AN: I come offering pure fluff The previous picnic snippet was pretty angsty. Here's to hoping this one makes you smile! I love reviews. They make me very happy and I thank all of those readers who consistently review. I'm not always good at it, so I know that it's sometimes an inconvenience. I appreciate the effort you take.

Cake and Sparkling Cider

June had been unusually cool, but today finally felt like summer had come. Elizabeth spread a blanket out in the park waiting for Henry. He was returning after a week long conference. She was giddy with anticipation. Two days ago, Elizabeth was washing her face before bed when it suddenly dawned on her that she should've started her period the week before. She finished drying her face and hurried into the bedroom, flinging herself across the bed. She wildly grabbed the handle of the nightstand drawer and pulled out the calendar where she kept track of her monthly cycle.

She flipped back to the last red dot in the corner by the number May 13. Then she started counting. On a regular cycle, she should've started June 10th, but even if she threw in a couple stress days, she should've started by the 12th. Today was the 24th. She looked back over the past few months. No irregularities. She was almost two weeks late.

Even though it had been almost midnight, she threw on a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt and headed out to the all night pharmacy. She picked up two pregnancy tests, thinking that she'd take one when she got home and one the next morning. As it turned out, she wouldn't need that second one, because the test showed 2 pink lines within the first 30 seconds of the 3 minute window.

It had been hard talking to Henry the next evening, but she didn't want to give him that news over the phone. She wanted to see his face. They had been trying for nearly a year. It was becoming stressful to the point that it affected their marriage, so they decided to take a break. If after six months, nothing had happened, they would seek a medical opinion. This was the second month of their break. So, she sat on the phone with Henry and let him talk about the people he met at the conference while she sat in the recliner biting her tongue to keep from speaking too much, with her hand resting on her abdomen.

Now, she waited on a picnic blanket under a tree at the park just down the street from their apartment. She could see the playground from her spot and imagined that it would only be a couple of years and she would be out there chasing her own child. She looked up and saw Henry walking toward her. Their child. She smiled.

Standing, she took a few steps to meet him and he pulled her close. "I missed you so much," she said, kissing him thoroughly.

When she pulled away, Henry grinned. "I missed you too babe."

"Come, sit with me," she said, beaming. She pulled him toward the blanket and then pulled him down with her.

"Babe!" Henry said laughing. "What's gotten into you?"

She held up her hands. "Okay, okay. I'm just happy to see you and I want to share something with you." Henry nodded and waited expectantly. Elizabeth reached out and grabbed a handful of shirt and pulled him to her. She kissed him hard. "I love you so much and I wanted to give you this." She lifted the lid on the wicker picnic basket and pulled out a gift box. "Here," she said thrusting it at him.

"Alright." Henry took the ribbon off the box and the lifted the lid. He stared into it, seeing the lines on the pregnancy test, then looked up at her. "Really? We're having a baby?" Elizabeth nodded furiously, tears forming.

"Yeah. We're having a baby." Elizabeth's smile was matched by Henry's and he scooped her into his lap. "When did you find out?"

"A couple days ago, but I wanted to tell you in person."

"I'm so happy." He kissed her. When he pulled away, he looked over at the basket. "What did you bring to celebrate this momentous occasion?"

Elizabeth giggled. "Cake and sparkling cider."

"Cake, huh?" Henry mused. She was going to reply, but he pushed her to the blanket and tugged her shirt up, baring her middle.

"Henry! You can't!" she squealed.

"No one's around and I'm introducing myself to our baby" Elizabeth glanced around, and Henry was correct, she didn't see anyone close by. He unbuttoned her jeans and ran the zipper down its track. Moving the waistband of her panties down, he kissed her lower abdomen. "Hi there baby. How are you doing? It's Daddy. I just thought I'd tell you that I love you." He rested his head there for a few minutes until Elizabeth became impatient.

"There's cake to eat you know. C'mon McCord. Mama's hungry!" Henry laughed and fixed her clothes. She poured the cider and pulled the cake out and Henry forked a giant bite and offered it to her. She opened her mouth widely and wrapped her mouth around the fork.

"We need to eat this cake and get home quickly," Henry said. Elizabeth furrowed her brow. "I need to get my wife home and to bed." He shot her a big grin and forked another bite of cake in her mouth.