"You really let him feel our baby move?"
Erin cocked her head to one side in confusion as she climbed into bed, finding her growing girth making her even more ungainly at times like this. "Yes. Aaron didn't have that opportunity when I was pregnant with Elise, so I thought that it might be nice for him to experience what it would have felt like when Elise was growing in me. He's so lonely, David."
Her fiancé climbed in beside her after turning off the overhead light, and let out a long breath as he turned onto his side to rest his left hand on her bump as he looked into her eyes. "I know, stellina. I'm just surprised that you wanted to let him touch you so intimately. Things have been better between the two of you lately but I know that you're still a bit reticent to allow him close to you."
"I know, but we have to reach a place where we're okay with each other. Because when we finally tell Elise that Uncle Aaron is really her father, it will be better if we're kind to each other. It doesn't mean that I'm going to hug him every time I see him, though. That can be your job," she teased, covering his hand with her own as she let out a light sigh.
David chuckled as he nodded, leaning in to kiss her softly. "I'm just glad that the two of you have managed to find a place where things are good. Elise loves him so much."
"Elise is full of love, darling. That's the beautiful thing about our daughter. She is love personified, and I am going to try my best to make certain that she stays that way. Can I tell you something?"
"Anything, Erin."
"I am terrified that Foyet is going to do something to Aaron before you catch him. I know, that's probably a paranoid thought, but we've never encountered someone who is so intent on destroying one person's life before, on top of taking out as many people as he can. And if he knows so much about Aaron, what's to stop him from coming after Elise in an attempt to flush Aaron out? It would make a sick sort of sense, you know, for him to go after the flank that's unprotected. And before you say it, no, I'm not going to tell the others the truth about Elise's parentage. It wouldn't do any good, and it would divide their concentration again, when they need to be thinking about the cases that they need to solve, along with trying to track down Foyet. I've been doing my level best to make certain that I'm not followed when I have to go home on my own, and I've kept my service weapon close to me at all times, but there is still this little niggling doubt in the back of my mind that something beyond bad is going to happen?"
She licked her lips nervously as David reached out to caress her face delicately. "I have that feeling of impending doom, too, Erin. And I think that every single member of the team feels that same thing in the pit of their stomachs. We just don't verbalise it, because if we do, it's as if we are willing it into existence. So as long as we pretend that everything is all right, then everything will be all right. But it's not. Is it, Erin?"
As she shook her head, David leaned in to kiss her once more, and she welcomed the feel of his lips against hers as he gently tugged her closer to his side, fitting his body around hers as he let out a deep breath. "I wish that there was an easy answer for all this, but it seems like those are more and more rare these days." Closing her eyes heavily, Erin kissed David once more, wishing that she wasn't quite so heavily pregnant in that moment, as she desperately wanted to make love with him. "So, I don't feel like turning over, since I am very comfortable right now. Would you mind switching spots for the night so that I can feel you spooned up against my back?"
He nodded before gently pulling her over to the other side of the bed as he slipped out of it and then she listened to his feet pad against the floor before he got back into bed, wrapping his arm around her stomach after pulling the sheets up around their shoulders. "All right, let's talk about something a little happier, so that our dreams might be sweet this evening. We can't constantly dwell on all the bad shit that's going on in the world, otherwise we'll go slowly insane."
She nodded as she covered his hand with hers, pressing it firmly against her stomach, hoping that the baby would kick so that David could feel it. "This is very true, darling. All right, something happy. If I say you, is that cheating?"
Erin giggled as David swept aside her hair and pressed a tickling kiss against her neck. "A little, yes. But you make me happy, too, so I suppose that I can make an exception. Are we going to your parents for Christmas this year?"
"God no, David! They're coming here. There is no way on God's green Earth that I would be on a train or in a car that late into my pregnancy. Can you imagine what would happen if I went into early labor? No, I want to be here, surrounded by my friends and family this Christmas. Your sisters are coming, though, yes?"
"I wish. They called and said that Thanksgiving would work better for them this year, since they have plans to celebrate both Christmas and the New Year in Italy. And since there's no way you'd be allowed to fly at that point in your pregnancy, well, we'll see them in four weeks."
"It's going to be a full house, then," she murmured, stroking his hand with her thumb.
"Actually, I convinced them to stay in the cabin, and since Alan has our eldest kids for Thanksgiving this year, we're going to join them, and the only thing we have to bring is a salad and the drinks. They're going to do everything else there, so that we can have a bit of a relaxing time this holiday season. And I'm still holding out hope that we'll find Foyet in time for Haley and Jack to be home for Christmas, and that we can hold an extended family celebration here. Maybe not on Christmas Day itself, but for Epiphany, perhaps."
"I love that idea. And we can have an explosion of Christmas cheer this one year? I know, you're still growing used to the idea of decorating for Christmas, but I think that a joyful cacophony of cheer would be appropriate for them returning to us, right?"
"As long as we return to the tasteful, elegant, way you decorate our house next year, I will agree to that. But only if they're home in time for Christmas. And we might have to hire decorators, because you are going to be extremely pregnant in the weeks leading up to Epiphany."
"I was thinking that we could have Penelope, Jessica, and Helen help me and the children decorate. I can delegate and they can do the hard work while I lounge on the sofa."
David laughed before kissing her neck once more, his hand sliding upwards until he was cupping her breast, squeezing gently as he swiped his thumb back and forth across her nipple. "All you need is someone to feed you grapes and fan you while you do that, stellina."
"Hush. I'm not some pampered Roman empress, David."
"I could make you one, if you wanted."
She let out a low moan of frustration as she ground back against him. "What I want is you to finish what you're trying to start here. But you know what Doctor Brunner said about sex through the end of this pregnancy. I can't even go down on you because that sets off my gag reflex. Let me tell you, I am going to have the shortest fuse when we can finally have sex again."
"And I will be there to help you find that satisfaction, Erin." He kissed her once more before sliding his hand back down to her bump and stroking it softly. "Now, let's try to get some rest. I have the feeling that tomorrow is going to be a long day." She nodded as she wriggled a little against him, trying to get comfortable once more as she thought about the most benign things in the world in an effort to forget about being so keyed up. "I love you, Erin."
"I love you, too," she softly replied as she closed her eyes and allowed herself to drift off to sleep, safe and warm in her beloved's arms.