25. Sylvie
TWENTY-FIVE
SYLVIE
John Oates
Did you know that at twenty weeks the baby is the size of a troll doll?
Including the hair or no? Oh god...what if it looks like a troll on the screen? I’m cackling.
With a belly button gemstone? Upgrade! Guess we’ll find out. See you in a few.
A week after Duke took me to the rodeo, I was smiling down at my phone before walking into Dr. Hokum’s office.
Despite his grumbling for not driving me—a few issues at the farm forced Duke to meet me at the office—things were finally looking up.
I had managed to make it to the sweet spot of pregnancy that the internet told me about, where I was less nauseated and more energetic than I had been in months .
The mid-December wind whipped at my cheeks. The sky sagged with thick, dark clouds that threatened even more snow.
At least we’re having a white Christmas.
I sighed and smoothed a hand over my belly.
The weeks felt like they were flying by, yet were impossibly slow at the same time.
Work at the Sugar Bowl was busy as we served our usual customers in addition to taking on holiday orders.
Huck often relegated me to sitting on my ass and packing boxes of pastries, tarts, and pies.
I would grumble at him, but some days it felt good to keep my feet up.
Nightly foot rubs from Duke helped significantly.
I was no longer hiding out in his bedroom, but rather spending the evenings sprawled across him while he read a book or we watched a movie in the living room.
Duke had all but moved back into the primary bedroom, and I swear, his mere presence threw my libido into overdrive.
The quiet moments were my favorite. The moments where Duke looked at me and his eyes softened after stomping in from checking the fields or working on whatever project he was keeping a secret in the barn.
Oh yeah, I totally know he’s up to something, but I let him think I was clueless.
The first few times I had asked him about it, he blushed—yes, blushed —got flustered and changed the subject.
Knowing each of us has had our fair share of dramatic changes these last four months, I figured I could cut the guy some slack.
After checking in with the receptionist, I hung up my coat and waited to be called.
A few minutes later, Duke burst through the door and beelined toward me. His brows pinched down and his face was hard. “I’m so sorry I’m late.”
Right on cue, the tiny baby inside me started what felt like a gold medal gymnastics routine. Whenever Duke was around, it was as if the baby could sense Duke’s mere presence—a neon arrow flashing Hey you! Pick me! Over here!
Duke’s hand moved over my belly, and my heart did a tiny twist. Duke still hadn’t felt the baby move, but it didn’t stop us both from being hopeful.
I smiled up at him. “You’re right on time.”
He huffed and slid into the too-small chair next to me. He leaned in. “You look beautiful.”
I let my eyes wander over him, shamelessly breathing in his earthy, masculine scent. “You look tired.”
A smile quirked at the corner of his mouth. “Thanks.”
“Ms. King?” A nurse rounded the corner as we both stood, then followed the young nurse, who had a kind face.
I inched closer to Duke. “Are you nervous?”
His hand found my lower back as we walked down the hall toward the room. “Not even a little.”
I chewed my bottom lip. Sometime last week I had fallen down a doom-scroll rabbit hole about the twenty-week ultrasound.
Sure, everyone heralded it as the big one , the one where you could find out if you were having a boy or a girl.
But it was also the one where you found out if the baby’s development was on track and whether all their parts and pieces were formed correctly. I couldn’t help but worry.
After the nurse weighed me—Duke had the decency to look away after I gave him a death stare—she handed me the robe and quietly excused herself.
I undressed and slipped on the floral robe.
Instead of looking away, his eyes ate up every inch of me, from tits to toes.
His dark eyes smoldered as he watched me.
A small part of me wondered if he found me more attractive now that my belly was rounded with his baby.
I reminded myself to tease him about having a breeding kink when we got home.
That would guarantee a growl and send tingles straight to my clit.
Duke stood like a sentry while my legs swung from the end of the table. “I think I am a little nervous,” I finally admitted.
His eyes intensified as he looked at me. “About what?”
My fingers twisted. “I don’t know. A lot?
Do you want to find out what we’re having?
I’m not sure. And how do we find out? Does the doctor just blurt it out and that’s it?
That seems so... abrupt. Plus, the internet said this ultrasound is a big deal .
It’s the one they might be able to detect something that doesn’t look typical.
What if something’s wrong? I think I had deli meat before I even knew I was pregnant, and did you know that it could be crawling with listeria? ” My voice rose with every statement.
Duke’s thick, rough palm glided over my exposed knee as he hovered over me. “Hey.” His hand stroked up and down my thigh. “Everything is going to be fine. I have watched you be careful and take your vitamins and even stop using nail polish because of that one article you read.”
I looked down at my sad, bare toenails.
“You’re doing great, Mama.” He kissed the top of my head, and my center ignited. “Besides, there’s nothing wrong with our kid. If something is atypical”—he shrugged—“doesn’t matter. We’ll love them either way. It’s you and me.”
His stern reassurance wasn’t only a turn-on, it was all it took to tumble me head over heels in love with him. I blinked up at Duke. I wanted to be brave—to grab his face and plant a kiss on those full lips and finally admit what I’d been saying in my head for a while now.
I love you .
I loved Duke so much it manifested as a physical pinch in my chest if I thought about it too long. I had opened my mouth to finally let the words slide out when two gentle knocks sounded, followed by Dr. Hokum’s dark hair poking through the door.
Duke’s deep-brown eyes flicked up to her, and I straightened in my seat. After a few cursory questions, Dr. Hokum arranged the large computer cart and monitor so she could perform the ultrasound while allowing us to view the baby.
Duke hunched over in a stool with his elbows planted on his knees, his deep eyes studying the monitor.
The probe slid across the cool gel on my belly as Dr. Hokum chose different angles to check measurements and make notes.
She briefly talked through each part of our baby—spine, organs, blood flow. It was truly fascinating.
The bridge of my nose burned as I looked onto the perfect silhouette of the growing baby inside me.
He or she was no longer a gummy bear blob, but a perfect tiny person.
I could see the outline of the baby’s button nose, and a laugh spilled from me when the somersaults they were doing made it tricky for Dr. Hokum to get a few measurements.
“Feisty one in there.” Dr. Hokum chuckled and slid the probe to try a different angle.
I glanced at Duke, whose eyes never left the monitor. His expression was hard and difficult to read, but his eyes flicked across the screen, soaking up every detail.
“Have you decided if you would like to know the sex of the baby today?”
My mouth popped open as my mind whirred. “Um... I...” My eyes flicked to Duke, who looked at me expectantly. We hadn’t talked about it, and I was kicking myself for not being brave enough to bring it up earlier.
He studied my face and then turned to the doctor. “We’re still undecided but would like the option.” He looked around the small room. “Could I borrow a piece of paper?”
Dr. Hokum regarded the hulk of a man taking up a whole lot of space in the small exam room, and she smiled before swiveling her stool toward the counter.
From a drawer, she pulled out a pad of paper and a pen and handed it to Duke.
He quickly scrawled something on the paper and handed it back to her.
She looked down and smiled. “Not a problem.” When she repositioned herself, she adjusted the monitor. “If you look away, I will do some final measurements, and we’ll be all done here.”
I turned my head away from the monitor, and Duke moved to the opposite side of the exam table. He crouched next to me so that we were eye level, but he couldn’t see the screen.
“What did you write?” I asked.
A smile teased his lips. “You’ll see.” His large hand tucked a stray piece of hair behind my ear. “Just try to relax.”
It took only a moment for Dr. Hokum to click off the monitor and begin wiping the gel off my belly before fixing the robe to cover me. “All set. The baby is growing right on track. All of the physical traits we look for appear to be developing typically.” Her smile bloomed. “No concerns.”
I exhaled, deeply comforted by her words. She folded the small piece of paper into fourths and handed it to Duke. He took it and stuffed it into the pocket of his flannel shirt.
“I sent a few of the pictures to the front desk, so you can pick them up there.” Dr. Hokum’s kind smile was reassuring as she pumped a bit of antibacterial foam onto her hands and rubbed it in. “Have a lovely Christmas, and we will see you next month. Good luck.”
Duke helped me to sit up, and I redressed quickly. Together we walked to the front desk, where I made my next appointment, and the receptionist handed me our sonogram pictures. I looked down, tracing the outline of our baby’s nose. I peered up at Duke.
“What?” he asked as I paused in the vestibule.
I grinned. “Nothing. Just trying to figure out if the baby has your nose or mine.”
Duke bit back a smile as a muscle in his jaw worked. He fussed with my coat, drawing it over my shoulders and pulling it around my belly. My hair was tangled in the soft scarf I’d thrown on, and Duke’s rough hands scooped behind my neck to free it.
Duke reached to grab his coat off the hook, and I was entranced by such a simple, innocuous gesture. He was all smooth movements and confident strides.
I placed my hand over his pec. “No peeking without me.”
Duke leaned down to drop a kiss on my cheek. “I wouldn’t dare.”
Gripping onto his arm, I let Duke walk me to my car and bundle me inside.
He insisted I follow him straight home, because the roads were looking slicker than they had before the appointment.
Truth was, I was relieved to have a little space from him after such an emotional ultrasound.
I couldn’t trust myself not to fall at his feet and finally admit how hopelessly in love with him I was.
But I couldn’t do that. Not yet.
Things between Duke and me were going well, but once the baby was born, there was no more living inside our quiet little bubble.
Sooner or later I was going to have to decide whether I could give up on my dream of leaving my hometown and starting over in Savannah, when every day that passed made it harder and harder to remember why I’d ever wanted to leave.