Jude paced back and forth in front of the porch that led to the front door of Miguel's home. She told herself she was crazy, that she had no life. That this was the stupidest thing she'd ever done and Miguel would agree. Why did she come all the way, more than 1000 miles just to see him?

Clamping down the fervent qualms in her mind, she halted in front of the door and lifted a hesitant hand to knock on the door. Except that her knuckles paused right in front. She didn't have the guts.

Shaking her head, she turned around and trudged down the small flight of stairs, over some rocks and headed for the street with purposeful steps. "Later. Maybe later," she told herself, although her steps slowed with contrition. Coming all the way here and she was giving up? "This is so stupid... I'm so stupid."

The past few days were harder than Miguel had expected. Colorado was great and fun, but Metropolis Cove had become his home without him realizing it.

"Get the door, Migs," his older sister called from the kitchen. Of course. Like she didn't have the two legs she was standing on to open it herself.

Sighing, Miguel pushed out of the sofa and headed downstairs. Probably another one of his childhood friends coming to welcome him back home.

But nothing could have prepared him for the surprise that stood at the door, or rather, on the walkway two feet in front of the door. "Jude?" Purple hair...of course it was her. Unless he was imagining things.

Jude turned around to go back and face the fear that nipped at her back, nagging that Miguel was far too angry to forgive her for what she'd done to him. Then she saw a lanky figure standing on the porch steps she'd paced on a few seconds ago and stopped, froze rather.

She bit her bottom lip, struggling with herself whether to acknowledge the person with a wave or duck behind a row of plants just to her left. Neither one. She remained frozen, gaping at the person staring her way. Was it Miguel or someone else? She squinted once and blinked. It looked a lot like Miguel.

Jude almost lost her nerve but cleared her throat yet again and lifted a hand to wave awkwardly.

A smile came to his lips without even realizing it. Yeah, it was Jude. This person was awkward, so it had to be her.

"What are you---" Miguel began, pausing when he realized how cold it was outside. "It's freezing. Come inside so we can talk."

How long had she been out there? He could just picture her debating with herself whether or not she should ring the doorbell. And yet, Miguel couldn't even understand why she'd come all the way to Colorado...especially on her own. Was she on her own?

Miguel looked past her just in case Dedan was there, prodding her on. She wasn't. So Jude came on her own accord?

Jude hadn't realized how cold it was, the nerves had kept her hot while she debated announcing her arrival at Colorado. It was clear on his face that he hadn't expected her to come here... She noticed him glance behind her, as if looking for someone. He didn't think she would've made this decision to come to him.

She glanced down, trudging closer to the steps once again, slower now that she knew who waited for her at the top. In her mind, she tried to recall the words she rehearsed on the plane ride over here. Her apology, her excuse for coming if he didn't believe her.

Once she reached the top of the stairs, she dragged her gaze from his feet to his curious stare, trying not to balk at that handsome face regarding her openly. It'd been only a few days but Jude felt as though she hadn't seen him for over a year. Resisting the urge to hug him, Jude kept her hands behind her back. "Hey..." she started to say.

Miguel looked down at her, not knowing what to say. "Hi," the word escaped his lips unwittingly. Before he knew it, Miguel had his arms wrapped his arms wrapped around her silently.

Jude forgot to breathe for a moment, even as he stepped close to her and wrapped those arms around her. It was only after she pressed her hands against his strong back that she finally released a sigh. Goodness, she'd missed hugging him. Closing her eyes, she reveled in his embrace for a moment but it soon faded as he stepped back and she lifted her gaze to him still silent.

Miguel couldn't deny the happiness that he felt at seeing her face. And yet, they still had some unfinished business to take care of. "Come inside," he insisted again, this time leading her into the house.

"Miguel, are you insane? It's 20-something degrees, but you leave the door--" his sister paused, blinking at the sight of her little brother and the purple-headed girl whose hand he held at the moment. "Is this..?"

He nodded, and Joanna broke into a grin. "It's nice to finally meet you, Jude. I'm Joey--well, Joanna. Whatever you like."

Jude could count the number of times she'd felt shy and out of place and this was definitely one of those times. She was suddenly self-conscious of Miguel holding her hand, his sister staring from her to their entwined fingers and back at them again.

Nodding her greeting, Jude managed to greet the beaming girl. "Nice to meet you too... Jo-anna." To her, it would be awkward to refer to someone she'd just met by a nickname especially since she wasn't sure where she stood with Miguel.

Speaking of the guy that occupied her thoughts and now held her hand, Jude peeked up at him. From the knowing look on his sister's face, it was obvious that Miguel had spoken about her before and judging from the welcoming grin, he hadn't mentioned their recent argument/falling-out. Jude didn't know whether to be grateful or worried.

His reserved expression was enough to keep her on edge though.

"I must be making you feel awkward. Blech, I'm sorry," Joanna made a face before laughing. "I have a tendency to do that to total strangers. It's kind of my thing."

The sound of a child's shout could be heard, and Joey rolled her eyes. "That's my kid, Carlos. Making a scene as always." Turning on her heels and walking towards a door several feet away, Joey called to her son. "Carlos Ignacio Benjamin Juarez...quieres problemas??"

Once she was gone, Miguel looked down at Jude and could see the worried expression on her face. "Want something to eat? We've got a lot of things here."

The smile she sent Joanna's way faded once the woman bustled out of the door to catch her son causing a mild ruckus in the other room. She caught Miguel watching her and glanced over his shoulder quickly. The house looked empty of people other than them and Joanna and her baby.

Jude shook her head. "Nah, I ate on the plane..." She shoved her hands into her jeans pockets. "Nice place," she said conversationally, not really wanting to discuss why she was here. For a moment she herself didn't remember.

He eyed her carefully. "Jude...what are you doing here? Honestly."

Jude shrugged her shoulders, knowing this question was coming but not so forthright. Was he that angry still? "Can we sit down or you'll want to kick me out once you know?" She said, half-teasing although his poker face told her there was no room for her antics.

She sighed haggardly and glanced away from him again. "I wanted to apologize, to explain..."

"Sure," he murmured, gesturing towards the kitchen so that they could sit on the stools.

"And I'm not gonna kick you out...for some reason, you flew all the way over here. I'm not that evil."

She didn't probe him to see just how evil he could it be. It didn't matter anyway. Jude admitted she was more at fault than he could ever be.

So once she sat on the stool, Jude turned a little to face him. "I'm sorry Miguel..."

"Can you just tell me why you didn't come see me off? You knew I was going away for a long time, and yet..." he searched her eyes for an answer.

Jude frowned. "I overslept and my phone died and I thought you were mad at me, that you didn't want me to see you off. That you left without waiting for me." She shook her head. "It doesn't matter, does it? I stupidly forgot to charge my phone and yeah, I was angry at you. But not angry enough not to see you before you left."

Blinking at him, Jude leaned back to study his face. "You thought I purposely didn't want to see you, didn't you?"

Wow. That was it? Miguel tried to see if she was lying, but Jude wasn't the good of a liar. She was being honest.

"Yeah, I did. Which is why I've spent the last couple of days wondering whether you were as miserable as I've been."

Jude shrugged her shoulders and laughed sardonically. "I wouldn't have traveled here with just an address I got from the internet and no clue whether you'd accept me if I wasn't miserable." She sighed. "Miguel, I miss you... more than I thought I could."

Miguel found himself beaming at her confession. "Really? How much?"

"Isn't it obvious?" she said in exasperation although she almost melted from his boyish grin. Jude glanced away and bit the inside of her cheek before extending her arms as wide as she could along the length of the counter surface. "This much...."

Miguel wanted to laugh at her shyness, but he wouldn't; he was sure that Jude was embarrassed enough. "That's quite enough...even though your arms are pretty short."

"Enh... Whatever." Jude peeked up at him. "So this is Colorado huh?" she said, starting small talk since the tension between them was cleared up, well according to her, "It's... cold. But pretty."

"It's probably cold back home, too," he said absentmindedly. Why did she always do that? Change the topic whenever things got mushy?

Miguel was used to it, however, and the thought disappeared as quickly as it came.

"Yeah..." She brushed back strands of her hair from her face and eyed him. "How are you settling in? Do you miss us yet?" she teased, nudging him with her leg.

"Some days, I feel like packing up and heading back," he admitted with a laugh. "My family drives me crazy..."

"I knew there was a reason why my ears were itching," Joey appeared once again, her four-year old at her heels. "Quit gossiping about us."

"Abuela says it's bad to hop," Carlos looked up at his uncle with wide brown eyes. "I'm telling!"

"He means gossip," Joey explained to Jude, laughing.

Jude smiled warmly at the little tyke that peered up at her and his uncle, his little brow furrowed in honest distaste. She giggled quietly and looked over at Miguel's sister who looked like him. Especially the nose and mouth. "He's adorable, Joanna... How old is he?"

"Tell her how old you are, papi," Joey prodded her son, who promptly held up four fingers.

"Four...how old are you?"

Miguel shook his head. "You can't ask a lady that, homeboy. Es no bueno."

Carlos frowned at his uncle, his lower lip protruding. "Sowwie."

Jude bit her tongue to keep from laughing. "Oh it's okay, Miguel..." Placing a gentle smile on her face, she stepped off the stool and crouched in front of the four-year old, extending a hand out to him.

"My name is Jude. What's your name, little guy?" she asked gently, not really sure how to relate to little kids. But she was sure once Kimani and Bass had their three babies (yikes), she'd have more than enough practice.

But his eyes were drawn almost immediately to her purple locks. "Mommy!" Carlos said excitedly, jumping up and down. "Pelo morado!"

"Yes, papi, I know," Joey said quickly. "Don't touch it."

"That means purple hair," Miguel told Jude.

Jude couldn't help it this time. She laughed. If having little ones in the house meant meeting little joyful bundles like this Carlos fellow, she didn't mind Kimani and Sebastian having triplets.

She sat back on her hunches and watched the boy point openly and grin at her hair. Glancing up at his mother, she grinned. "Oh it's okay. He's not the first to touch it..."

Joanna smiled and leaned against the counter. "This kid...he's just like his dad. Who happens to be a lot like your boyfriend."

"You got lucky," Miguel joked.

"Yeah, by finding a guy just as childish as my kid brother? Just my luck."

Miguel paused. "I'm not even going to dignify that with a response."

"You just did," Joanna smirked at her little brother, turning to Jude. "Do you have any siblings, Jude?"

Jude shook her head. "Well... not currently." When Joanna raised a brow, she smiled patiently. "My mom and dad are expecting triplets, so.. soon enough."

Joey's eyes widened, and she shook her head. "Wow. That's crazy..."

"Not so crazy. It happens. Happened to our mom, too," Miguel said causally, crouching to pick up his nephew. "I'm gonna go put him down for his nap. Jude...don't believe a word that she says about me. They're all lies."

Jude laughed, watching with silent admiration as Miguel picked up his nephew with great ease, slung him over his shoulder and the two headed out of the kitchen, leaving her with Joanna.

"I hope I can be as good as he is with my siblings, when they do come," she admitted to Joanna, not necessarily wanting any encouragement. Truthfully, she was slightly worried about the babies. What if it was a big adjustment for everyone and she couldn't be of much help?

Joanna smiled. "Not everyone's as natural as he is when it comes to little ones," she admitted. "Even when Carlos was born, I was at a total loss on how to properly take care of me. I mean, I did stuff for Migs when he was a baby, but my older Alma is more motherly than me."

She wanted to ask how much older Joanna was to Miguel but knew that would just be too nosy on her part. She smiled. "Well he turned out alright so you sisters must have done something right..."

"Ehh," she shrugged. "We did our best. Dropped him on his head a couple of times, but he bounced right back."

Miguel returned. "I heard that...and that's true. I do remember being dropped..."

Jude chuckled at Joanna's words and smirked when Miguel strode back into the kitchen. "I knew something was up with him when we first met," she said, eyes glistening with mischief.