I've heard that pregnancy cravings can be a little out there, so I tried not to cringe whenever Danielle ate weird combinations of food. But as I mixed together my wife's latest request—cottage cheese mixed with Hershey's chocolate and pepperoni—I couldn't hold back the cringe this time. 

I loved my wife; but this newest craving was taking the cake on Most Likely to Make Me Gag. 

But who was I to talk? Even as I stood here, stirring this disgusting meal, I couldn't help but smile. 

We were pregnant. 

Our son or daughter was going to be here in roughly four-and-a-half months. Man, I couldn't fucking wait. The guys have been teasing me about being a dad ever since they found out Danielle and I were expecting. Nate would make smartass comments about me needing to take up golf or to start learning lame dad jokes. Ayden wasn't so much of an ass about it, actually. He tried not so subtly to warn me about the sleepless nights and toxic diaper changes that were coming my way. I wasn't too oblivious to those, though. I changed little Nate's diaper more than a dozen times.

I was looking forward to it all—even learning the lame dad jokes. But I drew the line with taking up golf. The sport was just too damn boring. If I had a son, maybe he would be interested in football, soccer, or even baseball. If it was a girl...well, shit. I was most likely going to have to start attending tea parties. Or she could be a tomboy. Maybe my future daughter will want to play sports. 

Honestly, it didn't matter to me if it was a boy or a girl, or what they wanted to pursue. I just wanted him or her to be healthy. 

Ding—ding 

I grabbed my cellphone off the counter. One unread message.

Jackson: Morning turned to shit. You and D will probably be fending for yourselves today. 

Translation: Jackson did something to piss Harper off. He was probably going to spend the day groveling and trying to get out of the doghouse. 

No problem. Gwen? 

Jackson: She said she was doing her own thing today. 

Translation: Gwen was staying in her room today to chat up her newest beau. Greeeeaaat. I promised Danielle and Harper that I would give Gwen's new boyfriend a chance, but it wasn't easy. 

Got it. Good luck, brother. 

He was going to need it. I don't know what he did, but when Harper got pissed off, it was hard to get back in her good graces. It made sense that he was going to need the whole damn day. 

Once I finished making Danielle's so called breakfast, I made her some herbal tea with honey. I set both the plate and the mug on a breakfast tray next to a flower I picked from the garden on the hotel terrace. 

Danielle had been sleeping later than she usually did lately. I assumed it was all apart of her being pregnant. In the beginning, it was the opposite. Danielle would be up for all hours of the night. So I was glad that she was finally getting some rest. 

I padded quietly into the room and set the tray on the small table next to her side of the bed. I just stood there for a second and looked at her. She was laying on her side with her left hand cradling her baby bump. The blankets were kicked to the end of the bed. She'd been getting hot at night lately, even with the AC set to a low temp. 

When I sat next to her on the soft mattress, she mumbled my name before turning on her back. I reached down to brush her hair back, and her eyes fluttered open. 

I smiled warmly at her. "Good morning, baby." 

She returned my smile before covering a yawn with her hand. "Good morning." 

I reached for her tea and handed it to her. "You slept really late today." 

"What time is it?" 

"It's almost noon." 

She paused with the mug of herbal tea at her lips. "Noon? Are you serious?" 

"Afraid so," I nodded. "I didn't want to wake you too early. You needed the rest." 

"Yeah, I guess," she murmured before taking a sip.

She sat up in the bed, running her hand over her face to clear the sleepy cobwebs. She was so fucking adorable when she did that. 

"What about everyone else? Are we late for today's plans?" 

"Looks like Jackson is going to spend most of the day groveling. He and Harper had a thing." 

"A thing?" 

"Yeah," I chuckled. "Not sure what it is, but I'm sure they'll work it out." 

"So it's just the three of us then? You, me, and Gwen?" 

"Nope. Gwen wants some alone time." I reached over for the breakfast tray. "Looks like it's just me and you today, baby." 

The tray fit perfectly on her lap. Her eyes widened when she saw what was in the small blue bowl. 

"I can't believe you did this! I thought you said you would never make this for me. You kept complaining that it grossed you out." 

"Oh, it does," I laughed. "But that's just how much I love you." 

She glanced away bashfully before reaching for the flower. "And this? This is so sweet, Ry." 

She sniffed the flower before eyeing me suspiciously. "Wait a minute, is this you being sweet, or was Jackson not the only one who did something bad?" 

"I didn't do anything wrong. I just wanted to do something nice for you." 

The smile she gave me would have brought me to my knees if I wasn't already sitting down. That was the one thing I loved most about her—that smile. It was like when she smiled, everyone smiled. There were days I would come home from work stressed and exhausted. She would greet me at the door with that smile and all the stress of the day would just disappear.

"How did I get so lucky?" 

I stroked her cheek with my thumb. "If I remember correctly, you showed up at my place with a casserole."

She nibbled her bottom lip. "Yes, I did. That was an interesting night."

"Yes, it was." 

It was more than interesting. In retrospect, it felt like I experienced every single emotion possible that night. 

Sadness, depression, and heartache about Everly's death. Anger for the same reason. Denial that she wasn't going to be a part of my future. 

But then there was the other range of emotions. 

Comfort from when Danielle came to see me. Hope and passion from when I first looked at her differently and we spent the night together. And after we made love for the first time...humor. I actually laughed—really laughed. Before that day, I couldn't even remember the last time I felt real joy. 

Danielle and I had laid in bed for hours afterwards just talking and laughing. 

In retrospect, that was one one of the worst and one of the best days of my life. 

"So what's the plan for today then?" Danielle took a bite of her disgusting breakfast. "I hope you aren't going to make me stay in bed all day." 

A corner of my mouth lifted in a wry smile. "Staying in bed all day with my gorgeous wife doesn't sound like a bad idea," I teased. "But no, I had something else in mind." 

She spread some extra butter on the piece of toast I made her before taking a bite. "Such as?"

I shifted my body, stretching my arm over Danielle's legs to rest it on the bed. 

"Well, I was thinking that you and I could have a date night. You know, maybe see a show at the Roma Opera Omnia. You kept raving about it in Barcelona. Then I'll take you to dinner where you can order the largest pasta they have. Maybe get some gelato after. How does that sound, baby?" 

The light in her eyes told me she was so on board with that plan. Especially the pasta.

"On one condition." She leaned forward and ran her finger down my chest. "After we're done, we come back here and end our date night properly." 

"You mean maternity clothes, Ben & Jerry's, and old re-runs of Desperate Housewives?"

She swatted me on the arm. "You know that's not what I mean, Ryan Hale!"

 I couldn't hold back my laugh. "It's not? I was so sure..."

I sobered before I cupped the back of her neck her lips in a hungry kiss. 

"Oh Dani, spending the night with you after our date is what I'm looking forward to the most." 

***

xoxo

🖤