Lily and Nicole ended up down by the creek that ran through the edge of the property while Sam and Brooke stayed close to the house. They were hoping for a call from Jane who was away from Mike on a business trip. They were walking hand in hand near a flowerbed when they heard the voice call them.

"Sammy! Brooke!" They spun to face the unexpected voice and were shocked to see Jane standing with Terri in the driveway.

"Mom?" Sam gasped. She and Brooke both recovered from their shock and broke out into a run to greet their much missed mother. They engulfed her in tight hugs and didn’t let go for several minutes. Lily and Nicole stood with Terri, watching with huge grins on their faces.

"How are you here? Why?" Brooke questioned a few minutes later. Jane smiled.

"There’s a real estate workshop being held in downtown Austin. I begged my agency to let me go to represent them," she explained. "I told your father that I needed to get away from the situation for a little while." She looked deep into both her daughter’s eyes.

"I missed you both so much," she said quietly.

"We missed you too," Sam whispered.

"Why don’t we take this party indoors, folks," Terri broke in. She led the reunited family into the house. Jane, Sam and Brooke sat at th table.

"How long are you here for, Mom?" Sam asked, grinning from ear to ear. She was beyond happy to see her mother. Jane smiled back at her.

"A week at best, Sammy. Any longer than that and Mike will get suspicious," Jane said. Terri snickered.

"Please, that man is clueless," she commented. She then remembered that both Mike’s daughter and fiancee were in the room and winced at her words. "Oops, sorry," she apologized sheepishly.

"Don’t worry about it," Jane told her. "He is." She turned back to her daughters. "How are you two?"

"We’re good, right Sammy?" Brooke asked. Sam nodded but Jane could see that the situation was putting a strain on Sam. Sometimes the girl was too sensitive for her own good.

"Homesick though," Sam ammended. "We miss you and our friends." Jane nodded.