A.N: Thanks for reading! I really appreciate it. Please review. Special thanks to ghost303 for being the only reviewer of the last chapter!
[months later]
Randy had officially moved in with Liz and sold his place; their relationship had grown each and every day. Taylor had finally started opening up; breaking out of her shell. The once shy little girl had a bubbly personality that the entire family could appreciate. It was time for school to start back, so Liz and Randy had gotten all three children registered for school.
This morning, Liz was awake before Randy. She caught a stomach bug from Reby and threw up earlier; she couldn't go back to sleep. She just stared at Randy as he slept. Liz never got tired of watching Randy's ears wiggle when he was having a good dream. She gently stroked one of his trembling ears to wake him up.
He moaned as he opened his eyes. "Hmm. Hey," he said sleepily with a smile.
"Good morning, babe," she said with a smile.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked.
She chuckled. "Trying to picture you in your tux for the shoot today," Liz said. She had finished up her men's clothing line; part of it included wedding tuxes to balance out her line of wedding dresses. As he promised, Randy was going to lend Liz his body for the photo shoot.
Randy smiled. "Are you sure you want me to for the photo shoot? I'm sure there are a lot of pros out there who would benefit from it more than I would," he said.
Liz shrugged. "They wouldn't do it for free, though," she said.
Randy gasped dramatically. "I'm not getting a check for this?" he asked.
"I'm sure I can come with another form of payment after I get over this stomach bug," she said.
Randy smirked. "I don't care about a little stomach bug; get over here," he said, pulling her closer to him. He kissed her hard; Liz tried to pull away, but Randy held her too tightly for her to move.
"Don't get mad when you get sick, Casanova," she said.
He laughed. "Wow. I haven't heard that in a long time. You know you're my main chick, right? My side pieces combined don't add up to you," he said.
Liz chuckled. "It's good to know I'm your number one," she said.
Randy smiled lovingly. "You know you're my only one. I love you so much, Liz. I love your hair, I love your eyes, I love your nose, I love your lips, I love your boobs the most, though," he paused to laugh. "It's like they grow more and more every day," he said.
She laughed, too. "Whatever… I love you, too, babe," she said.
"So," Randy changed the subject. "What's on the agenda today?" he asked.
Liz sighed. "Well, we've got the shoot this morning. The doctor is available today, so I'm going to pop in for a prescription for this stomach bug. I was hoping to take Taylor with me to do the school shopping after that. Then, I guess I can slave over the stove for dinner tonight," she listed.
Randy took the hint. "Gee. I'm sure you don't have to cook tonight, dear Elizabeth. I propose that we all go out to eat for dinner," he said sarcastically.
"Great idea, babe. Why didn't I think of that?!" she asked dramatically. They both laughed. "Can you get Reby and Michael up and bathed?" she asked.
He nodded. "Yeah. What do you want them to put on?" he asked.
Liz shrugged. "Doesn't matter. Play clothes or even pajamas are fine. I'll be re-dressing them for the shoot anyway," she said. Liz had incorporated all the kids in the photo shoot. Her entire wedding line included toddler suits; toddler flower girl dresses; and bridesmaid dresses for younger girls. The entire family played a part in the project. Even Teddy; he was happy to help Liz. She disappeared into the bathroom for a shower.
When Liz was dressed, she made breakfast for the family. She knew it was going to take Randy a while to get Michael and Reby awake, bathed, and dressed. That had become an advantage for Taylor; she could sleep longer than the younger kids since she could take her own bath and dress herself.
Soon enough, everyone gathered in the kitchen for pancakes, sausage, and eggs. While they ate, Liz went over a rough schedule events for the rest of the day.
oOo
Later that morning, everybody was at Liz's office getting ready for the shoot. Liz had already dressed Randy in the groom's tux; Teddy in the best man tux; and Taylor in the bridesmaid dress. She waited until the last minute to get Reby and Michael in their clothes because she knew they would ruin the fabric soon after they put it on.
Liz was angrily directing the photographer while Randy posed. "I don't want it to look so professional. Make the focus a little softer; make it look like you were in the audience of this wedding taking pictures with your phone," she shouted.
"Calm down, Liz. Everything is going to be fine," Randy said from where he stood in front of the camera.
Liz practically ignored his words of encouragement. "Move over to the right a little, Randy. The arch is for the bride, not you," she directed. When Randy moved, Liz groaned. "My right, Randy! Your left!" she yelled.
Randy smirked. "What the eff is so funny?!" Liz asked, censoring herself since the kids were in the room.
"You're sexy when you're mad," Randy said with a wink.
Liz raised an eyebrow. "You keep effing with my shoot and see how sexy I get, then," she warned.
Randy raised his hands in defeat. "Fine. I'll be on my best behavior," He moved to follow Liz's directions. "Is this better, babe?" he asked from his new spot.
She nodded. "Perfect. Don't move!" she ordered. Focusing her attention back on the photographer, Liz directed the rest of Randy's shoot. She couldn't help but imagine what it would be like to stand next to Randy in a real wedding. Liz loved him, of course, but she was concerned about what their lives would be like after a permanent bond. She tried telling herself that it would only be a piece of paper that would change the relationship, but that single piece of paper was clouding her judgment.
Liz couldn't keep her eyes off of Randy in the pictures as the photographer snapped shots of him. The smile on his face was one she loved waking up to every morning. Liz always knew that Randy was sexiest in a suit, but seeing him in a wedding tux made her hot and bothered. Had no one else been there, Liz would have had her way with him.
After almost half an hour, Liz took a deep breath. "Alright, Randy. You're done. Get out of the tux and hand it to Bo. Make sure he has Michael's tux and Reby's dress on hand," she instructed. Randy did as he was told and disappeared.
For the next two hours, Liz directed Teddy, Taylor, Michael, and Reby in their shoots. It was then time for her portion of the shoot. Thankfully, Liz didn't have to keep an eye on Reby and Michael since they fell asleep. Her nerves were much more calm; Teddy left for the day and Randy kept Taylor company in another room while Liz got ready.
Liz was sitting in the hair and make-up chair while she talked to Bo. "How are you feeling?" he asked her.
"About what?" Liz asked as two different people styled her hair and put on her make-up.
Bo chuckled. "Really? You're doing a wedding shoot with the love of your life and you aren't feeling anything?" he asked.
Liz smiled softly. "I don't know, Bo. He asked to marry him," she said.
Bo gasped. "OMG! When is the wedding?!" he asked excitedly.
She shrugged. "I said no," she said quietly.
"What?! Are you fucking insane? That fine ass man asked you to marry him and you said no? He moved in with you; you're raising 3 kids together; and you've literally known him your entire life. What is wrong with you?!" he asked.
Again, Liz shrugged. "I just don't think we're ready to get married. We've already been through so much. I don't want marriage to be just another obstacle in an already complicated situation," she said.
"Did you ever think that maybe getting married would be the finish line after the obstacles? You're worried about him leaving you and whatever else. If he wants to marry you, he's obviously not going anywhere, Liz," he said.
Liz thought about it; tears started to well up in her eyes. Bo jumped up from his seat with a tissue to catch the tears before she ruined her make-up.
"Let me ask you this," Bo started as he dabbed the tears. "If he asked you today—right now—to marry you, what would you say?" he asked.
Liz sighed. "I love him so much, Bo," she said.
Bo rolled his eyes. "That doesn't answer my question, Liz,"
"It's already been like 5 months since he asked me. I doubt he'll ask again," she said somberly.
"Seriously? He asked you to marry him 5 months ago and he's still around? Girl… that man is in love with you. He ain't going nowhere. He's going to ask again. Trust me," Bo said.
"I hope so," she said quietly.
Minutes later, Liz put on her newest wedding dress with Bo's help. The one of a kind dress was the dress that Liz had always wanted to wear in her own wedding. While she was designing the dress, she realized that people were going to want to buy the dress for themselves; to avoid that, she was planning to advertise that the dress was not for sale.
"Alright," Liz spoke to the photographer. "I want a few of these to be glossy and fancy; whatever you want. More than 75% of these need to match the rest of them so you can just lay it over all the other shots like we discussed the other day," she said.
The photographer nodded and snapped the pictures. On the inside, Liz imagined herself at her own wedding with Randy. Every day, the idea of marrying him was on her mind. Only today, she could see it happening for real.
[later that afternoon]
Liz decided it would be a good day to do go shopping for school supplies and clothes for the kids since school was starting soon; she let Taylor tag along.
Randy was making lunch for himself, Michael and Reby. "Do you need anything while I'm out, babe?" Liz asked Randy before she and Taylor left the house.
Randy thought for a minute. "Not really. I think I'm good. Oh! Toothpaste. Can you get some toothpaste and maybe some protein? Like nuts, meat, shakes, whatever?" he rambled off.
Liz nodded. "Sure, just text me all that because I'm never going to remember that," she said.
Quickly, she and Taylor got into the Range Rover Liz was able to buy a month earlier with the money from her business.
First, Liz and Taylor went out for lunch. "Where do you want to eat?" Liz asked Taylor as they rolled down the streets.
"I really like Applebees. Can we go there?" the young girl said. Liz laughed. "What's so funny?" Taylor asked.
Liz suppressed her laughter. "That's Dolph's favorite place to eat when he's out of town. He loves that place. There's always at least one Applebees around the towns he wrestles in," she said.
"He's really nice," Taylor said.
Liz smiled. "Yeah, he is. He's one of my best friends. Him and your dad didn't get along very well a few years ago so it's nice to see them be nice to each other," she said.
"Did you like wrestling?" Taylor asked.
"It was fun to try. I didn't really have a lot of matches because I got pregnant with Michael. But the training up to that point was a lot of fun. Dolph taught me," Liz said.
Suddenly, Taylor was quiet. "What's on your mind, Tay?" Liz asked.
Taylor sighed. "Do you love Dolph?" she asked.
Liz frowned in confusion. "Of course I do. Why do you ask?" she asked.
"Is that why you and dad aren't married?" Taylor asked innocently.
Liz shook her head. A 10 year old noticed the awkwardness in hers and Randy's relationship. She really needed to get her rear in gear and talk to Randy about getting married. "Dolph has nothing to do with why Randy and I aren't married. I love Dolph as a friends; he's one of those guys who really helped me during the hard times when me and Randy weren't talking," Liz explained.
"Was that CM Punk guy one of those guys, too?" Taylor asked.
Liz was shocked. "How do you even know about Phil?" she asked.
Taylor shrugged. "Internet,"
"We need to keep you off the internet; you know way too much," Liz said jokingly.
At Applebees, Liz ordered her usual Shrimp 'n Parmesan Sirloin and a sweet tea; Taylor got a Quesadilla Burger and fruit punch. While they waited on their orders, Liz asked Taylor how she was adjusting to her new environment.
"Are you excited about going to school?" Liz asked.
Taylor shrugged. "I guess. I like school. I'm really good at match and art," she said.
Liz smiled. "I think you'll really like this new school. I know your teacher; she's really nice so I think you'll enjoy her class," she said.
"I'm scared, though," Taylor admitted.
"What are you afraid of?" Liz asked.
Taylor sighed. "All the big kids; plus, I'm new and people are going to be mean to me," she said.
Liz offered a comforting smile. "It's going to be okay, Taylor. If people are mean to you, just tell your teacher. I'm pretty sure the kids there know not to mess with my kids," she said as she remembered the physical altercations both she and Randy had with other parents.
Taylor nodded. Soon enough, their food had arrived. While Taylor scarfed down her burger, Liz was having trouble cutting her steak without feeling nauseated. She quickly jumped up from her table and practically ran to the bathroom and threw up her breakfast. She loved Reby, but that stomach bug was something Liz could do without.
When her nausea was subsided, Liz rinsed her mouth and went back to the table where Taylor had already finished the burger.
"Are you okay, Mom?" the 10 year old asked.
Liz took a deep breath. "Yeah. I'm fine. We have to go to the doctor's office after this so she can give me something to take," she said.
Taylor nodded. "What's wrong? Are you sick?" she asked.
"Probably not," Liz answered. "But I really hope so," she said under her breath. Liz saw their server approaching them and asked for a to-go box for her meal.
While the server went to get it, Liz rummaged through her purse for some gum or a mint.
"Here you go, ma'am. I brought the check, too," the server said.
Liz smiled. "Thank you," she said. After Liz transferred her meal from the plate to the to-go box, she put some cash in the small black folder the check was in.
"You ready?" Liz asked Taylor. When Taylor nodded, the mother daughter duo left the restaurant and headed to the doctor's office.
All the way there, Liz said silent prayers hoping that a greater being was listening; she had never prayed so hard. She didn't need any more drama within her relationship with Randy. At least if she was sick, she could take medicine and be better in a few days.
When Liz pulled into the parking lot, she took a few deep breaths to gather her thoughts. Liz and Taylor stepped out of the car and walked into the office. Liz recalled the last time she was there; she got a lot of good news and bad news that day. She didn't know which to expect today.
After she signed herself in, Liz sat in the waiting room with Taylor who read a magazine provided by the office.
"Elizabeth Caro?" a nurse called out.
Liz looked up and took Taylor by the hand to walk back to the exam room. Per routine, Liz was weighed, her blood pressure was taken, and her temperature was measured.
"Dr. White will be with you in a moment," the nurse said. Liz smiled and nodded. As she sat quietly, Taylor looked around the exam room at all the posters and diagrams; she was mesmerized by them.
When the door opened, Liz whimpered. "Well, hey, there, Liz. It's been a while, girl. How are you?" the doctor asked.
Liz tried to smile. "I'm okay, Madison. I'm just really hoping I have the stomach bug. Please tell me I have a stomach bug," she begged.
The doctor laughed and glanced at Taylor.
"Oh!" Liz said. "Madison, this is my daughter, Taylor. Taylor, this is Dr. White," she said.
Dr. White and Taylor waved at each other and smiled. "What kind of doctor are you?" Taylor asked.
"I'm a doctor who works with women. I help them when they're pregnant," she explained so Taylor could understand.
Taylor frowned. "Are you pregnant, Mom?" Taylor asked.
Liz sighed. "I don't know, baby. That's what we're here to find out," she said.
Dr. White smiled at Liz's nerves. "So you've been nauseated for how long?" she asked Liz.
"Um, maybe three or four days. Reby just got over the stomach bug last week, though. I'm pretty sure I caught it from her," she said.
The doctor smirked and made notes. "So how long ago was it did Randy move in?" she asked condescendingly.
Liz sighed. "Madison…" she whined. "It's a stomach bug. I know it is," she said.
Dr. White laughed. "I'll have the nurse come take some blood," she said.
Almost immediately, the nurse came in to draw blood. "Your daughter is adorable," the nurse said.
Liz smiled over at Taylor. "What do you say, Taylor?" she asked.
Taylor smiled a smile almost identical to Liz's. "Thank you," she said.
"Alright, Miss Caro," the nurse said when there was enough blood in the vial. After a bandage was in place, Liz knew what was next. "Now, I need you to pee in this cup," the nurse said, handing Liz the tiny cup.
Liz groaned and took the cup. "Can you stay with Taylor?" Liz asked the nurse.
When the nurse nodded, Liz slipped out of the exam room. In the bathroom, Liz peed in the cup and put it in the designated cabinet in the bathroom.
Liz washed her hands and returned to the exam room. The nurse had left and was replaced by Dr. White.
The doctor smiled at Liz when she sat on the exam table. "We both know you're pregnant, Liz. Let me just take a look at the baby so we can see how far along you are," she said.
Liz sighed and laid back. She lifted up her shirt and closed her eyes for a last minute prayer. She hissed when the cold gel was applied to her slightly pudgy belly. Liz could feel the wand Dr. White was using.
"Liz…" Dr. White said in a sing-song voice.
Liz didn't even open her eyes. "I know," she mumbled.
"Then why are you wasting my time, girl?" the doctor asked jokingly. Liz then opened her eyes to glare at Madison.
The doctor laughed. "Before I tell you how far along you are… how long ago did Randy move in?" she asked.
Liz sighed. "Almost 5 months ago," she said.
"And you're just about 5 months pregnant, dear. Congratulations!" Dr. White announced.
Liz frowned. "Really? Why am I not showing?" she asked, concerned.
The doctor moved the wand to get a better look. "The baby is right along your spine; the baby's back and your spine are almost touching. A lot of women carry like this; it's perfectly normal. You aren't showing because the baby isn't pushing on your front side," she explained. "Do you want to know the sex?" she asked.
Liz nodded. "Sure," she said with a smile.
"Looks like baby number 4 is a boy!" she said excitedly. Liz actually grinned. "What's daddy going to say?" Madison asked.
Liz's grin grew wider just thinking about telling Randy that she was pregnant with his son. Liz knew the whole time that she was pregnant; from the first time she was spontaneously nauseated, she knew. She just didn't want to believe it. So much was happening at once: her new line, Taylor being a part of their family, Randy moving in, and now this. Liz was afraid of how Randy would take it all; knowing she was having a baby boy, Liz felt much better about it all. A tiny Randy running around would light up anybody's life.
oOo
By the end of their shopping day, Liz and Taylor were both beat. After roughly six hours of shopping, the mother-daughter duo returned home.
Liz gasped when she and Taylor walked into the house. The smell of freshly cooked dinner overwhelmed her sense of smell. "What is all this?" she asked Randy who had set the dinner table with their good dishes.
Randy smiled and kissed his girlfriend sweetly. "It's a surprise for my number one and my amazing little family," he said.
Liz smiled and started to cry. Randy wiped her tears of joy away. "Go get washed up for dinner. I'll unpack the car," he said. Liz and Taylor both went to their rooms to get ready for dinner.
When they returned, all the food was on the table, the rest of the family was seated and Randy was waiting for them. He pulled Liz's chair out for her and offered her some wine.
"Um, actually, Randy… I'll just have some water," she said.
Randy frowned. Liz hardly ever turned down a good glass of wine. "You okay, babe?" he asked as he put the wine away.
Liz took a deep breath. "Randy… I'm pregnant," she said.
The man nearly dropped the glass of water. "What?" he asked.
Liz smiled. "I said I'm pregnant; having another baby,"
Randy grinned. "Are you serious?!"
"Yes, Randy! Yes. Baby boy Orton will be here in about 4 months," she said.
The growing family celebrated during dinner. Randy was still in shock; although he considered Michael his son, Randy was going to have a biological son with his DNA. Someone who would look like him; someone who would share his personality. Four months was going to be a long time.
Liz only hoped that her pregnancy wouldn't negatively affect her chances of Randy proposing again. Now, more than ever, she wanted to be Mrs. Randal Keith Orton.
A/N: Please review.