Nathan walked into the kitchen, waving his cell phone in the air. "It's official," he said with a wide grin. "The cabin is now ours." It had taken about six weeks for the sale to go through, but he had just received a call from the bank saying the Colorado cabin was theirs.
Elizabeth turned from the stove, where she was stirring a pot of soup. "What a perfect Valentine's gift," she said, her smile matching his. "Now we have the perfect vacation home for any time of the year." She rubbed her stomach, where the tiniest of baby bumps was forming. "I can't wait to take our babies to the cabin. I'll bet they love it as much as we do."
Nathan wrapped his arms around her, nestling his head against hers. "I'm sure they will." Pressing a kiss to the top of her head, he looked down at her. "How are you feeling today?"
Since getting back from their Christmas trip, Elizabeth had experienced five weeks of intense morning sickness. The past week had been better, but she still looked more tired and haggard than she normally did. Today, however, she was looking better.
"I feel fine," Elizabeth said, leaning against his chest. "I think my energy is finally coming back, which Carson said should happen at fifteen weeks along. But I didn't want to tempt fate, so I made soup for dinner again. I hope you don't mind."
Nathan shook his head, framing her face in his hands. "I don't mind at all, sweetheart." He tenderly kissed her, then let her go. "How can I help with dinner?"
"Can you butter the rolls and pour the water?" Elizabeth asked.
Nathan nodded, and together they got dinner on the table. After a short blessing, Nathan took a bite and closed his eyes. "This is wonderful, Elizabeth. I love chicken and dumplings."
She smiled. "Me too. It sounded really good this morning, so I went with it." She shifted to a more comfortable position, taking a sip of her water. "I'm really looking forward to movie night with our friends. This is a fun way to spend Valentine's Day." She reached out, taking his hand. "Have I mentioned how much I loved the roses and chocolate you gave me this morning?"
Nathan's crooked smile lit his face. He looked at the roses Elizabeth had trimmed and placed in a vase of water in the middle of the table. "It wasn't too cliche?"
Elizabeth chuckled. "Not at all. There's a reason it's a cliche. Women love them." She grinned. "I might have eaten quite a bit of the chocolate already. But I'm going to blame the twins; they wanted it more than I did."
That made Nathan laugh outright. "Of course they did," he said, lifting her hand to his lips and placing a kiss on her knuckles. They continued their meal, chatting easily about their day. When they were finished, Nathan took the dishes. "I'll wash these," he said. "Why don't you get ready for movie night?"
Elizabeth smiled. "I just need to put the popcorn in bags," she said, pointing to two large bowls filled with the treat. "Faith is providing cupcakes, and Rosemary is bringing cider. This is going to be such a fun evening!" She pulled several large ziplock bags from a cupboard and set to work transferring the popcorn to them. Nathan cleaned the dishes, and soon they were ready to go. The drive to Faith and Carson's house was a short one. They pulled up at the same time as Lee and Rosemary.
"Hello!" Rosemary called, waving dramatically. "Isn't this wonderful? An evening just for the adults!" She chuckled. "Well, and baby Hope as well. Nathan, thank you so much for suggesting that Allie babysit for us. We know our kids are in great hands with her. I just hope they aren't too much of a handful!"
Nathan laughed. "Allie has a lot of babysitting experience. I'm sure she'll be just fine. She loves Lucas and the twins."
"Good," Lee said with a wry smile. "Because Jesse seemed to be in a particularly ornery mood today. Hopefully he's good for Allie."
"They'll be fine," Elizabeth said, linking arms with Rosemary and walking up the porch steps. They knocked on the door, which was opened immediately by Carson. "Welcome!" he said, standing back so they could enter. Faith was nearby, three-month-old Hope in her arms. There were lots of hugs all around and chattering began between the women and the men. Elizabeth held out her arms, and Faith placed Hope in them.
"Hello, sweet girl," Elizabeth cooed. "How's my favorite goddaughter?" She was rewarded with a baby smile as Hope looked up at her with big blue eyes.
"She's getting so big," Faith said with a sigh. "Where is the time going?"
"Quickly," Rosemary said, shaking her head. "I remember wondering how Jesse and Clara grew so fast. They were born, I blinked, and now they're in first grade." She made some faces at Hope, drawing more smiles from the baby. "Enjoy every moment, because they will go faster as time goes on."
The three women migrated to the kitchen, getting the snack items ready for their movie viewing. Hope fell asleep in Elizabeth's arms. Faith noticed and smiled. "You can put her in her crib if you would like."
Elizabeth nodded, walking to Hope's room. She carefully placed the little girl in her crib and covered her with a blanket. "Sleep well, sweetie," she said, leaning down to kiss Hope's soft cheek. She gazed at her for a few moments, envisioning the time when she would tuck her own babies into bed each night. One hand unconsciously floated to her stomach, resting on her tiny bump. She wondered who their babies would be and how she and Nathan would adjust to parenthood. She already knew he was good with children, but she couldn't wait to see him with his own babies. She had a sense it would just make her love him more.
Closing the door softly behind her, Elizabeth entered the living room just as everyone was getting settled. She sat next to Nathan, leaning into him as he wrapped his arms around her. She smiled as she saw Lee and Rosemary and Carson and Faith in similar modes of cuddling.
Faith pointed the remote at the TV. "We have several options," she said. "My Favorite Wife, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, It Happened One Night, or Singing in the Rain."
"There are serious pluses to having friends who love the same movie genre," Rosemary said, smiling from her spot against Lee. "Do we want a musical or not?"
"Yes!" Elizabeth said. "I feel like singing along."
"How about Singing in the Rain?" Faith suggested. A round of approval met her question, and she started the movie. They kept up a running commentary throughout, each of them having seen the film multiple times. They all sang the songs, even Lee who was a self-proclaimed terrible singer.
Elizabeth felt warm and happy as she snuggled against Nathan. His strong arms held her close, and she smiled at the familiar country twang in his voice as he sang along to the music.
This was her kind of Valentine's Day. Snug in her husband's arms, together with the friends she loved dearly.
It was the perfect night.
Nathan woke in the middle of the night, blinking rapidly. What had woken him? He reached out, feeling for Elizabeth, but she wasn't there. He propped himself up on his elbows, noticing a glow coming from the open door. The kitchen light was on. Pushing the covers off himself, he stood and padded to the kitchen.
Elizabeth had her head in the refrigerator, pushing items around. She gave a soft snort of frustration. Nathan raised his brows. "Sweetheart, are you alright?"
She poked her head over the door of the fridge. "Why don't we have any pickles and tuna or cheesecake?" she asked, a small pout on her lips.
The cheesecake didn't sound strange, but the other combination was odd. "Pickles...and tuna?" he asked. "You don't like tuna."
"Apparently I do now," Elizabeth said, straightening up and shutting the fridge. "Or at least one of the twins does. I can't get this craving out of my mind. I haven't been able to sleep because of it." She shook her head. "I know it sounds weird."
Nathan smiled, pulling her into his arms. "Pregnancy cravings are supposed to be weird, aren't they?" he asked. He pulled back, brushing her hair out of her face. "I'll go to the store and get you some tuna and pickles. And cheesecake." He chuckled. "What flavor are you craving?"
"Lemon blueberry," she said immediately. "But Nathan, it's the middle of the night. I don't want you to lose sleep going to the store. I can wait until tomorrow."
Nathan raised a brow. "You just said the craving was so bad you couldn't sleep. I'm going." He picked up his wallet and keys from the drawer by the door. "Anything else you want?"
Elizabeth shook her head. "That's it." She smiled at him gratefully. "I appreciate this, Nathan."
He kissed her forehead. "Anything for you, sweetheart." He got in his car and drove the five minutes to the twenty-four hour grocery store. He quickly found the items he needed, plus one additional item, and placed them at the register. The cashier laughed when she saw the items. "Your wife must be pregnant," she said, bagging the items. Her name tag said Jessica.
Nathan nodded. "She is. We're having twins, due in August. They're our first."
"Congratulations," she said, handing him the bag. "Boys or girls?"
"We don't know yet," Nathan replied. "We'll be happy with any combination."
"Children are a wonderful blessing," Jessica said. "I have three, all grown and on their own. You're about to embark on a great adventure." She winked. "The cheesecake is on the store. You are a kind husband to come here in the dead of night."
Nathan lifted the bag in salute. "Thank you," he said. "I appreciate it."
As he reached the car, Nathan reflected on the kindness that manifested itself in so many ways in their small town. Jessica didn't know him or Elizabeth, but she had given them a sweet gesture because they were about to have their first child. Or children, as the case was for them.
When he got home, Elizabeth was curled up in a chair and reading. Her eyes lit up when she saw him. He held up the grocery bag. "Tuna, pickles, cheesecake...and chocolate," he said with a grin.
"Chocolate?" Elizabeth asked, eyes wide. "You bought chocolate?"
He chuckled, going into the kitchen to place the food on the counter. Elizabeth immediately opened the tuna and pickles and set to work making a tuna salad.
"I did," Nathan said, producing the chocolate for her to see. "You might not be craving it now, but I know chocolate is always a safe bet. I thought you might want some tomorrow."
"I probably will," Elizabeth said with a laugh. "I always seem to be wanting chocolate." She took a bite of the tuna salad and let out a happy sigh. "Perfection" She reached up to kiss his cheek. "Thank you, Nathan."
They sat at the table while Elizabeth ate her food, then each had a slice of the cheesecake. "This is heavenly," Elizabeth said.
"Jessica, the cashier, said the cheesecake was on the house," Nathan said, savoring a bite. "It was a very kind gesture."
Elizabeth smiled. "Random acts of kindness are the best." She put her fork down, taking a sip of the water Nathan had brought over. "Nathan, do you want to know the gender of our babies before they're born?"
He thought about it, then nodded. "I think it would be nice to know so we can prepare, but at the same time I'd be happy with being surprised. What do you want?"
"I'd like to know," she said. "Carson told me we should be able to find out at twenty weeks. That's a little over a month from now."
"Do you have any intuition as to what the babies are?" Nathan asked, looking at her stomach.
She shook her head. "I always thought I would have a sense about that, but I honestly have no idea." She smiled. "But it doesn't matter. I'll be happy with whatever we have because they will be ours. Any combination will make me happy." She tilted her head, thinking some more. "Though I might be partial to two of the same gender so they can be best friends." She chuckled. "Jesse and Clara tend to fight as much as they play." Her brow wrinkled. "Though I suppose it would be just as easy for two boys or two girls to fight a lot too. It could just be part of growing up with siblings. I know my sisters and I fought like cats and dogs for the longest time."
"So do Colleen and I," Nathan said. "But we were also best friends." He smiled. "I think whoever these children are, they will have their ups and downs. It's all a part of life." He reached out to take her hand in his. "I'm excited to start this adventure of parenthood with you."
"Me too," Elizabeth said softly. She traced circles on the back of his hand. "I'll tell Carson that we want to know the babies' gender at my twenty week checkup. Would you like to be there as well?"
Nathan nodded. "I would love to."
"Good," Elizabeth said, smiling at him. "I was hoping you'd say that. I want us to be together when we find out what we're having." She tilted her head. "We haven't talked about names yet. Are there any in particular you like?"
Nathan considered it. Since he hadn't expected to marry or have children, it wasn't something he'd thought about often. When he met Elizabeth, he'd started dreaming of marriage and family, but he had never thought of baby names.
"That's a good question," he said reflectively. An idea came to him, one he hadn't shared with Elizabeth before. "We haven't talked much about my parents, have we?" he asked, finding Elizabeth's eyes.
She shook her head. "All I know is that they died a while ago."
Nathan nodded. "Car accident. It was one of the worst days of my life. I was barely nineteen, Colleen twenty-one. We had to figure out life very quickly on our own." He paused, thinking. "My parents and I had a very close relationship. Maybe...maybe we can name one of the twins after them. It could be a first name or a middle name, but I think I'd like to honor their memory that way."
Elizabeth was blinking back tears. "That's a beautiful idea, Nathan. I agree. What were their names?"
"My dad was Arthur, though he went by Archie, and my mom was Arianna."
Elizabeth laid a hand over his. "We can definitely name one of the twins after them," she said softly. "And for the record, I think Arianna would be a beautiful name for a daughter."
Nathan smiled through the mist in his eyes. "Thank you, sweetheart." He blinked hard, then looked back at her. "What about you? Are there any names you've wanted to give your children?"
"I've always liked the names Emma or Cecilia for a girl," she replied. "And for a boy, I like Anthony. Though I would love to name our first son after you. We could call him Nate for short."
Nathan chuckled. "Those are all great names. Though it might feel strange having a son with the same name as me."
"I don't know," Elizabeth said with a grin. "Nathan Arthur Grant has a nice ring to it. Our little Nate."
"What about a little Elizabeth?" Nathan asked, tilting his head. "We could match your name with my mother's name."
Elizabeth's eyes misted a little at his statement. "I would be honored," she said, smiling at him. "Though I think Arianna would have to be the first name. Arianna Elizabeth flows better than Elizabeth Arianna, don't you think?"
Shrugging, Nathan shook his head. "I think either one sounds lovely." He smiled. "And we have plenty of time before we have to decide. But I'm glad we have some options on the table."
"Me too," Elizabeth said, picking up her fork again and digging into her cheesecake. When they finished, she looked at the clock. "1:27," she said with a wry laugh. They put their dishes in the sink, then Elizabeth wrapped her arms around Nathan. "Thank you again," she said, burying her face in his chest. "This meant so much to me."
He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Anytime, sweetheart." Taking her hand, he tucked it securely into his arm. "Let's see if you can get some sleep now that your cravings have been met."
They nestled together in their bed, and within minutes Nathan could feel Elizabeth's breathing turn deep and even. He rested his hand against the small bump on her stomach, marveling that inside her body were growing two tiny humans. He couldn't wait to meet them.
He fell asleep with his hand still protectively over their babies, and he dreamt of two dark-haired, blue-eyed babies who looked just like Elizabeth.
