Hope for All chapter 19
The next morning, Angela and Tony woke up entangled in each other. They spent most of the evening in bed, making up for lost time as Angela had promised. Tony's hand had barely left her baby bump throughout the night. He knew it was way too early to feel anything, but he felt he needed to be as close as possible to the babies to start building that bond. Angela was still not past the morning sickness stage, so their morning cuddle time was always cut short. She was able to find an outfit that miraculously accommodated her newly grown bump. She finished getting ready and headed downstairs. Tony was already downstairs making breakfast.
"Hey Angela. You just missed the kids. I will pick them up from school and we will meet you at Bloomingdale's. I'm just finishing making you some toast and juice. I've packed you some snacks for the day" he said as he put her breakfast down in front of her chair.
"Thank you Tony! No one tells you how weird a feeling it is to be so nauseous and so hungry at the same time. I can't wait until the morning sickness stage is over!" she said as she sat down and nibbled on some toast.
"So I was thinking Angela, since you've popped this weekend and there's really no hiding these guys anymore, do you think we can start telling people? You are twelve weeks this week too. Maybe we could invite Mrs. Rossini tonight to meet us for dinner and we could tell her? What do you think?" asked Tony.
"Well, there really is no hiding it anymore. I told Jack over the weekend, but I know he already suspected something. I'll have to tell my staff today as well. Okay let's invite her tonight! It will be nice to start sharing the news of the babies" she said as she rubbed her stomach.
"Alright it's settled! I'll call her and we can meet her after shopping. I can't wait to see you in your new maternity clothes! You think they make any maternity lingerie?" he said seductively with a wink.
"Tony! I'm sure they do… I'll need something to make myself look attractive to you once these two really get big…" she said disheartened.
"Eh oh, oh eh! That's not true! I'll find you absolutely beautiful, gorgeous, sexy and beautiful no matter what, I promise! You are already the sexiest pregnant woman I've ever laid eyes on and I know as they grow, you will only get more and more beautiful. I love you Angela, no matter what" he said as he leaned down to kiss her, tears falling down her face. After kissing her, he wiped away her tears and kissed her again, this time more passionately. They finally pulled away from one another, both with smiles on their faces.
"There that's better! Never doubt my attraction to you then, now and in the future. Do you have any idea how many cold showers I've had to take over the past five years Angela? How many I've had to take each morning you don't feel well just so I can focus and start my day? Which by the way, you are not the only one who can't wait for your morning sickness to be over!" he said with a laugh.
Angela couldn't help but laugh at Tony's last comments. Her insecurities surrounding her body were starting to pick up now that she was starting to show. She'd always had a love/hate relationship with her body, but over the past decade or so she had gotten to a place where she felt as secure and confident as she ever had; being pregnant was bringing back all those doubts and body shaming negative thoughts. She knew Tony loved her and would continue to love the way she looked, regardless of her own doubts. She just had to make a conscious effort to keep Tony's words tucked away when her own took hold.
"Okay Casanova, you need to get to class and I have to get to work if I'm going to leave early to go shopping. Mother and I will meet you all in the maternity section. I hope there are some improvements in fashion since I was pregnant with Jonathan!" she laughed.
"You'll look gorgeous in anything they have I'm sure! Make sure you look at some dresses and formal wear if they have anything. The resort we are going to has a formal dinner the night we get there I'd like to take you to, if you feel up to it" he said.
"That sounds wonderful! I really am excited about us going away! We should figure out a time before the babies are due for us to go away again- you know… get in all the alone time we can before we're never alone again! At least not for the first few months or longer" she said as she packed up her belongings and headed for the door. Tony placed his hands on her bump and leaned in for a goodbye kiss. Once she was gone, Tony finished cleaning up the kitchen and headed off to class.
Tony, Samantha and Jonathan met Mrs. Rossini outside of Bloomingdale's. Tony had called her yesterday, despite only asking Angela this morning, and invited her for dinner with the family in the city. They had told her when they had first found out about the pregnancy that they were a couple. She was over the moon excited for them as she had a feeling there was something more between them since he turned down Frankie last year.
"Tony! It's so good to see you! Are you eating enough? You look so skinny! You need to come back to Brooklyn so I can cook for you, put some meat on your bones! I'll send you home with enough food even Angela will gain a few pounds!" she shouted.
"That won't be a problem since…" Jonathan started to say until Tony grabbed him and put his hand over his mouth.
"Thank you Mrs. Rossini! We will definitely get to Brooklyn soon! We will make a day of it, I promise! So there's another reason I invited you for dinner tonight and meeting you earlier. See, the thing is… in a couple of weeks, I'm going to take Angela away for the weekend, the last weekend in March in fact. I'm going to ask her to marry me!" he beamed.
"Oh Tony! That's wonderful! I'm so happy for you!" she shouted as she started to tear up.
"That's not all. Im actually going to surprise her with a wedding that night! If all goes right, we will have the ceremony in the late afternoon and a small reception afterwards. We are only inviting a small list of people, but we are hoping and would be honored if you'd be able to make it. You've been like a second mother to me and I couldn't imagine getting married without you there" he said as he went to give her a hug.
Mrs. Rossini, now a blubbering mess, hugged Tony back, almost knocking him over. It took her a few moments to regain her composure.
"Of course I will be there! I wouldn't miss it for the world! But why the surprise? Why don't you plan something here? Oh I know! I could cater! I'd make all your favorites- veal parmesan, veal piccata, veal…" she started to say as Tony interrupted.
"It's ok Mrs. Rossini! We both want something simple- something more than eloping but not a big fancy wedding. It's already been five years and neither one of us wants to wait any longer. It's really important not to say anything to her though- I really want this to be a surprise okay?" he pleaded.
"Oh alright of course I'll keep quiet! So where are we going for dinner? I'm starving!" she said.
"It's an Italian restaurant right around the corner. I'm going to go pick up Angela and Mona. Samantha and Jonathan will take you over to the park and fill you in on all the details for the wedding. We should meet you at the restaurant in about an hour or less, depending on how long it will take to get them both out of the changing rooms!" laughed Tony.
Tony headed into Bloomingdale's and found the maternity section. He passed by the baby department and couldn't help but look at the clothing and accessories. He knew Angela would not want to pick anything out quite yet- he was amazed she agreed to start telling people, not that she had much of a choice in the matter. He found Mona waiting outside the changing rooms, maternity clothing draped over the door and chairs.
"Looks like she's found some things!" said Tony.
"Finding things and finding things she likes are two very different things Tony. I think I'm going to go see about finding a good looking guy to check me out…" said Mona as she walked away.
"Be at the restaurant in thirty minutes Mona!" he yelled out. Just then, Angela walked out wearing a beautiful cream colored dress. It was knee length and had long sleeves with a low cut neckline that showed off her increased bust size. It would be the perfect wedding dress he thought to himself.
"Oh Angela! You look beautiful! I love it! That will be perfect for when we go away!" he beamed.
"You think so? It's not too much? Mother picked it out but I'm not sure…" she started to say when Tony interrupted.
"It's not too much at all! The only problem I see is how I am ever going to make it through the dinner without leaving early to take you back to our hotel room to ravish you all night long?" he asked as he watched her blush.
"Okay it's settled I'll get it! I found a bunch of maternity pants and skirts that will hopefully last me for a while. The tops were challenging but I think I found enough as well. I just want to try on a few more dresses and then we can go, I promise!" she said as she headed back into the changing room.
Angela came out in each new dress. Her confidence continued to grow as Tony continued to make her feel beautiful, his complements putting an ever growing smile on her face. Finally, she had made her choices and gathered up the items she needed. Tony picked up the clothing and brought it to the cashier. Angela paid for the purchases as Tony picked up the bags. They were walking out towards the door when they passed by the baby department.
"Tony? Would you want to take a quick look? Not to buy anything of course but just to see? I'm sure so much of the stuff they have now is so different from when Samantha and even Jonathan were babies" she said.
"Sure Angela! It would be good to see what we will eventually need to get for these not so little guys!" he beamed.
They walked through the clothing section, stopping to look at the adorable onesies, matching tops and bottoms, shoes and socks. They found a small section for twins that caught both their attention. They saw matching onesies with the words two peas in a pod embroidered on each one.
"Oh Tony! How adorable are these onesies?" she gushed as she picked up the clothing.
"It's adorable Angela! Why don't we pick these up?" he asked.
"No not yet. We can wait a few more weeks. They are just so cute! Maybe once we get back from our vacation we can figure out a list of things we will need. Then double it of course!" she laughed.
They kept walking through the different sections of baby stuff, both overwhelmed with the different selections of things they didn't have when they were parents the first time. Finally, they headed out of the store and to the restaurant, making a quick stop at the car to drop off the bags.
They walked up to the restaurant hand in hand to a waiting Mrs. Rossini, Samantha and Jonathan; Mona could be seen down the street flirting with a valet parking attendant.
"Angela! It's so good to see you! You look fabulous! C'mon and give me a hug!" said Mrs. Rossini. Angela was a bit hesitant as she knew if she hugged her long enough, she'd be able to feel the bump. Angela awkwardly turned to the side to hug her back. They walked into the restaurant and were seated right away. Angela kept her coat on for the moment so she could keep her bump hidden.
"So Mrs. Rossini, we are so happy you were able to join us tonight because there's something really important we wanted to share with you" said Angela excitedly.
Mrs. Rossini gave Tony a worried look, thinking she was going to somehow know about the wedding. Tony gave a slight shake of his head and smiled at her, then turning his attention to Angela.
"Although this wasn't planned, we are very excited. I'm pregnant!" she practically shouted as she took off her coat and revealed her baby bump. Tony's hands were instantly all over her stomach, caressing and rubbing the bump.
"Oh my god! This is wonderful news! A baby! I'm so excited! How far along are you? Four, five months?" she asked.
Tony inwardly cringed at her question. She did in fact look at least four months pregnant, but he would never point that out. He knew she was already self conscious as it was, he didn't want to make it any worse.
"Actually she's twelve weeks tomorrow. That's the other surprise. It's twins!" beamed Tony.
"Twins? Twins! Tony you've always wanted twins! Oh this is just so exciting! You all must come over to my place to celebrate! I'll invite the whole neighborhood! Oh this is so exciting!" she gushed.
"Yes we are very excited. I'm due September 25th but with twins it could be anytime in September. It's going to be a busy autumn!" said Angela as her hands joined Tony's hands on her stomach.
The family continued to catch each other up and talk about the two newest additions to the family. They all enjoyed their dinners and opted to try out the restaurant's desserts. Once they were ready to head out, the family said their goodbyes to Mrs. Rossini, with promises to head into Brooklyn soon. The family walked back to the jeep and headed out of the city.
"Hey Tony- where are the babies going to sit in the jeep? There aren't any seats left. I don't think you want them in the trunk…" said Jonathan.
Tony and Angela both laughed at his comment. "That's a good question Jonathan. We haven't actually talked about it, but we will eventually need a bigger car, right Angela?" asked Tony.
"Yes I suppose we will need a bigger car. Maybe in the next few months we can start looking for a big family car. It's going to need to fit five people and two car seats for the next few years. Plus all of the baby stuff" she said.
The family arrived home a short while later, the kids heading up to their rooms to do homework before bed and Mona heading out for a date. Tony and Angela headed into the kitchen to have a cup a tea before heading up to bed. Angela seemed a bit distracted as she absentmindedly took the cup from Tony.
"You okay Angela?" Tony asked worriedly.
"Hmmm? Oh I'm okay. I was just thinking about all the upcoming changes- all the baby things, maternity clothes, a new car… not to mention I'm not even in my second trimester yet and I look almost half way pregnant…" she said.
Tony knew that Mrs. Rossini's comment didn't fall on deaf ears with Angela. He pulled his chair over to hers and put his hands over hers on the table.
"All of these changes are to be expected. As each change comes, we will be here to tackle them on, together. Maternity clothes were the first big change and that went smoothly right? We can start planning what we will need to get and even figure out the nursery set up. I was thinking my room would be nice, if one of the other kids doesn't claim it first! The new car will come in time too. I promise this time I won't be such a pain about buying a new car! And as for how you look… you look beautiful. You look healthy. You look exactly how you should be- your doctor isn't concern and neither am I. These guys are just excited for everyone to know about them!" he laughed.
Wiping away tears and laughing herself at Tony's words, she already started to feel better. She took a sip of her tea and took his hand back into her own.
"Thank you Tony. I just have to figure out a way to keep your words in my head, not my own. My mind goes to dark places sometimes when it comes to how I look" she said.
"Then I just have to make sure you hear my words as often as you need to until you start believing just how beautiful you truly are to me and to the world. How about we take this tea upstairs, cuddle into bed and I put some actions behind my words to show you just how beautiful and sexy I find you…" he said seductively.
Without anymore words, Angela stood up, tea in one hand and the other reaching out for Tony's as he stood up, both walking through the swinging doors and upstairs to their bedroom.