A/N: Thank you for all the wonderful reviews.
The weeks passed and before Sig knew it was a week before Samantha's due date. He'd been living on pins and needles, each groan of cringe she made immediately made him think she was in labor. He was getting less sleep during the night than she was. He was currently staring at the closed bathroom door, she'd been in there a while and he was starting to get concerned. Finally his nerves couldn't take another minute and he walked up to the door and knocked.
"For God sakes Sig, I'm just going to the bathroom" said a very annoyed Samantha from the other side of the door.
"If you aren't flushing in the next thirty seconds I'm coming in" said Sig.
Sig's hand was on the handle when the toilet flushed and Samantha emerged looking murderous.
"What the hell, can't I have some privacy" said Samantha.
"I gave you plenty of time, it shouldn't take that long to go to the bathroom" said Sig.
"When did you go through your pregnancy, again? I forgot" countered Samantha. "It takes me a long time to do anything these days, so I suggest for your safety and my sanity that you just give the whole papa bear routine a break."
"I'd love to, but I promised Edgar that I would take care of you and this is how I choose to do it" said Sig.
"I'm sure he appreciates it" said Samantha quietly.
Sig smiled at her, happy this little tiff seemed to be passing. He noticed for the first time that she was dressed in regular clothes and suddenly her extended bathroom time wasn't his only worry.
"You look nice" said Sig suspiciously.
"Thank you. I have a few appointments" said Samantha vaguely.
"When do we leave?" asked Sig.
"You don't have to go with me. One is a doctor's appointment and the other is no big deal" said Samantha her eyes fixed on the wall directly behind Sig's right ear.
"I'm going. You shouldn't be driving this far along in your pregnancy" said Sig ignoring the glare he was getting.
"Fine, but you are going to regret coming" said Samantha.
"I already do" replied Sig to her retreating back.
"We leave in 5 minutes" called Samantha's voice from the hallway.
Sig sighed morosely before quickly heading to his room to change.
The doctors office was just as cold and sterile as any other he'd ever been in. The only difference is that he was surrounded by hormonal pregnant women. There were 2 women in the waiting room who were crying, a fact that made Sig very uncomfortable. He wasn't the only male in the small room, but he definitely felt like he was the only man. The other guy looked like he was about to pass out, throw up or burst into tears. Samantha sat next to him casually reading her kindle and completely ignoring Sig. When her name was called Sig stood and Samantha seemed to debate telling him to wait for her but as her eyes swept the waiting room she took pity on him and allowed him to follow her. Once the door of the small exam room closed Sig looked around for a place to sit. There was a small chair, the exam table and a stool. His first move was towards the stool.
"Don't sit there, the doctor sits there" said Samantha.
She hopped up on the table and began to move her shirt up and pants down exposing her rounded belly. The doctor breezed into the room a second later.
"Samantha, how are you feeling? Any changes in the last week? Contractions? Tightening?" rattled the doctor.
"No changes" replied Samantha.
"Is this your husband?" asked the doctor noticing Sig for the first time.
"No, I'm her brother in law" said Sig smoothly.
"Oh, that's nice of you to come with her" said the doctor.
The doctor explained the signs of labor to Samantha while measuring her tummy. Next he placed a small wand on her belly and the sound of the baby's heartbeat filled the room.
"His heart rate sounds great" said the doctor.
"It's great to hear" said Samantha quietly.
"OK, well that's all for today. I want to see you in exactly a week" said the doctor on his walk out the door.
Samantha stood up and straightened her clothes, she turned to grab her bag and noticed Sig hadn't moved.
"What are you waiting for? It's all done" said Samantha.
"That's it? You were in here for maybe 5 minutes" said Sig.
"Are you complaining?" asked Samantha.
"No, I'm not" said Sig. "Lets go to lunch."
After a filling lunch Samantha and Sig got back in the car but instead of heading in the direction of her house Samantha turned the opposite way. Sig said nothing, he figured they were probably going to hit pinkberry or something for an after lunch sweet treat. Samantha didn't often have cravings, but when she did there was really no stopping her. Just last week she'd dragged Sig to the middle of Pasadena for some sort of Thai noodle soup. It was delicious, but he didn't think it was worth the hour drive in traffic to get. The car pulled into a small strip mall and parked in front of a spa.
"Ok, just stay here" said Samantha.
"What? Why are you leaving me in the car?" asked Sig.
Samantha took a long suffering breath and stared up at the roof of the car. After a moment she shifted her gaze back to Sig.
"It's a spa, I'm getting some stuff waxed. I'll be back in like 30 minutes. I'll leave the keys in the car so you can listen to the radio" said Samantha.
"So you're getting stuff waxed, I don't see why I can't go with you" said Sig.
The last thing he wanted to do was sit in the parking lot looking like a stalker.
"Fine come in, you can sit in the waiting area or get your nails done, whatever you want. But I am almost late for this appointment so I have to go in now" said Samantha impatiently.
Sig followed her out of the car wondering if these pregnancy hormones were affecting her brain. Walking into the spa he was assaulted by the smell of lavender scented oil. Samantha walked up to the desk and quietly spoke to the women, her head jerked in Sig's direction and then a feral smile spread across her face. The woman walked over to Sig and gently took his arm.
"Right this way sir" she said.
"What? Where am I going?" asked Sig.
"Oh you are in a for a wonderful treat" said the woman seductively.
She took Sig into a small back room and placed him in a reclining chair. She smiled benignly and asked Sig to remove his shirt. Sig did as he was told and then settled himself on the chair. The chair reclined and the woman told him to close his eyes and she'd start with a soothing face massage. Sig relaxed as the woman firmly rubbed his tense forehead and cheeks. After a few moments she moved away turning towards a table behind Sig's head and then returned. Sig hadn't bothered to open his eyes and when the first drip of hot wax fell on his eyebrows he almost shot straight out of the chair.
"Sorry, the wax is a little warm" said the woman.
"Wax?" said Sig as his eyes shot open in time to see her place the small strip of fabric over the wax.
"Now, this won't hurt too much" said the woman.
From her room next door Samantha heard Sig howl at what she assumed was the first strip being pulled off his eyebrows. She smiled happily to herself. Originally she'd wanted him to get his back waxed but she had absolutely no idea if he even had back hair. She hoped this would teach him a lesson in not being so overly interested in what she was doing. When her waxing session was finished she walked out of the room and breezed towards the reception stand to pay the tab. The woman who had done Sig's eyebrows was standing there waiting for Samantha. Sig was sitting in a chair in the small waiting area shooting daggers at anyone who looked at him cockeyed.
"How was he?" asked Samantha as she handed over her credit card.
"He cried like a baby" said the woman.
Samantha stifled a laugh and quickly paid the tab, giving Sig's waxer a very generous tip.
"Ready?" she said to Sig.
"I hate you" was his only response.
Samantha studied his face for a moment, he was getting red angry welts around both his eyebrows and she wondered if she should stop for some ice on the way home.
"Why aren't you red?" asked Sig as he studied himself in the car's vanity mirror.
"I'm sure I am" said Samantha.
Sig again looked critically at her face and huffed.
"You are not, your face looks fine" said Sig.
"Of course it does. I didn't get anything on my face waxed" said Samantha.
"What the hell did you get waxed?" asked Sig.
"Somewhere else" said Samantha.
"Where?" asked Sig.
"For God's sake just drop it" said Samantha.
"Fine" said Sig petulantly.
The rest of the drive home was silent.
Edgar called that night to say he was on his way home. Samantha and Sig were both thrilled at his impending return and cooked a hearty dinner together to celebrate. Later after the dishes were finished Sig found himself alone downstairs. He got up and went to search for Samantha. He found her in the nursery, she was sitting in the glider rubbing a small crocheted blanket against her cheek. Sig watched her for a moment imagining her holding his nephew in her arms.
"Everything ok?" asked Sig.
Samantha looked up startled and seemed to take a moment to look at Sig.
"Yes, everything is fine" said Samantha. "In fact, everything is done. I finished the last of my to do list today."
"That huge list you've been carrying around with you for the last month?" asked Sig.
The list in question had been fuel for Sig's merciless teasing about Samantha's type A personality. He'd even taken to making suggestion about things to add.
"So you registered him for preschool like I suggested?" quipped Sig.
"Yes" said Samantha.
"Wow, well I guess all you are missing is Edgar and a baby" said Sig. "And Edgar should be here tomorrow."
"Then all I'll be missing is a baby" said Samantha hesitantly.
"Are you worried?" asked Sig.
"I suppose I'm more nervous" said Samantha. "I don't think I've ever even held a baby before."
"You'll be fine. You have the makings of a great mommy" said Sig.
"Thanks" said Samantha with a small smile.
"You took care of us all season and if you can deal with a bunch of crab fisherman you can handle anything" said Sig.
When he didn't get a immediate response he looked back down at Samantha. She was still sitting in the rocker moving slowly but her eyes had a faraway look to them. Deciding she probably needed a few minutes alone he quietly slipped back downstairs.
The next morning Sig woke up as the warm sunbeams threaded their way through the curtains of the spare room. Samantha was still in the nursery when he went to bed. Getting up and stretching he peeked into Samantha's room and for the first time since he arrived she was still in bed. Feeling especially smug about waking up before Samantha he hurried downstairs to start breakfast. When he arrived in the kitchen he found the coffee already brewed. He realized he hadn't gotten up as early as he thought. Glancing at the clock he was surprised that it was already 10 am. He'd never slept in so late, usually Samantha was up at 8 and had breakfast on the table by 8:30. Concern flooded his body, he took the stairs two at a time as he raced back up them to check on Samantha. In the room he quietly tip toed across the floor to her side of the bed. He studied her, her mouth was lax and her breathing was steady and slow. She was clearly still fast asleep. Confident that she was very much alive and healthy he walked back downstairs and started making breakfast. When the omelets were finished he made Samantha a small cup of hot cocoa. He placed everything on a tray and carried it up to her room. Setting it gently on the nightstand he carefully shook Samantha's shoulder. Her eyes fluttered open and for a moment she looked very confused. Her eyes darted from Sig to the tray of food.
"Why are you up so early?" she asked sleepily.
"I'm not really" said Sig.
Samantha's eyes darted to the small alarm clock and her eyes widened as she noted the time.
"Come on Antha, even you deserve to sleep in every once and a while" said Sig. "Now sit up and eat your breakfast."
Samantha struggled to sit up in bed and once she was settled against the pillows Sig set the tray on her lap. She ate the food slowly savoring the delicious eggs and rich hot chocolate. Once she was finished Sig quickly cleared the tray and headed back downstairs. Samantha stayed in bed for the rest of the morning reading one of her expecting books. Sig checked on her from time to time most of the time she was sleeping. After seeing her sleeping again for the third time he decided to call Edgar.
"Hey Sig, what's up?" asked Edgar upon answering the phone.
"Where are you?" asked Sig.
"Um, just waiting for the plane to L.A. I stopped to get Antha a little snack. How's she doing?" asked Edgar.
"I'm not sure. I think something's wrong" said Sig.
"Like what?" asked Edgar.
"She's been sleeping all day" said Sig.
"So. She's probably tired" replied Edgar nonplussed.
"Edgar, I haven't seen her sleep this much in the whole month I've been here" said Sig.
"I'm sure she's fine, but if you are worried ask her if she's ok" said Edgar. "Don't worry too much, tell her I'll see her in a few hours."
"Roger" said Sig.
After his phone call with Edgar he walked back upstairs to check on Samantha. As he walked into the room he noticed the blanket was pulled off her legs and her tummy was exposed. He could clearly see the outline of the baby for a moment before her body seemed to relax.
"What the hell was that" he yelled.
Samantha was startled and quickly moved the shirt down over her belly.
"It's nothing" said Samantha.
"Nothing? I just saw the outline of the baby through your stomach and you want to tell me it's nothing" yelled Sig.
"It's a contraction, but it doesn't hurt" said Samantha.
"Where is your bag?" asked Sig.
"It's by the door where it's been for the past week" said Samantha.
"Then get dressed and lets go" said Sig already walking towards the door.
"Go where?" asked Samantha.
"The hospital" said Sig impatiently.
"I can't go yet" said Samantha.
"It's ridiculous to think that you can wait for Edgar. He can meet us at the hospital" said Sig.
"It's not that, my contractions are too far apart" said Samantha.
"You're crazy" said Sig.
"I'm not. The doctor said I can't go in until they are 5 minutes apart or my water has broken" said Samantha.
"You swear you aren't just waiting for Edgar" said Sig suspiciously.
"I swear" said Samantha.
Samantha got up a few hours later took a shower, blow dried her hair and put on a little make up. Next she went downstairs and made herself something to eat. When she was done eating she went upstairs and changed into some yoga pants and a t-shirt. Sig watched warily as she came down the stairs, he noticed she stopped for a moment half way down and then straightened up and continued. By the time she'd reached him he knew something was definitely wrong.
"It's time to go" said Samantha.
"Ok" said Sig.
He immediately sprung into action, he grabbed the bag from the entrance hall and took it into the garage, he placed it in the trunk and returned to the house. When he walked back in he noticed Samantha doubled over at the front door.
"Come on" said Sig. "The cars all packed."
"Ok, just give me a second" said Samantha.
Sig attempted to get her to walk but she was completely immovable. Sig was about to pick her up and carry her to the car when the doorbell rang.
"Oh my God, if this is some kid selling band candy I'm going to kick his nerdy little ass" said Sig to himself.
He wrenched the door open fully expecting to see some neighborhood kid, but instead Edgar pushed passed him into the foyer.
"Antha, are you ok?" asked Edgar rushing to her side.
"Not really. But I'm glad you made it because we have to get to the hospital" she said through gritted teeth.
"Lets go, you can catch up in the car" said Sig.
Edgar carried Samantha to the car and loaded her into the front seat, he climbed into the back and Sig moved into the drivers seat. They sped off to the hospital all knowing they wouldn't return to the house without a baby.