Adrien sighed and held his head up on the palm of his hand. His fingers drummed aimlessly on his desk. He had spent hours on the phone trying to get Christmas off from a photo shoot. Now that he was 30, it was getting harder and harder to manage his time. Between his job, life, and Chat Noir. He tapped his black pen on his pursed lips.
Hands found their way on his shoulders. "Kitty, you've been working on this all day." Her lips brushed the side of his neck. "Just give it a break."
He swivelled around in his black leather chair and grabbed her by the waist. "I know… but I really want to spend Christmas with my favorite family." His hand glided over her swollen stomach. "How's Louis doing?"
"Kicking up a storm." Marinette gave him a genuine smile.
Adrien gave her a quick kiss and smiled.
"Daddy, daddy, daddy!" A girl with blond hair and blue eyes ran into the room.
Adrien let out a strained sound when she collided into him. Marinette had barely made it out of the way of the overly excited girl.
"Emma, be careful." Adrien hugged her to his chest. "Now," He brushed her blond locks from her face. "What is it, love bug?"
"I wanna play in the snow today and on Christmas! Just like last year, daddy!" Emma's eyes glistened in the light of the room.
"Well…" Adrien sighed and ran a hand through his messy blond hair. His emerald eyes showed his heart and how it sank. How could he say no to such beautiful ocean eyes?
"Maybe, we'll go, Emma. Don't you worry." Marinette's eyes closed and her lips grew into a smile, as she crouched down to her level. "Now, let's go make cookies, hm?"
"YEAH!" Emma ran off in her baby pink dress. Marinette covered her mouth and giggled. If someone would have told her that she would be here with two kids and Adrien… she would have laughed.
Emma turned around and peered over at her dad. "C'mon, daddy!" Her smile lit up his whole world.
"Okay… just give me a moment. I'll be right there." Adrien gave the best smile he could, but it wouldn't fool Marinette.
She sighed, gave him a smile that lit up the sky, and gripped his thigh before walking to take Emma's little hand. "Let's go, love bug. What kind should we make today?"
Adrien's shoulders fell and a hand fell to his eyes, as they walked out of the room. He never wanted to be his father. Never wanted to miss one Christmas, one birthday even. Adrien would never stoop to his father's level. He had swore that the day his father had left him the business. He hadn't even wanted it, but he knew he had to take it. Adrien would rather have taught physics. He hated modeling and he hated owning the Gabriel brand.
He let out a long sigh and ran a hand over his face before picking up the office phone, once again. Adrien dialed a familiar number. One he hadn't used in ages, but he needed her.
"Natalie?" Adrien's voice arched up in question and his body sagged.
"Is daddy okay, mommy?" Emma looked up at her mom with all of the worry in the world.
Marinette was rolling out sugar cookie dough. She peered over at her and put a pointer finger on Emma's nose with a smile, leaving a smudge of flour on her. "He's fine, sweetheart. Just tired."
Emma smiled and let out a giggle. Hugo came in and smiled at them. "I wanna help."
"Join us!" Marinette moved over and let him squeeze in. "How was your day at school?"
"It was okay." Hugo stole a bit of cookie dough.
"Hey, wait till after we're done,kitten." Marinette scolded and smiled at her son.
"What did I miss?" Adrien waltzed into the kitchen in a pair of tight fit denim jeans and a black deep V-neck tee. He gave Marinette a kiss on the cheek.
"Dad...dy…." Emma giggled and stuck her tongue out.
"And you! I owe you a free plane ride, love bug!" Adrien ran up to her and swooped her up above his head and flew her around the room. A trail of flour fell behind her.
Marinette giggled, "You're making flour fall everywhere!"
"Op, guess we should land." Adrien winked at Marinette and her knees melted.
"So… did you figure it out?" Marinette smiled and handed out cookie cutters to the kids.
He walked up behind her and brought his lips to her ear. He smiled, as he watched the kids cutting out different shapes. "Yes, I actually called Natalie. She seems to have resolved it all."
"Haven't heard that name in a while, Chaton." She re-rolled the dough out, so the kids could continue.
"I didn't have much choice, Bugaboo." Adrien stole a piece of cookie dough. He leaned into her. "Mmm… I swear you're getting better and better at baking over the years."
"Now, I know where Hugo gets it." Marinette rolled her eyes and pushed him away by his nose.
"Ow, m'lady has claws." Adrien chuckled.
"Maybe, later I'll show you them, Chaton." Marinette winked and giggled while biting her lower lip.
Adrien's breath caught, his cheeks reddened, "I'll hold you to that, Purrincess." He whispered into her ear with a smirk, his hand sliding along her lower back, before going to help Emma and Hugo with their cookie making.
"Can we play in the snow, daddy?" Emma smiled up at him.
"Yeah, can we?" Hugo jumped into the conversation with shared enthusiasm.
"Alright, alright. After dinner.." Adrien laughed and gave them both a hug. "But now, let's get these beautiful cookies into the oven."
"YAY!" Hugo and Emma jumped with excitement. "Daddy's gonna play in the snow with us!"
Marinette giggled and put the cookies into the oven.
They all sat at the square wooden table for dinner. It was a moment filled with laughter and stories. Adrien helped clean up the dishes.
"Can we go outside now, please?" Hugo begged with big, bright green, eyes.
"Get your coats on. I don't want any of you catching a cold." Marinette smiled and rubbed her hand along her stomach. "You're going to love this family." She whispered to their growing baby boy.
Note: I have more written for this story. I'm just going through it one more time before I post the next part. :) Thanks for reading!
