This is Living (Living #1.5) by Melody Dawn Page B

my wife’s appearance. She looks beautiful as ever, but I can see the effects of everything that has happened on her face. Way to go, asshole.
    Just as I’m about to announce my arrival, I hear my mom insist that Chloe is pregnant. I think that maybe I might be delusional from lack of sleep until I hear Chloe reply, “Since I’m not telling you before him, I will only say that I may or may not be with a very strong emphasis towards yes.” My mom freaks out and runs around the table to hug her. While they are hugging and mom is celebrating, they both notice I’m standing there.
    Nobody moves or speaks. I blink heavily and it pains me to see that Chloe looks worried or scared that I’m going to freak out about the news. Without another thought, I make my way to my wife and hug her to me as tightly as possible. Whispering in her ear, I tell her how sorry I am for being such an idiot.
    She presses into me as close as she can and says she’s sorry, too. I tighten my arms around her hoping it communicates my feelings, “Don’t be sorry; I’m the one that screwed up.”
    I feel a tremor go through her body and I want to kick myself for putting her through this especially knowing she’s pregnant. Suddenly, it occurs to me what a wonderful wife I have…did I forget that along the way?
    My dad is right. I’ve put my job ahead of her, but that’s going to change. I may not be able to change my hours until my residency is completed, but I can do other things to make sure she knows she and the boys are my world. And hopefully a little girl for me to spoil in the near future as well.
    I whisper, “thank you,” in her ear. I don’t say what I’m thanking her for, but she knows it’s for the new baby. Sitting down at the table, I pull her on to my lap. “How far along are you?”
    She smiles blindingly at me in a way that warms me from the inside out. “I think about 7 weeks. I’m not exactly sure. I had what I thought was a light period last month, but now I think it may have been just some spotting.
    Fear rushes through me and I ask, “Are you sure you’re ok?”
    Nodding her head, she says, “Yes, I’m fine. It was very light; there’s no way it could have been a miscarriage.”
    We sit there holding on to each other as tightly as possible. She’s everything to me; I know I can’t live without her and the thought of her not being there is one I can’t even consider. I feel like I need to reassure her as much as I do myself. I pull her chin up so I can see her gorgeous eyes that have fascinated me from the very first time I looked into them. “No matter what life throws at us, I’m never letting you go.”
    She smiles at me and says, “I wouldn’t let you even if you tried.”
    There’s only one thing left to do. I pull her mouth up to mine and kiss the hell out of her. We start to get lost in each other until I hear both of my sons yell, “Daddy!”
    Both boys try to climb up in my lap even though I’m still holding Chloe and I do what I can to shield her stomach from them. For a moment, I hold my family until the boys have had enough. Soon, they disappear back into the living room with their Nanna as quickly as they came.
    I look over at Chloe and ask, “Are you ready for another one of them?”
    She grins at me and says, “Yes, but if it’s more than one, I’m coming after you.”
    Winking at her, I say, “You could try, princess. If you do, I’ll make it interesting.”
    Without another word, she leans into my chest and I feel the connection that has been with us since the beginning.

I breathe a sigh of relief knowing that things are getting back to normal. We still have some issues to talk about, but at least there’s no more screaming ugly accusations at each other. Instead, I’m sitting right where I always want to be: my husband’s lap.
    With my face buried in his neck, I smell his familiar scent: CK Free, the antiseptic from the hospital, and something that’s just him…warm, spicy