November 28th-30th, 2001

===|oo|===

This story takes place about a year later from the last chapter. We're going to say that Brianna turned one like a week or two ago, so we don't have to delve into the first birthday thing. Alright? Alrighty then!

===|oo|===

"Da da da da da!" Brianna called out from her crib. George chuckled as he walked up the steps and wondered if Brianna would talk a lot, much as he did, when she got older or if she would be a bit more refrained, like Julianna was. Then he thought once more that she might inherit a 'talking' trait from Ron. He shook his head. It didn't matter. He was her 'Da' and always would be.

He walked into the room and smiled widely. Brianna was standing up in her crib, holding onto the bars as she called out to him. Her face lit up in a green as he walked in. She held out her arms and leaned against the bars for support. He bent down and swooped her up into his arms, kissing her all over. She gurgled, the mimic of a laugh, and placed her hands on his head.

"How's my Brie?" He asked and twirled around to place her down onto the changing table. She smiled up at him and kicked her legs around as he changed her diaper, trying to be difficult. He chuckled. "You're already a trouble-maker. We don't need that, do we?" He smiled. "You're just like me."

He began to get her dressed in a little outfit, but she pushed his hands away and kicked.

"No?" He asked. She was frowning. He chuckled.

"Alright, alright. We'll let you run around in your diaper for a while. We don't have to be in to work for another two hours." He said. "C'mon, let's go downstairs." He said and swung her into his arms. She planted a sucking wet kiss on his chin and he chuckled, taking her clothes down with them.

As George fed her some banana baby food he let his thoughts wander. He loved Brianna, so much that it hurt to remember that she wasn't really his daughter. It was really beginning to bug him. His name was on her birth certificate but he technically wasn't her adopted father. He had been contemplating bringing the subject up to Julianna for some time now and he knew he would have to talk to her about it tonight. He couldn't wait any longer.

He made airplane noises and stuck the spoon into Brianna's smiling mouth.

===|oo|===

Later that night Julianna placed Brianna into her crib and then turned to face George. He grinned at her.

"C'mere." He murmured. She smiled and walked to him. He wrapped her up in his arms and kissed her gently. "Mmm..You smell good." He commented. She laughed softly and buried her face in his neck, taking a deep breath.

"So do you." She said. He grinned and leaned back, running his fingers through her hair.

"I've missed you all day." He said.

"I know. Me too." She replied, remembering the one short scene they had had together today. It had merely taken two takes before they had gotten it right.

"I know just the way to make up for it." He said. She laughed and wrapped her arms firmly around his neck.

"Really?" She asked. He chuckled.

"Oh yeah." He said and pressed his lips to hers as he led her to their bedroom.

===|oo|===

Two days later Julianna stood nervously in the kitchen. She had just finished washing the dishes and knew she needed to talk to George. But she was stalling, wishing she didn't have to tell him the news.

"You're stupid, stupid, stupid!" She muttered and pounded her fists gently on her forehead. "Just tell him." She said. She knew George loved Brianna so much. She knew he wouldn't react the same way that Ron had. She knew he would be thrilled that she was pregnant and this time with his baby.

But she couldn't squelch that little niggling fear in the back of her mind that he'd reject her and the baby just the way Ron had. That he wouldn't want another baby, a baby of his own, or another baby so soon.

"Okay, okay." She took a deep breath, trying to relax. "Go. Now." She ordered herself and walked out of the room. George sat on the couch, holding a sleeping Brianna against his chest. Some of the tension eased out of her chest at the sight of this beautiful man holding their daughter.

"Hey." He murmured. She smiled a bit.

"We need to talk." She murmured. He nodded.

"Okay." He said. He had sensed all day that she had something to talk to him about, but he had waited patiently for her to come to him first. "Let me take Munchkin up to bed first. I'll be right back." He said. She watched as he cradled Brianna closely to him and carried her tenderly up the stairs. She sighed and leaned back against the couch, knowing she was acting ridiculously. George would be thrilled.

She knew it. Thought she knew it. Oh God, she thought and tried to use some yoga breathing exercises to calm herself down.

Minutes later George reappeared at the bottom of the steps. She smiled nervously at him and swallowed the dryness in her throat.

"What is it?" He asked quietly, his voice caring and loving. He took one of her hands into his own, knowing she was nervous. He could read her like a book.

"George, I.." She stopped.

"I love you, Julianna. No matter what." He said. She sighed and closed her eyes a bit.

"I know that." She murmured but he didn't think she sounded convinced. He leaned forward and took her chin into his hands.

"I'll always love you." He said. "I'll never leave you. No matter what." He said. She met his gaze and stared into the deep brown pool of his eyes. Then she smiled.

"I know." She said. He leaned back and dropped her chin, but kept her hands in his.

"What is it?" He asked softly. She looked him straight in the eye.

"I'm pregnant." She whispered. He watched her for a few moments, surprise flickering over his face. And then she watched with tremendous relief as the joy flashed over his face.

"You...Really?" He asked. She nodded.

"Really really." She said.

"Oh..Wow." He said and stood, dragging her up with him. He twirled her around the living room, nearly running into various pieces of furniture as he laughed and laughed and laughed. She joined in with him, wrapping her arms around his neck as her feet came up off the ground. Finally he placed her back on the ground and took her cheeks into his hands.

"Another baby." His smile was so huge and so wide, she thought it would surely crack his face. "Wow. That's great. That's..amazing. Jules!" He exclaimed and picked her up again. She laughed. He kissed her quickly before he dropped to his knees and lifted her shirt.

"Hey baby. I'm your daddy." He said and let his warm hands spread over her stomach as he stared at it, imagining the child growing within her. He looked up at her. "How far along?" He asked.

"Well..I think if you remember correctly, it was probably when we got a little excited that night on the couch." He laughed and she felt the sound ring joyously throughout her. Her love for this man continued to grow every minute she was with him. Every second.

"I bet your right. So about three weeks then?" He asked.

"Three and a half. I normally have my period regularly and this time I was a few days late. I bought a pregnancy test this morning when you were at work, to make sure." He kissed her stomach gently before he stood and enfolded her back into his arms.

"I'm not Ron." He murmured as he leaned his forehead against hers. She smiled.

"I know. I was a little scared. I knew in my heart that you love me and Brianna and that you'd love a new baby. But I had that fear in the back of my mind that maybe you just wanted one..or something. I'm sorry I was unsure about how you would react." She murmured. He kissed her.

"It's okay, darling. I understand." He said. She sighed and closed her eyes briefly, leaning her forehead against his.

"Thank you."

===|oo|===

"Jules?" George asked as he came into their bedroom. Julianna looked up from her reading on the bed.

"Mm?" She asked. He sat on the bed and turned to her.

"I wanted to talk to you about something." He murmured. She put her book onto the night stand and turned to him, a small smile on her face.

"Okay." She said.

"I, uh, I've been thinking a lot about this lately." He glanced up at her to find her listening intently. "I know I'm Brianna's daddy and that I will always be." Julianna's brow furrowed a bit, wondering what could be bothering him so much. "And I know my name is the name on her birth certificate, but in reality she's not mine."

"Geor--" Julianna started to protest. He held up a hand.

"Wait, please. Let me finish." Julianna nodded and pressed her lips together. "I've been thinking about it a lot lately, even more now that you're pregnant. I want to adopt Brianna." He said. Julianna didn't say anything for a moment and before she could answer him he barreled on. "It's just that then she would really, really be mine. And before her little sibling arrives that we would have more time now. I don't want Brianna to feel left out of the family. If I adopt her, that's as close as we can become to being a whole family." He said.

"It's just a legality." Julianna murmured. He shook his head.

"Not to me. Or Brianna for that matter." George replied quickly.

"I guess I never even thought about it. I just..It never occurred to me. But if that's what you want, I'm not going to stop you." She smiled softly.

"So you're okay with it? If you're not, I won't do it." He said honestly. Her smile widened.

"It amazes me how much you love her. I would never deny you this." She said. He leaned forward and took her face into his hands.

"Thank you." He said and kissed her gently. She smiled.

"You're welcome."

===|oo|===

The next day that Julianna and George had off work they went to their lawyer's office.

"How are you?" Mr. Lussier asked them as they sat in front of him.

"Good." Julianna and George both replied. He smiled.

"So what brings you here today?" He asked. Julianna glanced at George. He cleared his throat.

"As you know, we have a daughter but she's not technically mine, my blood." Mr. Lussier nodded. "Well, my name is on her birth certificate but I've never really adopted her. So we came today to find out about what will need to be done so that I can adopt her." George said. Mr. Lussier nodded, leaned back in his chair, and made a temple-shape with his fingertips.

"Alright. It should be a fairly simple process. We'll have to present the case to a judge and he will decide if the court should grant you permission. Mr. Lussier leaned forward. "There's only one thing, though." George and Julianna's hearts dropped.

"Yes?" Julianna murmured.

"You know who the blood father is, correct?" Julianna felt her heart sink further in her chest and she nodded. "Is he aware that you were pregnant and/or gave birth?"

"He knew I was pregnant. I'm sure he assumed I gave birth by now and he probably knows through the media about her." Julianna replied.

"Mm." Mr. Lussier nodded. "But he plays no role in the baby's life?"

"He's never seen her. I've not heard from him since I first found out I was pregnant." Julianna said.

"I'm sure that that will play a big factor in the judge's decision, but if it's at all possible, you must get his signature, giving up his rights as the father, on the documents before you present the case to the judge." Mr. Lussier said. Julianna nodded and chewed on her lower lip.

"I don't think that should be a problem. I don't know where he is, but we have the same agent. I'll get his current address from her." Julianna said. Mr. Lussier nodded.

"Alright then. All you have to do is get him here. Then you can all three sign the documents at the same time, in front of witnesses." George and Julianna looked at each other and she squeezed his hand gently.

"Thank you." She said to the lawyer and they left the office.

===|oo|===

"Do you think he'll give permission?" George asked, already worried.

"I don't know why he wouldn't. He's hasn't even seen her at all, George. He didn't want her in the first place." Julianna said.

"Yeah, but Ron never liked me much. Maybe he won't let me have her." George said.

"We'll get his signature, George." Julianna said, determination in her voice. George nodded, wishing he could believe her.

===|oo|===

As soon as they got home, Julianna called her agent.

"Thank you so much for all your help, Janice."

"Sure, no problem Julianna. Good luck." She replied.

"Thanks. Bye." Julianna said.

"Later." Janice replied and the two hung up.

"Did you get it?" George asked. Julianna turned to him and nodded.

"Yes. Do you want me to call now?" She asked. He nodded.

"Yeah. Wait a minute though, I'm going to go get the other cordless phone so I can listen." He said. She nodded.

"Okay." She said. He dashed up the steps and returned moments later with the phone from their room.

"Alright, I'm ready." He said. They both turned the phones on at the same time. Julianna quickly dialed the number Janice had given her and the two of them pressed their ears to the phones. After two rings Ron picked up. Just his voice had anger starting to boil up inside of Julianna.

"Hello Ron." She said into the phone, trying to be as friendly as possible. There was a short pause.

"Julianna?" He finally asked.

"Yes, it's me. I'm calling because I need to discuss something important with you." Julianna said. He cleared his throat a bit.

"Okay." He murmured.

"As you know, George and I have been married for over a year now. He has been the father of my daughter all that time. But we've come to the point in our lives where we want George to adopt her." Julianna never said her name, refusing to get personal with him. Ron remained silent. "The only thing is, since you are aware of her, you have to give your signature for everything to be legal. All you have to do is come into our lawyer's office with us and sign a paper, giving your rights up as a father. That's all you have to do." Julianna said.

"You're asking me to give my signature so that my daughter can be raised by someone else?" Ron asked. Anger erupted in Julianna's voice.

"She's never been your daughter. The only way she is yours is by blood. You're not her daddy. And what the hell do you care if she's raised by someone else? She's been raised by someone else for an entire year. You've never even seen her. I don't think you have the right to even begin to think of refusing me."

"Well, I do refuse. I'm not going to give my signature for her to be raised by him. If she is raised by him, in your house, there is nothing I can do about that. But I won't make it legal." He said.

"You're a bastard!" Julianna cried.

"In fact, I think I want to apply for joint custody." All the madness and energy seeped straight out of Julianna and George.

"You what?" Julianna whispered.

"I want to get to know my daughter. She is mine, you know."

"You can't do that." Julianna said.

"I very well can. She's mine. I'm her father."

"She is not yours. You will never get her. Never." Julianna said and hung up the phone. George followed suit. They turned to look at each other.

"He can't have her." George said, his voice low and threatening. Julianna shook her head and walked blindly to him. "I won't let him have our baby." Hot tears burned in Julianna's eyes.

"He can't.." Her voice broke. "We can't let him take her, George."

"We won't. We'll stop him. We will." George said, never having been more determined about anything in his life. He pulled Julianna to him and wrapped her in his arms, sharing his strength with her and taking her strength. "We'll fight him. I promise you that we'll never give up. We'll find a way to stop him." George said.

===|oo|===

Later that night George and Julianna lay in bed, Brianna lying in between them. She was asleep, curled up against the two of them. George gently stroked Julianna's wet cheek as she stared down at their daughter, tears trickling slowly down her cheek.

Anger boiled up hotly inside of George and he could barely contain it. He knew when Julianna was asleep that he would probably leave the bed and go pound some of his frustration out in a one man game of basketball.

But for now he was content to lay in bed and devise ways to slowly torture Ron to death.

===|oo|===

"Alright, so he denied George the right to adopt her by refusing his signature and he asked for joint custody, correct?" Mr. Lussier asked Julianna over the phone. She nodded.

"Yeah." She said softly.

"But he hasn't seen her ever?"

"He hasn't." Julianna said.

"Okay. That's good. Tell me what happened when he found out you were pregnant." Mr. Lussier said.

"Well, at first he panicked. Then later when I talked to him again about it, he was packing. He told me that he refused to take care of the baby, or me while with child. He didn't want anything to do with us. I hadn't talked to him since then except yesterday when I called him to ask for his signature." Julianna said.

"That's good news. We'll present all of that to the judge if Ron decides to go through with this custody thing. The judge probably wouldn't be very happy to grant joint custody, but depending on the tactic Ron's lawyer uses, he may just get that."

"We can't let him have her! Even only some of the time! You can't let him!" Julianna protested, on the verge of tears again.

"I'll do everything in my power to stop it. But the law is the law. Not even I can change that."

===|oo|===

Later that night, George stood in Brianna's room, cradling her in his arms. She was sound asleep, but he couldn't seem to put her down in her crib. He knew Ron could never take her from him, from them completely but he could do major damage. And George so badly wanted to adopt her, to make her know she was wanted and loved by him so much. He had a feeling that when she got older, that would be important to her.

"I love you, little girl." He kissed her forehead. "You, your mommy, and the baby inside your mommy are my entire world." He murmured as he stared down at her. Little did he know, Julianna was standing in the doorway, watching and listening. "I promise I'll fight for you until I win. I'll never let him take you away from us. Never."

Julianna turned slowly and walked out of the room. She walked back to their room to get ready for bed, figuring he would come when he was finished.

Minutes later George walked out of the room himself, having finally put her to bed. He walked to their bedroom, just as Julianna came out of the adjoining bathroom. She smiled at him.

"Hey." She murmured. He smiled and dug his hands into his pocket.

"Hi." He replied. He placed his keys and money onto the top of the dresser and reached down to pull his shirt off. Suddenly he froze. Julianna stared a him, wondering what he was staring at.

"What is it?" She asked as she walked toward him.

"I know how we can get him to give us his signature and lay off the custody thing." George said slowly.

"What? How?" Julianna asked.

"Money!" George exclaimed and picked up the dollars that had been in his pocket. "He'll take money. Remember, Janice was a little pissed because he was behind on his payments! He obviously needs it!" George said. Julianna's eyes widened.

"It might work." She said.

"Money is power." George said. "I'm going to call him and tell him."

"Right now?" Julianna asked. He nodded.

"Yes. What's his number?" George asked as he walked to the phone and picked it up. Julianna swallowed and recited the number. George dialed before placing the phone against his ear.

"Ron, this is George Clooney. I have a proposition for you." George said.

"What?" Ron asked, obviously pissed at being called by George.

"If you promise to give us your signature and not apply for joint custody, I'll pay you 50,000 dollars." George said.

"50,000 dollars?" Ron exclaimed.

"Yes." George replied.

"How do I know you won't cheat me out of it?" Ron asked, growing suspicious.

"We'll meet you at the courthouse tomorrow. If you go in and sign your name, I'll call the bank from my cell phone and have the money transferred straight into your account. You can stand and listen and watch me." George said.

"I.." Ron stopped.

"Do you want the money or not?" George asked.

"Yes. I'll meet you tomorrow." Ron said.

"Fine. Meet us at Lussier Law Offices at four o'clock. Don't be late." George said and hung up the phone. He turned to Julianna.

"He agreed?" She asked, hope shining in her eyes.

"Yes. I'm going to call Mr. Lussier now and tell him about the arrangements." George said. Before he could move, Julianna flung herself into his arms and rained kisses over his face.

"I love you, I love you, I love you!" She exclaimed. He chuckled.

"I'll pay anybody 50,000 dollars if you have that same reply every time." He joked, wrapping his arms around her waist. She grinned and placed a big kiss on his mouth.

"Thank you." She said. He smiled.

"You're welcome." He said and reached for the phone with one hand, keeping his other arm wrapped firmly around her.

===|oo|===

The next day George and Julianna stood outside the courthouse, holding hands.

"What if he doesn't come?" Julianna fretted. George turned to her and took her shoulder into his free hand.

"He'll come, Jules. He needs the money." George said.

"I know, I'm just worried. What if he changes his mind? What if he decides he does really want to keep her and the money won't matter?" She said. George had that very same fear sitting coldly inside him, but he had to believe Ron wouldn't back out of 50,000 dollars.

"That won't happen." George said firmly and turned to the side, pulling her against him. He left his hand resting on the edge of her stomach. They stood together, watching silently. What seemed like hours later but was only a few minutes later, Ron pulled up in a silver convertible. Julianna rolled her eyes and she felt George's arm tighten around her waist. Then she began to really focus on the point at hand and felt her stomach drop and sit heavily inside of her.

"Hello Ron." George said, as the man made his way towards them. Ron nodded, studying the protective way which George held her. He had to force himself not to sneer. George then turned and the three of them began walking up the steps.

Moments later they entered Mr. Lussier's office to find him already seated at the desk, documents spread out on the table in front of them. George had told him they had wanted to get it done as soon as possible.

"Hello George, Julianna, Mr. Eldard."

"Mr. Lussier." George said.

"Are we ready?" He asked, as the three of them took seats across from him. George sat in between Ron and Julianna, feeling the need to keep him as far away from his wife as he possibly could.

"Where do I sign?" Ron asked. Mr. Lussier pressed a button on his desk and spoke into the microphone.

"Shirley, could you come inside now." Mr. Lussier said.

"Yes, Mr. Lussier. Just a moment."

"Who's that?" Ron asked.

"My secretary. Two people have to witness the signing. That would be myself and Shirley." Mr. Lussier stated, just as Shirley walked into the office. She stood beside her boss and folded her hands in front of her. "Mr. Eldard, I have to ask you if you now what exactly your giving up." Mr. Lussier said.

"All my rights as her father and permission for George to adopt her." Ron said.

"Exactly. Good." Mr. Lussier handed them pens. "Sign where the x's are." George, Julianna, and Ron quickly signed their names to the documents and placed the pens down. "That's all that needs to be done."

"Great. Can we go?" Ron asked, standing up.

"Mr. Lussier, if you would excuse Ron and I for a moment. I need to discuss something with him. Julianna you stay here, okay?" He asked. She nodded, but didn't speak a word. "We'll be right back." George said and walked out of the room, following Ron. They stepped outside and stood on the steps. George reached into his pocket and took out his cell phone. He quickly dialed the number of the bank, which he had memorized.

He quickly went through all the steps of transferring money to Ron's account, watching Ron the entire time. Then he hung up the phone.

"Satisfied?" George asked, slipping the phone into his pocket.

"Yes." Ron said and turned to go.

"Ron." George said, stopping him. Ron turned.

"They're my family now. I want you to stay away from them." George said, his voice low and threatening. Without waiting for a reply, George turned and headed back inside. Just as he reached Mr. Lussier's office, he heard him ask Julianna a question.

"How did you convince Ron to sign the papers?" He asked.

"Oh, he just called and said he changed his mind and would sign the papers." Julianna recited the answer she and George had come up with. George smiled at her as he sat back down to make arrangements for the court date.

===|oo|===

George and Julianna sat in the court room beside Mr. Lussier. A judge sat on his stand and reviewed all the papers the lawyer had given him to see.

George and Julianna's parents sat in the rows behind George and Julianna, there for support. Julianna's father held Brianna in his arms. They had brought her partially so the judge would see how healthy her life was and also because George hadn't wanted to leave her out of it. He felt that when she was older, she may want to know that she had actually been there.

Suddenly the judge looked up from his stand when Brianna began to babble. Paul Margulies was holding her waist as she stood on his thighs.

"Da da da da da!" She exclaimed, bouncing on his legs. George turned to grin at her and she reached out for him. "Daaaa!" She squealed. He held a finger up to his lips.

"Shh.." He said quiet. She put her finger on her mouth, copying him. He smiled once more at her before turning around. The judge slid his glasses from his nose and looked at the baby, then George.

"These papers are proof that you would make a good father. But it's obvious to me, and would be to anyone, that Brianna is living in a happy, healthy home and that she herself adores you. If the papers weren't proof enough, that would be. I'm hereby granting you legal permission to adopt Brianna." The smiles on everyone in the courtroom's faces couldn't be wider. George stood.

"Thank you." He said. The judge smiled at him. George turned around and Paul stood, handing the baby to George. She patted her hands against his face and smacked her lips against his. He chuckled and held her close, thrilled. The judge smiled wider and was immensely happy with his decision.

===|oo|===

Later that night, George lay in bed beside a sleeping Julianna. Brianna lay between them, snuggled against Julianna, she herself asleep. George smiled at them and reached over to lay his hand gently on Julianna's stomach. He kept it there, thinking of his beautiful family as he drifted off to sleep.

===|oo|===

I don't know much about custody battles. So I'm not sure if what is on the birth certificate would have anything to do with the baby already being adopted by that person! *shrugs* I don't know how it works. So just pretend I did stuff right - even though we both know I probably didn't! Thanks! Hope you enjoyed it and send me feedback! :)

===|oo|===