March 17th

"Kiss me, I'm Irish."

Sarah rolled her eyes as she poured herself a cup of coffee. It was too early in the morning for this kind of cheer. Even Callum seemed to agree as he fussed and whined briefly from his carrier. Daddy was being too loud, and Connor seemed to realize it as he shuffled sheepishly closer to Sarah. Still, she smiled faintly as her gaze fell upon his hopeful mien.

Sarah sipped from her mug, "Yeah? That's funny, I'm Irish too."

Connor grinned brightly, "Oh, maybe I should kiss you then."

His hands slid over her hips, and she tried not to shift away. She still wasn't comfortable with her post-pregnancy body, and she hadn't felt anything close to attractive in months. Connor seemed to disagree with that notion as he pulled her purposefully close. His intent blue eyes searched hers for permission, for hesitance, for anything to give him a clue about what she was thinking.

With more deftness than Sarah felt, she slid her mug to the counter so her hands could rest on his chest. He relaxed nearly instantly under that touch, and she barely had time to take a breath before his mouth found hers. Stubble scraped the corners of her lips and his nose nudge against hers. She felt a little bad about the coffee breath, but Connor was undeterred as he took his fill of her...

It felt nice and familiar. Delicious and comfy – safe.

Some part of her had missed this – missed being affectionate, but like most things lately, the feeling was swept away by a bone-deep weariness she hadn't been able to shake, and that only brought a wave of irritation.

Connor felt the shift in her mood and broke away enough to catch her gaze again. He sighed. The spark he had been missing in her had dimmed and he felt a similar weariness as she uttered, "You're going to be late for work."

"Five minutes won't hurt." Connor murmured, aching to stay home with her and the baby, "He slept through the night..."

"I wish I had," Sarah muttered back as his lips pressed to her temple. She had been up every hour checking to make sure Callum was still breathing, she had been so worried. Connor had slept like a rock. Bastard.

Connor bit back a sigh, "He might do it again tonight. I'll be home as soon as I can. I love you."

"Love you." She followed him as he tapped Callum's nose and murmured his love to their son. Her lips twitched into another smile as he pressed a kiss to Callum's head and their son squawked. It was hard to tell if that was a noise of happiness or annoyance yet.

She let Connor make it to the door before she snagged his hand. As expected, he turned to her immediately and she stole a kiss of her own. The safe feeling swarmed over her before disappearing again... She wasn't ready for more than this yet – but soon.

"No one else gets to kiss you today, Irish boy," Sarah said in a light tease.

Conor smiled tenderly, a deep fondness deepening his stare, "Yeah well, the only other Irish man you're allowed to kiss is cooing in the kitchen, Irish girl." Sarah rolled her eyes at him but nodded all the same as he departed with a gleeful, "Happy Saint Paddy's day, Sweetheart."

"Happy Saint Parick's Day," Sarah whispered quietly.