Chapter 12
"You ready?" Brian heard on the other end of the line as soon as he woke up the next day. He looked at the clock and rubbed his eyes when he noticed it read 3:30am. He gently nudged Heather who did nothing but cuddle into Brian's stomach.
"Yeah, Kev," Brian answered. He was lucky to have a cousin who would drive him to the airport in the wee hours of the morning.
"I'm going to pick you two up now so Nick and Monica will be ready by the time we get there. I'll see you in fifteen," Kevin said before he hung up with a click. Brian sighed and sat up in bed. He smoothed Heather's hair from her face and gently planted a soft kiss on her lips.
"Sleeping Beauty, it's time to wake up," he whispered to her as her eyes fluttered open. She yawned and stretched before she got out of bed and over to the window. She ran her fingers through her hair and walked into their bathroom. She didn't want to look glamorous today. She didn't feel glamorous either. She ran a brush through her hair and pulled half of it up into a pony tail and let the rest hang beneath her shoulders. She grabbed her Colgate from her medicine cabinet and brushed her teeth. When she was done, she squirted some toothpaste onto Brian's toothbrush and packed the toothpaste into her carry on bag. Her pants swished as she walked about the bathroom. She wore a plain white T-shirt with blue Adidas pants. She turned to the side and smiled at her pertruding stomach. Her smile disappeared when she noticed her thighs and her swollen chest.
"Now this is not fair!" she said as she shook her head in disgust. She heard the bathroom door creak open and Brian walked in.
"What's the matter sweetie?" he asked with a mouthful of toothpaste in his mouth.
"Look at this!" she exclaimed, pointing to her thighs, hips and her chest.
"They look fine to me," Brian admired, smiling. She playfully hit him on the shoulder.
"I look horrible!" Heather cried as she sat herself down upon the bath railing. She put her head in her hands.
"Hey," Brian said softly. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his head on her shoulder. "You look beautiful," he corrected her.
"No. I'm fat and I'm ugly and -"
"No! Don't you ever say that, Heather. You look absolutely beautiful. You have such a wonderful mother's glow to you and I'm so happy to say that you're my wife," Brian said. He rested his forehead against Heather's and she sighed.
"For real? Or are you just saying it because you have to," Heather said. Brian laughed.
"I'm saying it because I want to," he said. "And also, its the truth." He wrapped his arms around her in a hug. He smiled at her and kissed her cheek before they grabbed their bags and headed downstairs to wait for Kevin.
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"Nick! Kevin's here!" Monica called from the kitchen where she was watching from their window. She finished swallowing the last of her water before rinsing it out and putting it in the dishwasher. Nick emerged from upstairs with a suitcase in each hand. He rested it by the front door and walked into the kitchen. Nick watched with a smile on his face as Monica double-checked the stove, making sure their house wouldn't erupt into flames while they were gone. She turned around to meet a pair of heaven-like blue eyes that got closer to her every second. Nick's lips landed on her own before she could stop it. It wasn't like she minded it. She smiled when Nick pulled her into a warm hug. He kissed her temple before whispering,
"This is the first vacation we've ever taken together." He smiled and his hands rubbed circles on her back as he smelled the scent of the shampoo that lingered in her silky hair.
"I know. Exciting, huh?" Monica said. Her fingers curled at the base of his neck and she pulled him in for a quick kiss.
"Come on," Monica urged on. The least she wanted to do was miss the flight.
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"OK, now we've only told two bodyguards per couple to watch over you," Kevin said as they sat in their gate as they waited for their plane to board.
"Geez, Kev. You don't have to sound so technical," Nick joked. Kevin chuckled.
"And besides, didn't we tell you that we didn't want any bodyguards or security coming with us on this trip?" Brian pressed on.
"Well, Brian, it's just that AJ and Howie as well as myself, would feel a lot safer if you have someone with you," Kevin stated. He looked at the four of them and sighed. "OK, I'll call and tell them to forget it." He flipped out his cell phone and talked quietly to security. He hung up the phone and nodded at Brian and Brian smiled.
"Thanks Kev," Brian said, slapping his cousin on the knee. They all chatted comfortably as they waited. When the clock struck 4:50, the plane from Orlando to New York flew into the early morning sky.
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"I can't believe how cold it is up here!" Brian exclaimed as they exited the airport and waited for their rental cars to show up. He cupped his hands together and raised them to his lips, blowing warm air from his mouth into his hand.
"Of course it's cold! It's the beginning of October!" Monica said. Nick chuckled and wrapped an arm around her waist.
"You think this is cold? Spend a winter up in Michigan. You'll definitely freeze," Heather said, zipping her maternity jacket up to her chin. Her white cotton scarf fluttered around her.
"You're so cute," Brian said, pulling her to him and kissing her neck.
"None of that here," Nick chimed in. They all laughed and soon their rental cars were parked in front of them.
"Now this is different than a Durango!" Nick said as he looked at the small Taurus that stood before him.
"I'll drive," Monica suggested. She took the keys from Nick's hand and sat down in the drivers seat with Nick in the passengers. They all agreed to follow Nick's directions to the cabin.
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"I'm sorry!" Nick apologized once again to his "crew". More moans and groans erupted from their mouths.
"Yeah, Gilligan. I don't know why we had to follow you, you got us lost in the middle of the mountains!" Brian yelled.
"Brian, calm down. We'll get out of this. Somehow," Heather said.
"We'll drive to town and ask them where these cabins are, ok?" Monica suggested. "I saw a town a few miles back, there has got to be some decent people to ask."
"Monica, it's early in the morning. No one will be up now," Heather reasoned.
"Yeah. I say we stay at a hotel and go to the cabin tomorrow," Nick said. "I'm so tired from that plane ride."
"I agree. I'm not feeling that great," Heather said, rubbing her stomach. They all nodded and climbed back into their cars. Once inside, Heather put her head against the back of her seat and closed her eyes. Brian placed a hand on her hand as their car followed in back of Nick and Monica's. He hummed along to an imaginary song as they drove back into town. A small bed and breakfast would be comfortable for a one night stay.
Brian pulled the car to a stop in front of the bed and breakfast.
"I'll be right back. I'm going to go get us a room." He kissed Heather quickly on the lips and then joined Nick before walking inside. Heather smiled as she watched Brian through the window. The man behind the counter talked to both Brian and Nick, and Heather watched as Brian listened intently.
"You gonna have such a good father," she told the baby. "You can't see him now, but he's gonna be the best father any child could ever have." She said.
When Heather looked up Brian was smiling at her.
"Where's the room?" Heather asked. Brian cleared his throat and drove the car towards their room, parking the car directly in front of their room. They all stood in front of their rooms and waited for Nick and Brian to unlock the door.
"I'm so tired. I'm off to bed," Heather said. She said goodbye to Nick and Monica and walked into the room to take a nap.
"Spectra vision, here I come!" Nick said, running into his room.
"I don't think so," Monica said, following after him. Brian shook their heads and walked into his room, locking the door behind him. He crawled beside Heather on the bed and kissed her temple.
"Feeling better?" He asked. His hand traveled under her shirt and he scratched his fingers down her back.
"Yeah, I'm just tired," Heather murmured. Brian nodded and pulled her to him and they fell asleep in each other's arms.
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