"Summer"
She had disappeared. Not disappeared as in an abduction or anything like that. But all I knew is that I had been staring at the stupid computer trying to pull up a case file (the precinct got new computers this summer - DAMN) and then I looked over to where she had been sitting and she was gone. But, hey, I'm police officer, I can track people down, right?
Clues. Her purse was not on the chair next to the file cabinets, where I had seen her set it down just a few minutes earlier and was, therefore, with her. Her chair was still slightly spinning, meaning she left in a hurry. Ah ha! There's only one place she could be. Opening the drawer, I grabbed a packet of crackers and made my way to my wife.
I opened the door to the women's bathroom cautiously and found what I suspected: my beautiful bride leaning over the sink with a pale look on her face, brushing her teeth. That could only mean one thing. "Morning sickness?" I asked, just to be sure. Those two words caused her to stop fixing herself up and, giving me a look of pure disgust, run to the nearest stall where I could hear her disposing of the remains of her breakfast. The only other woman, a uniformed rookie, took one look at her hanging with her head over the toilet, giving me a sideways glance and hurried out. I sighed and, as she returned to my side, handed her a cracker. She swung herself delicately onto the counter and leaned against the mirror.
"Thank goodness the first trimester is almost up - I'm really getting tired of giving homage to the porcelain god." Grabbing a paper towel, I moistened it, using it to mop off the sweat that had appeared around her face. I dug through my pockets and came up with a mint, which she accepted gratefully. I whipped out a comb and started brushing her gorgeous jet black hair, which she is wearing straighter and shorter than she used to. I gave her a quick hug and a kiss and stepped back to take a look at her.
Not good. She still looked exhausted and had a faint greenish glow. *She should not have to work so hard. She deserves to be in the warm depths of our bed with me waiting on her every wish.* I pulled the love of my life off the bathroom counter and supported her back to her desk, where I gathered our stuff and made our escape as quickly as possible. I placed a quick call to Charlie and said that we're sick and on our way home. (Ok, I left a message, he's still a little pissed about not getting to attend the wedding. Can I help it if we decided to elope overnight?). After all, murders have a way of popping up at the most inconvenient times.
So now here I am, lying in bed, my arms wrapped around the woman of my dreams, who sleeps soundly. She's been suffering from morning sickness for practically her entire pregnancy- about three months now. I wish I could take away her burden, especially the pain we know she will experience during labor. But I am her support, her strength, and I accept it.
I can't say I still don't have some concerns about being a father, but I lightly place my hand on the budding bulge of her stomach and I know in my heart that it will be okay. I look back over the last year and I'm amazed by everything that has happened in the last year. Charlie's been saying that he is assigning us new partners, but secretly I think he's trying to let us stay together as long as possible. At one point, I wasn't even sure I thought I'd ever get married, and here I am about to be a father in six short months. I have to admit, I still am in shock at the wedding we had. We decided on a Thursday to get married, and Friday night we were in Vegas, proclaiming our love in the "Love Shack Chapel." Who'd have ever thought McCall would go for it? I'd only suggested it as a joke and to my surprise she asked how quick I could pack. She'd been out of the hospital almost a month by then, and we'd gone back and forth about picking a wedding date. I'd finally said, "Gee, we could married by tomorrow night if we just go to Vegas and find a cute chapel.." Well, we caught a red-eye, and by Monday we'd broken the news to our families.
Only three weeks of marital bliss had passed when she asked, over a candlelight dinner, if I thought I was ready to take on father hood yet… she was already pregnant. It was a bit of a surprise that it happened so quick, but as I lay here with a warm summer breeze blowing through the window, I know that whoever comes along will be well loved and taken care of. Life has risks, and I don't want to miss anything because of fears. Just like we realized when Navarro died, I don't want to get to the end of road and have regrets.
It's been over a year since she first shook my world by saying she loved me. I always considered myself a creature of habit, rejecting change like a body rejects cancerous cells, but even I have to admit that I've never been happier or more content. If you'd have told me a year ago that I'd be married and holding my wife's hair back while she throws up every morning from morning sickness, I'd have told you that you were nuts. Love has a funny way of changing a person though. Everyday I fall more in love with this woman sleeping beside me, and already my heart is swelling with love for our child, just as her stomach grows to nurture it. All I can say is, what a year for love.