Disclaimer:Anything you recognise, including characters, belong to their respective owners.This is a work of fiction and does not represent reality, please treat it as such.
Catch My Breath
-x-
Addicted to the love I found
Heavy heart, now a weightless cloud
Making time for the ones that count
I'll spend the rest of my time
Laughing hard with the windows down
Leaving footprints all over town
"Ella?" Jon called from the couch.
"Yes daddy?" A few seconds later, the little girl appeared in the doorway, clutching her toy ponies.
"C'mere" he patted his lap.
She lined her ponies up on the coffee table and ran over to him, holding out her arms so he could lift her onto his knee. He admired the adorable little pigtails Renee had styled her strawberry blonde hair in this morning and the pretty white sundress she wore. His little girl was as cute as a button and luckily resembled her mother more than him.
Four year old Gabriella had his hair and eyes, but the rest were all Renee's beautiful features. Her personality though, that was all him. She was stubborn and defiant, just like he was. Bright though, and all her teachers praised how smart she was. Jon knew she didn't get that from him.
"Do you know what day it is tomorrow?" he asked, smoothing the creases in her dress from where she'd been playing in the garden.
"Sunday?" she asked.
"True, but not what I was getting at" he smiled.
"Is it my birthday?" she asked, eyes lighting up.
"No" he laughed. "Nice try but that's not until August" he chuckled, tickling her until she squealed. "It's Mother's Day tomorrow" he told her.
"Oh...I remember" she told him. "I made mommy a card at preschool remember?"
"I know you did. She's going to love it" he ran a hand over the top of her head. "But we need to go buy mommy a present don't we?"
Ella nodded enthusiastically. "Can we get her a real life pony?"
Jon tapped her nose playfully. "We need to find something mommy wants, not something you want"
"Okay..." she scrunched her face up in thought. "I have some pennies in my money box that Uncle Joe gave me...can we buy mommy a present with those?" she asked.
"You keep those pennies baby, those are for you. I have some money we can use to buy a present" he told her. "You know what we have to do though?"
"What?" she asked, pulling at the loose threads on his jeans.
"Keep it a big secret" he put a finger over his lips. "We'll go shopping after lunch but we have to tell mommy we're going grocery shopping okay?"
"Okay daddy. I won't tell" she mimicked 'zipping' her lips.
"Good girl" he ruffled her hair.
"Don't mess up my hair!" she protested.
"Sorry" he chuckled. "Gimme a kiss"
She leaned up and gave him a kiss before hopping down and collecting her ponies.
"Daddy?" she asked, stopping before she left the room.
"Yes angel?"
"Mommy said I couldn't play on the grass in case I got my dress dirty but my ponies need to play on the grass because that's what they eat..." she reasoned.
"Go play on the grass. I won't tell mommy" he winked.
"Thank you daddy!" she clapped happily, running back to him to give him a big hug.
- x -
Pulling up to the little row of shops, Jon got out of the car and lifted Ella out and onto the pavement.
"Hold my hand" he told her, taking her little hand in his much larger one. "Don't run off okay? It's busy today and I don't want you getting lost"
"It's okay daddy, I'll be good" she promised.
Passing Renee's favourite little flower store, Jon couldn't resist going inside.
"These ones are pretty" Ella pointed out some pink roses.
"How about we get mommy some flowers then?" he suggested, picking Ella up and resting her on his hip so she could reach the stems. She wound an arm around his neck to keep herself steady and reached out to take a rose.
"Can we pick a bunch of different ones and tie them up with a pretty ribbon?" she asked.
"That sounds like a great idea. It's a good job I brought you huh?" he kissed her cheek.
"I'm good at choosing presents" she smiled proudly.
"You are" he told her, catching a glimpse of himself in a mirror and smirking at how much things had changed. He never imagined he'd be a dad, let alone to a little girl who had him wrapped around her little finger. He treated her like a princess and it didn't matter how many times the guys at work made fun of him when he was on the phone with her, he didn't care. He missed her so much when he was away, he treasured every conversation.
In a few minutes, Ella had chosen a whole bunch of flowers for her mom. He'd tried having some input, only to be told "no daddy, the yellow ones don't match silly".
She was incredible. He couldn't stop bragging about this wonderful little person he and Renee were raising to anyone and everyone who'd listen. Joe couldn't believe the change in his friend as soon as he became a father. But everything changed the day Jon realised there was a tiny little life that depended on him now. He grew up that day. His relationship with Renee was different too. She was the mother of his child now, not his girlfriend or even just his wife. Everything he did was for his two precious girls.
He paid for the flowers and they left them in the trunk while they went searching for something else.
"Don't get excited and run off" Jon warned as they entered the busy jewellery store and Ella was suddenly captivated by all of the diamonds.
"I won't daddy" she held his hand dutifully. They browsed some of the rings, but Jon decided a ring wasn't really what he had in mind. They moved over to the bracelets and necklaces. Ella stood beside him on her tip toes, trying to see over the big glass counters.
"Daddy?" Ella asked, tugging on his shirt. "Can you pick me up?" she asked, holding her arms up.
"Okay princess" he picked her up and she laid her head on his shoulder. All this shopping was exhausting for a four year old.
"How about you help me? I'm not so good at picking out jewellery" he told her.
"Mommy likes necklaces" she told him. "With lots of diamonds"
Jon laughed. She wasn't wrong.
"C'mon daddy, we have to pick something really special" she insisted.
"Go on then baby, what do you think she'll like?"
"What about that one?" she pointed to a necklace studded with diamonds, gold and white gold detailing. Jon nearly had a heart attack when he saw the price.
"I don't think mommy wears that many diamonds..."
He didn't think Renee would want to wear a couple of thousand pounds worth of jewellery around her neck all the time. He wanted something sentimental that she could wear often.
"Look...you can put a picture in this one" the little girl suggested, pointing to a rose gold locket with diamonds in the centre.
Jon looked at the necklace and immediately knew Renee would love it. And as Ella had pointed out, they could put a photo of the three of them inside.
"We engrave those too...we can do it here in the store, only takes an hour" the assistant explained.
Ella clapped her hands excitedly.
"Can we get this one daddy? I'll give you some money from my money box..."
The assistant laughed at the little girl and Jon kissed her cheek. "No need to princess, we can get this one. I can pay; you just need to decide what you want written on the back of it"
Ella pursed her little lips. "How about 'to the most wonderful mommy in the world, love from Ella'?"
"That sounds great" he tapped the tip of her nose. "Can you add a message from me too? Will it all fit?" he asked the sales lady.
"No problem Sir" the assistant smiled, reaching under the counter for some candy for Ella to keep her occupied.
"Thank you" Ella said politely. "Can I eat some now daddy?"
"Yes but don't tell your mom" he laughed. "Can you write 'for my beautiful wife on Mother's Day. Jon'?"
"Of course. That's six hundred and seventy five dollars then"
Ella's eyes grew wide.
"Are you sure you don't want me to help you pay daddy? That's a lot of money..."
"You eat your candy munchkin, I got this"
She stuck out her bottom lip. 'Munchkin' was on the list of nicknames she hated. 'Cupcake' and 'baby' also earned him a pout. 'Princess' and 'angel' were pretty much all she approved of. Jon loved teasing her though.
"C'mon pudding cup, we'll pick this up when it's done"
"Don't call me that" she squealed, running to catch up with him.
- x -
Renee awoke the next day and panicked. Jon was gone and his side of the bed was still a crumpled mess. She couldn't hear anyone in the bathroom, so she knew he wasn't showering or bathing Gabriella like he normally did in the mornings. Sitting up and running a hand through her sleep-mussed hair, she heard a clatter from downstairs.
"Daddy!" she heard a squeal followed by giggling.
Laying back down with a sigh of relief, she smiled. After their shopping trip, Jon had returned carrying their baby girl. She'd fallen asleep in the car and was out for the count. Renee smiled to herself when she thought about the exciting news she had to share with them.
That would have to wait though, as she heard an overzealous child bounding up the stairs.
"Happy Mommy's Day!" Ella shouted, taking a running leap at the bed and launching herself onto Renee.
"Thank you angel" Renee kissed her, letting Ella curl up in bed beside her. "Where's your dad?"
"He's coming now" the little girl smiled.
Renee smiled widely when she saw Jon coming up the stairs balancing a tray full of delicious-looking breakfast items and a big gift bag.
It was only then that she noticed the flour on Ella's nose.
"Did you two make me breakfast baby?"
"Not a baby" she pouted.
"I know you're not, you're a big girl now" Renee appeased her.
"She's not. She's staying my baby forever" Jon smirked, setting the bag down on the dresser.
"Daddy!" Ella protested.
Renee propped herself up and Jon put the tray on her lap.
"Breakfast in bed? I'm a lucky lady" Renee beamed, taking in the stacks of homemade pancakes, fruit and cereal.
"Thank you angel" Renee kissed the top of Ella's head. "And thank you handsome" she reached up to press a kiss to his lips. "This looks amazing"
Jon settled back into bed too, Ella cuddled up between them. Renee shared the food with them and they enjoyed some family time.
"Presents now!" Ella clapped excitedly. She scurried down to the end of the bed and grabbed the big bag, struggling because it was almost as big as her.
"Oh wow, I am being spoilt today huh?" Renee took the bag and reached inside. Taking out the bouquet of flowers, a big smile broke out across her face.
"These are beautiful" she sniffed them. All shades of pink and white, the colours complemented each other perfectly.
"Munchkin picked those out, she's better at matching colours than me" Jon told her.
"Daddy! I'm really tall now!" she protested.
"Course you are" he ruffled her hair.
"Thank you" Renee told them, kissing Ella and then Jon again. "I love them"
Next Renee opened the card Ella had made for her.
"That's us..." Ella pointed out the drawing she did on the front. "That's you mommy, there's daddy and that's me"
Renee laughed loudly at the drawing. She'd drawn Jon three times the size of herself and Ella.
"It's beautiful El, thank you" Renee said, reading the sweet little message she'd written inside.
Finally, Renee found a rectangular shaped box in the bottom of the bag. It was a deep navy velvet colour. She eyed Jon.
"Oh my God" she covered her mouth when she opened it to find a stunning rose gold locket on a delicate chain. "It's gorgeous...Jon...you didn't have to..."
"Look inside" he smiled, so happy she liked it.
Opening it carefully, she found a miniature version of her favourite photo they'd ever taken. They were at the beach on a day out with Renee's mom and they'd been running in and out of the sea, trying to dodge the waves. Without warning, a big wave had drenched all three of them, her mom taking a photo at the perfect time as Jon swept Ella up and Renee planted a wet kiss on his cheek.
She felt herself tearing up and fanned her eyes.
"Read the back mommy" Ella looked up at her mom, wondering why she looked upset.
Turning it over, the tears won and she found herself having a little cry at the adorable messages.
"Thank you, I love it" she wrapped the little girl up in a big hug.
When Ella ran off to put her own necklace on so she could match mommy, Jon put Renee's new locket on for her.
"It's so beautiful Jon...it must have cost a fortune"
"It doesn't matter how much it cost. As long as you love it" he kissed her neck.
"I do love it. And I love you. I'll thank you properly later..." she whispered seductively, turning in his arms and planting a kiss on his lips, moaning as he deepened it.
She pulled away, breathing heavily. "I think we better stop this now, before we get a telling off from El for being 'gross'" Renee laughed.
"You're right. I don't enjoy being shamed for PDA by my own daughter" he agreed.
- x -
That evening, as Renee served up dessert of a homemade pecan pie with ice cream, she decided it was time to spill the beans.
"So...I know it's Mother's Day and I got gifts this morning, but I actually have a gift for each of you two"
Jon frowned.
Renee placed a little box in front of Ella, then one in front of Jon.
"Open them together" she smiled, taking a bite of her food.
Jon looked suspicious as he unpicked the seal of the wrapping. Ella tore at her own excitedly. Pulling the lid from the box hastily, she pulled out a t shirt and stared at it in confusion.
At the same time, Jon opened his own box and froze.
"I don't understand mommy" Ella looked up at her questioningly.
Jon reached in and took the little piece of plastic in hand. He locked eyes with Renee and she smiled.
"We're having another baby?"
He held the positive test in hand, looking down at it and then back to his wife.
Renee nodded, teary eyed as a grin broke out across Jon's face.
Jon took a look at Ella's present and saw that her t-shirt read 'Big Sister'.
"You're going to have a baby brother or sister El" Renee crouched beside her daughter, taking hold of her hand.
The little girl sat and digested that for a moment.
"But don't babies cry all the time?"
"You used to cry all the time" Jon teased.
"Will I have to share my room?"
"No angel, the baby will have its own room" Renee confirmed.
"Okay then" Ella smiled, hopping down from the table and running off to play outside in the garden while it was still light out.
"That went better than expected" Renee smiled as Jon pulled her into his lap.
"She seems to be okay with it" he nodded.
"Are you?"
He smiled. "Yeah...I'm really happy"
Renee pressed a soft kiss to his lips as he ran a hand over her stomach.
"When did you take the test?" he asked.
"When you took El shopping yesterday" she admitted. "I missed my period a few days back but I didn't think anything of it. Then I started craving garlic again" she laughed.
"I'm not looking forward to the amount of garlic flavoured foods in the house if it's anything like when you were pregnant with El" he groaned.
"You'll have to get used to it" she smiled, kissing him again. He deepened the kiss, stroking a hand down her spine to rest on her lower back.
"Ew!" Ella squealed as she ran back inside to fetch her juice off the counter. "Mommy! Stop kissing daddy like that, you don't kiss with your tongue silly!"
They broke apart, Jon grinning and Renee blushing. "I like how I get the blame" Renee complained, feeling like a naughty schoolgirl.
"You're right princess" Jon told Ella. "In fact, you don't kiss anyone but mommy and daddy"
"Sometimes I kiss Alex at preschool" Ella frowned.
"Who the hell is Alex?" Jon lost his composure for a second.
"Alex is a girl Jon...Alexa" Renee laughed at his overprotective nature.
"Good, no kissing boys" he dictated.
"Boys are yucky" Ella pulled a face.
"Yes they are" Jon agreed.
Ella soon finished her drink and ran back outside to play.
"You're going to be the father in law from hell" Renee laughed at him.
"I just don't want her around any boys. I know what they're like. I was like that..."
"And look what an amazing husband and father you turned out to be" she stroked his face.
"Yeah well I wasn't always a model family man"
Renee made them a doctor's appointment and perched herself back on Jon's lap.
"It's pretty amazing, how a woman's body can stretch to accommodate a baby...and then snap back into shape like nothing ever happened" Jon mused aloud.
"Plus some stretch marks" she added with a laugh.
"I love your stretch marks" he nuzzled her neck. "They gave me my baby girl"
"You're adorable"
"I love you Mrs Good" he told her.
"I love you too Mr Good"
"Happy Mother's Day and bring on baby number two" he cheered.
- x -
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