Chapter 40

Some Enchanted Evening

Amanda rested her head on Lee's chest. She drew lazy circles on him as they lay there. It continued raining and they listened to soft music of raindrops dappling of on the balcony railing and windows. "I love that sound. It's so peaceful."

"I suppose we should enjoy the peace now," Lee said as he lazily traced his fingers up and down her back. "Somehow, I don't think we'll have too much at our house."

"Especially in about 5 months," Amanda giggled. "This little tater tot is going to keep us really busy." She said rubbing her belly. "If this baby is anything like you, we could be in big trouble." She laughed.

"No doubt." Lee said. "Can I be honest? I'm nervous about this new baby. Don't get me wrong, I love that we're having this baby, but I have no idea what I'm doing."

"Most new parents don't know what they're doing. Joe and I had no clue when Phillip came home. However, the birthing classes should help." Amanda said. "We'll start those in a couple months."

"Ok, now I'm really nervous. What are we in for?" He asked.

"They will teach us about the birthing process so we're prepared. We'll learn breathing techniques to help with the pain, and we'll get some basic child care lessons like changing diapers, bathing, feeding."

"Huh," Lee said. "Ok, that will be helpful. So for feeding, are you going use a bottle or…..you know?" Amanda laughed.

"We just had sex and you are having trouble saying breast feeding?" Lee put his hand over his face in embarrassment.

"Okay, okay. I get it. It's just kind of foreign to me."

"Well," Amanda told him, "I breast fed both Phillip and Jamie so I'd like to do it with this baby as well. If it's the same as them I'll likely need to supplement with formula as my milk production was never extraordinary and they were still hungry. That can be good though, as you'll get the opportunity to feed and bond with this little one as well."

"I think you'll need to do that again," Lee laughed. "Based on how much that little one wants to eat now." Amanda laughed along with him.

"Yeah, I think it won't be long now until this one will be demanding its next meal." Amanda sighed. "It can wait though. I don't want to get up yet."

They laid there curled up on each other listening to the rain.

A couple hours later, Amanda was ready for food. "While I love being here naked with you," Amanda said. "I'm getting really hungry. I'm going to take a shower."

"Can I join you?" He asked.

"If you do that, we'll never eat today." She laughed. "But I can guarantee you'll get lucky later. I owe you, if you recall." She teased.

"Yes you do! That devious little stunt you pulled earlier today."

"Don't you worry. I have plans for you. Did you bring any ties?" Amanda said as she strode to the bathroom making certain to put a little more swing in her hips.

"Yes, you want to go someone nice tonight?"

"Oh, I never said you were going to wear them, at least not around your neck." She flashed a devious smile and closed the door.

- SMK -

After they showered, they decided to go to the cafe across the street as it was still raining. They had talked about trying it, and now was the perfect time.

They started with a charcuterie board with lots of meats and cheeses, then ordered a number of small plates to share. They savored the meal in very Parisian fashion, Lee with a couple glasses of wine, Amanda with some mineral water. They talked about home, their trip, what they planned for tomorrow, the latest gossip about them in the Agency, the new house and moving. Amanda ordered a creme brûlée and slowly devoured it, making yummy sounds. Lee laughed watching her enjoyment. He tried to take a taste.

"Get your own, Stetson." Amanda teased, eliciting a hearty laugh from Lee.

Afterward they walked off dinner with an evening stroll up the Seine. The rain had ended and it turned out to be a beautiful evening, albeit a little chilly. They watched the lights in the distance, holding hands.

- SMK -

Back in Arlington, Kristen stopped by to see the boys and help Phillip study for his test. Dotty and the boys were happy to see her. They missed Lee and Amanda and were excited they'd be home in a couple days. At first, Kristen did not see anything out of the ordinary. However, later in the evening Dotty mentioned something strange.

"A man came to the door yesterday asking about the house. I told him to talk to our realtor to arrange a visit if he was interested. I mean, the realtor's name and phone number is on the sign so I don't understand."

"Really?" Kristen asked. "Did he look like one of those guys trying to undercut the owner to get a good deal for a renovation?" Kristen asked, hoping she'd get a good description from Dotty. It worked.

"No," Dotty explained "He was about 35 or 40, balding. Not well kept, he was in an old blue jacket and had greasy hands. Very strange. He may have been a construction worker looking for a project house after all."

- SMK -

The next morning when she returned to work, Kristen knocked on Billy's office door.

"Kristen," Billy said. "Come on in. Anything come of the visit?"

"Maybe," she explained. I didn't see any cars lurking around but Dotty mentioned a man in his late 30's or early forties, balding, rather unkept knocking on the door asking about the house. May be just a coincidence, but it seemed strange."

"You're right." Billy said. "I'll put a couple people on it until Lee and Amanda return. Good work."