Richard walked forward, smiling down at her while she looked at him through her lashes. The swell of her stomach made him beam, the pregnancy seeming to make her glow. He dragged a chair from the side of the room and placed it in front of hers, sitting down.

"You're hovering."

"I am not."

Kahlan raised her eyebrow at him, pursing her lips and shaking her head. She looked back down at the papers in her hands, scanning over the documents and sighing. Richard reached over and took them, Kahlan scowling as she reached for them. Richard held them out of her reach and Kahlan huffed, crossing her arms below her breasts and scrunching her nose. The effort it took to get up and take the papers from him was more than she wanted, her pregnancy making it harder for her to maneuver around at ease.

"If Cara were here, she'd tell you that you are dangerously close to getting killed." Richard chuckled as Kahlan glared at him, shooting her arm out and opening her hand, demanding to have the papers back. Richard sighed as he set them in her palm. Instead of addressing her statement, he switched to a new topic.

"You two are becoming quite close." Kahlan peered at him through her papers, nodding slightly.

"The Mord'Sith seems to be the only person who has managed not to make my blood boil." Richard laughed and Kahlan smirked, twitching her nose as she read her papers again. They were regarding the next days trials.

"I've never seen Cara become so attached to someone other than myself." He sighed, leaning back in his chair. Kahlan's brows were wrinkling together.

"Your point?"

Richard realized he was treading on thin ice. "I don't necessarily have one. I just noticed how Cara seems to care for you."

"As she cares for you?"

Richard exhaled and buried his head in his hands.

"Those are sure fire signs of guilt, Cypher." She teased, lightening the mood. He chuckled as he rested his forearms on his legs. "Is there anything you want to confess?" Her eyebrow rose, her tone playful.

"No, no." Richard shook his head, laughing lightly. "I thought I may have upset you." Kahlan shrugged as she continued reading the papers, uninterested in the conversation now. Richard wanted her attention, but didn't want to anger her. The two objectives didn't mix well. She looked up from her reading as he started dry washing his hands.

"If you have something to say, then say it." Her smirk played on her lips. He rubbed his hand over his face and planned his words carefully.

"Do you resent me for giving you a child?" She leaned her head back, her nose scrunching and her eyebrows wrinkling. Her lips were slightly parted and her tongue darted out to wet them.

"Seeing as a child is what I've wanted, no." She drew out, her eyes suspicious. "Have you been talking to Zedd?" She sighed and rolled her eyes, muttering something about the old man. Richard started laughing.

"I suppose I have."

She pointed a finger at him and rose her eyebrows. "Don't listen to him. He's old and losing his mind." Richard started laughing heartily, surprised at how well the conversation was going. For the first time in months he felt he didn't have to walk around subjects or watch what he said. His attention was brought back to her when she started speaking again.

"Just the other day he was telling me my pregnancy was messing with my moods. I'll admit I've been getting irritable more easily, but I am not prone to excessive outbursts as he claimed." She huffed, tossing the papers to the side. Richard didn't know how to respond to her statement. She bit her cheek as her eyes narrowed at him.

"Do you think I've been easier to upset lately?" Richard froze, knowing that it didn't matter which direction he took, they all led to him being locked out of their room. He sighed and sat up, clenching his eyes together. When he opened them, Kahlan's mouth was open, mock shock adorning her features. "You do."

"Your temper hasn't worsened, it just appears more often." Richard knew this conversation was going to end badly. "What did you do when Zedd told you this?"

Kahlan's eyes darted as her tongue poked her left cheek. "I may or may not have flipped over his plate of food." Richard started laughing uncontrollably, causing Kahlan to glare at him. "This isn't funny, Richard."

"He tells you that you are prone to excessive outbursts, and then you throw his food on him?" He saw Kahlan clench her jaw as her face scowled at him.

"Is it my fault that all of you seem to be incredibly aggravating? More than usual?"

"No, I suppose it's mine."

"This is not because I am pregnant, Richard." Her eyes narrowed at him, her features tightening. He was certain if confession worked on him, she would be threatening it at this very moment.

"Kahlan, your hormones are a little crazy, that's all."

"No. Do you want to know why Cara hasn't been annoying?" Richard nodded slightly, aware that he was about to get a verbal lashing. "Because she hasn't changed. At all. She is still the Cara I knew before I became pregnant. The maidservants are more doting, treating me as if I can do nothing on my own. Zedd is constantly coddling me and trying to force elixirs down my throat to supposedly ease my pregnancy - I haven't complained one bit! I haven't shown even the slightest bit of discomfort aside from her kicking me while I sleep. But yet, Zedd still feels the need to try and comfort me. I don't need comfort, I'm not a child." She huffed, her face as getting red, and Richard realized the worse was yet to come. "And you, Richard Cypher, you are the worst of them all! I knew people would change when I became pregnant, but I expected you to at least have enough respect for me to give me some space. Instead, you constantly hover around me, asking if I need anything. Have I ever hesitated to tell you if I needed something, Richard?" He shook his head. "Exactly. I have not become lame, I am not helpless, and I certainly can still tell you if I need anything. I wish people would stop treating me like I'm defenseless and can't do anything for myself, I want people to treat me like the Mother Confessor. Cara does that. She doesn't question what I do, she doesn't prod me with questions on if I need anything, she treats me as though the pregnancy doesn't hinder me at all. That's how I want to be treated, that's how I expected you to treat me."

Richard was speechless, he knew he had been a tad overbearing, his joy of his family becoming the foremost thought in his mind. He didn't think that it upset Kahlan as much as it did.

"I," He stammered, running his hand through his hair. "I wasn't aware you felt like that." She shook her head, sighing as she reached for the papers again.

"Just don't coddle me, Richard. I expect you to be happy for our child, I expect you to ask me how she's doing, I don't expect to be treated as though I'm incapable of doing anything." Richard nodded.

"I'm sorry. I-"

"You listened to Zedd, that's what you did." She raised her eyebrows at him, her smirk creeping onto her face. He chucked as he ran his hand through his hair.

"I should really stop that."

"You really should." She nodded, lightly laughing.

"I won't tip toe around you anymore, Kahlan. I'll treat you just as I did before I learned of your pregnancy." She raised her brows and tilted her head.

"Promise?"

"Promise."

She smiled as she lifted her hand and flicked it to the doorway, he grinned as lifted himself out of his chair, leaning to place a kiss on her forehead before he left the room.