Golden Bonds

And So It Begins

"Bash!" I growled. "You cannot see me before the wedding. Go away."

He was standing outside the French doors into our newly remodeled bedroom. I was leaning up against the wall between that door and the door to the nursery so he couldn't see me through the fogged glass.

He tapped the glass with the cup he was carrying. "Not until you drink your prenatal shake."

"I'm wearing white. I'm not going to drink your oozing vile moss sludge in my wedding gown. I thought I told you no more shakes. I want cheeseburgers and pickles. If you want to bring me a shake it better be pink and sugary with whip cream because I swear to the moon, Bash, if you bring me one more nutritional smoothie I'm going to shove it right up your...."

"I drank my shake, you need to drink yours. It's for the baby." He said through the door. Laurel and Rebecca were deliberately not looking in my direction.

"I am not drinking that."

"Parker. It's for the baby."

"The baby doesn't want nasty green shakes, the baby want's bacon."

"The baby can have bacon after the baby drinks the shake."

"I'm going to kill him." I grumbled and then spoke up though I was sure he could hear me anyway. "Bash. I'm hormonal, hungry, and wearing a corset..."

"You wouldn't be hungry if you drank your shake."

"Hormanal.... In a corset..."

Someone in heels was coming down the hall towards us. My suspicions were confirmed when Bash ignored me completely. "Gabriella's here. I'm going to give her your shake so that I don't see you before the ceremony. Drink your shake, Parker."

"No." I was more stubborn than usual and although I knew it was mostly pregnancy hormones I was also grumpy and irrational. Embarrassingly enough I also cried a lot for no reason and he could hear it in my voice.

"If you start crying you're going to ruin Rebecca's makeup job."

Rebecca laughed. "Don't worry, I'm smarter than I look. It's waterproof. Tears are not going to smudge anything."

Bash stepped away from the door and Gabriella came inside. She avoided looking at me completely like the traitorous turncoat she was, a large glass of green death in her hand.

"If I have to drink that than everyone has to drink it. That way your sympathizers will know what you're subjecting me to."

There was a collective groan throughout everyone within hearing distance; including Alek and Wes who were also standing out in the hall. Bash didn't even hesitate. "If we are negotiating then I will make shakes for everyone if you agree to put Theodore back on the list of boy's names."

I grinned. "Fine, we can put Theodore back on the list. They can't both be named Zeek."

The silence around us was deafening.

Bash voice was low and muffled through the door. "Both? Did she say both?"

The French doors flew open and I had to throw my arms out to avoid getting hit but Bash caught the door before it even got close.

"Bash! You can't see me before the wedding." I wasn't actually wearing my gown yet, I was still in my silk robe with my hair in curlers but it was the principle of the thing.

            "Both. Twins?" He knelt down in front of me and set his ear against my belly. I wasn't showing too much yet but there was a firm bump low in my abdomen.