Adrienne stifled a yawn as she dug around in her purse for her keys. Eliza had given her a spare before she and Alexander left for a weekend getaway upstate, leaving Adrienne and Lafayette to stay at their home and watch their two children, Philip and Angelica. She finally found the spare house key and opened the door, finding herself met with warmth, laughter, and the smell of chocolate chip cookies.
Adrienne had been a bit worried at first about leaving Gilbert to tend to the children while she ran some errands, but from the sight in the kitchen, everything was going smoothly.
There was bit of flour here and there, on the floor and the counter and the children's clothes. Even a spattering on Gilbert's cheek, which Adrienne found very amusing. The three were in the process of cleaning up the mess when Adrienne walked in.
"Aunty Adrienne!" Angie squealed, running into Adrienne's arms.
Philip also left Lafayette's side in favor of hugging Adrienne, who smiled widely and kissed them both on the forehead.
The three of them chatted and Adrienne pitched in to help clean up the kitchen. Within half an hour it was spotless, and soon the two lovers were putting the children to bed.
"Sweet dreams, little ones." Adrienne whispered as she gave them each one more kiss before bed. Gilbert turned off the light, and slowly closed the door, before leading Adrienne back into the kitchen.
"You'd be a great dad, Gilbert." she whispered as they made their way as quietly as possible down the hall. Gilbert chuckled softly and kissed Adrienne, but did not not respond.
"The children were kind enough to leave you some cookies." he said, grabbing a plate from the fridge and handing it to his wife.
"Thank you, mon amour." she replied, pecking him on the lips and she took the plate. As she leaned against the counter munching on one of the cookies, she watched her husband make his way over to a cabinet and pull out two wine glasses. She quickly spoke up, " None for me tonight, chéri."
"Never in my life have you turned down a glass of wine with me at the end of the day." Gilbert said in confusion and amusement, placing the second glass back in the cabinet.
Adrienne's silence following the exchange worried Lafayette, and he turned around to see his wife biting her lip, anxiety clear in her deep brown eyes.
"Is something wrong, ma cher?" he asked, walking over to his wife, wine glass completely forgotten.
She shook her head. "Of course not. I've just…." she takes a deep breath and smiles despite her nervousness, " I've heard alcohol is bad for children."
Lafayette's expression went from worried to confused to amused in seconds, laughter escaping him.
"We aren't giving any to Alexander's children, Adrienne. What has gotten into you, mon amour?"
Adrienne sets down the plate and takes Gilbert's hand. "I wasn't talking about his children." she says, moving Gilbert's hand to rest on her stomach. His eyes go wide, and his vision blurs with tears.
"D-do you mean….you…." he looks up from where his hand is resting to meet his wife's gaze. "Adrienne…..are you…."
She smiles and nods. "Six weeks," she says, her voice coming out as a whisper as she tries to keep from crying herself.
Gilbert wraps his arms around her and holds her close, planting kisses all over her face. Tears slip down both their cheeks and they laugh and cry softly in between sweet nothings.
Gilbert would be a great dad. Because he would do anything and everything for Adrienne and their child. And she knew that. And she loved him for it.
"Je t'aime," she whispered, before kissing her husband softly.
Gilbert wiped the tears from his wife's cheeks and looked at her adoringly. "Je t'aime."