Annie called out, "Peter? We're in the kitchen, Sweetie."
He sighed before answering with forced cheerfulness. "Be right there, Mom." Squaring his shoulders, he took a deep breath and pasted on a smile as he muttered to himself, "Time for an academy award performance."
Striding swiftly down the hallway, he pushed through the swinging doors into the kitchen. His smile became real at the sight of Kacie busily stirring up a batch of chocolate chip cookies, a smear of white flour across her nose. When she dipped a finger into the batter and snitched a bite of dough, he laughed out loud. "I saw that."
Still licking her fingers, she flushed guiltily. "So what are you going to do, arrest me?" Her eyes sparkled mischievously as she helped herself to another dollop of dough.
His smile broadened as he approached her and took her into his arms, avoiding the spatula she held in one hand and the dough-sticky fingers of the other. He kissed her, and chuckled as soon as his lips touched hers. "You taste like chocolate chips." Rubbing his fingers over her nose to remove the flour, he kissed the spot. "And you look like you're about twelve years old."
She grinned at him saucily. "Lucky for you I'm not, or you'd be in big trouble, Mister." She beamed at him radiantly. "Oh, Peter! Wait until you see! Dr. Albin took another ultrasound today. Baby is getting so big, and he's perfect! Doctor says he's just right for how many weeks along I am."
"He? You saw that for sure?" Peter's face fell. "I thought we agreed we didn't want to know before the baby was born."
"You can't tell from the ultrasound. His back was turned so we couldn't see him. I just know it's a boy."
Peter rested his hands on her shoulders and held her out at arm's length, studying her face. "What did he say about you? Said you were still too thin, didn't they?"
"Well-l-l, I am supposed to gain about ten pounds before my next appointment, and Doctor said more wouldn't hurt."
"You've certainly had a good start on it today," Annie chimed in. "How many different flavors did you try at Baskin-Robbins? Thirty out of the thirty-two?"
Kacie lifted her chin defiantly. "Only ten." She sniffed in quiet dignity. "And, besides, ice cream is a dairy product, and dairy products are good for me." She patted her belly. "And Baby likes ice cream, too. Don't you, Baby?"
"What about work? They don't think you should go back yet, do they?"
"They said next week was fine, but Dr. Albin said absolutely no overtime. I have a clean bill of health, Peter, and a note for you."
"A note? What do I need a note for?"
She stuck the spatula in the bowl of batter and carefully wiped her hands before sliding her arms around his waist and pressing up against him, kissing his neck and the underside of his jaw. "Because ice cream isn't the only thing I'm hungry for, and I knew you wouldn't take my word for the OK."
"I...um...think I'll wander out back and see what Paul is doing in the flower garden." The laughter in Annie's voice was evident as she slipped quietly into the laundry room and headed for the side door.
"I can't believe you talked like that in front of my mother," Peter scolded, even as his arms encircled his wife and molded her softness against his hardness. "And you actually asked Dr. Albin about whether or not we could have..."
"About whether or not we could, how long we could, and how much we could."
He froze and gasped, "You didn't."
"Of course I did," Kacie explained reasonably. "He's my doctor. He said that it wouldn't be long before we'd probably have to experiment with positions, but --"
"Katherine Christine McConnell Caine, please tell me that you're joking. That you didn't actually discuss the details of our sex life with him."
"Not the details."
He abruptly jerked away and faced her, red-faced and outraged. Taking a deep breath, he shook a finger in her face and opened his mouth to start lecturing.
Kacie jabbed him in the ribs and snickered, "Gotcha."
His head dropped and his eyes narrowed as he took a menacing step toward her.
"Peter. Now, Peter..." Kacie retreated around a corner of the table, keeping it between her and her husband. "Where's your sense of humor?"
"I lost it somewhere between how long and how much. That wasn't funny, Kace."
"The look on your face was." She looked over Peter's shoulder and pointed. "Your folks are coming in now. You'd better behave."
"Oh, give me a break, Kace. You really expect me to fall for that after what you just pulled?" He continued his slow stalking, and Kacie countered each move, always keeping the table as a barrier.
"I'm serious, Peter. They're coming in, and you're going to spill all this stuff on the floor if you don't leave me alone."
"You shoulda thought of that before you decided to get cute with me." He took another step after her, but the sound of the laundry room door opening behind him caught his attention and he turned his head briefly to see his foster parents walking into the kitchen.
Kacie saw her opportunity and took it, dashing through the doors leading to the hallway with a squeal, with Peter on her heels a split second later.
Paul flung an arm around Annie's neck and pulled her close for a quick kiss. "Wanna help me bake these cookies, Babe? It'd be a shame to let this batter go to waste."
"I'd appreciate the help, Sweetheart, since my regular cook has been unavoidably detained."
"Somehow I think that the last thing on the mind of your regular cook is baking cookies."
Peter trapped Kacie in a corner of the living room and advanced toward her, arms spread wide to keep her from escaping.
Giggling helplessly, Kacie gasped, "OK, OK, I give. I give."
"You're not getting off that easy." He caught her as she made a frantic dash for freedom. Sweeping her up in his arms, he dumped her unceremoniously on the couch and lay next to her, pinning her against the back. He could feel her heart thumping madly against his chest, and suddenly all thoughts of revenge fled his mind.
Kacie saw the subtle change in the glint of his eyes and slid her hands up his chest to the top of his shoulders. She relaxed back into the cushions, and her hands continued their ascent until she gripped his head and pulled his face to hers. "I surrender," she whispered, just before their lips met.
Peter's lips roamed over her mouth and face, his kisses at first soft and teasing.
She ran her fingers through his hair and tugged insistently until their lips met again with a hunger of desires long unfulfilled. "I've missed you treating me like a wife instead of a china doll," she murmured with a sigh of pleasure.
"I've missed your laugh," Peter breathed around her lips. "I've missed you being you." He rolled over onto his back, pulling her along with him until she lay on top of him, soft and warm. He slid his hands down her back and cupped her bottom, holding her tight against him as her lips and tongue invited him to explore the steamy warmth of her mouth.
He jerked in reaction as he felt his stomach being tickled. "Don't," he murmured. "You know I'm ticklish there."
Kacie laughed. "Peter, I only have two hands, and they're nowhere near your belly."
He halted in mid-kiss and pulled back in surprise to look into her face. "Then what...?"
Her expression softened. "Not what, Peter. Who."
Eyes widening, he stared at her for one frozen moment. He slid out from under her until they lay side by side and placed his palm on her belly, immediately rewarded by a firm push into his hand, quickly followed by several more in succession. "The baby!" His voice was hushed in awe, and he held his breath as he imagined the tiny occupant safe in its warm, dark home. His face was alight with wonder. "Does he do this all the time?"
Kacie's eyes danced happily. "Except when he's sleeping. But any time he hears your voice, he does a tap dance in my tummy."
"Does it hurt you?"
She shook her head before resting it on his shoulder and curling her body around his in contentment. "Nothing hurts me when I'm with you. Oh, Honey, I can't wait until we're back in our own home again."
"I don't want you overdoing it tomorrow," he warned, pulling her more securely into a protective embrace.
"I won't. Kelly's going to help me get the place cleaned up and aired out, and my friend Pam, from work, is coming over, too. And Annie has already told me she's going to supervise and make sure I behave myself."
Peter sighed in contentment. "Good. I don't want you all tired out when I get home from work tomorrow."
She rubbed her cheek against his chest. "Why's that?"
"Because it's my plan to see that the mother of my child is very happy and healthy."
"The mother of your child thanks you for your concern. What do you intend to do for your wife?"
"I intend to see that she is very happy, too."
"How happy?"
He snuggled her close to his heart, running his hands over her back and hips. "Just as happy as I can make her."
She reached up and kissed his neck. "You already make her very, very happy."
Nuzzling her ear, he whispered into it. "I haven't made her as happy as I'd like to in over four weeks, and I intend to take care of that situation tomorrow night."
"Not tonight?"
"Not with Mom and Paul in the next room."
"I can be quiet."
"I don't want to have to be."