Diane was actually quite relieved to have Zoe under some else's care during the nighttime. Her youngest had a bad habit of waking up at an unearthly hour in the morning which got tiring real quick. Especially when you had to adjust to a new time zone every other week.

"Bethany! Exactly who I was looking for!" Diane exclaimed as Bethany entered her and Walker's room with Zoe. "Zoe, go with your father." She shooed both of them out of the room.

Bethany couldn't help but feel a little nervous. Diane had been looking for her? She silently prayed that this wasn't the end of her job. She just didn't know what she'd do if it was.

"As you know I have a doctor's appointment today,"Diane said, fishing through her purse for something. Finding a package of mints, she held them up. "Mint?"

Bethany shook her head.

Diane popped on into her mouth and continued. "Anyway, I'm having my first ultrasound for this baby and I was wondering if you'd like to tag along and see."

"Me?" Bethany looked at her in surprise. "Doesn't Walker want to be there?"

"The boys have an interview today and he wanted one of us to be there. I told him it was fine and I'd see if you'd like to come with me. Besides, it's not like he's never been to one of these before." Diane smiled. "We'll bring him back a picture."

Bethany bit her lip. "I'd love to," she said simply.

"Great." Diane's smile got wider. "Wait until you see how clear the ultrasounds are these days. You can see everything."

The idea appealed more to Bethany than she'd admit. She felt honored that Diane was inviting her to be present for this event. It may have been routine for her, but to Bethany, this was a big deal.

The car that had been hired for the family to use in Italy arrived soon after, complete with a driver. "They refuse to let me drive," Diane explained. "I gave up and decided to enjoy some of this pampering that's being thrust on me."

They chatted briefly in the car, and Bethany marveled at how casual Diane made her feel. It was as if she was with one of her girlfriends, not her employer.

The OB/GYN office was in a building that sported architecture impressive enough to make Bethany's mouth drop open.

Diane leaned over and whispered, "wait until you see the supermarkets," which made Bethany laugh. They walked inside (with Diane remarking that she was surprised Walker hadn't ordered the driver to carry her) and Bethany flipped through Italian versions of Cosmo and Seventeen, wishing she could understand something.

A nurse came out and called her in. Apparently the doctor didn't speak English very well, so she was acting as enturpetuer. Bethany's eyes bugged as she saw the size of Diane's stomach, her shirt pulled up.

"I know, it's amazing what a little black can do,"Diane quipped as the doctor (a bald little Italian man with a funny laugh) smeared some jelly stuff on her stomach.

Bethany stood beside Diane and stared in amazemment as the baby's image appeared on the tiny screen. This had to be by far the most amazing thing she had ever seen.

She held her breath when the doctor began rapidly muttering in Italian. Even Diane was starting to look a little nervous. A glance to the nurse had her asking the doctor what was the matter.

He shook his head and spoke to the nurse, who laughed.

Both Bethany and Diane were now dying from suspense. At least the knew it wasn't bad, or the nurse wouldn't still be chuckling.

"Mrs. Hanson, how many children do you have again?"the nurse asked.

"Seven."

The nurse grinned. "Better make that nine."

"Nine!"Bethany and Diane exclaimed.

The doctor grinned and nodded, evidentally getting the jist of the conversation. He pointed to her belly. "Two babies,"he said in his heavy accent.

Dead silence came over the room, until Diane burst out laughing herself. "That's it," she said,"After this, I'm finding some stronger birth control!"

* * * *

Sworn to secrecy by Diane, Bethany bit her lip in an attempt to not smile as they walked into the hotel. The boys and Walker were in the hallway, apparently just coming back from the interview.

"How did everything go?"Taylor asked.

"Let's wait until we're all together," Diane said simply, ignoring the concerned looks on all their faces. The elevator ride was silent, and when they'd reached their rooms, Walker was beginning to look seriously concered.

They went straight to Jessi's room, where all the kids had spent their afternoon. Once inside, Walker turned to her. "Is everything alright?"

"Sit down,"Diane instructed, and he obeyed instantly, perching on the edge of one of the double beds.

"What?" he asked, and everyone nodded, wanting to know what this is all about.

"The doctor found something on the ultrasound that we weren't expecting,"Diane began.

"Don't worry, Mom, no matter what, we're all behind you,"Taylor interrupted, and Isaac and Zac echoed the sentiment.

"I wasn't finished."

Everyone was quiet.

"He found another baby."

Jessi's mouth dropped open. Avie let out a squeal, and Zoe stared in confusion. Mackie buried his head in his hands, Taylor's eyes became the size of tennis balls, and Isaac and Zac merely shook their heads.

All the while, Walker stared at his wife with a tiny smile on his face. Suddenly he threw his arms around her. "Twins?" he asked after a long embrace.

She nodded and handed him the ultrasound picture. There he clearly saw two babies side by side. "One boy, one girl," she said proudly.

Bethany stepped back. The scene was just too beautiful to forget. She mentally stored the image of Walker and Diane embraced like that.

They had the kind of love she only dreamed of finding.