Epilogue
Mary walked slowly through the memorial to the bombing victims of the Alfred P. Murrah federal building. Her hand was securely clasped on one side by Marshall, the other side having been freed moments earlier by the small tornado called Jimmy. As the sturdy-legged boy started to climb up on one of the small bronze chairs in the memorial, Mary gave an exasperated grunt.
"James Seth, get down off of there and come back here!" She glared at him as he obediently trotted back and reached up to pat Mary's belly.
"You shouldn't yell Mommy. It's bad for the baby." The small face looked up at her in earnest and Mary turned on Marshall, who gave up trying to hold in his laughter.
"Did you tell him that?" she asked, punching him lightly in the ribs. Marshall put on his best 'Who me?' expression before catching her to him and kissing her soundly.
Mary broke the kiss, pushing him back. "Hey, that's what got us into this situation," she said dryly, drawing his hand down to place where the small baby bump was just beginning to show. Marshall chuckled, caressing her abdomen while keeping an eye on the golden haired boy squatting by the reflecting pool, reaching out to dip his hand into the water.
He moved over to grasp Jimmy by his collar, pulling him back from the water's edge. He saw his own blue eyes looking up at him. "But Daddy, there's money in there," the small boy said anxiously, pointing to the coins lying on the bottom of the pool.
"And it doesn't belong to us. You need to leave it there." Marshall forestalled the next question about who it did belong to by taking the small hand and pointing over to Mary. "Mommy is getting tired. Do you want to go get an ice cream before we go home?"
Jimmy's face broke into a grin and he tugged on Marshall's hand, leading him back to Mary. Jimmy threw his arms around Mary's legs and Mary gently rested her hand on his head. Marshall watched the little scene, one of hundreds he saw everyday, his heart swelling with love and happiness.
Mary looked up and found Marshall's eye as Jimmy started dancing around, chanting 'ice cream, ice cream'. She took his hand and walking over to Marshall, murmured as she passed him, "I hope the next one's a girl."
Marshall's face went slack as he envisioned a miniature Mary to hold in his arms. Someone else he could call 'my girl'.
"That would be fabulous," he whispered as Mary stopped to pin him with a stare. She could envision the infant girl having the big doofus completely wrapped around her tiny finger.
"On second thought, maybe another boy would be best," she drawled, as Jimmy jumped up and down shouting 'Boy, boy, boy!'
Marshall draped an arm over her shoulders, looking around the memorial, thinking about what it had come to mean to them. Every major event of their life here in Oklahoma swirled around this location. Mary's agreement to move to Oklahoma City, Marshall's proposal to her, Marshall learning he was going to be a father. Twice over. Always with the reminder surrounding them that we don't know how long we have; the reminder not to let a single day go to waste.
"As long as it's ours, I don't care." He kissed her and grinned. "I'd like about a hundred of these," he said in a low sultry voice into her ear.
"Then you're having the next ninety-eight buster," Mary said, while reveling in the feel of his palm spread across her belly. Even after five years of marriage, she still thrilled at his touch, felt her spirits lift when she heard his voice on the phone, felt her heart melt as she watched him with their son.
Marshall chuckled and embraced her. "I spoke to Stan today. He's going to be retiring at the end of the year. He wants us to come down for the party." Mary felt the familiar twinge of guilt. She had hated leaving Stan and even Eleanor, to take the transfer. Stan had appeared just a little lost each time she had seen him since. Although, since Eleanor had finally relented and accepted Stan's proposal, he was happier, more anchored.
"Baby will be a couple months old. Should be ok to travel then. What else did Stan have to say?"
"Nowicki has settled in well with Hillsdale. He said the partnership is working out surprisingly well and that you trained both of them to be kickass marshals." Mary smirked. "Their commiseration over having you as a partner has been a bonding experience for them." She laughed out loud at that. Nowicki had transferred to Albuquerque a year previously. Probably as a last ditch effort to escape her with at least one testicle still intact. Mary was currently partnered with another inspector approaching retirement, Matthew taking the approach that it was probably best to keep any given inspector's exposure to Mary to a minimum.
She glanced sideways at her husband. "Brandi and the boys are coming up next weekend. Peter is going to be out of town." Marshall nodded, already mentally calculating the property damage from three active boys under the age of four under one roof for three days.
"What about Jinx?" Mary shook her head. "She has a tap competition she's taking some of her girls to. She does want to come up a few weeks before my due date and stay till the baby is a month or so old." She took Marshall's hand and rubbed her thumb over his palm.
"I know it's a trial, but I'll need the help by then and she is really good with Jimmy. It's like she's discovered how to be a mother in her sixties." Just a hint of resentment was discernable and Marshall wisely let it pass.
"Mmm. You know I love it when you do that," he said, absently mirroring the gentle brushes of her thumb. "I don't mind Jinx . She's always welcome. She knows that. Have you talked with Matthew yet about going on desk duty?"
Shaking her head, Mary suppressed a trickle of irritation. Last time, Matthew had made her start desk duty at eighteen weeks. She was fast coming up on that mark.
"I talked to him today about taking parental leave," Marshall said. "Are you sure you want me to stay home with the baby?" He eyed her apprehensively. She nodded.
"I'm not domestic. You know that Marshall. You're better suited to stay home. I stayed home with Jimmy for three months. Your turn now. And I'll be home for six weeks anyway."
Marshall caught Jimmy as he tried to pull a stuffed animal off of the fence where mementos had been left. Holding the wiggling hand attached to the wiggling arm firmly in his, he turned to see Mary's amused eyes on him.
"You know you'll love it. I swear Marshall, you'd give birth if you could." Marshall's eyebrows rose and he let his gaze drift slowly down her body, delighting in the subtle changes he could see taking place as his child grew within her. Leaning in, he whispered in her ear.
"Oh, I'm perfectly content with the role I play in the whole process. Do you remember the night we conceived this child?" Mary blushed, amazed that he still had the power to bring the color to her cheeks. She knew he made suggestive and off color comments because he took perverse pleasure in making her blush. Few men since she was fifteen years old had that ability, but Marshall... Maybe it was because he knew her so intimately. There wasn't a square millimeter of her body he hadn't explored and claimed as his own. And he knew her mental person as well as he knew her physical one.
That night though, had been amazing and they had both known, felt it in their bones, that they had created a child together. They were both still gasping for breath, slick with sweat and Marshall had rolled off her, placed a sloppy kiss on her abdomen and propped himself up on his forearms, the goofy grin on his face as he looked down at her. "We just made a baby." And then he...
Mary blinked, dragging her thoughts back to the present. "Not likely to forget that. You were quite ...innovative." Marshall chuckled as he drew a finger over the rosy stain in her cheek.
"I always aim to please," he murmured in her ear.
"And you do please Marshall, all the time." He had been right all those years ago, to force her to take things slowly. The things they had learned about each other through slow, gradual exploration served them well in their marriage.
Marshall slung his arm around her, letting loose of Jimmy's hand so he could go over and look at the children's handprint tiles. He knew a request would be forthcoming to make his own handprint tile and Marshall was considering which ceramic shop would be best to visit with an inquisitive, highly articulate three year old.
He turned back, contemplating the rows of gleaming bronze chairs, the tragic symbol of lives cut short.
"We have made every day count, haven't we?" His question didn't surprise Mary. He always turned introspective after a visit to the memorial. Her gaze followed his and she leaned against his shoulder, as his hand slipped down to caress her belly.
"Yes, in the ways that were important. To each other, to Jimmy, to our witnesses. Every day has had meaning." His eyes remained fixed on a far away point.
"Have I told you yet today that I love you?" He turned to look down at the green eyes he hoped to see in the child that was coming.
"Yes," she said grinning, "first thing this morning, just like every morning."
The End
A/N: Well this is it folks. Thanks for reading and thank you for the great reviews.