"You know, Kat, I'm just not sure that's the best color now that I see it."

Nearly ready to combust, he dropped his paint brush and spun on his heel to face his greatest foe of the day.

"Do you not have somewhere else to be?" He flung a hand toward the door. "Doing something illegal, perhaps?"

Jenny crossed her arms, a self satisfied smirk making its way over her face. "Nah."

The amount of restraint it took to not throw her out of the house was causing the vein in his forehead to throb. Why on earth Katrina had invited the two of them to dinner was beyond him. They'd been planning to paint the second bedroom in the cabin for a week now and on the very day they'd chosen to do so, Katrina had bumped into Jenny outside the hardware store and invited her to dinner... again. As if once wasn't enough.

Why God hated him so deeply was perplexing to him. Was he not a chosen Witness of the Apocalypse? Appointed by God himself? Surely, he rated high enough with his Creator to be spared these small trials in patience.

"The blue is what Katrina chose as she plans to do something special with the room," he grit out between clenched teeth, praying the last of his patience didn't slip any further.

As Jenny rolled her eyes, Katrina laid a hand to his arm and pointed to a spot he'd missed. "It's beautiful, my love."

The gentle spirit about her as her eyes danced over the room managed to quell the pressure in his chest. To see her so happy and content with their daughter's soon to be room fulfilled a great deal of his wishes for this life. If only such wishes could be fulfilled with just the two of them present.

"So, what is it you're going to do that's so special?" Jenny nudged the painter's tray away with the tip of her shoe. "I mean, there's nothing wrong with blue, but it tends to be a boy's color."

Katrina smiled as she gestured for him to dip the other brush in the white paint. "It's a surprise." When he handed it to her, she nodded to the door. "Now, the two of you go set the table and drag Abigail away from her phone. I'll call for you when I'm finished."

The wide eyed stare that overtook Jenny brought a small grin to his lips.

"We can't just leave you to paint. The fumes probably aren't good for the baby to begin with and, besides that, you're more so waddling these days than walking. How are you going to paint?"

With a sigh, he kissed Katrina's cheek and nodded for the door. "All of these arguments have already been lost, Miss Jenny. It's best to just do as she requests."

Pausing to hold the door open, he smiled at Katrina as Jenny glanced from one to the other as though they'd both lost their minds.

"Whatever," she mumbled as she slipped past him through the door.

"If you need anything..."

She grinned, that brilliant smile of hers warming him all over again. "I know."

Unable to help chuckling, he pulled the door closed and turned to the two sets of brown eyes boring holes into him, heaps of accusation already hurtling forth at him without the first word yet being spoken.

"You're just leaving her alone in there?" Jenny asked, her arms tightly crossed over her chest. "Crane, she's huge."

Whether he should take offence at that or not was a big question in his mind, but he figured Jenny wasn't wrong. Katrina was rather prominently pregnant. Whether it was getting out of the bathtub, or standing from the bed, he tended to have to be there to attend to her needs. There was truly little she could do in terms of bending over or with other taken for granted tasks. She'd even been amazed by the fact that she couldn't see her toes when looking straight down.

"Thank you for informing me," he muttered as he moved to the kitchen, intent to see his wife's requests through. "But I'm more than aware of my wife's form."

Jenny scoffed as she dropped into her chair. "There's letting her have her pride and then there's letting her loose where she has no business being loose."

"I hate to agree with my sister on this, but she's right." Abbie took a seat at the table. "Katrina shouldn't be taxing herself this late in her pregnancy."

"She's a witch-"

"And you're whipped," Jenny cut in. "I know you like giving her every little thing she wants, but this is ridiculous."

It took all of his self-restraint to not throw the pot of rice he was moving to the table at the younger Mills sister.

"She's not taxing herself," he argued, choosing to disregard Jenny's words all together. "She's using magic to perform some sort of spell over the room. She promised me she would be standing perfectly still."

"Oh." Abbie sunk further back in her chair. "Well, doesn't magic take a lot out of her, too, though?"

He began transferring the other pots to the table. "No, not since she's been practicing. She said it's once again become as second nature as walking."

"Well, that's not saying much. In case you haven't noticed, she's not walking so much as waddling these days." The glare he cast next should have burned Jenny Mills where she sat, but all it did was make her cross her arms again. "Am I wrong?"

Tossing the dishtowel on the table, he stood straighter and gestured to the room which held his beloved. "Do either of you truly think I'd allow her in harm's way?"

Abbie interrupted the beginnings of Jenny's reply and said, "Crane, come on, of course not. We're just looking out for her." She shrugged as though her next words should have been obvious. "We care about her, too."

Effectively calmed, he deflated, all his energy spent for the day. It truly was comforting to know that if anything ever befell him, Katrina would still have others in her life to care for her; to, perhaps, even love her as family would. However, at the same time, it was aggravating that no one took his word for anything. Lost as he may have been upon entrance to modern society and their way of doing things, he was a fast learner and he knew how to care for his wife. There was no one he'd studied more.

"I appreciate your concern, and I'm sure Katrina will as well, but all is well in hand." He rearranged a few of the pots. "We were up for half the night discussing this and she was adamant that she would be fine. I'm choosing to honor her by trusting her judgment."

Abbie sunk back into her chair, something he was grateful to see. At least, his friend knew him well enough to accept his word, especially when it came to his wife. However, the other, less accommodating sister, still looked ready to argue. Thankfully, before any further words could be exchanged, the door to the bedroom opened, revealing Katrina's glowing face.

"It's finished."

His surprise over the quickness of her work did nothing to stop his eagerness to see the finished product. Swiftly clearing the distance between them, he lifted his hand to brush her hair over her ear.

"That didn't take long."

Katrina's smile brightened. "As I said it wouldn't."

His doubt would never be heard by the others.

"Well?" Jenny asked, her voice causing him to jump as she was suddenly right at his ear. "Can we see what all the fuss was about or what?"

With an amused laugh, Katrina took his hand as she pulled the door shut behind her. "Not quite. Night is required for it to properly work."

"What?" Jenny exclaimed, her voice laced with disbelief. "All of this and we're not even allowed to see it?"

"Eager, Jenny?" Abbie asked with a chuckle. "You seem more excited about it than Crane."

Jenny grumbled as she returned to her seat and plopped down in it, her disgruntlement evident.

"It won't be long," Katrina assured as she reached for her seat. "I'm sure as soon as we're done with dinner, it'll be ready."

Quickly slipping by her, he gripped the chair to pull it out for her. "Allow me, my love."

Taking her by the hand, he placed his other hand at her back and helped her ease into the chair, careful to keep her positioned right. The last thing he wanted was for the chair to slip away from her.

"Thank you," she whispered as she settled.

Satisfied she was alright, he took the seat next to hers and glanced around the table. "I hope this is an edible meal. I've not exactly been the most attentive toward it with all the small projects we've had throughout the day."

"What is it?" Jenny asked as she leaned forward to lift the lid on the pot.

"Chicken and rice." Reaching for Katrina's hand, he added, "It's what Katrina wanted."

A 'hmm' was the only reply he received, prompting him to clear his throat and hold his hand out to Abbie. "Shall we give thanks?"

The last time they'd had dinner, Jenny had been less than accepting of their giving thanks for their meal, something he'd considered strange as she was born into a religious family. Then again, as her life had been one of continual strife and heartache, he couldn't blame her resistance. Under such circumstances, he surely would have felt the same.

Hands joined around the table, their thanks was given, leaving them with the blessing of their meal. However, once the food was actually on everyone's plates, he became self conscious. There were few things he'd taken to enjoying as much as cooking in this new era of his life. Preparing meals for Katrina was one of his favorite daily tasks. Others' opinions of his skills, on the other hand, left him feeling less than adequate.

"I'm scared to eat this," Jenny said as she stared at her plate.

"Ichabod's actually become quite the cook," Katrina replied, a small measure of defense mixed into the kindness in her voice. "I look forward to the meals he daily prepares me."

How he loved his wife. Class hiding that fire that never ceased burning within her.

"Yeah," Abbie added as she took the first bite. "All he talks about when we're not on a case are baby things and food channels."

"Yes, yes." He shifted in discomfort while wishing someone would comment on the actual wellness of his food. "Have your amusement at my expense."

Katrina's hand found his under the table as Abbie nodded her head side to side, clearly testing the flavors. He wasn't quite sure what he'd do if she spit all right back out.

"Alright, I'm eating with y'all every evening."

Relief flood his system in ways he hoped wasn't evident to the rest of the table.

"It could be worse, " Jenny said as she reached for her water. "Not half bad for an old guy."

The headache that woman could give was worse than a long night of sleeping through a blizzard with nothing but the thin coverings of one's tent to ward it off.

"Ok, so, I'm dying to know," Abbie said, leaning closer to the table after a few minutes, her gaze on Katrina. "What's her name going to be?"

A heavy sigh slipped between his lips. The woman never quit. He'd told her at least a dozen times that there was no name.

"Crane's being tight lipped about it." Abbie narrowed her eyes at him. "But, with only a couple of weeks left, there's no way there aren't names in the works."

Katrina laughed as she set her fork down. "Actually, we've decided to wait until we meet her to choose a name."

"Seriously?" Jenny asked, her brow knit tight. "You really haven't picked one?"

"Well, we don't know her yet," Katrina explained. "I want to see her and hold her before anything definite is decided."

"But there are names, though, right?" Abbie prodded, causing him to chuckle at her relentlessness. "One's to choose from?"

"I suppose you'll have to wait and see," Katrina teased as she reclaimed her fork.

Amused over the sisters' desire to be in the know, he watched the identical expressions of disappointment flicker over their faces.

"What if it's not even a girl?" Jenny waved her hand. "It's been known to happen that a different sex pops out in the delivery room every now and then."

A momentary worry swept over him, but thankfully Katrina had the answer. "We're positive it's a girl. I knew it before we were ever told by the doctor."

"Uh huh and what about twin girls?" Jenny cast him a smirk. "That's been known to happen as well."

Oh, dear God, life surely wouldn't do such a thing to him, would it? Twin girls? He was positive one newborn was going to cause him to become unraveled, but two? He'd have to have his own hospital bed to collapse upon beside Katrina's. That wasn't to say he'd be opposed to two daughters, but that he simply wasn't sure he was prepared to see such a thing come to pass with the first one. He needed preparation... and experience.

"There's only one little girl," Katrina assured with a squeeze to his hand. "There are no doubts."

Finally breathing, he took comfort in her touch. There was no one who could reassure him more than his wife. If only he could keep her hand in his at all times.

"Alright, enough's enough. We've eaten and it's semi dark outside." Jenny dropped her napkin on the table as she stood. "I have to see it before I go crazy."

Once again, he desperately wished Katrina had chosen another night to have the sister's over. This was a private moment he wished to cherish, not an exhibit of magical abilities for all to see. However, Katrina only laughed, as she always did with Jenny, and looked to him with a warm smile.

Groaning at the entire situation, he pushed his chair back. "Very well. Let's just all share in the experience. It's not as though there's such a thing as privacy any longer."

As he pulled out Katrina's chair, Jenny raised an eyebrow. "We gave you privacy to make the kid."

"You weren't even a thought in the mind of your great-great..." He threw his hands up in exasperation. "However many great grandmother's it was when our daughter was created."

"Well, then, she gave you privacy, didn't she?"

His entire face tightened as he attempted to remain composed. She was bating him. He knew it. However, he'd never been the best at stepping around such situations.

"Ichabod and I are happy to share in this experience." Katrina took him by the hand and began leading him toward the door. "But if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to show him first."

The sweetness his wife could permit into her voice while she was giving an order or request was the reason they rarely argued. How could one argue with her when she did that?

"That's cool," Abbie said as she grabbed her sister's arm. "We'll give you a few minutes."

Katrina smiled at them before she turned to him. "It'll be a bit strange for you to take in at first, but, I assure you, once you get past the magic of it, you'll love it."

That only increased his anxiety and eagerness. He hadn't the slightest idea of what to expect as she led him through the door, but, the moment he discovered it, he found himself abruptly coming to a stop.

Magic.

Never before had he seen such magic.

The room was moving; actually moving. It took him a moment's pause to grasp the concept of the outdoors actually indoors. To be honest, he still wasn't sure he was fully grasping it.

"What...?"

"Is it too much?"

The nervousness in her voice pulled his gaze from the ceiling to find her twisting her hands together with her bottom lip caught between her teeth.

"I wasn't sure about the-"

Not bothering with words, he tenderly took her face in his hands and pressed into her, his lips seeking out hers. Truthfully, there were no words to describe the emotions welling in his chest.

Her hands crept up the sides of his shirt as she accepted him, her return of his kiss coming with a sigh of relief. It was in these moments he loved her most; the one's where she completely took him by surprise and made him realize how truly blessed he was to have her as his wife.

"What the hell?" he heard Jenny mutter behind him.

One bloody minute was all he wanted. Surely, a full one hadn't yet to pass.

"It's actually supposed to be more akin to heaven than hell," Katrina replied with a chuckle as she leaned away from him.

The ceiling, once white and plain, now twinkled with stars, the lights from them illuminating the small room. The blue walls, in the day so bright, now were a reflection of sky and ocean illuminated by the stars from the heavens.

"Yeah, uhm," Abbie tapped Katrina's shoulder, her eyes still plastered to the ceiling. "I'm gonna need to get you to come do this to my room."

"And mine," Jenny added as she touched the wall where the waters were gently rippling.

Katrina smiled as she turned back to him, her palms smoothing over his back as she whispered, "I thought you might like to tell her the stories of the different stars and constellations you love so much."

Such thoughtfulness filled him to the brim with love. For a while now, he'd wondered how he would connect with a daughter in the same manner as he would a son. What would he teach her that would set him apart from Katrina? What bonds would they form that were theirs alone? That Katrina would recognize his needs and meet them before he could even express them was something beyond love. It deserved an altogether different name.

"Mrs. Crane, you are..." He pressed his forehead to hers, simply breathing in the amazing woman that she was. "Everything."

Just a couple of chapters left. I'll try to get them up asap :) Let me know what you guys and gals think.

Next up: A baby for the Crane's.