled by his chest.

"Shh, I thought we weren't going to tell your mother about my 
telepathy."

I couldn't help chuckling. I loved that he could make me laugh at 
precisely the right moment. Maybe it was a kind of telepathy.

"I'm beginning to think this is normal for us."

He kissed the top of my head again. "We've been married for four 
and a half months and we've only had this one incident, Scully. I 
think that's pretty good," he chuckled.

"You seem to be in a good mood, considering..." I looked up at him.

"I am," he agreed. "She was carrying her fake ID and was probably 
staying in the area. The mileage on the rental should help to narrow 
down the search."

"You think she had a place set up before she snatched him?" I laid 
my head back against his chest.

"Yeah, she would've wanted to make preparations and she couldn't 
risk keeping him in the car while she found a place to stash him. 
This all would've been set up in advance."

"From what Andrew said, I don't think she had access to a lot of 
money, so she probably bought her supplies with a credit card in 
the name of her alias." I said the word 'supplies' with some 
trepidation. I didn't want to think about what she might have done 
to Andrew. 

"Do you think she hurt him?" My mother's voice surprised me. Not 
only was I lost in Mulder's embrace, my head was already in the 
case.

Neither Mulder nor I answered her question.

"Oh," she said quietly and stood up.  She had to walk the long way 
around the table to the coffee maker. We were blocking the direct 
route.

"I don't think he's hurt badly, Maggie," Mulder tried to assure her. 
"To Leigh, this was about making Andrew feel pain; the same pain 
he caused her. And that's where Dana came in. If Leigh had gotten 
hold of her, then it would've been bad." His arms tightened around 
me.

"Why?" I tilted my head at him. "I thought she wanted me to suffer 
just like Andrew."

"Dear God!" I heard my mother set the coffee pot down heavily on 
the counter.

"Yes and no," he said hesitantly. "She did want you to suffer, but 
you would've been a tool to her, as well."

"A tool?" Even after all of these years of working with Mulder, I 
still couldn't get into a killer's head the way he could. I didn't 
think that was necessarily a bad thing.

"Because she thought he had feelings for you. She would've hurt 
you to hurt him."

"So you think she hasn't hurt him that badly yet, because she 
wanted to hurt me first." I lay my head back on his chest.

"Yeah."

"I wonder why she came back here." I shook my head slightly 
against his chest. "Surely she knew we'd already be looking for 
him."

"Just because she's a sociopath, doesn't mean she's smart," he 
noted wryly.


We left my mother to drink her coffee while we showered and 
dressed.  Since the kids were still alseep, Mulder and I began our 
investigation. He was right; Leigh had left us a lot of information.
I didn't know if he was right about her not being smart. I thought 
her ego was her downfall.

While I contacted the company that issued the Jessica Hurst credit 
card that Leigh was carrying, Mulder left to get a couple of maps. 
By the time the kids woke, we had the maps pinned to the wall in 
the study and were marking where all of her purchases and cash 
advances were made.

My mother used her time to make a big breakfast. Mulder and I put 
our work aside and we all ate together as a family. Jordan was very 
excited to be going to Grandma's to sleep over and Megan was 
excited because Jordan was excited. I pretended to be happy about 
the whole thing, but I think I only managed to fool the children.  

Mulder took Jordan upstairs to pack bags for both of the kids. 
Megan was sitting in her highchair happily playing with a toy I 
suctioned to the tray.

"Dana." My mother interrupted my thoughts as I was putting the 
last dish into the dishwasher. "You mentioned a while ago that you 
and Fox were thinking about getting away for a mini honeymoon, 
remember? And you asked me if I would take the children."

"Yeah."

"Just think of this as a test run for you and for them."

I knew she was right, but the thought of being away from them 
overnight made me jumpy. It's why I never pursued the idea of a 
honeymoon. There didn't seem to be a minute to stop and plan 
anything. And it wasn't like things between Mulder and me were 
tense. We didn't need to get away. Sure, we'd had a couple of 
fights, but fewer than we used to before we were married. It was 
funny how we got under each other's skin less now that we made 
love on an almost daily basis. Perhaps our fights had been more 
about sexual frustration than anything else.

"Do you think I'm being foolish?" I met her eyes.

"Not at all, dear. I think Megan and Jordan filled a void in your 
soul. You've been through so much and so much has been taken away 
from you and then you had this gift given to you. I think deep in 
your heart you fear that they'll be taken away from you, just 
like –" She didn't finish her sentence. We both knew who she was 
talking about.

Mulder chose that moment to sweep into the kitchen to get 
Megan. "I'll get her dressed." He gave me a quick kiss before 
leaving again.

As soon as he was gone I felt tears beginning to well up.

"It'll get easier with time." My mother pulled me into her arms.

"It's not that, Mom," I sniffed. "I just love him so much." I choked 
out. "Even when he thought I didn't return his feelings, he wanted 
to give this to me because he knew how much I wanted it."

"What?" She stepped back from me.

I was so overwhelmed with emotion I forgot that she didn't know 
that tiny detail.

"Maybe we should sit down." I nodded toward the table.

My mother took a seat, saying nothing.

"You know when we told you that we'd been seeing each other and 
just hadn't told anyone?" I began.

"I remember." She nodded.

"That wasn't true." I let out a long slow breath.

"Are you saying you weren't in love with Fox when you married 
him?" 

I shook my head. "That's not what I'm saying at all. I loved him 
very much. I thought he didn't love me. I thought he asked me to 
marry him because of Megan and Jordan," I explained. "Well, that 
is why he asked me, but I thought that was the only reason. I 
thought he was giving up his hope at happiness for the kids. It 
made me love him even more."

"I don't understand, Dana, it was so obvious to me that he loved 
you very much." Her brow was furrowed.

"I can't explain it, Mom. We did love each other, we just didn't 
know at that point."

"When then?"

"About a week and a half after the wedding." I shrugged, blushing 
at the memory.

"A week and a half?" She narrowed her eyes. "But you called me a 
week later when Jordan –" 

"Mom," I cut her off. "Please don't ask me to share the intimate 
details."

We were silent for a minute or so. I could tell she was trying to 
process everything I'd said.

"I still can't believe you lied to me."

Mulder walked into the kitchen with Megan in his arms just as she 
spoke. He stopped short; his eyes wide in surprise.

"Both of you." She looked up at him. "I can't believe you lied to 
me."

Mulder opened his mouth to say something, but I cut him off. "Just 
give us minute." 

He nodded, turned and left quickly; the door swinging in his wake.

"Mom, please don't take this out on Mulder. We didn't do this to 
hurt you. We did it for Megan and Jordan. Besides, what would you 
have said if I'd told you the truth? You would've tried to talk me 
out of it, wouldn't you?"

"Maybe." She still sounded hurt. "But I probably would've told you 
that I believed Fox was in love with you."

"It wouldn't have helped, Mom." I put my hand on hers. "He told 
me that he loved me, but I thought he loved me like you do, not-" I 
didn't finish my sentence. 

"I still would've preferred to make my own decision about 
participating in your lie."  Her eyes were still angry. "And then 
you let me draw Father McCue into it as well."

"The only part that turned out to be a lie was that we'd been seeing 
each other beforehand. I've never loved any man as much as I love 
Mulder. Sometimes I wonder if we ever would've gotten together if 
it hadn't been for this." I shook my head slowly.

"Why didn't you tell me after?"

"Honestly, Mom, it seemed like a moot point. We discovered that 
we'd really been in love the whole time, so the marriage was never 
a lie, we just thought it was." I chuckled at how convoluted it 
sounded.

"And what else have you lied to me about?"

"Since I moved out to go to school, nothing." I couldn't help 
smiling.

"I don't find this funny at all, Dana," she huffed. 

"Mom, I'm sorry that we lied to you, but I couldn't see any other 
way. It was only a tiny lie."

"What about the lie you told before God?"

"I told no lies before God. I meant every single vow I made with all 
of my heart. And Mulder promised me that he would keep his vows 
to me, the ones we made before God and the ones we made to 
each other in private."

She was silent again while she pondered what I said. The quiet was 
interrupted by Mulder knocking softly on the door. "Can I come in?"

"Sure," I replied.

"I'm sorry that we lied to you, Maggie." He handed Megan to me. 
"Please just believe that we felt we had no other choice. And I 
promise you that I have never and will never love anyone the way I 
love Dana. But I think you've known that for a very long time."

"I know, Fox."  Her eyes were shining.  "I knew when –" A tear 
spilled onto her cheek.

"Oh Mom," I croaked. "I'm so sorry. We never meant to hurt you. 
We were trying to protect you." I felt tears welling up in my eyes. 
I reached for her hand again. Just as she was squeezing my hand and 
giving me a wobbly smile, Mulder's phone rang.

"Mulder."  He paused to listen. "Hey, Tony, we're just on our way." 
He raised his eyebrows at me to let me know it was time to leave.

"Go." My mother nodded at us as soon as he hung up. 

"I'm sorry, Mom. I hate to leave like this."

"I know you have to go, but I'll feel better about this once you've 
told Father McCue," she informed me curtly. "I don't like that he 
was involved in your deception."

I decided it wasn't the best time to remind her that she'd been the 
one who insisted on asking Father McCue to perform the 
ceremony, so I just nodded.

Once we were in the car, Mulder asked. "How angry is she?" 

"That's about as angry as she gets." My mind went back to my 
childhood. "It's all in the eyes and how quiet she gets. I always 
knew I was in deep when she got like that."

"Like mother, like daughter," he chuckled.

"Mulder, I yell when I'm angry, like my dad. And you of all people 
should know that, I've yelled at you enough."

"That's only when you're a little angry. You get quiet when you're 
scary angry." He looked sideways at me.

"Whatever." I shrugged. "At least I don't break things."

"That's frustration, not anger," he argued.

"Whatever," I sighed.

"And you get snippy, too." He grinned at me.

"Are you trying to piss me off?" I turned to look at him.

"No, ma'am." He shook his head. "Just making an observation."

"We were talking about how angry my mother really is and now 
you're telling me how quiet, no wait, how snippy I get when I'm 
mad?" I glared at him.

"I love you, Scully."

"Shut up, Mulder."

"No, really, when you get all feisty like this, it turns me on."

"I said shut up, Mulder." I tried to sound stern.

"It does, Scully. I can't help it. Maybe it's how dark your eyes 
get, like they do when you're aroused. I've already got a 
hard-on."

"Mulder!" I admonished him, but I felt a rush of heat between my 
legs at his confession.

"Okay, this isn't good," he groaned. "Let's talk about the case."
"Yes, let's." I shifted in my seat.

"Shit, you're turned on, too?"

"Case, Mulder!"

"Case," he repeated.

"Did Murrilo have anything new?" 

"Uh, Murrilo, right." He fidgeted in his seat.

"Focus, Mulder."

"I am, just not on the case. I want to pull over right here, drag 
you into the back seat and fuck you senseless."

When he flicked his eyes over at me as he spoke, I could see how 
dark they'd grown and I knew we were in trouble. I dropped my 
eyes to his lap. It was big trouble. His erection was clearly 
visible through his jeans.

"Mulder, you can't walk into the police station like that."

"Fuck." He tugged at his jeans to no avail.

"We can't do that either."

"Good thing I have my windbreaker and years of practice." He 
chuckled ruefully.

"Years of practice?"

"At dealing with hard-ons at work." 

"Oh." I felt myself grow even warmer. "If you get like this when 
we're exchanging a few barbs, what's going to happen when we 
really disagree about a case?"

"It wasn't our little exchange that did this, Scully," he told me as 
we pulled into the police station.

"What then?" 

"It was when I found out that you were turned on, too," he 
explained as he parked the car. 

I was going to have to be careful about details I shared with Mulder 
when were at work. I had no idea how that piece of information 
would affect him.

"Don't forget your windbreaker." I reminded him as I opened my 
door. I hoped for his sake that they kept the police station fairly 
cool.

The Arlington P.D. had a small command post set up. It was already 
buzzing with activity when we walked in. Skinner was there and 
motioned for us to come over when he saw us.

"Mulder!" Tony Murrilo called from the other side of the room.

"I'll talk to Skinner," I told him quietly.

I walked over to the Assistant Director quickly. "Sir," I greeted 
him.

He dispensed with any formalities and began to fill me in 
immediately."We've got people on the phone with rental agencies. 
We're hoping Leigh went through one to find a place." 

"I think she'd go private. An agency would do a credit check. 
Privately she could let money talk," I pointed out.

"We're pursuing that angle." He nodded. "But it'll take a while to 
search all of the newspaper ads."

"I'll check online." I lifted my chin toward an empty computer.

"That's how we're checking back issues of the local paper," he 
informed me.

"I mean online sites for buying and selling." I started heading 
toward the computer.

"Like e-bay?" He followed me.

"Not exactly." I shook my head. "These are closer to newspaper 
classifieds with sections for buying, selling, renting and 
personals," I explained. "The whole transaction can be done online,
in the case of renting. She may never have met or spoken to anyone. 
Very anonymous."

"How would she get a key?"

"I don't know, Fed-Ex? There are ways."

"She could've used a different name." Skinner pulled a chair up 
beside me.

"Mulder doesn't think she's that smart," I told him as I began my 
search. "Personally, I think she's smart but vain."

"Vain?" He sounded confused.

"She thinks she's smarter than we are, so she isn't taking enough 
precautions."

"Then Mulder's right, she's not that smart," he replied dryly. "I'll 
go see what Murrilo and Mulder have got."

Fifteen minutes later, when Skinner came back with Mulder, I had a 
list of ten rentals for them to check.

"Wayback Machine?" Mulder nodded toward my screen. It was a 
little tidbit the Gunmen had shared with us a few years ago.

"For more than porn sites that have been taken down," I chuckled.

"Pardon?" Skinner furrowed his brow.

"It's an internet archive," Mulder explained distractedly.

"Here are ten addresses and I'm not done yet. There are a lot of ads 
to wade through," I sighed.

"We'll see if any of these fit the geographic profile." Mulder 
picked up my list.

Only minutes later he called to me across the room excitedly, 
breaking the relative silence. "Two fit!" 

"We need two teams," Murrilo announced. "I'll head up one and 
Mulder will take the other."

As the teams began to assemble I went back to my search. I'd 
barely scratched the surface. Before he left, Mulder promised he'd 
call me as soon as they knew anything. Every inch of me wanted to 
throw my arms around him and hold him as tightly as I could while I 
made him swear that he'd be careful.  Instead, I pasted a smile on 
my face and nodded as he spoke.

"There's nothing to worry about, Scully." He leaned closer to 
whisper. 

I wanted to argue, to say that there was always a risk, but I kept 
the smile cemented on my face. "I know."

His large, strong hand covered my shoulder giving me a reassuring 
squeeze, and then he turned and walked away. After staring 
blankly at my computer screen for a few seconds, I began to 
chastise myself for being so foolish.  Leigh was dead. There was no 
risk from her. I was worrying because I wouldn't be there. I 
could've gone, but I was already doing something valuable. There 
was no reason for me to go into the field and leave the computer 
work for someone else.

It wasn't like Mulder and I were usually joined at the hip when we 
investigated cases. In fact, we quite often handled different 
aspects of the investigations, and aside from the Pamela Burke 
matter that we'd tidied up, I hadn't been in the field with him 
since June.

I couldn't figure out why I was feeling so anxious. My best guess 
was that I was thinking like Mrs. Fox Mulder instead of Agent Dana 
Scully. If we were going to be able to maintain an effective 
partnership as husband and wife, I was going to have to leave Mrs. 
Mulder at home.

Mulder called half an hour later to let me know that both addresses 
had been dead-ends.

"Nothing," I called to the few people left in the command center.

"I have more addresses for you." I let Mulder know.

"Is there anything that's more isolated; even a house as opposed to 
an apartment? We just managed to piss off some people who were 
trying to sleep in on Sunday morning."

"I'll check." I picked up the second list I'd started and walked 
over to the map. Skinner met me at the table.

"Wasn't there a light industrial area within the perimeter?" Mulder 
asked.

"Yup." I pointed to it to let Skinner know what we were talking 
about. "Hang on while we map the new addresses."

"Got one!" Skinner marked it with a pin.

"Yes, we have one." I gave him the address.

"Great. I'll let you know what we find."

"I'll keep looking," I told him. "There are still more sites for me 
to check."

The room seemed to shrink when I hung up the phone. I went back 
to my computer and resumed my search in the stillness. I kept 
looking at my phone, waiting for it to light up again, willing 
Mulder to call me. I found more addresses and Skinner mapped them
as I found them but none were in our zone. I was beginning to 
fear that my online search had been a wild goose chase. After 
mentally kicking myself, I refocused on my search. There were 
only two sites left to check. I'd become so intent on my screen 
that when my phone finally rang, I jumped in my chair.

"Scully," I answered breathlessly.

"Got him!" Mulder sounded jubilant. 

"Oh, thank God! They've got him!" I told the room. A cheer rose up 
from the six other souls.

"He's on his way to the Virginia Hospital Center, but it's just a 
precaution. He's fine," Mulder assured me. "And very happy to see 
us."

"I'll call his family." I felt like I could finally breathe again.

"He said he doesn't want them flying down here. He wants to be on 
the earliest flight home possible instead," Mulder let me know.

"Okay, I'll meet you at the hospital."

Andrew's family was relieved to say the least. I had a hard time 
getting off the phone. They kept thanking me and telling me how 
grateful they were. Andrew knew his family well. They'd been on 
the verge of flying down when I called.

Before I left for the hospital I called my mother. Mass started at 
11 a.m. and it was not quite ten, so I knew I hadn't missed her. 
It wasn't until then that I realized it had only taken us two 
hours to track Andrew down. It seemed like I'd been in that police 
station for at least eight hours. 

I tried to convince my mother to bring the kids back after their 
naps but she insisted that Mulder and I needed our rest and she 
would see us in the morning.

We only spent half an hour at the hospital. Andrew was anxious to 
finish the police reports and head home to see his family. Skinner 
told him to take a week; saying it was an order, not a suggestion. I 
got the impression that Andrew was embarrassed about all of the 
fuss he'd caused. I could relate. I'd been in the same situation far 
too many times.

By 11:30 we were home. It was only the second time since Mulder 
had asked me to marry him that we'd been alone in the house. 
There had only been that one awkward night, so many months ago.

"This feels weird," I commented as we hung up our coats.

"Good thing I like weird." He grinned at me. As soon as I closed the 
closet door he wrapped his arms around me. "And I love you. It 
seems like the perfect combination to me."

"What do you have in mind?" I smiled up at him.

"I'll give you a hint." He released his hold on me and turned me 
around. As soon as my back was to him, his arms encircled me. 
When his lips made contact with my neck, my hips jerked back 
against him reflexively. "Does this give you any ideas?"

"More than I can count," I breathed.

"Nothing specific?" He barely lifted his mouth from my neck to ask.

"Oh, they're all very specific," I countered, rubbing my ass against 
him. His erection had returned in all its glory.

"God, Scully," he breathed in my ear as his hands closed over my 
breasts.

My knees began to feel wobbly. How did he manage to do this to 
me every time? Maybe he always would; maybe that's what true 
love is. Only time would tell. 

"Kiss me." I turned my head toward him.

As he granted my request, I felt his hand leave my breast and slide 
over my belly. When it slipped into my pants, I shuddered. His 
fingers were gentle but insistent. He used his foot to spread my 
legs further apart. I didn't resist. His tongue was in my mouth. 
He had one hand on my breast and the other was teasing my already 
throbbing bundle of nerves. I was in heaven. Why would I resist?

I gasped and groaned into his mouth as his fingers deftly 
manipulated me toward our common goal. My orgasm swelled 
quickly; rapidly intensifying from a pleasant tingling to a white 
hot wave radiating from my center outward. Our mouths fell apart 
as my body quaked.

"Yes." Mulder's breath was hot on my ear. "Come for me, Scully." 
His words sent another wave shuddering through me. "Love the 
way you come," he whispered. He kept me cradled in his arms as 
my body quieted. "I love that I can do that to you." His voice was 
raspy.

"Mmm, I kinda like it, too," I murmured as I wiggled against his 
erection.

"I noticed." He began to nuzzle my neck again.

"So is this what you had in mind when you asked if it gave me any 
ideas, Mulder – your hand down my pants?"

"Oh, Scully." His rich, low voice made me shudder again. "This 
doesn't even begin to cover what I have planned."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


October 8, 2000
Mulder Residence
Arlington, VA
11:37 am

"Oh, Scully," I breathed close to her ear. "This doesn't even 
begin to cover what I have planned."

She collapsed against me like she had during the throes of her 
orgasm. "Oh God." She shuddered.

"You like the sound of that?" I kept my mouth near her ear. The 
hand I had cupping her pussy was suddenly quite moist. My 
jeans were becoming unbearably tight.

"Yes." She sounded like she was out of breath, but this was 
sexier than she sounded after chasing down a suspect.

"I want you to remember," I told her as I slid my hand under her 
shirt.

"Remember –" She gasped when my fingers found her nipple. 
"What?"

"Me, behind you like this. Do you remember doing this before?" 
I tweaked her nipple again making her draw her breath in 
sharply. The hand I had in her pants was now soaked. I was very 
close to coming in my shorts.

"Yes, yes." She squirmed against me. "Do you want to fuck me 
on the kitchen table?"

My answer came out as a growl. I was so turned on I could only 
think about Scully on that table with me buried inside her to the 
hilt. I couldn't remember being this turned on before in my life. 
Scully just being Scully alone was enough to make me painfully 
hard. My earlier erection and the events of the past twenty four 
hours only added to my need for release. Feeling how wet she 
got from me just talking to her made my cock even harder. 
Knowing that she remembered our little make-out session in the 
kitchen and how I'd wanted her right there on the table made 
my cock throb persistently.  And my male ego loved hearing 
Scully's aroused voice asking me if I wanted to fuck her. My cock 
felt impossibly huge and hard and I wanted her to feel what 
she'd done to me.

I tore my hands out of her clothes and picked her up. I crossed 
the living room quickly and kicked the swinging door to the 
kitchen so hard it slammed into the wall behind it.

I dumped her unceremoniously on her butt on top of the table. 
It wasn't until I heard the thud of the collision that I realized I 
might have been too rough. She apparently hadn't noticed. She 
laid backward and immediately undoing her pants. As soon as my 
jeans and boxers were around my ankles, I began to help her. At 
the same time, I stepped out of my clothes and kicked them 
aside. While I finished with her pants, she pulled off her t-shirt. 
Then I got to witness her lithe little body arch up off the table as 
she thrust her hands beneath her to unhook her bra. Once it 
slackened, I pulled it off her roughly and tossed it to the floor.

"Shirt." She nodded at me.

After pulling it over my head, I threw it behind me. When I 
looked down at her again, I was stunned by what was in front of 
me. My partner, my wife, my constant, my one in five billion, my 
touchstone, my entire world lay trembling with anticipation 
before me.

"Mulder." She reached for me, her voice even richer than 
normal. 

Her nipples were already taut, drawing my fingers to them. Her 
back arched off the table at my touch. She'd parted her legs and 
when I drew closer, she put her heels on my shoulders. I looked 
down to find her pussy pink, plump and wet with desire. I loved 
that I could see how aroused she was. Her scent surrounded me. 
I took a deep breath of her heady aroma as I began to caress 
her. I was gentle at first, but as I discovered how truly soaked 
she was, I began to thrust two fingers into her. The sound her 
wetness created made my cock surge. A few years ago it 
would've been enough to make me come.

She groaned and moved her hips with my rhythm. As sexy as this 
was, my cock literally twitched to join the party. Withdrawing my 
fingers, I slipped them into my mouth to taste her, making her 
groan again. 

After dragging her to the edge of the table, I picked up her hand. 
"Feel, Scully," I breathed. "Feel how hard you make me."

When her hand closed around my shaft, I shuddered, my eyes 
slipping closed at the sensation. The next thing I knew the head 
of my cock was moving over something soft, wet and incredibly 
hot. I dragged my eyes open to see Scully running my cock up 
and down between her labia. 

"Oh fuck," I groaned as another shudder ran through me.

"Yes please," she murmured breathlessly as she pushed my cock 
against her entrance and then wiggled her hips until I was inside 
her.

We both moaned as I began to slowly ease into her. She was 
more than wet enough for me to have thrust into her quickly, 
but I loved watching my cock disappear into her.

When a shiver ran through her, I looked up to see that she'd 
arched her back off the table and thrust her chin toward the 
ceiling. Her nipples had tightened even further. I needed to feel 
them. I'd been grasping her hips with both hands, so I 
relinquished part of my hold on her and moved one hand to her 
breast.

When I took her nipple firmly between my thumb and 
forefinger, her shoulders came off the table. Her internal 
muscles clenched around me and I began to feel euphoric. I 
hadn't slid all the way inside of her yet, but I knew if I did, my 
kitchen table fantasy would be over before it barely started.

I pulled out until the head of my cock was at her opening. She 
groaned and arched her breast into my hand. I knew she loved 
this sensation. I also knew I could make her frantic with lust, 
which would allow me some time to pull back from the verge. Or 
at least I hoped it would. Scully awash with lust was a powerful 
aphrodisiac to me.

As I continued to ply her nipple with my fingers, I teased her 
opening, moving the head of my cock back and forth, neither 
completely in nor completely out. Choosing not to use a steady 
rhythm, I watched her face for my cues.

At first her hazy eyes were locked on mine, but soon she 
couldn't keep them open. Whenever she gasped, her eyes 
would roll back beneath her lids. Then she began to make a low 
humming sound, deep in her throat. It was only interrupted by 
her gasps. When her body began to tremble, I knew I could push 
her over the edge easily. All it took was my thumb pressing 
firmly on her clit and one powerful thrust into her to send that 
pretty, dirty little mouth of hers into overdrive. Her body 
stiffened and then like a coiled spring, she exploded into 
spasms.

I could feel her clit pulsing under my thumb while her internal 
muscles tried to milk me in an effort to accomplish what we'd 
managed ten weeks ago. Gritting my teeth, I breathed through 
my nose, trying to outlast her body's efforts to make me 
ejaculate. Again I was on the verge and what a spectacular verge 
it was.

The euphoria that had begun earlier now permeated every cell 
in my body. I felt hot all over and my blood buzzed in my ears. 
My balls felt heavy, aching for release, wanting to give Scully 
what her body demanded.

I clenched my jaw tightly, determined to hang on, and when her 
aftershocks, as she called them, began to slow, I knew I'd 
succeeded. Moving both hands to her breasts, I caressed them 
gently as her breathing returned to normal.

"Oh my god, Mulder," She breathed, her voice now incredibly 
smoky. "That was amazing." She reached out to caress my arm. 
When she did, her eyes opened a little in surprise and I felt her 
tighten her internal muscles around me. Her eyes darkened and 
she smiled knowingly at me. "And we're not even done yet."

"We will be soon," I warned her, my voice sounding raspy as I 
began to move within her. "I'm very close."

After putting my hands on her thighs, I began to pick up my 
pace. Every time the tops of my thighs collided with her ass, she 
groaned. I loved the way each thud made her breasts bounce. 
The sight made my balls begin to tingle. Scully clutched the edge 
of the table and urged me on.

"Harder Mulder, please!" She panted.

I could only grunt as I complied. My legs began to quiver as my 
balls tightened painfully. When her internal muscles began to 
ripple around me again, I could no longer withstand their pull.

"Scully!" I cried hoarsely as I throbbed within her. "Love you."

"Yes!" She seemed to be barely breathing as her body shook.

Once our bodies quieted and I felt that familiar warmth of 
afterglow beginning to spread through me, I lifted Scully off the 
table.   I pulled a chair out with my foot and sat us down. My butt 
barely made contact with the seat before her tongue was 
pushing into my mouth. I kept one hand tucked under her 
bottom as the other went to the back of her head.

"I love you, Mulder," she murmured in between kisses.

"This is something else we missed," I commented when we 
parted to breathe.

"Huh?" Her tongue flicked into my mouth. "We do this a lot."
"Yeah, we do, don't we?" I felt another wave of warmth course 
through me and pulled her even more tightly against me. "I 
meant we didn't get any time to ourselves. One day we were 
single, then I blinked and we were married with two kids. I 
blinked again and we were expecting. We didn't get any time to 
savor each other, to make love wherever and whenever we 
wanted."

"I think everything happened when it was supposed to happen, 
Mulder." She pressed a soft kiss against my lips. "Despite how 
much I fantasized about this very life with you, I don't think 
either of us was ready for it until now."

"I know." I nodded with a sigh. "But I still wish we had more time 
like this. We get a couple of hours a day, at best."

"Then maybe we should plan that honeymoon right away, 
because we're going to be very busy, very soon. We have to sell 
this house, pack, redecorate the new one and then it'll be 
Thanksgiving and Christmas. After that I won't be able to fit into 
a bikini, if that's what you had in mind. Well, it would fit, but I 
wouldn't be comfortable."

"I didn't have anything particular in mind, but I do now." I 
grinned slyly at her. 

"So we're going someplace warm?"

"Definitely. Do you mind if I plan it – make it a surprise?"

"Go ahead," she chuckled. "I don't have time, anyway, but book 
it for after Andrew is back and check with Skinner before you 
commit to anything."

"I will," I promised as I pulled her head back toward mine.

"And no work," she said against my lips.

"What?" I pulled back.

"Don't pick a place that has any paranormal associations." She 
narrowed her eyes at me.

"I promise I won't pick something based on that, Scully, but I 
don't think there's a spot on earth that doesn't have some sort 
of supernatural connection."

"I will not spend my honeymoon chasing ghosts, goblins, 
monsters, mutants or little green men," she told me firmly.

"Gray."

"I'm serious, Mulder."

"I dunno, Scully, the thought of you in a bikini chasing down 
some slime covered monster is really appealing to me."

"Mulder." She was tried to sound stern, but her lips twitched in 
an effort not to smile.

"And I've never investigated any goblins."

"I want you to promise me that if you see something that tweaks 
your interest –"

"Besides you," I interjected.

"Yes, besides me." She could no longer hold her smile back. 
"That you will ignore it, for my sake."

"I promise," I said, solemnly. "Unless it's life or death."

"Unless I agree that it's life or death," she stipulated.

"Agreed." I grinned. "Shall we kiss on it?" I leaned forward in 
search of her mouth.

"Besides," she murmured against my lips. "Where would I keep 
my gun?" I felt her lips spread out into a smile. "The weight of 
my holster and gun would keep pulling my bikini bottoms down."

"If this is you trying to dissuade me, it's not working." I squeezed 
the cheek of her ass.

"I wasn't going to tell you this until tomorrow, but I think it will 
make you realize how serious I am." When she pulled back to 
look at me, I found her smile had faded.

"What?" I asked, although I was positive I didn't want to hear 
what she had to say.

"I decided what your punishment will be for lying to me about 
your conversation with Brent."

My mind was racing. I'd forgotten all about that. Somehow I 
doubted she was going to take me over her knee and spank me.

"And?" I closed my eyes.

"When Bill and Tara are here for Thanksgiving, you have to get 
along with him, no matter how much of an ass he is."

"Scully!" I whined as my shoulders slumped. "Do I have to?"

"Yes."

"I thought you were going to withhold sex for a couple of days or 
something," I pouted.

"Why would I do that?" She laughed. "That would be punishing 
me, too and I've done nothing wrong."

"Define 'get along with'." I grimaced.

"Be pleasant and polite and don't pick any fights."

"He's the one who picks fights with me," I argued.

"And if he does, you ignore him," she told me pointedly. "I'm 
actually hoping that Tara and my mom will rein him, but I don't 
want to worry about the two of you. I'll be busy enough. Okay?"

"Okay." I sighed.

"And the reason I'm telling you this right now, Mulder, is if you 
think I was angry when you lied to me, try fucking up my 
honeymoon."

"Scully, I was kidding," I told her earnestly. "I promise not to let 
anything interfere with what I have planned."

"Mulder." She shook her head. "Never kid with a woman about 
her honeymoon." She leaned in to kiss me.

"I thought most women obsessed about the wedding," I said 
through our kiss.

"I guess I'm not most women." She was smiling against my lips 
again.
"And I thank my lucky stars for that on a daily basis." I relaxed 
into her kisses.

"You still have to get along with Bill."

I pushed that thought to the back of my mind as I concentrated 
on the feel of her tongue probing my mouth and her breasts 
pressed against my chest. We continued to kiss until Scully 
started to squirm in discomfort. The results of our lovemaking 
were starting to cool and grow sticky.

Moving both of us to the chair resulted in me needing most of 
the clean-up for a change. Scully found my look of distaste 
amusing when I saw what was left on my lap when she got up.

"Why don't you go shower? I'll clean up in here and then make 
us some lunch," she suggested, still smiling.

"I'll just wash up. I thought we could take a bath after lunch." I 
waggled my eyebrows at her.

"It's not really a two-person tub, Mulder." Her words were 
saying no, but her eyes sparkled at me.

"I'm sure we can squeeze in." As I spoke, it occurred to me what 
an entirely new situation this was and I felt a huge smile take 
over my face.

"What?" Scully's brow furrowed.

"Look at us."

She looked down at herself and then at me. "Well you're a bit of 
a mess, but I look okay."

"You look better than okay." I had to laugh. "You look amazing, 
but that's not what I meant."

She opened her eyes wider and inclined her head toward me; 
Scully sign language for 'please elaborate'.

"We're standing in the kitchen completely nude, like we do it all 
the time, just talking."

"I promise to spend as much of our honeymoon completely 
nude as practical, okay Mulder?" She grinned at me.

"When does Andrew get back?" My vacation plans were starting 
to gel. I wanted to go as soon as possible, but I also needed time 
to plan everything, too.

"A week from Monday," she reminded me with a smile.

"How long can we go for?"

"How about we leave on a Thursday night and come back on 
Monday night?" she suggested. "Will you be able to find 
someplace warm that isn't too far away? I don't –"

"Scully," I interrupted her. "I won't take you too far away from 
the kids. I already took that into consideration."

"Thank you, Mulder," she murmured. "I just –"

 "You don't need to explain anything to me. I understand. And 
yes, the place I'm thinking of will still be warm enough for a 
bikini," I assured her softly. It was only four days, but having 
Scully to myself for four entire days made me start to feel 
euphoric again. She said she would be naked as much as 
practical, which confused me a little.  I needed to make sure we 
were on the same page. "You didn't want to do any sightseeing 
on this honeymoon, did you?"

"There's only one sight I want to see." She let her eyes travel up 
and down my body.

For the first time since we were married, Scully was testing my 
recuperative powers. I passed with flying colors. "It sounds like 
we agree about how we're going to be spending our time, Scully, 
so why can't you be naked the entire time?"

"Well, you said warm and I said bikini, which makes me think 
beach. I would hope we might be able to squeeze in a moonlit 
walk."

"You're assuming you're going to be able to walk," I said over my 
shoulder as I left the kitchen to clean myself up.

When I returned, Scully had pulled on her t-shirt and pants and 
was standing at the stove. 

"What'cha making?" I asked as I walked up behind her and 
slipped my arms around her waist.

"Mmm." She sighed and wiggled back against me. "Western 
sandwiches."

"Sounds good." I lowered my lips to her neck as my hands 
moved up to her breasts.

"You don't care what I'm making." She tilted her head to give me 
more room. 

"Not really," I told her honestly as she pushed back against my 
erection. "Especially when you do that."

"I'm guessing I'm going to need my strength for whatever you 
have planned." She turned her attention back to the food.

"Yeah," I agreed as I continued to squeeze her breasts.

"And I know I want you to have your strength." She lowered her 
voice, making my cock harden even more.

"Yeah." I slid one hand to her belly and used it to pull her against 
me more firmly as I ground against her ass.

"Okay, it's done," I heard her say through the fog of my arousal.

"Mmm." I didn't lift my lips from her neck.

"Mulder!" She huffed. "I need to get the toast. Go and sit."

"Sorry, can't help myself. You're just so damn sexy." I released 
her.

She stepped to the toaster, retrieved the four slices of toast that 
had popped up and began to butter them. "I think you just like 
me barefoot and pregnant."

Her words sent a jolt straight to my crotch. Even though our lives 
would always be affected by ominous forces and as yet 
unknown evils, this was our oasis, and I needed it to stay that 
way. On top of that, she was carrying our child. It was something 
she had wanted for a long time, something we both thought was 
impossible and yet here she was, in our sanctuary, pregnant with 
our miracle child.  Maybe I was a bad person, but those facts had 
my cock throbbing again.

"I think you're right," I told her as she turned with our plates.

"Jesus, Mulder," she breathed as she set a plate down in front of 
me. "You make my knees weak when you look at me like that."

I wished I had some idea how I was looking at her because her 
pupils had dilated and nipples were hard under her shirt.

"Make sure you eat all of that." I nodded at her plate. "You are 
going to need your strength."

We didn't make it to the tub after lunch. In fact we didn't even 
make it upstairs. Like something out of one of those movies of 
mine that Frohike inherited, we ended up making love on the 
stairs. I'd often fantasized about what positions Scully's 
flexibility might allow and she again made my fantasies come 
true. When I realized she had one foot on a baluster below us 
and the other on my shoulder, resulting in her almost doing 
the splits, another wave of lust surged through me. I lunged 
for her mouth, deepening her split, as I began to pound into 
her. In the back of my mind, I was always waiting for her to 
tell me I was being to rough or I'd gone too far, but then her 
supple body began to quake underneath me and I knew I had 
crossed no boundaries.

"Fuck, Mulder, your cock feels huge like this," she panted. She 
had no idea how much I loved the way she talked when she 
came. 

It was enough to send me over the edge. When my orgasmic 
haze lifted, I found that I'd collapsed against her. In spite of how 
far her legs were spread, I didn't feel any tension in the leg on 
my shoulder.

"Christ, Scully," I breathed. "How far can you bend?"

"Pretty far," she chuckled. She took her foot and pulled it back 
until it touched the riser behind her.

"How the fuck do you do that?" 

 "I'm naturally flexible, but the endorphins help and so does the 
relaxin I'm producing." She finally lowered her leg.

"Relaxin?"

"It's a hormone present in all humans, but it's generated in 
higher quantities in pregnant women to help soften ligaments to 
make the birth canal –"

"Okay, I get it." Her clinical description was about to seriously 
interfere with my afterglow. "And what genius came up with 
that name?"

"One who remembered how hard it was to keep track of all of 
the names of hormones, I guess," she laughed as she caressed 
my back. 

"And what hormones make me so sleepy after I come, Dr. 
Scully?"

"That would be the afore mentioned endorphins," she laughed 
again. "But we aren't sleeping here, Mulder." She lowered one 
hand to slap my ass.

"Unh," I grumbled, but didn't move. 

"Don't make me hurt you."

"Fine." I sighed as I pushed myself off of her. 

Once I was up, I helped her to her feet. I was amazed that she 
could still walk after what we'd just done.

"Shower," she mumbled when we got to the bedroom.

"I wanted to take a bath," I protested sleepily.

"I'm exhausted, Mulder. We've been up since three this morning 
and then you fucked my brains out -- twice. Do you have any 
idea how many orgasms I had? I want to take a quick shower and 
collapse into bed, okay?"

"Five." I grinned at her.

"What?" 

"You had five orgasms, including the one in the foyer."

"Is that all?" She gave me a lazy smile before turning toward the 
bathroom. "I would've sworn it was more."

"Only if you count your aftershocks." I trailed after her.

Scully and I had known each other well before we got married; 
probably better than most couples ever knew each other. Now I 
knew her more intimately than I'd ever known anyone and I 
loved how that knowledge allowed me to make our sex better 
every day. At that moment I realized that she, too, had learned 
things about me. She knew exactly what to say to get her way. 
Another warm flush spread over me as I realized that she must 
be doing things in bed, specifically because she knew how they 
affected me. It was no wonder we were having the most 
spectacular sex I'd ever had in my life. 

****************************************************


Arlington, VA
October 8, 2000
5:15 pm

After our shower, Mulder and I collapsed into bed and slept for 
a solid 3 hours. I woke at quarter after five to Mulder's lips on 
my neck. Since we'd worn nothing to bed, the next thing I 
became aware of was the heat of his erection against my rear 
end.

"You're insatiable today," I murmured as I wiggled backward.

"I'm insatiable every day," he corrected me as he moved his 
hand to my breast. "How could I ever possibly get enough of 
you? Today I might get close."

The feel alone of Mulder's body pressed against mine was 
enough to start a tingle between my legs. Knowing he was 
aroused changed that tingle to a throb. But his words made my 
internal muscles clench involuntarily and I felt myself grow 
tremendously wet. I groaned and leaned heavily against him, 
completely pliant in his arms.

"Do you like that, Scully?" He breathed in my ear. "Do you like to 
hear how much I want you?"

"God yes." I shuddered.

"I used to fantasize about making love to you," he told me as he 
kissed my neck. "But once we actually had sex, once I knew how 
amazing we are together, my fantasies changed completely."

"Yeah?" I draped my leg across his, giving him more access to 
me.

"Yeah. Now I fantasize about days like this; days when I can lose 
myself in you." His hand left my breast and gently trailed along 
my arm. "Do you know how easy it that is? I might be able to 
lose myself in your beauty alone, hell, even just your eyes." His 
hand left my arm and he put a finger under my chin to turn my 
head toward him. "Wars have been fought over beauty like 
yours."

"Mulder," I whispered. My throat was choked with emotion and 
if my cheeks hadn't been hot with arousal, his words would've 
accomplished it.

"But it isn't just your beauty that's staggering. Your intelligence 
is humbling, your compassion is overwhelming, your innate 
nobility leaves me in awe and your poise always reminds me 
that you have so much to teach me. Any of those things would 
be enough to make a man lose his way, but together, Scully, 
they pack one hell of a punch. And that is why so many men lose 
their sense of direction around you."

As he spoke he lifted the leg that I'd draped over him and moved 
it to the bed, rolling me partially to my stomach. When he drew 
his hand back up my leg to the juncture of my thighs, his fingers 
lightly brushed against my sex. I sighed at the intimate contact. 
Mulder groaned but continued with his erotic narrative.

"I couldn't help but be drawn in by you.  Like all of the others, 
you beckoned to me without even trying. And I succumbed, as 
did the rest, like so many moths fluttering around the flame of 
your splendor. It is so rare to find an inner beauty that matches 
the outer beauty."

"Oh Mulder." I sighed as tears welled up in my eyes. 

"It's true, Scully. But unlike the others, for some reason, even 
when I lose myself in you," he paused as he slid his penis into 
me, "it only makes me stronger. You've always done that for me; 
completed me."

"Each other, Mulder." It came out as a moan as he began to 
make love to me slowly. "We complete each other."'

"Jesus, Scully, you feel incredible." He breathed softly into my 
ear as he slipped one hand under me to cup my breast.

I only sighed in response. I had no idea how he could be so 
eloquent when he was aroused. I could barely string four words 
together.

"I want to take this slowly," he told me in his lust-roughened 
voice. "I never get the chance to savor how incredible it feels to 
be inside of you. Is it okay if I take my time?"

"God, yes, Mulder," I whimpered as I tilted my hips back toward 
him. "You make me feel like the most beautiful woman in the 
world."

"You are," he breathed before his lips descended to my neck.

I knew he was simply blinded by his love and lust, but I didn't 
care. I loved that my husband went to the effort of seducing me 
despite knowing his seduction had been so utterly complete a 
very long time ago. 

Mulder was true to his word and we made love incredibly 
slowly. It was something we never got the chance to do in our 
hectic life. We stayed in bed, wrapped in each other's arms for a 
long time, indulging in another rarity for; after play. 

When we finally left the bed, I made a late supper and then 
called my mother to check on the kids. She assured me they'd 
been well-behaved at church and told me how her friends had 
spoiled them.

"I was wondering, Dana. How you would feel about doing this on 
a regular basis?" she asked tentatively. "Perhaps every other 
weekend."

"Did you have a good time, Mom?" I chuckled.

"You know how I feel about my grandchildren and I rarely get to 
see Bill or Charlie's kids," she pointed out.

"I was just teasing, Mom. If you don't think it's too much 
trouble, I think that would be great. It just seems like you're 
doing so much already."

"I like that I can help out. I feel like I have something to 
contribute again."

"Mom! You've always been there whenever I needed you. How 
could you possibly think you weren't contributing? In the last 
four months alone you saved me more times than I can count."

"And I was happy to do it, but I couldn't help thinking after what 
you told me yesterday, that you and Fox haven't had any time to 
yourselves. Have you?"

"Not really," I admitted. I blushed a little when I realized that my 
mother had been thinking about my sex life.

"And you've just gone back to work. You're moving soon. You're 
pregnant -"

"Okay, Mom." I cut her off, knowing she'd been thinking about 
this for a while and would've compiled an extensive list in order 
to convince me. "I wasn't saying no."

"So it's settled?" She sounded happy.

"I'll check with Mulder, but I can't see him having a problem 
with it."

"Good. So I was thinking - I could host our family dinners every 
other Saturday. That way, you and Fox would have Saturday 
night and all of Sunday. Maybe you could even have a second 
date," she chuckled.

When I told Mulder about my mother's offer he thought it was a 
great idea, as I suspected he would, considering the afternoon 
we'd just had.

"I do plan to get some packing done." I raised my eyebrows at 
him when I saw the devilish glint in his eye.

"I thought we were paying the movers to do that." He grinned at 
me.

"I'm not having movers pack my clothes or our bathroom," I 
informed him haughtily.

"That shouldn't take too long. And those things will be packed at 
the last minute, anyway." He continued to smirk at me.

"And we haven't put this house on the market yet, and I have 
the family Thanksgiving to plan." 

"Also, shouldn't take much time."

"Six weeks isn't a lot of time and we're planning to squeeze a 
honeymoon in there somewhere, too," I reminded him.

"I have the utmost faith in your organizational abilities, Scully."

Suddenly I realized that no matter what I said, Mulder would 
have a comeback, so I stopped arguing. It wasn't that I didn't 
want the same things he did. I just knew there was a lot that 
needed to be done. I also knew that I'd have plenty of time to 
tackle my list when the kids were napping. With planning, I 
could do some paperwork, too. Spending even more days in bed 
with Mulder was incentive enough.

The rest of our evening passed quietly. It didn't occur to me to 
change the alarm clock for a little later since we didn't have the 
kids to get ready so we ended up with extra time on our hands 
the following morning. Mulder decided to use it up in the 
shower - with me.


I was worried that our shower romp would make us late, but I 
walked into the office five minutes early. Mulder was already at 
his desk, in spite of the fact that we'd left at the same time.

"Did you have a good weekend, Agent Scully?" He grinned at me 
when I closed the door.

"A very good weekend, Agent Mulder. How about you?" I 
returned his smile.

"Well, I mostly spent mine with the ball and chain, so ya know…" 
He shrugged at me.

"Shut up, Mulder." I rolled my eyes at him.

"I'd like to remind you that I am the senior agent in this 
partnership, so I expect a little more respect on your part."

"Kiss my ass," I told him straight-faced as I sat down in the chair 
in front of his desk.

"I'd love to, but let me check with the wife first, okay?"

I was about to change the subject and ask if he was working on 
anything when the phone rang.

"Kimberly," he informed me as he picked it up.

Just by listening to his side of the conversation I could tell that 
Skinner wanted us in his office. I thought I'd be spending my 
morning writing up the report from Andrew's kidnapping. I 
hoped Skinner didn't expect me to have it done already.

I was on my feet, smoothing out my skirt before Mulder put the 
phone down. When he hung up I looked at him expectantly.

"New case," he told me as he grabbed his suit jacket off the back 
of his chair.

We said nothing as we walked toward the elevator. I was 
surprised to feel Mulder's hand on the small of my back. I 
thought we'd agreed to refrain from touching at work.

I peered over my shoulder at him.

"What?"

"Your hand."

"Oh, reflex action, I guess." He shrugged. "It's not like I -" He 
slid his hand down and gave my ass a squeeze.

"Mulder!" I kept my voice low even though no one was around. 
"We talked about this."

"I was just demonstrating the difference," he replied innocently.

"Bullshit. You were copping a feel." I narrowed my eyes at him 
as we stepped into the elevator.

"Fine then, fair's fair. I won't cop the occasional feel if you'll 
stop tempting me by wearing skirts that hug your ass."

"What?" I stared up at him in astonishment.

"Come on, Scully." He tilted his head at me. "You must know 
how fabulous your ass looks in the skirts you always wear."

"I - uh," I sputtered. "I thought -" The elevator stopped at the 
second floor and a few people got on.

We exchanged good mornings and then fell silent. I leaned 
against the back wall, blushing furiously. Now all I could think 
was what my rear end looked like and who might be thinking 
that I was trying to attract attention.

When the doors opened on Skinner's floor, I nodded to the 
agents who'd joined us and headed down the hall.

"You really had no idea, did you?" Mulder leaned over to 
whisper in my ear.

I shook my head.

"Please don't stop wearing them." His mouth was by ear again. 
"I promise to keep my hands off at work," he said right before 
we walked into Skinner's outer office.

Kimberly greeted us and told us to head straight in. I could feel 
that my face was still hot when I took a seat in front of Skinner. 

"Good morning agents," he said without looking up from the file 
he was reading. There were six folders on his desk aside from 
the one he was looking at.

"Morning, sir," we replied together.

Lifting his head, Skinner opened his mouth to speak, but he 
closed it again when his eyes fell on me. After pausing for a few 
seconds he blinked rapidly before finally saying something.

"Are you feeling all right, Agent Scully? You look flushed."

"I'm fine, sir," I murmured. Knowing that Skinner had noticed my 
pink cheeks only served to embarrass me further.

"Okay." He glanced over at Mulder, who I could see out of the 
corner of my eye was biting his lip and staring at his shoes.

"Tony Murrilo brought me this case on Friday," Skinner began.

"Friday?" Mulder looked up in surprise.

"Yes. It wasn't hot at the time, but that changed over the 
weekend. He called me this morning to let me know."

"Does he think it's a serial?" Mulder leaned forward in his chair.

"There are only three bodies in here." Skinner gathered up all of 
the folders and handed them to Mulder.

"But he thinks these cases are connected?" I was puzzled; seven 
folders, but only three bodies.

Skinner cleared his throat. "They aren't technically cases."

"What do you mean?" I was even more perplexed. Skinner 
wasn't a man who normally skirted around any issue.

Mulder handed the files to me, then picked up his chair and 
moved it closer to mine.

When I opened the first file I was confronted with a picture of 
male genitalia; extremely mangled male genitalia. They 
appeared to be raw and large portions of them were missing. 
Large open sores covered what was left and the edges of the 
wounds were black with decay.

"Ouch!" Mulder yelped and turned away. "What the hell?"

After turning the image over I began to scan the notes. I 
summarized out loud for Mulder's benefit.

"So this guy had necrotizing faciitis and it eventually killed him. 
Despite the fact that the flesh eating disease is rare, I don't see 
how this is an x-file." I glanced up at Skinner.

"Check out the next one and then tell me what you think." He 
nodded at me.

"Tell me if it's safe for me to look, Scully." Mulder's head was 
still turned away.

"Not yet," I warned him when I opened the next folder. "I'm 
sensing a pattern here. This man bled out when both of his 
testicles ruptured."

In spite of my warning, I caught Mulder taking a quick peek at 
the file. "Oww!" He winced, crossed his legs defensively and 
then inspected his shoes again.

"This I've never seen before. Did he have an infection?" I 
scanned the notes. "Or was this the result of an injury?" I 
couldn't find a reference to either.

"The autopsy was inconclusive. The official COD was 
hypovolemia, but the coroner found nothing that could've 
explained the uh -" Skinner lifted his chin like his collar had 
suddenly become too tight. "Rupturing."

Mulder flinched again but said nothing.

"While I agree that these cases are definitely disturbing, I don't 
see anything criminal here, not to mention how they might be 
an x-file." I hoped Skinner would enlighten me.

"It's the non-medical details that hold the key, Agent Scully." 
Skinner's eyes widened. "Specifically the criminal records.

Reading further down in the notes, I discovered that Theodore 
Pearcey, whose testicles had ruptured, was just released after 
serving seventeen years for aggravated rape. The victim of the 
flesh eating disease, James Wheeler, was charged and tried for 
rape, but had been acquitted.

"Were they all rapists?" I lifted my head to ask Skinner.

My question got Mulder's attention and he turned toward 
Skinner, waiting for his answer.

"One victim, who also died of the flesh eating disease, has never 
been suspected of rape. His DNA has been run through CODIS 
with no hits. The victim from this weekend, who also bled out 
from ruptured testicles had no record, but when his DNA was 
run, it was a match to DNA recovered from three rape/murders 
so far."

"And the other three?" I prompted.

"All convicted rapists, but none of them died from their - uh, 
injuries," Skinner explained.

"Some kind of vengeance?" Mulder had regained his 
composure.

"It would be very difficult to infect someone with necrotizing 
faciitis, Mulder, not to mention that it was a targeted infection, 
but not outside the realm of extreme possibility." I turned to 
look at him. "But how exactly would someone go about making 
a man's testicles explode?"

"If we figure that out, Scully, this case will be solved."

I could tell from the light in Mulder's eyes that he thought there 
was a paranormal slant to this case. Even after seven years of 
working with him, I had no idea what he thought that slant 
might be. When we first starting working together he would tell 
me what he thought might be going on. After years of hearing 
my arguments he'd recently started to let me reach my own 
conclusions without the benefit of his opinion. He knew me well 
enough by now to realize that's what I would do anyway.

"Has the autopsy on the latest victim been done yet?" He asked 
Skinner.

"I told Murrilo he could send the body to Quantico." Skinner 
answered him, but he was looking at me. "Should be there 
around 11." 

"I need you to do that autopsy, Scully." Mulder took the files off 
my lap. "No one else would know where to start."

I didn't bother saying that I had no clue what to look for either. 
Mulder knew that if there was anything to find, I'd find it. 

"And what will you be doing?" I turned slightly toward him.

"I'm going to take a closer look at the ones who didn't make it - 
see if there's a connection between them, however slim. Maybe 
concentrate on the first victim, figure out why he was first."

"So you'll be busy this afternoon?" I asked lightly.

"Mmm hmm." He was scrutinizing the case files of the survivors. 
"Or maybe I'll see if I can talk to one of these guys. It'll be nice
to have a breathing victim to interview." He smiled at me.

"You're right. It will." I gave him my brightest smile in return. 
"And don't worry, Jordan should have fun playing in the 
formalin. And I guess I can let Megan crawl around the floor of 
the autopsy bay. I promise I'll be really careful not to drop 
anything."

I watched Mulder's face as my words sank in. The intensity that 
had shone in his eyes as he studied the files dimmed, only to be 
replaced by realization and maybe a little bit of anxiety.

As he opened his mouth to speak, he seemed to wince in pain. 
"Oh shi-"

****************************************************


October 9th, 2000
Washington, D.C.
A.D. Skinner's Office
8:45 a.m.

"Oh shit," I said with an exaggerated sigh. "Sorry, Scully, I had 
my head in the case already. But you could've just reminded me 
about the kids."

"Where would the fun be in that?" she asked dryly. "And I 
shouldn't have to remind you about the kids."

Out of the corner of my eye I could see Skinner watching our 
exchange. His expression remained completely stoic. Somehow, 
I figured, issues like this between Scully and I were probably far 
less stressful than what we normally presented him with.

"You're right," I conceded with a nod. "But I really want you to 
do that autopsy today. So maybe -" I began to offer an 
alternative.

"Mulder, I'm not asking my -" She cut me off, but I quickly 
returned the favor.

"Let me finish. Why don't I go home this afternoon? Once 
Megan and Jordan are napping I could put in a couple of hours 
of research into the case. How does that sound?"

"I guess that would be okay," she consented, somewhat 
grudgingly.

I knew she'd rather be at home with the kids, especially since 
she hadn't seen them since Saturday, but I was perfectly capable 
of looking after them for an afternoon. Was I taking advantage 
of the fact that Scully had a hard time saying no to me? Hell, 
yes! Would I be dead meat if she ever realized it? Big time! But it 
had never stopped me before.

"Is that okay with you, sir?" I turned to Skinner.

"Yeah, fine," he said with a brisk nod.

"We should have time to do a little digging before you have to 
leave for Quantico." I looked at Scully again.

Yup," she agreed curtly.

I stood up and pushed my chair back.
"Let me know what you've got by the end of the day so I can 
keep Murillo updated," Skinner instructed as Scully stood up.

I nodded. "Will do."

Scully remained silent until we were out of Kimberly's earshot, 
but then she started talking rapidly. 

"I'm getting really tired of you setting my work schedule and 
taking advantage of the fact that I don't like to say no to you." 

Oops, busted. Even though she was speaking quietly, I could 
hear the anger in her voice.

"When was the last time I set your work schedule?" I thought 
that accusation was unjustified.

I expected her to back off at my comment, but she continued in 
an incensed tone of voice. "I meant in general, Mulder." Every 
word she uttered was clipped. "There's no reason this autopsy 
couldn't have waited until tomorrow morning."

"I thought you said you get more information when they're 
fresh." She'd told me that several times in the past.

"In some cases, yes, but I doubt this is one of them. I think I'm 
the better judge of which cases those are. Don't you?" The 
anger in her voice was mixed with condescension.  

We'd reached the elevator. I pressed the call button and we 
stood side by side waiting. 

"Well, if you get the autopsy done today, tomorrow we'll be 
able to do some of the interviews together." I pointed out 
another plus to my plan.

"True," she acknowledged softly. I could feel the tension drain 
out of her body. 

Knowing she'd calmed relaxed me immediately; perhaps a little too 
much.
                           
"Besides, I never get to spend time alone with the kids."

Just as I finished speaking the bell dinged and the elevator doors 
slid open. Scully and I moved to the back, knowing that the other 
passengers would be exiting before us. I could feel her eyes on 
me, but I stared straight ahead. As expected, everyone had 
cleared off when the doors closed at the ground floor, leaving 
Scully and I alone. As soon as the doors closed, Scully turned on 
me. Her body was tense. Her hands were balled into fists and 
her jaw was clenched. It had been a long time since I'd seen her 
this angry.

"Don't you dare to try to insinuate that being alone with the kids 
crossed your mind at all." Her eyes were frighteningly narrow.

"I, I-" I stammered, but Scully wasn't finished.

"And I'm sick of you making unilateral decisions." She was 
making no attempt to keep her voice down. "I hated it when we 
were just partners and I hate it even more now."

While she was yelling at me we reached the basement.

"And now you make it look like I've got no say here or at home 
in front of our boss." She raged as we approached the office. 

"Scully, I-"

She held up her hand to quiet me. "I don't want to talk to you 
right now." She picked up her briefcase and snatched her coat 
off the hook. "I'm going to Quantico."

"But the body won't-"

"I don't care." She turned to glare at me. "I'll find something to 
do. Cleaning out the sink traps in the autopsy bay would be 
preferable to spending another second with you!"

Spinning around again, Scully left the office. She slammed the 
door so hard a few pencils dislodged from the ceiling tile and 
landed on my desk. 

I knew Scully felt I pulled rank on her sometimes, but that was 
never my intention. Everything I said was offered up as a logical 
solution to the issue at hand. That didn't mean I wasn't willing to 
listen to alternatives. I did, however, cross the line with my 
comment about spending time with the kids. She was right. It 
didn't factor into my decision making in the least. It only 
occurred to me after I said I'd spend the afternoon with them. I 
also knew it would be pointless to tell Scully any of this until 
she'd had a chance to calm down. I'd apologize for the 
misunderstanding when she got home. That, coupled with some 
ass-kissing, should have me back in her good graces in no time.

Before I left to go home I called the victims who'd survived their, 
uh, afflictions to set up interviews. One agreed to talk to me the 
following day, one wasn't available until Wednesday, and one 
didn't want to talk to us at all. I couldn't say I blamed him. Then
I called the widow of the victim who had no criminal record and 
no DNA hits in CODIS. Mrs. Hackett was surprised we wanted to 
talk to her, but agreed to speak to us the next morning.

******

Jordan was surprised to see me waiting for him when he came 
trotting out of the school, but his shocked expression changed 
to happiness quickly.

"Daddy!"  A smile spread across his face and he ran to hug me.

"Hey, buddy." I patted his head and then took his hand. "How 
was school?"

"Okay," he said with a shrug. "Where's Mommy?"

"She had to stay at work," I told him as I opened the car door.

"Was she bad?" He looked up at me with a worried expression 
on his face.

I laughed out loud. "No, Jordan." I tried to think of how to 
explain it as I buckled him into his booster seat. "Your mommy is 
never bad. She had some extra work to do."

"Oh, okay."

I thought he was satisfied with my explanation until I got into 
the car.

"Is she catching bad guys?"

"Yes." I nodded, looking at him in the rear-view mirror. 

"Why aren't you helping her?"

"Because someone has to watch you and Megan." It was easier 
than saying 'Mommy is cutting up a dead body looking for clues'.

"But Mommy usually does that and you catch the bad guys." I 
could see his brow was wrinkled in confusion.

"I know, but Mommy is doing something only she can do," I told 
him as I pulled away from the curb.

"Why can't you do it?"

We had never explained to Jordan that Scully was a doctor. Even 
if we had, he wouldn't be able to grasp what a pathologist did.

"Because she's better at some things than I am."

"What things?"

"It's hard to explain, Jordan. Even though we work together, we 
don't do exactly the same things. It's like at your school; you 
have your teacher and Mrs. Bothwell. They work together, but 
they don't do the same things."

"Okay." He sounded like he'd understood what I was trying to 
say. "But what does Mommy do that you can't?"

"Our jobs are complicated." I tried not to sound exasperated. 
"We went to school to learn different things. It's like one person 
learns how to fly a plane and another person learns how to fix it. 
They both work with planes, but the pilot can't fix it and the 
mechanic can't fly it. You need both of them to get the plane 
safely off the ground."

"So does Mommy fly planes or fix them?"

My head started to ache.

"Neither, Jordan. That was an example. We both work for the 
FBI, but Mommy is a scientist and I'm not."

"Oh, so she had to stay and do scientist stuff?"

I sighed with relief. "Yes, Jordan." I wished I'd thought to say 
that sooner.

"And Mommy went to school to be a scientist?"

"Yes."

"What did you go to school to do?"

"Uh," I paused as I tried to figure out what to say. "To 
understand how people think."

"Even I know that, Daddy," he laughed. "People think with their 
brains."

"Not what they use to think, but why they think what they 
think."

"Huh?"

"If I understand the way the bad guys think, it makes them 
easier to catch." I hoped this wasn't too subtle for Jordan. 

"Oh. How?"

"Because it helps to know what they like or don't like, where 
they like to go and the kind of people they like."

"And knowing those things helps you catch bad guys?"

"Yes."

"Neat," he said thoughtfully.

By the time we pulled into the driveway my headache was full 
blown.

"What's wrong?" Maggie asked as soon as I walked into the 
house.

"Nothing's wrong. Dana had something to do at Quantico."

"I know, Fox, she called me. I meant with you." There was a hint 
of amusement in her eyes.

"Oh, headache." I gave her my best pitiful smile.

"I can feed Megan and Jordan if you want to take something."

"Thanks, Maggie."

Much to my relief, Jordan was fairly quiet during lunch and by 
the time I had both kids settled for their naps my headache was 
gone. With the house now quiet, I moved to the study to work 
on the case. I searched DC, Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia and 
Pennsylvania and came across two more possible matches for 
the new case. Since there wasn't any apparent criminal activity 
involved with the deaths and injuries, there could easily be a lot 
more cases that we'd never know about. I called Murillo to see 
what I could glean from him, but he didn't have much to tell me. 
The fact that all but one of the victims had been rapists was only 
noticed because he'd investigated two of the rapists, both now 
dead. He thought that was an odd coincidence. When he 
discovered how they died, odd didn't seem like a strong enough 
word. Then he did some poking around and found even more 
deaths and injuries that seemed to be punishing the men for the 
crimes they'd committed. He was sure there had to be a
connection, but the only link he could find was their offenses. 
Instead of bringing the case directly to me, he'd gone through the 
proper channels and approached Skinner. Murillo was sure that 
my skill set would be needed to solve this crime. Skinner had 
agreed. 

After finishing with Murillo, I began to look more closely at the 
two cases I'd found. They were in police custody when they 
became 'distressed'. I was beginning to dig deeper into their 
criminal records when I heard Megan on the monitor. I looked at 
my watch to discover that two hours had passed. Scully seemed 
to be able to accomplish a lot in the afternoons, but I felt like
I'd just gotten started.

I was changing Megan when I heard Jordan get up. That 
signalled the end of my free time. It was three o'clock and I 
didn't expect Scully to be home until around four, but as I was 
taking the kids downstairs I heard the key turning in the lock. 
Before I could say anything Jordan was off like a shot.

"Mommy, Mommy!"

"Hi Jordan." I could hear the smile in Scully's voice.

I was only halfway down the staircase and Megan was squirming 
to get down.

"Did you catch him, Mommy?"

"Who?"

As soon as I reached the bottom of the stairs I set Megan down. 
Scully was still in the foyer at the end of the hall, crouching to 
give Jordan a hug. Her briefcase was on the floor to her right 
and a couple of grocery bags were to her left. So she'd managed 
to do some groceries, perform the autopsy and be home by 
three. What had I accomplished? Megan stayed on her feet and 
began to toddle toward them. 

"Scully!" I stage whispered.

When she looked up to see Megan approaching, her soft smile 
spread into one of her dazzling, full-force grins that always made 
me feel like all was right with the world.

"Hi there, Megan!"

Megan clapped her hands together. "Mama."

"Mommy, did you catch the bad guy with science?" Jordan 
tugged at Scully's sleeve. He wasn't interested in what his sister 
was doing.

"Um." Scully crinkled her eyes at me.

I could only shrug. "You try explaining what you do."

"Not yet, Jordan, but I'm working on it." She chuckled as she 
arranged Jordan against her right knee. "Let's make room for 
Megan to get a hug, too."

"Do you want to play with them while I get supper?" I offered, 
hoping to soften her up.

"It's a bit early, isn't it," she said offhandedly as Megan finally 
reached her. "What were you planning to make?"

"I hadn't thought that far ahead," I admitted sheepishly as I 
watched Scully kiss Megan's cheek.

"I picked up a few things on my way home. There's more in the 
car." She nodded toward the door. "I didn't have a chance to 
shop on the weekend. Do you want to help me with the bags, 
Jordan?"

"Sure," Jordan said eagerly, hurrying to the door.

"I can help," I told her as I closed the distance between us.

"You don't have to cook, Mulder. I don't mind." She was back on 
her feet with Megan perched on her left hip.

"Scully," I said softly as I picked up her right hand. "I was wrong 
to insist that you go to Quantico today. It could've waited until 
tomorrow, especially since you hadn't seen the kids since 
Saturday. I can tell they missed you as much as you missed 
them."

"I'm sure you missed them, too," she said quietly, staring at our 
joined hands.

"I did, but probably not as much as you. I know it won't make it 
up to you, but please just let me make dinner." 

Jordan had the door open and was looking at us expectantly. I 
gave Scully's hand a little squeeze and started toward the door.

"Okay," she agreed as we all walked to the car, "but we still 
need to talk." 

I hoped everything had blown over, but Scully was obviously still 
angry. The kids' bedtime was five hours away and I didn't think I 
could wait that long to resolve this. Once we had the groceries 
inside I stayed with the kids while Scully changed and then I 
went to work in the kitchen. It took me a while to get everything 
put away because I didn't know where Scully kept everything 
and almost all of the lower cupboards had child safety latches 
on them, which took me a few tries to master. I didn't realize 
we'd installed them. When was the last time I'd opened 
anything besides the fridge in the kitchen? I'd made tea and 
toast for Scully, but that was about it.

When I started to think about dinner, I wasn't sure what Jordan 
would eat or if Scully had anything on hand for Megan. I knew 
Jordan always ate whatever Scully prepared, but I never really 
paid attention to exactly what it was. Whenever I cooked I made 
pizza or spaghetti. I wanted to show Scully that I could look after 
us, but the truth was, I couldn't. I needed her help.

When I got to the living room Scully was coming back from 
upstairs with two baskets of laundry.  It was then I realized that 
I'd broken my promise to her. I'd promised to help with the 
housework and be involved with the kids but Scully did almost a 
hundred percent of both, plus she worked close to full time 
hours. I considered myself a man of my word but I'd completely 
let her down. I felt like a heel. I had no idea why she hadn't 
kicked my ass. I couldn't help wondering if that was partly why 
she was so irate with me.

She stopped and looked at me with a puzzled expression on her 
face. "What?"

"You should've said something, Scully."

"I thought I said plenty." She raised her eyebrows at me, but her 
voice stayed even.  "Didn't we say we were going to talk about it 
later?" She glanced at Jordan. 

He tended to get upset whenever Scully and I fought, so we kept 
our disputes well away from him.

"We did and that's not what I'm talking about."

"Then what?" She shifted the baskets she was carrying; her 
puzzled expression had returned.

"I'm not carrying my weight. I'm so sorry. I didn't realize. I had 
no idea where anything went in the kitchen or what I should 
make for the kids. Then I come out here and you're doing 
laundry. I haven't done a single load since we got married."

Scully bent to put the baskets down. "Mulder," she said as she 
straightened up. "For most of that time I was a stay-at-home 
mom. You were working full-time. It wouldn't be fair to expect 
you to do half of the chores," she pointed out calmly. "And 
whenever I asked you to do something, you did it. No questions 
asked."

"Yeah, but you worked afternoons and put in time on the 
weekends that whole time. I mow the lawn and put out the 
garbage."

"And you barbecued a lot this summer."

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, it hit me. "Christ, 
Scully, I've turned into the stereotypical American dad."

Scully scoffed at that thought. "Hardly, Mulder."

"Scully, I'm serious. Especially with-" I nodded at her belly, "And 
you being back at work part-time, I need to do more around 
here. We should start taking turns cooking dinner."

"So you'll get home around five and start making supper? When 
will you see the kids? That doesn't make any sense, Mulder. I'm 
already here." Her voice was steady. She apparently had no 
issues with the way we were splitting the work, so none of her 
earlier anger stemmed from that.

"But I should be able to step in and take care of things at a 
moment's notice. When you're, um," I looked at the kids, who 
were quietly playing, "indisposed, I don't want to have to call 
your mom to find out what I should be feeding Megan."

"That's a long way off, Mulder," she reminded me gently.

"But I should start being more involved now."

"I don't think alternating cooking is practical," she repeated her 
earlier concern.

"Oh." I had a sudden flash of inspiration. "How about I cook and 
do laundry on the weekends. It's not fifty-fifty, but it'll give 
you a break and I'll learn how to take care of things if you 
can't."

"I don't feel like I need a break, but I get that you want to be 
able to manage on your own. And you're right; you should be 
able to step in anytime." She smiled softly at me. "But I think 
there's a better way than you trying to be superdad on the 
weekends."

"Yeah? What's that?"

"We could work together."

"No!" I gasped in mock horror, making both children look at me. 
"But what about -" I tilted my head towards them.

"Megan can play in the kitchen and Jordan can play here, or his 
room, watch TV or in the backyard with Guinness where we can 
keep an eye on him."

"But what about play time? You already said alternating would 
interfere with that."

"Well, we wouldn't want you to miss out on play time," she said 
in a mock patronizing tone. "Don't worry, you would still have 
enough time for some rough play when you first get home and 
then there should be enough time to do something quieter after 
dinner."

I nodded thoughtfully. "I guess that would work."

"Okay, let me throw in a load of laundry and we can start 
cooking," she said as she bent to pick up the baskets again. 
"Why don't you bring Megan into the kitchen and get her 
settled."

I remembered something just as she was turning around. "Damn 
it, Scully, I forgot to call Skinner."

"I called him before I left Quantico." 

"Thanks." What had I done without her? Oh, right, I completely 
fell apart.

Jordan actually seemed happy that I was taking Megan into the 
kitchen and immediately began to pull his zoo set out of the toy 
box. I tried to convince Megan to play with toys I'd chosen, but 
she was more interested in the cupboard with the Tupperware 
in it. When Scully appeared in the doorway I was once again 
trying to redirect my headstrong daughter. She couldn't have 
been more like Scully if she'd been ours genetically.

"She's allowed to play in there, Mulder. That's why there's no 
latch on that cupboard," she pointed out patiently. "She's pretty 
determined, isn't she? If I didn't know better, I'd say she got that 
from you."

I grinned at Scully and stood up, leaving Megan to pull out 
plastic bowls. "I was just thinking how much she's like you."

"I'm glad she's got a fighting spirit. From what you said, I think 
she got that from Lisa and I'll do everything I can not to tamp it 
down. I can already tell she's going to be pretty and I think she's 
just as smart as Jordan, if not smarter. When you put that 
together with her iron will, she'll be unstoppable." Scully smiled 
down at Megan.

'Yup, just like you,' I thought, but instead said, "She'll have the 
world at her fingertips."

Scully nodded with a smile, looking down at Megan. "She will."

At almost every turn, Scully confirmed that I'd made the right 
decision when I asked her to marry me. The depth of her love 
for Megan and Jordan only me made me love her more. I 
wanted to grab her, pull her into my arms and smother her with 
kisses, but I knew she was still pissed at me, so I changed the 
subject.

"Did you have something planned for dinner?"

"I was going to make butter chicken."

"Butter chicken! Isn't that complicated?" I asked in amazement.

She walked past me, opened a cupboard to my left and pulled 
out a jar of sauce. "Not really."

"Oh," I said with a chuckle. "That's more my speed. But will 
Jordan like it?"

She shrugged. "I guess we'll find out. I picked the mild variety 
and he's good about giving everything a chance. So far the only 
thing he didn't like was the eggplant parmesan I made." She 
looked up to meet my eyes.

"I liked it." I held her steady gaze, not being able to stop myself 
from sucking up to her, but it was true. Her eggplant parmesan 
was delicious.

She cleared her throat and looked away. "Thanks. So, here's 
what we have to do," she began to speak briskly, "The chicken 
breasts have to be cut up and sauteed. Then the sauce is poured 
over it and we let it simmer for about half an hour."

"How do you know all that?" I was fascinated. 

She picked up the jar and turned it around to show me. "I can 
read directions."

"So it's not some innate knowledge all women are born with?" 

She smiled at me. "Reading directions? Yes, I believe it is."  

I rolled my eyes at her. "Ha ha."

 Scully was attempting to be playful with me, but it felt like 
something was off. At first I thought it was because she was still 
angry about what happened at work, but it was more than that. 
Even though we were talking, she seemed restrained; like she'd 
pulled back from me. I couldn't put my finger on what it was 
exactly and no one else would likely notice, but it made me 
jumpy. I did my best to act like nothing was wrong. 

"Then the rice has to be put on to steam as well as the 
vegetables. So one of us could prepare the chicken and the 
other, the rice and veggies."

"Okay." I nodded. She made it sound simple.

"But it's not even four yet and we usually don't eat until six. I'd 
prefer if we could clear the air first." She lifted her chin toward 
the table. "I'm still not happy about this morning."

I knew it! "Sure." I pulled out a chair and sat down. "You first."

I saw her eyes widen at my comment. She wasn't expecting me 
to have any complaints to bring to the table. But she said 
nothing as she sat down across from me. She took a deep breath 
and started to speak.

"If you weren't aware of it before today, I really despise it when 
you make decisions for me at work and at home. We're partners 
in both places and I expect to be treated that way, particularly in 
front of Skinner."

"I never intended for it to sound like you don't have a choice," I 
told her truthfully.

"You think 'I need you to do this autopsy this afternoon' sounds 
like I'm being given a choice?" she asked incredulously.

"No, I guess it doesn't sound that way." I had to agree. "But you 
have to believe that's not what I mean. I value and need your 
input, Scully, like I always have. You noted it yourself in the 
past, though, I tend to get exuberant about cases and when that 
happens, my social skills tend to suffer."

She crossed her arms in front of her. "So I'm supposed to put up 
with it because that's the way you are?" 

"I might say understand, not put up with, but after seven years, 
yes, I would like to think you understand how I work and know 
that I'm not trying to call the shots," I said earnestly.

"Well, I didn't understand that," she said with a heavy sigh. 

"Scully, you must know that I never meant to boss you around.       
I'm sure in the future I'll say something that sounds that way, 
but no matter how it sounds, it's not intended that way. If you 
disagree with something I've suggested, say something and we 
can talk it through. I'm not a mind reader."

"Mulder, it's not that I disagree, although today, I did. It's the 
impression it gives other people, like you say 'jump' and I ask 
'how high?'. It undermines my worth in other people's eyes. 
Which brings me to another point; you take advantage of the 
fact that I don't like to say no to you." She was staring straight 
into my eyes. We both knew she was right.

"I do," I admitted quietly. "And I'm sorry about that, too."

I was surprised when Scully lowered her eyes and folded her 
hands on the table in front of her.

"I had a lot of time to think today, Mulder, and there's 
something I need to tell you." Her voice was very quiet. 

My heart began to beat wildly in my chest. I thought we were 
going to discuss what happened at work. Hearing her say that 
she'd been thinking and now wanted to tell me something 
scared the shit out of me. 

"Don't look so scared, Mulder. This is something about me, but I 
need to tell you because it affects us." 

She'd told me not to be scared, but I'd never seen Scully look so 
unsure of herself before.

"Scully, you can tell me anything and whatever it is, I'm positive 
it can't be as bad as you're imagining." I tried to reassure her.

She chewed on her lip. "I hope so, Mulder. I'm terrified to tell 
you but you have a right to know." Her blues eyes were wide 
open.

"Jesus, Scully. What is it?" She had me scared again.

"I think it's something I've always known about myself, on some 
level, but I've never been able to admit before." She was playing 
with her fingernails nervously. I'd never seen her like this 
before.

"Okay." I kept my voice quiet and nodded, trying to keep her 
calm and encourage her at the same time.

"I've always been attracted to powerful, self-assured men. I 
never tried to analyze why. In fact, until today, I didn't really 
see the connection. It was always a heady experience, being with 
men who knew what they wanted and weren't afraid to go after 
it. I was thrilled that they'd chosen me. At first, I was happy to 
do whatever they wanted. Usually that meant letting them 
choose what we would do and with who. I think I was so 
surprised that these amazing men had picked me, I didn't notice 
that I was following them around like an eager puppy. In the 
bedroom, I did whatever they asked. I wanted to please them 
sexually. I found it exciting."

Scully and I had never talked about our pasts. To a certain 
extent, we both knew each other's relationship history, so I 
knew exactly who she was talking about. Although I didn't want 
to hear about her having sex with other men, what she was 
saying was arousing me.

She flicked her eyes up at me. I tried to keep my expression 
neutral but intent. I needed her to finish this. Reaching out, I 
took hold of her hand. She didn't pull away, but she lowered her 
eyes again. 

She took another long slow breath. "Today, I finally admitted to 
myself that I'm sexually submissive." 

She raised her head to look at me again. I nodded slowly, not 
sure if I should say anything. I quickly thought about our sex life 
and could see exactly what she was talking about. She did 
everything I asked; every fantasy, every position. Why had I not 
seen it?

"I don't know if Jack or Daniel actually ever realized that, and I 
think if they had, it wouldn't have been a problem. What ruined 
both of those relationships was when they tried to extend that 
control to outside of the bedroom. It wasn't even controlling our 
social lives - I didn't really even have a problem with that; it was 
when they started making decisions about my life and my 
career."

I felt my breath catch in my throat. Was Scully saying I'd ruined 
everything we'd built because she thought I was trying to 
control her?

"Scully, I-" My voice shook.

"Shh, Mulder." She gave my hand a squeeze. "Let me finish. I 
think I can safely say you know how I react when I feel like 
someone is being too controlling. I bolt. I do it every time. I did 
it this morning."

I nodded. A sudden crash brought my attention to Megan who 
had just pushed the last of the Tupperware out of the cupboard 
and was crawling inside.

Scully glanced over at her as well, but her eyes locked on mine 
again quickly. "We have to work this out, Mulder, because we 
can't let this destroy our relationship. We can't."

"I'll do whatever it takes." The words spilled out of my mouth 
quickly. "Just tell me what I need to do."

"That's the problem, Mulder. I'm not good at that. What I think 
we have to do is establish boundaries."

"Boundaries are good," I agreed.

"I like the way things are in the bedroom. I don't want that to 
change. I like doing what you want. It turns me on more than 
you could possibly know."

"Okay." My voice sounded somewhat choked. Her implication 
sent copious amounts of blood south.

"But it has to stop there, Mulder. If you can't keep it in the 
bedroom, we won't be able to work together anymore.  You've 
always been able to manipulate me. I know you're doing it and I 
still can't stop myself from wanting to please you. Like today, I 
could've said that the autopsy could wait until tomorrow, but I 
agreed because you wanted me to do it today. There's only one 
place I want you to wield that power you have over me. Okay?" 
Her cheeks had grown red during her confession.

"Yes," I whispered as I shifted in my chair, attempting to make 
myself more comfortable. It didn't work.

"I like to please you. I always have. That's why I was so sure you 
didn't share my feelings. I always thought mine were so painfully 
obvious."

"Not so obvious." I shook my head. "If they had been, I would've 
bent you over my desk a long time ago." I couldn't hold back any 
longer.

"Mulder!" she protested, but her eyes betrayed her by 
darkening.

"How do you expect me to react when you tell me that you can't 
help but surrender yourself to me?" My cock was rock hard.

"I never said that."

"You and I both know what you meant." I leaned in to challenge 
her.

"Well, maybe I did, but it can only be in one place and I'm not 
talking about anything extreme." She leaned forward and 
lowered her voice. "I just like it when you take charge, but if you 
bring that to work, I'll start to resent you and that would be bad 
for us." 

"Then tell me no if I do it at work."

"It's not that easy. My first instinct is to please you. It's only 
later that I get angry," she argued, shaking her head.

"That's not fair, Scully. It can't just be my responsibility. I'll 
try not to sweet talk you or order you around if you'll try to call 
me on it, if I forget."

"You're right," she agreed with a sigh. "It will take an effort on 
both of our parts. And time."

I nodded and wiggled in my chair again.

"How turned on are you?"

I could only groan in response.

"Yeah, me too," she confessed breathlessly. "But I'm not done 
yet."

"Scully, please, I need to touch you."

"Mulder, there's something else I want to say," she tried to 
sound stern.

"Not enough blood in my brain to process anything."

She frowned at me. "That's a pathetic excuse."  

"Please." I pushed back from the table and patted my leg. "Sit 
here and tell me."

"Mulder," she continued to protest even as she stood up.

"Please." I didn't have enough brain power to think of another 
enticement.

As soon as she was close enough, I grabbed her hand and put it 
on my erection.  

"God, Mulder." Her voice was low and breathy.

I pulled her onto my lap roughly. "That's what happens when 
you tell me you'll do anything I ask in bed."

"Anything," she panted and leaned in to kiss me.

"You must have limits," I leaned away to point out.

"If I do, you haven't come anywhere close to them yet," she told 
me before covering my mouth with hers.

I couldn't help bucking up against her. I wanted to be inside of 
her so badly. "What else did you want to yell at me about?" I 
remembered to ask through our kiss.

"Oh." She nodded and pulled back. "You never get to spend time 
alone with the kids?" The expression on her face said she was 
calling 'bullshit'.

"Well, I don't. But you're right, I didn't think about that until 
after. Sorry."

"S'okay." She broke into a smile and resumed our kiss.

"And you didn't need to make me look like an ass in front of 
Skinner." I finally brought up my gripe even as her lips moved 
over mine.

"You don't need my help to look like an ass." She chuckled into 
my mouth.

I backed away from her insistent mouth. "I'm serious, Scully. You 
could've lost the sarcasm."

"True. Okay, I'm sorry. I guess we both need to work on how to 
behave in front of Skinner." Her mouth found my mine again.

"Agreed." I smiled against her lips. I was about to deepen our 
kiss when I heard Megan's voice right beside me.

"Mama."

"I guess this party's over," Scully said with a laugh. "We should 
start getting dinner anyway."

****

I didn't learn anything by helping Scully in the kitchen. All I 
could think about was her confession. It seemed like bedtime 
would never arrive. When it did, Scully read to Jordan and I 
gave Megan her bedtime bottle. Once she was settled in her crib,
I left her room and waited in the hall for Scully. As soon as 
she emerged from Jordan's room, I tackled her, barely giving her 
enough time to close Jordan's door. In what seemed to me like 
one fluid motion, I had her pinned up against the wall with my 
knee between her legs and my tongue meeting hers as we 
fought for control. Scully might like to think of herself as 
somewhat submissive sexually, but you couldn't tell by the way 
she was kissing me. When I felt her tugging my shirt out of my 
pants, I reluctantly broke our kiss.

"Wait," I panted.

"Don't want to," she said with a pout and moved her mouth to 
my neck.

Hadn't she just said something about not being able to say no to 
me? My eyes drifted closed as she sucked on my skin. I 
shuddered when her tongue darted out to taste me.

"Scully?"

"Mmm?" she answered without lifting her mouth off me.

"Remember what I said about bending you over my desk?"

It was her turn to shudder and then she groaned, open-mouthed 
against my throat.

"I want to do that." My voice was rough with lust.

Finally pulling back, she looked up at me, her eyes hazy with 
desire. 

"Me too," she told me, breathing heavily. "But you know we 
can't."

"Mmm, but we can pretend." I grinned at her.

A sly smile spread across her face. "What do you have in mind?"

"Study!" I said, probably louder than I should've, but if Scully 
noticed or cared, she didn't say.

I grabbed her hand to pull her along with me, but she resisted. 
She wasn't very good at this submissive stuff.

"Wait," she said; her voice still low and breathy. "If we're going 
to do this, let's make it good. Go downstairs and wait for me. I'll 
be as quick as I can."

When she got to our bedroom door she turned to look at me. 
"Put your jacket and tie back on." And with that she disappeared 
into our room.

Scully may have sucked at doing what I said without question, 
but she certainly excelled at taking my ideas and making them a 
thousand times better.

After locating my jacket and tie, I went into the study to 
prepare. The desk was pushed up against the back wall. That 
didn't fit with the scenario I had in mind. I wasn't sure how long 
Scully was going to be, but I knew I was going to have to be fast. 
Once I'd unplugged the computer and monitor I set them on the 
floor out of the way. Then I pulled the desk out and turned it 
around, leaving a couple of feet between it and the wall. I 
couldn't plug the computer back in without the cords being in 
my way, so I carried them to the living room. 

Once I was back in the 'office', I put the chairs in place. Mine 
was a computer chair, but Scully's was a wingback that she 
didn't want to part with, but didn't fit in the living room. I had 
just sat down and pulled out a pad of paper and a pen when the 
door opened. She was wearing one of those skirts that I love 
with a matching jacket and a white blouse. She was carrying her 
briefcase and the only thing that was out of place was the baby 
monitor she had in her other had. She quickly set it on top of the 
file cabinet. 

Her eyes widened when she saw how I'd rearranged the 
furniture, but she said nothing except, "Good morning, Mulder."

She had completely transformed into "Office Scully." It wasn't 
just the clothes. Her back was straighter, her shoulders were 
back and her head was held high. The only thing that gave her 
away was her eyes. I could see how dilated her pupils were from 
six feet away. She was as turned on as I was.

"Hey, Scully. Did you do anything interesting last night?"

"Nope. You?" She put her briefcase on the desk and sat down in 
the wingback chair.

"No, but I was thinking about that case I was hoping to follow up 
on in Indianapolis."

"Yeah?

"I know you don't agree, but I'm sure it's a Werewolf."

"You know what my issue is, Mulder," she said as she crossed 
her legs. 

"Yeah, I know."

"There's no such thing as Werewolves," we said in unison.

"But could you please bear with me?" I asked in a pleading tone 
of voice.

She rolled her eyes at me. "Don't I always?"

"Yes. Yes, you do." I held back a grin. "There's a file I want to 
look at. Could you grab it for me?"

"Where is it?"

"Uh, W for Werewolf," I said as if she should've known.

"Well, it could've been under L for Lycanthropy," she said 
defensively as she stood up.

'True,' I thought. 'But then you wouldn't have to bend over as 
far.'

The filing cabinet wasn't in the same position as the office, but 
where it was suited me better. When Scully bent over to open 
the bottom drawer, I suppressed my groan, like I had so many 
times in the past. I couldn't help noticing how long she looked 
for the file. She knew exactly what I was doing. She finally pulled 
out a file and straightened up.

"Here you go," she said with a smile as she handed it to me. 

"This isn't the right file," I told her as she sat down. The file 
she'd given me said 'Vaccination Records, Megan Prescott' and the 
Prescott had a stroke through it and Mulder had been written 
above it.

Her mouth turned down into a frown. "That's the only one there 
was."

"I'm sure there's another."

"I just looked. There isn't."

"Could you check again, please?"

"Fine," she said with a huff as she stood up.

This time as soon as she bent over I stood up. I sat on the corner 
of my desk and stared at her ass. 

"There's no other file here, Mulder."

"I'm sure there is. Keep looking."

Getting up from the desk, I took a couple of steps toward her. I 
watched as her manicured fingers flicked through the files. 
Closing the remaining space between us, I pushed myself against 
her, making her gasp and lose her balance. I grabbed her hips to 
stop her from falling forward.

"Mulder, what are you doing?" she asked as she straightened 
up. I didn't loosen my grip on her hips.

"Well, I was planning to help you look for the file, but I got 
distracted."

"By what?"

I lowered my voice to whisper in her ear. "By your amazing ass." 

She drew a short sharp breath at my words. I accentuated my 
words by rubbing my erection against her. She seemed to 
vibrate at the contact and let her weight fall back against me. I 
took that opportunity to move my hands; placing one on her 
belly while I slid the other up to cup her breast. Even through 
her suit it felt incredible. When I whispered into her ear her 
head had lolled to one side and there it remained. I took 
advantage and began to kiss her throat. Through the entire 
process her hips had been moving against me, making me 
harder with each pass.

"Mulder, we can't," she murmured, though her ass still moved 
against me purposefully.

"Why not?" I asked as I unbuttoned her jacket.

"Someone might come in."

"Mmm, true." I put my hand back on her breast. I could feel how 
hard her nipple was through her blouse and bra. She moaned 
when I began to tease it with my thumb. "Is that the only 
reason?"

"What?" she asked in a daze. "Oh, yeah."

"Then lock the door," I instructed and stepped away from her.

After kicking the file drawer closed with her foot, she strode 
quickly to the door and locked it. Until that moment I hadn't 
known the door to the study even had a lock. When she turned 
to face me I discovered that she was flushed from her forehead 
to what I could see of her chest. Her eyes were blazing. I don't 
think I'd ever seen her this turned on before.

"Lose the jacket." I lifted my chin toward her.

It fell to the floor immediately. She started toward me, but I 
held up my hand, making her halt.

"Take off your bra too, but leave the shirt on."

She'd chosen a white semi-see through blouse. I wanted to see 
her nipples pushing against it. Her eyes never left mine as she 
slipped the bra off, slowed only by the buttons on her cuffs.   

I was only vaguely aware when she dropped her bra. As I'd 
anticipated, the way her nipples jutted out against the silky 
transparent fabric of her blouse completely mesmerized me. 
Scully's nipples had darkened a little recently and through the 
white material the effect was entrancing. The way her chest 
moved with every breath she took only delighted me further.

"Fuck, I love your tits," I said through gritted teeth and closed 
the distance between us.

She practically fell against me. Her head was tilted up, mouth 
open, waiting for my kiss. I obliged instantly, closing my hand 
over her breast at the same time. She groaned into my mouth 
when I pinched her nipple.

Her hands were around my neck in a vain attempt to pull my 
head closer. My cock throbbed against her belly. It felt like this 
fantasy of mine was going to be over quickly, which is probably 
exactly what would have happened if we'd ever actually done 
this at the office.

When her hand left my neck and she snaked it between us to 
close it around my erection I groaned and pulled back. 

I shook my head. "Don't want a hand job."

Before I knew what was happening, Scully had dropped to her 
knees.  While I'd had a blow job fantasy more times than I could 
count, it wasn't the one I was trying to act out, but I was 
powerless to stop her.

Her tiny hands deftly freed my cock from my pants.

"You're beautiful," she said softly, running her hand along my 
length before taking me into her mouth. My head fell backwards 
at the sensation.

I moaned her name as her tongue danced along the underside 
of my shaft. She applied a tiny bit of suction as her lips moved 
back toward the head of my cock. When her hand closed around 
me, my balls began to tingle. I lifted my head up quickly.

"Gotta stop," I told her. "Don't wanna come this way."

She didn't release me right away. Instead she let me slide out of 
her mouth incredibly slowly, looking up at me the entire time. 
When she stood up, she kept her hand firmly around my cock, 
like she was afraid it might get away.

"What's the matter," she asked, blinking slowly at me. "Don't 
you like blow jobs?"

Growling, I grabbed her by the back of her head and pulled her 
into a lusty kiss. Scully was completely pliable in my arms; letting 
me move her wherever I wanted as I thrust my tongue into her 
mouth. I finally pulled out of our kiss to answer her question.

"I love blow jobs, and Scully, you give incredible head. But you 
knew that, didn't you?"
 
She didn't answer. Instead she smiled mischievously at me; her 
hand still clamped around my cock. At least I was no longer on 
the brink of orgasm.

"It was difficult for me to stop you, but ever since you reached 
for that file, there's only been one thing on my mind."

"What's that?" she asked breathily.

"You bent over my desk with me buried so far inside of you that 
you won't be able to tell where I end and you begin." As I spoke 
her pupils dilated so wide her eyes appeared completely black 
except for a very thin circle of blue.

Finally releasing my cock, she walked around me, pulling up her 
skirt as she went. My eyes nearly popped out of my head when I 
saw that she was wearing thigh-highs. With her skirt bunched 
around her waist, she pushed the wingback chair out of the way 
and leaned over the desk, holding herself up on her forearms.

She looked over her shoulder at me to ask, "Like this?"

Her ass was jutting up tantalizingly and her inner thighs were 
already slick. The thin strip of material afforded her by her thong 
had long exceeded its absorbance capacity. 

"Yeah, like that," I croaked. She smiled and wiggled her ass, 
seemingly pleased with herself.

"Thigh-highs, Scully?" I had to ask.

"You have no idea how many times I've worn them here hoping 
you would do something like this," she explained in her smoky 
voice.

"Oh fuck," I groaned as my cock surged anew." If she kept this 
up, I'd come before I was inside of her. Wanting to avoid that at 
all cost, I began to move quickly. "Take your thong off," I 
directed as I worked on my pants.

I kept my eyes glued to her ass as she managed to slip off the 
thong without straightening up. Once they were at her knees, 
she had to squirm to make them fall to the floor. First she 
worked one foot free, then the other and finally kicked the 
thong aside. When I dragged my eyes away from her ass, I found 
her gazing at me intently. 

"Okay?" she asked as if she was uncertain.

I nodded. "Oh yeah."  Then I took another step toward her. 

One thing I hadn't counted on in any of my fantasies was that 
neither my desk at work nor this one was the right height to 
accomplish what I'd envisioned. I had to spread my legs and 
bend my knees for it to work. I knew there was a good reason to 
do all of that running. My quads were definitely up for the 
challenge.

Neither of us needed any help in the lubrication department, 
but I ran the head of my cock through her folds, just to savor the 
feeling. From the way she sighed, I could tell Scully enjoyed it as 
much as I did. I eased myself into her slowly.

"Fuck, yes." My eyes rolled back in my head as I was enveloped 
by her heat. Scully was saying something too, but the blood was 
pounding so loudly in my ears I couldn't hear what it was.

I'd always pictured myself covering her body with mine, but the 
posture I'd had to adopt didn't allow it. Instead I clutched her 
hips and began to pump into her forcefully. My balls began to 
tingle immediately. This was going to be over far too soon. I 
could tell Scully was very aroused, but I didn't think she was 
close enough to come. I decided to deepen the bend in my 
knees. That action accomplished two things; when I thrust into 
her, I'd hit the spot where her ass met her thighs, which I knew 
she loved, and I'd be able to reach her clit.

I wasn't expecting what I felt when I found it. She'd never been 
this swollen before. As soon as my fingers made contact, she 
gasped and shuddered violently. Her internal muscles clamped 
around me tightly. She was closer to orgasm than I'd realized.

In all of the times we'd had sex, and we'd had a lot of sex, there 
was one thing I'd never managed. I'd never brought her to 
simultaneous g-spot and clitoral orgasms. That was about to 
change.

I let my fingers rest against her clit gently, only wanting them to 
serve as increased friction. I knew if I pressed down, she'd come 
right away. Instead, I began to pound into her even harder. The 
way I was focusing on her pleasure meant I was no longer quite 
as close. Like the woman said, I was determined. 

I used to think I was too rough with Scully, but the harder I 
fucked her the more she liked it. Now I knew why. It was a good 
thing because I was rapidly losing the ability to control the 
power of my thrusts. Judging by the sound of Scully's throaty 
cries, she had no problem with what I was doing. 

I ended every thrust with a slight upward bump, hoping to hit 
her g-spot. When her cries became constant, I knew I'd been 
successful. It only took a few more strokes to make her body 
tense up. That was my cue. As I pounded into her furiously, I 
finally pressed down on her clit. 

I was completely unprepared for what happened next. I 
expected the shuddering. I expected the rippling of her internal 
muscles and the pulsing of her clit. I did not expect the shouting; 
hers, not mine. Though, I probably shouted too, because her 
reaction made me come right along with her.

Scully had called my name often while in the throes of an 
orgasm, but nothing close to the volume or duration of this yell. 
I not only heard my name, but God's as well and there were a 
few colorful phrases thrown in for good measure.

My climax was over long before hers and I waited for her pulsing 
and quaking to stop before I moved us to the wingback chair. 
We sat quietly for several minutes, just catching our breath and 
holding each other. Scully was the first to break the silence.

"Oh my God, Mulder."

"You said that already," I reminded her, not trying to hide how 
proud I was of myself.

"That was," she paused and shook her head. "I don't think there 
are words for what that was."

"Fan-fucking-tastic? In-fucking-credible?" I suggested.

"To say the least," she agreed with a throaty laugh.

"And all of that was because you like when I tell you what to 
do?"

"In part." She nodded. "But I had my share of office fantasies 
too, you know."

"Really? Wow! And did you actually used to wear thigh-highs to 
work?"

"I did." She wiggled her ass against my lap.

"Fuck," I said very slowly. "Scully, if I'd known that and how 
submissive you like to be..."

"Sexually, Mulder. Remember that part. It's important."

"I will," I promised whole-heartedly.

"Because if you try to order me around anywhere except the 
bedroom, or wherever we happen to be having sex," she 
remembered to add, "I'll have your balls in a vice."

We sat quietly while I thought about what she said.

"Scully?" I began after a minute.

"Yeah?"

"When we first started tonight, you weren't doing everything I 
said, so I was wondering if you were as submissive as you 
thought you were, but you're actually pretty good at this 
sexually submissive thing."

"Thanks," she said with a chuckle.

"But you really need to work on your sexy after-talk."

****************************************************
October 10, 2000
Arlington, VA
5:30 am

After our office fantasy romp the previous night, Mulder and I 
had fallen into bed sexually sated, sleepy and a lot earlier than 
we normally did. Consequently I woke before the alarm. 

When I surfaced fully, I found myself draped over him. It felt 
glorious to be pressed up against his naked form. Stopping 
myself from running my hand over his chest, which I knew 
would wake him, I simply enjoyed the heat of his skin. In spite 
of waking early, we didn't really have enough time for sex, as 
much as I might have enjoyed it. 

Our skin to skin contact started a tingle between my legs. I 
didn't know how Mulder would react if he ever found out 
exactly how easy I was when it came to him. I was sure his ego 
would love it, but I was doubly sure he'd use it to his advantage. 

When I took a deep breath to calm myself, I was confronted 
with the smell of sex. Actually, it was Mulder's cologne and his 
own alluring scent, but regardless, to me it was a powerful 
aphrodisiac. Groaning quietly, I couldn't help squirming a little 
as the tingle between my legs intensified.

Sighing in his sleep, Mulder's arm tightened around me in an 
unconscious action. His penis stirred against the leg I'd flung 
over his. My vagina began to ache with wanting him inside of 
me. Suddenly all I could think about was the searing look in his 
eyes when he told me to bend over the desk so he could fuck 
me. In my mind, I could hear the smoky sound of his voice 
instructing me to remove my underwear. 

A moan escaped my lips as my nipples hardened against him. If 
he woke up, I wouldn't be able to hide my arousal from him. My 
sex was pushed against his hip. Both were slick with my 
moisture. Even last night, I wasn't this turned on. I wanted him 
desperately. My heart seemed to be thudding loudly in my 
chest and my palms had grown damp. My skin was flushed from 
head to toe. All this simply because I was laying nude atop the 
man I love. 

The strange part was that I'd woken up this way many times in 
the past and never reacted this strongly. The only thing that had 
changed was my realization and confession to him. The thought 
of admitting to him that I was a bit of a sexual submissive made 
me cringe for a moment, but then I remembered the lusty look 
on his face when he told me to take my bra off and leave my 
shirt on. Any regrets I had were swept away by a new flood of 
heat between my legs.

My heart rate increased and I sighed involuntarily. My clitoris 
throbbed mercilessly. As much as I wanted to think that 
submissiveness was the antithesis of who I was, it was clearly a 
part of my sexual being. I was so incredibly turned on I'd 
probably consider letting Mulder fuck me in the back yard if he 
asked me to. This did not bode well for our working 
relationship. How was I going to be able to say no to this man 
about anything? Ever?

Closing my eyes, I took deep slow breaths through my nose in 
an effort to settle myself down. It didn't work. Mulder was up; 
in more ways than one.

"You are nicer to wake up to than the alarm clock." His sleep- 
roughened voice rumbled in his chest.

"I'm not as reliable though," I tried to joke, but my arousal was 
evident, even to my own ears.

"Don't care," he mumbled and pulled me fully on top of him.

His erection was wedged between us, pressing firmly against 
my clit. Disregarding any morning breath either of us might 
have, he tugged me up into a kiss, dragging my throbbing center 
over his hardness. I hoped he wouldn't notice how turned on I 
was, but when I groaned into his mouth, the jig was up. While 
claiming my mouth with his tongue, his left hand went to my 
breast and he reached between us with his right.

"We don't -" I had to pause to gasp when he tweaked my 
nipple, "have time."

"Yes, we do," he contradicted as his fingers began to probe me.

"Mulder." I meant to use a cautionary tone, but it came out 
breathy instead.

"Don't worry, this won't take long. Get on your knees," he 
ordered gruffly.

"Nnn," I tried to argue, but Mulder was already moving me into 
the position he wanted. I was on my stomach before I could get 
another sound out.

"Mmm, Scully. I want to see that pretty little ass of yours up in 
the air."

I complied without thinking. Leaving my face squashed into the 
sheet, my entire body trembled as I got to my knees. Grabbing 
my hips, Mulder pulled me back to meet his cock. He slid into 
me easily and I shuddered at the sensation of his hard length.

"Unh, fuck," he said through clenched teeth. "So hot."

With his left hand still tightly gripping my hip, his right slipped 
over my belly to feel for my clit. As soon as he made contact, I 
was gone, coming harder than I had during our fantasy play. I 
had to use the mattress to stifle myself. Mulder continued to 
pound into me as my orgasm raged. When I felt him succumb, I 
was no longer yelling, but my body was still quaking.

He waited until my aftershocks subsided before collapsing to 
the bed and pulling me with him in a tangle of arms and legs. 
Kissing me feverishly, he told me he loved me whenever our lips 
parted. His tongue was still in my mouth when the radio began 
to play.

After I flicked it off he grinned at me. "Told you we'd have 
time."

"We won't always," I reminded him gently.

"You started it," he said with a chuckle. "I could smell how 
turned on you were when I woke up, not to mention the way 
your nipples were poking into me."

"This may come as a shock to you, Mulder, but we aren't 
required to have sex every time we're aroused." There was no 
way I was going to tell him I was extremely glad we had.

"Are you sure?" he asked, furrowing his brow in mock 
confusion. "I'm positive I read somewhere that we were."

"We can debate this later. I need to shower. Will you listen for 
Megan?"

"Sure. Want me to bring you tea and toast?" His eyes followed 
me as I left the bed.

"I think I'm okay, but thanks," I said with a smile. "My stomach 
hasn't really been bothering me for the last couple of days."

"Maybe we've stumbled across a cure for morning sickness," he 
said, raising his eyebrows at me suggestively. 

"Could be," I said with a chuckle as I headed toward the 
bathroom. When I got to door, I turned around again. "So on 
mornings when we don't wake up early enough and you have to 
deal with the kids, are you going to have someone pinch hit for 
you?"

"Uh uh, in this relationship I'm the designated hitter - wait, that 
sounded wrong. Why did it sound sexy when you said it and 
abusive when I said it?"

"I knew what you meant," I assured him with a wink. "So it's 
orgasms when we have time, otherwise it's back to the tea and 
toast remedy."

"Unless you want to hire a nanny," he said with a shrug.

Instead of going into the bathroom, I turned to face him. "This 
may sound weird, Mulder, but to me the tea and toast is almost 
as good as the sex."
"I must make phenomenal toast, Scully, because I've seen you 
come, and it looks amazing. And I've never seen that look on 
your face when you're eating toast," he said with a smirk as he 
got off the bed.

"It makes me feel loved," I tried to explain.

"Shit, Scully, I hope that's not the only way you feel loved," he 
said as he strode over to me.

"No, of course not. I was referring to our options for morning 
sickness cures," I promised as he gathered me into his arms.

"And sex doesn't make you feel loved?" He looked down at me, 
slightly puzzled.

"It makes me feel desired, not taken care of. I guess they're 
different aspects of being loved." I lifted my hand to stroke his 
cheek. "Don't worry, Mulder. I know you love me."

"Good," he said with a sigh and then pressed his lips to mine for 
a quick kiss. "You had me worried for a minute."

"Mulder, you never do anything halfway. No man has ever 
loved me as thoroughly and intensely as you do. I smiled up at 
him softly. "Once I knew we were on the same page, there was 
never a doubt in my mind."

"Mmm, glad to hear it," he said as he leaned down to kiss me 
again. Lifting his lips briefly, he said, "Because I thought I'd 
made myself clear."

When he lowered his lips to mine again his tongue sought 
entrance to my mouth, as if to accentuate his point. Leaning 
into him fully, I relished his gentle kisses and became 
completely lost in his adoration. I only came back to reality 
when I heard Megan on the monitor. Breaking the kiss, we 
leaned our foreheads together briefly.

"You're supposed to be showering, not distracting me," he 
chastised and then gave my rear end a little squeeze.

"Uh huh." I rolled my eyes at him before heading to the shower.

When I emerged, I discovered a cup of tea waiting for me on 
the vanity. I thought I knew Mulder well after working with him 
for seven years, but his romanticism surprised me. My heart 
warmed at his loving gesture and I smiled to myself as I took a 
sip.

After I blew my hair straight and applied my make-up I went 
into the bedroom only to find he'd left toast on the dresser. 
Since I hadn't complained about nausea, he'd opted to top it 
with peanut butter. I'd always thought of myself as highly 
independent, but I adored the way he was taking care of me.

I didn't get a chance to eat much while I was dressing, so I 
carried it downstairs with me. Mulder met me at the bottom.

"Thank you, Mulder. You're very sweet." I stood on my tiptoes 
to kiss him.

"It's been a long time since I was accused of that," he said with 
a grin. "Your mom's here," he added and then began to climb 
the stairs.

I stopped him by putting my hand on his arm. When he turned 
to look at me expectantly, I took a deep breath. "There's 
something we need to talk about. Do you think we could drive 
in together?"

"Sure," he said hesitantly.

"It's nothing bad, I promise. But we'll have to get Jordan 
together," I reminded him.

"That's fine. We can have lunch at home. I've got another 
interview this afternoon, anyway."

Fifteen minutes later we were pulling out of the driveway. I was 
always amazed at how quickly Mulder managed to get ready 
and still look so good.

"So?" His eyes flicked over at me as soon as we were underway.

"I need your help," I told him quietly.

To my surprise, Mulder slowed the car and pulled over. He 
turned slowly to look at me; eyes wide, mouth slightly open. 
Finally he shook his head a little and spoke.

"Of course, Scully. Whatever you need."

"Mulder, what are you doing? We have to go or we'll be late," I 
said with a sigh.

"Sorry, I'm just not used to you asking for help. And if you do, 
it's usually a big deal," he explained as he reached out to take 
my hand.

"Just drive," I huffed, pulling my hand away. "It's not a big deal, 
just something I don't think I can do on my own."

"What is it?" he asked gently as he pulled away from the curb.

"Now I feel stupid asking after you made such a production out 
of it." The truth was I'd almost lost my nerve.

"I'm sorry, Scully. You took me by surprise. You know I'll help 
you however I can," he promised sincerely.


"Okay." I took a deep breath before continuing. "You know how 
I agreed to tell you if I noticed you were trying to manipulate 
me?" 

"Yeah," he answered tentatively.

"And you were going to make an effort not to influence me."

"Yeah." It was almost a question. I could tell he had no idea 
where I was going.

"Well, I don't really understand what's happened, but right now 
I don't think I can control it." My cheeks grew hot as I spoke.

"Control what?"

"My reaction to you. Now that it's out in the open, I feel it more 
powerfully than ever." With each word that left my lips I 
became progressively more aroused. I had a feeling this day 
would be a living hell for me.

"Feel what? Manipulated? Did I push you too hard this 
morning?" he asked, concern evident in his tone.

"No, not really. You were right, we did have time, but I wouldn't 
have been able to say no to you unless I felt the kids needed 
me. Your will became my desire," I tried to explain.

"I'm sorry, Scully. I'll listen when you say no. I promise." There 
was a hint of regret in his voice.

"That's not what I'm saying, Mulder. This morning was fine, very 
good, in fact. I'm talking about separating what happens in the 
bedroom from the rest of our lives. I'm having a very hard time 
with that distinction right now. Every cell of my being wants to 
please you. To me, it feels like it's coming off my body in waves, 
like anyone who looks at me will know how I'm feeling."

Glancing over at him, I saw the muscles in his jaw bunching and 
unbunching. Lowering my eyes, I discovered I wasn't the only 
one aroused.

"Until I figure out how to deal with this, I need you to help me. 
I'll have a very hard time saying no to you, but that doesn't 
mean I won't resent you later if I think you were taking 
advantage of me. I don't want that to happen. It'll put a strain 
on our relationship and we've got enough going on." 

I trusted Mulder more than I'd ever trusted any man, but 
making this request was one of the most difficult things I'd ever 
done. I was trusting him with the emotional health of our 
relationship. I'd never relinquished that before. Not being in 
control of myself was extremely unnerving. It was like giving 
him a part of myself I'd never given anyone before, but there 
was no one I trusted with this aspect of myself except Mulder. 

"But in bed I can?" he asked, his voice gruff.

"Yeah." My voice trembled.

"I can do that," he consented in a tight voice.

"Thank you, Mulder, and I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" He looked at me in confusion.

"I know it arouses you to hear that I want to please you."

"Unh," he grunted in response.

"But if I didn't talk to you about this, I have no idea what might 
have happened. It wasn't my intention to turn you on," I told 
him apologetically.

"No, it's good that you said something. I'll help you find the 
balance, Scully. I need it as much as you do."

My heart swelled at his words. I didn't think it would be 
humanly possible to love anyone as much as I loved Mulder.

"Could we just not talk about it on the way to work anymore, 
please?" he requested in a tense voice.

I glanced over at him again. His boxers and suit pants did 
nothing to contain his erection. His knuckles were white from 
gripping the steering wheel and his shoulders were visibly 
twitching under his shirt.

"Pull over," I said sharply.

"What?"

"You heard me."

"Where?" He looked around.

We were in a section of Arlington where the houses were giving 
way to small businesses and we were only a couple of blocks 
from our entrance to the Beltway.

"There." I pointed to a church parking lot and then chuckled to 
myself at the irony. Luckily it was deserted on a Tuesday 
morning.

"What's -" Mulder stopped talking and drew a quick breath as I 
deftly freed his cock from its confines.

I was expecting my impromptu blow job to take some time 
since we'd had sex an hour and a half ago, but it seemed like I'd 
barely started and he began to pulse into my mouth.

After making sure he was clean, I tucked his cock back into his 
shorts and zipped his pants. Then I took my seat and refastened 
my seat belt.

"Okay, let's go," I said as I checked myself in the visor mirror.

His head was still back and his eyes were closed. "Gimme a 
minute."

I waited quietly as his breathing returned to normal. When he 
opened his eyes, he turned to look at me.

"Scully, you didn't have to do that."

"Probably not, but it made both of us feel better and it looked 
like it was all you could do to concentrate on driving. How 
would you be able to focus on a case?" I explained my thinking 
as he pulled back onto the road.

"That made you feel better?" he asked in surprise. "Why?"

"It was a different kind of satisfaction for me, Mulder. Don't ask 
me to explain it or we'll be in the same boat all over again. 
Okay?"

"I won't be in that boat again for a while, Scully," he said with a 
laugh.

"We're not just talking about you. Let's discuss it later. What I 
need to do right now is focus on work and trust that you're not 
going to use my highly suggestible state against me," I told him 
in the most serious tone I could muster mere minutes after 
performing fellatio in a church parking lot.

"I won't," he said sincerely. "You can count on me."

Once at the office we went over the file on Gary Hackett. Gary 
was the one man whose life didn't seem to fit in with the rest of 
the files Skinner had given us, yet his death certainly did. He'd 
never been in any trouble with the law. We couldn't even find a 
speeding ticket. His DNA wasn't in CODIS, but he'd died one of 
the two ways an alarming number of rapists in the DC area had. 
Mr. Hackett had succumbed to necrotizing faciitis. While the 
flesh eating disease is rare enough, to have so many victims in 
one area is almost unheard of. To have it present exactly the 
same way in all of the victims; the odds were astronomical.

I still wasn't sure what paranormal force Mulder thought was at 
work here, but whatever was going on, I knew all of the cases 
had to be related.  The odds of it all being coincidental were 
unfathomable. There had to be a connection. We just had to 
figure out what it was. It appeared to be rape, but from what 
we could see, Gary Hackett was clean. If we could find 
something that tied him to the other cases, it would go a long 
way to helping us solve this mystery. 

"How are you planning to approach this interview?" I asked 
Mulder as we were getting ready to head out. "Does Mrs. 
Hackett know about the other victims?"

"I don't think so." Mulder shook his head as he pulled on his suit 
jacket. "She was very surprised that the FBI wanted to interview 
her."

"We'll have to tread lightly. Her husband has only been dead for 
a month. If we go in there saying he was a rapist we won't get 
anything out of her, even if she knows something."

Mulder stared at me in disbelief before saying, "I do know how 
to conduct an interview, Scully."

"Sorry," I murmured. "Just checking."

"I was intending to focus on his habits. Maybe there was a part 
of his life she didn't know about. Perhaps he travelled regularly 
for work, or maybe he had an alias. For all we know, he has a 
juvie conviction. There are all kinds of possibilities."

"So you think he's a rapist that never got caught and was smart 
enough to use a condom?" I clarified as I followed him out of 
the office.

"Or it was a long time ago," he said over his shoulder as he 
began to climb the stairs. 

"But then how could anyone have possibly known he was a 
rapist?"

"That, Scully, is the sixty-four thousand dollar question."

Denise Hackett still lived in the Silver Spring, Maryland home 
she'd shared with her husband. Gary had been an aide to a 
Maryland congressman and Denise was a junior partner at a 
prestigious DC law firm. They were a power couple and their 
home reflected it. Our four-bedroom Arlington Georgian looked 
small in comparison and the Hackett's were childless. 
Everything about their home said money, from the professional 
landscaping to the Lincoln Town Car and Dodge Viper in the 
driveway. Our fleet Ford Taurus stood out like a sore thumb in 
this neighborhood.  

After getting out of the car, I straightened the jacket and 
smoothed out the pants of my favorite Armani suit. It had been 
an expensive purchase, but it was a classic and would last me 
years. Or so I'd thought when I bought it. I hadn't counted on 
getting pregnant. If I worked at it, I was sure I could get into 
shape again, but my mother said her figure changed after every 
baby. Even if I got back to my pre-pregnancy weight, there was 
no guarantee the suit would fit me. It wouldn't be long before 
I'd need to start looking for a maternity wardrobe. 

Mulder's voice in my ear surprised me. "You look beautiful."

"I know I shouldn't care," I murmured.

"We could afford a neighborhood like this," he offered casually.

It was true. I'd married a man with money, even though I hadn't 
known it at the time. His family had been well-off and after the 
deaths of his parents, the money had all come to him. If I'd 
thought about it, I would've realized. I'd helped with the 
paperwork involved in selling both houses. After Chris and Lisa 
Prescott died, Mulder was left even more money. 

In August I got another surprise when a large sum of money was 
deposited into our joint account. It was then I found out that 
not only had Mulder been left houses and cash, both of his 
parents had substantial stock portfolios and bonds. In August 
some of the bonds had matured. Mulder told me that he 
normally reinvested any dividends he received, but he thought 
we should make that decision together. All I'd ever invested was 
what I could scrape up for my retirement fund. To deal with 
money like that, I would've needed to do research and I didn't 
have the time. Since Mulder had always trusted his lawyer, 
Brent Garrow, with the decisions, I opted to do the same. The 
only time I thought about the money was when the statements 
arrived in the mail. I doubted I'd ever get used to it.

I looked up at Mulder as we walked toward the house. He was 
wearing an impassive expression and kept his eyes forward.

"Do you like this neighborhood?" I looked him over as I asked. 
In his Hugo Boss suit he looked like he'd fit right in. It seemed 
like the suit had been made for his body. The fabric seemed to 
flow over him, only giving tantalizing hints at what lie beneath. 
With each step his quadriceps would flex briefly and then be 
hidden again by a sweep of cloth.

"Scully?"

"Hmm?" I looked up at him, blinking rapidly.

"Did you hear me?"

I shook my head and cleared my throat. "Sorry."

"I said neighborhoods like this scare me. It looks nice enough, 
but I get the feeling something insidious is lurking in the 
shadows."

"Really?" I scanned the cul-de-sac. I suspected Mulder might 
simply be reacting to the case in The Falls at Arcadia. "It looks 
innocuous to me."

He nodded. "Exactly, but if *you* like it..."

"I dunno." I sighed as we approached the front door. "It doesn't 
look very kid friendly and I love our new house. It feels like a 
home to me. This is all very Martha Stewart."

"Precisely. It's enough to creep out Stephen King," he said with 
a grimace as he used the brass knocker.

The door opened a few seconds later revealing an absolutely 
stunning woman. Denise Hackett was probably about five foot 
six, but her Manolo Blahniks made her easily four inches taller. 
Her charcoal Versace suit hugged her lean body. Her thick 
brunette hair was swept up into a French roll that made her 
seem older than her thirty four years; as did the pearls at her 
throat.

"Agents Mulder and Scully," Mulder informed her as we pulled 
out our badges.

"Please come in." She stepped aside to let us pass. "I must say I 
was surprised at your request for an interview," she confessed 
as she shut the door. "There wasn't any foul play suspected in 
my husband's death."

"His name came up while we were investigating another case," I 
explained, trying to be vague. "We're just being thorough."

She smiled thinly. Being a lawyer I assumed she knew I had 
information I wasn't sharing. From her fake smile, I gathered 
she wasn't happy about that, but knew there was little she 
could do about it except not cooperate with us. We regarded 
each other as she mulled over her options. She could ask us to 
leave or satisfy her obvious curiosity. I guessed she would 
choose the latter.

And I was right.

"Of course," she said with a return of her thin smile. "I'll help 
however I can." She swept her hand, palm up, toward a sitting 
room.

As I turned I felt Mulder's hand on the small of my back as he 
ushered me into the room. Opting for a loveseat that backed 
onto a picture window, I set my briefcase down beside me and 
opened it. Mulder took a chair and Mrs. Hackett sat on the 
couch in the corner furthest from him. I was mildly surprised at 
her choice. My husband and partner tended to have a magnetic 
effect on women.

Glancing over at me, Mulder widened his eyes slightly, letting 
me know he wanted me to ask the questions.

"Mrs. Hackett, the reason we wanted to speak with you is 
because several other men have died in DC and the surrounding 
area in circumstances that are either identical to your 
husband's or similar." I told her as I opened my notebook. My 
eyes never left her.

Although barely discernable, I saw surprise register on her face. 
She definitely maintained a calm exterior in light of being 
questioned by the FBI. We, in no way, thought Denise was 
involved, but considering the recent event in her life, I expected 
more of a reaction. I would've laid odds that she was a court 
room lawyer, or perhaps practiced contract law. It had to be 
something where she needed to mask her feelings.

"Similar?" she asked calmly.

"Several men have died from necrotizing faciitis in exactly the 
same way Mr. Hackett did and several have died from blood 
loss as a result of the spontaneous rupturing of their testicles." 
Despite his attempt to remain unmoved, Mulder twitched at my 
description.

"Spontaneous rupturing?" Denise repeated dispassionately. I'd 
painted some fairly graphic images, but outwardly she 
appeared indifferent.  "And you think there's a connection 
between these men?"

"There is a connection between all of the men except your 
husband. We're hoping the link is there, just not as obvious as it 
was with the others. That's why we need to talk to you. If we 
can determine how your husband fits in, it will help us 
determine who or what caused this," I explained, still watching 
her carefully. I had a feeling it might be difficult to get any 
information out of this woman.

"Who? You think someone did this to Gary? On purpose? Who 
would possibly want to hurt him? He was a good man; a truly 
good man," she said, blinking back tears. It was the first 
emotional response I'd seen from her.

"We don't know. That's why we need your help," I told her 
quietly, hoping I'd broken through her shell.

As Denise took a shaky breath, I looked over at Mulder, 
expecting to find him watching her reactions, like I was, but I 
found his attention elsewhere; across the hall, in fact. When I 
followed his eyes, I discovered his interest had been captured 
by a library.

"Okay." My eyes were drawn back to Denise as she agreed 
more meekly than I'd anticipated. "What's the connection 
between the other men?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that without compromising our case." 
While it was true that specific aspects of cases were commonly 
withheld, in truth, the reason I didn't want to tell her is because 
I suspected it would shut her back down again.

"I understand," she said with a nod.

Knowing that Gary must've had secrets from his wife if he was 
actually a rapist, I began to probe into his routine, but every 
avenue I tried turned out to be a dead end.

Despite working for a congressman, Gary didn't travel a lot for 
work. There was plenty of travel involved in his job, but a 
second aide, a single man, was happy to do the bulk of the 
travelling. Gary preferred to be at home with his wife. 
According to Denise, as a result of their demanding jobs, they 
didn't get a lot of down time, so they guarded what little they 
got jealously. 

Gary didn't have a regular poker night or sports night. He used a 
gym at lunch time to work out. He didn't hunt or fish with his 
buddies. Denise said wine tasting in the Loire valley was more 
Gary's speed. They vacationed together. They own a property 
on the South Carolina shore, but they always went together, 
when they had the time. They hosted dinner parties and went 
to gallery openings. She attended the symphony at his request 
and he, the theater, at hers.

Gary sounded like the polar opposite of the other men who'd 
been affected. He also sounded extremely boring to me, but to 
each their own.

Both Gary and Denise had attended separate prep schools and 
while Gary had done pre-law at Harvard, Denise had done her 
undergraduate degree at Georgetown. They met at Harvard 
Law. Gary had been a year ahead of Denise and they'd met at a 
mixer. In spite of excelling in law school, Gary had found politics 
more alluring.

"He said every day was a new challenge. He loved his work," 
Denise said sadly. "It was his job to make the congressman look 
good."

"What about his younger days?" I asked gently, not wanting to 
sound accusatory . "Any rebellious years?"

"No, that was me," she said with a soft laugh. "He was Gary 
Hackett, all-American."

"C'mon." She nodded toward the library. "I'll show you his 
yearbooks. He was voted most popular, most likely to succeed. 
If there was an accolade, it went to Gary."

When Denise stood up, Mulder and I stood to follow. I glanced 
over at him, but he just shrugged. Gary Hackett seemed perfect, 
but maybe it was all an elaborate construct on his part. On the 
other hand, he could've just been a good guy.

"And while Gary was class valedictorian at his school, I was busy 
rebelling in the back seat of cars. Luckily I got my act together in 
college and it cost my dad far less to get me into Harvard Law 
than he was expecting."

"Are you close with your family?" I asked as we entered the 
library.

"Very. My mother and sister have taken turns staying with me. 
They didn't think it was very funny when I called it suicide 
watch, but the joke wasn't far from the truth," Denise admitted, 
not meeting my eyes.

"I can't begin to imagine," I told her honestly. "I was devastated 
when I lost my dad. I don't even want to think..." I couldn't bring 
myself to finish the sentence. "Was Gary close with his family?"

"Yeah, unfortunately," she said with a half-smile.

"You didn't like them?" I wondered as she crouched to retrieve 
a yearbook from a lower shelf. 

"No, no, they're lovely people. We just had the typical struggles 
about where we spent the holidays."

As Denise began to show me pictures of Gary as captain of the 
debate team, president of the student council, editor of the 
school paper and shortstop on the baseball team, I began to 
think my elaborate construct theory might be right. Could 
anyone be this perfect? There had to be a secret lurking in the 
shadows.

As Denise focused on the pictures of Gary and I oohed and ahed 
at the appropriate times, I was acutely aware of Mulder moving 
quietly behind me. I had absolutely no idea what he was looking 
at.

Denise had pulled out a third yearbook when he cleared his 
throat.

"Scully, could I speak with you in the hall briefly?"

"Sure." I looked over at him, but I couldn't begin to guess what 
he wanted to talk about. "I'll be right back," I murmured, 
putting my hand lightly on Denise's arm.

"All right," she replied distractedly, completely absorbed by the 
memories of her husband.

Once I was in the hallway, Mulder pulled me away from the 
library's double doors.

"Did you find something?" I asked in a whisper.

He nodded briskly. "I need you to ask her if they played rape 
games."

"What?" I must've been looking at him like he'd grown a third 
eye. "There's no way," I said, shaking my head. "We just talked 
about this, Mulder. You promised -"

"I'm not trying to manipulate you, Scully. I swear. You seem to 
have developed a rapport with her and I really don't think she'd 
respond well to that question coming from me."

I looked into his eyes as he spoke. I knew Mulder. He was being 
completely serious.

"We need to know. It would explain everything," he continued 
to argue his case.

"What would it explain? How would someone know what they 
did behind closed doors? And furthermore, why would they 
care? If Gary and Denise did play that game, it was consensual, 
regardless of how it might look." I kept my voice down even 
though I wanted to sound incredulous.

"I think you nailed it right there, Scully, when you said how it 
might look." Mulder stood close to me and leaned toward my 
ear as he spoke.

"You think someone was watching them?"

"If someone was watching them long enough, they would've 
known it was a game," he said with a shake of his head.

I sighed in exasperation. I hated it when I had no idea what he 
was thinking. "Then how would they know?"

"I have an idea, but I need to find out if I'm right about the 
fantasy rape, otherwise my theory doesn't fly." He pulled back 
to look at me imploringly.

"What makes you think this might even be a possibility?" My 
stomach was churning at the thought of having to ask this 
question. We weren't talking about Luke Skywalker and his light 
sabre here.

"There are a couple of highbrow Kinbaku books in the library 
and -"

"Kinbaku?"

"Intricate Japanese bondage and a well-worn copy of The Story 
of O almost hidden behind some art books. After I saw the 
bondage books, I started looking more closely," he explained; 
his mouth close to my ear again.

"They had bondage books out in the open?" I couldn't imagine 
how their dinner party guests would've reacted to books like 
that.

"Unless you knew what you were looking at, you wouldn't 
understand the significance. And you certainly wouldn't know 
from the covers. They look like expensive art books," he 
clarified quietly.

'You recognized them.' I thought and immediately wondered if 
Mulder knew more about D/s games than he'd told me. He'd 
once said his fantasies weren't very kinky. Had he been afraid to 
tell me the truth?

"I profiled a guy back when I was in the behavioural unit who 
liked to display his victims using elaborate rope work. I learned 
more about the art of bondage than I ever wanted to know," he 
answered the question he must have seen in my eyes. 

I couldn't believe he was asking me to do this. If he was right 
and they did play rape games, I couldn't see how that would 
connect the cases. I guess tenuously, it did. But fantasy rape is a 
far cry from the real thing. The act of rape was about power and 
violence. Fantasy rape was more like an act of ultimate 
submission and far beyond the realm of anything I'd be 
interested in.

"Does she strike you as the type?" I looked up at him.

"They both do. She has a lot of power and might enjoy 
relinquishing it. He, conversely, has a job where even though he 
might have made important decisions, he held no real power. It 
might've restored a balance in their relationship."

I couldn't stop myself from reacting to what he'd said. Again, 
Mulder must have seen it on my face. I obviously wasn't as 
proficient at hiding my emotions as Denise had been initially.

"No, Scully, I don't think we're anything like that. I'm not 
positive, but I think you've wanted to please people your whole 
life. It was how you felt accepted. It's one of the ways you show 
me you love me." His voice was very low and his breath tickled 
my ear as he spoke. I started to feel a tingle between my legs. 
This definitely wasn't the time or place. "Besides," he 
continued. "I have all the power at work."

The tingle vanished instantly. "You keep telling yourself that," I 
said dryly. I paused for a moment as I tried to think about how 
to broach this subject with Denise. "Do you think she'll be 
honest?"

"I trust that you'll be able to read her," Mulder said with a quick 
nod. "You broke her before and I think she trusts you."

"Okay," I said with a heavy sigh.

"I'll wait in the car, just in case she's reluctant to talk with me 
around," he said, turning on his heel.

'Chicken!' I thought as I watched him walk away.

"I'll go to the car and call Skinner," he called in a loud voice and 
made a point of closing the door loudly.

I turned around and headed back toward the library. When I got 
to the door Denise was heading my way.

"Are you leaving? Was I able to help at all?"

"Actually, there was one more question I wanted to ask you." I 
stalled.

"Sure," she said with a nod. Her face looked far more open than 
when we'd arrived. It made her look years younger.

"My partner noticed a couple of books in your collection," I 
began.

"Yes?" 

I could tell she didn't know what I might be referring to.

"About Japanese bondage," I clarified.

Her face colored immediately. "Oh, um, they were gifts from an 
international client. I should've thrown them away."

Mulder was right. I could read her easily. She looked like the 
proverbial cat who'd eaten the canary. Her defences were 
definitely down, if not gone completely.

"And a copy of The Story of O."

"Uh," she began, but I cut her off quickly.

"A well-read copy, Denise and don't worry, there's no 
judgement here. I'm not trying to sully Gary's memory and 
nothing you tell me will be part of an official report. I won't 
even write it down. I promise."

She stared at me wide-eyed.

"Would you like to sit?" I leaned my head toward the sitting 
room.

She shook her head mutely.

"I hope you know you can trust me."

She gave me a barely perceptible nod.

"I just have one question and if the answer is yes, it will be the 
link that we were looking for to tie all of our cases together." I 
stepped closer and touched her forearm gently. "Will you be 
honest with me?"

"Yes," she said; her voice almost inaudible.

The woman standing in front of me seemed to have shrunk. No 
longer the statuesque beauty who'd towered over me at the 
front door an hour ago, she looked like a gentle breeze 
would've knocked her over. The thought that I might appear 
this way to Mulder made me feel sick to my stomach.

"And like I said, no one else will know." It was a half-truth. 
I'd be telling Mulder, but beyond that, no one else.

"Okay."

"Did you and Gary, even once, act out a fantasy rape?" I felt my 
own cheeks flush at the question.

"H-How?" she sputtered. "How could you know that? No one 
knew that." Her face was flaming red.

"So you did?"

"I thought you were going to ask if he'd ever tied me up, you 
know, because of the books. Has someone found out?" She 
began to shake.

"Come and sit down." Taking her by the arm, I led her into the 
sitting room. She collapsed to the couch heavily.

"I don't understand. How could anyone know? We never told a 
soul." She looked up at me in dismay and then her expression 
changed quickly to horror. "Were they rapists? Do you think 
Gary was a rapist?" 

"At first we suspected he was, but now that you've told me 
about your private life, I know he wasn't," I assured her gently.

"But you suspect someone thought he was and killed him for it? 
Is that what you think?" Tears began to stream down her face.

I couldn't leave her like this.

"We're not a hundred percent sure," I answered hedgingly. 
"Denise, I think you should call your mother or sister and ask 
them to come and stay with you. I know this has come as a 
shock to you and I don't want you to be alone."

"I'll be okay," she said; her voice choked with tears.

"I'm not leaving until you call," I told her firmly.

"But what will I say? I couldn't -" She shook her head 
vigorously.

"Just tell them you had a bad day. They'll understand," I told her 
calmly.

As promised, I didn't leave until she'd called her mother. 
Walking to the car, I felt like I'd been punched in the stomach.

"Are you okay?" Mulder asked as soon as I got in.

"I left a completely devastated woman in there, Mulder. What 
do you think?" I may have been a little terse with him, but he'd 
buggered off and left me with the dirty work.

"Do you think she'll be all right?" he asked quietly.

"No." I shook my head. "I basically just told her that Gary was 
murdered because of a sex game they played. I think it'll take 
her a long time to recover from that."

"Is that what you said?" he asked in shock.

"Of course not," I said angrily. "But she's a smart woman and a 
lawyer. She put the pieces together herself."

"Will she be okay on her own?" He asked evenly.

"I made her call her mother."

The car was silent as we began our drive back toward Arlington. 
We had to pick Jordan up in half an hour.

"I'm sorry, Scully," Mulder said softly after a few minutes. "I 
wish I could've asked the questions but -"

"It's fine," I cut him off with a shake of my head. "It's part of 
the job."

"I know but -" he began again.

"Mulder, stop. Would you be acting like this if we weren't 
married?" 

"Well," he started and then took a breath.

"Correction; if you weren't in love with me?" Looking back now, 
I could see that many of his actions in the past had been a result 
of his feelings for me.

"Probably not," he acquiesced.

"You know how I said I'd resent you if I thought you tried to 
manipulate me? Well, I'll resent you more if you don't treat me 
like your partner at work. We have to make a distinction there, 
too. There are parts of this job that I don't like and you can't 
change that for me. Okay?" 

"I would've felt bad asking anyone to do that, Scully," he 
informed me quietly. "Especially since she took it so badly."

I frowned at him. "How else would she take it?" 

"I-" he began, but once more, I interrupted him.

"I'm sorry, Mulder. Can we not talk about this anymore? You 
were right. They played fantasy rape games. I really want to 
know how anyone could've found out, but there's something 
else I want to ask you first and it contradicts what I was just 
saying about the distinction between work and home, but I 
really need to know."

"Why don't we clock out then?" He smiled over at me. "We can 
talk about the case tomorrow."

"Okay, but this is kind of related to the change I saw in Denise," 
I explained. I was terrified that he might see me as a ghost of 
my usual self when I did whatever he asked of me. I couldn't 
bear the thought of him perceiving me like that.

"What do you mean?" He looked puzzled.

"When we got there, she looked like a strong, powerful, 
beautiful woman who was in complete control of herself. When 
I started to question her about the rape play, her whole 
demeanor changed. She seemed so small and frail. By the time I 
left, she was crumpled into the corner of the couch weeping," I 
said; my heart aching at the memory.

He reached over to take my hand. "I understand that she was 
devastated."

"No, that's not what I was getting at. I saw her change from the 
powerful woman to the submissive one and it shocked me. Now 
I wonder what I look like to you when -"

"Oh, Scully." Mulder squeezed my hand. "You never completely 
relinquish your power. I think it would be a turn-off for me if 
you did. I don't see you like that at all."

"Are you sure?" I asked, still fretting about seeming weak in his 
eyes.

"Do you want me to be completely honest?" he asked in a tone 
that worried me.

"Yes," I said, steeling myself against what I was about to hear.

"You don't come across as submissive to me. I know you think 
of it like that, but to me you just start exuding sexuality. You're 
like a sex kitten, Scully and I fucking love it."

"A sex kitten?" I looked at him, keeping my smile hidden.

"You wanted me to be honest and I was," he said with a shrug. 
"Maybe it wasn't the best choice of words. Should I have said 
my sexy little plaything?" His voice grew rough as he spoke. "My 
personal sex goddess? But most importantly, it turns me on 
more than you can possibly imagine. And when that happens, 
instead of relinquishing your power, you've actually taken all of 
mine. You have all the control. It's all I can do not to come in my 
shorts."

"I like the sound of that," I said, not hiding my smile of pleasure 
anymore. 

I wasn't sure when I became the woman who was thrilled to 
hear a man talk like that. It was still probably a form of 
submissiveness, even if Mulder didn't see it that way, but all 
that mattered to me was that he never saw me as helpless or 
frail. Being a sex goddess in his eyes was something I could 
easily get used to.

Jordan was thrilled that both of us were picking him up and 
became even more excited when he found out Mulder was 
coming home for lunch. He chattered away to us all the way 
home. Once there, he was still so exuberant I had a hard time 
getting him to eat his food. After lunch, he wouldn't settle for 
his nap. I had to ask Mulder to leave, even though he had more 
than enough time to make his afternoon interview. Then it took 
three books before Jordan finally fell asleep.

I was surprised that my mother was still there when I eventually 
made it back downstairs.

"What had him so wound up?" she asked when I walked into 
the living room.

"Just the novelty of Mulder and I both picking him up, I guess," I 
said with a shrug. "Why haven't you gone home yet? You didn't 
have to wait for me."

"I wanted to talk you about Fox's birthday present. I saw 
something I wanted to get for him, but I wanted to make sure 
you think he'll like it."

"We have plenty of time, Mom. His birthday isn't until the 
thirteenth," I said with a wave of my hand.

She smiled at me; her blue eyes twinkling. "That's this Friday, 
Dana."

****************************************************

October 11, 2000
Hoover Building
Office of Fox Mulder
1:30 pm

Scully and I had spent the morning interviewing two of 
the survivors of the apparent retribution attacks, but we 
learned nothing. Other than their crimes, the men had 
no connections; not even their victims. One of the men 
had a definite type and stalked his victims. The other 
was opportunistic. Other than his victims being female, 
there were no commonalities between his targets.

As I typed my notes into the case file, I had an idea and 
almost said something out loud, but I caught myself, 
remembering that I was alone; although, if anyone had 
heard me talking to myself, based on my reputation, it 
likely wouldn't have struck them as odd.

After pulling the files Skinner had given us out of my 
drawer, I began to sort through them in chronological 
order, only to be interrupted by the ringing of my 
phone. It was Kimberly. Skinner was requesting my 
presence. I wondered exactly how many cases he 
thought the X-files division could handle with one and a 
half agents.

As it turned out, he wanted me to write a brief report 
ruling out alien abduction for a missing person case in 
Oklahoma. At first glance I could tell there was nothing 
paranormal involved, but the locals were pressing the 
field office hard. They hoped something from the 
Bureau's resident paranormal expert would do a better 
job at convincing the sheriff that the reason this woman 
was missing was a little more down-to-earth.

"It's pretty obvious what's going on here," I told Skinner 
after reading the file. 

"It's the sheriff's sister-in-law. You can see it. I can see it. 
The boys in the Oklahoma City field office can see it. The 
sheriff, however, has blinders on. That's where you 
come in. It won't take you more than a couple of hours 
to put together a concise explanation of why it's not 
alien abduction. The field office doesn't even need you  
to say what *is*going on. They just want you to 
convince the sheriff in Watonga to stop looking up."

I couldn't stop myself from looking at Skinner in 
disbelief.

"Look, Mulder," he said with a sigh. "I give you plenty of 
leeway with the cases you want to investigate. It's time 
for you to scratch my back.

"I just helped you with that whole Witch harassment 
thing. How itchy is your back?"

Skinner's eye twitched as I spoke and his jaw clenched. 
Then after taking a deep breath, he exhaled slowly. 

"The Pamela Burke case came from higher up. It wasn't 
my back you were scratching. I know you despise the 
politics of this job, Mulder, but you're approaching 
fifteen years in the Bureau. You know how the system 
works."

Forcing a smile, I said "Yes, sir," through clenched teeth. 

"Just leave the report with Kimberly when you're done," 
he said and turned his attention to an open file on his 
desk.

Taking that as my cue, I stood up and left the office. 
There would've been a time when I'd have told Skinner 
where to stick this report, but I was no longer in that 
position.

Despite our healthy bank accounts, I wouldn't have felt 
comfortable not having a steady income. If it meant 
biting the bullet so that my family would want for 
nothing, I'd do it. If my kids wanted to follow in my 
footsteps and go to Oxford, I didn't want money to be 
an issue. 

As soon as I had the thought, a chill ran through me. Had 
my father's actions all been about money? Did he feel 
the same way? Had he hoped we would want for 
nothing? By the time Samantha was taken, that could 
hardly have been his motivation. He couldn't possibly 
have thought that any amount of money would've made 
up for the loss of his child.  Being willing to scratch 
Skinner's back so that I could investigate cases that 
interested me was hardly the same as selling my soul to 
the devil. Before he'd been forced to sacrifice my sister 
to 'the work', I think he was convinced he was on the 
side of the angels. Judging from the way he hit the 
bottle afterwards, he stopped believing that in 
November of 1973.

Thinking about what my father had done made me 
realize how little Skinner required of me. I had a lot 
more freedom than most agents. Why did I begrudge 
him the few requests he made of me. After all, it was my 
job and utterly ridiculous to compare it to what my 
father had done. I used the rest of the afternoon writing 
what I wanted to be the best report my boss had ever 
seen. I hoped he would understand it was my way of 
apologizing for being an ass.

At four o'clock I left a thorough treatise of how the 
Oklahoma case did not fit the alien abduction profile on 
Kimberly's desk. Then after straightening my workspace, 
I took care of some personal business and left for home. 
On the drive I thought about what my life had been like 
six months ago and the enormous transformation it had 
undergone. My job had become my life and not strictly 
because of my sister. Even after I'd found out what 
happened to Samantha, my life had revolved around 
work. And there was only one reason for that.

Scully.

She was still the center of my universe, but in a much 
healthier way. Did we have a normal life now? I had no 
idea. All I had to compare us to was my parents. I 
wondered if what we had approximated her view of 
normal. Did she compare us to her parents? I had a 
feeling Bill and Maggie Scully's marriage had been a rare 
commodity; the kind they show on TV, but doesn't really 
exist except in very few cases. I only hoped that what I'd 
given Scully came somewhat close to what she'd 
envisioned for herself and that her parents hadn't set an 
impossibly high standard to live up to.

As I turned onto our street I was surprised to see Maggie 
just heading home. She's probably spent the afternoon 
helping Scully with the multitude of things we had going 
on in our life. I wasn't sure why people called it settling 
down, because it seemed to me that our life was crazier 
now than it had ever been.

When I walked in the door the dog ran up and jumped 
on me. Then Jordan wanted to talk to me about his 
Halloween costume. At the same time Megan was 
clutching at my pant leg saying "Da da da." 
Squatting down, I put an arm around each kid and then 
stood up again.

"Welcome home," Scully said with a grin.

I lifted my chin toward her. "C'mere." My hands were 
too full to beckon her any other way.

"I don't think there's enough room," she said; her smile 
making her eyes shine.

"Oh come on, Scully, you're not that big. There's plenty 
of room, so c'mere and give me a kiss."

"Fine," she said with a sigh.

Stepping closer to me, she stood on her toes, gave me a 
peck and then backed away. 

I frowned at her. "What was that? Come back here and 
give me a real kiss."

"Mulder," she said quietly and shook her head slightly.

"C'mon, Scully. I missed you. I missed all of you."

"We spent all morning together," she argued as she 
closed the gap between us again.

"I spent all morning with my partner. I miss my wife," I 
contradicted with a grin. "Now put your arms around my 
waist."

As she complied a feeling of contentment washed over 
me.

Lifting her head to smile up at me, she said, "Better?"

"Much," I said with a sigh. "Now a proper kiss, please."

Seeing as my arms were full of kids and the dog was 
barking and wagging his tail excitedly at our huddle, I 
didn't get to devour her mouth the way I would've liked 
to, but all things considered, it was a stellar kiss.  

I smiled softly at her. "Now that's a real welcome 
home."

"Shall I get your pipe and slippers?" she asked dryly.

"Maybe later," I said airily. "First, I think I'll get changed 
and take the dog for a walk. Wanna come Jordan? We 
can bring Megan too?" I turned and gave her an Eskimo 
kiss, making her chortle.

Jordan shouted in my ear. "Yes, please!" 

So while I changed Scully dressed the kids in fall jackets 
and put Megan in the stroller. I didn't intend to be gone 
long, but I made the mistake of starting off in the 
direction of the park. Once Jordan recognized that he 
begged to go 'just for a few minutes'. But I couldn't just 
push Jordan on the swings. Once she saw Jordan being 
pushed, Megan started to struggle against the harness. 
We ended up staying at the park for at least half an 
hour. 

All the way home Jordan talked about his Buzz Lightyear 
costume and yelled, "To infinity and beyond!"

I'd have to ask Scully who this Lightyear guy was and 
why Jordan idolized some clown who had no concept of 
infinity. When we walked into the house I could smell 
supper cooking. I'd managed a whole day of helping 
Scully cook. I felt like a schmuck. As I was hanging up our 
coats Scully appeared beside me.  

"How was your walk?"

"I'm sorry we were so long," I said with an apologetic 
grimace. As I unfastened Megan, I launched into my 
explanation about heading toward the park by mistake 
and both kids wanting to be pushed on the swings, but 
she cut me off with a wave of her hand.

"Don't worry about it."

"I was supposed to be helping with supper," I reminded 
her, mostly to let her know I hadn't forgotten.

"Really, Mulder, it's fine. It gave me a chance to call a 
realtor. She's coming over tomorrow after supper."

As soon as I had her out of the stroller, Megan toddled 
straight to Scully, thrust her hands into the air and said, 
"Uh, uh, uh."

Picking her up, Scully set her on one hip, and then 
continued, "We didn't have anything else planned, did 
we?"

I loved how Scully did things like that without a second 
thought. At one time, I'd never thought of her as a 
mother. Once it was suggested to me, I considered it, 
but still found it difficult to imagine. Now I couldn't bear 
the thought of Scully without children, or the thought of  
not being the father of those children; adopted or 
otherwise. To me, it was all part and parcel of us.

"Hell, Scully, if you don't know if we have any plans, 
we're in trouble," I said with a chuckle. "But no, nothing 
I can think of. So I gather you took Jordan out to get a 
Halloween costume this afternoon," I continued. "Is that 
why your mom was still here?"

She nodded and turned toward the kitchen. "He really 
wanted to be Buzz Lightyear and I was worried that if I 
left it too long there wouldn't be any costumes left."

Following her, she waited until I'd washed my hands and 
then handed the baby to me. As I took a seat at the 
table, Scully began to set it.

"So who is Buzz Lightyear, anyway?" I asked as Megan 
pulled herself to her feet and stood on my thigh.

Scully chuckled. "I know what you should do after 
supper. Remember how well I knew Babe? I know Toy 
Story better."

So after supper I sat with Jordan in my lap and watched 
his favorite movie. And even though we'd just watched 
it, when I tucked him in, he wanted me to read a picture 
book based on the movie as his bedtime story.

Reading to Jordan no longer put him to sleep, but we 
had a strict one book, or chapter, policy on school 
nights; on the weekends we spoiled him. After kissing 
him goodnight, turning off the light and shutting the 
door, I went down the hall to the master bedroom. 
Scully was inside putting clothes into our dressers. 
Leaning against the door jamb, I just watched her. When 
she turned around and saw me, she jumped slightly and 
put a hand to her heart.

"Jesus, Mulder," she said shakily. "What are you doing?"

"Sorry. I was just watching you. How are you, Scully?" I 
asked her softly.

"Um, fine," she replied hesitantly. "How are you?"

"Are you really? Are you happy?"

Her eyes widened in alarm. "Why are you asking me 
that? Is something wrong?"

I shook my head. "No, no, nothing's wrong. C'mere." I 
held my arms open to her. As she settled against me, 
she sighed heavily. "I was just thinking about all of the 
changes we've been through since last June. I'm not sure 
what it's like for most couples, but considering how we 
were thrust into this situation, I think we transitioned 
from work partners to life partners almost seamlessly."

"We did," she agreed, smiling up at me. That smile told 
me everything I needed to know.

"Part of me feels like our life is even crazier than when 
we were single but then sometimes it seems like we're 
just so normal now," I tried to explain what I was feeling.

"Normal," she said with a chuckle. "That's a scary 
thought."

"Are we normal, Scully? Is this what normal looks like?"

"I don't know, Mulder. And I really don't care. What I do 
know is that I'm happier now than I thought it was 
possible to be. So if this isn't normal, normal can kiss my 
ass."

"Oh, Scully," I said through my laughter. "I love you and I 
really do miss you. It seems like we rarely get a chance 
to talk anymore."

"I think that's because when we aren't fighting fires, 
we're making love," she informed me, her smile growing 
sly. "So I have a proposition."

"Ooh, Scully, I love it when you proposition me," I said, 
waggling my eyebrows for effect.

"Let's get into bed and talk."

"About what?"

"About nothing. C'mon," she said, taking my hand. 

Less than a minute later, we were in bed, naked. Scully 
was on her side with her head on my shoulder. My arm 
was around her waist. She began by telling me about her 
shopping trip with Jordan and how excited he was to be 
out shopping with mommy alone.

"You know what we did forget, Mulder," she prompted 
as she ran her fingers lightly over my chest.

"What?"

"Megan's birthday is November fifteenth. So we'll have 
her birthday, the move, Thanksgiving and then 
Christmas, bang, bang, bang."

"And our honeymoon before that," I reminded her. "See 
what I mean about crazy?"

She laughed softly. "I know. But back to Megan's 
birthday.  Do you think we should invite the Barnes? "

"Ugh." I shuddered involuntarily. "Should we? Since they 
lost custody they haven't shown the slightest interest in 
the kids. We both know what their sole concern was."

"True," she said, snuggling against me, "But they are her 
grandparents. I doubt they'll come, but I think we should 
at least send them an invitation. Which reminds me, I 
need to send out change of address cards, too."

"It feels like we just did that," I said with a chuckle.

Scully sighed and put her leg over mine. As she did my 
hand left her skin. I realized that I'd been tracing 
patterns onto her hip while we talked.

"Our new house is worth the added stress. Of that, I'm 
positive. I can't wait until we move. It'll be really ours. It 
still feels like we're borrowing this house to me," she 
tilted her head back to tell me.

I nodded. "Ours." Then lifting my head from the pillow, I 
gave her a soft kiss.

"How was work this afternoon?" she asked more 
breathily than I'd ever been asked that question before.

"Boring without you. I did some grunt work for Skinner," 
I told her as I looked down at the tent I was creating in 
the blankets.

"Is that enough talking?" Scully asked meekly as her 
hand slid down my body toward the disruption in the 
covers.

"God, yes!" I panted gratefully.

Only Scully could turn a discussion about birthday 
parties, moving preparations and work into foreplay. My 
mistake had been getting naked, or perhaps that had 
been the best decision I'd made all day.  

The following morning when Scully walked into the 
office, she looked like she'd been doing some serious 
thinking.

"You know, Mulder," she began as she sat down 
opposite me. "If you truly believe this is some sort of 
retribution, maybe we shouldn't be looking at the 
backgrounds of the rapists, maybe we should be looking 
at their victims."

I couldn't help chuckling.

"What?" she huffed. "I don't think investigating the men 
will get us anywhere."

I smiled at her, making her brow furrow.

"Me either. I came to the same conclusion yesterday, 
right before Skinner called me upstairs. I was chuckling 
because we're starting to think alike."

"I don't know if I'd go that far," she retorted dryly.

"You're cute when you're grumpy."
"Shut up, Mulder," she said, trying unsuccessfully to 
glare at me. There was too much mirth in her eyes to 
pull it off. "Did you have a victim in mind? Who was 
first?"

"Chronologically the first rapist who was afflicted was 
James Wheeler. He only had one victim; Brenda Metcalf. 
So we should look at her. If that gets us nowhere we'll 
have to search for an earlier case," I told her as I dug out 
the relevant case file.

"Okay. While you track her down, I'll finish that report 
on Andrew's kidnapping. I'm surprised Skinner hasn't 
been breathing down our necks for it. But the shooting 
was on the Arlington cops so he's probably not feeling 
any heat. It was a good shoot though, but the 
paperwork is still a nightmare," she said with a grimace.

So while Scully started work on that report, I began to 
hunt for information on Brenda Metcalf. The file we'd 
been given only contained her name.

"Jesus Christ!" I said with a growl when I finally put the 
phone down two hours later. "How can people stand to 
deal with the government?"

Scully turned around to look at me. "Hmm?"

"Can you believe all of that?" I asked, shaking my head.

"All of what?"

"Didn't you hear me on the phone?"

"Sorry," she said with a guilty wince. "I'm really good at 
tuning out background noise."

I laughed. "So now I'm background noise to you, Scully? 
Thank you."

"I was trying to finish *our* work. Unlike someone who 
shall remain nameless, I have the capability of focusing 
on a particular task for more than a minute and a half," 
she informed me primly and then glanced up at the 
modern art installation in the acoustic ceiling tiles above 
me. "Am I to ascertain that Brenda Metcalf is also a 
federal employee?"

"Yeah, she works for the Library of Congress. And for 
your information, I've heard that a lot of geniuses have 
ADHD," I responded curtly.

"Do you mean you overheard that when you were 
actually supposed to be doing something else?" She 
asked, looking over her glasses at me. "Did you manage 
to speak to her?"

"I did, but she was very reluctant to meet with us. That 
makes me suspicious," I said as I leaned back in my chair 
and put my feet on my desk.

Scully shook her head. "Don't read too much into that, 
Mulder. It's not uncommon for rape victims not to want 
to talk about their history."

"I know, but there was something off about her 
responses. She didn't have the right affect for a rape 
victim. And I dealt with my share in the VCU, Scully. I 
know they have to be handled with kid gloves. This may 
sound horrible, but we were always thrilled when we 
got an actual breathing victim to interview, so we had to 
be very careful not to spook them."

She raised her eyebrows at my choice of words.

I shrugged. "Given my nickname, it might seem 
counterintuitive, but the boys in Violent Crimes always 
made me deal with the living victims."

Scully smiled at me. It was her 'you're so adorable' 
smile. Before we were married, that smile always gave 
me hope. 

"Don't you know why, Mulder?"

I shook my head.

"I've seen you with victims. You know how to empathize 
with them without being smarmy or condescending. 
And it's genuine. People can tell. I'm sure that's why you 
burned out so quickly over there. You feel everything 
like it's happening to you."

"So do you," I countered immediately.

"Sorry, Mulder, but I learned to compartmentalize in 
med school. I try not to get emotionally involved on 
cases. I'm not always successful, but I try. You, on the 
other hand, are emotionally invested in almost every 
case we investigate, unless you think it's a jerk off 
assignment," she said as she stood up and walked over 
to the printer.

"Just because I'm passionate about my work doesn't 
mean I'm emotionally invested," I argued as I put my 
feet back on the floor.

"Isn't that exactly what it means? Why are we arguing 
about this?" Scully asked, shaking her head slightly. "Did 
you convince that woman to talk to us?"

"Yes, tomorrow morning. And I've heard many people 
call you passionate about your work, Scully."

"I am passionate about finding the truth and getting 
justice for victims, Mulder, but it's the process I'm 
invested in. I think that's why we work so well together," 
she said as she glanced at her watch. "Do you need to 
read this before you sign it? If not, I'll take it up to 
Kimberly right now and then head out." She handed me 
the file.

"I usually only need to read the x-files, Scully, because 
our reports tend to be divergent," I told her as I flipped 
to the last page to sign it.

When I closed the file and looked up to hand it to her, 
she was standing in front of my desk with one hand on 
her hip and a thinly veiled look of disdain on her face 
that always followed an eye roll.

"Would you prefer to write the reports in future?"

"No, that's okay. Skinner prefers yours anyway. 
Remember?" I said with a grin as I held the file out to 
her.

She snatched it out of my hand. "Yeah, I thought as 
much. I'll see you tonight."

I spent the afternoon looking into the backgrounds of 
the other rape victims, but I kept coming back to Brenda 
Metcalf. As the sole victim of the first rapist afflicted, 
everything pointed to her. To get anywhere in this 
investigation I'd have to be able to link her to at least 
some of the other retribution cases. Then I'd have to 
figure out how she managed to accomplish her revenge.

Thursday evening was spent mostly with the realtor. I 
had no idea putting a house on the market would take 
so long. And she complained about the amount of stuff 
we had stored in what was supposed to be the rumpus 
room. Scully told her we would arrange to have it put in 
storage before we moved. I, however, resented some 
woman I'd never met poking around in my stuff and 
telling me I needed to get rid of it. Scully never 
complained about my tendency to hoard. In fact, she 
promised me a room of my own to fill with my 
collections in the new house. Was it any wonder I loved 
her so completely?

When I woke up on Friday morning I noticed two things 
right away; I was alone in the bed and wonderful aromas 
were wafting into the bedroom. After a quick trip to the 
bathroom, I discovered a gorgeous woman had brought 
me breakfast. If she'd been naked, several of my 
fantasies would have been fulfilled at one time.

When she saw me she graced me with a dazzling smile. 
"Happy birthday, Mulder."

I grinned. "Oh right. Do I get to have breakfast in bed?"

"We both do," she informed me. "My mother just got 
here, so we can do whatever you want, birthday boy."

"She got here early just so we could have time alone?" I 
asked in surprise as I climbed onto the bed.

Scully nodded. "Her idea."

"We'll have to get her a really good Christmas present."

"I think we've already given her exactly what she wanted 
- grandkids she can actually dote on and another on the 
way."

"Speaking of presents," I hinted broadly as she neared 
the bed, but she shook her head at me.

"You have to wait until tonight."

"Nuh uh," I contradicted with a grin. "The present I want 
to unwrap is right here."

"Let's eat breakfast before it gets cold," Scully suggested 
as she sat down, tray in hand.

"My birthday, my call," I argued, taking the tray from 
her. After setting it on the floor, I turned back to her. 
"Actually, I'd like you to unwrap it for me."

"Okay," she breathed. "Just let me lock the door."

After securing the door, Scully turned around and began 
to loosen the belt on her robe as she slowly walked 
toward me. Sliding it off her shoulders, she left it on the 
floor where it fell. All that remained was the short blue 
nightgown she'd worn to bed.

Much to my relief, the satin pajamas that had been a 
night time staple of Scully's hadn't made an appearance 
since shortly after we were married. Scully explained 
that she'd worn them for warmth, but no longer needed 
them since I was in the bed with her. I really didn't care 
why. I was thrilled that I never had to see them again 
but never confessed how much I hated them.

As her nightgown floated to the floor, all thoughts of 
former bedtime attire left my head. I wondered briefly if 
I would ever tire of seeing Scully naked, because five 
months into our marriage I reacted as powerfully as I 
had the first time I saw her naked in a sexual situation. 
Maybe more so, because now I knew she loved me.

Even though Scully was only approaching eleven weeks 
of pregnancy, I could already see changes in her body; 
most notably her breasts. I watched them bounce and 
sway as she approached the bed. Mesmerized as I was, I 
still had the presence of mind to shuck my boxers.

As soon as I'd decided what I wanted as my first present 
of the day, I knew Scully had to be on top. In spite of 
repairing the bed, I thought a pillow between the 
headboard and the wall would be a good idea. I didn't 
want Scully to be worried about making noise. 

With the pillow in place, I turned to find her on the bed 
crawling toward me. The position made her breasts 
hang and swing freely.

"Sweet Jesus," I said with a whimper as my cock grew 
harder.

"You want me on top?"

I think I nodded and said yeah.

Before climbing onto my lap, Scully's head dropped and 
she took my cock into her mouth.

"Ah fuck," I said with a groan. My head lolled back and 
thunked against the headboard.

Then my cock left the heat of her mouth and was 
cooling in the open air.

"Are you sure you don't want a birthday blow job?" she 
inquired with a knowing smile.

Scully knew how to give incredible head. She also 
complained that I didn't let her fellate me enough; her 
words, not mine. I could honestly say it wasn't a 
complaint I'd heard in any other relationship. The feel of 
her hot, wet mouth was phenomenal, but if we made 
love like I wanted, I'd be able to kiss her and have access 
to her tits. It was a tough choice.

While I was pondering I felt her mouth on me again. And 
though it may have hindered my decision making 
process slightly, I knew what I wanted.

"Oh fuck, Scully. It does feel amazing, but for my 
birthday, I don't just want your mouth. I want all of 
you."

In a flash Scully's mouth was off my cock and on my lips. 
As she kissed me lustily, she straddled my lap, not losing 
contact with my mouth once. When she began to sink 
onto me, I knew I'd made the right choice. Her intense 
heat made me moan. With her hands in my hair, she 
started to move.

Even though kissing Scully approached Nirvana, 
watching her make love to me qualified as the most 
erotic experience I knew I'd ever have. She knew how 
much it thrilled me and indulged my desire whenever I 
asked.

"Let me see," I said against her lips.

Her mouth spread into a smile before she straightened 
up. Putting her hands on my chest, she moved her hips 
in slow circles. Not only did it feel incredible inside of 
her, but there was something powerfully sensual about 
watching that motion.

"So beautiful, Scully," I said with a sigh.

When I lifted my eyes to hers I found her watching me 
intensely; her eyes only half visible through thick lashes 
and partially closed lids.

"God, Mulder," she said breathily. "I love how I can feel 
it when you get bigger inside of me."

As she spoke I witnessed her already hard nipples 
tighten further.

"Please touch me," she panted.

I obeyed immediately.

My hands had been clutching at the sheets and when I 
moved them to her breasts she made a sexy growling 
noise deep in her chest and began to move faster. It felt 
extraordinary; so extraordinary that my balls began to 
tingle. Suddenly Scully leaned forward to kiss me and 
nipped at my bottom lip. Her kisses tended to get more 
aggressive right before she came. 

I barely had time to be relieved that she was close when 
I felt my skin flush. My hands went to her hips as I thrust 
deep inside of her. She ground herself against me and 
bit my lip more firmly.

My orgasm started in my toes and exploded through me 
in a surge of crackling energy that made lights flash in 
my head. Aside from that mind-altering sensation, the 
only thing that filtered into my brain as my body shook 
was that Scully was quaking above me.

My thirty-ninth birthday had barely begun and it was 
already the best birthday I'd ever had.

End chapter 29 (current ending as of 2016)