To Part 14
Back to Story Menu
Plumping the pillow under her head, she started stroking the small bulge in her stomach and spoke out loud, closing her eyes again, "I don't care if my back does ache, Baby. It just means that you're getting bigger, and it's that much closer to the time when your daddy and I will hold you."
"Talking to yourself this morning, Kace?"
Eyes still closed, she grinned and continued to stroke loving fingers over her stomach. "If you must know, I'm talking to my baby, since my husband deserted me."
Peter set down a fully loaded tray on the bedside table. Sitting on the side of the bed, he leaned over and gave Kacie the morning kiss she was anticipating. Nuzzling her neck, he growled, "Since when is this just your baby?"
Sliding her hands into his hair, she pulled his lips back to meet hers again. "Since you didn't desert me after all, I guess I'll share him with you." Eyes still heavy with sleep, she regarded him groggily. "Where were you? And how come you left me to wake up all alone?"
He kissed the tip of her nose and helped her sit up, propping pillows behind her back. "I," he announced airily, "have been the model husband, preparing breakfast in bed for the mother of my child."
Reaching over, he picked up the tray and set it down with a flourish on Kacie's lap.
"Oh, Honey! This is so sweet!" She stared in delight at the freshly squeezed orange juice, lightly buttered toast, and bowl of hot cereal. A large glass of milk, a cup of tea, and a single rose in a bud vase topped off the display. "When did you get so domestic?"
"I have my moments."
Kacie's delighted smile faded and was replaced by a dubious frown. "Peter, I can't eat all of this."
"You'll eat a little of everything, drink all your juice and milk, and finish off the tea Pop's made for you," Peter ordered.
"Bossy, aren't you?" She looked at him over the glass of juice she was sipping, eyes twinkling.
"Damn straight. Now start eating."
"Only if you help me."
Peter treated himself to a slice of toast and munched contentedly as he watched his wife do the same.
Kacie brushed at herself and exclaimed, "Look at this! I'm getting crumbs all over the place."
He leered at her suggestively. "Honey, you can leave crumbs in my bed any time you want."
She choked on her milk and giggled helplessly, a white mustache on her upper lip. "Are you trying to seduce me?"
He leaned forward and licked away the milk before kissing her. "Could be. Is it working?"
"No." She shook her head, looking wide-eyed and innocent.
"What? I went to all this work, and I'm going to get nothing for my trouble?" He tried to look deeply offended.
"Silly. You're the one who's making me eat all this. I'll have heartburn all day long if I don't let things digest awhile before I do anyth…" She stopped abruptly and held her breath, staring at her stomach.
Peter was instantly alarmed. "Kacie? Honey? What is it?"
"I don't know. All of a sudden I feel funny."
"What do you mean, 'funny'?" He looked horrified, then ill himself. "My God, I've made you sick?"
Kacie shook her head. "No, I don't feel sick. I just feel…" Her eyes widened and she stared at him, tears welling. "I feel the baby! Peter! I feel the baby!"
He quickly set aside the tray and slipped into bed next to her, one arm going around her shoulders and the other hand resting on her abdomen. "Really? You sure?"
Kacie's eyes were round with wonder as she stared at her belly. "I've never felt anything like this before."
"What's it like? It doesn't hurt you, does it?" Peter asked anxiously.
"No, it doesn't hurt. It feels like…like…" Kacie frowned and searched for words. "Like when you catch a moth in your hands, and you feel the wings beating against your palms. Kinda…kinda…fluttery."
"Like you've got butterflies?"
"Yeah, kinda like that, only…different." She placed her hand on top of Peter's and patted it. "You're really in there, aren't you, Baby?"
Peter's face held a forlorn expression. "How come I feel so left out?"
"Oh, Honey, I'm sorry. This is just so new and exciting for me. I mean, I've had classes and done an OB rotation in nursing school and everything. But this? This is real. This is my body that's changing, not just some patient or somebody you watch in a video. Me. I feel life in me!" She paused and peered intently into his eyes. "And all this is happening because of you, Peter. Because of your love. How can you possibly feel left out when I love you so much?" With those words, she curled her hand around his neck and kissed him warmly, gratefully, lovingly.
Looking only slightly mollified, Peter grumbled, "Just wish I could feel it."
"A couple more weeks and you will, Sweetheart, I promise." Kacie curled up around him and sighed in contentment. "This is just the bestest morning ever!"
Peter laughed at her abuse of the English language. "Bestest?"
"Um hmm. You made me the bestest breakfast ever, and you are the bestest husband ever, and you're gonna be the bestest daddy ever, too."
Snuggling her close to his heart, he murmured happily, "If I'd-a known being married was like this, I'd have done it years ago."
"Well, I'm glad you didn't."
Shocked by her comment, Peter jerked away and stared at her askance. "What do you mean by that?"
Smiling up at him, she tenderly caressed his jaw. "Because, you big goof, if you'd have gotten married years ago, it wouldn't have been to me. And I like it that you're married to me. I like it a lot."
"Oh, yeah? How much do you like it?" His lips started roaming over her cheek, her brow, and her neck.
"Enough to say that if we don't get going right now, we're both gonna be late to work today, and do we really want to come up with an explanation as to why?" Even so, she lolled her head back to welcome the gifts his lips were giving, and ran fingers through his hair and over the muscles of his neck and shoulders.
"How late we gonna be?" As Kacie responded to his advances, the last thing on Peter's mind was any work waiting for him at the precinct. Their clothing melted away as they sought unrestricted access to one another.
"Mmm. Who cares?" Small, pleading noises issued from her throat. "Mmm. You have always had such incredible…timing."
Their bodies molding together, Peter crushed his lips to Kacie's. "I love you!"
"I…love you more," came the breathless reply, as she nipped and licked at his throat. "Oh-h yes-s-s."
"That means…ah-h, God!" Peter gasped through gritted teeth. "I…win-n-n!" Their celebration of love exploded in an ecstasy of sensation, a glorious meeting of body and soul eclipsing any thoughts of the tedium of a workday. The regular world ceased to exist, and all that mattered was being together.