‘NO!’ Joe thought, as panic engulfed him. ‘Please God, NO! She can’t be…I need her…I can’t make it without her!’ As Vanessa opened her eyes the tears spilled over, and Joe saw his future without her - a gaping hole of darkness and depression he would never climb out of.

Suddenly Vanessa threw herself on Joe. Leaping into his arms, she wrapped her legs around his waist with unabashed enthusiasm, causing him to stumble back a few steps towards Frank.

"Negative!!!" she cried out happily, hugging Joe so tightly Frank wondered if he could breathe. "The test was negative!"

‘Negative?’ Joe’s mind whirled with confusion as the word didn’t register at first. Slowly, the meaning sank in. ‘Negative!’ Hearing Vanessa’s muted sobs of happiness against his shoulder, he felt her tears soaking through his shirt, as a tear rolled down his own cheek.

Laughing at Vanessa’s reaction, Frank held out an arm bracing his brother and preventing Joe and Vanessa from falling to the floor in a heap.

"That’s wonderful!" Callie exclaimed, impulsively wrapping her arms around both Joe and Vanessa and hugging them tightly.

"Congratulations!" Frank seconded, immensely relieved and joined in the impromptu group hug. He couldn’t even imagine what Joe was feeling at that moment. He recalled the many nights over the past year when Joe had confided in Frank, sometimes in tears, just how terrified he was that one day they’d find out Vanessa was HIV-positive. Frank had realized early on that losing Vanessa to AIDS would be more than Joe could deal with. Closing his eyes, Frank said a prayer of thanks that they would never have to worry about that again.

Feeling a tug on his arm, Frank opened his eyes and saw Callie motioning to their bedroom. Glancing at Joe and Vanessa, Frank saw the tears in his brother’s eyes right before he and Vanessa melted into a passionate kiss.

Following Callie into the bedroom, Frank quietly closed the door behind him, watching as Callie headed straight for the closet.

"I think maybe we should go out tonight so they can celebrate in private," she said over her shoulder as she opened the closet door. Bending down, Callie picked up the small cooler she had hidden there when they first arrived. Closing the door, she moved to the desk and set it down. Unzipping the top, she reached inside and pulled out a dark green bottle and four slender, long-stemmed goblets.

Frank looked from the bottle of champagne to his wife, his eyes shining with pride and gratitude. Shaking his head, Frank approached her and took her in his arms, pulling her close.

"Thank you," he whispered in her ear. "You are amazing." Holding her tightly, Frank enjoyed the feeling of having her in his arms for a few moments before stepping back. "How did you know it would be negative?" he asked, picking up one of the champagne flutes absently.

"I took a gamble," Callie replied with a smile, handing Frank the bottle and picking up the glasses. "All her previous blood tests came back negative. The odds were this one would too."

"I love you." Frank leaned down and planted a kiss on the tip of her nose, as Callie blushed.

"Listen, I was serious about going out tonight," she reiterated, heading for the door. "We should go out for dinner and a movie. I’m sure they’ll want to spend the evening alone together."

"Absolutely," Frank agreed as he followed Callie back out into the living room.

Still wrapped in each other’s arms, Joe and Vanessa looked up as Frank and Callie returned. Noticing the bottle of champagne and glasses, Joe’s heart caught in his throat. Looking at Callie as she set the glasses down on the counter, he smiled in appreciation, once again amazed at her incredible thoughtfulness. It occurred to Joe that Callie had an uncanny ability to remember the small, seemingly insignificant details, yet they were always the ones that did the most to make him and Vanessa feel special and loved.

Releasing Vanessa, Joe took a step forward and scooped Callie up in his arms, hugging her. "Thanks, Sis," he said softly, his voice catching.

"You’re welcome." She kissed him on the cheek as he set her on her feet again.

Trying to swallow the lump in her throat, Vanessa couldn’t find the words to adequately express her gratitude for Callie’s friendship, and simply held out her arms. As the two young woman hugged, Joe stepped over to his brother, who was carefully unwrapping the cork on the champagne bottle.

"She’s a pretty amazing woman," Joe commented with a grin and a wink. "You did good."

"Yeah, I think I’ll keep her," Frank said dryly.

"Thanks, bro," Joe said quietly his eyes shining. "To both of you."

"I’m just glad we could be here to help you celebrate the good news," Frank replied as the cork flew off with a resounding pop.

"Whoa!" Joe cried out, laughing as the champagne bubbled over. Grabbing two glasses, he held them as Frank poured the bubbly liquid. Handing Callie and Vanessa each a glass, he waited while Frank filled the other two and set the bottle on the counter, then handed one to his brother. Stepping back, Joe reclaimed his spot next to Vanessa, slipping an arm around her waist and pulling her close as Callie returned to Frank’s side.

"To my brother and soon to be sister-in-law. Here’s to a long, happy and very healthy life together," Frank raised his glass, as the others followed suit, "with lots and lots of children!" he added as an afterthought.

"How about if we start with one and go from there," Vanessa suggested, suddenly realizing she could once again allow herself to fantasize about the family she and Joe hoped to have one day.

"Just remember, you’ll have to keep up with us, right, Babe?" Frank briefly glanced at Callie before winking at Joe and Vanessa.

Callie froze at the comment, as a strange look passed over her face before she forced a smile. It had gone unnoticed by Frank and Vanessa, but Joe did a double take, not sure he could trust his own eyes. Was that fear he’d seen on Callie’s face?

Unobtrusively, Callie stepped back away from the group, not wanting to call attention to herself. Turning towards the balcony, she set the glass of champagne on the counter and slipped out the doors.

Glancing at Vanessa and Frank, Joe saw they were caught up in some discussion about whose children would be the bigger computer geeks. He decided his presence wouldn’t be missed for a few minutes and quietly followed Callie outside. In the fading light he saw her, hunched over the rail, her slim shoulders shaking from the sobs she didn’t want anyone to hear.

"Cal?" Joe said softly, not wanting to alarm her. "You okay?"

He heard a soft gasp, confirming she hadn’t heard him approach. Callie turned away even further, keeping her face hidden as she tried to wipe away any trace of tears. "Fine. I’m fine," she answered, too quickly.

"If you’re fine then why are you crying?"

"I…I’m just so happy for Vanessa – and you," she lied. "I’m a sucker for happy endings."

"Callie, those aren’t happy tears," Joe tried again. After everything Callie had done for him and Vanessa over the past year, he wasn’t about to let her suffer through whatever had her so distraught by herself.

"Really, I’m fine, Joe," she replied, still refusing to face him. "Go back inside. You and Vanessa have a lot of celebrating to do."

"I’m not leaving you out here alone," Joe stood his ground. "Something is obviously bothering you. Have you talked to Frank about whatever it is?"

"No!" Callie exclaimed, aghast at the thought. She had attempted to talk to Frank about it several times, but always lost her nerve at the last minute, knowing it would break his heart.

"Then talk to me," Joe offered, resting a hand on her shoulder.

"I can’t," she whispered, heartbreakingly softly.

"I know I was pretty drugged up at the time, but I do remember a conversation we had when I was in the hospital in Chicago," Joe reminded her, rubbing her back comfortingly. "You promised me if there was ever anything you couldn’t tell Frank, you’d come to me. No more secrets…remember?"

Callie nodded mutely.

Joe gently turned her around to face him, taking in the look of absolute despair in her eyes. "Well…"

She looked up and stared at Joe for a long moment, remembering the tumultuous emotional roller coaster Keith Rashman’s trial had been for him. Joe had almost slipped back into a deep depression before it was all over. Feeling torn, Callie had no idea what to do. She didn’t want to be the catalyst that pushed Joe back into the debilitating darkness. Not now, when he and Vanessa were finally happy and had their whole lives ahead of them. Even though keeping her fears to herself was starting to eat her up inside, Callie’s first instinct was still to remain silent. To share them with Joe would entail dredging up memories she knew were extremely painful for him.

"I can’t, Joe. I don’t want to upset you."

"Haven’t you heard?" Joe said with a twinkle in his eye. "I’m a tough guy. Whatever it is, I can take it."

As Joe looked at her, his blue eyes filled with compassion, the overpowering need to tell someone finally won out. "Frank and I…we’ve always kind of fantasized about starting a family. How many kids we wanted, what we’d name them, what they’d look like…" she smiled wistfully, before the sadness returned and she stumbled over the words. "I…I’m not sure I want to have children anymore."

"What?" Joe blurted out, stunned. "Callie, you’ve always wanted children. What brought this on?"

"I still do want children. I just…I don’t know if I can, in good conscience, bring a child into this world," she said softly. It had hurt to think of a future with no children; to admit the possibility out loud was close to unbearable.

"When did you decide this? And why?" Joe asked, having recovered somewhat from the shock.

"In Chicago…during the trial." She looked at Joe tentatively, as if asking for permission to continue with a subject she knew was so painful for him.

"Go ahead," he nodded encouragingly.

"When we were in Chicago, something happened…something…changed," she swallowed, drawing a shaky breath. "Hearing what you went through, even just part of it; watching you have to relive it every day and seeing what it did to you…what it did to your parents…" Callie stopped, her eyes burning at the memory of Laura Hardy sobbing in her arms, and Fenton Hardy so close to tears on the witness stand.

"It killed them to see you go through that and know there was nothing they could do to stop it. I don’t think I could do that – be as strong as they were. And I don’t know if I have the right to bring a child into the world knowing they could be kidnapped or beaten or…killed…just because of who their father – or grandfather – is." Wiping her eyes, Callie looked at Joe sadly. "How many times has it happened to you or Frank over the years? I… I don’t want my children to go through that. And the only way I know how to prevent it is to not have children at all."

Dropping her eyes, Callie stared at her hands, indicating she was done. Anxiously, she waited, wondering how Joe would respond.

‘Wow…okay…you just had to ask…’ Joe thought as Callie’s ‘confession’ sank in. When he asked Callie what was bothering her, he had been tossing some possibilities around in his mind. He hadn’t expected anything as intense – or emotionally charged – as this.

Thinking back to the trial, Joe was glad to find the pain had dimmed somewhat over the past two months. Apparently his concerted efforts to put it behind him and move on were beginning to pay off. He only hoped dredging up memories of the trial and it’s effect on his family, wouldn’t set him back too much.

Unsure if there even was a right answer, Joe nevertheless plunged ahead, hoping he could convince Callie to reconsider the direction she obviously seemed to be leaning towards.

"Well, I can understand how seeing Mom and Dad’s reactions to the trial – to me – could get you thinking in that direction. I know how hard it was for them; I saw the pain in their eyes every day," Joe stopped and gently lifted Callie’s chin, forcing her to look at him. "But do you really want to base such an important decision on that one incident? Don’t you need to take all the facts into consideration before you can come to any kind of conclusion one way or another?"

"What do you mean ‘all the facts’?" Callie asked, confused.

"When you met Frank, he and I had already decided we wanted to be detectives, just like Dad. We’d already solved a few cases on our own and even more with him," Joe pointed out.

"So?" Callie replied her brow furrowed, still not understanding what Joe was trying to say.

"Until Frank and I decided to seriously follow in Dad’s footsteps, we never had any problems. There were no kidnappings, no ransom demands, no beatings," Joe couldn’t help but be a little amused at what Callie had apparently imagined their childhood to be. "Our whole childhood was picture perfect – right out of a Norman Rockwell painting. If anything, we were in danger of being bored to death. Frank and I were never in any danger – ever – until we tried our hand at investigating."

Callie looked up at him doubtfully. "What about…Joshua Tilghman?" she asked quietly.

"His men grabbed me because they thought I was an orphan," Joe reminded her. "Had they known I had parents who loved me more than life itself and wouldn’t stop until they found me…they never would’ve given me a second glance."

While Callie seemed to consider what he’d said, Joe noted she was not entirely convinced.

"Callie, unless your kids are some kind of prodigies and start investigating crimes before their first birthday… the chances of anything happening to them are slim to none. And really, what are the chances your kids will want to join the family business. More likely they’ll want to be doctors or lawyers or…" Joe gave her a mock shudder "accountants!"

Callie giggled in spite of herself, wishing she had Joe’s ability to find humor in the direst situations.

"And you can’t base your decision on whether or not to have children on what’s happened to me. Believe me, I’m the exception, not the rule. Let’s face it, I take way more chances than I should…and that usually lands me right smack in the middle of trouble – big trouble." Seeing he had Callie in better spirits, Joe continued with his monologue. "You know, Frank hasn’t had half the ‘fun’ I’ve had, because he’s so cautious. He thinks things through first. He’s sensible and prudent and thorough…but not very exciting." Joe winked at her.

"You know I love you, Joe, but I’ll take cautious and sensible and prudent and thorough any day!" Callie laughed.

"You know there’s one person who could answer all your questions about this and give you all the facts you need." Joe said.

"Who?" Callie asked puzzled.

"Mom. Hey, she’s lived through it. Who better to ask advice from." Joe shrugged. "Promise me that when we get home you’ll talk to her. I’d bet money that even if she knew then what she knows now, she still would have chosen to have children."

Callie stared at Joe amazed and very grateful. "Joe Hardy, you are wise beyond your years." She kissed him on the cheek, feeling much better.

"Yeah, well don’t spread it around," Joe blushed. "It’s taken me a long time to cultivate the dumb jock image."