A/N: Will's parents are called 'Gran' and 'Pop-Pop' by the kids because that's what my siblings and I call my grandparents. Just throwing a little of my personal life into the story. :)
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About a Month Later

"Hey, Dad, could I go to Gwen's party Saturday night?"

It was after school one particular day, and Alex was making this inquiry of Will as they drove home.

"Well, I don't know about that," Will replied, giving her a brief sideways glance. "I don't think Gwen's a very good influence on you. I've heard about the way she acts from every teacher she's ever had - they've all told me about how much trouble she is and how I shouldn't even allow you to be around her for any amount of time."

"They think she's bad because she's skipped a couple of times," Alex said defensively. "And pretty much everyone in that school has skipped at least one day... everyone except me, that is, because you and Mum won't let me and I know that I'd get caught and I'd be in a lot of trouble if I did it without permission."

"That's exactly right."

"But anyway, Dad, she's only skipped school a couple of times, and the only reason any of the teachers know that is because she got caught doing it the times she did it. She doesn't do drugs or drink or anything. All the teachers just think she's bad because she's skipped school and she colors her hair all the time."

"Hmph," he murmured. "Well, that's not what I've heard - I've heard she's bad because she's had a couple of brushes with police... shoplifting and some other stuff. But then again, you know all about that, don't you?"

She said nothing in reply, instead pursing her lips in an annoyed fashion.

"I'll take that as a yes. So you see, she is a bad influence on you - if you spend time around her, soon you might be shoplifting and doing whatever else she does that's not any good. I'd like to control how much time you spend with her in school, but I really can't, so I'm just going to control how much time you spend with her outside of school. So the answer to your question is no - you're not allowed to go to the party."

"Oh, come on!"

"No, Alex."

"God," she muttered under her breath, folding her arms across her chest and scooting as far away from him as she possibly could, huddling beside the car door. She then proceeded to stare out the window in stony silence.

"Oh, by the way - instead of going to that party Saturday night, you're going to be studying Physics. You're failing."

She let out a somewhat short breath of irritation.

"You don't have to do it by yourself, though, if that makes you feel any better," he informed her, giving her another brief glance. "I'm sure your ma would be willing to help you if you ask. She's good at all school subjects, but math and science are her best. And I'd help you, too, but I've completely cleared my mind of Physics - and even if I hadn't, I've been out of school a lot longer than she has, so it would be fresher in her head than in mine."

"Not that I'd want you to help me if you could," she replied, once again under her breath.

He pursed his lips for a brief moment. "You'd really better improve your attitude within the next twenty minutes. Your ma and I may put up with it, but your grandparents certainly won't."

At this, her face brightened and she turned to look at her father.

"We're going to Gran and Pop-Pop's?"

"Yeah, for dinner... and as a matter of fact, you and Chance and Lizzie are going to be staying the night there. So when we get home, you need to pack up some pajamas and toiletries and clothes for tomorrow."

She wrinkled up her nose in distaste. "Oh. This is one of those planned evenings for you and Mum, then. Gross."

He bit down on his lip in order to prevent himself from laughing at her reaction. "You won't find it so gross when you're married... or you have a long-term boyfriend."

"Well, no, but it's gross to think about adults doing it." She paused briefly, then shuddered and grimaced. "Oh, that's so disgusting."

He said nothing in reply, instead smiling slightly and shaking his head as they pulled into the garage of the Chase residence. When the car had stopped and he'd closed the garage door, they then climbed out of the car and made their way inside the house.

"We're home!" Will called out as he closed the door behind them. "Everyone hurry up so we can get to Gran and Pop-Pop's!"

At this, the sound of thudding footsteps came from the nearby stairs, and after a moment, Chance and Lizzie appeared, their backpacks on their backs and their overnight bags in their hands.

"Hi, Daddy!" Chance greeted his father enthusiastically as Will squatted down in front of him and his sister. He hugged Will. "We've got all our things packed up for Gran and Pop-Pop's. We did it right when we got home from school!"

"That's great, buddy." Will turned his attention to his youngest. "And what about you, Lizzie? Are you excited to spend the night with Gran and Pop-Pop?"

"Yeah," Lizzie replied, nodding. A rather confused expression then crossed her face. "But why aren't we going to be able to come back home with you and Mummy?"

"Well, because your ma and I need some time..." - he happened to glance up and saw Stacey approaching, and he smiled at her - "alone."

Stacey smiled back at him as he straightened himself, then leaning forward and giving him a kiss.

"How was your day?" she asked him when she'd chosen to pull away, smiling and patting his shoulder a couple of times. "Did you talk to your friend from college about coming over for dinner sometime.. about when it's good for her?"

"Yeah. She finally gave me an answer - she said that sometime next week would be good, since that's when her oldest son is coming home from medical school for a couple of days and she wants her whole family to meet all of us."

"All right. That sounds good," she replied, nodding. Then she smiled again, leaning close to him so that her lips were next to his ear. "I'm really excited about being alone when we get home."

He chuckled in a rather wicked way. "Me, too."

"I guess Alex figured it out," she informed him. "When she came upstairs and I said hi to her, she just gave me this kind of disgusted look and shook her head before going into her room to get her stuff together."

"Yeah, she figured it out when I told her that she and the younger ones were staying the night with my parents and she was all grossed out." He rolled his eyes. "She's such a prude."

She giggled, and after several moments, the sound of Alex descending the stairway could be heard. Then she appeared with her overnight bag in her hand and her backpack on her back, just like her younger siblings.

"I'm ready to go," she informed her family.

"Then let's go," Will replied, swatting Stacey on the rear as the five members of the Chase family began making their way outside to the garage. Stacey squealed and giggled slightly.

"Ugh!" Alex groaned. "Please save that for when you come back and we're not here. You're setting a bad example for your impressionable children."

"Chance, Lizzie, don't swat people on the bottom like I just did to your ma," Will then instructed his two younger children. "Same goes for you, Alex... but, of course, you already knew that, really."

"But what if you don't hurt them?" Lizzie asked. "You didn't hurt Mummy. Is it okay to swat like that?"

"No."

"Not even to our friends at school?" Chance asked.

"No. Your ma and I do it because we're adults and it's okay for mas and dads to do that. But if you do that to one of your friends, you could get in trouble - especially if that friend is a girl in your case or a boy in Lizzie's case."

Chance nodded, and then the Chase family climbed into Will's car, buckling in their seatbelts as Will started the car and drove out of the garage, heading towards his parents' house.

After several minutes in which the drive had been silent, Alex then leaned forward slightly, placing her hands on the sides of the front-row seats and looking at Stacey.

"Mum, could I go to Gwen's party on Saturday night?"

Stacey cast a brief glance in Will's direction, and he said and did nothing in response. She then looked at her oldest child. "Hmm. Well, that depends. Did you already ask your father?"

"Yeah."

"And what did he say?"

Alex sighed rather reluctantly. "He said I couldn't."

"Hmm. Then there wasn't any point in asking me, was there? You already got your answer. Surely you knew I wasn't going to go against your father if he'd already told you you weren't allowed to go."

"But Mum, he won't let me go because he thinks Gwen is a bad influence -"

"And he's probably right about that."

"She's not a bad person! She's just skipped school a couple of times... and I already told Dad that pretty much everyone has. She just got caught doing it. That's why all the teachers say she's bad."

"That and the fact that she's gotten caught shoplifting - among other things," Will informed Stacey quietly.

Alex glared at Will. "I was talking to Mum; you weren't involved in the conversation!"

"Don't be rude to your father, Alexandra Leigh," Stacey said in a surprisingly severe tone. "If he's telling me something that proves Gwen to be a bad influence, he's allowed to come into the conversation and tell me that something. And what he told me just further gives me a reason to not try and persuade him to change his mind or anything to that effect."

"Oh -!" Alex exclaimed in disgust, and then she pressed herself against the car door as she had done earlier when she'd been alone in the car with Will, folding her arms across her chest and glaring out the window.

Stacey sighed. "Let's spare your grandparents from having to deal with the theatrics, Alex. All right? Please."

Alex said nothing, instead pursing her lips briefly while continuing to look out the window.

The rest of the ride was then spent in silence until the sight of a large white house with vines growing up it and a white picket around it came into view. At that point, Chance and Lizzie let out squeals of excitement and clapped. Even Alex reacted positively, losing her sullen expression and straightening herself while Will parked the car in front of the house.

When Will had turned the car off, everyone started getting out of the car, the kids grabbing their overnight bags and backpacks as they followed their parents to the front porch. Will then knocked on the door.

After several moments of silence, they heard the door being unlocked, and when it opened, Marilyn Wentley, Will's mother, came into view.

"Oh, you've made it!" she addressed her son and his family happily, stepping aside and beckoning them inside the house. "Come in; dinner's all set out on the table and ready for us to eat."

As the Chase family then did as she'd instructed and stepped inside the house, they each gave their individual greetings to her, starting with Will and ending with Alex, who hugged her favorite female relative for a considerable amount of time.

"Having trouble with your parents, cherub?" Marilyn asked, stroking Alex's hair.

"Hmph," Alex murmured in a rather disgruntled fashion, shrugging in a noncommittal gesture as she pulled away from Marilyn. "They won't me go to this party that I really want to go to on Saturday night."

"Well, I'll see what I can do about that," Marilyn replied, smiling warmly and wrapping an arm around Alex's shoulders as they walked to the dining room table, where the Chase family was taking their seats and greeting Will's stepfather, Morris, together. "I'm sure your grandfather will help, too."

"I'll help with what, now?" Morris inquired of his wife, glancing at Alex and giving her a smile as she and Marilyn seated themselves. Alex smiled back at her favorite male relative.

"Persuading Will and Stacey to let Alexandra go to this party she so badly wants to attend Saturday night," Marilyn replied, giving Will a scolding look.

Both Will and Stacey shot Alex somewhat dark looks, and then they turned their attention back to Marilyn, at which point Will said, "She's toying with you, Ma. We've given her a perfectly legitimate reason as to why she can't go and she knows that."

"Oh? And what would that be?"

"This girl whose party she wants to attend - she's a bad influence -"

"She's just skipped school a couple of times!" Alex interjected with a groan, giving Marilyn a beseeching look. "Everyone has except me. They won't let me skip."

Marilyn frowned slightly. "Well, school is important, Alexandra. You have to go every day you're not sick to ensure that you learn as much as you can. And maybe this friend of yours really is a bad influence if she's making you wish your parents would let you skip school."

"Oh, Gran, don't tell me you're gonna take their side now!" Alex cried out.

Marilyn turned to Will. "Is there anything else, Will - anything else this friend of Alexandra's does that you and Stacey don't approve of?"

"She's gotten in trouble outside of school more than once," Will informed his mother. "Shoplifting and a couple of other things."

"Oh, Alexandra," Marilyn said with a sigh, looking at Alex and shaking her head solemnly. "I'm afraid I can't approve of your attending this party anymore. This friend of yours really does sound like she could be a bad influence on you. I can handle a bit of skipping school, since God knows I faked sick once or twice in my school days, but shoplifting? No. That just isn't good."

At this, Alex knew that she had lost the battle, so she simply let out a long sigh, pursed her lips, and then became stonily silent.

"All right, everyone - let's say a prayer so we can eat our dinner," Morris then addressed his family, and everyone did as they'd been told, taking the hands of the people sitting next to them, bowing their heads, and closing their eyes. Then Morris bowed his head and began praying.

"Heavenly Father, thank You for today. And thank You for allowing Will and Stacey and the kids to join Marilyn and me for dinner... it's always nice to share a meal with them and catch up on things. Please let this meal nourish our bodies and let us have a good evening together. In Your name, Amen."

"Amen," everyone murmured, and then they began serving out food onto their own plates. Afterwards, they began eating, holding conversations with each other while doing so.

"Will, tell me about work," Marilyn said to her son in a rather commanding tone. "Has this year been good so far?"

"Yeah," Will replied, nodding and prodding his food with his fork slightly. "There's a new Biology 4 teacher... and as it turns out, we went to university together. So we've been catching up, and she and her family are going to come over and have dinner with us at our house next week when her oldest son comes home from medical school."

"Oh? And is this woman anyone I would remember - is she anyone you ever talked about?"

Will shifted in his seat somewhat uncomfortably. "No... I never really talked to anyone about her back then. Not many people knew that we knew each other."

"I see," Marilyn murmured, nodding. "Well, it's good that you two have reconnected. That's always a nice thing."

He nodded, and then the conversation between them was over, at which point Morris turned to Alex and addressed her.

"Alexandra, are you enjoying school so far this year?" he inquired. "Do you like your classes... your teachers?"

"It's okay," Alex replied, shrugging. "I don't like Physics, though. I'm doing pretty badly."

"Hmm. You just have to work harder in that class, that's all. And I'm sure your teacher and your parents would be willing to help." He paused. "And what of boyfriends? Have you got one?"

"No," she said, shaking her head and shrugging once more. "I don't really like anyone right now."

"Well, that's not bad, I suppose."

She shrugged a third and final time, and then the whole table fell into silence as everyone didn't converse and instead simply ate their dinner.

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When everyone had finished, everyone rinsed off their own dishes and silverware and put them in the dishwasher. Then Will and Stacey approached each other and wrapped their arms around each other's waists.

"I don't know about you, but I'm ready to get home," he informed her, smiling at her in a rather sneaky manner. He lightly pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose.

She smiled and shrugged. "I'm flexible. But isn't it a little early?"

"It's not that early," he replied, looking at his watch and seeing that it was 8:15. He then turned his attention back to her, the sneaky smile once again crossing his face as he tightened his hold on her and lightly pressed his face against her neck. "And you know, the sooner we get home, the more time we have..."

"Hmm," she murmured, chuckling slightly as she wrapped her arms around his neck and they hugged each other for a moment. "Well, then since you're so itching for us to leave, let's say goodbye and everyone and get on our way."

"Good," he said with satisfaction, pulling away from her. They then took each other's hands and walked into the living room, where Marilyn, Morris, and Alex were sitting and watching T.V.. Chance and Lizzie were upstairs, preparing themselves for bed.

"Well, we're going to head out," he announced to his parents and his child that was downstairs. "Do you need anything from us before we leave, Ma - is there something we need to do for you involving the kids or something?"

"No," Marilyn replied, and she and Morris rose to their feet, walking over to Will and Stacey, while Alex remained seated. She then hugged her son and daughter-in-law while Morris shook hands with and hugged Will and hugged Stacey. "It was good to see you again. Call in a few days."

"We will," Stacey promised. She then leaned slightly sideways, looking at Alex, who was somewhat hidden behind her grandparents. Then she waved, Will following her example. "Bye, Alex."

Alex let out a hum of acknowledgement and raised her hand in a farewell to both her parents, then resumed watching the program that was on television.

Will then turned towards the stairway and called up it. "Chance, Lizzie, come downstairs and say goodbye to your ma and me - we're going home."

At this, Chance and Lizzie did as their father had instructed and arrived in the living room a few moments later, hugging Will and Stacey and saying their "I love you"s and "see you tomorrow"s.

"Be good for Gran and Pop-Pop," Stacey informed them. "I know you will, really, but... I'm just saying it to make sure. Alex, same goes for you."

"Okay," Alex said, shrugging.

"Come on - let's go," Will said, placing a hand on Stacey's shoulder and beginning to walk towards the front door with her. He gave his parents a brief backward glance as he did, waving at them. "See you later, you two. Thanks for doing this."

Marilyn and Morris waved back, and Marilyn said with a smile, "No problem. You two have fun."

Will smiled back, and then he and Stacey walked out the door and to his car without another word.

When they'd climbed inside the car and put on their seatbelts and he'd started the car, he turned to her and clapped his hands together once before rubbing them together in a gesture of excitement. "Let's get home!"

She smiled and laughed at him a little. "I'm ready whenever you are, hon."

"I need one more thing before I take us home," he said decidedly, leaning towards her and giving her a smacking kiss before straightening himself and putting the car in drive. "And now we can go."

And then he put his foot on the gas and started driving, heading towards the house. He turned on the radio and was tapping his fingers against the steering wheel to the song that was playing. He looked really happy - it appeared to her as if he was glowing.

She laughed at him again. "You're really excited about this, aren't you?"

He gave her a brief sideways glance and shrugged, smiling. "Why shouldn't I be? I like having nights alone with you... and we haven't had one in a while."

"Well, I'm excited, too... but I think you are moreso than I am."

At this, he shrugged and smiled again. "You don't have a clue about it, love. I've been thinking about this ever since I woke up this morning."

"If you'd told me that this morning, we could have gotten a little bit of an early start," she informed him, her voice suddenly becoming somewhat seductively low. She scooted as close to him as she possibly could without removing her seatbelt, leaning in even further when her seatbelt wouldn't allow her to move her whole body any further and very gently biting his ear.

He laughed slightly and waved her away with one hand, keeping the other on the wheel. "Don't do that! I'm driving; you'll distract me."

"Then hurry up and get us home," she replied in a commanding tone. "Speed, if you have to."

At this, he nodded in a rather fervent manner and pressed his foot down on the gas pedal a little more insistently, having the car speed up and go slightly over the speed limit. She stayed as close to him as possible, watching him intently while he kept his eyes on the road.

When they arrived back home shortly thereafter, they drove into the garage and almost immediately got out once he'd pulled in all the way, and he closed the garage door with the remote that was in the car before following her inside the house as quickly as possible so that he could catch up with her.

"Slow down!" he exclaimed as he followed her up the stairs to their bedroom. He grabbed her wrist in order to keep her from getting any further away from him. "It's only 8:30. We've got all night."

She turned around and faced him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I know, but your enthusiasm has now gotten me all excited. So let's go!"

Smiling widely, he wrapped his arms around her waist as she kept her arms around his neck, lifting her up slightly so that her feet were off the floor. Then he kissed her as he proceeded walking up the rest of the stairs and to their bedroom, keeping her feet off the floor and therefore halfway carrying her.

When they'd arrived in their bedroom, she flipped on the switch that turned on the bedside lamp before he proceeded to carry her to the bed, where he lay her on her back. Then he got on top of her, and she could feel his hardness press against her as he kissed her deeply.

"Mmm," she sighed, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist.

After several moments, he pulled away from her briefly, starting to remove her clothing and continuing to kiss her. She kneaded his erection through his pants, causing him to let out light moans in between kisses.

Once she'd become completely unclothed, he started kissing and caressing her body, his lips moving from her lips to her neck to her breasts to her stomach while his hands roamed. Then they both met at that intimate spot between her thighs, his hands massaging while his lips kissed.

"Ohh-ohh-ohh," she breathed, biting her lip and shuddering slightly. "God, that's good."

It was only another moment or two longer before her breathing became heavier, which he knew was a signal that she was going to orgasm if he didn't stop. So he moved away from between her legs and started kissing her on the lips again while they worked together to remove his clothes.

When all of their clothes were together on the floor, he reached towards the nearby nightstand and opened the drawer, pulling out a condom and unwrapping it. She stroked him for several moments, and then he placed it on his erection, penetrating her with a single smooth motion.

"Ah," she sighed with ecstasy, smiling and wrapping her arms around his neck. She lightly pressed a kiss to his lips. "I love you."

"I love you, too," he replied, softly kissing her back and starting to move slowly within her. She pressed herself against him as much as possible, closing her eyes as she felt the pleasure coursing through her body.

After a few moments, she let out a long breath and pressed her hands against his lower back. "More."

He complied and quickened his pace, and they kissed each other hard when the ecstasy ran through their veins more insistently.

She suddenly felt as if the world was spinning when her pleasure hit its peak, and she let out a small cry as she tightened her grip on his lower back, squeezing her eyes shut and biting her lip. After a few more thrusts, he gave in, too, letting out a long breath as he felt his release.

For a short while, they lay together in silence while their bodies remained joined, but then he pressed a soft kiss to her neck and pulled out, lying beside her and sighing.

The silence remained for several more moments as she moved closer to him and rested her head on his chest and coiled an arm around his waist, at which point he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Then, however, she asked him a question.

"What if we had another baby?"

She felt his body stiffen slightly. "I probably wouldn't be very happy. I, ah... I've actually been meaning to talk to you about getting a vasectomy."

At this, she lifted her head off his chest, propping herself up with one elbow and looking down at him with raised eyebrows. She could see that he was biting the inside of his cheek.

"How long has this been in your head?"

He shrugged. "A little while. I just don't really think I want another kid... and if I don't get a vasectomy, we'll always have to worry about the possibility of your getting pregnant again until you hit menopause, which could be, like, another ten years from now... or until you get your own tubes tied."

"Why don't you want another kid - or why do you not think you want another kid?"

He sighed. "Stacey, I'm forty-six. If we had another kid now, I'd be in my sixties before it finally moved out on its own. And I don't think I can handle having a kid in the house until I'm in my sixties. I'm getting too old to be having any more kids. It's not really anything to do with the idea of having another kid - it's more the idea of how old I'll be when having another kid."

Her eyebrows, which had remained raised throughout this conversation, shot up a little further. "Who says you're too old?"

"I do. I was thirty when Alex was born. You, on the other hand, were only seventeen; you got started earlier than normal. And now we've had two more kids and we're both sixteen years older. And since I'm older than you are by a notable amount, my body's aged more than yours. So I don't think I'm physically capable of taking care of another baby. I'm already starting to have the stereotypical old-man health problem."

"Which is...?"

"My back hurts. A lot."

She laughed, pressing her face against his chest.

"You might think I'm joking, but I'm not," he continued seriously. "My back is actually sore right now from having sex with you. Five years ago, that wasn't the case - even two years ago, that wasn't the case. If you'd asked me to have another kid two years ago, I would have been fine, even if I was still going to be in my sixties when it moved out. But now... no. I seriously doubt I'd be physically capable of handling it, which means that it would be a disservice to both you and the new baby to have another baby now. I wouldn't be able to help you out like I did with Alex and Chance and Lizzie because I wouldn't have the energy."

"But what if I want another baby?"

He shrugged in a rather derisive manner. "That's what your second husband will be for, I suppose."

"I don't want a second husband," she said decidedly, resting her head on his chest as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders again. "Unless you and I get a divorce -"

"God forbid."

"- and then we decide that we were silly to get a divorce and we remarry."

"Hmm," he murmured, and she glanced up at his face to see that he was frowning thoughtfully. "Sounds expensive. Why don't we just pass on that whole thing and stay married?"

"Only if you approve of us having another baby," she said, her tone half-solemn, half-joking.

He sighed. "Do you really want another kid? Or is it just a pretty idea that popped into your head in the afterglow of sex?"

"I've been thinking about it for a couple of months... and I'd really like to have just one more." Once again, she propped herself up and looked down at him. There was a beseeching look on her face. "Please, Will? Could we just try for one more?"

There was no response. He simply looked at her, his expression a mixture of reluctance and thoughtfulness.

"Tell you what," she then continued when he still didn't saying anything, lightly patting his chest. "You let us try for another kid for six months without complaining. And if I'm not pregnant by the end of that six months, I'll let you get a vasectomy without complaining."

"What if you're pregnant before the end of the six months?"

"Then we won't need to try for another kid any longer and you can have the vasectomy sooner. Either way, you're going to get what you want - if I end up pregnant before the six months are up, I'll let you get the vasectomy, and if I don't, I'll still let you get the vasectomy because I'll be holding up my end of the bargain."

"Hmm," he murmured, glancing up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "I think that doesn't sound like such a bad idea. And who knows - if we try for a kid, then maybe I'll eventually decide that I'd like to have another one. So this could end up changing my mind and making us both want the same thing, which is always nice."

She bit her lip, apparently trying to hold back the excitement she felt. "So is that a yes?"

He looked back at her and was silent for several moments. Then he sighed in a rather induglent manner and shrugged, smiling slightly.

"All right. We'll try."

"Yay!" she exclaimed happily, lowering her head and pressing her lips to his in a thankful and enthusiastic manner. "Thank you so much, Will. I really do want this."

"I can tell." He paused, placing his hands on the small of her back and smiling rather sneakily. "So would you like to start trying right now? We can get a jump-start that way."

She smiled back at him, kissing him again as she reached down underneath the blankets and removed the condom that still covered his manhood, starting to massage him. "Yes... as a matter of fact, getting a jump-start right now sounds like a fantastic idea to me."

As he briefly closed his eyes and let out a pleasured sigh, she climbed on top of him, stroking him with both hands for several moments before guiding him to her entrance. He lifted his hips slightly, causing her to fully take him in, and she made a little noise as she kissed him hard and began to move her hips.

"Mmph," he moaned lightly against her lips, and he felt total ecstasy. And he saw that even if the idea of having a fourth child with Stacey didn't exactly appeal to him, attempting to get her pregnant did - he loved the feel of being inside her without any kind of protection, he loved being able to make love with her without worrying about the possible consequences because she wanted the outcome to be one particular consequence.

After several moments, he suddenly rolled over so that their positions were reversed and he was now the one on top, starting to thrust inside of her more aggressively. She let out a rather loud whine of pleasure and wrapped her arms around him tightly, feeling her toes curl up in ecstasy.

"Oh!" she breathed as her orgasm arrived, and she closed her eyes and let out a long sigh as he finished inside of her just a moment later.

When their pleasure had ebbed away, she managed to move herself out from underneath him slightly, separating their bodies before moving back towards him as he rolled onto his back. Then she pressed her lips against his shoulder.

"Thank you."

He pressed his lips to her forehead, running the fingers of one hand through her hair. "You're welcome."

"See, even if I don't get pregnant, at least we'll have a fun six months," she said, smiling a faint, rather wicked smile. "Six months of uninhibited lovemaking... you'll like that, even if you're not totally crazy about the whole point of it."

"Hmm," he murmured, chuckling because her words reflected his earlier thoughts; it was as if she'd read his mind. "You're right about that. But like I said, attempting to have another baby will probably make me want to have another baby."

"Probably."

There was a silence for several moments, and then she rolled over slightly and glanced at the bedside alarm clock, which said that it was 9:57.

"Well, I'm feeling pretty tired now," she then announced as she rolled back onto her side, resting her head on his shoulder and wrapping an arm around his waist like she'd done earlier. "Babymaking is tiring... and we need energy so we can keep trying and trying..."

"Yeah," he agreed, laughing a little as he lowered his head and kissed her lips. Then he sat up a bit, reaching across her and turning the bedside lamp off before resuming his previous position."Then let's go to sleep."

"Okay," she sighed, closing her eyes, and he felt her relax against him noticeably. "Good night."

"Good night, love."

Shortly after, he could tell by her deep, even breathing that she'd fallen asleep, but he remained awake, feeling worried about the possibility of having another child.

He liked kids. He liked having kids. But having another one now? He wasn't sure that he the cojones to have four children with Stacey, especially now that he was getting older. Three, yes - he was doing just fine with having three children in his family. But he didn't want to have to deal with yet another child when he or she went through adolescence, especially if his or her adolescence would be the way it currently was with Alex. He hated to even think of the possibility of Chance or Lizzie being the way Alex was when they became teenagers; he didn't want to experience as much conflict with them as he'd been experiencing with Alex. And it was certainly likely that such would be the case - right now, Chance and Lizzie were utterly attached to him, more than they were to Stacey, just as Alex had been in her younger years. He didn't want to ponder about what it would be like to have to go through such a thing a fourth time - assuming, of course, that the second and third times occurred. All the drama gave him a headache sometimes. Even thinking about it wore him out a bit.

But Stacey obviously wanted to have a fourth child, she obviously wanted to take the risk of having to deal with four particularly moody teenagers at points in her life. And since he wanted her to get everything she desired out of their marriage, he felt that it was his conjugal duty to try and give her a fourth child.

He had to admit, however, that he somewhat hoped his attempts would end in failure... even though he knew he would eventually come to like the idea of having a fourth child if such a thing was to occur.

With these thoughts in his head, he finally felt himself becoming tired, so he closed his eyes and surrendered himself to the world of sleep.