Chapter Ten
Four-and-a-Half Months Later…
"Dammit, Paige," Cole reprimanded as he stood on the mat over a prone Paige, "you're not concentrating!"
"Yes, I --" Paige panted as she wished away the bright stars that circled her vision.
"No, you're not," he interrupted as he stepped back. "If you were, you wouldn't be flat on your back right now."
"Cole, maybe, she--" Phoebe began from her spot on the basement steps.
"No," he yelled as he turned to her, "don't make excuses for her. She's not even trying! Does she even practice when I'm not around? I'm telling you, Phoebe, I'll take you away if I feel your sisters aren't physically fit for combat."
"What is this, a war?" Paige grumbled as she crawled to her knees before she stood. "And don't talk about me as if I'm not here."
"I warned you to take these lessons seriously," Cole informed her. "You said you wanted to learn how to fight but you are light years behind your sisters and you don't seem to care at all about catching up."
"Why don't you give me a break?" Paige retorted. "I'm doing my best," she muttered as she rubbed the back of her neck.
"We know you are, honey," Phoebe calmly told her while giving a reproachful look to Cole. "Just like the book-learning last year, we're asking you to get the hang of years of practice in just a few months." She walked to the mat and stood before Cole. "Here," she told her younger sister, "step back and watch how that throw should be done."
"Absolutely not!" Cole half-shouted at her while Paige stepped off the mat.
Surprised, Phoebe stared at him, "What do you mean 'absolutely not'? It might help for Paige to see where she's making her mistakes."
"You're in no condition for a workout like this," Cole stated as he crossed his arms in front of him. "You need to rest."
"Number one, I'm pregnant, Cole," she glared, "not an invalid. Number two, I need to stay in shape and watching everyone else's workout isn't the way to do it. And, number three, this is probably the most mobile I'll be during the entire pregnancy so I need to take advantage of it."
"Paige," Cole ordered as he ignored Phoebe and pointed at Paige, "get back on the mat."
"Paige," Phoebe insisted as she continued to glare at Cole, "stay right where you are."
"Step back," he warned Phoebe.
"Make me," she challenged as she stood her ground.
"What's going on down there?" Piper interrupted as she opened the door to the basement. "I can hear you all the way upstairs," she complained as she went down a few steps.
Cole glared at Phoebe and barked at Piper, "Is the potion done?"
"Not yet," Piper answered. "I didn't --"
"What?" Cole roared. "How the hell do any of you expect me to get you ready for Hasoaf if none of you take these lessons seriously? We don't have --"
"Listen to me, Cole Turner," Piper demanded through clenched teeth, "I have spent the past six hours trying to settle down a screaming baby who didn't want to be anywhere but in my arms. The absolute last thing I thought about was making some damn vanquishing potion for a demon that we haven't heard about in months. And if any of you wake that baby up because of your shouting match I will take great pleasure in personally blowing each one of you straight up to high heaven!"
While the others paid attention to Piper's rant, Phoebe took the opportunity to kick out Cole's left leg from under him. But, even though she had caught him off-guard, he reacted quickly enough to grab her as he went down. Each acted automatically and their brief tussle ended with Phoebe straddling Cole, who lay flat on his back.
"You got that Paige?" she asked without taking her eyes off Cole. She was pleased with herself and let him know.
"What the hell did you think you were doing?" he angrily asked her. "You could've gotten hurt."
"But I'm fine," she grinned as she pressed her palms down on his chest. "In fact, I'm just warming up. So let's continue to show Paige how to do it right."
"Phoebe…" he warned.
"Come on," she suggested as she ignored the daggers his eyes were shooting at her, "we'll do it in slow motion if it'll make you feel better."
"No," he resisted. "You've had enough. Go help Piper with that potion."
Phoebe frowned and slapped his chest, "Don't give me that, you, male chauv--"
"What is it?" Cole asked with immediate concern when she suddenly stopped talking.
She shook her head, "Quiet."
"Phoebe?" Paige asked with a nervous glance to Piper.
Phoebe pressed her slightly rounded stomach in various spots and frowned in concentration. "Quiet," she repeated.
"I knew it," Cole said, annoyed. "You overdid it and --"
"Would you be quiet," she interrupted in frustration. She suddenly grabbed his hand and pressed it to her stomach. "There," she declared. She watched him and waited for his reaction.
Cole's eyes widened, "Is that…"
"The baby," Piper realized as she watched the pair on the mat.
Phoebe smiled radiantly at Cole as she bobbed her head up and down. "The first time. Well, the first time I'm sure, anyway."
"That's…Phoebe, it's…incredible," he whispered in return as he gazed at their hands. His eyes then met hers and he squeezed her hand tightly. "Our baby," he whispered as he pulled her down towards him for a breathless kiss.
Phoebe grinned and rubbed noses with him, "Change your mind about that workout?"
Without taking his eyes off Phoebe, he told Paige, "Ten minute break." Phoebe wiggled her hips ever so slightly and he groaned, "Make that an hour."
"Or two," Phoebe's giggle was heard as she vanished from the basement floor with Cole.
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"Where are you going?" Phoebe asked as she grabbed Cole's arm to keep him in bed.
He had gotten hold of his robe and answered, "You said you were hungry. I thought I'd make us some sandwiches."
"Uh, uh," she told him as she tugged on his hand and prevented him from slipping his arm into the sleeve.
"No sandwiches?" he asked as he turned to her. "What do you want?"
"Not food," she grinned as she pulled him back down next to her.
"But you said you were hungry," he commented between her playful kisses.
"Not for food," she murmured as he lay next to her and she strained her arm to pull the covers over them both. "You didn't get to Chapter Ten, did you?" she giggled as he began nuzzling her neck.
Cole froze and warily asked, "Chapter Ten?"
"Mhmm," she murmured as she nudged him onto his back. "The book in your nightstand," she added as traced invisible circles with her finger along his chest and kissed him.
Cole grabbed her wrists to stop her. "What were you doing snooping around in that drawer?"
Surprised, Phoebe pulled back, "What?"
Annoyed, he still held her wrists. "I thought we'd at least moved past the point of you being suspicious of me."
"What are you talking about?" she asked as she yanked her hands free from his grip.
Cole frowned as he sat up, "Was this your plan for revenge?"
"What?" Phoebe uttered, stunned.
"Sure," he rationalized, "payback for the way I used you to get to your sisters when we first met. Only this time, you use my feelings for you as my weakness. Congratulations. Brilliant move. Does this mean the three of you already figured out some vanquish for me?"
"What the hell are you talking about?" she snapped as she finally sat up. "You know how I feel about vanquishing you."
"Do I?" he countered. "You're telling me you weren't spying on me? That you weren't trying to find evidence of some dark plan of mine to confirm your suspicions about me?"
"That's exactly what I'm telling you," she stated in annoyance. "I wasn't snooping. I was looking for the charger to your cell phone. You used to keep it in that drawer."
"Why'd you want the charger?" he accused.
She glared at him, "When I borrowed your phone yesterday to call my sisters, I noticed it was very low and thought I'd recharge it for you. Jeez, Cole, what's your problem? Are you hiding something from me?" She turned around and slid to the other side of the bed. "Maybe I'd better call Leo."
"Don't go," he requested as he quickly reached for her. "I overreacted," he apologized.
"I'll say," she muttered. She turned back to him and said quietly, "I really thought we'd made some progress during the past few months and that we'd gotten past a lot of our insecurities."
"I thought so too," he replied as he leaned back against the headboard. "I'm sorry, Phoebe," he added as he leaned forward again, brought her hand to his lips, and lightly kissed her palm. He shrugged, "You caught me off-guard about the book."
She smiled softly, "Why didn't you tell me that you bought it?" Cole silently shrugged and she maintained her smile as she inched towards him and slid her arms up and around his neck, "We could read it together, you know. Just because I'm pregnant, doesn't mean I have all the answers."
He kissed her tenderly on the lips before he hugged her tightly. "So what's in Chapter Ten?"
"Only that you're in for three months of the best sex ever," she murmured in the midst of nibbling his earlobe.
"Really?" he asked distractedly.
"Multiple pleasures," she added as she trailed kisses down his neck and shoulder.
"Where's that book?" he asked as he pulled away and twisted his position to reach out for his nightstand. "Maybe I should read --"
Phoebe grabbed his arm and twisted him back towards her. As she leaned backwards towards the bed, she pulled him down on top of her, and suggested, "I think showing you would be better…"
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Cole kissed the back of Phoebe's head as they lay spooned under the covers. His hand gently stroked her stomach and he whispered in amazement, "He's really in there, isn't he? It's the first time he seems real to me."
"You said that when we heard his heartbeat for the first time," she teased as she laced her fingers with his.
"It's all so incredible," he murmured as he kissed her again.
"A miracle," she agreed as she turned over to face him. "In more ways than one."
He caressed her cheek. "The Whitmans called this morning. They accepted our bid and we could close in a month or so."
"Oh," Phoebe quietly commented, "isn't it a bit soon?"
"Not really," he answered as he kissed the tip of her nose. "So what did your sisters say when you told them? Do they already have everything packed up for you?" Phoebe averted her eyes and he stared at her, "You didn't tell them, did you?"
"It's not that simple, Cole," she began. "Things are still so --"
"No," he sharply interrupted, "it is exactly that simple." He quickly sat up and grabbed his robe.
"Cole, stop…" she requested as he got out of bed and quickly put on the robe. "Come back to bed."
"You can't keep doing this," he told her as he tightened the robe's belt. "Running hot and cold with me won't wash anymore. Either you want to go ahead with this or you don't. But make up your mind once and for all because it's not fair to me and it's not fair to them."
"I'm not --" she tried to say.
But Cole interrupted again as he paced the length of the room, "I thought we were going to be honest with each other. If you've changed your mind, you owe it to me to tell me."
"But I haven't changed my mind," she insisted. "I do think we should move in together. And you know I don't want to stay here in the penthouse. I want to be some place new without any bad memories and --"
"Then why haven't you told them?" he demanded as he stopped at the other end of the room and stared at her.
"I told my father," she weakly mentioned.
"That's not the same and you know it," he informed her.
"You have to understand," she requested, "things are still awkward with my sisters. I still feel like I'm walking on eggshells with them whenever I talk about you. Don't tell me you can't feel the tension when you're there."
"I thought they were accepting me a bit more," he considered.
She shook her head, "Only so far as protecting us from Hasoaf. Come on, Cole, Piper hasn't let you come within ten feet of Melinda since she was born. And I'm still afraid to have you bring me directly into my own bedroom so you can spend the night because I'd be breaking their rules. How are they going to feel if I say I want to move in with you after only four months? Maybe we should push this off until my relationship with them is a little more stable. It'll give us a bit more time too. After today, maybe we still need it."
"You loved the Whitman house," he told her when she finished speaking. "That was the first one you connected to. Did you ever think that maybe things would be easier for all our relationships if you weren't living at the manor?"
"Just a little longer," she pleaded. "There will be other houses."
"But we could move into the Whitman house before the baby's born in a few months," he argued. She didn't respond and he stared at her. "What is it? Every time I talk about the baby's birth you freeze. In fact," he considered, "now that I think about it, any time we talk about any future plans, you go silent. What's going on, Phoebe?"
"Couldn't we just continue like we're doing," she requested, "and take things slowly? One day at a time?"
"No," he answered. "If something's going on, I want to know what it is. What's it mean to be honest if you hide things from me?"
"I'm not hiding anything from you," she whispered. "I just think maybe we are rushing things."
"We're not," he insisted. "We talked about this for a month and we looked at twelve houses, Phoebe. You fell in love with this one and said it was perfect for us. You were so sure we were doing the right thing. What the hell's changed in two weeks? What happened to change your mind?"
"The premonition, all right?" she shouted. He stared at her, stunned, and she cried, "In a few months we'll all be dead and none of this will matter."
"Oh, baby," Cole whispered as he rushed across the room, sat on the bed, and pulled her into his arms.
"Can't we just enjoy what little time we have left?" she sobbed.
"I'm sorry," he whispered as he rubbed her back and kissed the top of her head. "Why didn't you tell me you were having the nightmare again?"
"I'm not," she sniffled as she pulled back. She gazed at him and admitted, "But every time we make plans for the baby, I remember what's going to happen and I'm afraid." She gripped his upper arms and squeezed them in fear as she whispered, "I'm so afraid. I know we've been preparing for Hasoaf and you keep telling me that it'll be okay. I want to believe so badly when Piper says he's not coming."
"Just because we haven't heard about him killing any more witches," Cole cautioned as he ran his fingers through her hair, "doesn't mean he's not still out there killing." She gasped and he reached for her hands and held them tightly in his. "He was imprisoned for centuries, Phoebe, so he's incredibly weak. Killing those witches four months ago probably took everything he had but their additional powers weren't enough to build him up to the point of attacking you and your sisters. He'll have to kill many more to reach that point and, chances are, he'll go after demons before more witches."
"Because he knows witches will be on the alert and waiting for him," she whispered, "but we wouldn't know about demons being killed or disappearing."
Cole nodded and hugged her tightly, "We may not know where he is now but we're getting ready for him. I blew my cool with your sisters before. They're doing much better than I'd expected. We'll beat him, Phoebe. I promise. And you and I and our baby will be safe."
"I need you, Cole," she whispered as she pulled back. She tugged on his robe's lapels and pleaded, "I need to be with you. I don't want to feel this dread inside me. I need to feel alive."
Cole pulled her close again and kissed her tenderly. He felt her tremble in his arms and he tilted her chin back slightly and gazed into her eyes. "I won't let anything happen to you," he promised. "Trust me."
"I…want to," she slowly whispered.
"Then let me take your fears away," he requested as he caressed her cheek, "at least for today."
Phoebe hesitantly pushed the robe of his shoulders and he smiled encouragingly as he pulled his arms out of the sleeves. She tentatively reached for him as tears spilled down her cheeks.
Cole tenderly brushed away her tears and gently pushed her back into the pillows and proceeded to make her fears disappear.
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"Cole," Phoebe whispered as she rested her head on his chest, "I'm hungry."
"You're insatiable, witch," he sighed in frustration as he continued to lazily stroke her shoulder and arm.
"Don't tell me you didn't enjoy that first-hand lesson of Chapter Ten?" she teased as she propped herself up enough to plant a warm kiss on his lips.
"Oh no, Ms. Halliwell," he grinned, "quite the contrary. I was pleased…multiple times, in fact," he added as he leaned forward and kissed her again.
She giggled and pulled away slightly, "I'm still hungry…"
"You're going to be the death of me," he playfully groaned as he sank back into the pillows.
Phoebe stiffened and sat up. "Don't say that," she quietly requested as she pulled the sheet tightly around her. "Don't even joke about it."
Cole quickly hugged her from behind. "I was teasing and didn't think," he apologized seriously. He gently twisted her in place and tenderly kissed her.
Phoebe hugged him tightly before she relaxed in his embrace. "Cole," she murmured as she kissed his neck, "I'm hungry."
"I know," he commented in a muffled voice as his lips were buried in her hair, "I'm working on it."
"No," she giggled as she pulled away, "I'm really hungry…for food."
Cole sighed in relief and smiled. "You want those sandwiches now?" After she nodded he, grabbed his robe and stood.
"Wait," she said after he put it on and started for the doorway, "I'll help you."
"I can manage," he told her. "Why don't you rest a bit?" he suggested.
"I don't mind," she insisted as she reached for his nearby T-shirt and pulled it over her head. She noticed him staring adoringly at her when she stood. She looked down and realized that the shirt, which normally would have been a bit big on her, was clinging to her. Without thinking, she lightly rubbed her belly but, when she suddenly looked back at him, she blushed.
"I love you," he told her as he reached for her hand.
"Cole, I--" she began as she looked down.
"I know," he calmly interrupted and kissed her hand, "and it's okay, Phoebe." She stared at him and he told her, "I know we've made progress and I know that having the baby is a wonderful thing for us but I also know that you're not ready to say the words."
"I'm sorry," she admitted, "it's just that --"
"It's okay," he repeated as he cut her off again. "I'm not sure I've earned the right yet to hear them. But I'll wait. Part of the problem has been that I forgot how to be patient. That was one of my better qualities and I'm trying to learn it all over again." Phoebe was about to say something but he quickly continued, "I do know how you feel and, when the time is right, you'll be able to say them." She gave him a shy smile and he tugged on her hand. With a smile, he said, "Right now, let's just get some food for you and junior."
"Junior?" Phoebe wrinkled her nose in distaste. "I think I'm up for a healthy discussion on names we will not be calling our child." Cole laughed and she let him lead her out of the bedroom. "I'm not kidding," she warned.
"Junior Turner," he stated, "President of the United States."
"Cole," she snapped before she realized he was teasing. "You…" she couldn't finish her thought because Cole had already lifted her into his arms and kissed her. "Food now," she shook her head as she wrapped her arms around his neck, "dessert later."
Cole simply smiled and carried her into the kitchen.
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