16. Rosie
16
ROSIE
M y leg is high in the air as I move through my one-legged downward dog. I can’t help but notice a pair of heavy eyes glued to me in my side view, of a man in uniform.
I huff out a sound of annoyance and give up on my pose. Standing tall, I set my hands on my hips and give Carter a pointed stare. “What?”
“I don’t think you should be doing all of this.”
Kicking the yoga mat on the living room floor, I’m exasperated and a little cranky. “We’ve gone over this. I’m fine. It’s good to keep my body limber, too. Besides, the baby loves it. Always gives a little kick when I’m relaxing after my sequences.”
Carter moseys on past me and leans down to roll up the mat. “I’m sure. But you are basically doing splits half the time and balancing on one foot.”
“ Grrr ,” I growl. “Will you stop being an overprotective freak? Otherwise, I might throw a few of your trolls into the snow outside.” Even if he is being so ridiculously endearing.
He chuckles at me as he sets my mat in the corner and checks that I’m not burning down the house with the candles that I’ve lit. “Except that you’ve been using them as Elf on the Shelf. I know you’ve been moving the Krampus troll.”
“No. I’m moving that because it’s creepy. The evil version of Santa needs to not be in this house.”
Carter walks to me and holds me from behind. My head falls in place against his shoulder.
We managed to keep everyone at bay at Christmas. Small family dinner one day and another the other day to cover our bases. Every single person’s gift to us was a tiny stocking for the fireplace. Nobody seemed to check with one another, so now we have six different stockings to choose from.
“I’ll start packing up the decorations when I’m back from work.” His voice spreads across my skin just below my earlobe.
“We still have New Year’s Eve. It can wait until tomorrow.” I rub his forearms resting on my stomach.
“If you’re not up when I’m back, it’s okay. You’ve been tired.”
I laugh. “I’ll be up for midnight or just wake me up. Starting a fresh new year with you is perfect.”
“You also said that about every single new moon, full moon, blue moon, and probably some other moon that I’ve never heard of,” he notes.
Wiggling in his arms, I respond to his teasing. “True. But a new year is a new year. A long cycle. Last year was full of surprises. Tomorrow, we wake knowing our baby is no longer a surprise, where I live is no longer a surprise, and we’ll be focusing on nesting and enjoying the newborn phase. See? All planned, and we should celebrate that.”
He kisses my cheek before letting me go. “I’m following along with your logic because you’re carrying our child. I’ll be back.”
I wave my fingers in the air as acknowledgment that I heard him while he disappears upstairs. Meandering to the kitchen, I’m on the search for pink wafer cookies and some carrots because it’s the perfect combo in my book.
Finding the dry cookie in the jar, I snort a laugh to myself because out the window I see pawprints in the thin layer of snow in the back. There is no Jet in sight, but clearly, he escaped and was here. One crunchy bite and I ease into a lazy afternoon. I hear Carter zip down the stairs, and the door shuts right after.
This happens a lot lately since I’ve been teaching less. Minutes where I stop and immerse myself in my surroundings. It’s no longer Carter’s house; it feels like a home. The days are routine, and I don’t mind.
It causes my mouth to etch a smile.
When I was married to Carter, every day was a little spontaneous. There was less structure because I wanted to go with the flow. Now? Some things fall into blocks during the day, and I’m okay with that. It’s actually pretty damn enjoyable.
Puzzle pieces eventually fall into place. Even if there are hundreds. With Carter, we only had a few, but it took a while to lay them out.
We’re running out of the final pieces to place.
And that’s a good sign.
* * *
Vaguely, the heaviness of someone close to me causes me to stir groggily in bed. I’m struggling in an attempt to wake, and instead, sigh blissfully and keep my head comfy against the fluffy pillow for my sleepy slumber.
There is a briskness to the cool air inside the bedroom, but underneath the blankets, it’s toasty and warm. My uncovered shoulders feel warmth now cascading down my skin.
I hum a sound and feel the gruffness of Carter’s stubble. Even with the tip of his nose sensually snuggling against my skin, I refuse to wake fully.
There is no need.
Everything feels right.
His arms wrap around me as he spoons me from behind, and our hands find the spot on my stomach that we always touch when sleep takes over us.
“Happy New Year,” he whispers.
Mumbling something back, I return to my dream.
* * *
My eyes squint open to light from outside. Rubbing my eyes, I yawn and notice that it’s morning with clouds outside, as half of the blinds are raised. I slept heavenly, which explains why the clock says 9:30 in the morning and I’m only just waking up.
The sound of someone in the other room instantly makes me happy because it’s Carter. Using my arms, I begin to sit up on my side. One more yawn, and I realize that I completely missed the stroke of midnight.
It’s disappointing, but a good night’s sleep isn’t half bad either.
Stretching my arms up in the air, I set my feet on the floor and kick on one unicorn slipper then the next. I quickly go to the bathroom and grab a sweater and opt for staying in my pajamas. Before the baby, I loved to chill in leggings and t-shirts, and with a baby, my style hasn’t changed because it’s now a necessity.
The moment that I pause at the door of the small bedroom that will become the baby’s nursery, my entire heart melts all over again.
Carter throws me a glance mid brush stroke, painting the wall. “Morning. Welcome to a new year.”
I laugh. “I missed it, didn’t I?”
“Yeah, I wanted you to sleep, though.” He sets the brush by the side of the canister on plastic covering the floor before he comes to give me a kiss.
Jabbing a finger into his chest, I can’t break this grin that beams on my face. “You picked the paint color without me!” It’s a light beige which makes sense and will go well with creams, but still. “Love the communication on this one,” I say, sarcastic.
“Relax.” He curls his fingers around my pointer finger and brings the pad of my finger to his lips for a kiss. “I know you don’t care, now get the hell out of here. The paint fumes aren’t good for you. I thought I would paint the accent wall that we talked about. I’ve been awake since six.”
I crane my neck and appraise the wall behind him. “It does look great.”
“See? Now go away. Have breakfast, and I’ll be down in a bit.”
“Fine. But only because I’m hungry.”
He smirks with satisfaction and shoos me away.
It isn’t until an hour later that he joins me downstairs, freshly showered and in sweats. I’m busy on the floor untangling tree lights to put them back in the box. We opted for a tiny fake tree. I’m nearly done after five minutes. Carter joins me on the floor to help.
“You’re not upset about missing New Year’s?”
I roll a shoulder back. “Nah. In the end, the biggest day this year will be when he or she decides to come into the world… Plus, it’s a new moon next week. We’re fine.”
“Alright. If you say so.” We succeed with the string of lights, and he places it in the storage box. “I finished the wall, and next week, I’ll put the car seats in the car.”
Instantly, I gush contentment. “Can’t believe that in six to eight weeks this girl or boy will show up.”
“Unless you go over. My mom went over with Oliver and me.”
“But my mom had me early. So, who knows.”
He lies on his side and props his elbow up. His brown eyes glint with a little sparkle. “In a few weeks, I’ll be named mayor too.”
I raise a brow at him. “Someone is a little cocky.”
Carter has a cunning grin that turns me on. “I think we know where it’s going to go. I bought everyone at Foxy Rox coffees last time I was there.”
“Bribery, huh?”
It earns me a wink. I notice the way he’s watching his fingers circle on the rug in front of him, keeping himself occupied. His throat bobs in a way that seems he’s gearing himself up. “Rosie.” His voice is nuanced, and his eyes flick up to meet mine. “We still haven’t really talked about what you said the other day.”
I could throw out a funny retort right now, but I’m aware of the significance of his question.
“You mean the wife part?” My voice is very delicate.
“Yeah. That.”
Licking my lips, I debate what to say. “Is there something to talk about?”
His finger begins to draw a circle on my wrist. “I’m just wondering where your head is at. The past month has been busy, but we only seem to get better.” He’s desperately searching for me to say what he hopes I will.
“That’s true. We haven’t really mentioned it again.” Probably because I’ve been so wrapped in how great things are going.
He trails his long finger from my wrist down to my empty ring finger where he stops. “Just know that before I become mayor or we have a baby, I’m saving the rings for none of those reasons to ask you to be my wife again. The rings are waiting for you because you’re supposed to have them again.”
My heart jumps from the yearning in his voice, with the full sincerity of what his heart wants.
Still, my eyes turn into saucers. “Is this a proposal?”
He smirks to himself. “It can be if you want it to be. It’s more ensuring you have clarity on what I’m envisioning. You don’t need to ask questions because I’m laying it all on the table, yours for the taking.”
It is tempting to fly into his arms and say yes.
But that tiny part of me still wants to be certain that we won’t hurt one another all because we got lost in a surprise fate has thrown at us.
Still, I bring my hand to his cheek and rub my finger by the corner of his mouth. “Keep holding on to the rings.”
That’s a promise I can make, and it’s true.
Today, I’ll keep an answer to myself. But I don’t believe much more time is needed.
My answer is enough for him today, and he scoots a little closer to me, weaves his fingers through my hair, and dips his chin down to angle his mouth over mine for a kiss.
Sometimes kisses are the only answer we need that everything will be alright.