"Miss Jenkins?" 

I looked up to the young blonde in the pink scrubs. "Yes, that's me." Ayden and I walked hand in hand as we followed the nurse to an empty room. 

She held out one of those terrible paper dresses. Guess I was going to be wearing these a lot for the next eight or so months. "Please put this on and Dr. Wilson will be with you shortly." 

Silence filled the room as I undressed and di as instructed. I handed my clothes to Ayden and took a seat on the large table. After our late night breakfast last night, we both had a rough time sleeping. I think the anxiety of this appointment, on top of the heavy conversation last night was to blame. 

It felt like hours ticked by until the door finally opened. The doctor was a brunette that looked to be in her early forties. "Hey, there. Sorry for the wait. I'm Dr. Wilson." She extended her hand to me, then to Ayden. "Lanie Jenkins, I presume. And this is dad?"

Ayden coughed awkwardly. "Uh, yes. I'm the dad." 

I smiled at Ayden. Poor guy; he was trying so hard. We both were. I was hoping this appointment would make it easier for both of us. I knew the likeliness of that was low. Just the thought of him leaving tomorrow was enough to give me a whirlwind of emotions. 

"First child?" she asked as she put gloves on. 

"Yes," we both answered. 

Dr. Wilson laughed at that. "Well, it's completely normal to be nervous." She stood before me. "Okay, Lanie, go ahead and lie back. Good. Now, I'm going to get started here." 

Ayden held my hand as he stood next to me. I squeezed his hand as I felt the uncomfortable pressure of the wand while the doctor tried to get a clear picture. 

"Everything looks good. Let's see if we can find..." Dr. Wilson smiled. "Ah, there it is." 

Thump-thump-thump-thump 

My face broke out in a wide smile. "That's our baby," I whispered to Ayden as I looked up at him. 

Ayden's gaze remained on the screen for a moment before his eyes met mine. Two seconds later, he captured my mouth in a kiss. He smiled down at me when he pulled away. "That's our baby," he whispered back to me.

Dr. Wilson removed the wand and disposed of her gloves. "Well, the heartbeat is strong. I'm glad you got in here for your appointment. Have you been taking your prenatal vitamins?" 

"Yes," I answered. I've been taking those things religiously. I didn't want anything to go wrong with this pregnancy. 

Dr. Wilson sat on her stool before typing on her computer. "Lanie, you are right at 6 weeks. You should expect to be feeling some nausea, fatigue, the urgent need to urinate, mood swings and/or swollen breasts." I made a face and she laughed lightly. "I take it you are already feeling some of those things." 

"Especially the mood swings," Ayden teased and I elbowed him with a playful smile. "So, everything's okay, doc? The baby is healthy?" 

Dr. Wilson nodded. "Everything is right on track." She got to her feet and applied some sanitizer to her hands. "You may have some cramping and spotting. Don't be alarmed, that's normal. Of course, if it's severe or if you're worried, don't hesitate to call me or go to the hospital to be seen. It's better safe than sorry." 

"Thank you," Ayden said as he shook her hand. "We really appreciate this." 

He turned to me with a smile that surprised me. "That...was amazing. It's real. We're having a baby." He kissed me and I melted against him. 

I couldn't stop the memory of the pregnancy scare I had with Adam from coming into my mind. Ayden was so different than Adam. He was compassionate, caring, sweet, and strong. He knew me. And I knew him. Even though we were still getting to know each other, there was a unique trust between us. One thing I was sure of, was that Ayden would never hurt me the same way Adam did. A wave of emotions came over me and Ayden noticed when I choked back a sob. 

"Hey," he said as he pulled away from me, "what is it?" 

I shrugged, laughed, and cried at the same time. "Mood swings." 

He shook his head at me. "Let's get you dressed. Then we can go get you something to eat."

I hopped off of the table and stripped off the paper dress. After Ayden handed me my clothes and I got dressed, we quickly scheduled my next appointment. When we walked out to my car, he held his hand out for the keys. 

I eyed his hand and raised a brow. "Oh, you're not driving. No one drives my car." 

"Is that so?" He stalked towards me and cupped the side of my face. "Luckily, Goddess, I'm not no one. I'm Ayden. I happen to be your Sergeant, your lover, and most importantly, the father of that baby growing inside of you." He knew the affect he had on me. A little to well. He put his mouth to my ear when he whispered, "Give me the keys, Lanie, and I promise you will be rewarded tonight after dinner." 

On the inside I was disgusted by the reminder that we had dinner plans with Nate and Jules tonight. Why couldn't Nate be infatuated with anyone else in New York? But right now, I wasn't going to let that get in the way of what Ayden just promised me. 

"Rewarded how?" I asked with a throaty voice as I ran my hands down his chest.

He took the keys from me and chuckled darkly as we got in the car. "Oh, baby. Just you wait and see." 

"You about ready, L?" 

I walked out of my bathroom to see Nate standing in the doorway to my bedroom. He knew I would get out of this if I could. I didn't want to even be in the same city as The Barbie, let alone have her in my home. 

"Yes, I'll be ready in a second." 

He walked over to me with an arched brow. "Why do you hate her so much?" 

I gave him a look. "Really?" 

Nate rolled his eyes and walked over to my dresser. He grabbed the picture of the two of us from when we were kids. "I know she can be a little--"

"Selfish? Fake? Unfaithful? Sleazy?" 

He sat the picture down and turned to me. "Yes, I know. But we aren't in a relationship, so she's free to do as she pleases."

I walked over to my nightstand to grab my mother's necklace when I saw the sonogram sitting by the lamp. Oh, God. I glanced behind me and saw Nate's back was still turned. "Then why do you even bother with her, Nate?" I asked as I subtly slid it in the drawer. Whew, that was a close one. Tonight would have gone a-whole-nother way. 

I put the necklace on and noticed Nate didn't answer me. I walked over to stand beside him and saw he was now looking at a picture of our parents. "Can I ask you something?" 

"Of course," I answered with a mix of interest and worry. It wasn't like him to be serious; and judging by his expression, this was very serious. 

"Do you think I could have something like them? Soemthing real?" 

I forwned. "You mean like mom and dad?" 

He nodded. "They were so in love and happy. I know I joke around a lot and never really had a real relationship, but do you think I could have something like that?" 

I grabbed the picture from him and my chest tightened. Nate was right about one thing. He never had a real realationship. He usually dated a woman for a few months and ended it. Most of the time, it would turn into Friends with Benefits, or he would only see them on leave. 

Our parents had met during their sophmore year of college and had married after graduation. Of course, they weren't perfect. They had fights and disagreements like any couple. But they always ended up working it out. They made up and went back to being happy. I used to wonder if I could find something like that. It was the main reason I tried to keep Ayden away in the beginning. The connection I instantly felt with him terrified me. It still did. I sensed the possibilty of forever with him, but with him being Nate's best friend and in the Army, I had a lot to lose. 

I placed my hand on Nate's shoulder, hoping to offer comfort. "Nate, of course you can find that. You deserve it. You just need to find the right girl." I laughed as I added, "I'm sorry, but Jules is definitely not the right girl." 

Nate laughed along with me. "You don't have to tell me that. I guess I should start looking when I get back. If I do find someone, I don't want to be with them while I'm in the service. It's just too hard." 

I absently nodded at that while making sure to keep my hand from instinctively going to my belly. I was trying not to think about Ayden and Nate leaving tomorrow, but my mind went there anyway. I felt the sudden rush of tears and did my best to hold them back. I quickly embraced him in a hug. I wiped the few tears that escaped before I pulled away from him. 

"You will find her, Nate." There was a knock at the front door and I made a face. "Guess it's dinner time." 

Nate laughed and tugged me out of my room. As I followed Nate towards the living room, I saw Ayden open the door. Jules immediately tackled him in a hug that lasted long enough to make me want to poke her eyes out. 

I made a disgusted snort and Nate warned, ""Behave, little sis. Let's have a good dinner." 

"I will if she will," I countered. 

Nate left me to go tent to Jules. I crossed my arms over my chest and raised a brow as Ayden started walking towards me. He stopped in front of me. "What?" 

I started tapping my foot and he scoffed. "Oh, come on," he whispered. "You can't actually think that I would doanything with that." 

I knew it was ridiculous. I trusted him completely. It's just...

"Ah," he laughed knowingly. "Mood swings." 

I rolled my eyes and turned away. Yes, it might be mood swings, but it currently had me 'swinging' towards a jealous rage. 

Tonight was going to be very interesting.