Chapter 23: The Appointment

SLOAN

The next morning, when I wake up, I’m in my new house with Kade and still kind of can’t believe it.

He’s done a good job stocking the bathroom, so I sneak out of bed and try to clean myself up for the day.

I don’t have any clothes here yet, so I have to wake Kade up to say goodbye. I go to his side and stroke his hair until he wakes up.

He smiles. “Good morning.”

“Hey, babe, I have to go get ready; the appointment is in two hours.”

“Come here.” He opens his arms and pulls me down onto his chest.

“Hey! It’s not fair, you’re stronger than me,” I say, laughing.

“You’re sexier. And you can get away if you really want to.”

“I don’t but I need to get dressed and ready for the day,” I admit.

“You’re not going anywhere. I’ve been very sneaky.”

“What do you mean?”

He points to a dresser beside the bed. “That one’s yours; I’ve been sneaking stuff over. It’s not a lot, but maybe you can find what you need here. I brought that pink dress you like.

“We can move the rest of your stuff whenever you’re ready.”

I laugh. “You little butt, I’ve been looking everywhere for my comfy dress… But thank you too.”

He chuckles. “Little butt, huh? Are you already practicing your mommy swears?”

“Maybe.” I giggle before I roll out of his arms to check the dresser.

I’m surprised to see how much of my stuff Kade has been able to steal out from under my nose, but most mornings, I sleep later than him, so maybe that’s how he did it.

“So, can I take you to breakfast before we go?” he asks hopefully. “Do you have what you need?”

“Yes, you wonderful, perfect man.”

“Mm, come show me how wonderful I am.” He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me into a deep kiss.

After Kade and I get dressed, I get into his car and he takes me to a restaurant downtown. He spoils me with Belgian waffles and extra whipped cream before I show him where to go for the appointment.

I’m a little nervous when we go in because I don’t really know what to expect.

After we sign in and fill out a load of paperwork, they call us back and give me an extensive physical and take tests. Kade is patient and waits with me the whole time, holding my hand when he can.

Before I know it, we’re waiting in a room for the doctor to come back.

“Are you doing okay, babe?” Kade asks.

“Yeah, it’s a lot to take in. The thing is, if I’m right about my last period, I’m pretty far along, Kade. Like, more than halfway—I can’t believe I didn’t figure it out. I’ve just been so busy and—”

“Hi, you two, everything okay in here?” the doctor interjects.

“Yes, I was just doing the math and I’m wondering what you have to say about the due date,” I ramble.

“You look scared. Take a breath, it’s going to be okay. I do have some news.” She smiles, and Kade squeezes my hand.

“Mom and baby both look good, but the baby is pretty big. I’m going to say you’re about eighteen weeks along.”

“Whoa. How didn’t I know?”

“Technically, it’s called a denied pregnancy; you’re just starting to show. What made you take a test?”

“I guess I figured that it’s been a while since I’ve had my period. I’ve just got a promotion and thought I was feeling sick because of stress,” I explain.

“Well, your intuition was correct. Just take this in its stride; stress isn’t good for you or your baby.”

Kade smiles. “So, when is she due?”

“She’s right about being halfway; four and a half months.”

“Oh, my God!” I exclaim.

“Sloan, baby, it’s okay,” Kade assures me.

“Okay, I think I know what will make you feel better,” the doctor says. “Even though this is your first appointment, you’re far enough along to see the baby and even find out the sex.

“Would you like to come in this afternoon for an anatomy scan?”

“Yes, please. When can we do that?” Kade says.

“We have an opening at four. Take some deep breaths, Mom. Go try to relax and come back.

“If you haven’t talked about things like if you want to know the sex, now would be a good time to decide. I’ll see you both this afternoon.”

“Thank you.”

Kade helps me up and walks me to the car. Before he opens the door for me, he takes me into his arms and holds me. “Breathe, Sloan, it’s okay. They didn’t tell us anything bad. It’s going to be okay.”

“I just… Whoa, I wasn’t expecting it all to happen so soon. There is so much to do, so much to plan.”

“Let’s go to your apartment, and you can get some things that you need and relax in your comfortable space,” Kade suggests.

“I’m supposed to go to work today.”

“No, call her and tell her you’re sick. After we get more information, you can explain everything tomorrow.

“I’m sure Marlene will understand; you’re going to have to tell her eventually. I mean, you’re going to have to figure out leave and everything.”

“Yeah, okay, you’re right.”

After I talk to Marlene, Kade drives me to my apartment while I sit lost in thought. Once we get home, Kade pulls a suitcase out of my closet and opens it on the bed.

“You, lie down and tell me what to pack,” he says.

“Um, my pajamas?”

“Good start. Tell me how you’re feeling.”

“Overwhelmed and guilty that I didn’t know before,” I admit.

“Okay, well you can’t change that and you have nothing to feel guilty about; the baby is okay and you’re okay. What else?”

“I guess, I knew I was pregnant before I knew you were going to propose, but now, it feels like it would be nice to be married before the baby comes,” I explain.

“We can do that.”

“But I’m going to get big fast now.”

He smiles. “You’re going to be beautiful.”

“I want them to have your name.”

“Sloan, you’re my family now—you and the baby. Names don’t matter. Stop talking about plans for now.”

Kade puts the suitcase on the ground, climbs into bed with me, and puts his hand low on my belly. “Do you want to know the sex?”

“I do. I think it will give me one less thing to wonder about.”

He grins. “Me, too, I can’t wait to know.”

“I guess we need to tell people.”

“Let’s just wait until after this scan, then we’ll know all the details and can decide what to do.”

“Kade, you said you have to go to Chicago. When are you going?”

“I don’t know, baby. I would tell you if I did but I’m not going to leave if you need me.”

“I just finished telling you that I wouldn’t get in the way of your career,” I remind him.

“We don’t know anything yet. What would make you feel better right now?”

“I’m hungry and I’m tired.”

Kade stands up and gets to work.

***

After he makes lunch for us, I decide to take a nap. When I wake up, he’s made lots of progress packing my stuff.

“Wow, babe.”

He smiles. “I’m just excited for you to move in with me.”

“Thank you for doing all of this.”

“Of course, anything for you. Are you ready to go? We should leave soon.”

“Let me just go brush my teeth and stuff, and I’ll be ready.”

After I clean up, we go down to Kade’s car, and he takes me back to the doctor’s office. They take me into the same room as before and I lie down.

“Okay, how are we feeling?” the doctor asks.

“A little better,” I admit.

She smiles. “Do you want to know the sex?”

“We do.”

“All right, let’s get started.”

She lowers the sheet just enough to expose my belly and then squirts cold gel onto me before she starts rolling the transducer around.

The sensation is strange, but at the same time, I’m excited to see what’s going on.

“Okay, here is the baby.” She smiles and points to the screen.

“Oh, my God, Sloan.” Kade grabs my hand, tears well up in my eyes, and for the first time, this is all ~really real~.

“It looks like the baby is fourteen centimeters, so eighteen weeks seems about right,” the doctor explains.

“How big is that?” Kade asks.

“About the size of a bell pepper.”

Kade laughs. “Are they sucking their thumb?”

“Yes, this is the age when they develop the sucking reflex, so that is common.”

“Oh, my goodness, so sweet,” I squeal. “How come I’m not showing more?”

“Do you work out a lot? Pilates?” she asks.

“Yes, actually.”

“If your core muscles are really strong, your bump can sometimes look smaller, but it’s really different for everyone,” she explains.

“So, they are okay?” Kade asks.

“Yes, everything looks good here. Since this is your first scan, I’m going to schedule you to come back next week for a more extensive session; we can check everything out then.”

“So, I’m due in five months?”

“I would plan closer to four. Okay, look, Mom and Dad, are you ready?”

I squeeze Kade’s hand before I say, “Yes.”

The doctor smiles. “It looks like you’re having a little girl.”

Kade can’t contain his tears, and seeing how happy he is makes me cry too. After we look at the baby and get all our questions answered, they print out a picture for us, and we go back to the car.

“Can you believe it, baby? A little girl?” Kade grins.

“I’m so excited, but four months is really not a long time.”

“We’ve got this, baby. I love you so much, I’m so happy.”

“I love you, too, Kade.”