Chapter 40

"Ye ready to go back outside?" He suggested, running his hand up and down her side lovingly before caressing that baby bump.

Drew was seeing a lot more of that in the future and knew he would have to get it all out when they were alone since she hadn't announced who the father of her baby was to the world. To be fair, he didn't blame her. It was nobody's business except their own.

"Yeah, I'll keep you company out there, Highlander."

Tressa grinned, enjoying the attention he gave their child, and could see the love shining in his eyes for the bump. He or she wasn't born yet and already they had Daddy wrapped around their finger. She was telling Stephanie and the higher-ups about who the father was on Monday because, if they were really going to do this, to try a relationship, Tressa didn't want to hide it. The notion of a closet romance did not set well with her and she wondered what Drew thought about it. Maybe he didn't want everybody to know.

"How do you want to do this when we're back on the road, Andrew? Do you want people to know about us or…do you want to keep it secret and keep professional and personal separate?"

He was leading the way back outside, looking thoughtful. "I don't know to be honest," He had taken up residence at the grill and gestured her to the oversized, wooden patio chair with cushions attached. She curled up into it and he smiled, she was so damn tiny compared to him. "I don't see the need to hide it, but nor is there any need to go shouting it from the rooftops." He liked his privacy and, to be honest, he wasn't entirely sure he trusted the McMahons to not somehow try using this for something stupid.

"I'll be honest, I'm not fond of PDAs in the workplace. I don't mind an occasional kiss on the forehead or cheek, but other than that, we both have jobs to do." Tressa was too old for those kinds of games and figured she'd lay it all out for him. "If people find out, great, but I'm not going to scream it from the rooftops or anything like that." With the dirt sheets and social media these days, it wasn't easy for a Superstar to keep their life private. "We're on the same page." Or so it sounded like it as she leaned her head back against the cushion of the chair, feeling better now that they were talking about everything.

"That we are." The WWE had their shows and whatnot for the WWE Network, the reality TV crap, he was good. Several superstars did that, and most had to do at least some appearances or 'features', but he preferred to not let the McMahons air his life for the entire world. "All the social networking, and these crap reality shows," He shook his head, using tongs to flip the chicken breasts, and pulled a face. "I always ken being 'famous', such as it were, meant having ye life sometimes on display, but I think the company sometimes forgets there are lines."

"Yeah, they do."

There was no way she would ever allow the McMahons, not even Vince, to use her personal life on television in any capacity. That happened to one of the now ex-seamstresses because of that very reason. Vince thought she fit the build of being a Diva, at the time, and the woman had crashed and burned, using her personal life for a storyline, which also backfired. It sank faster than the damn Titanic. That was back when she first started with the company, during her first year, and Tressa vowed to NEVER let something like that happen to her. If that old man even THOUGHT about using her pregnancy for a storyline, she would quit the company in the blink of an eye. Stephanie was a good friend of hers, so that boded well in her favor.

"And those lines seem to be getting smaller and smaller because of social media. In my opinion, wrestlers show WAY too much of their personal lives these days."

"Exactly. It used to be people were invested in the character. Now, they ken who is who on which side of the screen and get so involved with the person's actual life…wrestling just becomes a sideline product." Of course, he was glad he had missed the days of having to be in character constantly, heels having to hang with heels, and the like, that would have also been a pain in the arse. Though not like this new, everything was open to everyone in this modern age. "Now, me bonnie one, since we're both in agreement on keeping our business our own, would ye like to eat inside or out here at the table?"

"It's so nice out here. Let's eat out here."

The sun was starting to set on the horizon and the heat wasn't stifling. It was relaxing and soothing; Tampa definitely suited her a lot better than Minnesota. Andrew ordered her to stay put while he went inside to grab everything, setting the table accordingly. She took the plates from him to help out, along with silverware and after Andrew sat down, he let her make her plate first before helping himself.

"This looks delicious." He hadn't forgotten the cottage cheese and pineapple either, which was in a bowl separate from the rest of the food, just for her. "Do you, um, is there some kind of grace you say before each meal, or are you not into that religious stuff?"

Drew was silent, mostly because he wasn't sure if she was serious or not. "I'm a believer, but not overly religious." He wondered where she stood on religion. For some people, that was a make-or-break thing, a person's spiritual beliefs. "I dinnae go to church, dinnae pray regularly…" He was probably a bad Christian, but he also figured since he tried being a good man, it likely balanced out. "How about ye?" He asked slowly, hesitating on doing anything else just in case she was and wanted to say grace.

"I'm a believer. Christian Baptist, actually, but…I don't go out of my way to pray or say grace or anything like that. I just didn't know if you were religious and that's why I wanted to ask. Didn't want to offend you." They were getting to know each other and questions would be asked. She reached across the table to take his hand, lacing their fingers together briefly and squeezing them. "I don't go to church either. We're bad people, apparently." She giggled at the smirk on his face and shrugged, taking a bite of the chicken salad, and groaned. "Oh, this is so good…" Then she took a bite out of the cottage cheese and pineapple to mix with it.

That was a heavenly taste.

Baptist. Now, after traveling through the southern states, Drew firmly believed that 'Baptist' down here and 'Baptist' up north meant two entirely different things. Southern Baptists were hellfire and brimstone to an extreme and it was odd when coupled with the joyous, almost raucous singing of hymns. Up north, more Jesus loves me and the same joyous, raucous singing.

"Ye not good or bad based on if ye go to church, lass." Drew laughed, shaking his head. "I refuse to believe ye a bad person. Ye like me cooking for one, obviously, ye a patron saint."

Definitely not a Southern Baptist, considering she was from Minnesota originally. She didn't have the accent either, which a lot of Minnesota people had, thankfully. "Maybe I enjoy being a bad girl, though." She winked at him, popping another bite of pineapple and cottage cheese in her mouth with sparkling greys.

Drew lit a candle to give them a little more light since the sun had gone down and the moon and stars were out. They ate the rest of the meal in companionable silence, both starving after the exercise they endured earlier. She stood up and stopped him from doing so, leaning down to brush her lips against his softly.

"You cooked, let me clean up, please?"

"Ye a guest in me home, ye don't raise a finger."

He cupped the back of her neck, preventing Tressa from standing upright and his other hand moved to rest on her baby bump. Their baby, he liked that, and now knowing she was ready to move on, and she wanted to try a proper relationship with him, he loved it. "Besides, all it is, is putting what's left in Ziplocs and then the dishwasher handles the rest." Dishwashers, he would have killed for one of those when he was a kid, handwashing had sucked.

"Andrew…" Tressa could see she would not win against him and sighed gently, deciding she WOULD be returning the favor once she moved to Tampa in her new house.

She pressed her forehead against his, rolling it briefly, and stepped back to let him rise to his feet, towering over her. What used to intimidate her now turned her on – it was funny how life worked sometimes. While he cleaned up and took the food back into the house, including the dishes, Tressa stayed outside and looked up at the starry night sky, wondering if Joseph was staring down at her. She had to move on. She couldn't grieve and be in mourning forever. What Tressa really wanted to do was name the baby after Joseph, if it was a boy, but she didn't think Drew would appreciate that, so she kept that to herself. She just hoped Joseph was staring down at her, along with their own baby, somewhere up there, with a smile on his face. He would want her to be happy and, from this day forward, she would be with Drew, but she would also never forget her husband, her first soulmate.

Maybe she had it wrong all along – maybe people did have multiple soul mates in life.

Still staring up at the starry sky was how Drew found her 10 minutes later when he returned from the minimal clean-up. Having everything prepped and ready to go ahead of time, as well as keeping on top of things during the cooking process, usually meant for an easier clean-up. His mam hadn't gotten daughters and damned if she hadn't turned her boys into capable, potential 'house' husbands. He knelt down before her, feeling her tiny hands coming to rest on his shoulders, and nuzzled that belly, sighing against her dress.

"Penny for your thoughts, mo'leannan?" That term of endearment had taken on a whole new meaning.

"Not really, no. Just hoping Joseph is up there looking down at me and he's okay with everything, you know? I just want him to be all right with my decisions and…I feel like he is. I feel like he's drawn me to you somehow." She slid her fingers through his hair, smiling down at him, and hoped Drew didn't think she was having second thoughts about moving on. That wasn't the case at all. "I just want him to be at peace and to make him proud. I've noticed something while being with you, Andrew. I don't cry anymore when I talk about Joseph. I can even say his name without tearing up. That makes me believe I'm ready for this, to really give us a chance because I don't feel grief anymore."

He was going to take that as a small win, but also expecting grief to come on suddenly and for no seeming reason. His father still went through it on occasion. It was natural, just all a part of life and love. "Good, and glad I am to hear it." Drew would never try taking the place of her husband, but he knew with patience and time, he would have his own place in her heart, the seed was already there. "If it's a boy," He began slowly. "Perhaps ye like to give him the name Joseph? It's a good, strong name, Tressa."

"What?"

Now Tressa was staring down at him with wide eyes, not believing the words that just came out of his mouth. Drew was recommending what she'd only dream of doing, should this baby be a boy? He didn't mind if she named the baby after her dead husband, her first soul mate in life? This man truly was noble, patient, and kind with a huge heart, and she felt tears sting her eyes.

"You mean it, don't you?" It was a simple statement and he nodded to affirm what he said. "Are you sure that wouldn't bother you? I know you're recommending it now because of the moment, but…this is your baby and I want you to be absolutely sure this is what you want. I thought about suggesting his name earlier, but I didn't think it was appropriate…" They really were in sync; it was somewhat frightening.

"I was having similar thoughts." He confessed, slowly standing up and guiding her back out towards that giant, oak swing. It was a beautiful night and the temperature was comfortable. His landscaper had planted natural plants thrown in with his own preferences to help deter mosquitoes, so those were rarely a nuisance here. "Earlier, when we were talking," He sat down and shifted to face her, reaching out to push a stray strand of hair back behind her ear. "I dinnae think it would sound right, or genuine, coming from me. I do think ye should consider it though, Tressa. It's a good way of both honoring and remembering him."

"You're too good to be true." Tressa let a few tears slip down her cheeks while holding his hands, sliding them up his arms and back down. "I mean it. You came out of nowhere, out of the blue, and I nearly destroyed this chance because of my fear…because of uncertainty. There's nobody else that has made me feel a fraction of the way Joseph did…until you." Not even Jon. "Joseph Andrew Galloway." He wouldn't be the fifth, but…she would still be able to name the baby after the father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and great-great-grandfather, along with her dead husband. "Are you all right with that, my Highlander?"

"Aye, I am," He chuckled, squeezing her hands before bringing them up to his mouth, taking his time to kiss each one. "My darling Highland Queen." He teased, raising a black eyebrow at her puzzled look. Of course, Scottish royalty had a line that had been interrupted due to English occupation and had to be restored a fair few times. "Oh aye, lass, dinnae ye ken? All us fine Scots can claim at least a tenth of royal blood, dating all the way back to our first King. King of the Scots, Kenneth MacAlpin." He was teasing her, mostly. "You'll find us all to be charming, devilishly handsome."

He was kissing away those tears now.