He walked into his bedroom from the bathroom, wrapping a towel around his waist, and couldn't help but laugh at the sight that greeted him. Sam was lying on her back on the bed, wearing just her jeans and her bra, and trying, in vain, to close the button on her pants.
"Don't laugh," she muttered, groaning as she lifted her head to scowl at him. She bit her lip as she took a deep breath, sucked in her stomach and tried again.
Dante chuckled again and walked towards her, sitting beside her on the bed and covering her hands with one of his. She sighed and flopped back in defeat, swinging her arm across her face dramatically.
"This is your fault, anyways," she said, the sly smile on her lips betraying any real annoyance she had. He laughed and spread his hand across the small swell of her stomach as she propped herself up on her elbows. "I guess it's time for me to buy some maternity clothes," she said and he nodded, gently brushing his thumb across her skin.
"And maybe for us to tell the kids?" he added, looking up at her and she smiled, nodding in agreement.
"After we close on the house tomorrow," she said, glancing down and picking up the engagement ring that had hung on a long chain around her neck, tucked into the loose tops that she'd been wearing for nearly two months. "Let's take them there, show them their new rooms and tell them everything."
His smile grew and he leaned down, kissing her softly. She smiled against his lips and hooked her arms around his neck, pulling him with her as she lay back against the bed. She moved her hands to either side of his face as they pulled apart, brushing her thumb against his lips and blushing as he turned and pressed a kiss to the inside of her palm.
"I've kind of liked having all of this as our little secret," she admitted and he nodded in agreement, propping himself up on his elbow beside her and returning his other hand to her little belly. "I also kind of can't believe we've managed to keep it all a secret this long," she added and he laughed.
He was sure they'd be found out in those first few weeks while Sam battled her morning sickness. They had sent the kids to the Quartermaines more often and on shorter notice than usual and she'd had to spend the night in the hospital for IV fluids two more times in those weeks. Every time they left General Hospital without being spotted by a friend or family member, he felt like they'd made a great escape.
It wasn't that they didn't want to tell people, they did. But they had agreed that they wanted to tell the kids first, and they wanted to wait until they were a little further along in the pregnancy, if they could get there.
It had taken about a month for Sam's extreme morning sickness to improve. He'd proposed to her shortly after that - she'd asked him to wait until she wasn't throwing up every day - and she'd of course said yes, but they had agreed to wait to share their news until they had a plan to move their families in together. So, Sam wore her engagement ring on a necklace and they'd started house-hunting, somehow fitting open houses and viewings with their realtor into their already busy schedules that now also had doctors appointments and sonograms to sneak out to.
It had been hectic and exhausting but also wonderful. They were planning for their future as a family together and it had brought them even closer together and made them more certain than ever that this was what they both wanted.
They were one day away from closing on their new house and one major step closer to blending their families together.
Dante leaned over and pressed a kiss to Sam's shoulder and then one to her belly, his lips lingering just an extra second longer against her stomach. She smiled and ran her fingers through his hair as he sat up, sitting up herself and reaching for her sweater and pulling it on and down over the top of her still-undone jeans.
"You can wear a pair of my sweats home, if you want," Dante said as he stood up and tossed the towel that had been around his waist onto the chair in the corner. Sam smirked as she watched him walk across the room to his dresser and pull a pair of boxers out of the top drawer.
He paused for a moment as he caught her watching him and raised his eyebrows at her.
"What?" he asked and she shook her head, shrugging her shoulders.
"I'm just really looking forward to seeing you naked every day," she said, her grin widening as he laughed and pulled on his boxers. He walked back over towards her and leaned down, resting his hands on either side of her on the bed.
"Likewise," he whispered, pressing his lips to hers. She laughed and playfully pushed him away, standing up from the bed.
"Well, there will certainly be a lot of me to see by the time we move into the house," she said, reaching down and resting her hands against her belly. He looked down and rested his hands over hers, kissing her again.
"More beautiful than ever," he murmured against her lips and she smiled. She hadn't been fishing for the compliment but she appreciated it and she knew that he meant it. He'd been telling her and showing her every day since they'd found out she was pregnant.
"Okay," she said, kissing him once more and then gently pushing him away. "I gotta go," she said, looking around and collecting her keys and phone from the bedside table.
"You don't want some sweats?" he asked and she shook her head, pulling on her jacket over her sweater.
"No, I'm going to go buy some new pants now," she said and he chuckled and reached out, picking up the ring on the chain around her neck and tucking it into her sweater.
She smiled and patted his cheek appreciatively.
"One more day and then it'll be on my finger," she said and he nodded.
"I can't wait."