Two Weeks Later

"Hey, Adelaide!!" Ryan chirps as I walk in, having just gotten off tour duty. I smile and wave.

"Good Afternoon, Ryan!"

She chuckles, gesturing to my desk, "That husband of yours came by to replace the flowers. And apparently this bouquet's theme is yellow." I giggle and walk to my chair while admiring the floral arrangement.

"It certainly brightens the room." I hum, plucking the card off the bouquet.

Love, Sherlock. X

I smile a little brighter and shoot him a text to thank him. Then I put the card with my collection of others and sign in to the computer, "Anyone interesting come in while I was leading that tour?"

"Besides Sherlock? Um..." Ryan quickly sifts through a small stack of files, "Oh yeah! Doctor Kanar stepped in. Remember that big conference in New York City that she's been part of putting together?"

"The Vulnerable and Endangered Species one? Yeah! It's the end of this month right?"

"Mmhm! And apparently one of the speakers has called out so she came in to ask for someone from our department to take their place, if we're willing to do presentations and panel discussions of course."

"Ryan, you should definitely go! Your research the past two years would be awesome!" I encourage. She shrugs, smiling sheepishly.

"Yeah, but I've got that spring cruise with my fiancé and his family that week. Can't."

"Oh. Well, maybe Joey will want to go. His project would be great too."

Please don't say it. Don't do it. I silently plead, but of course she doesn't hear it.

"Come on, Adelaide! This would totally your thing! You love these conventions!"

"Ryan, I-"

"And you know Doctor Kanar loves you and your work! You two would own that conference! Why shouldn't you go?"

I sigh, "I'm pregnant, for one, and my husband would freak- will freak- if I bring it up. He would be blowing up my phone all week if he even let me go."

"Why?" I give her a look, "Oh, right.. well, couldn't you at least talk to him about it? It'll be a little more difficult to go on these trips once the baby's here. You're not even that far along. Like nineteen weeks?"

"Twenty Weeks."

"Then there isn't really a reason you can't go, right? As long as you're both healthy then you should go ahead and tell Doctor Kanar you're willing."

"And have a breakdown during a speech or a panel?"

"You can't say you don't want to go."

"I do, I do!"

"Then at least tell Sherlock and discuss it with him?" She gives me her best begging puppy impression and I sigh, caving to both her and myself.

This will be a fun dinner conversation.

~ That Evening ~

I set the bowl of steamed veggies down on the table as Sherlock walks in, whisking off his scarf and coat and hanging them up, "Hullo, Angel!"

"Welcome home, Darling!" I reply and he strides over for a hug and a kiss.

"Still no movements today, Love?" He asks, gently stroking the continuously growing baby bump. I shake my head and he sighs, "I still think we should go in and get everything checked out."

"We'll talk more over dinner, okay? Now go wash up, you smell like crime scenes."

"Aye, Aye, Cap'n," He jokes, planting another kiss on my cheek before heading to the bathroom. I make sure Teddy has been fed and watered and then sit down, pouring two glasses of ice water as Sherlock returns. He pushes my chair in the rest of the way and then sits down opposite me. After we've filled our plates with veggies and fajita chicken, and a plethora of toppings, the dinner conversation starts; "Busy day at the Museum again?"

"Yep. More tours for students, supervising a couple new interns, plus the usual paperwork. You?"

"Two cases. Neither were that remarkable, even John said so. The most stimulating thing I did today was to bring you a fresh vase full of flowers."

"Yes, thank you for that, Sherlock. They're lovely as always."

He gives me a sweet smile, "No problem, Angel."

I wait until he's visibly relaxed and content before clearing my throat, "Actually, Sherlock, something did come up at work today."

"Which would be?"

"I've been asked to attend an Endangered Species Conference in New York City to give a few presentations and participate in panel discussions by Doctor Kanar. It's a week long and is next month."

He lifts his eyes and holds my gaze, "New York City?"

"Yes. Doctor Kanar has been helping to organize it. She really wants me to come along and I really want to go."

He exhales and pinches the bridge of his nose, "Lovey,.."

"Sweetie..," I counter gently although firmly, "It'll only be for a week and I'm sure that the baby and I will be fine."

"But what if something happens over there?"

"The worst that could happen is that my research will be eviscerated by the scientific community. Truly, Sherlock, I think it'll be fine. And I might not have another opportunity for a while after the baby comes."

I can tell that he's less than comfortable with the idea; letting his pregnant wife fly across the pond for a week to attend a convention with hundreds of other scientists in one of the largest cities on the planet. But I really want to go.

Nope. This girl's not giving in easily to his pitiful eyes this time.

The next morning I catch Doctor Kanar in the hallway at work and let her know that I will be accompanying her to the conference in April.

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