The Ordinary Days

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who's been following this story so far. This chapter may be a bit sadder than previous ones but I promise there will be more fluff coming up ahead.

WARNINGS: Explicit sexual content including fingering and penetrative sex. Also mentions of a character's death and some graphic imagery describing war (in the paragraph that begins with "The question made Steve's brow furrow...").

Chapter Thirteen

Sleepy eyes blinked open as a stream of golden sunlight from the gap between the curtains hit Steve directly in the face, waking him from a pleasant dream involving a certain wife of his. He glanced over and saw she was curled up into a ball next to him sleeping peacefully with her lips slightly parted. Steve smiled as he watched Peggy for a moment, her chest delicately rising and falling with each slow-tempoed breath she took. What had he done to deserve such a beautiful, intelligent, and passionate person whom he was lucky enough to call his wife?

He thought back to the night before when he had cried out in the throes of passion that he loved her, and he felt a twinge of embarrassment. Why had he done such a careless thing? He was caught up in the moment, sure, but why hadn't he had the self-control to wait to tell her he loved her when he could say it and mean it? Certainly she deserved more than that. He had to think of a way to make it special, and do it soon so she wasn't left hanging.

Inspiration suddenly struck as Steve quietly got up to change into his day clothes. He finished pulling on his shoes and then sat on the edge of the bed, bending down to kiss a still-sleeping Peggy on the forehead.

"Mmm," she moaned as she slowly stirred. "'Morning."

"Good morning. I'm running into town for a little bit, but I'll be back in a few hours. Do you need anything?"

"Oh…can you post the letter I wrote for Michael?" she asked with eyes still closed. "It's on my vanity."

"Sure thing."

Steve leaned over to give her a quick peck on the lips. He then got up and grabbed the letter that was where she had described and headed out to his truck, filled with excitement at the errand he was about to run and having a feeling it was going to be a good day.


Hours later, Steve returned to the farm with a small blue box in the back of the truck containing what he had driven to his mother's house to acquire. The box held two plain gold wedding rings, one slightly larger than the other, on crushed velvet. They were his mother and father's rings that Sarah had held onto after his dear father had died, and Steve couldn't bring himself to ask her for them when he had first agreed to marry Peggy because he felt such guilt about the dishonest and rushed engagement. But now that he knew of Peggy's true feelings for him, he was sure it would not dishonor his parents to wear their rings as husband and wife.

He only hoped that Peggy would be in agreement with the gesture.

Steve picked up the box and was about to bring it inside the house, but froze when he thought about where he would hide the small box until he could surprise her with it. He could keep it in his jacket pocket, but he could not keep it there long-term in case Peggy discovered it while doing laundry. He also could not keep it in their dresser because half her clothes were in there, too, and she might see it while digging through looking for something. And if he kept it in the house, she might find it while cleaning one day.

So he thought to hide it in the place she almost never goes: the barn. He found a large wooden crate full of old tools and stashed the tiny box there, covering everything with an old sheet for good measure.

Satisfied that she wouldn't accidentally stumble upon it, Steve headed back up to the house, thinking he should try to find some sort of ribbon or wrapping paper for her gift.

But he stopped short when he opened the door and found Peggy sitting at the dining table, tears streaming down her face.

"Peggy? What's wrong?"

She was holding a little yellow piece of paper in her hand and Steve recognized it as a telegram.

"My brother, Michael, he…" she gave a shaky breath. "He was killed in France."

She began to sob and immediately Steve went over and wrapped his arms around her, gently stroking her hair and whispering that everything was going to be okay over and over. His heart broke for her as she shook with sobs in his arms.

After a few moments, she took a hiccupping breath and asked, "Do you think he suffered?"

The question made Steve's brow furrow while he held her. He did not know the exact circumstances of Michael's death, but Steve knew war, and had heard of and seen first-hand the physical and mental anguish it can cause. He had not spent more than a few weeks in the trenches before being unceremoniously sent back home, but he had seen the full might of the impact of warfare. He knew of men that had been tortured, had lost their will to live and ran at full force toward the barrages, and had faces half blown off due to shells landing near them. He knew of men that had come back from the war in one piece but could not speak of anything they saw or experienced there. So Steve knew that Michael had most likely been exposed to the full anguish that war had to offer having been in the trenches for almost a year, but it was something that he could not tell Peggy. She was a tough lady, but hearing something like that about her brother was not what she needed right now.

"I'm sure he died with honor," replied Steve gently. "He went down fighting for freedom and I'm sure he took great comfort in that, as should you."

Peggy said nothing, continuing to cry into Steve's shirt as he held her and whispered futile words of reassurance.


The funeral was held a week later in Denver once Michael's body returned home on a day that was ironically very bright and sunny, as if to mock the mourners. Steve and Peggy sat with her parents and Sharon at the front of the church, none of them having the words to express to each other the sorrow they felt so they simply sat in silence with tears streaming down their faces.

At the reception at the Carter's house afterwards, Peggy was touched to see how many people had come to offer their condolences and tell their family stories about the lives Michael had touched. Inside, it made Peggy's heart break even more but there was a quiet solace in knowing her brother was revered as a good man while he was alive.

Peggy's father approached her while she was silently reflecting and remarked, "I can see you're starting to show."

She looked down and instinctively placed a hand on her belly, sighing because she knew her black dress had been feeling a little tight.

"I hadn't realized it was starting to become obvious," she replied.

"Seems pretty fast, considering you're not due until January."

There was something in his eye that Peggy caught, but he did not further elaborate so she played it off. "Yes, I suppose things are progressing rather quickly."

He gave her a sad smile and put a hand on her shoulder. "Your life is your business, dear, but I just hope you are happy with Steve."

"Of course I'm happy with Steve," she shot back a little harsher than she had intended. "Would I be having his child if I wasn't?"

Mr. Carter threw his hands up defensively. "Alright, my dear, if you say so."

He made an excuse for himself to go talk to an old friend and Peggy sighed, looking over at Steve who was talking to the Starks across the room. She wanted to walk over there and tell Steve she was tired and wanted to go home, but before she could, Steve's mother approached her with a kind smile.

"Peggy? How are you holding up, dear?" she asked gently.

Peggy shrugged. "As well as I can be doing, I suppose."

Sarah nodded sadly, looking at her. "You know, when Steve was younger and money was tight, I became quite the seamstress and created all sorts of clothes for him and myself."

Peggy was puzzled at this and gave her an odd look. Sarah put a warm hand on her arm. "What I mean to say is that if you need maternity clothes, I would be glad to make you some. I can take your measurements later and I have lots of extra fabric lying around that we could use."

Internally, the generous offer made Peggy want to start crying on the spot. How odd it was that Sarah was not her real parent but treated her with so much more kindness and respect than Mr. and Mrs. Carter ever did. There was never any judgment from Sarah, even after she knew about the circumstances of the marriage and the pregnancy. Rather than try to manipulate or change things about Peggy and Steve's relationship, she simply accepted it and asked if they were happy. And that was all Peggy had wanted from her real family.

"You know something," said Peggy with glassy eyes to Sarah, "I want to tell you that I've learned more about love from you and your son in the past few months than I ever did living in my parents' house for nearly twenty years."

Sarah looked at Peggy with slightly widened eyes for a moment, then pulled her in for a tight hug.

"I couldn't have asked for a better daughter-in-law," she replied softly, a single tear falling down her face.


On the way home from the funeral, Steve was driving and Peggy sat in the passenger seat, contemplating. Steve did not want to bother her or ask if she needed anything because he had been doing that for the past week and he could tell she was starting to become annoyed by it. So they drove in silence for a while until Peggy asked a question out of the blue.

"Steve, how did your mother react when you told her I was pregnant with a child that wasn't yours?"

Steve blinked, a little taken aback by the question. "Uh…She was a little shocked at first. But then she said she felt for your situation and understood why you did it."

"Why I married you, you mean?"

Steve nodded. "I think she knew I had feelings for you even before I did, but once she knew the full story she told me it was a good thing I was marrying you."

"A good thing?" she asked, incredulous. "Even though we were practically strangers?"

"She said she saw how happy I was around you. And if her son was happy, then that's all that mattered."

Peggy sat in silence for a long while. Then she said, "We should ask her to stay with us some time. I think she'd like to see the farm, especially since her health is improving."

Perhaps the emotions of the day were finally getting to Steve, because he was suddenly surprised to find a lump in his throat. For a moment he considered turning to Peggy and telling her he loved her right then and there, but thought better of it because he had better wait until she wasn't in mourning. The timing just has to be right because that's what she deserved.

"I think she'd like that," replied Steve, clearing his throat. "I can telephone her tonight."

Peggy nodded slowly. Her expression was unreadable as Steve glanced at her out of the corner of his eye to see her staring out the window at the farms and fields that passed them by on the long drive home.


Whoever said the second trimester of pregnancy was easier was a liar, Peggy determined, as her symptoms were just as bad as the first trimester. Thankfully the morning sickness had pretty much gone away, but with her expanding belly, Peggy found her back and feet starting to ache. She found it harder to get into a comfortable position to sleep and the lack of proper sleep made her feel tired throughout the day. And on top of that, she was still mourning her brother and the damn hormones made her cry nearly every day.

Steve had been a saint this past week as he constantly checked in on her throughout the day to make sure she was okay. He never strayed too far from the house during the day in case she needed anything. Sometimes she was having a craving for something and Steve did what he could to scrounge together a meal that resembled what she wanted; other times she just needed to cry and Steve would hold her and stroke her hair while she did so. Steve never told her to stop crying or pull herself together; he always allowed her to feel her emotions as strongly as she needed to, and Peggy was eternally grateful for that.

She cursed the fact that all this happened right as she and Steve were starting to become physically closer, but she found neither the will nor the energy to initiate anything with Steve. Not that he seemed to mind – in fact, Steve reassured her that she could take as much time as she needed before they got intimate again, and Peggy allowed herself to take him up on this offer despite feeling a little guilty for neglecting him.

Before they both knew it, it was early July which meant Steve's birthday was approaching. They found it a good opportunity for Steve's mother to visit and when they telephoned to ask her she delightfully agreed. Mr. Jarvis so kindly offered to drive her over and when she got out of the car, she beamed at the couple.

"I'm so glad to finally come visit," she told Peggy as she hugged her and kissed her cheek. "And happy birthday, Steve!"

"Thanks, Ma," he said as she kissed him affectionately.

"Twenty-three already, I can't believe it!" exclaimed Sarah. "How old does that make me?"

"It makes you someone who still looks very young and beautiful," remarked Peggy, making the other two smile.

"How sweet you are," said Sarah as the trio headed up to the house. "And your belly is starting to get bigger I see! Remind me how many weeks along you are?"

"Fifteen," replied Peggy with a hand on her belly. "The second trimester is no walk in the park like I was led to believe."

"Don't I know it," Sarah commiserated, shooting a pretend look of annoyance at Steve which made Peggy snicker.

Steve's birthday was a quiet affair that day, for which Peggy could not help but feel a little guilty. Michael's funeral had only been a week prior so she still did not feel like being jovial, but she tried her best for Steve. She had bought him a beautiful set of paints and paintbrushes as a gift for his birthday, by which he was delighted.

"One of these days you'll have to let me draw you," he said to Peggy as he looked over the new art supplies. Peggy scoffed.

"I don't feel like a model these days…"

"You could never not be beautiful, so stop moping and be my model," he said playfully, making her laugh. Peggy caught the twinkle in Sarah's eyes as she smiled at the two of them.

They feasted on a nice dinner with a chocolate cake for dessert – Steve's favorite – and the friendly conversation never died down as the trio enjoyed each other's company. Despite the heavy clutch that grief had on her heart, Peggy felt lighter than she had in days with something uplifting to take her mind off of things.

"I'm going to go check on Billie and see how she's doing," remarked Peggy as Steve finished cleaning up dinner.

"Who's Billie?" asked Sarah, clearly confused.

"Oh, she's one of our cows," explained Steve. "She injured her hoof and Peggy likes to go out there every night and make sure she's okay."

"Huh, Billie," Sarah mused. "What an odd name for a cow."

"We named her after Billie Holiday," explained Peggy. "You know, the singer?"

Sarah merely shrugged but she caught Steve's eye, who smiled.

"Be safe out there," he called out after her as she headed outside.

Steve poured himself and his mother each a small cup of coffee from the silver pot on the stove. He handed her the steaming cup as he sat back down at the dining table.

"Mmm," breathed Sarah as she inhaled the bitter smell. "I can always rely on you to know how to make a good cup o' joe."

"You're the one who taught me," he admitted, and she smiled. She reached out her hand and patted Steve's.

"I'm just so pleased to see you happy, son," she said with glassy eyes. "I know it's been a rough week since the funeral, especially for Peggy, but I can tell you make each other happy."

Steve smiled back at her with a small hint of sadness. "She does make me happy, Mother. Very happy. I just…"

He trailed off, looking away from her for a moment, and concern flooded her face.

"What's wrong, my darling boy?"

Steve sighed. "I told Peggy I loved her."

Sarah raised her eyebrows, but then looked confused at his sadness. "And this is…a bad thing?"

"No, but the way I told her wasn't ideal," he explained carefully, skirting around telling his mother the fact that he had told Peggy he loved her after having mind-blowing sex. "She's waiting for me to say it to her with sincerity and honesty, and I just haven't found the right moment yet. I was going to tell her a week ago, but then with Michael and everything that happened…"

"I see," replied his mother, thinking. "And she hasn't said it back to you yet?"

"No, but I think she's waiting for me to go first. I think she wants to be certain of my love for her before she says it. Which I can't blame her for, because of how long I hid my feelings from her."

"So this means you haven't given her the rings yet," she remembered. Steve nodded and Sarah's blue eyes bored into his, giving her son a look of slight admonishment.

"I suppose this means you've learned absolutely nothing from wartime, Steve."

"I…what?" he spluttered. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean is, if the war hasn't taught you that life is short and the time to tell someone you love them is now, then I don't know where you've been for the past few years."

Steve was taken aback by her comment. "Well, I–"

"It is all well and good to wait until the right moment to tell someone they love them," interrupted Sarah gently. "But the fact of the matter is, you don't need a special occasion or a grand gesture to tell someone that. In reality, you should be telling someone as often as possible that you love them because you never know what life will throw your way, which is what I would have thought Michael's death had taught you."

Shame flooded Steve's veins as he was hit by his mother's stern but true words. He was about to respond but she cut him off again.

"Now, I am going to go upstairs to the guest room and get ready for bed. Your wife is outside in the barn, alone. Do with that information what you will."

She gave him an almost imperceptible wink as she stood from the table and headed toward the staircase, slowly trudging up as Steve was left alone. He considered her words and then was suddenly struck with wondering what the hell he had been waiting for and he needed to get over himself and tell his wife what she needed to hear.

Heart pounding, he grabbed his coat and headed out to the barn.

Peggy, meanwhile, was searching around the barn for something with which to wrap Billie's foot. The old cow's bandages had gotten dirty and she figured the boys must keep some sort of old cloth or something she could use among the various junk in the back of the barn. She was shifting small boxes around when she suddenly saw a small blue box that looked out of place. Curious, she picked it up and removed the lid. She gasped lightly when she found it contained two shining gold wedding bands, each one engraved with a tiny delicate filigree going all the way around each ring.

She stood there for a moment in bewilderment as she wondered what that box was doing there buried under all the old pieces of junk. She turned suddenly when she heard the barn door open behind her and she saw Steve come in. He looked at her and froze when he saw her holding the small blue box.

"Oh, uh," he stammered as he looked from her to the box and back and forth several times. He rubbed the back of his neck ruefully. "I guess the surprise is ruined."

"Surprise?" she asked as she looked down at the rings curiously.

"Yeah, I…" he took a step toward her uncertainly. "Those are – were – my parents' rings and I wanted to surprise you with them. Ever since you brought down the easel for me, I thought I needed to return the favor and give you something nice, too. But with everything that happened recently, I never got a chance to."

She stared down at the rings with an unreadable expression. Was it…anger? Disappointment? Confusion? Steve licked his lips nervously.

"I was going to give them to you. They're, uh…they're yours if you want them."

Peggy was silent for several more minutes and Steve assumed the worst: he thought she hated him for the gesture, that it was too much and she wasn't ready to show their commitment in that way. But then she looked up at him with pleading eyes.

"Tell me now," she said with a slight shake in her voice.

Steve blinked. "What?"

"That you love me. Tell me you love me. Right now."

Steve raised his eyebrows as she slowly took a few steps forward to close the distance between them. She was merely inches away from him as she looked up into his eyes.

"Tell me right now because this time, I'll believe you."

Steve's gaze softened. He tenderly grasped the sides of her upper arms and looked at her straight in her brown eyes.

"I love you, Peggy. I've loved you for longer than I've realized; since before I ever asked you to marry me. This marriage has always been real to me, since the day we said our vows and every day since then. And I would be honored if we could wear these rings as a symbol of our love for each other."

He gently grabbed the blue box from her and took out the smaller ring. He grasped her left hand and slowly slid the ring onto her finger and brought it up to his lips to kiss it. Tears welled in her eyes as she looked from the ring to Steve's eyes.

"I love you too, Steve. I think for longer than I've realized as well."

She took the other ring out of the box and reached for Steve's hand, slowly sliding the gold band onto his ring finger. Steve's heart felt like it was exploding in his chest and he wondered if he would ever feel happier at any point in time than in this very moment. Words failed to express this to her so he leaned down to kiss her, letting the small box fall to the ground. She reached up and put her arms around his neck to return the kiss fervently, pouring her heart and soul into it as they finally – finally – knew for certain that they loved each other.

Passion rose in each of them as the kiss deepened, Steve burying his hands in her hair as her nails lightly dug into the back of his neck. Steve leaned into her and Peggy took a couple stumbling steps backward until her back was up against the wall of the barn.

Steve's hands settled onto her waist as the fire of her kisses lit something in him. He let his hands roam all over her trembling body as Peggy held tightly onto his neck. He could feel how hot her skin felt under his touch and his heart raced as he knew she was allowing him to touch her body in a way that they hadn't shared in over a week.

He took a chance and dared to reach up her skirt, rubbing tantalizing circles over her underwear, which caused her to moan into his mouth. As her lips parted, Steve inserted his tongue in her mouth and she let her tongue dance with his. The pressure on her sensitive spot increased a little as Steve leaned a little more into her which made her practically whimper with need.

Breaking the kiss for a moment, Steve asked, "Do you want me to stop?"

Peggy let out a noise that was between a whine and a laugh. "Definitely not. It's been a long week."

Steve grinned mischievously as he took this as confirmation that she wanted more. He suddenly yanked her underwear down to her knees and she gasped at his sudden fierceness, finding it extremely arousing. He circled her with his fingers a few times before inserting one into her, getting hard at the feeling that she was already wet with desire for him. She cried out and tossed her head back, letting it hit the barn wall behind her with a thump.

"Steve…Steve…" she moaned as he moved his finger in and out of her, knowing exactly when and where to put pressure. Feeling emboldened, Steve dared to insert a second finger into her and she went wild for this. Her breath increased and became raggedy, her hips bucking slightly against his fingers and Steve could tell she was starting to surrender control.

By her mounting moans he could tell she was close to climaxing, but just before she could, he suddenly stopped and hastily began to undo his belt and trousers. He pulled them down impatiently and lifted her up against the wall, Peggy instinctively wrapping her legs around his waist as he held her up. He then rubbed the tip of his erection at her entrance and she gasped. He slowly entered her, groaning fiercely as he did so and she pressed her forehead against his. Once he was most of the way inside, he wasted no time building up a steady tempo of sliding in and out of her.

"God, yes, Steve," she moaned breathily into his ear as he ground his hips frantically into her. "Do whatever you want with me, I'm yours."

The comment brought out something feral in Steve and he began giving it to her hard and fast, being mindful of her belly but knowing she could take it. She cried out in ecstasy as he filled her, the sheer pleasure rippling through her as she felt herself getting closer to climaxing again. He bottomed out as she squeezed her legs as tightly as she could to increase the pleasurable friction.

"I love you Steve," she cried out as the passion reached its apex and she felt pleasure roll through her in waves.

"God, Peggy, I love you so much," he groaned as he felt her clenching around him during her orgasm. This was enough to bring him to the climax, too, and he came inside her harder than he thought was possible.

They both gasped for air as their respective climaxes simmered down gradually. Steve carefully removed himself from her and she unhooked her legs from his waist. He was breathing heavily as he lovingly kissed her forehead and looked deep into her eyes.

"Looks like I'm not the only one who says 'I love you' in the throes of passion," he said with a naughty grin.

Peggy scoffed and feigned annoyance at him. "Yeah, well, I'm pregnant; what's your excuse?"

Steve laughed as he placed a light hand on her belly. "You got me there. I just hope the baby doesn't inherit your tenacity, otherwise what will I do if you two gang up against me?"

She grinned and kissed him tenderly. "I'm sure you'd be able to handle it."

A/N: Hmm seems like a pretty happy ending to this story, right? Well, fear not, because we've still got several chapters to go until we're done with this couple. :)