Danny's Main

He leaned over her chair and pressed his lips to hers. Mint and pine filled her senses.

“You’re my reason, Jules.” He gave her another soft kiss. “Always, you.”

Julie sighed. His actions always spoke just as clearly as his words, and his words were the best. As it did whenever it heard Da

“The bean feels neglected, sweetheart,” Julie teased, rubbing her baby bump before placing Da

There was nothing better in the world than Da

“Mr. and Mrs. Marcus, we’re ready for you.”

The nurse’s words pulled them out of their bubble and into the here and now. It was time to make certain their baby was developing properly with ten fingers and ten toes. They were also hoping to learn if they would be painting the nursery pink or blue.

***

THE TECHNICIAN HANDED Julie a towel and closed the door behind her, leaving a speechless, slack-jawed, glassy-eyed couple in the cramped room.

“We’re having a daughter,” Da

She nodded, words still caught in her throat. Their baby—their daughter—looked perfect. She measured exactly where she should for twenty weeks and three days.

“A little girl,” Da

It was one thing to hear the technician utter those words, but for them to come from her husband… “Oh my God.” Tears flowed freely down her cheeks. “A healthy baby girl. Da

“Come here, honey, I need you in my arms.”

“And there’s no place I’d rather be, but”—she hesitated, a pronounced bounce in her stance—“if I don’t use the restroom first, you’re going need to change your pants before you head into work.” She smiled over her shoulder and saw Da

###

THE WEEKS FLEW by as she and Da

Beautiful furniture was ordered and set to be delivered four weeks before her January seventh due date. Each time Julie walked out of Macy’s department store, she found herself with another tiny, new onesie in the prettiest shade of pink.

“It called to me,” she’d say to Da

“There aren’t enough days in the year for all the clothes you’ve bought for her already.”

Yet she’d catch him gently fingering the soft cotton wares as she’d pass the nursery on her way to their bedroom.

And their lovemaking…holy hotness, she thought as she undressed and stepped into the shower one afternoon in mid-October. Sex was an area that they had always excelled in, but it had become indescribable. Between the pregnancy hormones amping up her desire, which she’d read was normal, and Da

The friends Julie had made through work over the four years she’d been at O’Brian’s, both coworkers and regular customers, weighed in daily with regards to Julie’s pregnancy. And as all pregnant women could attest to, the minute the baby belly popped, so did the advice from every well-intentioned person. She’d been warned about how husbands tended to stay away from their wives sexually during pregnancy and if Da

“Pun completely intended, darling,” the women of the Sweet-Heart Club, who reserved the twelve-top table for the first Monday of each month, squawked before sharing their labor and delivery nightmares.

Julie wasn’t their waitress, but they often requested management to assist even the most capable servers, and Julie was management.

Little did the Sweet-Hearts know that Da

“You’ve been in there a while, honey,” Da

Nope, no fragile dolls in the Marcus house.

She turned off the taps, her lip tucked between her teeth as moisture pooled between her thighs. “I’m coming.” She startled when the stall door slid open.

“Get out of the shower, babe”—his eyes raked over her body—“and you will be.”

###

AFTER FOUR GLORIOUS orgasms—three of them hers—the pair showered again, that time together, and dressed for work.

“You and Sheila started looking for your replacement?” Da

Julie finished applying her lipstick, rubbed her lips together, then looked at Da

Da

Sometimes she wondered if it was to her benefit or detriment that the man knew her as well as he did.

“I can’t wait to have this baby.” She rubbed her palm over the ever-expanding bump that chose that moment to move, as if she knew her mommy was talking about her. “And I know we decided that I would stop working and stay home with her, but a piece of me wants to continue to work.” Without waiting for Da

When her parents had died, everything they owned was left to Julie, including two very large life insurance policies. Before Da