~✨Dedicated to all my lovely readers✨~

So I brought up in a desperate prayer. Lord, why are you keeping me here? And He said to me, child I'm planting seeds. I'm a good God and I have a good plan. So trust that I'm holding a watering can and someday you'll see... That flowers grow in the valley.

This song always brought tears to my eyes. Who would've thought that from ashes the Lord would bring beauty in my life? It looked as though it was over and I was in the valley but little did I know that the Lord was planting seeds and here I was; a flower.

"Amore?" Here he goes again...

"Yes?"

"Where are you?" I heard him climb up the stairs and open the bedroom door.

"I'm right here, love," I responded, just looking at him managed to bring a smile to my face and my heart would still race like the first time I saw him.

"I told you not to get up, you need to rest, doctors orders," he said wrapping his arms around my round belly as he tenderly rubbed it.

"But you know that I can't just sit and do nothing, it's not healthy for me or the baby, we need to move around," I said turning around to look at him and his beautiful grey orbs stared back at me.

If I could bottle up the love I had for him so it would last an eternity I certainly would but each day as my relationship grew to greater heights with the Lord, I knew an eternity spent with the Lord would be far much greater bliss than I could ever fathom.

"But-"

"No ifs and buts, I'm absolutely fine and I love being active at all times and not being idle, that makes my mind race through a million thoughts, and besides, today is the gender reveal and we need to get ready," I responded laying on his chest.

"Okay, mi amore. But please be careful, you are due in a month's time," he said giving me a peck on my box-braided head.

If I loved this man the way I did, how much more would I love our baby?

"I will be, I love you," I moved my head from his chest and looked into his gorgeous pair of grey orbs.

I had learnt that life was too precious to forget about those three little yet very significant words, you never know if that's the last time you have the opportunity to utter them so each day is an opportunity to show the one's you love just how much you love them.

"I love you more, belle amore," he said as he leaned in to kiss me but just as it was about to happen, our bedroom door flew open.

"Girl! I'm here and ready to get you ready for today's big event," she said as she let herself into our bedroom and threw herself on our bed. It was only typical of Thato to do so.

"Oh, and you can continue with the husband and wife things you were doing just now later on. Now Antonio shoo! I need to get this beautiful lady ready for the day," she said getting up and started pushing Nio out if the door to no avail as he stubbornly stood with his arms folded across his chest, daring her to move him out of the room.

"Argh! Destiny, talk to your man to leave the room, time is running out," she said looking at me.

"Nope, I want some quality time with my husband," I replied with a sly smile on my face, wrapping my hands around him as he did the same.

"One would swear that you are high school lovers, you are always joined by the hip," she sighed. "Okay, if you both want to be stubborn, I too can be stubborn."

She held her phone and dialled a number, "Baby, please come take Antonio out of his bedroom, I want to get my best friend ready for the event."

In a few seconds none other than Giovanni was in the room, a serious facade of a face on, showing he meant business.

He pulled Nio from of my grasp with much difficult before proceeding to push him out of the room as Nio looked at me with a sad face and I reciprocated his actions; don't fault us; we could be dramatic at times.

"Belle, please get Destiny ready, we will be in the next room," Giovanni said to Thato.

"Of course baby, thank you. I love you," Thato said blowing him a kiss and without surprise Giovanni caught it before shutting the door and Thato locked it without any hesitation.

You must be wondering what was going on, well, Thato and Giovanni were an item and engaged to get married in the summer. None of us were expecting them to fall in love but who plans these kind of things? And I had never seen Thato so happy, I was so used to seeing her facade of happiness that when I saw her truly happy, I was ecstatic. She deserved only the best things because she was the best and Giovanni couldn't be any better for her. He was akin to a brother to me so he couldn't be any better for my sister.

****

Two hours down the line and we were ready. I was dressed in a sky blue bodycon dress that put emphasis on my round stomach. The dress was blue because I had a feeling that out baby would be a boy- a mother's intuition but I'm sure that Nio would be in a pink suit because he wanted a "princess" so bad but I knew that no matter the gender of the baby, they would be the apple of our eye.

Thato was dressed in a white bodycon dress with stilleto heels, she didn't want to give off the gender of the baby because she and Giovanni were the only people who knew the gender of the baby.

"Okay, we're ready now!"

She unlocked the door and held my hand as we walked down the long stairway with everyone's eye's on us but my eyes were on Nio who had on a pink suit with a crisp white shirt which had its first three buttons open, revealing his broad chest. To say he looked handsome would be an understatement, his fresh new cut gave him a boyish look.

I felt like a teenager being acknowledged by her crush as his eyes roamed me from the top of my head to the block heels I was wearing in awe.

We got to the last stair and Thato's hand was replaced by Nio's one as he helped me down the final stair, his other hand around my waist.

Avelina; Nio's baby sister was here from boarding school and she had grown into a beautiful young lady, she was dressed in a powder pink dress, because she wanted a little niece to play with.

"I can't wait to see the gender of the baby!" she said as she held my hand and I returned the gesture with a soft smile and squeeze of the hand.

"I can't wait to see it too," I replied.

Unfortunately, Sienna and I had grown apart because of the distance so we rarely ever spoke but I was constantly reminded that people came into our lives for certain seasons and sometimes left and that was life.

The games commenced as we wanted for the big reveal. People gave me some gifts they had gotten for the baby.

"Okay, the moment we have all been waiting for has finally arrived. Antonio and Destiny please come forward," she handed each of us a pin as we stood in front of a huge balloon. "Okay, on the count of three, you will pop the balloon."

Everyone started counting, "1... 2... 3..."

And pink sparkles poured out of the balloon, lika a drizzle of happiness as it poured on us followed by a cheer from Avelina, Nio and all those who said it would be a girl but myself and my mom let out an exasperated sigh but soon broke into a happy dance.

"We're going to have a princess," Nio said with a gorgeous grin on his face.

"Yes, we are," I replied with a content heart.

What more could I ask for? I had the most loving and caring husband in the world who would the soon be my baby's father and I had a supportive group of friends. What could a girl ask for?

****

1 month later...

"Nio, Nio, NIO!" I shook him awake aggressively.

"Sí, yes, amore?" he groggily wiped at his eyes.

"My water just broke," I calmly said but on the inside I was dead scared.

"What? What?!" he shot up from the bed as he grabbed our maternity bag and carried me to the car.

"Nio?

No reply.

"Nio?"

No reply.

"Nio, you are not wearing a t-shirt!" I finally said as the contractions started becoming increasingly painful but I did not want to scream out in pain.

If you thought period pains were painful, you've felt nothing.

"It's nothing, as long as you and our daughter are okay I'm good," he said driving like a maniac through the street.

I couldn't hold it in anymore as I started screaming out in pain, making Nio panic and drive even crazier.

****

Eight hours later and I heard the cry of my beautiful baby as she entered the world.

As I held her in my arms, all the pain and screaming I had to go through was something I would go through a thousand times over just to have her in my arms.

Nio had cut the umbilical cord as tear after tear fell from his eyes as did I.

She was a very happy child who would not stop crying until we had a skin-to-skin and it was an experience I would not trade for anything else in the world and she had her dad and I wrapped around her little finger as we swooned over her.

"What will we name her?" Nio asked, as he watched the amazing phenomenon of the baby latching on my breast as she drank some milk.

"Peninah, she is the pearl of my eyes and like Peninah, I asked the Lord for her," I responded as I looked at my pearl.

"Peninah Eliana D'Angelo, couldn't be more beautiful."