Maddie

In the aftermath of the fight, I'm wrapped up with Cameron naked as ever.

Am I surprised we wound up in bed before discussing our troubles? Not at all. In typical us fashion, lust came before rationality.

Glancing over at the alarm clock on the nightstand, it's five-thirty in the morning. I'm on hospital time now, which means I'm more often than not always up before the sun comes rises, but something else is waking me up, and it isn't the lack of sun or the muscular, toned man at my back.

It's...

Oh, fuck.

Wiggling out of Cameron's grasp as silently as I can, I hardly get out before darting to the bathroom. My knees hit the cool tile, and in seconds I'm throwing up the contents of my stomach into the porcelain bowl.

There's no way.

There's no fucking way.

Well, I mean, there is a way considering we haven't been using protection, but now? Of all times? Right when we're in the middle of one of the biggest fights we've ever had?

Flushing the toilet, I continue to sit on my knees in case round two occurs. The nausea is so strong. This could be food poisoning, or maybe I caught a stomach bug. That's highly unlikely considering I don't have a fever or any of the other symptoms accompanied by viruses.

I've been studying medicine for years, so I'm not an idiot. It's the reason I thought I'd puke when I saw the images surface of Cameron and Katie. It's the reason I could hardly keep my eyes open last night. I know why I'm throwing up, I just wish it had come at a better time. When this happened, I wanted to surprise Cameron with an elaborate gift to make up for how the pregnancy announcement happened with Izzy. We're married now, and that means another pregnancy should be a cause for celebration. What if because of everything going on with Katie, he isn't excited? What if he's upset we're bringing another baby into the midst of all of this?

"Mads?"

I jump out of my skin, a hand flying to my chest when Cameron comes into view. His brows are furrowed together as he groggily wipes at his eyes, attempting to wake up. He leans against the wall with his arms crossed over his bare chest, a pair of briefs settled low on his hips.

"You're sick?" He asks.

Swallowing the lump in my throat, I inhale deeply and attempt to calm all of the anxiety flooding my veins. This isn't like last time, and yet it feels like last time. Yet again, Katie is the reason I'm holding back on telling him, but didn't I promise myself I wouldn't let her come between us again? I'm done letting her attempt to ruin us. I'm not going to lie and fake my way around this. If Cameron reacts badly then so be it, but at least I won't have any regrets like last time.

Lifting my gaze to his, I shake my head. "I'm not sick. I mean...I am in a way, but it's not because I'm sick. At least I don't think so."

"Then why..." He glances at the toilet bowl before focusing back on me, realization dawning. "You're... You're pregnant?"

Fuck. I'm more nervous than I thought.

"Um, possibly? I don't know for certain since I haven't taken a test, but I'm late, and we haven't been using protection, so..." Averting my gaze, I blink away tears threatening to escape. "If you're upset then I'll understand. I mean, it isn't the best time to—"

"Upset?" He sinks to the tile beside me, lifting my chin until I'm staring into his eyes again. "Upset? Maddie... You're pregnant. We're having another baby! Are you kidding me? How could I..." He laughs in disbelief, running a hand through his disheveled curls. "How could I be upset? I'm fucking ecstatic."

"Really?" I sniffle through the tears, smiling widely when he wipes beneath my eyes and nods. "Okay, good. Because I'm really happy too. I mean, if I'm pregnant. I still need to take a test."

"I'll have my assistant grab a test," he says. "I would go get one myself, but with the paparazzi outside..."

"Yeah. I get it. You're really happy though?"

"Baby." He cups my cheek, strumming his thumb to catch my tears. "My only dream has been to live forever with you. Only you. I want a house filled with kids and laughter and love and memories that will last us a lifetime, and with you being pregnant, you're only fueling that dream. Understand?"

Damn him and his way with words.

"I love you," I whisper.

"I love you too." He kisses my forehead, then makes my heart skip a beat when he rubs a small circle on my stomach. It's such a small interaction, but it carries the weight of a thousand words.

He starts to rise from the floor to grab his phone I assume, but before he can I put a hand out to stop him. "Can you... Can you hold my hair back first? Because I think I'm going to—" I heave into the bowl once more, groaning in misery at the gnawing sensation in my stomach.

Cameron does as instructed, holding back the pieces of my hair that had fallen out of my bun during sleep with one hand, his free one running up and down my back.

"Thank you," I grumble, resting my head on the side of the seat.

"You don't have to thank me." Clearing his throat, he adds, "I've been waiting to do this for a long time, Mads, and this time? I'm not going to miss a second of it."

***

"Well?"

I close the bathroom door behind me with the test clenched in a fist behind my back as Cameron stares at me expectantly, brows raised. There's no containing my excitement when I run straight into his arms, allowing him to hoist me up so my legs are wrapped around his waist. I wave the test back and forth with shaking hands.

"We're having a baby!" I shriek.

Cameron throws his head back in laughter, spinning me around in a circle before we fall onto the bed together and he attacks me with kisses. I'm smiling so hard I think my face will break, and just seeing the brightness in Cameron's eyes, I know this is a moment I'll never forget. I'll cherish this forever.

"God, I can't believe it!" He says. "Where do we go from here? The doctors? You need an ultrasound, right?"

"I'll make an appointment, but yeah. That'd be the next step."

He scoffs. "We're not making an appointment. I'll find a doctor who makes house calls. I can have them here tomorrow."

"You're already going into protective mode?"

Leaning over the bed, Cameron grabs the monitor to check on Izzy, who is still sound asleep. It's only seven, and she normally sleeps in until eight. "Of course, I'm going to be protective. I want to make sure everything goes smoothly for you during this pregnancy. I don't want you worrying about a damn thing, you hear me? Not this time around."

I swallow down the emotions building like Jenga inside of me, refusing to let him witness how much guilt I carry for hiding my pregnancy with Izzy from him the first time. He missed out on all of these moments the first time around, and I know it bothers him more than he'll ever let on. That's why I'm going to let him be the overbearing, protective dad. I'll let him dote on me hand and foot so he can get the full experience.

"Fine," I relent as my eyes stray to the bay window behind us. "We're heading back home today, right? I have work tomorrow, and Nina is going to start getting suspicious if we aren't back soon. I don't want her going to the media and spreading more false information than is already out there."

Cameron leans down to kiss my forehead before he rises from the bed, searching the ground for his sweatpants. "All things that can be discussed after breakfast."

"Cam!" I huff. "We still haven't talked about what we're going to do with Katie and what this means with the media now that those photos got leaked. What are we going to tell the reporters when they hound us? What are we—"

His hands land on the bed to bracket either side of me, silencing me with a kiss. "All things for me to worry about from now on. Not you. Right now, the only thing you need to be concerned about is getting something in your stomach to settle the nausea. What can I get you? Crackers? Water?" I open my mouth to protest, but he sticks a finger up to shush me. "Don't fight me on this."

Cameron is very persistent when he wants to be, so I know he'll win regardless. "Fine. Crackers and water. Then we will be discussing this."

He laughs harder than he should when he tugs on his sweatpants. "Uh-huh."