When they arrived at Darren�s house, a young girl was turning from the door. Darren shut the engine off, a smile on his face as he unfastened his seat belt.

�That�s Paula,� he explained quickly as he got out.

�Darren? What a surprise! Welcome home!�

�Thanks, Paula. Everything going okay?�

�Yeah,� she nodded, holding her arms out wide.

Daniel watched as Darren hugged the young girl.� �Hmm� late teens, perhaps?�

Shoulder length, curly brown hair framed an oval face, the highlight of which was a pair of sparkling, honey-colored doe eyes. She was just a bit shorter than Darren.

�How�s your mother doing?� the singer asked.

�Great! She and Grandma went skydiving last week,� she smiled broadly and winked.

Darren laughed heartily. �Your grandmother finally talked her into it?�

�It wasn�t easy, but she finally shamed momma enough that she had to do it.� I see *you* succeeded, too,� she winked at Darren again, before turning her welcoming smile in Daniel�s direction.

Darren�s chest puffed with pride and he smiled widely. �Paula, I�d like you to meet Daniel Jones-Hayes, my husband. Daniel, Paula Anderson, my neighbor�s daughter and official house-sitter.�

�Pleased to meet you.� Daniel greeted her with a nod and a grin, shaking her hand.

�You�re married?� Her eyebrows rose as she turned back toward the singer. �I�m so happy for you both!� She effused and hugged Darren again before giving Daniel a quick hug.

Then Paula ran over to unlock the door and helped them carry their bags inside.

�You must be exhausted. Would you like me to make coffee before I go?�

�Would you, please? That would be wonderful. The mocha decaf?� he favored Daniel with a meaningful grin.

�Sure!�

�How are you doing?� Darren asked, pulling the guitarist close, capturing his lips in a sweet kiss before the younger man could reply.

When Daniel stiffened slightly, Darren broke the kiss.

�What?�

A slight clearing of the throat followed by a nervous chuckle reminded the singer that his neighbor was still there. He flushed slightly at her amused grin.

�I�ll just be going, I think,� her voice danced with humor.

�Would you stay and have coffee with us?� Darren asked.

�I thought maybe you wanted to do something else,� she quipped, one eyebrow raised knowingly.

�Ah,� Darren chuckled nervously. �No, not right now, anyway. I feel like I�m still in the plane.�

�Okay, sure.�

They all walked into the spacious kitchen, fixed their coffee, then moved into the dining room, Darren sitting between Daniel and Paula.

�So I�m guessing this was your business trip?�

�Yeah,� Darren nodded sheepishly. �We had to get married. I dread telling Leonie, though.� He looked at Daniel apologetically. �She still believes you held me back when we performed together.�

�You *had* to get married?�

The brilliance of Darren�s grin *almost* matched Daniel�s famous smile. �Daniel�s pregnant.�

The look of surprise on Paula�s face caused Darren�s smile to fade and he panicked a bit. She�d always seemed to accept his orientation�

�You had unprotected sex? At your age? I thought you knew better.�

Nervous tension released itself through a shaky laugh.

�I was afraid you��

�Darren, I�m quite well-read, as you should know by now. I think it�s amazing that your love is one of the few men who *can* become pregnant. I�ve seen the way you light up around children. It just surprised me that you were careless.�

�We weren�t, actually� I� uh� it broke.� Embarrassment warred with a smug look on the singer�s face as he gave a guilty shrug. Paula�s eyes widened and her jaw dropped just a bit.

Then she grinned and smacked his shoulder. �You beast!�

Darren�s proud smile returned.

�So how far along are you, Daniel?�

�Bit over three months.� The guitarist replied shyly.

�Mom will be thrilled! You don�t mind if I tell her, do you?�

�Nah. You can tell your grandmother Miko, too.�

Paula stood up then and gave first Darren and then Daniel a kiss on the cheek. �I�m very happy for you guys. I�ll let myself out.�

After they heard the front door close, they both gave a tired sigh, then looked at each other with mild embarrassment.

�You know, I meant to call your parents last night, but we were a bit� otherwise occupied,� he finished with a cheeky grin.

Daniel simply nodded quietly with a small smile.

The singer stood up, picking up their coffee cups. �So, after I take care of these, how about we go into the study and call? Then, after we�ve chatted a bit, we can go to bed.�

�Do we *have* to, Darren?�

�I already explained it, Danny. They need to know.�

After rinsing the cups and setting them to dry on a towel, Darren walked back to the dining room and grabbed Daniel by the arm. He pulled the taller man to his feet and led him to the study.� Once there, he pulled the easy chair over by the desk, motioning the guitarist to take that seat. He sat in the high-backed office chair. Smiling a bit nervously at his husband, Darren dialed Daniel�s parents and put the call on the speaker.

�Hello?�

�Chris, hello, how are you?�

�Darren! Hello! We�re doing fine, you?�

�Wonderful. I�m not interrupting dinner, am I?�

�No, no. Bit late for you though, isn�t it?�

Darren chuckled. �Yeah. A bit. Just got back from Hawaii.�

�Have you heard from Daniel? We�re getting a bit worried. We haven�t heard from him in the longest and no one has seen him around.�

Darren turned to Daniel and saw the �deer-in-the-headlights� gaze. He clasped Daniel�s hand and nodded to him encouragingly.

The younger man cleared his throat nervously.

�Hi, Mum.�

�Daniel?�

�Yeah�� he chuckled nervously.

�What are you doing at Darren�s? Did the two of you finally make up?�

The two men grinned at each other.

�Yeah. You might say that, Mum. Darren and I got together after his note� and our little talk.�

�Oh, I�m so glad to hear it. Your father will be happy, too.�

Darren squeezed Daniel�s hand, and the younger man inhaled deeply.

�Mum��

�Yes, Daniel?�

�Mum, I� uh��

�Go ahead, dear.�

�Darren and I are married.�

As the silence grew, Darren put his arm around Daniel�s shoulder to keep the younger man from running away.

�She�s mad,� he whispered.

�I doubt it.�

�Then why hasn�t she said anything?�

�Give her time.�

�Daniel?�

�D-dad?�

�Congratulations, son! We�re happy for you.�

Daniel sighed, and fell weakly against Darren for support.

�We suspected for quite a while, you know,� his father continued matter-of-factly. �I�ll give you back to your mother now. Love you, son.�

�Love you, too, Dad,� Daniel�s voice was little more than a whisper through tears of relief.

�It was sudden, wasn�t it, son?�

�Well, it was kind of necessary, Chris,� Darren explained as the guitarist cried on his shoulder. He ran his fingers through the ever-unruly locks, in hope of soothing the younger man.

�Oh? Is Daniel all right?�

�He�s fine, Chris. Just got a little worked up over having to tell you our news� he�s a bit relieved that you are so accepting, given my father�s views��

�I understand, Darren. So what was that you were saying about it being necessary?�

�We�re pregnant, Chris� well, Daniel is� but we�re expecting!� Darren wondered if she could see his smile through the line.

�Really? Oh, my� oh my gosh! Oh my God! John!!!�

They heard the phone hit the floor as Daniel�s mother ran off.

�See?� Darren gently raised Daniel�s head, and kissed him tenderly. �They�re happy for you. And for us, I think.�

Daniel smiled through the tears, which were beginning to cease.

Darren brushed his thumb over one of Daniel�s wet cheeks and felt as if he would burst with all the love he had for this wonderful man.

�Daniel? Darren? What�s this Chris is telling me?�

�I�m pregnant� a bit over three months now� Darren sort of had to marry me to keep me �honest�.�

�Well, you�ve made your mother and I *very* proud. Don�t you doubt. Congratulations to the both of you, again!�

�Thanks, Dad. That means a lot.�

�Darren, have you told your parents yet?� Chris came back on the line, her voice vibrating with her excitement.

�Actually, I was hoping you might tell my Mum.�

�Oh, Darren� Your father still hasn�t accepted you?� her voice was immediately sympathetic.

�No,� he sighed. �But I�d like her to know.�

�I�ll be glad to tell her for you. Do you have a due date?�

�Not officially,� Daniel said.

�Sometime in November I think, Chris.�

�Well, when should I be there? You�ll be wanting help?�

�I think we�ll be okay, Mum� It�s just us� but if you *want* to come, then I�d imagine October would be good?�

�Sounds fine. I�ll plan on visiting then. Will you have room, Darren?�

�Plenty, Chris. Even with turning one of the rooms into a nursery, we�ll have a spare room.�

�Hugs then, boys. Take care, Daniel. Darren, congratulations and don�t worry, I�ll be happy to let Judy know.�

�Thanks, Chris. I really owe you for that.�

�Not at all, Darren. Just take care of my boy like I know you will, and I�ll see you in a few months.�

�I will... bye, Chris.�

�Bye, Darren. Daniel. Love to you both, boys.�

�Bye, Mum.�

Darren clicked off the phone, and then turned to Daniel once again.

�See? That wasn�t so hard,� he smiled tiredly.

The guitarist returned the smile with mild embarrassment and nodded.

�Seems you know my parents better than I do.�

�You were just too nervous to think clearly. What say we go to bed? I�m really beat right now.�

Daniel yawned. �I think that�s a good idea. I don�t think I�d even stay awake in the shower.�

Darren stood up and pulled Daniel up to him, then cupped Daniel�s face in his hands and kissed him. �I love you.�

The taller man smiled tiredly. �Yeah. I love you, too. Can we go to bed now?� he whined lightly, trying to look pitiful.

The singer chuckled. �Come on, babe.� They moved toward the stairs, Darren�s arm around Daniel�s waist. �The quicker we get to bed, the quicker we can begin planning the future.�

�tbc�