Laughter ran down the hall and she looked up from her book. Sam and Adam came running into the family room with Trix and Zero on their heals. The dogs tackled them to the floor and she smiled as she went back to her book.

"Mom?"

She glanced up again and found Grace peaking into the room. The young woman smiled and came in. She took a seat beside Joe and looked at her.

"I'm nervous."

"You'll do just fine."

The girl smiled with uneasiness and Joe caught her in her arms. Today she was going to be leaving to look at schools out east and the separation was going to be hard on everyone. She wasn't ready to see Grace move away for a few years. While the young woman had been growing up the school season was hard enough on her.

"Let's get going."

Smiling, she found Will entering the room with Reese at the door and she let Grace go. The woman stood and Joe set her book aside. She climbed up from the couch and that stilled the playing on the floor. Trix and Zero let the twins up and they followed everyone outside onto the porch. She found Cliff waiting with the coach and he winked as the two climbed inside.

"Bring them back in one piece."

He nodded and she felt Reese's arm wrap around her waist as the coach took off. Adam and Sam waved goodbye until the coach disappeared and then they went back into the house.

"They'll be fine."

She looked up at him and smiled. She knew they would be but it still was hard to imagine the first two grown up and ready to start their own lives. He caught her chin and ran his hand through her hair.

"You still have a long time with the twins and me."

"I know."

Her eyes fluttered open as she took a deep breath and she found the room lit with the morning sun. Looking to her side, she found the bed empty and she sat up slowly. Looking around the room, she found just Bear with her and the door shut to the hall. She pushed the covers off and slid to her feet. Bear stretched as she pulled her hair back and grabbed a flannel to wrap her arms with.

They walked to the door and she let him into the hall. He led her down the hall to the the children's bedrooms and she found them all empty and dark. Looking back at the stairwell, she descended the steps and heard the hushed conversation coming from the kitchen. Bear stopped in the doorway and looked back at her as she approached.

"Surprise!"

She stared at the sight of everyone in front of her. Her entire family was sitting at the table and she found it covered with a feast.

"What's all this?"

Reese came up beside her and said "Your birthday."

She looked up at him and asked "When did everyone get here?"

Jeff chuckled and said "This morning and let me say, we are not doing that again."

Everyone laughed and she wrapped her arm around Reese's as they walked over to the table. She took her seat and looked along the table. Sam and Adam were wearing birthday hats and had some food residue on their faces.

"Who made breakfast?"

Reese leaned back in the chair and said "All four of the kids."

She smirked and said "I'm not sure if I should try it."

Grace shrugged and said "You'd only be missing out."

Will nodded and said "Grace instructed us. It's great Mom."

"I imagine it is."

She studied her family around the table as everyone dug in and felt the hand take hers under the table. The contact left her skin warm and she cast him a glance before looking back at their guests. She had forgotten about her birthday over the last few years with everything going on and this was the last thing she would've ever asked for. When they finished eating, the kids cleaned up the kitchen and she went upstairs to get cleaned up. When she was thoroughly cleaned and dressed in a new pair of jeans and a black t-shirt, she walked downstairs and found everyone had moved outside.

As she stepped onto the porch, she found them saddling horses and sought out Reese. He caught her gaze from Champ's side and she quietly approached.

"What's going on?"

He patted Champ's neck and said "We're going riding out to the herd for the day. Daemon is ready for you."

She watched him swing up into the saddle and she helped Sam climb up in front of him. The boy had picked his father as his riding companion while Adam liked riding with her. She found him standing next to Daemon and helped him up into the saddle. When she swung up, she caught up the reins and wrapped an arm around her son before letting Daemon take off. Reese led them through the fields and she let the warm sunlight bathe her skin.

It had been months of cold weather and brisk cool mornings and it had wore on her. Her shoulder was slowly beginning to recover properly but after these last years she knew it would never be the same. She had known when the injury had happened it was damaged for good but she worked on strengthening it whenever she could. Hearing the laughter from the other riders as they enjoyed themselves, she smirked and glanced over at her husband. He looked amazing for what he went through and she knew the only spot on his body that reminded them both what had been done to him.

Looking at him now, no one could tell he had been held captive and tortured. His recovery had taken almost a year before he was back to full strength but she was thankful he mended so well. The boys became a handful for him the older they got and with her arm not as strong as it used to be, they tormented their father more. She caught the amber eyes looking back at her and he cast her a ghost of a smirk that only she could see and she returned it.

They reached the herd at noon and sat on the hill overlooking the horses to enjoy the packed lunch. The dogs were sprawled out around everyone and she found Sam and Adam hanging around Will and Teddy while Grace visited with Teddy's little sister, Amelia. Her father was resting with Cliff and Billy and Jeff and Calli sat a little aways from the children. Reese and her picked the spot highest on the hill and she leaned against his chest as they ate their sandwiches.

"Do you remember the first time we did this?"

He smirked and said "I do."

"I think that was when we had two more boys."

"I think you're right."

She looked up at him and said "No more."

Chuckling, he nodded and said "No complaints here."

His hand slid through her hair as they finished their food and he scanned the herd down below. They had grown a new crop of foals since the fall and he imagined they had to be just as spirited as the woman in his arms. She was so full of spirit anymore and he knew it was because they had actually done the impossible and she had been given a second chance on life. Their two young sons were proof of it but holding her now was all the proof he needed. They had been pulled apart, shot at, cut up, but still remained together as a whole and he knew there was no way he could make it through the day without her.

Seeing her face every morning was the first thing he needed when he woke and the last thing at the end of the night. He hadn't gone back out with the Marshalls on any jobs after the last one and he only rode for the circuit half a dozen times a year, primarily charity events. He enjoyed spending most of his time at home with his family and let Joe work on her practice when she could.

"The horses are heading to the waterhole."

He looked back at the herd and watched them start to gallop off to the south and they stood up. They grabbed the twins and mounted their stallions. When everyone back in the saddle, they pursued the herd and he caught her gaze as they came up along the side. She nodded and secured Adam to her as they moved into the herd. Glancing behind her, she watched each rider slip inside the racing herd and looked back to the front.

They rode with the flying hooves pounding in the same pace as their racing blood. She worked Daemon free as they reached the waterhole and dismounted by the woods. Adam looked up at her and laughed.

"That was awesome!"

She smiled and said "I thought you'd like it."

He nodded and they watched everyone else slowly join them. Laughter sprung out as everyone took seats on the ground again and she looked up at her husband.

"How did Sam like it?"

"He loved it."

"So did Adam."

Reese held her closer to him and said "It's in their blood."

She smirked and said "So it is."

He looked down at her and brushed his lips along her temple. She leaned her head back against him and he held her tightly in his arms. They would have to head back before sunset but he wanted to give her this day out here where she felt nothing but freedom. They hadn't been out here to really ride with the horses since the first time and five years had passed since then. Time was slipping by faster and he didn't want to miss any opportunity with her in a moment like this.

They had been through so much and it still felt like their lives were still just beginning. From their close childhood to the painful years apart. She was half of him and they had four children that were amazing. They each overcome obstacles no one believed they could and had found each other at the worst point on the road. He had her love and strength and wasn't going to sacrifice it for anything ever again.