Chapter 24: Nick of Time

Freddie's POV

"So you're abandoning me?" Maddie looked petrified as I explained my plans to work from Seattle. "Don't get me wrong Freddie, I am happy about all the baby stuff, but the author that we are working with is a psycho. He's going to eat me alive." I huffed off my frustration, Maddie and I were in my editing studio and I was working on adding some sound effects to a scene. I was overwhelmed I was trying to rush so many things that I was sure I wasn't doing my best work. I hated that. I was a perfectionist by nature, but right now I just couldn't focus on work.

"I don't know what else to do Maddie, I refuse to miss anything and have Sam go through her pregnancy alone. Besides, with all of the technology at our disposal you can contact me at anytime with concerns. You won't even notice I'm gone." I looked back at Maddie; she was in full pout mode. "It's going to be fine I promise."

"I'm not sure I believe you, but it's not like that should change anything." She shrugged her shoulders and then looked down at her computer screen.

"I'm not leaving for another two weeks, if you still feel like you won't be able to handle things we will address it in the future. Deal?" She smirked at me for some reason unknown to me. It wasn't until then that I realized that Maddie hadn't been smiling or talking much lately. I'd be so wrapped up in Sam that I hadn't noticed my assistant's solemn disposition.

"Are you okay Maddie?" Snorted and looked down at the laptop.

"No Boss, but my mood doesn't matter." I didn't know how to respond to this side of Maddie she's always been so peppy and happy.

"Of course you matter Maddie." I wheeled myself across the room to be closer to her.

"Adam doesn't think so anymore. He seemed to be so perfect for me at first. Then he just … DUMPED ME, and with a text no less. Who does that?" The gates opened and Maddie began to sob uncontrollably. I went and sat on the couch beside her and gave her a shoulder to lean on.

"I don't know what I did wrong." She stammered over herself and wiped her tears on the sleeve of her cardigan.

"I doubt it was you. Adam and you were very different maybe he wasn't able to over look those differences.

"You and Sam are different and you can't wait to get back to her. Hell, you've spent half of your life waiting for her. When she stated it that way it made me seem a little pathetic.

"You shouldn't compare the two situations, Sam and I have known each other forever and we have had a lot of problems but our chemistry outweighs them all. You never know, Adam may come to the same revelation too." As I filled her head with hop her sobs softened until they became non-existent.

"You're so great Freddie," Maddie whispered as she laid her head on Freddie's shoulder. "Sam is a very, very lucky woman."

"I'm the lucky one to get another opportunity to get it right." I held her for only a second more. I felt guilty leaving her here to deal with all the business when she was emotionally distressed. I was going to have to figure out a way to be in two places at once.

Sam's POV

My apartment was SO dirty! It was the weekend and normally I would be out and about, but today I needed to clean my space. I sorted my clothes and started my second load of clothes to wash. Just I as bent down to grab a sock I missed I heard a knock on the door. I wasn't expecting anyone to drop by; Max's husband had taken her away for the weekend since she's been a little depressed lately.

"Coming!" I yelled as I waddled through my apartment to the door. I opened the door and my brown-haired friend threw her arms around me.

"Hey baby mama!" She squealed. Carly pulled away from me and immediately dropped her hands to my stomach.

"How did you …" Before I could finish my statement I answered my own question. Benson, he couldn't help himself, he had to share everything with Carly.

"Freddie told me! I never thought I'd see the day that Samantha Puckett would be pregnant." I didn't respond to that statement. I don't see why she wouldn't be able to envision it I was a female after all. "I wasn't expecting you to be so BIG!"

She said as she stepped past me and waltzed into my apartment. It was then that I saw that she had luggage. LUGGAGE! What the hell was going on?

"What's going on with the bags Shay? Did you and Dylan have a fight?" Carly frowned at me and then looked at me as if I'd lost my mind.

"No, weren't you expecting me?"

"No offense Carls, but do I look like I was expecting you?" I motioned toward myself, I was a mess and still in the seats and oversized tee shirt I'd slept in the night before.

"Well, I thought you wanted me here. Freddie practically begged me to come down and be with you" she explained as she sat down and seemed as baffled as I was.

"Did you want me to leave?" She asked and seemed a little worried that I'd say yes.

"No it would be cool if you stayed. A lot of cool and weird thing happen when you're pregnant it would be great to have someone to share everything with." I sat down with her and rubbed my big baby belly. "Like last week, the babies started kicking and you can see them move inside of me sometimes. I would love to have someone to share all this stuff with."

"Hold on, how many kids you having there Sam?" Carly's eyes bugged out of her head.

"Oh yeah, there are two little buggers in the tank." I found myself smiling at my belly. I'd been doing that a lot lately.

"Sam that's so amazing!" Carly scooted closer to me and wrapped her arm around my shoulders. "It's going to be awesome sharing this experience with you Sam."

"You know what experience you can share with me now?" I said as I looked around my messy living room. "You can help me clean!" I hopped up and grabbed the broom and handed to her and snatched the rag off the coffee table and started dusting for the third time today.

"Nesting," Carly said dryly. "What fun?"

"Not fun but on so necessary, Shay it looks like you got here right in the nick of time."