Red was her color. He swore she stole the breath straight from his lungs every time she answered the door dressed in a red blouse or red skirt or red dress. This time was no exception in an adorable blouse and pencil skirt that was enhanced by a thick belt showing off her thin waist. There had to be at least three different reds in that little number plus the red ribbons falling from her half-updo.

"You are going to kill me," he said, his voice a bit breathy.

She snorted. "Flatterer."

"I'm dead serious," he swore. "You look absolutely adorable, and I all I want to do tonight is show you off. Because there have to be very few men in the world who get to parade around with a woman as stunning you."

Her cheeks turned yet another shade of red. But his were burning, too, so she wasn't alone. "I'm serious," he repeated.

She bit her red lip-honestly, how many shades of red could this woman be wearing yet still look completely put together-and looked up at him with brilliantly blue eyes shadowed by a thick curtain of long lashes. "Thank you," she whispered. "That's very sweet."

He held his hand out for her to take, then led her down the stairs to his car.

"Where are we going tonight?" She asked. "You never told me."

"A place I don't go often, yet very much enjoy."

She quirked a brow at him. "That doesn't narrow it down."

"Well, maybe I want it to be a surprise."

Her smile grew and her eyes sparkled with playfulness. "All right."

He started the car and braced for her new favorite habit: resting her hand on his knee. Tonight was no exception. Her hand found his knee within moments of him pulling out of the parking space.

When he got to a stoplight, he plucked her hand from his leg, holding in gently in his own. "You love distracting me, don't you?"

She cocked her head in feigned innocence. "I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about."

He smirked and shook his head at her. Her smile widened. He pressed a lingering kiss to her knuckles before placing her hand back in her own lap.

She hit him with a flirty smirk that would have knocked him off his feet had he been standing, and then she tapped his nose in a way that completely stopped his heart. "Green light."

For what? He then turned to look at the light, only to see it shining bright green to go. He put his foot to the gas all while his cheeks were burning.

Her hand found his knee again and squeezed. He sighed. She chuckled.

No matter how much she tormented him, he loved that woman.

He parked the car in the street, then walked hand in hand with Marinette to the restaurant he had planned taking her to.

She gasped. "There's, like, a month-long waitlist for this place."

"I know," he said. "I've had this planned for at least that long."

Her blue eyes were wide as she stared at him.

He smiled, pulling her hand up to his lips. "Only the best for my lady." He pressed a kiss to the back of her hand.

She then gave him the softest look he could imagine. "Thank you. It's... wow."

"That's what I say every time I see you."

He could tell a blush was crawling across her cheeks, and he took pride knowing that he was the one to do that to her.

Dinner was delicious. They decided to share their two entrees between them, as was slowly becoming their custom. He decided her entrée was the better dish, but she liked his choice better.

"We're a pair, aren't we?" he joked.

But her smile was sweet. She reached across the table to place a hand over his. "Yeah. I like us."

He grinned so wide his cheeks hurt.

He reluctantly took her home. He never liked parting with her, and he hoped that sometime in the near future, he wouldn't have to.

They got to the door, and Marinette herself looked like she didn't even want to touch it.

"Marinette," he said quietly, drawing her attention.

She leaned closer. "Hmm?"

"You should know," he said, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close, "that I love you."

The words clearly caught her off guard, but he felt those words were long overdue.

Slowly, her surprise morphed to something softer, sweeter, happier. "I love you, too," she whispered.

His grin was wide and so happy. He was so happy. He wasted no time laying a kiss on her lips.

She was quick to join him, reaching up to wrap her arms over his neck and grab his hair to pull him closer, closer, closer until she was practically flush against him and their lips were firmly locked.

Four, five, six kisses later, Adrien pulled away to press his forehead to hers. "I love you," he repeated.

"I love you, too."

He squeezed her tightly, a smile splitting his face in two. "I don't want to let you go. Ever."

"I know," she agreed. "I don't either."

He gave her one last squeeze, then placed a firm kiss to her forehead before forcing himself to let her go.

She pouted as he backed away, yet she still pulled her keys from her purse to unlock the door. "Goodnight," she said.

"Goodnight."

"Text me."

"I promise."

She smiled, then walked inside, officially ending their time together.

Until tomorrow.

"What's wrong?"

Marinette jumped from her skin. She whipped around to see Adrien directly behind her.

"You practically slammed that oven door," he commented. "And have been storming around the kitchen since I got home. What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she dismissed.

He scoffed. "Yeah, I believe that."

"Really," she countered. "Nothing. Just... nothing."

Adrien boxed her in against the counter. "Marinette," he said. "Please don't lie to me."

She shrugged. "Nothing you need to concern yourself with."

"If it's bothering you, of course I need to concern myself with it."

The sincerity in his voice surprised her.

"What's wrong?"

She sighed. She couldn't counter him. "I'm just worried about crossing paths with Sabrina tonight. That's all."

"You don't have to be here," he said.

No, she didn't. He'd told her many times throughout the week that she didn't have to stay for dinner. That she could just take a portion of dinner for the night and be on her way before Sabrina came. Yet, it didn't feel right to leave. "I'm staying," she quietly said.

"Okay," he said. "I would like if you did."

"You always like when I do."

"I do."

How his forehead found way to hers, she didn't know, nor did she know how her hands found themselves on his shoulders. Probably the same way his hands found their way to her hips.

"I should finish dinner," she whispered.

"Okay," he said. He leaned forward to place a peck on her lips. "Thank you, Marinette. I very much appreciate that you made dinner tonight and that I'm very proud of you for staying."

She smiled.

He pulled away to let her finish dinner. She was far more relaxed, happily making her way around the kitchen to finish preparing dinner while simultaneously cleaning up, but a knock on the door sent Marinette on edge again.

No matter how hard she tried, she really didn't feel prepared to see Sabrina again.

And when she turned around to greet her, she knew she wasn't prepared, but it was too late to back out.

"Hi," Sabrina said, her tone betraying just how uncomfortable she was, as well.

"Hi," Marinette said, giving an awkward wave.

"I haven't seen you since we graduated. How've you been? I mean, besides um..." she quickly grew abashed. "I heard of that... I'm sorry."

"Thank you," Marinette said. "I'm becoming okay again. You?"

"Good," Sabrina said. "I've been good."

And that's about as far as they got.

Thankfully, Emma came scampering down the stairs. "Marinette, look-" She instantly froze in place upon seeing Sabrina.

"Emma," Adrien said, kneeling down next to her. "This is Miss Sabrina. She knew you when you were really little."

"Hi Emma," Sabrina said, bending over. "It's very nice to see you. You've grown up so much."

Emma just waved, then scampered over to Marinette and hid in her skirt.

Marinette's heart swelled. She placed a comforting hand on Emma's head.

Dinner itself was a little awkward. Emma stayed close to Marinette while Adrien and Sabrina tried to keep conversation going. Marinette did her best to be mature and add to the conversation, but it wasn't easy. Emma herself was very quiet, only speaking when spoken to. It was clear she was uncomfortable. She didn't open up like she had when talking to Marinette's parents for the first time, but at least, she was polite.

After dinner, Emma quickly retreated to her room.

"I'm going to check up on her," Adrien said. "I'll be right back."

Leaving Sabrina and Marinette alone.

"I'm sorry."

Sabrina's words caught Marinette off guard. "Pardon."

"Chloe and I were so horrible for you for no reason," she said. "And I'm so sorry for being so mean to you."

Marinette blinked, absorbing her words. "Thank you," she said.

Sabrina gave her a small smile and nodded. "It's long overdue."

"I forgive you," she said. "Nathaniel forgave you and Chloe a while ago. Without him, I don't think I would have let it go as quickly as I did."

"Thanks," Sabrina said.

A small silence slipped between them, but it wasn't as tense before.

"I'm glad you're here for them," Sabrina started. "For Adrien and Emma."

"I'm happy to be here for them, too," Marinette said.

"Adrien says you two are dating."

Marinette paused, but she couldn't disagree. "Yeah. We are."

"He seems really happy about it."

"I am, too," Marinette said. "It's... hard learning how to do this again, you know?"

"I'm sure," she said.

"But it's... it's good."

"Good," Sabrina said. "Emma seems to really like you, too."

Marinette's heart warmed. "Yeah," she said, almost dream-like. "She's so precious. I was so hesitant to take on Chloe's daughter, but... Emma is the best. I love her."

Sabrina's smile grew. "I'm sure Emma's name isn't lost on you."

"It's not," Marinette said.

"Chloe was always jealous of you," Sabrina said. "She always wondered how you could be so happy and wanted whatever you had that made you that way. I'm not saying that's an excuse to why she treated you the way she did, but I'm saying that's why."

Marinette paused upon realizing her words. "What?"

Sabrina nodded. "Yeah. So when she overheard you telling someone one day what you wanted the names of your kids to be, she couldn't help stealing one."

Marinette completely froze as her mind slowly processed her words.

"Sorry," Adrien said, reappearing in the kitchen. "Emma kinda hid herself away in her room."

"That's fine," Sabrina said. "I understand. It was just so nice to see her again. She's so much like Chloe, but I can see you in her, too."

Adrien grinned, but Marinette saw how pained it was. "There are days I see nothing but Chloe in her and it kinda blows my mind."

Sabrina nodded. "I think it's time I took my leave," she said. "Thank you so much for having me over. And thank you for dinner Marinette. It was delicious."

"Thank you," Marinette said. "It was nice to see you. And I'm not just saying that."

Sabrina's eyes brightened. "It was nice getting to see you, too."

Adrien saw Sabrina out the door while Marinette began cleaning up. She had removed all the dishes from the table by the time Adrien returned. "That went very well," he said.

"It did," Marinette agreed. "Surprisingly."

She could feel the smile Adrien was shooting her, and she pointedly avoided eye contact.

"I see what you're doing," he commented.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

She peeked at him out of the corner of her eye, and she saw just how big his smile was.

And that's when he shifted, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind and pressing his face into the side of her head. She giggled.

"I've got the dishes," he said, pulling her away from the sink.

"Adrien," she warned, though her smile was growing.

"Hmm?" he hummed innocently.

"Let me wash my hands at least."

He froze, then released her. He didn't hover far, though, ready to grab her and pull her away again.

"I have to do those at sometime, though."

"They can wait until morning."

She sighed.

And that's when Emma came patting back down into the kitchen. They stole a quick glance at each other before turning down to Emma. "It's almost bedtime," Marinette said, kneeling down before her. "Meaning you are going to need a bath."

"Do you want me or Marinette to help you?" Adrien asked.

Emma looked back and forth between Marinette and Adrien, her smile pressed into the back of Plagg's head. "Marinette."

"Okay," Adrien said with a grin. "Marinette will give you a bath and then we can read a story afterwards."

"Okay." With that, she scampered up the stairs.

Adrien playfully tapped her hip. "Go on. I've got the dishes."

She gave him a smile. "Fine. You win."

He gave her a proud, winner's grin that made her laugh.

After the bath, Emma settled on her daddy's lap in the middle of her bed. But that was only after Marinette joined them.

Adrien read one chapter then Marinette read another. After that, the book was closed, much to Emma's disappointment. Still, she crawled under the covers as Adrien placed Plagg and Tikki around her. "Goodnight, Emma," he said, giving her a hug.

"Goodnight, Daddy."

Then it was Marinette's turn to collect her hug.

"Goodnight, Mommy."

Marinette froze again. She struggled to find words. "Why do you think I'm mommy?"

"Because you're just like mama bear in the book," she said. "Daddy's papa bear, and you're mama bear, just like I'm little bear."

Her heart felt like it was being yanked around inside her chest, and her smile was warbly. "I can't be your mommy, Emma," she started.

Emma's excitement immediately disappeared.

"Because," Adrien jumped in. "Mama bear is married to papa bear, but Marinette and I aren't married, so she can't be your mommy."

"Why not?" she whined. "I want a mommy."

Marinette's heart was breaking into little, tiny shards at this point. "I'm sorry, Emma. I'm not your mommy."

With a cry, Emma flopped down on the bed and buried her face into Plagg's head. Adrien shushed her, and Marinette tucked her in.

"Mommy," Emma cried.

If Marinette's heart wasn't shattered beyond repair beforehand, it was now. "Good night, sweetheart."

"Mommy," Emma whined one last time as Marinette forced herself out the door. She shut it, only to hear a new round of tears start up. Adrien was leaning against the wall, his eyes shut and head back. Marinette just stood guilty. Emma didn't understand. She couldn't. Yet Marinette felt like one of the mort horrible people to walk the face of the earth for doing this to her.

"I think," Adrien said, finally turning his head to look at her. "We need to talk."

Marinette simply nodded her agreement. She followed Adrien down to the living room. She took a seat on the couch, him following suit. They need to have a heart-to-heart, only neither knew what to say.

"I didn't want to have to make this decision right now," Adrien finally said, "for your sake. But I know Emma, and she's not going to stop calling you mom so easily. And I... I'm sorry, but I can't let her believe you're mom if..."

"I know," Marinette assured. He didn't need to finish. "She's not even five, yet. She doesn't understand. Nor will she understand if I become her mom figure and then..." She couldn't say it. She couldn't finish that sentence.

But Adrien nodded in understanding. He reached out and grabbed her hand. "So here are my cards on the table," he said, giving her hand a squeeze and looking her straight into the eye. "I'm not dating you just for the sake of dating. I'm absolutely pursuing you with the intent of marrying you."

Somehow, those words sent her heart thundering in her ears. She swallowed hard as her vision grew blurry. Wedding. Marriage. A life with him.

A new last name.

Her chest felt tighter by the moment, and she couldn't tell if it was fear or excitement or some other emotion or some insane mix of all the above. She just didn't know.

"I know what we have is... well, not quite new," he said. "But it is fragile, and I know we are taking it slow because you're still in the healing process, and I fully respect that. But..." Adrien sighed. "I don't know how to approach this."

"I know what you're saying," she said, her voice weak and whispery. "I understand and agree and..." she swallowed. "I know that Emma comes first," she said. "I know that Emma doesn't understand. But I know... I know I either need to be mom or I need to walk out of her life right now. I won't get that girl's hopes up, only to crush them in the end."

They sat in a long silence, the reality of it very heavy. Marinette felt as though the world was on her shoulders because this wasn't only just deciding if she wanted to be a mommy to Emma. This was them deciding where their relationship was going to go. Marinette felt like it was still too early to call it, but sadly, this was the definitive line. And it was all on her shoulders. Adrien had made his intentions perfectly clear. Now, it was her turn.

"You at least have the weekend," Adrien said, his voice quiet. "Think it over."

"I'll try not to keep you waiting," she said.

"I appreciate it."

_________________________

Sleep didn't help. In all honestly, she felt like she'd been hit with a sack of bricks when she woke. The world was on her shoulders, and she'd cried herself dry last night.

She forced herself up and barely made it to her desk.

Where Nathaniel's ring lay.

The sight was nearly enough to make her break into tears again.

She'd spent a good portion of the night awake. Wide awake, her body jacked on adrenaline and anxiety and excitement and who knows what else. One moment, she felt like she could move forward, the next she was reminded that moving forward meant Adrien would be her second husband, which felt like replacing her first husband, and she really hated how cheap it made the term 'husband' sound when Nathaniel had been so much more than something she was just shopping for or trying to replace and-

She reached for a tissue and immediately broke into tears.

She didn't know what to do. There was a little girl who loved her enough to call her mommy and a man who treated her like a queen and she was held back by a man who had adored her but was no longer in her life.

The grief books didn't offer any help to what one was supposed to do in this situation.

She didn't make it downstairs until well into the morning.

"I was wondering when you'd be up," her mother said. "It isn't like you to slee-what's wrong?"

Marinette plopped down at the table, a pitiful smile flashing across her face. Nothing escaped her mother's notice. "Emma called me mommy last night," she whispered weakly.

Her maman paused, then slowly came over to take a seat at the table. "And?"

Marinette bit her lip.

Maman place a hand over her daughter's arm in comfort.

"I can't be her mommy," Marinette began, her voice warbling with tears, "unless I marry her daddy. And... I'm not..."

Before she could burst into tears, Sabine stood to wrap her daughter in a hug. "Oh, sweetheart."

"I just... I don't know," she cried. "I don't know. I don't know. I don't know."

The tears now flowed freely. Sabine didn't let Marinette go until the tears finally began to slow.

Eventually, Marinette calmed enough for Sabine to let go. "I only have the weekend," she said, wiping tears from her eyes with the heels of her hands. "I have to decide because I'm not going to go back if I'm not going to be Emma's mommy because I just can't do that to her."

"Marinette," her mother warned. "It's too late. You are Emma's mommy in her eyes. You leaving is still going to hurt her. It just won't allow her to grow any more attached."

Marinette felt absolutely sick to her stomach. "I... I never thought..."

"You'd become her mommy?"

"Yeah."

Sabine patted her arm. "I knew you'd become close to her," Sabine said. "When you started this job, I knew you'd be a fantastic nanny. But as time went on, I noticed how attached you got to her, and from your stories, I could tell she was getting attached to you, too. And then you finally brought her over for the Christmas party, and I saw the way she interacted with you. She looked up to you like you were her mom already."

"I love her," Marinette admitted. "She's... she's so precious and I love watching her learn and grow and going on adventures together-"

"You love being her mother."

Her words gave Marinette pause, but she couldn't deny them. "Exactly."

Her mother gave her a knowing smile. "Then that's not really what this is about, is it?" her mother pressed. "This is about your relationship with Adrien."

Marinette bit her lip. "He said he wants to marry me," she told her. "And somewhere in my mind, I knew that."

"But Nathaniel," her maman finished.

Marinette nodded.

"Marinette," she began. "You know that you two don't have to get married right away like you and Nathaniel did. For now, you are slowly taking in the fact you are in a relationship, and you're letting that relationship bloom. And that's okay. The question shouldn't be 'are you ready to marry him' but instead 'can you see yourself marrying him'? Can you see a life and a future ahead? That's the question you should ask yourself and answer." With that, Maman stood and pressed a kiss to the top of Marinette's head. "And when you answer that, then you'll know what to do."

Her maman was halfway out of the apartment when Marinette spoke up. "But what if Adrien and I don't work? What if we break up down the line."

Sabine turned to give Marinette a doubtful look. "I seem to remember a young bride on her wedding day who was breathing into a paper bag, terrified that she was too young to be married and wondered if her marriage would last."

Marinette blushed bright red.

"You know what makes me so certain you two aren't going to break up?"

Marinette shook her head.

"The fact that you already are a family." With that, Sabine walked out the door.

Leaving Marinette to think heavily about her words.