Emmett's POV

He had looked shocked, and annoyed.

That's what had flashed through John's eyes on Thanksgiving. When he saw Bay, he hadn't expected something, and he didn't like what he saw. I don't know what he had heard, I don't know what had made him decide to come back and just change his mind... but it wasn't like John. He wasn't one to just raise a white flag.

I didn't know if he wanted to come home because it looked better for his campaign. I don't know if someone threatened him. I just knew I didn't trust him. Especially not around Bay, and our baby.

No one else seemed to feel the same way, though. Even Bay was starting to relax around him, which only meant I needed to be on higher alert. Only two other people seemed to be skeptical; Regina and my mother.

The only time I was able to relax was during school. John wasn't going to target his daughter at school, especially not with the public eye on him.

And I was about to relax even further. Bay had told me just after our fourth Lamaze class that she had gotten into Carlton on the pilot program. She had also realized, however, with her due date in April, that she wouldn't be able to finish the school year with everyone else. And she certainly didn't want to do summer school with a new born, so she was already getting work to do over winter break.

About a week and a half after Lamaze had started, we had our second class begin. This one was a parenting class, to teach us how not to kill our kid after we had it. It seemed much more informative than the Lamaze, as far as I could tell. Though Bay had taken a liking to the Lamaze class, saying that it taught her about things that she would have never thought to ask about. And to its credit, it was teaching me things that I wouldn't have thought to do. Because of the class, nearly every night I rubbed Bay's feet, and she enjoys it so much she goes to sleep. I try to rub her back and shoulders, but that one is a bit more complicated.

The parenting class met every Friday, and was by far my favorite of the two. Every time we went in, we were given baby dolls, and we went through a series of exercises. Diaper changing, bathing, carrying, feeding, burping, the list went on and on. It was teaching me things that I never would have asked about.

Both classes gave me a chance to wear my 'Dad loading' shirt without Bay giving me a look, however.

In the past few weeks, the baby's growth seemed to be speeding significantly. Now that she was 23 weeks, almost 24, it was often that people asked her about it. Asked how far she was, about the gender, some people even touched her. The first time it had happened, she had frozen in place.

The woman appeared to be cooing, her hand resting on the top of Bay's stomach. The look on Bay's face was something I wish I had a camera for. Her eyes were wide and her jaw dropped, staring at the woman in a mix of anger and shock. The woman didn't seem to notice, moving on a moment later.

"She just touched me!" Her hands moved in jerky movements.

'People like babies.' I shrugged slightly, trying to fight my grin. I had an inkling that if I let on how amusing I found the situation, she'd only get more upset.

"People can like babies all they want, they don't get to touch me. Or my baby. This is a hands free zone." She gestured around her body.

It had happened a few times after that, and it had prompted her to wear a shirt she had refused to look at before. 'If you didn't put it in here, don't touch it.' She had taken to wearing it to any at-risk locations, mostly the store.

Bay took my hand and stood from the chair beside me. I quickly followed, and we were soon to the examination room. I watched as the blood pressure cuff was put on, waiting until the paper gown was presented before I automatically stood and left the room. I entered again when the door opened, and I sat beside her.

'Any idea what we do today?'

"Not a clue. I don't think anything, really. We should be out of here pretty quickly, I think."

I nodded slightly, and soon after the doctor came in. She always had a smile on her face, always happy. I looked away from her as she started her examination.

There were baby posters and charts all over the room. There was one that had the weeks of pregnancy and the size of the baby, with pictures. It was by far my favorite, and I quickly looked down to the 24th week line, smiling slightly.

It was still strange to think that I had one of those. That I had one of those with Bay. Yet at the same time, it felt so natural. It felt like my life had always been going in this direction.

Bay tapped on my shoulder, and when I turned to her, she pointed to the door. I nodded and left the room, once again waiting for the door to open for me. She was back in her clothes, and laid back, automatically lifting her shirt. Natalie was in soon after, doing her poking and prodding. She asked her usual questions, from what I could tell, and as always she walked away happier. This was a woman who had clearly chosen the right career path.

I smiled widely when I saw the device in her hands and she turned to face me. "Last time we use this in the appointment. After this, I just use the stethoscope."

I nodded and took the offered box. I watched as she searched for the heartbeat, jumping slightly when the box started to vibrate.

I absolutely loved the Doppler. It gave me a chance to get almost as close to my little girl as Bay was every day. It let me feel her little heart going, and though I knew it was ridiculous, I always felt like it was calling to me. Saying, "I love you, Daddy, I'm coming". She didn't know I was here, she didn't know anything. She was still in the safety of Bay's womb, and would be for another four months... but that didn't stop me from hearing it.

The box abruptly stopped, and I handed the Doppler back to Natalie. Bay cleaned up, and Natalie turned to her papers, writing various things before looking up.

"Any questions? Either of you?"

I shook my head and looked at Bay.

"No. Not that I can think of."

I looked back to Natalie. "Ok. Then that's it for today. I'll see you two next year. Merry Christmas, you guys."

I smiled. 'You too.'

"You, too," Bay said.

We left the room and went out to the car.

Just so everyone knows, the last chapter was Nov. 27, and this chapter ends Dec. 22. I couldn't think of anything to do in between.