"The Nose Knows"

The clock radio turned on at precisely 6:00 a.m., filling the Wilde bedroom with "Welcome to Tujunga" by Guns N' Rodents on the local classic rock station. It had been Nick's turn to set the clock the night before.

"Morning, partner!" Judy said as she rubbed the back of the fox who was holding her close. She wriggled out of her husband's embrace to shut off the clock and then returned to his side. She rubbed his back again. "Ready to make the world a better place?"

"No," Nick said through a yawn as he stretched his arms above his head. His eyes remained closed. "But in five minutes, I will be."

"OK," Judy said as she kissed her fox on the nose. "I'm going to brush my teeth." She hopped off the bed and headed for the bathroom.

Nick took a deep breath as he started to open his eyes slowly to allow his night vision to adjust to the natural light.

Suddenly, his eyes shot open.

Sniff! Sniff! Sniff!

He tilted his head downward and started to rapidly brush his chest fur upward with both paws, repeatedly inhaling every bit he could of Judy's lingering scent. A tear or two came to his eyes.

Sniff! Sniff! Sniff!

He moved down a little and started sniffing the bed sheet where Judy had been. The one or two tears quickly multiplied. The fox happily chuckled as a smile formed.

Nick moved back to his usual place on the bed and sat up with his back against the headboard. He thought for a moment about letting Judy discover naturally in a few days, but he quickly decided that it was a secret he shouldn't keep. He wiped the tears away with a paw just as Judy was coming back.

"All right, Nick!" she said as she walked up to the bed. "Rise and shine!"

"Five more minutes," he said as he extended an arm across Judy's side of the bed. "Come here and cuddle your fox for just five more minutes."

"OK, five minutes," she said as she hopped onto the bed, "but then we've got to get ready." She took her position in the fox's embrace and reached out to hold him. "Mmm. Six minutes is OK too."

Nick softly kissed his bunny's closest ear and gently stroked her back. "Hey, Carrots?"

"Hmm?"

"You know how we've talked about adopting?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Well, I still think it's something we should consider. I think we'd make good adoptive parents someday." He paused for a moment and placed a paw on his wife's belly. "But right now, it seems we're going to be blessed with a family sooner than we thought."

"Nick, what are you saying?"

Nick smiled. "You're a mother, Carrots. We did the impossible."

The intimacy quickly shifted to playfulness as Judy pushed Nick's paw away. "You and your jokes, Slick!" She laughed.

Nick quickly returned it to her belly and gave her a few pats. "One hundred percent not joking, Judy," he said as he smiled again.

Judy put a paw on top of Nick's. "I'm a mother?"

Nick put his other paw on top of hers. "The world's greatest promotion."

The bunny smiled wider than a bunny should be able to. "Oh, Nick." Tears welled up in her eyes and spilled down her cheeks. She rolled onto her husband and kissed his muzzle. "This is ... this is—" she said as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"—absolutely amazing," Nick finished for her, bringing his arms around her back.

"Yes!" She kissed him again. "But ... but how?"

The fox winked. "You know how."

"That's not what I meant! I mean, how can this happen when our species are so different? And how could you possibly know I'm pregnant when I don't even know I'm pregnant?"

"I guess the miracle that brought us together wasn't through with us yet. And I know first because you're very early and I have an excellent sense of smell."

"That makes sense." The bunny dried her eyes with a sleeve of her carrot-patterned pajama shirt. "I wonder what our kit is going to look like. Will he or she be a hybrid 'funny' or 'box'? Or will he or she be just one of our species?"

Nick rolled Judy off of him and onto her back. He lifted her shirt up a few inches and placed his nose directly on her belly. Her fur was so soft, not the least bit unpleasant to his nostrils.

Judy's right foot tapped the mattress several times, softly at first and then more rapidly. "That tickles, Nick! Hahaha!"

After a few more moments of sniffing, Nick looked up at her. "We're going to have to stock up on pureed carrots and paint the nursery pink. We're having a little doe."

Judy laughed. "No way, Nick! You may be able to tell that I'm pregnant before I can, but there's no way you can know what we're having!"

Nick crawled up on the bed so he and Judy were next to each other. "The nose knows, Carrots."

"You're serious?"

Nick nodded. "The ultrasound next week will confirm it if you don't believe me."

Judy thought for a moment. "I like Audrey for a name."

Nick nodded. "A fine name." He stayed where he was but loudly sniffed the air a few times. "You know, she's going to follow in our footsteps and become a cop when she grows up."

"OK, Nick," Judy said as she rolled back on top of him, "you're scaring me. I don't care how good your nose is, you can't smell our daughter's career choice."

Nick smiled. "You're 100 percent correct. It's just a gut feeling on that one."

Judy booped Nick's nose. "Maybe you just had too many blueberries last night."

Nick booped back. "You can never have too many blueberries. And you're going to be having cravings for them pretty soon yourself." He wrapped his arms around her back.

Judy brought her head right above Nick's. "I love you, Dad," she said just before bunny lips and fox lips met.

Thirty seconds passed before the lips separated. "I love you too, Mom," Nick said before the lips joined once more.