The Choice

Chapter 29

I wake up the next morning with a pair of arms around me. Ezra feels me stir, and he nudges his head into my neck, giving it a soft kiss. 

"Good morning," he mutters, and I know he's still half asleep. 

I giggle. "Good morning."

I take in Ezra's smell, and I find it hard to leave this position. I slowly wiggle out of his grasp, trying not to wake him up.

"Where are you going?" he groans, trying to pull me back to him. 

"I need to get ready," I say. "I have a doctors appointment."

"To see the baby?" Ezra sits up. "Can I come with you?" he asks. I resist the urge to laugh at his messy hair, accompanied by his tired lopsided grin. 

"Do you think it would be alright?" I ask. "Where does Lucy think you are?"

"She's conveniently out of town. There's no telling what she's doing."

"I'm sorry she's hurt you." I run my finger across Ezra's cheek. "You don't deserve that."

"I'm not sorry." Ezra wraps his arms around me.  "I wouldn't have it any other way."

My heart tries to leap out of my chest, but I contain my excitement by responding with a huge smile. "I'm glad." 

Ezra kisses my cheek, and he places a hand on my belly. "How's my baby doing this morning?" he asks, and our little peanut starts kicking ferociously. 

"I think our little baby is doing a lot better now that you're here," I smile. "We should get going. I don't want to be late." 

Ezra gets out of bed, and he helps me up. "You don't mind if I grab some coffee, do you?" Ezra asks. 

I bite my lip in an attempt to hold in my laugh. "Of course I don't mind. Help yourself," I say, and Ezra disappears out of the room. I walk slowly over to my closet, and I pick out some maternity blue jeans. I decide to pair it with a blush colored maternity blouse, and I wrestle my swollen feet into my sandals.

I feel a pair of arms wrap around me, and lips connect with my cheek. "You look beautiful," Ezra whispers into my ear.

"Thank you," I say, and I can't help the red tint that appears in my cheeks. "Put something on. We should get going."

I walk into the kitchen while Ezra gets himself ready. I pull a bottle of water out, and when I close the door, a figure appears beside me, making me jump, dropping the water bottle in the process.  "Jesus, Jesse. You scared me."

Jesse bends down to pick up the bottle. "You alright?" he asks, handing it to me. 

"I'm a little on edge," I say, rubbing the back of my neck. "I'm happy Ezra's here, but I know this isn't going to end well once Lucy finds out."

"We'll figure out a way to get through this. Just try your best not to stress out right now. For yourself, and for the baby," Jesse says. He pulls me in for a hug, and I don't resist his comforting arms. 

"Are you ready?" Ezra calls, walking out of the bedroom. 

"Yes!" I call back. I meet him in the living room. "Should we take my car or yours?" I walk into the living room, and I see Ezra dressed in jeans and a polo short sleeve. I smile, not being able to resist considering he looks as handsome as he does. 

"We can take mine," Ezra says, and he grabs my hand, our fingers wrapping comfortably together. 

"Let me know how it goes!" Jesse yells from the kitchen. 

"I will!" I shout back as we walk out the door. When we get to the truck, Ezra opens the passenger door for me, and he helps me climb inside. "Thank you," I grin. 

"Anything for you," Ezra says, climbing into the driver's side. 

When we get to the doctor's office, we check in, and we take a seat in the hardly crowded waiting room. 

"Do you want to find out the gender?" I ask him. 

Ezra lightly strokes my hand with his thumb. "I'd love to know, but only if you want that also. I'm fine with having to wait, too. I just want the baby to be healthy."

The nurse calls for us, and she takes us back to the room. "The doctor will be in shortly," she says, as I get myself situated. 

We don't wait very long, and Andy pops his head in the door. "How's the little pean-" Andy starts to say, but he pauses when he sees Ezra beside me. "Oh, hi Ezra," Andy says, shutting the door behind him. He reaches his arm out, and Ezra shakes his hand.

"I told him," I tell Andy. 

"That's really great news," Andy's face lights up. "I'm really happy for you both." 

Andy takes a seat next to me, and I lift my shirt up, revealing my huge stomach. Ezra grabs my hand and squeezes it as Andy squirts the cold gel onto my belly. After a minute, we begin to hear our baby's heartbeat. 

"That baby's got a strong beat," Andy smiles.

I look at Ezra, and I see his eyes watering. "Hi peanut," he whispers, his voice a little gruff. 

"Do we want to know the gender?" Andy asks.

I look at Ezra, and his eyes are big and beaming. "It's your choice," he says, kissing my cheek. 

"Yes, we would like to know," I grin. 

Andy moves the wand. "Little peanut here, is a boy."