20 weeks gestation

Bristol’s life had changed completely over the course of her pregnancy. When she wasn’t working extra hours to save money for the baby’s expenses, she was almost too tired to function. Her days were a never-ending cycle of sleep, eat, work, repeat. The only break in the monotony was her daily check-in from one of the Storm brothers and her intermittent calls with Roan.

She missed him more this deployment than ever before, especially in the moments when she felt the most fatigued and the moments when she was joyous—like feeling their baby move in her belly for the first time. Within moments of realizing what the fluttering was, she’d reached for the phone to call him, only to end up leaving an oddly broken, tearful voicemail he probably wouldn’t even get thanks to the lack of cell service where he was.

Emails and the random video chat weren’t enough to share the monumental things happening, and today of all days, she would have cut off her right arm to have him home with her. Her sonogram was going to be happening without him.

Olive had sweetly offered to take the day off and so had Roan’s brothers, but Bristol didn’t want anyone but Roan to be there with her. If he couldn’t be there, she preferred to handle it alone.

Forcing herself to roll out of bed, she trudged to the closet to find something to wear. Yet another thing that had become more difficult. She wasn’t pregnant enough for maternity clothes, but she was too pregnant for her regular stuff. The baby bump had long surpassed her regular pants. Thank God for whoever invented drawstring lounge pants and stretch knit, or she’d have been naked.

The instructions for today’s appointment were to drink a minimum of thirty-two ounces of water before she arrived. How they expected a pregnant woman to do that without peeing herself, she didn’t know, but she would give it a try. She desperately wanted to see her baby and maybe, even find out what sex it was.

Her breakfast consisted of graham crackers dipped in milk which was pretty much the only thing that stayed down until noon these days. Fuck that morning sickness in the first-trimester bull-shit. She still woke up ready to spill her guts every morning and brushing her teeth was like pressing a button that turned her gag reflex up high.

Adjusting the thermostat for the second time as she passed by, she grumbled to herself about the rising summer temperatures. Her shoes were yet another hurdle. It seemed she’d gained her pregnancy weight in her feet because nothing fit right anymore, and it was awkward as hell to wear anything that laced or buckled.

Jamming on her favorite ballet flats, she winced when her pinky toe rebelled against its new snugger quarters and immediately kicked them off again. Tears burned her eyes as she went looking for a pair of flip-flops that would work for the day.

Why did everything have to be so hard right now? The baby wasn’t even here, and she was overwhelmed with how it had changed her world. How was she possibly going to handle being a single mom?

Wearing a pair of worn out flip-flops and faded gray lounge pants, she was heading out the front door for her appointment when her phone rang. Of course, she managed to drop her keys trying to free it from her purse, but once she had, she was thrilled to see Roan’s name on the screen.

“Roan?”

“Hey baby, it’s so good to hear your voice. Where are you?”

Bristol was confused by the question for a moment and fumbled for an answer, “Um, it’s good to hear from you too, but you’re two days late from when you were supposed to call.”

“I know B, I’m sorry. It’s been a rough week. Where are you at right now?”

“I’m at home, but I’m getting in my car to go to the sonogram appointment.”

“Is that at the hospital?”

“No, it’s at the women’s clinic on Maple. That’s where Dr. Jacoby sends his patients.”

“Okay… Are you feeling okay?”

“I’m not having the best morning, but I’ll be fine. Junior still doesn’t like toothpaste, and my new elephant feet wouldn’t fit in my shoes today.”

“Elephant feet?” Roan laughed on the other end. “I can’t wait to see that.”

“You laugh, but I’m serious. I get now why pregnant women always seem short-tempered. Between the heat and humidity draining my energy, and the baby bouncing on my bladder, I spend the day peeing or sleeping as much as possible.”

“So, you’re still feeling sick in the mornings?”

“Yeah, but it’s gotten a little better, and by dinner time, I’m ravenous.”

“Good. Listen, I’d better go since you have to drive. I wouldn’t want anything to happen to you because you were trying to talk to me.”

“Okay, but call me when you get another chance though, Roan.” Bristol’s heart ached with missing him. “I should find out today whether Junior is a boy or girl.”

“It doesn’t matter to me as long as you’re both healthy. Drive safe, B.”

Bristol hung up, and tears rolled down her cheeks unchecked. She cried the entire drive to the clinic unable to stop herself or get control over her emotions. She knew Roan was doing his job, and she had no logical right to feel angry at him for not being with her through her pregnancy, but right now, she wasn’t feeling very logical. She was tired, nauseous, hungry, and she desperately had to pee.

Cursing as she wiped her face clean with a tissue, she was startled by a loud rap on her window. Looking up, she found herself face to face with Roan.

For a moment, she just sat there in shock, staring at his smiling visage as if it might disappear when she blinked. It wasn’t until he laughed and said, “Are you going to get out?” she realized how silly she looked.

Throwing open her door, she was out of the car and in his arms in a heartbeat, tears once again flowing down her cheeks. She heard him inhale deeply, and his arms tightened around her.

“You feel so good, B. I’ve never missed you more.”

“What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be on another continent.”

He lifted her chin and wiped her tears with his thumb. “I’m home on leave. We had a mission go bad, and our unit suffered two casualties, so I got early leave orders. I’ll be here for two weeks, then I have to go back to finish my term.”

“Oh, my God, Roan, you get to see the baby! The sonogram! I can’t believe this, it’s like a miracle.”

His laughter warmed her head to toe, but when he put his hands on her rounded belly and dropped to his knees to place a kiss on their growing child, she nearly exploded with joy.

“Hey, little one, it’s me, your Daddy. I know you haven’t heard from me much, but that will change once I’m back. I’ll never let you out of my sight.”

Bristol was too happy to start a discussion regarding visitation and how tricky that promise would be to keep, so she just kept her lips zipped and enjoyed the moment.

“I’m so excited you’re here for this. I was secretly scared to do it alone.”

“Where’s your mom? Or Olive? I figured one of them would be with you,” Roan asked, rising and taking her hand to walk her into the office.

“Olive’s working, but she did offer. It just didn’t feel right to have someone else here in your place. Cooper and Jaden both offered, too.” She checked in at the desk and they took a seat in the waiting room.

“Are they helping you out? I asked them to keep an eye on you since I can’t be here all the time.”

“Oh, believe me,” she laughed, “they’re always underfoot. You, sir, have way too many siblings.”

“Don’t I know it. So, where’s your mom?”

Bristol cringed at the question because they hadn’t talked about it yet. There was no use hiding the truth from him.

“She’s not exactly on board with this pregnancy yet. In fact, she suggested we consider adoption after she gave me a thirty-minute lecture on responsibility and condom use.”

It was Roan’s turn to look shocked. “What? I…wow. I just never saw that coming from Tara. Especially with Frank gone.”

Before she could respond, the nurse was calling them back. Bristol’s stomach flip-flopped violently until Roan grabbed her hand. Their eyes met, and he gave her a small reassuring smile that soothed her nerves. Just having him here made it feel like everything was going to be okay, no matter what.

Within a few moments, Bristol was lying on an uncomfortable, narrow bed with her belly exposed. She could feel her face and neck glowing red with embarrassment. Roan hadn’t seen her belly distended like this. Would he be disgusted at the sight?

To her relief, he smiled at her and ran his large hand over her abdomen. “I imagined you pregnant, but I didn’t realize how much better reality would be. You two are beautiful.”

“He’s a keeper,” the technician teased as she flipped the lights off and settled on a stool in front of her machine. “Are you ready to do this?”

“So ready.” Bristol held her breath as the woman squirted jelly over her stomach and began to press the wand against her. “Will you be able to see if there’s anything wrong with the baby?”

“We can see most physical issues, yes, but from the looks of it, you have a very healthy baby in there. Let me get some measurements, then we’ll see about finding out the sex if you like,” the technician told her, eyes locked on the screen in front of her.

“How can you tell the sex? I’m not even sure there’s a baby in that picture,” Roan said, his head cocked, a frown on his face. “Looks more like an abstract painting I saw in a museum once.”

Bristol laughed as the woman began to explain what they were seeing. With her pointing out the specifics, the view changed, and suddenly, Bristol realized she was seeing her child for the first time. Tears burned her eyes, and she let out a garbled sob.

“What’s wrong, baby? Are you okay?” Roan asked, gripping her hand tightly, concern filling his features.

“I just can’t believe that’s our baby. It’s all so real when you see it like that,” she murmured, a hurricane of emotions swamping her as she watched the movements on the screen. A small hand opened and closed, a foot kicked out, and she was able to feel it from the inside out as she watched it. It was incredible.

“Looks like you’re right on target. Twenty weeks and three days. The baby looks absolutely perfect. Did you want to know the sex?”

Bristol and Roan exchanged a grin and said “Yes” simultaneously. It didn’t matter that they hadn’t discussed it before. All that mattered was knowing as much about their child as they possibly could.

“You’re having… a boy. Congratulations,” the technician said, beaming at them. “If you look right here, this thing that looks like a turtle is actually the penis.”

“Oh my God, my son is going to be born with a penis that looks like a turtle?” Roan cried out. “Does that get fixed with the circumcision?”

The technician exploded with laughter, “Oh Lord have mercy, no. It only looks like that in the sonogram. He’s not going to have a turtle penis, I promise.”

Roan’s relief was palpable, and Bristol’s laughter matched the nurses. She shook her head at him, “A turtle penis? Really, Storm?”

“What?” he asked with a shrug. “I have to know what I’m working with here. I need to prepare a plan for how to make him love himself no matter what.”

“That’s sweet,” the other woman said and leaned into Bristol like she was going to spill a secret. “I’m telling you, he’s a definite keeper.”

“He sure is,” Bristol agreed.

The technician finished up and printed out pictures for them.

“The doctor will read the results as well and contact you if there are any concerns,” she explained as Bristol wiped her belly clean and awkwardly pulled her shirt down. “Do you have any questions for me?”

“Just one,” Bristol said. “Where’s the bathroom? I’m pretty sure if Junior moves anymore before I find it, I’ll explode.”

* * *

Roan was filled with emotions he’d never expected. Relief the baby was healthy and growing strong. Pride he was having a son. Envy that only Bristol could feel the tiny tike, at the moment, and the strongest wave of love he’d ever felt in his life. It wasn’t just love for his child, but for his family. He wanted to be a family. Bristol, him, and their child, forever.

It was time to man up and take some steps forward. They’d done this backward, but there was no reason they couldn’t change course now. As he led her out of the doctor’s office, a plan began to formulate in his mind.

“Do you have to go to work?” he asked, holding her car door for her.

“Yeah, I’m trying to save all of my vacation and sick time for when the baby arrives. I get maternity leave, but it’s unpaid unless I have time to take,” she explained.

“Okay, how about dinner tonight? We can talk about baby names and catch up,” Roan offered.

“That would be great. What time?”

Roan did a few calculations in his head. “I’ll come by your place and pick you up at seven. Is that good?”

“Let’s make it seven-thirty, so I have time to change before we go. I think I can still fit into that pink dress with the black buttons. Maybe,” Bristol said with a laugh.

“If not, wear sweatpants. It won’t bother me a bit. You’re beautiful in anything,” Roan told her, bending to kiss her lips, “and nothing.”

Bristol’s face turned pink and she rolled her eyes. “I have to go, Storm. I’ll see you at seven thirty.”

Roan was still smiling after he shut her door, and she pulled away. In fact, he spent the rest of the day smiling as he did some shopping for his new little family. He was going to make tonight perfect for them all.