Five a.m. came on strong as I greeted my Monday alarm with one eye open. The fact that I didn't have to be at work didn't excuse me from certain calls of duty, specifically waking Mr. Pearlman for his meds and getting the old crank going. Vincent had convinced me to stay off my feet, so I still hadn't shared our baby news with Henry, but it was on the agenda.

After packing up the Playstation controllers left out by Colin, who liked to use his downtime playing Call of Duty while Mr. Pearlman offered real-world commentary, I trundled to the kitchen to fetch coffee. "Your coffee maker is on its last leg," I told him as I poured his nasty over-the-counter brew.

"Just like its owner," he grumped from his recliner. The television was already blaring in the background.

"Let me buy you a new one."

"Naw. You'll just get me some fancy gadget I can't operate."

"You don't even operate this one. It's either me or Amelia making it."

"And Kathy. She makes a good cuppa. But she makes me drink decaf."

"She's your rehab nurse. She has to give you decaf to keep a clear conscience. And your rehab is over in a couple of weeks, so we're working on an after-Kathy plan for you."

"Oh?" Mr. Pearlman squinted at me as I walked over with his coffee. "I thought we were getting on fine."

"It's not a personal thing. She's a specialty nurse. She needs to help someone else with a broken hip. What you need now is a CNA. Don't worry. We'll find someone who's a good fit."

I knew Mr. Pearlman had grown attached to Kathy, and I relied on her to fill my shoes as well. He was a sick old man and he deserved another Kathy.

Blowing over the rim of his mug, Mr. Pearlman caught me in his wizened gaze as I stood there like easy prey. "You got something on your mind? You've been looking at me funny all morning."

Although his inquiry caught me off guard, I was able to answer his question without hesitating. "Yes. I wanted to come over last night and share, but the weekend really sucked the energy out of me."

"Well, out with it then? What's got your eyes all watery?"

I blinked and a droplet fell from my right eye, betraying me. "Vincent and I are having a baby."

Mr. Pearlman bobbed over his coffee, and I watched him work his mouth into a smile. It wasn't that I'd never seen him wear one, he just usually hid them behind a smirk. "There's no one else who deserves a blessing more. You two will make fine parents."

"Thanks. The news is still sinking in for me. I apologize in advance if I get weird. I'm not sure what to expect, side-effects wise."

"Crying about everything, for one. But that don't bother me. You're keeping your job, I assume."

"Definitely. These days, most women work right up until the birth. I figure I'll take a bunch of time off once the baby's born, though." I blinked at Mr. Pearlman and another tear dropped onto my cheek. Why was I crying? I didn't feel sad. "Well, I need to get back home and not drink any coffee. I've got my first prenatal visit at twelve-thirty, so...wish me luck."

With Mr. Pearlman's sweet, wrinkly face stuck in my head, I walked back to the apartment and got started on my own morning routine. Actually, I had yet to establish a routine at the penthouse, but one thing had not changed since I'd moved in - my own bedroom, which included a closet to myself and a full bath. It was an aspect of my life that would change once junior arrived. Then it was bye-bye privacy.

As I peeled off my clothes and made for the shower, I noticed the drab wall color. Beach sand bland may have been good for Vincent's minimalist taste, but a baby's room needed bright colors. My husband's perfectly styled life was about to get a makeover. Surely, he knew things would have to change.

I treated myself to a long, hot shower, a full-body rubdown with my best cream from Brazil, and a blow-out with tons of product. My hair had grown longer than I'd ever let it, but Vincent liked it that way, so I worked with the extra fluff to keep the big guy happy.

Vincent appeared in the doorway as I put on the finishing touches, and I was treated to a sexy-as-sin smile. "I love your hair like that. It makes me want to fuck you." He slid his fingers through my keratin-enriched tresses and closed his eyes, letting a secret smile tweak his lips. When he looked at me again, he was Mr. Boss Man again. "If you're ready now, Doctor Hardwick had a cancellation at eight-thirty."

"Oh? Like now? Okay...sure. I'll just put on my shoes and we can go." I bit my lip as I glanced around the room for my sneakers. Where had I put them. Oh, right. Where I always put them - under the chair. So, where would they go once junior moved in? Vincent's hand came to rest on my hip and he pulled me in for a kiss, nipping at my lips and prying them apart. 

"You're biting your lip again. Are you worried about this appointment?" 

"Maybe," I said a little too eagerly. At least his guess was off. Seeing the doctor was a helluva lot easier than being a mother. "I'm sure it'll be straight forward. Just answering questions. Probably a blood draw."

Vincent's forehead creased, like he remembered something painful, and I read his follow-up expression as sympathetic. "I forgot you were delirious when the doctor in DC suggested we do another ultrasound today. Doctor Hardwick wants to make comparisons to the ones done thirty-six hours ago."

"Don't you think that's a little excessive? First, my body tries to fry our baby, now we want to bounce soundwaves off the poor thing's head every other day. I mean, who's to say that isn't causing some kind of harm? Even if the doctor tells us our child has a defect, it's not going to change how we proceed."

"Of course not, but we would be better prepared."

"So, we're choosing our preparedness over someone's opinion that ultrasounds are not scaring the shit out of our unborn child. What we hear as a whoosh might be an explosion for them." Vincent cracked a smile, and I stopped my rant to scowl at him. "What?"

"It's just that I love when you get invested in something. You go all in. If you don't want another ultrasound today, then don't have it. Set it up for next month. Don't set it up at all. I know whatever you decide, it will be in the best interest of our child."

"Thank you. I know this must be hard for you...not having control over something as important as your baby. So, it's equally important that you tell me any time you're feeling out of touch." I took his hand and placed it on my belly before lifting onto my toes to kiss him. "Now let's go see what the doc has to say about our precious offspring."

~ ~ ~

Vincent stuck out like a sore thumb in the waiting room, albeit a very sexy sore thumb. I caught every expectant mother staring slack-jawed at him as they browsed the pages of Highlights and Family Day. That was fine. He was mine.

"Did Rafael come for the cube last night?" I asked, leaning into him and keeping my voice intimate, the way a couple in love would.

"Yes. It will stay with the Cromwells until we have more information about the nature of the..." he glanced around the room and seemed to just realize we were surrounded by pregnant women. "...the problem."

"And Christoph would only talk to you in person, huh? Probably because his phone is being monitored by the hive."

"We both agreed the information was sensitive enough not to risk third party interference. I'll meet him tonight at the coffee shop where we talked before."

"Just you? Can I come along? I'm the one affected by the...problem."

Vincent turned to give me his undivided attention. "And that's why you should be home resting. I'll tell you everything he says."

"Fine." I wasn't about to argue, not here. I also didn't want him to know I missed seeing Christoph. He'd had my back plenty of times, and he was my friend no matter how much Vincent wanted him not to be.

The door to the back-office opened and a smiley nurse in blue scrubs appeared. "Mrs. Valentino?" When she called my name, every head in the room snapped up to watch me and Vincent leave together. After which, I heard hands frantically reaching for cellphones. Just lovely.

"Hi, I'm Michelle. How is everyone feeling, today?" The nurse practically skipped down the hall as she delivered her scripted dialogue. She looked younger than me, which rubbed me the wrong way for some reason.

"I'm good, thanks," I said, figuring she only needed an answer from the one preparing to get felt-up.

"Great. Since this is your first visit, there's a lot to pack in, so feel free to stop me if I go too fast. Step onto the scale, for me, please."

As I did Michelle's bidding, Vincent got a chime on his phone and he peeked at it. "Damn." His gaze quickly flicked to the perky nurse. "I apologize for that outburst."

Michelle giggled as she wrote down the numbers on the scale before anyone could see them. "Oh, it's fine. You hear everything in here. Okay, now your height, Mrs. Valentino."

As she gestured to a ruler on the wall, Vincent interrupted the proceedings. "I need to deal with something before it gets out of hand. It might take a few minutes. Where can I find you when I'm done?"

"Room six. The door has a picture of a baby with wings. You can't miss it."

Vincent nodded and leaned in to kiss my cheek. "I'm sorry. This is important. I'll explain later."

"Sure. Go fight your battle." I winked, letting him know I had this handled, and while he disappeared around the corner, Nurse Michelle walked me down a long hallway filled with Anne Geddes images. Sure enough, when we stopped at room six, there was a sleeping baby with gold wings on its back. Had Dr. Hardwick chosen the room on purpose?

"So, when was your last period?" Michelle asked as soon as the door closed behind us.

"November tenth, but my periods are irregular. That one was pretty mild." I didn't know why I was explaining so much, but maybe if they thought I was pregnant before that it would sync up with a gollum baby gestation. Did Dr. Hardwick keep private notes on her gollum patients? How much was I allowed to tell this girl?

"I'll make a note of that," she said as she typed away on her keyboard. "It will help when we compare the sonograms. We have you scheduled for one this morning."

"Actually, I've decided to delay that. I just got zapped two days ago."

She blinked her lively eyes at me. "Oh, sonograms are perfectly safe, Mrs. Valentino. No need to worry about that. But I'll let Doctor Hardwick know you have reservations. Let's just get your blood pressure, shall we?"

Nurse Michelle continued her examination, with her mouth and arms moving in rapid synchronicity while I tried to remember the last time I took a vitamin supplement. Twenty questions later, and the door opened to let another woman in. She had the average height of a twelve-year-old, with shocking white hair and a face that held many traces of life, but her build was strong under her lab coat, and she had no problem getting my attention with a pair of overlarge blue eyes that peered through overlarge glasses.

"You must be Reese," she said as she shook my hand vigorously. "I've heard such lovely things about you. Adele was just here on Friday. She and her mate are expecting their little angel any day."

"We're all very excited for them." I kept my reply blunt. I still wasn't sure how much Nurse  Michelle should know.

Dr. Hardwick blinked at me then at the perky nurse. "Thank you, Michelle. I'll let you know when we're ready for the blood draw."

"We won't be sending her to the lab?" Michelle inquired innocently.

"No. I'll handle it myself right here. Didn't you know? I'm an excellent phlebotomist." She winked as she shooed away the confused nurse, who quickly grabbed her clipboard as she backed out of the door. "Poor thing. She's going to think she did something wrong. So..." Dr. Hardwick clapped her hands and rubbed them together as if she was preparing to tackle a whole plate of cake. "Isn't this exciting? Two baby gollums in one year. I'm looking forward to assisting in these special births."

"Assisting? You mean, you won't be delivering my baby?"

"Oh, no. I dropped obstetrics from my job description over a decade ago, but I make a few exceptions to stay up-to-date. You'll be giving birth at home, so I suspect Wren or Amelia will perform the delivery. I'll just be there to advise and do the postpartum exam."

"Oh." I suddenly pictured a scene where my legs are spread while Vincent's family gazes at the wild wonder, but then I realized I would rather be home surrounded by family than harassed by florescent lights and pushy strangers.

Dr. Hardwick studied the computer screen, moving her lips as she read Nurse Michelle's notes. "It says here you're apprehensive about the ultrasound."

"I just had one on Saturday. The hospital sonogram should have been sent to you."

She tapped a few keys and stared at the screen again. "You're right. Says here your temperature spiked to one-hundred and five over the course of an hour. I see why they wanted to get a sonogram. It will serve as a good baseline for the one we do today."

"I understand that, but how much could have changed in thirty-six hours? Will another sonogram really tell you if something is wrong with the baby?"

"Probably not. But, if you're anxious, I don't see a reason we can't wait until Friday."

"I'm leaving for Europe on Friday."

"Oh, I love Europe. Where will you go?" With a twinkle in her eyes, she nodded her head as if she was already reminiscing, and I saw Mr. Pearlman in her wizened face.

"Verona and London." I reached for a tissue, and Dr. Hardwick watched me dab my eyes with it.

"Are you alright, dear? Have I upset you? Are you attending a funeral?"

"No, I'm just getting used to these new hormones."

She gave my hand a reassuring pat. "Perfectly understandable. Let's get you on the table and listen to your baby's heartbeat. That's sure to bring on the waterworks."

The paper felt cold and impersonal under my back as I subjected my belly to more prodding. This time, it was a small contraption called a doppler, which didn't require as much prodding, and while I lay in my compromised position, Vincent chose to walk through the door.

"Oh, I'm sorry for interrupting," he said, looking away from the table as if he might embarrass me.

"Come in, Vincent," said Dr. Hardwick. "We're just about to hear your child's heartbeat."

Vincent entered the room like a priest on Sunday, slipping up next to me and pressing his hand to my shoulder. There were worry lines marring his forehead, but I couldn't tell if it was from the problem he'd just dealt with or the position his wife was in. Soon, the gentle whoop of a heartbeat echoed faintly from the speaker, and Vincent's hand left my shoulder to squeeze my fingers.

"Based on the sonogram sent from the hospital, the baby's heartbeat should be a bit stronger, but it is there nonetheless." She removed the probe and caught both of us in her magnified eyes. "I highly recommend another sonogram as soon as you return from Europe. You can schedule that with the helpful staff up front, okay?"

"Okay." I croaked out my answer just as a wave of dizziness hit me. It was a good thing I was lying down. "What will you be looking for on the sonogram? Why is the baby's heartbeat so weak?"

Dr. Hardwick squinted through her glasses, looking more like a female Mr. Pearlman every minute. "You're still early in your pregnancy, so it's probably just positioning. But when you come back, we will look for heart irregularities. Don't forget, Reese. Gollums are a tough breed. This is a time to rejoice not fret. I want you to have fun with your pregnancy. Now, hang tight. I'm going to get my phlebotomy kit."

She slipped through the door, leaving me and Vincent alone to stare at each other. His face held the pallor of a sun-bleached statue, which meant we both felt the same.

"It's going to alright, Reese," he said, speaking the words we both desperately wanted to believe.

"I know."