Lee and Rosemary spent the morning touring the Metropolitan admiring all of the art work, stopped at Katz's Delicatessen for lunch, and was even able to sneak in another quick shower back at the hotel before it was time to go and see Romeo and Juliet. Rosemary was, of course, talking the entire cab ride over to the theater, "Oh Lee, the first performance I ever saw was Romeo and Juliet. November 20, 1889. My Mémé and Pépé on Papa's side were visiting from Marseille, France and all of us plus Maman, Papa, and Adelaide went to see Romeo and Juliet on Ste. Catherine's Street. It was the first professional performance I ever saw and it was marvelous. Oh, the costumes were so stunning, the scenery was magnificent, the ambiance was all encompassing, the actors' and actresses' performances were impeccable, and the whole experience was absolutely astounding. It was at that moment that I knew I wanted to become an actress and I was only six years old at the time. I talked about the show the entire ride home."
"I'm sure you did, sweetheart," commented Lee casually.
Rosemary glared and smacked his chest lightly. The cab driver pulled up in front of the auditorium and Lee opened the door for Rosemary, "And to think I was going to give you something special after dinner tonight."
"You still can if you want," Lee smirked and kissed her cheek a few times.
"LEE!" laughed Rosemary, playfully swatting him away from her, "Not here! Not in public! Once we're back at the hotel, I'll let you put your hands all over me," she whispered and grinned. Granted, she was learning to love that aspect of married life, but there was a proper time and place for it. The middle of an open square in New York City was definitely not it.
"Fair enough," said Lee taking her hand and leading her into the building. Rosemary's vivacious performer side shined through once again throughout the entire production and Lee could tell she was still reminiscing about her Broadway days. She maintained her closeness to Lee though, as she was holding his hand the whole time.
Once the show was over, Rosemary went back to chattering adamantly about it, "Oh Lee, did you feel the chemistry between the actors who portrayed Romeo and Juliet? For a minute, I almost forgot they were acting. Not once did I ever have that much chemistry with a man," Lee turned to face her and raised an eyebrow, "I meant a male co-star," she explained.
"I know what you meant, sweetheart. I'm just teasing," smiled Lee.
They made their way back to the hotel to relax a little before an early dinner. They sat down on the couch in the sitting area and Rosemary took Lee's hand, "I've been enjoying this time with you," she smiled.
"I have too," agreed Lee, though he had the feeling she was leading up to something more.
After several more moments, Rosemary finally took a deep breath and squeezed Lee's hand that she was holding, "Honey, I know you told me not to worry about it, but, coming from the woman's point of view, it's something I really need to talk about right now because it's difficult for me not to think about the possibility."
Lee nodded, feeling he knew where the conversation was headed, "Of course."
Rosemary glanced at their entwined hands and sighed, "Well, I know most aspects of marriage we have a lifetime to adjust to and learn about, but given the fact that I'll be thirty in June and you'll be thirty-three next month, there is one aspect that we do eventually have to discuss. A topic on which we clearly disagree based on past conversations we've had about it."
"Mm," Lee acknowledged, "I'm assuming since we've been so…active in that manner, you mean…?"
"Little Coulters, yeah," Rosemary confirmed, "I mean, I'm somewhat familiar with my cycles and I don't think I can conceive right now, but we planned our wedding and got married so fast that I'm not 100% sure. I know you really want children, and I want them with you too, I just don't know if I'm meant to be a mother. I guess that's why I'm so scared about them," Lee didn't say anything, so Rosemary knew to carry on, "I taught music and acting while I lived here in New York and I do okay when I watch Elizabeth's students for a few hours, but the thought of children that I'd be fully responsible for? It's a little scary," she vented, "I was an only child so I never had to watch any younger siblings. I didn't babysit nor did I ever have the overwhelming desire to do so. Maman's side of the family was fairly well to do, so we weren't desperate for money. I look around at Elizabeth, at Abigail, at Molly, at Dottie, at complete strangers even, and see all of this maternal instinct just flow out of them that I don't think I have. My married friends would put babies in my arms and I wouldn't have a clue about what to do with them. And I guess I just don't want to disappoint you or ruin any children we bring into the world by my lack of experience and motherly nature."
"Well, I guess even the most prepared women who dream of being mothers their entire lives are scared at first," soothed Lee, wrapping an arm around Rosie, which she gratefully accepted, "But maybe springing the idea of five kids on you was wrong on my part."
Rosemary chuckled, "Well, even if I loved children, I don't know if I'd want to go through that five times. Plus, I'm not exactly the most patient and nurturing person on the planet, so I probably wouldn't do well having a ton of kids running around with their noisy little feet, their stinky little diapers, their sticky little fingers and toes, their snotty little noses. Not to mention the whole throwing up every morning, backaches, swollen ankles, growing into the size of a small house, plus the agony of bringing that sticky Coulter into the world," she panicked.
"Okay, deep breath, Rosie," Lee said calmingly before she worked herself into a tizzy.
Rosemary took a few deep breaths and then smiled a little, "But then I think about it some more and I look at you with the Hope Valley kids, and I know you'll make a wonderful father. Playing catch with a son or playing dolls with a little girl. Oh goodness, you would absolutely melt the second you laid eyes on her. And sometimes it's fun to imagine what they'd look like. Light hair like me or dark hair like you? Green eyes or dark blue or maybe Papa's brown eyes? Would they love theater or building things or something completely different?"
"So, what are you saying?" questioned Lee curiously. Goodness did his wife like to ramble a lot.
Rosemary took another deep breath and gazed into his eyes, "I guess what I'm saying is…no, I don't want a lot of children. I probably will be a terrible mother at first, and I don't want to actively try because I'd like to try to adjust to life just the two of us before we add children into the mix," she shuttered a little, then regained her composure, "But, the thought of having a few little ones with you might turn out to be alright."
Lee smiled and kissed her temple, "Well, we'll see where life takes us. And you're wrong, you know?"
"I am?" she asked mockingly.
"Mmhm. You have a lot of nurturing instinct in you," Lee comforted.
"Give me one example," Rosemary looked up at him.
"When I cut my foot, you never left my side, much to my annoyance sometimes," he chuckled honestly and Rosemary laughed with him, "When the settlers were suffering because of that landslide, you let Faith use your bridesmaids' dresses as bandages and gave up the wedding reception meal to feed them a hot dinner. You volunteered to teach Elizabeth's class without a second thought so she could look after Jack…"
"I said give me ONE example," she emphasized.
"Rosie, I know you. You have a really big heart and you care deeply for the things and people you love. And I think once it's our little ones in your arms, that protective Mama Bear will come out of you and then some."
Rosemary leaned up and kissed Lee, her husband eagerly accepting the kiss. The two deepened their smooching and Rosemary straddled his lap, "I love you, Lee. So much."
"I love you too," he said against her lips. They kissed a few moments longer before Rosemary pulled back and grinned, "Tell you what? How about we have dinner at Peter Luger like we were originally planning and then we can come back here and I can show you another one of my special outfits for you?"
Lee shifted a little underneath her hips and Rosemary's heart skipped a beat. Boy was it easy to turn him on, "Well, I am starving," he admitted. Rosemary wasn't sure which way he meant but she was quickly learning Lee had more than one large appetite. They both stood and Lee quickly put on his coat, "We should probably get going then. The sooner we get there, the sooner we'll eat dinner, and the sooner we can come back here and…"
Rosemary smiled and giggled, "A little eager there are we, Mr. Coulter?"
"Hey, my new favorite thing is to show my wife how much I love her," he smiled.
Rosemary smiled back and hugged him, "I like when you show me too."