Chapter Sixteen

July had swept into San Francisco and its surrounding area, bringing with it waves of heat unrivaled in many years. After a mild spring, the temperature change was difficult to adjust to, especially for a woman who was almost nine months pregnant. Although Marissa had been pregnant with Garrett over the summer, she had not been close to labor, tired from working and taking care of a new house, and worried about whom would take care of everything while she was having the baby. Luckily, though, one worry was about to disappear as she was officially on maternity leave after completing her last day of work.

It was Friday afternoon, the air conditioning was cranked, and she was the only one home, cooking dinner and working on laundry, as she waited for her family to arrive home as well. A week away from her due date, Marissa was extremely uncomfortable and definitely looking forward to a relaxing weekend with just her and her boys. They were finally unpacked, she and Ryan had finished her Lamaze classes, classes he insisted they take because he had never been through the birthing process before, and there was not a single obligation either of them had to attend to. Her plan was to spend Saturday at the beach with the boys; they needed something fun to look forward to, because there would be a lack of trips and day excursions for them that summer because of the baby. Though she was nine months pregnant, she did not care what people thought, and the idea of the fresh sea water cooling her body made her fingers and toes tingle out of anticipation. Sunday they would all lounge around the house in their pajamas watching baseball and napping, a lazy day, just the four of them. Plus, Ryan had already promised her that he would cook both nights for her since he would be home, so that was one less thing she had to worry about. The only thing standing in their way of a peaceful weekend was the talk she and Ryan had planned to have with the boys that night to discuss the changes in schedule that would occur because of her maternity leave and what would happen when the baby did arrive. This she was not looking forward to.

Finishing dinner early, she set the table and left the food in the oven to stay warm before climbing the stairs to go to their bedroom. Her intensions had been to change out of her scrubs and put on some shorts and a tank top, but as she sat down on the bed after removing her clothes, sitting only in her undergarments, the pillows looked to inviting, the coolness of the closed off room too tempting, so she laid down just for a moment, telling herself she would just catch her breath, rest her eyes for a second, but before she knew it, she was asleep.

Ryan, Garrett, and Cooper arrived home a half an hour later to an silent house. The boys immediately went out back to play with Q while Ryan went in search of his fiancé, curious to see what she was up to and apprehensive that she was doing something she was not allowed to do. Stubborn, Marissa never wanted to curtail her previous, normal activities to adapt to her pregnancy, but ever worried about her and the baby, Ryan had insisted that she take every precaution, but sometimes, when he was not looking, she would sneak and do something she was prohibited from. Even though she worried him, he had to admit the punishment was fun for both of them.

Shivering as soon as he entered their bedroom, Ryan couldn't help but smile at Marissa as he saw her sound asleep on top of the blankets, her fringe of hair around her face in ringlets from the humidity, betraying her warmth despite the frigid temperatures of their room. Slipping off his shoes, he quickly changed into a pair of jeans and a wife beater before lying down beside her.

"Marissa," he whispered to her, his warm breath tickling her face, his hand caressing her cheek as he was unable to be so near her and not touch her. "We're home. Do you want to come down to dinner with us?"

"The boys," she questioned, her voice airy and light as if she were speaking in a dream.

"They're outside playing with Q," he answered, letting his hand slip from her cheek to her jaw line. "They worked hard today, should go to sleep early."

Sighing, she replied, "that's nice," before falling back to sleep, the conversation she was having with Ryan already forgotten.

Chuckling, he kissed her forehead softly before standing up and moving towards the door. Without a word, he turned the lights back off and shut the door behind him as he made his way back downstairs. If she was that tired, he'd let her sleep and talk to the boys himself.

The three of them, Ryan, Garrett, and Cooper, had a relaxing meal sitting outside on the patio so as not to wake up Marissa. Although they had missed their Mom during the day, the two boys understood that she was tired and that the she needed to sleep when she good. She and the baby needed it. Afterwards, although they were tired, Ryan suggested they wash Marissa's SUV, doing a favor for her and cooling them off with the water from the hose at the same time; not to mention that the more exhausted the boys were, the longer they would sleep in the next morning, granting he and Marissa some precious time alone. With the baby's due date in a week, they needed to take advantage of all the chances they could.

True, the last time they had made love had been that wild morning in the bathroom over a month before, but he understood that it was uncomfortable for her now, and there was more to being intimate than sex. Sometimes she would just lie in his arms as he savored the feeling of her body near his, while at other times he would give her aching back massages. His favorite times were when they would just lay in bed beside each other, kissing and caressing the others body for hours on end, talking about the baby between every embrace. They had their whole lives to make love, but he only got to experience the birth of his first child once.

Car washed and waxed, the three weary boys and Q made their way back inside, changing quietly upstairs into their pajamas before making their way to the living room and the television where they had the baseball package waiting for them. Finding the best game available, the three settled down to watch in agreeable silence, only breaking the drone of the tv with their own voices on the brief commercials. Following snacks in the seventh inning stretch and a rather lengthy break for an argument between the umpire and the other team's head coach, time well spent by the boys as they brushed their teeth, Ryan stopped them from leaving the couch to go to bed. He had put off their discussion long enough.

"Guys," he began hesitantly, "I know that your Mom was going to talk to you about some stuff tonight, but she'd tired and I don't want to wake her, so what do you say if I…..maybe….talk to you about it instead?"

"I didn't do it," Cooper defended himself in a shout, standing up immediately, a guilty look flashing across his face, his eyes never meeting Ryan's.

Laughing, he motioned for the little boy to sit back down before talking. "I have no idea what you're talking about, and as far as I'm concerned, if I don't know it happened, it never did as long as no one got hurt." When neither boy said anything he elaborated. "No one got hurt, right?"

This time Garrett spoke up. His short, curt reply sounding oh so very much like something Ryan would say. "Nope."

"Alright then, we'll just forget about your little outburst there, Cooper. I think we're all tired and ready for bed, so I just want to get this out there and over with as soon as possible." Taking a deep breath, Ryan plunged on. "We need to talk about the baby and some changes that are going to have to take place around here." At the sound of Cooper's instant whining, Ryan couldn't help but chuckle. "It's not going to be that bad, Cooper. Trust me, you're still going to have plenty of fun; we're still going to feed you. The only differences are going to be that you're going to have to help out more."

"You're not going to get rid of Q, are you," Garrett's scared little voice instantly sobered Ryan's mood. Turning to look at him, he saw tears already brimming in the little boy's eyes. This had obviously been bothering him for a while now.

"No, of course we're not getting rid of Q," Ryan consoled. "Why would you ever think that?"

"Because the neighbor boy told me that when his Mom had a baby, they had to get rid of their cat," Garrett revealed, "and a dog, especially Q, is a lot bigger than a cat, so I was sure you'd give her away. Still nervous, he asked again, "but you're not going to?"

"Q is a part of our family," Ryan answered, taking the frightened little boy into a hug and ruffling his hair. "She's going nowhere. You know," he added, "before I met your Mom, Q was my best friend. I could never get rid of her."

Relieved, Garrett smiled. "Okay, good, but what are we going to have to do differently?"

"Well, first of all," Ryan explained, "one of you is going to have to stay at home with your Mom during the day now that she's not working, just in case she needs some help, and then, after the baby's born, you'll both be staying here with her to help her."

Always the outspoken one, Cooper quickly replied, "Garrett can stay home. I want to go with you."

"I don't think that's really fair," he responded. "I was thinking that you two could split it, Garrett would stay home one day and then you would stay home the next."

Before Cooper could argue with Ryan's logic, Garrett spoke up. "That's okay, Ryan. I like going with you, but I want to help Mom, too. Plus, I'm the oldest, so I should stay home to help, be responsible."

Smiling at the young boy who was, at times, more like a man, the two, strong and silent, exchanged just a look to show that they understood each other. Turning back to Cooper, Ryan wanted to make sure that he understood it was only temporary. "Once the baby's born though, Cooper, you'll have to stay home and help out as well. You'll have chores, both of you, and you'll have to play outside so as not to wake up the baby and speak quietly. And if your Mom tells you to do anything, no matter what it is, you'll have to listen to her without any whining or complaining. Okay?"

"Fine," Cooper agreed with an exaggerated sigh, "but Mom better not have another baby for a long, long time."

"It'll be a while," Ryan said with just a hint of a laugh in his voice, "but for now, you'll both have to be on your best behavior." Without giving Cooper a chance to object again, he stood up and motioned towards the stars. "Now, come on, it's time for bed. You two need to get to sleep if we're going to the beach tomorrow."

"We're going to the beach," Cooper yelled out in excitement, making Ryan wince at how loud his voice was. Garrett immediately elbowed him to be quiet, eliciting a glare from the younger boy.

"Yes, we're going to the beach," Ryan whispered, moving down the hall towards the boys' bedrooms the whole time, "that is if you are quiet and don't wake up your Mom. You know," he added, his voice teasing, "she's really grumpy now if you wake her up, and Garrett and I will blame it all on you, Cooper. We don't want her to be mad at us, isn't that right, Garrett?"

"Right," the older boy agreed, laughing quietly along with Ryan to show his younger brother that they were just joking..

"Alright now, get into bed. I'm going to tuck Cooper in first, Garrett, and then I'll be in to say goodnight to you in a little bit." With that, the group of three boys separated, Ryan going with Cooper and Garrett going by himself while one lady of the house, Q, slept on undisturbed by Cooper's outburst, and the other, Marissa, rested in bed, a smile on her glistening face.

"And what took you so long," Marissa greeted Ryan when he stepped into their bedroom an hour later.

"Hey," he retuned, going to her side and kissing her lips softly before slipping off his pajamas to climb in bed clad only in his boxers, immediately burrowing under the mound of blankets they kept for his use. "Sorry it took me so long. What are you doing up? I thought you were sleeping."

"I was until a not-so-subtle son of mine celebrated the fact that we're all going to the beach tomorrow right outside of our door," she answered, giggling softly. "I know I'm a bad mother because I didn't get up to say goodnight to them after Cooper woke me, but I was just so comfortable…."

"You're not a bad mother," Ryan chastised her, "and I don't want to ever hear you say that again." As she snuggled up next to him, even relenting to use his blankets so they could be closer, he continued. "Besides, you would have spoiled our guys' night in. We ate dinner, outside so as not to wake you, and cleaned up, too, I might add, washed your car,…."

"You did," she interrupted, turning to kiss him briefly before settling back down in the crook of his arm. "Thank you. I appreciate it, but you really didn't have to."

"Who said it was for you," Ryan shot back, a playful grin on his face. "We washed my truck last night, and it was the coolest thing to do outside that I could think of besides a water fight. Anyway," he continued, "afterwards, we watched some baseball, the Red Sox won by the way, I talked to the boys for you, two quick stories turned into two long ones, and then, finally, here I am ready to curl up and go to bed with my very beautiful fiancé."

"Nice try, but we're not having sex."

Playfully pushing her aside, he dismissed her accusation. "Hey, who said anything about sex? When I said go to bed, I meant sleep."

"You're sure you weren't trying to put the moves on me," Marissa continued to tease him. "A compliment like that used to be full proof, and I know it's been a while…"

"Hey," he stopped her, "It's fine. Sure, I miss it," he admitted with a cheeky smile, "but we have found other ways to….amuse ourselves. I can wait a while."

"To be honest," Marissa admitted ruefully, "I miss it, I mean REALLY miss it, myself, but I just….can't, but if it stays in here much longer," she said while rubbing her stomach affectionately, "I might get desperate. If that happens, get prepared for sexual experimentation as we try to figure out a comfortable position." As he continued to just watch her with confusion written plainly across his face, Marissa chuckled and explained. "Sex is supposed to induce labor."

"I'm always at your service, waiting and definitely willing," Ryan responded, making Marissa laugh once again.

"I'm sure you are."

"But for now," he said with a yawn while sliding down into the bed trying to pull her with him. "I'm exhausted and ready to go to sleep." Before he could reach over to turn the light off though, she sat back up and started talking.

"Well, I'm not. In fact," Marissa continued, "I'm starving, and we need to keep talking about baby names." As he went to get out of bed to go and get her something to eat, she sat up herself. "It's okay; I can go. I'm actually feeling kind of energetic, and, besides, I have to go to the bathroom anyway."

As she slipped into the bathroom, he called out to her, "I put the leftovers in the fridge," before settling down to wait for her return. Upon leaving the bathroom, she had thrown on her robe, short, silky, and snug against her swollen breasts and pregnant abdomen, the sight of her tan, still slender legs making Ryan smile in delight as he watched her walk away.

She was back within minutes, her speed surprising him until he saw what she was carrying. "Ice cream for dinner," he joked, "I'm sure the doctor would love that."

"It's a good source of calcium," she shot back undeterred from her meal by his disapproving tone, "and it's not chocolate since you took it out of the cart when I wasn't looking and put it back before I could notice, so there's no caffeine. Besides, I'm nine months pregnant, hot, sweaty, miserable, and this was the only thing that looked good."

Conceding with a smile, he asked her, "what kind did you bring?"

"Black raspberry," she answered, waving the cool dessert in front of his face, "but if you want to share, you're going to have to let me feed you, because I only brought one spoon."

"How about I do the feeding," he suggested. "You'll hog it all if you control the spoon."

"I'm going to ignore that remark and chalk it up to first time Daddy stupidity," she glared, her eyes twinkling with mirth, "but you still need to be punished." Before he could respond and ask what she meant by that, the blankets were kicked away and she had situated her body between his legs, leaning her tired, sore back into his strong, supportive stomach.

"You know," he said playfully, "this isn't really a punishment."

"I haven't even begun it yet though," she shot back too innocently, Ryan thought. "Now, back to this baby name decision we have facing us," Marissa pushed on, unwilling to share more about his punishment, "do you still agree with the final three?"

"You mean your final three," Ryan mock complained. "I don't remember having anything to do with narrowing it down to those choices."

"Yeah, but at least this way I'll be happy with no matter what you pick, and you get to make the final decision," she argued. "So, what are you thinking, Breckin, Loren, or Tegan; which do you like the best?"

"To be honest," he admitted, "it changes by the hour. I pick a name and think that I've reached my final decision, and then, the next time I think about it, which is about five minutes later, because you, the baby, and the boys are about the only things I can think about, it's something different."

"Well, if you need any help…..," she offered coyly, making Ryan laugh as he kissed her cheek.

"Thanks, but no thanks; you've helped enough, getting rid of the two names I liked the best."

"Yeah….but Peyten was too common," Marissa explained, "and Cory was just…..too short." Suddenly anxious, she spoke up again, her tone softer, contrite and nervous. "What, don't you like the three names I narrowed it down to?"

Taking the bite of ice cream she held out for him and eating it first before replying, Ryan moved his hands from off of her hips and onto her belly as he spoke. "The names are great; stop worrying."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm positive, but…." he joked, "if you want to make it up to me, you'd let me go to sleep. I know you're not tired, baby, because you just slept for about six hours, but I'm exhausted."

Twisting around to kiss him softly, she apologized. "I know, and I'm sorry. It's just that I missed you today, and I like spending time with just the two of us."

"I do, too," he agreed, and tomorrow, when the boys are swimming, we'll lie on the beach together and we can talk for as long as you want, okay?"

"Okay," Marissa conceded, sliding away from him down the bed and standing up.

Sitting up quickly, he asked her, "hey, where are you going?"

"I'm not tired, and there are some things I need to do. Go to sleep; I'll come to bed when I'm done," she answered.

"What do you have to do?"

"You know, girly stuff," Marissa answered with a slight giggle. "I want to take a bath, wash my hair, paint my toenails and shave my legs, because I have no idea when I'll go into labor, so I have to be ready, and put my lotion on for the night. I'll be an hour, tops."

"Why do you need to shave your legs and paint the toes nails for labor," Ryan pondered, confused. "I'd thought, at that point, you'd be in so much pain that what your legs and feet looked like wouldn't matter to you."

"Oh, it won't matter then, but it will bother me afterwards if I know my feet looked as unattractive as a man's and that my legs were about as thick as forest. And besides," she continued, "I'll be so sore afterwards for a while, that I won't be able to do simple things like that, so unless you do it for me, I better do while I can now."

Yawning, Ryan closed his eyes as he spoke. "I won't be able to paint your toenails unless you want your whole foot painted, but I'll shave your legs for you, if you want me to."

Going back to him, her empty pint of ice cream discarded, Marissa leaned down as well as she could and surprised him with a deep kiss. "And that's just one more reason why I love you," she finally revealed as she pulled away from the embrace, her voice husky with desire. As she walked into the bathroom, she smiled to herself as she heard Ryan sigh out of contentment before stripping off her clothes and running the bath water, her mind filled with fantasies of her fiancé and the feelings he evoked within her.

The simple yet special weekend Marissa had planned for their family, the last time they would probably get to spend time together just the four of them, had been wonderful. Not only had the boys enjoyed themselves, but she and Ryan had been able to spend some alone time together Sunday afternoon when the boys had gone off to a neighbors to play with their children for a couple of hours. The humidity had relaxed some, making her more comfortable, and the lighter work load because she was on maternity leave helped alleviate some of the aches and pains her tired, drained body was feeling.

Garrett had been such a great help that week, too. He had helped her wash all the new clothes they had bought for the baby so that everything was ready for its delicate skin, even volunteering to put it away for her so she didn't have to climb the stairs. Willingly, he had handled all of the upright cleaning, vacuuming and dusting, the best he could. To her surprise, he had even been an excited pupil when it came to cooking, curious and eager to learn the rules of the art. By the time Wednesday had arrived, he was skilled enough to make a simple meal on his own while Marissa sat by at the table paying bills, available if he had any questions and chatting to keep him entertained. Not all of their time was spent working though.

They always tried to finish their work by lunch time, leaving the afternoon free to do what they wanted. Twice, on the cooler days, they had taken long walks, talking about whatever Garrett thought of the entire time, his childhood dreams and ambitions, the questions he had about life already, or even the latest scores and highlights from the baseball games he and Ryan loved so much. Both readers, they would curl up every afternoon with their books, the room absolutely quiet hiding the love and affection the mother and son shared for each other. Garrett even got her to play video games with him one day, though she lost so badly, Marissa claimed she needed a week for her ego to recuperate before she took him on again. Although she wished that Cooper was there with her as well for she had missed them both while she had been working and they had been spending more time with Ryan, she also treasured the alone time she and Garrett got to have, promising herself that she and Cooper would have the same opportunity soon.

That Thursday night, because the All-Star game was on, the four of them had curled up in Ryan and Marissa's king sized bed together, a smorgasbord of junk food scattered about the room, everything from pizza, Napoleonic so as not to give Marissa heartburn, to the no-bake cookies Garrett had made that day under Marissa's instruction. The game, as All-Star games tend to do, went late into the night, long after the tired boys had fallen asleep only to be carried one at a time to their room by Ryan, and, afterwards, Ryan and Marissa were left alone, cuddled up, to enjoy the end of the game together. By the time it reached the bottom of the ninth, tied and looking to remain that way for quite a while, Marissa made her way down to the kitchen craving pumpkin pie. Too lazy to make the whole thing, she dumped a can of pumpkin into a baking dish, added the necessary ingredients for the flavoring of a pie filling, and went back upstairs to snuggle with Ryan until it was ready. An hour and a half later, Marissa woke up suddenly, remembering that the pumpkin was still in the oven.

Ryan never realized that she had gotten out of bed; he was too tired to even notice her movements when she reentered their room, pumpkin in hand, though it was burnt, and crawled back in beside him. It might not taste as it should, but she was still craving it and she had used the last can in the house, so, despite the circumstances, a very uncomfortable Marissa devoured her burnt pumpkin, relishing it anyway regardless of its rather unappetizing taste, and then settled back down into bed, for once, cool enough from the air conditioning that she didn't mind the blankets. Now that she was full, the baby quieted down and she fell into a deep sleep, a smile etched across her sweet face.

"Ryan," Marissa shot up in bed, her voice betraying the pain she was feeling and her agitated whisper. When he didn't even budge, she pushed him away from her and said his name again, louder. "Ryan, come on, get up. It's time."

"I'll mow the grass tomorrow, honey, promise," he answered her still asleep, rolling over and pulling his pillow on top of his head.

"Ugh," Marissa groaned out of annoyance, snapping the pillow away from his grasping hands in a flash and tossing it across the room. "No, jackass, you need to get up now. It's time."

Finally waking up somewhat, he rolled over to face her, confusion clouding his countenance. "Time for what?"

"Oh, I don't know," Marissa's sarcastic voice bit out, "perhaps it's time for my hair appointment or for you to water the flowers or maybe the dryer just quit and you need to switch the laundry." Pausing to take a breath, she began again, her tone, this time, angrier and louder. "What the hell do you think it's time for, Ryan? It's time for the baby."

Somehow, even through her screaming, he remained half asleep, not able to comprehend what she was saying. Rolling back over after patting her hand affectionately, he said, "that's nice. Tell me about it in the morning."

That was it; Marissa could not take another minute of this. Infuriated, she stood up from the bed soaked with amniotic fluid because her water broke while they had been sleeping, and pulled the blankets off of Ryan, causing him to curl up in a little ball. "Ryan, get up now! We have to wake the boys, get the bags, and drive to the hospital before this baby is born in the middle of our bedroom!"

Mumbling, he asked, "what baby?"

Fuming, she stomped up to his side of the bed and bent down as low as her body would allow, cradling her stomach the entire time. "What baby," she whispered, her tone suddenly more hostile than it had been when she was yelling, "did you dare just ask me what baby?" Suddenly, gripped with a white, hot iron, searing pain, she screamed out, her voice so filled with agony Ryan shot out of the bed, "OUR….DAUGHTER," and froze, incapable of moving or thinking past the secret she had just, unconsciously admitted to him.

"A daughter…..we're having a baby girl," he repeated, the adorable, stunned expression on his face easing some of Marissa's annoyance once the pain dissipated.

"Yeah, and if you don't hurry up, I'm going to be pushing her out right here with only you to catch her, something that doesn't make me feel very comfortable right now."

Jumping out of bed, Ryan sprang into action, finding the loose, light dress Marissa had already set out for herself to go to the hospital in and her favorite pair of flip-flops and helping her into them. In the middle of dressing her, he spoke up, curiously. "Why am I wet?"

"My water br….," she began before immediately falling down to sit on the edge of the bed. "Oh my god, I'm going to be sick," Marissa told him; but before he could react, she did exactly what she predicted, vomiting a horrendous burnt orange mixture of over-cooked pumpkin and various things from dinner all over Ryan who was still only in his boxers. She tried to be sympathetic, but the sight of him in front of her looking so bewildered and lost, his shorts soaked and vomit running down his stomach, she couldn't help but start laughing. Only after a minute or two could she finally stand up for she was giggling so hard, Ryan still so shocked he couldn't move, to help him into the bathroom. "Get yourself cleaned up and changed. I'll go get the boys, brush my teeth, and we'll go." She was still laughing as she walked out the door despite the fact that another contraction was already coming, a mere four minutes after her last one. Their little girl was coming and doing so quickly. They had to leave NOW!