Y'all, I had every intention to get this up a week ago. I couldn't get the chapter to work the way I wanted it to. I didn't get it up any sooner as I had been away on a camping trip where I had disconnected myself from all forms of technology. And it was a really nice recharge.
I know it takes me a while to get this one updated, but I do know what the next story is that I will be posting/working on, and I was wondering if that was something that you all wanted me to start posting and working on along with this one, as this one still has a ways to go. Just let me know if you want that story sooner rather than later.
This chapter took a bit of a sappy turn towards the end, that hadn't been planned but it came out as I typed away, and works really well with the chapter. I had plans of adding in the girls night and the guys night, but it's going to take me a few days to figure it all out in length, so that will be in the next chapter. Enjoy!
"Now isn't this a sight for sore eyes," Zoe teased, taking a seat at the bar, watching her boyfriend try to calm down a cranky baby. "Give her here," she instructed, holding her hands out for the baby. "You didn't steal this precious one did you?" Zoe asked, gently rocking her, when she was firmly in her arms.
"No, AB went to the ladies room, and I offered to watch her so she could go it alone," he shrugged. "With it being on the dead side of things in here, I didn't see the harm," he told her. "And how can you calm her when I couldn't?" He questioned.
"Because I am special and she clearly loves me more," she smiled at her boyfriend before turning her smile onto the little one in her arms. "Isn't that right?" She asked, the 8-month-old little girl in her arms, the little girl, putting her fist in her mouth.
"You are lovable," Wade smirked.
"And that is my cue to take my little one," Annabeth laughed, taking her daughter from her friend. "Are you free tomorrow night?"
"I believe so," Zoe nodded. She couldn't think of having anything planned. She looked at Wade not knowing if he had anything if he had anything planned for them. He shook his head, getting a glass out for Zoe. "Why?"
"Need a babysitter?" Wade questioned, pouring his girlfriend a glass of wine. "We have been known as the best babysitters in these here parts," Wade smirked, placing the glass in front of Zoe.
"Who says you're invited?" Zoe asked, sticking her tongue out at her boyfriend. "What is keeping you away from your little one?" Zoe asked, lightly tickling the little girl.
"I wasn't asking about a babysitter," AB said, shaking her head. "I wanted to know if you wanted to have a girls night. It feels like it's been forever since we've had one, but if you have plans then don't worry about it," she rushed out.
"A girls night would be nice," Zoe smiled. "Wade can figure something out," she teased, sipping on her wine.
"I think I can arrange for a guys night," he remarked, walking off to do his job leaving his girlfriend and her friend to gossip.
"That must be going well, considering that he hasn't been back to the carriage house in days," AB teased.
"And how do you know that?" Zoe inquired, raising an eyebrow at her friend. "You spending that much time with Lavon?" She teased.
"Hey, I can't be blamed when little Jordynn here loves spending time with the mayor," AB joked, sweetly kissing her daughter's head.
"How is that going?" Zoe asked, motioning to a table, getting a high chair along the way.
"Slow," Ab nodded. "But with a baby, slow is what works," she stated, placing her little girl in the high chair, adding a small handful of mixed berry yogurt melts to the table in front of Jordynn.
"There is no rush in a relationship," Zoe commented. "Not when you have your hands full with this one," Zoe said, running a hand through the little bit of hair Jordynn had. "Can't imagine she's slowing down any," she commented.
"She crawls everywhere and is starting to pull herself up," the mother smiled, placing a sippy cup of juice in front of said baby. "I won't even mention how many times a day we play she throws a toy and I pick it up," she sighed. "You know there's a good chance when she takes a nap, so do I," AB laughed.
"You know if you ever need a day to yourself, I will gladly watch her," Zoe smiled.
"I did hear that you along with Wade are the best babysitters around these parts," AB laughed. "Care to enlighten me about that?" She asked.
"Your very charming boyfriend sends this your way," Wanda told Zoe, placing the plate of food before Zoe, having already gave Annabeth the food she ordered. "You've got yourself a keeper," she teased.
"Me?" Zoe laughed, a big smile on her face. "What about you? Tom's a keeper," she stated.
"You're just happy that Tom gave his crush of you up for Wanda," AB joked.
"True," Zoe nodded. She couldn't remember a time when Tom was growing up that the boy didn't have some sort of crush on her.
"He is a keeper," Wanda gushed. "So much so that we're getting married," Wanda smiled, showing the two women the ring now at home on her finger. Zoe and AB squealed with delight, getting up to hug Wanda. "Now before you start asking, we haven't figured anything out," she told them.
"How did he ask?" AB questioned, sitting back down, Zoe doing the same.
"Wouldn't that be an interesting story, if she was getting paid to tell you the way Tom proposed?" Wade asked, coming up behind them. "But the thing is she gets paid to work and not stand around gossiping," he stated.
"Forget what I said about him being a keeper," Wanda teased. "I will fill you both in after my shift ends," she told them, moving away to get back to work.
"I'll still keep you," Zoe told him, kissing his cheek.
"Shouldn't you be working and not standing around getting kisses from your girlfriend?" Wanda asked, walking past them with a smirk on her face.
"The perks of being the manager," he called after her. "Dinner tonight?" Wade asked her.
"That new place in Fairhope?" She asked him.
"We can go and try it," Wade nodded, sharing a small kiss with Zoe before getting back to work.
"You two are so adorable," AB smiled, moving her plate a bit closer. "Now mind telling me about your adventures of babysitting with that keeper you have for yourself?" She teased her friend, interested in the story her friend had to tell her.
Zoe launched into the story about watching Harley and Wade connecting with the young boy, in a way very few have been able to do if they weren't family, proving once more how good of guy Wade happens to be. Zoe told her friend all about how they spent half the following day with Harley as Charles and Vivian spent a good chunk of their day talking things through and making the right decision for them.
With their food paid for and confirming the time Wade would be off work and around to pick Zoe up, the two friends headed out. AB heading back home to put her fussy baby down for a nap while Zoe went back to work.
They had just ordered their food, the drinks they ordered shortly after they sat down in front of them, the candle light giving off the romantic feeling the restaurant is going for. They sat next to each other at the small table, Zoe placing her hand over the top of his that found a home on her bare thigh, the black dress she wore riding up a bit once she sat down at the table.
"Have you figured out what you're going to be doing tomorrow night?" Zoe questioned taking a drink of her white wine, willing to do a bit of small talk until their food came.
"Lavon came in shortly after you left today and we decided to have a little poker night at his place," Wade nodded, letting his girlfriend know of his plans. "Have you gals figured out the plans for tomorrow night? Or is it more of a thing you will be winging?" He inquired, wanting to make sure that his girlfriend was going to be okay.
"There's this club in Mobile that we normally go to," Zoe told him. "And yes if we need a ride home, we will call instead of trying to drive drunk," she informed him. She knew how stupid it is to try driving home drunk.
"I won't hesitate to come get you," Wade told her. He wouldn't take a single sip of any sort of alcohol wanting to know that his girlfriend made it home in one piece, and no one else getting hurt along the way. "I don't even care if you ruin poker night, you come first here, Zoe," he stated, seriously looking her right in her big brown eyes, that he could easily and has easily gotten lost in.
"I care, because I would hate to ruin your night with the guys," she told him softly. "And we do pick someone to be the DD, so I am certain we won't need to be calling for help, but I like that you're willing to drop your night to come rescue me if I need it," she smiled sweetly at him.
"I love you, Zoe. There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you," he stated, turning his hand over to hold hers and bringing it up to place a kiss to the back of her hand.
"I love you, Wade," she told him, leaning over to share a small peck of a kiss with him, not wanting to get carried away in the middle of the restaurant. "Does that mean I can send you into the drug store, and you'll pick me up the feminine hygiene products that I need?" She asked with a teasing smirk on her face.
"If you tell me which one it is to get," he nodded. "That's not going to embarrass me, Zoe, it's a natural thing that your body goes through. I am not about to freak out over something that is as beautiful as pregnancy can be," he told her.
"And how many women have you been around that's been pregnant?" She inquired raising an eyebrow at him.
"There was AB," he shrugged, not really sure if it counted as she didn't have the support of her ex-husband and for the most of it she had been alone to deal with how scary impending motherhood was going to be."I was there for some of Calla's," he said. "And I saw how my brother looked at her, and it's special," he said softly.
"Creating another life is special," Zoe agreed. "And you keep amazing me," she smiled, placing a kiss to his cheek.
"How's that?" He inquired, gently giving her hand a squeeze.
"You have so many layers, Wade," she started to say. "You come off as this tough guy who doesn't care about anything, but once you let someone in, the layers get peeled back and you reveal your true self, you care deeply and passionately, you're a softy at heart. You've dealt with so much pain and disappointment in your life and you never once let it stop you," she told him. "You lost your mom, and you're still out here looking for a love your parents had. My parents went through stuff, and it put me off of love for the longest time because I didn't want to be like them, but here you are, opening your heart up to me and that alone makes me love you with every fiber of my being," she smiled at him.
"Thank you for letting me in and loving me Zoe," Wade told her, rubbing his thumb along the back of her hand. "I didn't want love; I was fine without having someone there to love, it was you that showed me how to love and that I could be ten times better with the right person in my life to love," he told her sweetly. "You can be brash, and a bit crazy, and hard to handle at times, but those make you Zoe Wilkes. Under all of that, you care for a whole town of crazies, you want everyone to be their best, you won't let anyone fail. You may have been cynical to love for a while Zoe, but you opened up to love in the best way possible," he told her, kissing her knuckles softly. "Thank you for letting me in, for loving me the way you do, Zoe."
"Thank you for letting me in, for letting me love you and for loving me in return, Wade," Zoe praised him, leaning in to meet him for a kiss that lasted a few minutes longer than necessary, as they got lost in each other and the emotions cursing through them.
Upon breaking the kiss, they got lost in the love held in their eyes for the other, only being broken out of the trans when their food was placed in front of them, as the waiter asked if they need anything else. Once they assured the waiter they were good, they tucked into their food, talking about lighter topics as they made plans for the weekend as they both had Saturday night off along with Sunday morning.
After their meal, they skipped out on getting dessert as they stopped at a store picking something up to eat once back at Zoe's place. The dessert made it's way up to Zoe's room as they showered each other in love late into the night. Falling asleep curled up together, matching blissful smiles resting upon their faces as they slept.