Author's Note: This takes place in 1995. Dimitri and Erica remarried on New Year's Eve 1994 as they did on the show. Anton is still married to Kendall and living at Wildwind and neither is aware of his parentage. This is an Erica-centered story that will involve Dimitri, Jack, Edmund, Maria, Kendall, Anton, Corvina, Tad and others.
Chapter 1
"Good morning! How are my two favorite people?" Dimitri Marick asked as he let himself into his wife's hospital room.
Erica Kane lifted her head from the pillow where she was reclining and smiled a tired smile. "We're fine. Where did you go? You weren't here when I woke up."
"I know, and I'm sorry," He apologized. "I had to make some business calls, and I wanted to get a present for you both."
He held up a gift bag and made his way to her bed. He leaned in and kissed her quickly on the lips and then bent further to press a gentle kiss on the head of the newborn baby asleep in her arms.
"What did I miss?" He asked as he pulled up a chair beside the hospital bed.
"Sleep. That's about it," She said.
"You or the baby?" He asked.
"The baby."
"You need some rest too darling. You've been through an exhausting ordeal," He reminded her.
"I know. I just…it's hard for me to believe this is really happening."
He laughed. "You'd think almost 30 hours of labor would be enough to convince you that it's real!"
"I don't mean that." She smiled down at the baby. "It just still feels so surreal – having another child."
"It's amazing. Miraculous even. YOU are amazing," He said. He stood up then and leaned in to kiss her again.
He pulled back enough to watch her offer him a nervous smile and then look down again at the baby.
Dimitri was a bit unnerved himself. Sure, she was doing and saying everything he expected a new mother to do and say, but she just seemed… off somehow. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but there was something not quite right with Erica. She seemed incredibly hesitant to let the baby go, even drifting off to sleep during the night with their unnamed daughter in her arms. She seemed to study the baby intently, asking him on more than one occasion, each time with a slight frown on her face who he thought the baby looked like.
It hit Dimitri then - HE had been thrilled with the birth of their daughter, but Erica had spoken repeatedly during the pregnancy about her desire for a son. Of course it made sense that she was feeling overwhelming and dealing with some disappointment.
"Erica? Are you okay? I mean, with the baby being a girl. I know you had your heart set on a little boy," he asked hesitantly.
She looked up at him in surprise. "Oh of course I'm okay with it. Look at her Dimitri – she's beautiful! She's just absolutely perfect. I mean, aside from Bianca I've never loved anyone this much!"
He grinned at her in relief then. "Of course she's beautiful – look at her mother!"
She smiled back at him, and her smile seemed more genuine this time. She was just exhausted from an incredibly arduous birth, and neither one of them had gotten much sleep last night, he told himself. She'd relax after they'd been home for a while with their new daughter.
"You said you brought me something?" She asked.
"Yes, yes I did," He smiled at her and held up the gift bag. "Something for you and something for our daughter."
"I'm short on hands," She said apologetically, clearly not willing to hand over the baby.
Dimitri sighed. "Okay, but you can't hog her forever. Eventually you have to hand her over. I am her father after all."
Erica watched as he reached into the bag and pulled out a small box.
"I wanted you to have something special, to commemorate our daughter's birth," He said as he opened the box. A large deep blue sapphire pendant was nestled inside. The large oval-cut gem was surrounded by smaller diamond, all set in platinum.
Erica gasped at the necklace. "Oh Dimitri! It's… it's too much."
"Nonsense. There's no such thing," he said as he carefully lifted the necklace out of the box. "I didn't get to raise Anton. I can't even claim him as my son. I think in a way that makes our daughter that much more special, that much more precious to me."
Erica looked down at the baby and then back at Dimitri and the necklace in his hand.
"Let me put this on you."
She leaned forward in the bed, careful not to disturb the baby, and waited patiently for Dimitri to fasten the clasp around her neck.
"There. Perfect. Almost as beautiful as the two of you," He said with a smile.
Erica's hand trembled as she fingered the necklace. "It's overwhelming," She said softly.
"Darling, the last 24 hours have been the most amazing of my entire life. I want to cherish this always, and I want you to have this necklace, with our daughter's birthstone, as a symbol of my love for you, and for her."
"I love it."
"And I love you," He replied with a smile before he kissed her again.
"What else is in the bag?" She asked out of curiosity.
"I give the woman a giant sapphire, and she asks 'what else!'" He teased. Erica waited patiently while he laid out an exquisite baby outfit: a soft pale pink knit one piece sleeper with tiny rosebuds embroidered around the neckline.
"And I know that every woman needs the right accessories, so I made sure to get her a matching hat," He said as he laid the items on the bed beside her.
"It's beautiful," She said softly.
"Well, I can't let the future Countess Andrassy go home from the hospital in just anything!" He said proudly. "Besides, I know how much Bianca loves pink, so I figured I might as well just accept that I'm going to be surrounded by pink for the next 20 years or so."
Erica reached out and touched the baby outfit gingerly. "It's divine. Is that cashmere?" She asked in surprise.
"Yes. Only the best for my girl," He said.
"Darling, it's lovely, but it's… I know you didn't get an opportunity to raise Anton so you don't know what babies are like, but this is… well, it's not very practical."
"What's wrong with it?" He asked in concern.
Erica looked amused now. "Babies spit up, and they have dirty diapers."
He shrugged. "I don't care. She can have an entire wardrobe of cashmere sweaters if she wants. Anything she wants."
She raised an eyebrow. "You're going to regret that."
Dimitri gazed up at his wife.
"Never. Where you and our daughter are concerned, there's no such thing as regret."
