Hello!

Many thanks for your always kind reviews. It's so good to know so many of you are following this story. I am doing shorter chapters in order to be able to update more often. I hope to bring you another one soon! All the best xoxo.

Chapter 19

"Charles?"

"No, I arrested a Charles four years ago, famous blackmailer."

"Ethan?"

"Drug dealer"

"Anthony?"

"Serving a life sentence for killing for a triple homicide."

"Sherlock, this is ridiculous. Of course almost every first name was bore by a criminal a least once. It doesn't mean nobody can't use it anymore!"

"Too late, this is my turn. Sigerson?"

"No"

"Amyus ?"

"No!"

"Sherringford ?"

"Do those names even exist? Look, I know your parents had a lot of imagination, but I'd rather like if we didn't follow this bizarre Holmes tradition. No offence, I love your name, but I think life would be easier for our son with a more… traditional choice."

It was a beautiful day of July and Molly had improvised a picnic in their garden. She had returned from her second scan a few days ago, with the news that she was expecting a boy. She didn't have any preference concerning the gender, but was more excited than ever. She could start thinking about the future baby's room, his first clothes and the difficult task of picking a name. Sherlock and her had been exchanging on the subject for the past hour, Molly quoting possible names from a book she had just bought, Sherlock rejecting all of them and then making his own eccentric suggestions. This was going nowhere…

"What about Hamish?"

"Where does that comes from? It doesn't sound like the other ones, actually I quite like it."

"It's John's middle name. He once suggested that I should use it if I ever had a child with Irene Adler."

Sherlock hadn't even finished his sentence when he understood he had done a capital mistake. The look in Molly's eyes had suddenly changed, as if a storm was about to rise.

"Why would John ever suggest that?", she asked suspiciously.

"It was a joke. You know John, he likes to tease me when it comes to women."

"I don't think he would have suggested that he you weren't interested in her."

"I told you before, it was just a game."

"Yes a game… and your ringtone for her was an erotic moan, I heard it at the Christmas party. You know, I don't care if you slept with her, but you could at least be honest about it."

"I didn't sleep with her!"

"Then how did you recognize her from… not her face?"

"I don't understand why we are having this conversation. We were choosing baby names a minute ago…". But Sherlock's efforts to change the subject were in vain. Molly was still looking daggers at him, impatiently waiting for an answer to her question. He sighed in resignation. He had learned that it was useless to fight with a woman, especially a five month pregnant one.

"I recognized her body because I had seen her naked. Actually John did too."

Molly's eyes widened in surprise.

"No this is not what you think… We went to her house for an investigation and she presented herself naked to us. I imagine she was a bit of an exhibitionist."

"And a sado-masochist call girl. I saw her website."

"The correct word is dominatrix. But it doesn't matter anymore, she's dead."

Molly froze for a second, a realization seemed to hit her.

"Oh my God, she's alive!"

"What are you talking about? I just told you she was dead."

"You think I'm an idiot? You just did that thing with your eyes, you slightly looked down when you pronounced the word dead. You do that when you're lying."

Sherlock didn't even try to contradict his wife. He was always amazed by her capacity to read him.

"Alright. But then you should know I wasn't lying about not having a relationship with her."

Molly's features softened a little bit. Deep down she knew he was saying the truth about Irene, but she felt hurt that he had hidden from her such an important piece of information.

"Why did you lie to me? I thought we had no secrets, why didn't you tell me she was alive?"

"For the same reasons I'm hiding here playing dead! I am the only person in the world to know she is alive. Well I was. Her safety would be highly compromised if the truth was out."

"Does she know you are alive?"

"No. I haven't been in contact with her for over two years. I don't even know where she is."

"What if she contacts you when we go back to London? Your name will probably be all over the papers, I'm sure she will get in touch."

"Are you jealous?", he asked, rising an eyebrow.

"She is a beautiful woman. And she was obviously very interested in you."

"If I wanted to sleep with her, I had more than the opportunity. But I didn't. I told you the truth, she was just an intellectual challenge. A lot of women were interested in me, and yet you're the only one who got me."

"That's because I was the most persevering", she said with a smirk.

"You were for sure", he replied, drawing her closer to him for a kiss. "And you have absolutely nothing to fear about her, or anybody else. I am not the easiest man to live with, but I am faithful."

"I know", she whispered.

They remained silent for a moment, lying on the blanket Molly had spread on the grass, both staring at the clouds above them.

"I think I would like to name him Thomas, like my dad", said Molly after a while.

"It is a good idea."

"Isn't it the name of a thief or a serial killer?"

"Was you father a serial killer?"

"No !", she exclaimed laughing. "But are you sure you like the name?"

"Yes", he said with a nod.

"We can use Hamish as a middle name if you want", she added. "Not for her, for John."

"Thomas Hamish then?"

"Yes"

Molly put her hand on her now visible baby bump. Sherlock put his on top and leaned to talk to the baby :

"Thomas Hamish Holmes, I don't know if you can hear us, and even if you do you probably don't understand. But let me tell you that we ended up in a pretty weird family."