Erin looked at her calendar, marveling at the fact that it had been six months since she and Derek had moved from being something more than friends to being in an exclusive relationship. He had said that he was taking her out someplace nice that evening, and she smiled as she wondered what he had planned.
Turning back to her computer, she began to tap away at the keyboard, putting down into words what it had been like to almost die at the hands of a former colleague. David's publisher had pushed him into asking her to write this damned book, and she was regretting every moment of it. Of course, she also wasn't sugarcoating anything that had occurred, since that wasn't her style, so that made it all the harder to write.
Unable to concentrate, she stood and made her way over to the window, looking out at her backyard. There was something lovely about the sight that she took in that morning, and she smiled before clutching at her stomach. This was the fifth morning in a row that she felt queasy, and she was starting to wonder if she had come down with something.
Erin listened to her phone ring, and she moved back to her desk, picking it up to see Derek's face smiling up at her. "Hi, honey," she said a bit breathlessly, her stomach roiling at the sudden movement.
"Hey, yourself, Erin. How are you feeling today?" She smiled at the tender concern that tinged his voice, and rubbed her stomach a little in hopes of soothing herself. Frowning a little, she lifted her top to stare down at the gentle rise that was there. "Erin? Is everything okay?"
"I think that it will be," she murmured in response, her smile widening as she touched her bare stomach. "Um, what time are you picking me up again?"
"Not until a little after five, why? Are you getting cold feet on me?"
She looked over at the clock on her mantle and shook her head. "No, I just needed to know how much time I had to play with. I'll be waiting for you, Derek. I love you."
"I love you, too, Erin. See you in a few."
They hung up, and she scurried over to the bathroom, excitement keeping the nausea at bay for once. Yanking up her top, she stood sideways to the full length mirror and looked at her reflection. Slight though it was, there was definitely a baby bump there. And that should not be, since she was fifty, and had thought she was on her way to peri-menopause. "I guess I have to head out to the drugstore," she said lowly as she smoothed her shirt back into place.
Exiting the bathroom, she jammed her phone into the pocket of her jeans and made her way to the kitchen, picking up her purse before going to the garage and getting behind the wheel of her car. She took a few deep breaths before starting it up and backing out into the street. Thoughts of a baby, with Derek, filled her mind as she drove, and the sudden yearning to share this experience with him filled every fiber of her being.
It didn't take long to get to the drugstore, and she picked up a basket, needing something to fill her hands. Erin didn't want to make a beeline for the pregnancy tests, and so she wandered around the store, picking up a few odds and ends that caught her eye before heading over to the right aisle. Since it was just confirming something that she was already more than certain of, she blindly reached for the first one her hands could touch, placing it in the basket before making her way up front.
There was a short line and Erin found herself tapping her foot nervously as she waited and waited. Once she was at the counter, she set the basket down, and watched the young woman begin to ring everything up. "Oh, is this for your daughter?" she asked cheerily, and Erin fixed her with one of her patented looks.
"No," she replied shortly, enjoying the way the girl blanched as she nodded. "It's just to confirm something that I'm almost certain of right now."
The girl's scared face was washed away by a look of pure joy, and Erin was a bit taken aback by the transformation. "Oh, congratulations, then! Will it be your first? Or is this an oops baby? Because I'm an oops baby, through and through, I wasn't born until my mom had turned forty five. But she loved being able to take her time with me!"
Erin held up her hand to stop the girl's babbling and gave her a bemused smile. "Yes, this is an oops baby. How much do I owe you?"
A soft blush stained the young woman's cheeks as she looked at her computer screen. "Oh, that will be fifty eight oh nine, please."
Erin pulled out her credit card and swiped it, waiting to sign her receipt. Once that was done, she took the bag from the clerk's hand before making her way back to her car. She couldn't stop her eyes from darting to the bag every few seconds as she drove, a part of her feeling so anxious to confirm what she knew to be true.
Everything looked the same about her house as she pulled into the garage, and yet she felt as if everything had changed. Picking up the bag, she fairly floated into her house and over to the bathroom. As she sat on the toilet, she felt her bladder turn shy and let out a deep sigh. Leaning forward, she turned on the faucet and hoped that the running water would encourage her bladder along.
After she had taken the test, she waited for the results, a pleased gasp erupting from her lips as she saw the answer she had been hoping for. An excited squeal escaped her lips, and she twirled around as she tapped her feet excitedly. Taking a look at her watch, she saw that she still had five hours before seeing Derek.
Knowing that she wouldn't get any more work done that afternoon, she drifted out to the kitchen and fixed herself a sandwich before heading upstairs and picking up her book, Chasing God, off her nightstand. Somehow, she knew that a cool bubble bath would be just the thing to relax her and the book would keep her engaged with the present.
The bath passed by quickly, and she made it through a hundred more pages before she got out to get ready for their date. She knew that they would be heading someplace upscale, so she thumbed through her fancier dresses, finally settling on a navy sheath dress. Once she had paired the outfit with jewelry and hose, she pulled on fresh undergarments before doing her makeup, keeping it understated, the way that Derek liked.
Erin was just finishing zipping up her dress when she heard him knock on her front door. A wide grin spread across her lips as she patted her hair one last time before running down the stairs and throwing open her door to him. "Derek!" she said, hoping that the excitement in her voice wouldn't give her away quite yet.
"Well, hello, Blondie," he said as she wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug.
"I'm just so glad you're here." She pulled back a little and kissed him soundly. "So, where are we heading to tonight?"
"That French place you love so much," he replied as he helped her into her jacket.
"Oh, but you don't like that place," she said as they went out to his car.
"I don't like that place because I don't like placing you in front of all that temptation. It's not fair for me to put you in a position where you feel out of place. I love you too much for that."
A tender sigh escaped her lips as she fought to keep from crying. "What did I ever do to deserve you, Derek?" she murmured as she began to worry the scar on her wrist. "You're too good for me."
"No, I'll never be good enough," he replied before kissing her sweetly. "Now, we have to get moving, our reservations are for half past six."
Erin nodded before slipping into the passenger seat. The entire drive, it took everything in her to keep from touching her stomach, from drawing attention to the surprise that she wanted to save for dessert. After all, it would make the sweet that much sweeter. "So, how did your day go?"
"All right. Hotch was on my case all day about having to miss out on the case that the red cell team went on. He said that it was supposed to be ours, but since I wanted to be home, we had to teach some classes. I don't mind being in front of the kids, you know."
"I do. I, unfortunately, did not get any words written on my manuscript today. I just found myself so distracted that nothing would come."
"I've had those days. And it sounds like Rossi is stuck in writer's block hell, too. The most I got was a grumpy grunt when I said hi to him this morning."
Erin laughed a little, remembering those times she had also tangled with him while he was writing. "Yes, he does get cranky when the words won't come. I hope that I'm not that bad."
"Oh, no, you're easy enough to distract. All it takes is a few deep kisses and you're smiling once more. That's one of the things that I love about you."
She bit her lip as she smiled down at her lap. "I do love you, too, Derek. So very much."
He reached over and grasped her hand tightly for a moment before returning to the wheel, and they spent the rest of the drive in a companionable silence. "So, I don't want to shock you, but I do have something planned for tonight."
Suddenly, Erin was nervous, and she nodded before accepting the valet's hand out of the car. In moments, Derek was at her side, and somehow they managed to get inside the building and ushered to the back before she knew what was happening. "You might not be the only one, Derek," she murmured as she let him push her chair in.
The candles on the table lent such a romantic glow to the occasion, and she found herself smiling across the table at him. Next to his arm, there was a bucket of ice chilling a bottle of champagne, and she could see from the label that it was nonalcoholic. He had thought of everything, it seemed, and she sighed as she rested her chin on her hand. "Hold that look."
Glancing up, she saw that Derek had his phone out, and she tried to keep from blushing as she smiled for him. "Let me guess, that's going to be your wallpaper?" He nodded and she picked up her glass of water, sipping from it as she tried to keep control of her emotions.
"Good evening, we're pleased to have you dining with us tonight. Monsieur Morgan has already called ahead and picked out your meals for the evening, to ensure that we would have your favorite dish available, Madame."
She smiled up at their waiter as he set down salads in front of them. "This looks delicious, Derek," she said as she picked up her fork and dug in, finding herself famished. Throughout the meal, they talked about their days and Erin found herself itching to tell him even before they had ended the first course.
Somehow, she managed to make it to dessert, and then their waiter was setting a piece of chocolate cake down in front of her. Derek's hand was all over that, since she knew it was not a part of the everyday menu at this restaurant, and she looked up at him to thank him, only to see him holding out a small velvet box. "Erin, in this box is my grandmother's ring. Momma wanted me to make certain that I found a woman worthy of wearing it before she would give it to me, and I told her that I had found my equal in you. Please, do me the honor of being my wife, my other half, my moon and sun."
"Yes," she whispered, feeling tears course down her cheeks as she nodded. "Yes." As she held out her left hand, she heard their waiter open the bottle of champagne and pour their glasses. "And I have some news for you, too, honey."
He cocked his head to one side, never letting go of her hand. "Good news, I hope."
"Yes. We're going to parents, Derek. I took a pregnancy test today, and it confirmed it. We just have to go to the doctor to see when Baby Morgan will make her appearance."
"Or his," he teased, and she nodded, biting her lip as she looked at the ring that now adorned her finger. "I didn't think that this night could get any better, after you said yes."
"I know. Oh, Derek, how I'm going to love watching your child change my body." They finished their dessert, and Erin felt a deep wave of contentment wash over her body as Derek led her out to his car. While they hadn't talked about what would happen now, she knew that they would be together forever, a thought that filled her with love. And the promise he made for them, with the gift of this ring, would last for all time.