Chapter 9 Embracing Joy
NINE
Embracing Joy
When they finished eating, we moved back to the living room. Declan had wrapped up the leftovers, thank goodness, allowing me to stay far away from them. Uncle John saw the wood in the fireplace and gestured to Declan.
“Is this in working order?” he asked.
Declan nodded, so Uncle John stared at the logs and they burst into flames.
He was the only wicche I knew who never used his hands to do magic.
He’d told me once that his family had been suspected of wicchecraft in the old country and they’d taught themselves how to cast without any outward movements. It was so cool.
“Okay, starfish. Let’s see what’s going on with you.” John pointed at the couch. “Lie down for me.”
“Starfish?” Declan asked.
John chuckled as he sat on the coffee table beside where I was stretching out. “She was my little starfish long before she met you.” He waved Declan forward. “Why don’t you sit here, near her head. Then you can hold her hand while I work.”
Declan sat and I reached for him, placing our knot of hands on my chest as we waited.
Uncle John’s hand hovered between my pelvic bones. Eyes closed, he tilted his head to the side, like he was listening to something only he could hear. Declan leaned down and kissed my forehead. One of Uncle John’s eyes opened as he clocked the kiss before closing them again.
Finally, he straightened and opened his eyes. “She’s perfectly fine. The growth is accelerated. Your dad said she was a tiny ball of cells. Is that right? And that was two weeks ago?”
I nodded. “Around there.”
“My guess is she’s closer to three months along, so this whole pregnancy might be more like five months, rather than nine. This is only my first time checking on her though. We can do weekly check-ins, and I’ll know better when I see the development week to week.”
“So, we maybe only have a couple of months until she’s here?” This was getting real way too fast.
“We’ll see,” he said. “Let’s not worry about anything yet.
Remember, you’re not alone anymore. You’re surrounded by people who love you and would enjoy nothing more than to help.
I realize your mother—and probably Bracken—are on the top of the list, but I would be honored to be added to the babysitting rotation. ”
I grinned, some of the fear slipping away. “How did you know when Declan kissed me?”
“Ah.” He smiled as he stood. “I didn’t. You told me. I felt a rush of love and affection. We’re way too early for that kind of thing to be coming from her, so it had to be you.”
Declan’s hand moved, resting on my lower abdomen.
I looked up at him and found his eyes glowing gold. I placed my hand on top of his.
“I’ll leave you kids, now,” John said. “Thank you for dinner.”
I glanced out the window. “It’s getting a little late. Would you like to stay here tonight? Our guest room isn’t much yet, but I can make up the air mattress for you.”
He turned back to look at us, his gaze soft. “Thank you, starfish, but you know I’m only a few minutes from home.”
“If not tonight,” I persisted, “you have an open invitation. I love you, Uncle John, and I love having you around.”
He moved back to the couch and patted my socked foot. “That’s what they all miss about you. They’re so intimidated by or jealous of your power, they miss your big heart.”
He scratched his cheek. “I’m okay. How quickly I got full at dinner tells me I’m doing a piss poor job of taking care of myself.
Sylvia would be annoyed with me. How am I going to heal this family when I’m doing such a bad job with myself?
” He leaned down and patted my foot again.
“Don’t worry. I’ll drag myself out of this dark place. ”
“I know you will,” I told him. “I’m saying you don’t have to do it all by yourself. We’re here.”
“You know,” he began as he walked toward the door, “I think I should check on you a couple of times a week. Given how quickly the little one is developing, I should keep an eye on her.” He gestured at the open doors on the forest side of the flat.
“Instead of a guest room, start working on the nursery.”
“I know. Starting too soon makes me nervous, though. What if something happens?” Both my hands clutched Declan’s.
Uncle John turned at that. “You and I both know anything can happen, good or bad. It can sometimes feel like there’s so little good in the world, we question it.
We hesitate to embrace it when we find it.
I’m telling you not to hesitate. Celebrate it.
I know I am. I’ll be smiling on the drive home, imagining another little one like you, whose curly hair turns blue and purple in the ocean, who puts up a tiny hand and has toys flying across the room to her.
” His focus moved to Declan and he added, “And now I get to imagine her stamping her foot in frustration before she shifts so she has those teeth and claws to underline her annoyance.”
On a huff of breath, he said, “Yeah. I’m going to be smiling about that all the way home.” He opened the door. “Try to get a good night’s sleep. Sleep is important.” He lifted a hand, gave us a nod goodbye, and was gone.
Declan rubbed my stomach. “Feeling hungry yet?”
I thought about it and shook my head.
He stood. “I’m going to lock up and turn out the lights. You heard your Uncle John. Sleep is important.”
The fire flickered in the darkness as Declan walked back wearing his sleep pants and carrying a blanket.
“Are you sure you’re not hungry?” He shook out the blanket and resumed his spot behind me on the couch, big spoon to my little.
I shook my head. Even though I’d planned to jump him, I found myself drifting off instead.
When I woke hours later, the fire had gone out, Declan was sleeping, and I was starving.
Also, I really had to pee. Deciding the safest way off the couch without waking Declan was to pour myself over the edge, I did just that.
Slowly, quietly, I dropped to the floor then popped up, heading to the bathroom.
Later, when I tiptoed through the living room, Declan seemed to still be out.
It was a miracle. Or, more likely, the poor man was wearing himself out, trying to do everything for me, his new business, and his pack.
As silently as possible, I pulled the gnocchi out of the fridge, grabbed a fork and a glass of water before sitting sideways on the bench so I could look out the window at the waves. I spelled the food, making it hot, and dug in. Mmm, I needed to remember to order this again.
Even though I was already feeling chilly, I opened the window a bit so I could smell the ocean and hear the waves. I held the food container against my chest to warm myself up. Barely halfway through the food, Declan walked in with the blanket.
“Good. Can I pull anything else out of the fridge for you?” He paused, waiting.
I shook my head. “This is exactly what I want and it’s delicious.”
He nodded sleepily and climbed onto the bench beside me, letting me lean against his chest as he covered me with the blanket. “Keep eating,” he grumbled, seeming to slide into a light doze.
When I finished, I put the empty box aside and snuggled more firmly into Declan, who had his big arm wrapped around me under the blanket. I’d planned to move us both back to the couch, but I was warm, cozy, and had the ocean in my head, so I drifted off instead.
When I woke again, I was back on the couch and early morning light was streaming through the windows. Declan must have carried me here at some point, but I’d been too out of it to notice. On my way to the bathroom, I heard the water turn on.
Declan smiled as I walked in. “Perfect timing. I’ll wash your hair for you.”
“Hold that thought.” I made a pit stop in the water closet, then quickly stripped and joined him in the huge shower under the hot water. Since I’d been too sleepy to jump him last night, I made up for it this morning. When we finally got around to washing my hair, I was having a hard time standing.
After a long and vigorous shower, Declan got dressed, gave me another scorching kiss, and headed down to his workshop.
I, on the other hand, took my usual forever to deal with my hair.
When it was conditioned and mostly dry, I stepped back into the closet to dress for work: a long-sleeved tee, overalls, sneakers, and gloves.
If the little one was coming quickly, I had a lot of octopuses to make in a short time.
Sliding a silk scrunchie onto my wrist for later, I detoured into the guest rooms. Which one should be the nursery? I walked through both, picturing a crib and changing table, considering noise and light, how quickly one of us could get in here, the way light would hit it at different times of day.
I finally based my decision on which had the prettiest view of the woods.
Both were beautiful, but when I leaned against the wall where a crib and later a bed would be and looked out the window in one of the rooms, I saw a fox standing between two trees, seemingly staring up at me.
I walked to the window and held up a hand in greeting.
He tilted his head a moment, then disappeared back into the woods.
I took it as a good sign. Foxes represented wisdom, resilience, and intuition.
Plus, they were damn cute. I’d planned to paint an underwater scene in here, but maybe it should be a forest scene instead.
I’d have to think about that. Maybe do some sketches.
In the meantime, I needed a lift to the gallery.
I took the internal stairs down to Declan’s workshop. He was sanding a large rectangle of wood. He looked up and smiled as he put the sander down.
“Ready to go?” he asked.
I nodded, moving closer to the wood. “It’s like an optical illusion. It’s flat.” I ran a gloved finger over the surface. “But it looks like it’s rippled.”
“Wait until I’m done and have it oiled. I’ve been holding onto this piece for a while. It’ll be our dining room table eventually.”
I scanned the workshop, looking for the crib I knew he was building. “I feel guilty. You’re supposed to be starting a business, but you’re only making pieces for us.”
He wrapped an arm around me and kissed the top of my head.
“I can do both. In fact, I have a new client coming by today. I made a coffee table for a friend of his. He loved it. We’ll talk today, but he’s considering a dining table and chairs, with the possibility of a couple of coffee tables, end tables. We’ll see if our ideas align.”
His gaze dropped to my hands. “Where’s your backpack? Didn’t you bring it home last night.”
“Oh, damn.” I headed back toward the stairs, but Declan stopped me.
“I got it.” And much faster than I could have done it, he was jogging down the stairs with my backpack hanging off his shoulder. “Okay, Ursula. Let’s hit it.”