OK folks, sorry for the delay in posting. I was on vacation for a week out of town. The week prior to that I had some major stress going on along with trying to get ready work wise for being gone a week. Then to top it off, I pull a muscle in my shoulder the day I left, so the first few days of vacation I was in some serious pain. Still lingering a bit, hopefully by the weekend it will be back to 100%. Also, while I was on vacation...a construction guy backed into my vehicle, while it was parked in my driveway at the house I was staying at. So I was dealing with that some last week, still this week. Also dealing with being back to work and what I missed. So now back to the writing. Thanks for being patient and not threatening to hunt me down.

Previous Disclaimers Apply

Chapter 37

Alex at first wasn't sure what woke her up. She reached for her wife only to find out that she was in an empty bed. Then she heard the sounds coming from the bathroom of morning sickness taking a toll on her wife. Alex slid from the bed donning one of the hotel's plush robes to cover her nude body as she made her way to the bathroom. There she found her wife on her knees at the toilet throwing up. She soaked a washcloth in cold water then knelt beside her wife. Without words she began taking care of her wife. Alex wiped Olivia's brow with the cool cloth, her cheeks, her throat. She stood and soaked the cloth once more this time laying it across the back of her wife's neck, leaving it there so that she could use that hand to stroke Olivia's back.

Finally after her stomach had settled or that there was no longer anything left in it to throw up, Olivia cleaned herself up a bit and returned to bed. She lay on her side at the edge of the bed. Alex put a towel on the floor on Olivia's side of the bed along with the trashcan, just in case. Alex then slid into bed with her wife.

"Can I hold you?" Asked Alex tentatively.

"I'd like that." Replied Olivia softly.

Alex moved gently and slowly behind Olivia so that she could spoon her. They lay there quietly and soon Olivia drifted back off to sleep. An hour or so later, Alex woke up. She got up from bed and slipped into the bathroom quietly and took a shower. After she was finished, she order some breakfast and then packed her bag. Olivia started to stir when she heard room service knocking at the door; she got up and went to the bathroom to wash her face and freshen up a bit before joining Alex for breakfast.

"Good morning, Sweetheart. How are you?" Said Alex as she approached her wife now returning from the bathroom.

"A little better."

"Think you can eat?"

"I'm hungry, stomach's just a little queasy."

"OK. I ordered some ginger ale. Let's start with that and go from there." Said Alex as she led Olivia to the table and helped settled her.

"Not the way I wanted to wake up the first morning of our honeymoon." Said Olivia weakly.

"It's OK Sweetheart. We'll have plenty of mornings to laze around in bed making love. Let's just worry with this morning and getting your stomach to settle down before we leave for the airport."

As the morning progressed, Olivia's stomach did settle down. She took a long relaxing bath trying to rid her body of the tension that had built up over the last few weeks with the planning of the wedding, studying for the Sergeant's exam and being pregnant. By mid afternoon they ladies had taken in lunch at the restaurant in the hotel and were now in the limo on the way to the private hanger at Logan International Airport.

The flight crew did as Olivia asked and did not reveal to Alex where they were going. Olivia waited until they were in the air before finally telling Alex where they would be spending the next 10 days of their life. The ladies had settled onto the long sofa with Alex at the end and Olivia laying on the sofa and wrapped up in her wife's loving arms. They were both content to just hold each other; the only sounds coming from the aircraft as it barreled through the clouds towards its destination.

"St. Barts." Said Olivia out of the blue.

"What?"

"St. Barts. That's where we are going for our honeymoon. I found this resort that has private bungalows right on the beach with private concierge services. It comes with a jeep already included if we need to go anywhere. It also has a golf cart to use if you stay on resort property. It comes with all the amenities needed for a 10 day stay on the beach."

Alex shifted a bit to look into her wife's eyes.

"10 days at an ocean resort with you and our little one, sounds perfect, just like heaven to me." Replied Alex as she leaned forward to kiss her wife.

After the ladies kissed a bit, Olivia settled back down into Alex's arms and promptly fell asleep. Alex read for a while, before her eyes got tired. She slowly changed positions a bit on the sofa without waking Olivia so that she would be more comfortable napping as well. They did not wake until the flight attendant came to tell them they were getting ready to land. So they quickly righted themselves and buckled in for the landing. The jet taxied to the private hangar where a limo from the resort was waiting as arranged by Olivia. The chauffeur saw the ladies to the car while the grounds crew saw to their luggage.

As they left the airport, they talked with the driver. When he found out that neither of the ladies had been to St. Barts before, he took the opportunity to tell them about it and point out important landmarks and tourist's spots along the way. As they arrived at the resort both ladies thanked Al for a lovely ride and tour. He saw to their luggage with the bellhop placing it in a cart that was hooked to a six person golf cart. After checking in, they boarded the golf cart to be taken to their home for the next 10 days.

The sun was just setting over the Caribbean Island as the ladies were unpacking and settling in. They decided on a long soak in the oversized tub before ordering dinner. The bath and dinner reenergized both ladies and they quickly found themselves making love.

For the next 10 days the ladies relaxed, took long walks on the beach, spent a little time in the ocean more so in one of the resorts many pools. They sunned themselves or stayed shaded, they explored, shopped, ate and made love often. Olivia's morning sickness was still there, but she was getting used to it. She was also getting used to her afternoon naps although they were usually preceded by other bedroom activities. Even though she was fully capable of taking care of herself, she did let Alex spoil her a bit. By the end of their 10 day stay, Olivia's belly seemed to have doubled in size. The baby bump was more prevalent than ever. They had hoped to wait until Olivia had reached her second trimester before telling everyone else about the baby, but by the looks of things, they may have to spill the beans earlier than planned.

Reluctantly the day came that the ladies would be leaving their little oasis and have to head home, back to real life. Once they arrived at the front desk, there was Al, ready to take them to the airport. They chatted the whole way. Al was glad that the ladies first time experience to St. Barts was memorable, not just because it was their honeymoon. He helped see them on board the plane. As he was leaving, he made mention that "Al" would be a good name for a boy or a girl. The smile on his face alerted the ladies to the fact that he realized Olivia was pregnant. He disappeared down the steps and off the plane before they could respond.

By late afternoon, the Cabot jet was on approach for JFK. Waiting at the private hangar was another limo to take the ladies and their luggage back to their now temporary home, Alex's penthouse. The next few weekends would be spent putting the final touches on the brownstone before they would move in, or so they thought. Alex had used this car service and driver before, he knew where her penthouse was, but he was obviously not going there.

"Bobby, what's going on?" Asked Alex.

"I have other instructions, Mrs. Benson-Cabot." Replied the driver.

It wasn't long before they ladies realized that they were heading to the neighborhood where their brownstone is. Bobby pulled the car up to the curb and got out, going to the back door to assist the ladies out of the vehicle.

"I was told to give you these." Said the driver as he handed each of the ladies a set of keys and motioned for them to go inside.

They saw him move to the trunk of the limo, obviously getting their luggage. They both turned and headed up the few steps to the front door. Alex unlocked then opened the door and stepped inside. She was taken aback by what she saw. The new furniture that they had picked out was in the living room. The ladies came further inside and started wandering around. Everything was finished. The last bit of painting and flooring was done. They went upstairs and found that the bedrooms on the second floor were complete. Two as guest bedrooms and the third as an office. They continued to the third floor which contained the master bedroom and another guest bedroom. The master bedroom had Alex's bedroom suit from her penthouse which Olivia insisted on keeping and the door to the last bedroom was closed with a note taped to it. They retrieved the note and read it before opening the door.

"Welcome back Honeymooners!

We hoped you had a wonderful honeymoon and start to your life together as a married couple. We wanted to do something special for you, so we moved you into your new home. We hope you don't mind. We moved everything that we thought you'd want. Just let us know what else needs to be moved and we'll handle it. As to this bedroom, we didn't do anything to it, yet. It is the nursery for when you two ladies have your first baby. We all we be there for you the whole way, painting, wall papering, putting furniture together and eventually babysitting. So you just enjoy your first night in your new home and we will see you bright and early tomorrow morning.

PS. Your mail from the penthouse is in the office on the desk.

Congrats!

Elliot, Don, John, Fin, Abbie, Melinda and Casey"

"They moved us in?" Said Alex.

"I guess so." Replied Olivia.

They were about to open the door when Bobby called from downstairs. The ladies had forgotten about him. They returned to the first floor; Alex walked Bobby out double checking that they got everything out of the limo. She tipped him handsomely before retreating into her home. She didn't see Olivia right off and called for her.

"Liv?"

"In the kitchen."

Alex followed the voice and found her wife sitting at the kitchen table spreading peanut butter on dill pickles. She couldn't help but laugh.

"What?" Replied Olivia.

"Peanut butter and dill pickles? Liv, that's an odd combination."

"Well, I opened the fridge that's what the baby wanted."

"OK."

"They stocked our fridge and pantry too." Added Olivia.

"Our friends are really amazing aren't they?" Replied Alex.

"The best. What do you think of maybe having them over for dinner this weekend. We can tell them about the baby."

Joining her wife at the table, Alex picked up the spoon and got herself a bite of peanut butter bringing it to her mouth.

"Sounds like a wonderful idea." Replied Alex as she put the spoonful of peanut butter into her mouth.

Olivia watched as Alex quickly reached for a napkin to spit it out.

"Ugh! Olivia! There's dill pickle juice in the peanut butter."

"I'm sorry Babe. I was so hungry I did think to use separate utensils."

"That's really disgusting, Liv. Now we need to add peanut butter to the grocery list." Said Alex getting up from the table and retrieving a bottle of water from the fridge.

After a bit, Alex had got their luggage to their room. The ladies unpacked and rearranged a few things as far as what was in which drawers and how their clothes were in the closet. They decided on pasta and a salad for dinner and before long they were snuggling into their bed in their new home.

By the time Olivia left for work the next morning, her stomach had calmed; as long as she didn't get a whiff of the wrong smell, she felt she would be OK. She was thankful that it was a brisk morning as she was able to wear a sweater to cover her baby bump. She invited the squad for supper on Saturday night and Alex made the invites to Abbie, Melinda and Casey. Olivia managed to mask her eating habits and frequent runs to the bathrooms so far without anyone noticing except the Captain. Plus, it helped that she was still on desk duty and the guys were out in the field most of the day.

It was pushing 6pm on Friday evening when Olivia found herself alone in the squad save for the Captain in his office. Elliot had to leave early for one of his kids' school functions. Fin and Munch were out chasing some leads on a new case. Olivia was just finishing up when the Captain called her to his office.

"You wanted to see me Sir?" Asked the Detective.

"Liv, this just arrived for you." Said the Captain handing her an envelope.

"My test scores?"

"I assume so."

Olivia looked at the envelope for a moment, then took a seat in front of the Captain's desk. She turned it over and began to open it. She pulled out the paper and unfolded it. The Captain watched as her eyes darted back and forth across the page reading. After enough time had passed, the Captain broke the ice.

"Well, Detective, am I to call you Sergeant now?"

He watched as Olivia lowered the paper to her lap and a huge smile formed across her face.

"Yes Sir, as a matter of fact you will. I tested in the 99th percentile."

"Somehow that does not surprise me, Sergeant Benson-Cabot." Replied the Captain.

He reached into his bottom drawer and pulled out his secret stash. He opened the bag and pulled two out then walked around to the front of his desk handing one to Olivia.

"Congratulations, Olivia. You deserve it!" Said the Captain.

They 'clinked' their Twizzlers together and each took a bite in celebration. They savored the cherry licorice candy for a few minutes until both were gone. The Captain said that he would plan a small in house ceremony for when Olivia would be presented with her new badge, but for now to go home and celebrate with her wife.

Olivia called Alex and told her not to plan anything for dinner that she was picking up take out. Olivia stopped and picked up Chinese from their favorite restaurant and headed home. She had just finished setting the table when Alex came through the door.

"So what's all this?" Asked Alex.

"We are celebrating?" Replied Olivia as she pulled Alex into an embrace with a sweet kiss.

"What are we celebrating?"

"From now on when you are flirting with me you can't call me Detective anymore."

Alex, assuming that Olivia made Sergeant played along.

"Oh, just what am I supposed to call you now?"

"Sergeant sounds good don't you think?"

"I knew you could do it Sweetheart! Congratulations!" Said Alex as she picked Olivia up slightly off of her feet spinning her part way around.

"So it's Sergeant Benson-Cabot now?" Asked Alex.

"Yes, the Captain said he'll plan a small in house ceremony for him to present me with my new badge."

"Just let me know when and where. I want to be there."

"Absolutely."

"What did the guys say?"

"They don't know. They weren't there when the Captain received the letter. So I can tell them tomorrow night when we tell them about the little one here." Said Olivia as she put her hand to the baby bump and rubbed her stomach.

Alex immediately knelt down so that she could talk to her little one. She wrapped one arm around Olivia's waist to the small of her back and the other she rested on Olivia's swollen abdomen.

"Hey there little one. It's Mommy. Your Mama got some wonderful news today. She's now a Sergeant for the NYPD. I knew she could do it. This means she'll be able to do two things that she loves so very much; that's taking care of you and still being a police officer and helping people. We both love you so much little one. We can't wait for you to come." Said Alex as she placed a linger kiss to her wife's abdomen.

"Come on. Dinner's waiting." Said Olivia as she tugged on her wife's hand toward the kitchen.

After a meal of their favorite Chinese dishes, the ladies cleaned up and decided to relax in front of a fire with a movie; then off to bed. Thankfully, the morning sickness was not too bad for Olivia the next morning. The ladies spent a lazy morning in bed before getting things ready for their impromptu dinner that night. They decided on a baked chicken dish with a vegetable medley and rice along with a salad and dessert. By late afternoon, the dessert was prepared as well as the salad; while the chicken was marinating. Alex had gone to take a shower, when she finished and dressed she went to put the chicken in the oven. She was surprised when she couldn't locate her wife. She checked the usual spots and headed back up stairs and called for her.

"Liv, where are you?"

"I'm in the nursery." Replied Olivia.

Alex made her way up the stairs and pushed open the door to find her wife sitting in the middle of the floor of the bare room.

"What are you doing?" Said Alex as she took a seat beside her wife picking up her hand and lacing their fingers together.

"Just imagining."

"Imagining what?"

"What it will be like when we have our little one." Said Olivia rubbing her stomach.

"It will be wonderful, Liv."

They stayed in the room for a few minutes, content with each other before Alex shooed Olivia off to shower and get dressed. Before long guests were arriving. Once everyone had arrived, they decided to go ahead and make the announcements first.

"Everyone, Liv and I want to thank you for not only coming this evening, but for everything that you've done for us. From helping with the wedding to finishing this place and moving us while we were on our honeymoon." Said Alex.

"Yes, it really showed us just how much you love us and how much we mean to each other. You guys, you are our family. Now we do have a couple of announcements. You are the first to know…you are looking at the newest Sergeant for the NYPD!" Added Olivia.

There were whoops and hollers, mentions of congratulations, hugs and kisses. When things settled down, Alex got the room's attention again.

"Thank you, everyone. There's more, Liv." Said Alex turning the floor back over to her wife.

TBC…