Calum hadn't wanted me to spend the night at home alone.

So when we left the police station we went straight to his house where the kids went to play in the living room and I went to the kitchen with Calum to help him make dinner.

"Captain Sutherland went and served the restraining order himself so everything is handled." He said as he pulled chicken from the fridge.

I nodded.

"They had a key to the house too so i'll go get the locks changed tomorrow and give you a new key."

"Calum don't you think this is a bit much?"

"Not after that stunt she pulled at the daycare."

I nodded.

"Okay then."

We were pretty quiet as we cooked dinner and once it was ready I called the boys in to come eat.

"Momma can we watch the jungle book tonight?" Eli asked after he had sat down.

"Sure." I smiled as I set his plate down in front of him.

"Daddy will you watch it with us?"

"Sure, Eli." Calum gave him a small smile.

"Eat your dinner." I touched Eli's hair as I gave Cade his dinner plate.

Once everyone had eaten I took Eli and Cade to the living room to start the movie and then helped Calum with the dishes.

When the dishes were dry and put away I went to sit with Eli on the sofa, the six year old laying down in my lap.

I ran my fingers through his hair, smiling at the innocence he encapsulated.

I looked up when Calum sat next to me and he smiled at me before putting his arm around my shoulder.

Eli fell asleep halfway through the movie, so Calum and I took him and Cade to bed before we went to his room.

I changed into one of his tee shirts and a pair of his boxers before getting in bed.

I felt horribly guilty for him having to make the decision to cut Meredith's family out of his life because of me.

When he came out of the bathroom he got in bed and laid down next to me.

"You've been quiet." He looked at me.

"I mean, I don't know what you want me to say. You cut your wife's family out of your life and I was a partial reason why you did so yes i'm upset."

"I've been wanting to cut them out of my life for awhile now. Today was just the tip of the iceberg."

"But still- I don't want to be the reason you do something like that."

"Well I don't want to have to have a reason but I do. We all do things we don't like doing. I didn't like getting a restraining order against my ex wife's parents but to protect you and my kids I did what I had to do."

I shook my head.

"Just still..."

"Nessa when are you going to understand that  you're my family now and I'm going to protect you?"

Some people aren't worth protecting. I thought to myself.

I sighed before going to lay down.

"Night, Calum."

He sighed before turning off his lamp and laying down beside me, his arm going around my waist.

What seemed like not long after I woke up to sunlight and the sound of crying.

I sat up in the bed, Calum sitting up beside me as well.

"Eli?" He called out and I got up to follow him as we got out of bed.

He walked into the boys room where Eli was curled up on the floor.

The moment we walked in he vomited on the floor.

"Oh Eli!" I rushed towards him to rub his back.

Calum went to get a towel to clean up the mess while I carried Eli to the bathroom to clean him up.

"Poor baby." I frowned while I felt his forehead. "How long have you been feeling bad?"

He just sobbed as an answer.

I took off his dirty clothes and went to put him in new ones before taking him to the living room where I laid him on the couch and went to find the thermometer to take his temperature.

Calum walked in as I took the thermometer out from under Eli's tongue.

"What is it?" He asked.

"102." I sighed. "Baby, you really don't feel good do you." I turned back to Eli.

He shook his head no.

"Well then, it's a good thing I am a doctor, and I know just how to make you feel better." I smiled.

"You're a doctor?" He asked me with big eyes.

"I am. And I'm actually a doctor for little kids like you."

He looked at me in awe.

"Nessa is really smart, Eli. She went to school for a really long time and knows all about how to take care of sick people." Calum told him.

"I can stay home today and take care of him." I offered. "He obviously can't go to daycare."

"I can take off." Calum shook his head.

"Your job is more important to mine." I laughed. "I've got this."

He agreed.

"Okay, i'm going to get ready." He said and left to go to the bedroom.

I turned back to Eli.

"Okay, baby, I need you tell me everything that hurts."

"My tummy and right here." He pointed at his throat.

"Does your throat feel scratchy, or does it just hurt?"

"Both."

I nodded.

"And are you hot or cold?"

"Cold."

"Okay. I'm going to get you a blanket, and make you some juice." I rubbed his arm before standing up.

I covered Eli with a blanket, turned on his kid shows and then made him some orange juice before I went to look through the medicine cabinet for something to give him to make him feel better. As I was finding the children cough medicine, Calum came into the kitchen with Cade in his arms.

"Cade seems alright so I'll take him to daycare. Will you be okay with Eli by yourself?"

"Yeah, we'll be okay." I smiled. "We can watch movies and eat popcorn all day."

"Now I really want to stay home." He chuckled.

He gathered Cade and his own things before going to Eli who was sleeping to kiss his forehead before coming back to me.

"I'll call and check up on you and i'll try and come home early."

"Okay." I smiled and then leaned up to kiss him. "I love you."

"I love you too." He kissed me for several more moments until I was blushing like crazy.

I fanned my face when he moved back and he laughed at my reaction.

"I wasn't expecting that."

"I'm full of surprises, babe." He winked.

He kissed me again before heading out the door with Cade.

While Eli slept I did the kids laundry and cleaned up the living room space before opening a can of chicken noodle soup to heat that up.

I went to wake Eli up when his lunch was ready and he groggily sat up so I could take his temperature and check his vitals.

"Okay, eat some soup and then I can give you more medicine so you can go back to sleep." I smiled at him.

I kept an eye on him as he ate and had some leftovers from last night for myself.

After Eli had eaten I gave him medicine and tucked him back in before washing his sheets.

I was leaving the laundry room when I heard my phone ring.

"Hey." I answered when I saw it was Calum.

"Hey. How's Eli?"

"Good. He just ate some soup for lunch and now he's back asleep."

"Is his fever down?"

"Yeah, a bit. He still has a way to go."

"Okay. Well I'll check on you two later."

"Okay. Love you."

"Love you. Bye."

I spent my afternoon watching television and caring for Eli, taking his temperature every half hour.

I was putting the thermometer away when there was a knock on the front door.

I went to answer the door, opening it to reveal Joy on the other side.

"Hi." I smiled at her.

"Hello. Calum called and said Eli was sick so I thought i'd bring him some chocolate chip cookies."

"Oh. Yeah he's asleep but come on in." I opened the door wider and she stepped inside.

Joy set the box of cookies on the counter before going over to Eli and stroking his face.

"Poor baby."

"I know. We woke up this morning to him crying and he was just awfully sick."

She nodded.

"Well it's a good thing Calum is dating a doctor." She smiled at me and I laughed.

She then took a seat on the other sofa and I sat next to her.

"So Calum told be about the incident yesterday with April."

I nodded, nervously tucking a stray piece of hair behind my ear.

"I don't know how to feel about it to be honest."

"I understand. He got a restraining order against his kids other grandma because of you and you feel guilty, don't you?"

I nodded.

"I never wanted to cause trouble or break up his family."

"But Nessa, you didn't. You didn't know April or Meredith before you met Calum. You didn't break up a family, you healed one."

I sniffled.

"I don't know about that." I shook my head.

"Well I do. Calum hasn't had it easy when it comes to love and relationships and his life...but he's found a sense of purpose in his life with you. You and those boys make up his family and I assure you Nessa, he is very much in love with you."

I smiled before dabbing at my tears.

"I love him too, i'm just scared I'm not enough for him. He needs a wife and a mother for his kids, and he wants that from me but i'm not sure I can do it."

"Can I let you in on a little secret?" She took my hand. "None of us know, Nessa. Calum doesn't know, I didn't know when I first got married, and every other person who has ever been with someone as seriously as you are with Calum doesn't know if they can be what their spouse needs. But marriage is full of trial and error, and i've been married for over twenty years and I still don't know everything."

I gave her a small smile.

"I know that marriage, if you decide to get married, is way off in the future, but don't count yourself out yet Nessa, because I know that if you and Calum decided to spend the rest of your lives together he would love you until the end of time."

I smiled.

"I would too."

Joy hugged me and in the midst of our hug the front door opened and Calum walked in with Cade.

"What's going on here?" He raised his eyebrows at us.

"We were just talking." I smiled. "How was work?"

"Good. Luke and I tried out a new speed trap on the thoroughfare and it went pretty well." He said as he came up to me so he could kiss my cheek. "Hey, baby."

I blushed.

"Mom, I didn't know you were coming over." He then went to hug his mom.

"I brought over some cookies for Eli."

"Oh, thank you. I'm sure they'll be gone in a day."

She laughed.

"Well I need to go make dinner for your father, so i'll be on my way, but it was lovely to see you Nessa. I hope we can all have dinner together soon since we weren't able to do it tonight."

"Of course."

I hugged her and she kissed Eli and Cade before she left.

Eli slept until Calum and I had made dinner, and he got up to eat before I checked his temp and his fever had gone away.

He showered and brushed his teeth before I put him back to bed.

Calum and I cleaned up the kitchen together before I went to shower.

He walked in the bathroom while I was conditioning my hair.

"So what did you and my mom talk about?"

"Oh you know, the restraining order, marriage. The works." I shrugged.

"She really likes you." He laughed.

"I like her too. She's nice."

After my shower I got ready for bed, climbing on top of Calum who was watching tv.

He laughed as I sat on his lap, taking all of his attention.

"I love you." I leaned in to kiss him.

"I love you too." He smiled up at me. "Are you in the mood or something?"

"If I was...what would you do about it?" I bit my lip before flashing my eyes down to his hands that were on my waist.

"Well there's several options..." He seductively looked at me then moved his lips to my neck.

I giggled at the feeling, wrapping my arms around his neck.

He rolled us over so that he was on top of me and then slid his hands beneath my shirt so he could touch my skin.

I moved up to kiss him, again, my hands in his hair.

"Momma? Daddy?"

Calum and I yanked apart to find Eli standing beside the bed.

"Eli what are you doing?" Calum asked as I pushed Calum off me.

"I wanted to sleep in here. What are you doing?"

"Nothing." Calum said. "Nothing. Bud you have to sleep in your own bed."

"But I want to sleep in here."

I looked at Calum and he sighed.

"Fine."

Eli smiled as he climbed up on the bed, Calum and I adjusting ourselves so that I was in Calum's arms and Eli in mine.

I looked back at Calum who just shook his head and kissed my cheek.

"Night. Love you." He sighed.

"Night." I snuggled into the bed.

"Night, Momma. Night, Daddy." Eli then piped up causing Calum and I to laugh.

"Goodnight baby." I hugged him to me.

In the morning I woke up in the same position I had fallen asleep in.

When Calum's alarm went off we got in bed and I went to take a shower before Calum showered after me.

We stood together at the counter, not really talking until Eli came in and sat on the side of the bathtub.

"Daddy can I go to work with you today?" He asked Calum.

"Not today bud." He said.

"But once I get off work i'm going to pick you up from daycare and take you back to school shopping." I added and Eli smiled at this.

We finished getting ready before taking the kids to the daycare and then stopping for coffee, Calum keeping one hand on my knee as he drove us to the station.

Check. Reply. Send. Repeat.

That's how I spent my morning. Checking emails, replying to them, and then adding the request to my list.

It had been really busy the past two weeks plus I had missed work yesterday and the officers were relying on me to get their things done for them.

After checking my last email I was about to take a small break and grab some coffee when someone walked through the front door.

I looked up to see an older man there, his white hair disheveled and his face expressionless.

"Hello, how can I help you?" I smiled at him despite his appearance.

"I'm looking for someone." He whispered.

"Okay, who is it you're looking for?"

"Officer White."

"Oh, he's not in right now, he's on vacation for the rest of the week, but i'd be happy to leave him a message to contact you."

"He's not here?" The man then looked puzzled.

"No. I'm sorry."

He was silent as he stared at the ground and then slowly looked up at me.

"Then you'll have to do instead."

"What?" I asked and then I froze.

The man pulled a gun from his waistband and my eyes widened in fear.

They say your first instinct is to either fight or flee, but mine was to scream Calum's name at the top of my lungs.

I had never felt anything happen so quickly yet so slowly at the same time.

The man grabbed me and shoved the gun to my head as he covered my mouth with his hand. Officers ran towards me and Calum sprinted out of his office, his eyes widening in fear when he saw what was happening.

Guns were drawn, people were shouting and surrounding us but I could do nothing other than let myself be dragged backwards as the guy backed up against the wall.

The barrel of the gun was pressed against my temple, the cool metal feeling like it was burning a hole in my skin.

My eyes were wide and found Calum's, his gun drawn as he aimed it at the mans shoulder.

Calum locked his gaze with mine, both of us breathing heavily as we tried to come to terms with the situation at hand.

I felt the gun lift off my head and then cringed as he fired three shots into the ceiling, effectively shutting everyone up.

He put the gun back on my face, the heat from it making me shiver.

And as the metal touched my skin I realised that this was it. I didn't have to worry about the Black Wolves anymore, this was how I was going to die.

--

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