Seasons (Ari AU)

After shot...

*This one-shot can also be found in the ABC's book...

Ari POV

Do you know what you can't do for six weeks after having a baby vaginally?

That's right, sex. No sex for six weeks.

Do you know what doesn't happen when you have a first date in a hospital?

That's right, sex, again. Not that I'm a proponent of sex after a first date at this point in my life.

Do you know what doesn't happen when you get married when the woman you love is laying in a hospital bed?

That's right, no wedding night sex either.

Do you know what happens when all three of those instances happen within a few days of each other?

Once again, no sex.

Now, I'm not saying I'm an addict by any means. But not being able to show that kind of raw intimacy to the woman you love feels like a punishment from the dark, fiery depths of hell. Toss in a baby that is colicky and screams until three in the morning every night before she will settle down, and even if six weeks weren't involved, I know I'm not getting any.

But seeing Holland become a mother, showing all the love to our baby girl that she showed to each of those babies in the hospital nursery, makes me swell in more places than my heart. There's something about seeing a woman care for your child that puts them into another realm of your desire.

Evy may not be mine by the world's standard of flesh and blood. But she is very much my little girl. It took zero effort on either of our part for me to step right into a fathering role with her, simply because I've loved the little girl from the moment her mother said she was pregnant.

Our story isn't one of a fairytale, although Holland thought her marriage to Jeremy had been. Until he was killed in a car accident and all of his sordid details concerning his double life came to light. Only then was I able to be her Prince Charming she so rightfully deserved.

I just happen to not only get the Princess, but also the Queen.

"This is a bad idea, Ari," Holland says again, stopping her packing of the toiletry bag.

I stroll into the bathroom, stepping up behind her with my arms circling her waist. "Why do you say that, beautiful?" I watch her through the mirror, bending a bit lower to settle my chin on her shoulder.

"She's just six weeks old and we're going away on a honeymoon? No," she tells me, "I don't like it and I'm not doing it." She begins unpacking the shampoo and our toothbrushes.

My large hand comes out to stop hers, holding it still for a moment. "You are going whether you like it or not." Our eyes meet in the mirror and I try to hold my gaze with a sternness she's come to recognize from me. But when her lip begins to tremble, I'm close to falling apart myself and ruining my entire plan. "We leave in fifteen minutes," I say over my shoulder as I walk out of the room.

A hand runs down my face, wiping away my own fear of blowing the surprise. I'm not a completely heartless man who is thinking with the brain between his legs, although it's a pretty tight running race at the moment. No, my wife's fears will be put to rest and still allow us the time we need to finally have our honeymoon, albeit modified, a lot.

Evy is still in the middle of her night's sleep. Can it be called a night's sleep when it didn't even begin until dawn was near breaking? Who knows, but I watch her little lips purse in her sleep as I lift her. She begins an attempt at rooting my chest which means there's just a few minutes before she's awake and screaming for her mother's breast.