“What’s wrong?” Cassie asked seeing the expression on Dean’s face.
He took her hand to lead her back to the bedroom. Without knowing what to do he made love to her as gently as her condition would warrant. Neither said a word until later the next morning. Dean lay with his head on her chest and his hand on her stomach, he just wanted to cry but he couldn’t she would think he had lost his mind. Finally he broke his silence it had been almost three hours and he needed to get dressed for work soon.
“Cas, you know I love you, right?”
“Of course, I do but you are starting to scare me now.”
Then he gave her the news. She didn’t move as she ran her hands through his hair; she didn’t know what to do but she felt strongly everything was still going to be okay.
“It will be okay Dean; I can sense it.”
He looked her in the face then.
“Thank you I really needed to hear that,” he said with a smile as he kissed her so he could go get showered for work.
He let the tears flow as he showered, if there was a God he prayed he would take care of their little one, no matter what happened. He really wanted to believe what Cassie felt they seemed so right together that had to mean something.

Sam came over that night so he and Dean could discuss what John had revealed.
“I guess it makes more sense than what we knew before now,” Sam said.
“Which was nothing, he should have told us before now. I don’t think I can forgive that,” Dean said angrily. Sam looked at Dean; he could tell something else was bothering him.
“I agree he should have told you when you let him know about the baby; but the precautions you have always taken will be the same.”
“You know all these years it would have helped to know this,” Sam added.
Dean agreed as Cassie and Missy came in to bring their beers. Cassie told Dean Missy was reeling from the latest family update as they watched Sam and Missy across the room.

Cassie began to feel her labor pains while still at work but she waited until lunchtime before she let someone know. Her supervisor allowed her to leave with a reminder that she would have three months off after the baby was born. Missy drove her home but Cassie told her not to worry because Dean had made plans to get off work when he was needed to deliver their baby. She phoned Dean as soon as she was dropped off.
“Dean you need to get home as soon as you can,” she said into his voice mail.
He called back about a half hour later her pains were five minutes apart.
“Baby are you okay?”
“I’m going to have the baby how long until you can be here?”
Dean was stuck in the mother of all traffic jams behind an accident; he groaned.
“I’m on the other side of town I had to pick up a part; I never do this,” he said frustrated.
“Just do the best you can,” Cassie said trying to keep from stressing him out.
“You called the midwife, right?”
“Yes,” Cassie lied she had hoped Dean and her could handle it.
“I love you; I will be there as soon as I can.”
She phoned the midwife after speaking with Dean then between pains got everything ready in the bathroom.

When Dean finally arrived Cassie was in the bedroom feeding the baby.
“I’m so sorry; I got off the highway to go around and I got lost and I was an hour away to begin with,” he said as he explained.
“Don’t worry about that, come over here and meet your daughter,” she said as she handed him the baby.
He held her gently as he cradled her head, this time he didn’t stop the tears from coming. Cassie was moved as she watched him hold their daughter. She was almost twenty inches long with deep green eyes like her grandmother, her daddy’s heart shaped mouth, a stubborn chin and thick black hair.
“He was here wasn’t he?” Dean asked.
Cassie nodded.
“He came in time to clean up the bathroom while I bathed her; a few minutes later the midwife showed up to make sure everything was good with both of us.”
“You had her alone?” he asked as he sat the baby up against his chest to kiss her head.
“It wasn’t that bad when she was ready to be born it happened right away.”
“And you are okay?” he asked as he kissed Cassie.

There was a knock on the door.
“Come in,” Dean said.
Sam and Missy came in the room both surprised to see them with the baby.
“Oh my gosh,” Missy said as she went to the bed to look at the baby.
Sam was speechless as he sat down beside Missy.
“Meet your niece, Jessica,” Cassie said.
Sam's mouth dropped open.
“If that’s okay with you?” Cassie asked.
Sam said it was as Dean passed the baby to him so he and Missy could ooh and aah over her. Cassie smiled at Dean as she yawned. Cassie suggested they return to visit tomorrow since she was hoping for a nap before the baby needed to be fed again. Sam reminded Dean to phone John before they left and congratulated them both.

Dean held the baby while Cassie napped; he promised he wouldn’t do it all the time but he just wanted to enjoy the moment. Cassie smiled as she closed her eyes. Dean lay the baby on his stomach so he could rub her back. What a sweetheart I wish I had been here. Everything I did to be here for the baby’s birth didn’t matter in the end but it’s okay because Cassie is the person that she is. I appreciate her being her independent self I hope Jessica learns from her mother.

Once Cassie woke up to feed the baby Dean was going to go phone John but Cassie insisted he do in the room.
“Unless you are hiding something from me,” she challenged him.
He laughed; that’s why he loved her, she was too the point and liked to confront situations. He sat down on the bed as he winked at her.
“Dad pick up its Dean.”
Again he had to leave a message but he refused to tell him about the baby on the voicemail he just said he wanted him to call him back.

While Dean made Cassie a sandwich John phoned back so Cassie picked up.
“Hello?”
“Cassie?” John asked.
“Yea, hold on Dean will be in here in a minute.”
Then Jessica cried because her dinner was being interrupted. Dean came in with a tray as she burped her.
“John’s on the phone.”
“I heard the baby crying,” John said to Dean as soon as he picked up the phone.
“Yes, that’s Jessica Marie,” Dean said proudly.
Cassie watched him. Dean just listened without replying until he said goodbye.
Dean came to sit beside Cassie as she ate her sandwich when he was done on the phone.
“Anything interesting?” she asked.
“Not really he just said congrats and be careful.”
“You’re joking that’s not what your expression was telling me.”
“I was surprised he didn’t have more to tell me, I just wanted him to know about his granddaughter,” he said as he ate one of her chips.

After a couple of months, Cassie decided she had better discuss Dean’s leaving with him.
“Baby, I know it’s hard for you to stay around when you want to be out ghost hunting.”
He sat in the rocker rocking Jessica as she stood at the door.
“I’m not planning to leave anytime soon, I never enjoyed leaving you to begin with now I really have no idea what will happen,” he said as he put the baby in her crib.
Cassie smiled up at him; she never doubted that it was hard to leave each time, so she couldn’t imagine how it would feel now when he spent so much time with Jessica. Sam and Missy were waiting to watch a movie in the living room where they found them kissing. Dean smiled as he pulled Cassie into his arms.
“I glad Sam is happy,” he whispered.
“What about us?” she said as she kissed him.

John was mad that his boys were AWOL; so he decided to pay them a visit without letting them know he was coming. Though he had to admit he wanted to meet his granddaughter too. He arrived a few days later at dinner time; luckily for John, Sam and Missy were present too. Cassie was surprised when she opened the door.
“John?”
He nodded as she hugged him though in her heart she knew it wasn’t good that he was there.
“Hi Cassie,” he said smiling.
Sam came to the door when he heard his father’s voice, Missy followed Sam while Dean came in carrying the baby.
“Dad, what are you doing here?” Sam asked.
“Can’t I come visit my boys and meet my granddaughter?”
They all let him in the door so he could have a seat to eat with them; Cassie took the baby from Dean so he could eat while she put her in the play pen so she could watch her.

After the meal John spent time holding Jessica while Sam and Dean questioned him on a variety of subjects. He didn’t let on that he was angry right away; he wanted to work his way into it.
“So why are you really here?” Dean asked knowing his father never did anything without a reason.
Sam looked at Dean curiously.
“Yea, this really isn’t like you to visit,” Sam said suspicious now.
Dean called Cassie in to get the baby so they could talk. When she came in the room she rolled her eyes at him. He mouthed “I’m sorry” to her before she left the room to go back to the kitchen to talk to Missy.

“So what’s really up? I know you aren’t happy with us so just spill it.”
“You’re damn right I’m not since when do we drop everything when things need to be done?” John said. “You have to let us decide how we live our lives,” Sam said.
“Oh, you don’t want to bring that up you were the one who left to begin with; but I thought Dean had better sense.”
Dean laughed.
“Had better sense? Silly me for falling in love, how dare I crave a life with the woman I love. You know I have learned a lot from Cassie but the main thing is that we only have the moment that we are living in, period. Not the past, not the future, just NOW. That’s all I am responsible for, I’m sorry if you can’t deal with that,” Dean said leaving the room.
Sam looked at John as he stared at him.
“I love Missy but I don’t know what I’m going to do; I also know Dean is conflicted too,” Sam said.
John nodded. He went to find Cassie to thank her for the meal but he found Dean in the nursery watching the baby sleep. He watched him for a few minutes without him knowing it. He really didn’t blame him for staying to watch over his family maybe he was selfish for desiring his sons to not have lives though he wanted to believe he was only protecting them.

Dean turned to see his father at the door while they went out into the hall.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do day to day, can you understand that? I still want to get whatever killed Mom, but Dad I have people I love here too,” he said as his Dad hugged him.
Cassie and Missy came into the hallway then but went back to the kitchen to give them privacy. Cassie shook her head as Missy hugged her.
“We have to be strong for them,” Missy said.
Cassie agreed as Sam came in the kitchen looking for Dean and John. Cassie wanted John to stay the night since it was so late so Dean had to explain to her why it was a bad idea.
“It’s not a good idea because every time Dad shows up in the same place we are attacked,” he said.
She just looked at him.
“Really?”
Dean nodded.
“Oh, well okay we can’t take that chance then,” she said as she gave in.
John thanked them and let them know he was staying around a few days. Dean and Sam weren’t happy about the news. Why would he pressure them when he saw how happy they were? Sam asked Dean the very thing he was thinking.

“How do we know Dad wasn’t into the same thing Mom was into?” Sam asked.
“We don’t,” Dean said as they headed back inside.
Sam stopped.
“How do we know we weren’t christened into that lifestyle when we were young? Would you remember? How much do you know of our childhood that wasn’t told to you? What are you actual memories?” Sam asked worried now.
He grabbed his head as he screamed in pain.
“Sam?”
“It’s Dad, we have to go to him.”
“Why did he come here he knows better.” Dean said as he ran into tell Cassie they had to go some where.

Cassie wanted details but there wasn’t time, Missy convinced her to let them go so they could help their Dad. Dean turned around on the way to the car to come back to hug Cassie.
“We’ll be okay,” he said unsure of himself.
She nodded as she bit her lip as a tear fell onto her cheek.
“I promise,” he added.
She kissed him as Sam hugged Missy and grabbed his head again.
“We have to go Dean.”
“This is not good; I’m supposed to be caring for my girls. Now we have to go find Dad.”
“They are going to sacrifice him; go to the hotel there is a shed they are holding him in there.”
Dean insisted it sounded like a trap; he really felt he should go back home but Sam disagreed.
“Damn him,” Dean said as he entered his Dad’s open hotel room and saw blood on the walls.
Someone has to die was written on the walls in blood. They got the guns before they headed to the shed, it was bloody but empty. Dean looked at Sam.
“Where to?”
Dean’s cell phone rang he could see it was his home phone number, he picked up to hear a blood curdling scream.
TBC