"Maybe I'll make an exception this once."

Sara held her breath as his fingers tangled in the ribbon.

The doorbell rang. "Foiled again." Nik handed the box back to her.

"I'll go see who it is."

Swallowing her disappointment, Sara let the box drop to the cream sofa as she followed him to the door: "As if we didn't know." Nik threw open the front door. The simple action set off a chain reaction. Seven people came trooping in, one at a time. Packages, greetings and warm embraces all mixed together in a swirl of affection and holiday cheer.

Surprised, Sara hugged her father. "Dad, I thought you were coming later." She took his heavy sheepskin jacket and folded it over her arm.

"So did I." He nodded at Kane as he placed his contrii but ions to the holiday loot beneath the tree. "But the detective outranks me."

Kane added to the booty spilling out from under the tree as Jennifer helped Katie off with her coat. "We decided to save your father from having to drive by himself, and picked him up," Jennifer explained. She shrugged out of her sweater and handed both it and Katie's coat to Sara.

For the moment Sara left all the outerwear she'd collected on the sofa.

She looked at Jennifer with concern ,

empathizing. The baby was due any time now. "Can I get you anything?

Jennifer shook her head. This was her third time around and she had become a veteran. She knew what to expect. "An extra cup of energy would be nice, but thanks, I'm fine."

"She tried to do everything herself. Again," Kane complained , giving Sara a quick kiss h.e.l.lo.

Jennifer winked at her sister-in-law. "It was a ploy to get him more involved with decorating the tree and the house."

"She refuses to believe that I'm all thumbs when it comes to things like that." Kane held up his hands as if that was conclusive evidence.

Julia and Brom were dividing their time equally between Jennifer's house and Nik's during their stay in California. Julia laughed, placing a finely manicured hand on Kane's arm. She looked at Sara.

"The house is a veritable winter carnival," she confided. "For a man who's all thumbs, I'd say Handsome's coming along just fine."

Brom edged his way to Sara through the crowd. "And how are you? "

He took Sara's hands in his, pleased at the transformation he had witnessed in his cousin in the past six months. She had bloomed and become the Sara he remembered.

She squeezed his hands. "Never better, Brom." Sara looked over her shoulder at Nik. "Never better: '

Brom nodded, releasing her. He stepped over toward Nik, who was down on the floor indulging in a huge hug being bestowed upon him by Katie.

"So, married life agrees with you."

Nik rose to his feet. "Yeah." He indicated Sara. "Too bad she doesn't very often." It had taken him a while to convince Sara that arguments between a husband and wife were natural and didn't signal the beginning of the end, but he had finally gotten the point across. Now she argued with relish and abandonment.

Sara smiled confidentially. "

" I like to keep him on his toes. "

"That she does," Jennifer testified, thinking of some of the heated debates that took place at the restaurant.

Nik brought in the tray he had carefully prepared. A variety of hors d'oeuvres covered every inclq of it. "Anyone want anything to eat?"

Brom was the first in line He chose two different hors d'oeuvres, his mouth watering on cue. "Why do you think we came all this way? It certainly wasn't to see your ugly puss again."

Popping the second hors d'oeuvre into his mouth, he made a quick grab for A. J. before she managed to run the lowest branch of the tree in her effort to steady herqelf. A. J. had taken her first steps at exactly one week prior to her eleventh month. And all semblance of peace had been forever lost.

Julia rescued her husband and took A. J. into her arms.

A. J. protested, squirming. "Hush, honey. Aunt Sara doesn't want to see her ten-foot tree sprawled out all over the floor."

Nik laid his arm around Sara's shoulders as he watched , the ebb and flow of family in the room. His family. This, he thought, was what life was all about.

"Happy?" He whispered the question against Sara's temple.

She sighed as his warmth rippled through her. "Do you have to ask?"

She bent to retrieve the gift he had abandoned when the doorbell rang, and offered it to him again.

She was certainly persistent. Nik studied the package, intrigued " "

What is in this thing? "

Sara mustered the most innocent look she was clpable of.

"Only one way to find out. Open it."

The conversation around them mellowed. All eyes turned toward Nik.

Sara had made everyone curious.

"Okay." Nik made short work of the ribbons, tossing them to the side.

Katie scooped them up. "Can I wear this, Uncle Nik?"

Her tiny brows disappeared beneath the dark bangs. She j had the ribbon twined around her fingers.

Nik paused to give his niere's shoulder a tiny squeeze. "I'll have you decked out in ribbons before the night's out," he promised.

Aware that Sara and everyone else was watching him intently , Nik turned his attention to the gift. He sent angels scattering as he tore off the paper. Eager now, he opened the lid. Inside the square box, lying in the center of a bed of red tissue paper, was a white envelope.

"Tickets," he guessed as he plucked the envelope out. He had promised Sara a real honeymoon once they got the time, instead of the weekend they had spent at the Hilton hotel. "Okay, where is it you want to go?"

"Harris Memorial Hospital," Sara couldn't resist saying' In about six months. " She had known for a month now. Suspected for longer. It had been all she could do not to tell him. She had wanted it to be her Christmas present to him.

"What?" Confused, he opened the envelope.

Julia and Jennifer didn't need to see what was in the envelope They sprang to their feet simultaneously, ready to hug their sister-in-law.

Each was patiently restrained by her husband.

Kane and Brom exchanged looks. Both men knew that the moment belonged exclusively to Nik and Sara. They remembered their own good news.

Nik forced himself to focus on the single line of script on the white paper. "Merry Christmas. You're going to be a daddy. Twice. It's twins!" He stared at it for a moment in silence, afraid to believe.

Sara bit her lip. Had she guessed wrong? Was he disappointed ? Or worse, angry for some reason? They hadn't really discussed having children. She had just a.s.sumed, after watching him with his nieces, that he wanted children of his own.