A Mighty Need

While in Philadelphia, Audrey had two days of book signings, with the first of the two also involving a reading. It was that particular day that several of her longtime friends came out to see her at the Barnes and Noble on Walnut Street. They all went to Pietro’s Coal-Oven Pizzeria, a block away, together during her ninety minute lunch break from signing books, and played catch-up once more. Later on in the evening, Audrey went back to her friend Val’s house to see her husband Joe and their kids again. She had dinner with them and came to a decision.

She knew she wouldn’t see Val for a while again, and wouldn’t be able to tell her in person about the pregnancy at Christmastime, so Audrey figured telling Val and Joe would be okay, as long as they kept it to themselves.

“So…I have something to tell you about what’s coming up this following year for me and Noel.”

“Are there changes to the wedding plans?” Val wondered while Joe was a sweetheart by clearing the table while the two best friends played further catch-up at the kitchen table with cups of post-meal tea.

“No, it’s not that kind of change.” Audrey bit her bottom lip and smiled. “You have to swear on your children’s lives you won’t say anything to anyone.”

Val knitted her brow together. “Okay.”

“You swear? This goes for you, too, Joe.” She looked at her best friend’s husband of eleven years.

He looked back at her and nodded. “I swear.”

“Yeah, I swear,” Val agreed. “What’s up?”

“So…I’m about eleven weeks pregnant.”

Val’s eyes widened as she gently but excitedly smacked her hand down on the table. “Shut up! No way!”

Audrey nodded. “Yes way,” she grinned.

“When? I mean, when did it happen, and when are you due?”

“We think it happened the last time we were here in Philly, for my birthday.”

“What a present,” Val snickered.

“Tell me about it.” Audrey took a sip of her tea and then just held the cup in both her hands instead of setting it back down on the table. “As of my last gyno visit, my due date is June 19th, so the wedding it still going off as planned. Though, instead of carrying a bouquet, I’ll be carrying our baby down the aisle.”

“Oh, that’s such a cute idea.”

Audrey shrugged. “My mom did the same thing with me when her and my dad got married. The only difference is, I was six months old and my child will be only four months.”

Val was still beaming. “Omigod, we’re finally going to be moms together.”

“What? Are you pregnant again?”

“What, no. I just mean that now we’re both going to have kids. They won’t grow up together as we always thought, but we’ll have holidays when you come back to the states, or maybe someday we’ll save up and come see you instead.”

“I’d like that. And you wouldn’t have to pay for a hotel room. You’d be staying with us, of course.”

“As if I’d pay for a hotel when you’re free,” Val joked. She leaned back in her chair as Joe returned to his seat and joined them again.

“Do you want to know what you’re having or be surprised?” he asked.

“I wanna know. I want to be able to decorate the nursery and go buy clothes and shit right away. I don’t want to be surprised. Getting pregnant was surprise enough.”

“How’s Noel taking it?”

“He’s over the moon. We were just together in Columbus for Thanksgiving with my family but he had to go home to London while I continued on the book tour with Austin. It’s just that he hates being alone for this long. The past two weeks were nothing compared to this next month. I think he goes stir crazy. He likes being around people and having a full house. I mean, he has a lot of editing for his show he’s working on right now to keep him busy, friends to occupy his downtime, and Sunday brunches with his parents, but when he goes to bed at night, he already told me he hates it. He doesn’t like being alone in bed.”

“Aww,” Val cooed. “Noel’s a sweetie. You nabbed a good one.”

“I’m not sure who nabbed whom, but yes, he definitely is a good one. I think I’ll keep him around for a while,” Audrey teased.



A week later, Audrey was enjoying some lovely down time with at Disneyworld with Austin. Their first evening in Orlando, when they arrived they went to Magic Kingdom, got their picture taken with Snow White and Pluto (at separate times), bought Mickey ears to wear and watched the fireworks over Cinderella’s castle after the nightly parade. All the while, though, Audrey wished Noel was there with her.

It was something she wanted to do with him: experience Disney.

The following day was a book signing at the Barnes and Noble in the Colonial Plaza Marketcenter in Northeast Orlando, which had a mediocre turnout. As it would turn out, the manager forgot to place the promotional poster for the signing up in the window to let people know about her visit. Only those who followed her where she was doing signings, by way of her website, seemed to know and showed up. And that was fine with her. The weather was just so warm; she didn’t much feel like spending all her time stuck at a table, signing her name over and over while the sun and all those theme parks beckoned to her.

Immediately following the signing, Audrey and Austin returned to their hotel and changed into something more comfortable as they headed to Epcot. Feeling a bit homesick for London, Audrey got some fish and chips from the Yorkshire County Fish Shop in the United Kingdom Pavilion. She even tweeted a picture of the food and some British candy she’d bought at The Tea Caddy, with the caption of, Not the same as at home.

She and Austin then walked on toward France Pavilion, grabbing dessert at the Boulangerie Patisserie, where Audrey devoured two Napoleons by herself and then bought a third to go that she would bring back to the hotel with them later. She tweeted another picture, this time posing with Gaston from Beauty and the Beast with the caption: Ooh la la.

Noel had seen that one, retweeted it, and then replied.

At least it’s not Chris Martin.

When she saw his response, she snickered and showed Austin who laughed.

“He really doesn’t like that guy.”

Audrey shook her head. “Nope.”

As the sun became lower in the sky, they were listening to the Matsuriza Taiko drummers at the Japan Pavilion. As Audrey and Austin were primarily of German descent, they made a point to stop at the German Pavilion, where Austin bought a hat that looked like a beer bottle cap. Audrey bought a traditional looking teddy bear from Der Teddybär, with plans to place it in her unborn child’s future nursery. At sunset, a fireworks display began. Occasionally, the two siblings would stop to take it in, but they kept on walking for the most part. The other pavilions of the World Showcase didn’t interest them as much, so they left, bypassing the main gift shop on the way out. They called for a cab which then took them back to their hotel once again, and as soon as Audrey was in bed, she was out cold for the night.

The next day was meant to be their one day of downtime. They spent it away from Disney and went to Universal’s Islands of Adventure because Audrey really wanted to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter where she totally bought a Ravenclaw robe. By late afternoon, Audrey and Austin had seen everything they wanted to see and returned to their hotel, taking the rest of the evening to use the hotel’s laundry facility to clean the dirty clothes in their luggage. They had dinner in the hotel’s Eola Café while their clothes tumbled along in the washers and dryers.

On their way back upstairs, Audrey’s phone rang. It was Noel.

“Hey, lover,” she greeted with a smile.

“Hey, how’s Florida?”

“Sweltering.”

“Must be nice. It’s getting colder here and it’s been raining all day. Enjoy the sun while it lasts.”

“Oh, I am,” she replied. “We were at the Harry Potter place at Universal Studios this afternoon. It was awesome. I bought you some spectrespecs.”

“What the hell are those?”

“They’re those weird glasses Luna wears to help her see invisible creatures.”

“Yeah, I never got into Harry Potter.”

“Well, whether or not you saw the movie or read the books, these glasses will be up you alley. Trust me.”

“I do.”

“I miss you,” she pouted. Austin had headed back into their room while she went to the laundry room to check on their clothes. “Sleeping in a bed all alone really is weird. I find myself stretching out and then recoiling because I think I’ve hit you, only to realize, oh yeah, it’s just me there.”

“Is the little one treating you okay?”

Audrey smiled, rubbing her stomach. “Yeah, baby’s behaving right now. I have no more morning sickness. Now, I’m just really hungry all the time.” She laughed. “I ate two Napoleons at Epcot yesterday and a third back at the hotel that I had to go. That was on top of the fish and chips for dinner. Even after all that, I was still puckish, so Austin raided the candy machine for me.”

“We’re moving into the second trimester this week, I think.”

“Yeap.”

“Do you want to know what food our child is about the size of now?”

Audrey leaned her lower back against the rumbling dryer, which felt really good. “Sure.”

“Well, this past week it was a fig, but this new week it’s supposed to be about the size of a lime.”

“Mmm makes me long for a margarita.”

Audrey could hear Noel chuckle a bit, but then he went silent. “I don’t want to wait another three weeks to see you again. I’m going mad, Aud.”

“I know,” she frowned. “Absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that sappy bullshit.”

“No, absence makes the heart empty.”

Audrey pouted again. “Aww, Noely.”

“Is it Christmas yet?”

“Soon.”

“Not soon enough.” She heard him sigh. ”Wanking off in the shower only does so much.”

And, with that, Audrey busted up laughing. “And there’s my endearing jokester.”



A little over a week later, Audrey was in Seattle, at a signing at yet another Barnes and Noble. It was, after all, the main bookstore chain across all of America. She was nearing her lunch break, asking Austin, who was sitting in a chair behind her, the time, when the next person in line stepped up and set their copy of her book down in front of her. She didn’t look up right away but could sense it was a man.

“Hi, what’s your name?” she asked, without missing a beat.

“Oh, you know my name.”

The sound of the voice sounded familiar and it instantly left a sour feeling in her stomach as she looked up and found herself forcing a polite smile.

Of all the people in the damned world, it had to be her ex-boyfriend, Steve, whom she hadn’t seen in several years since he broke up with her because she had gotten too successful for him or whatever bullshit.

“Oh. Hi,” she replied. “Steve, how are you?”

“Not as well as you, obviously.”

“Yeah, but you knew that when we last saw each other.” She looked down and signed her name to the book and nothing else, before closing the cover. “What are you doing in Seattle?”

“I moved here over the summer; took a job with a different financial firm out here. They were offering better pay and a better position. How could I pass that up, right?”

“Definitely.”

“Say, I don’t want to hold the line up any, but do you have any free time to spare to chat after the signing?”

“After the signing I’m heading to the airport to catch a flight to Portland. I have a signing there tomorrow.”

“Oh,” Steve frowned. “That’s too bad, but hey, it was nice seeing you again, though. Next time you’re in Seattle, look me up.”

As he took his book back from her and began to walk away, Audrey actually felt guilty about not giving him the time of day. Not that he deserved it, but maybe it would be nice closure for her. They had ended things pretty badly years ago and it left a dark spot on her mind that she didn’t wish to have anymore. If she could part ways with him once more on better terms, she might feel better.

“Wait, Steve.”

He turned around. “Yeah?”

“If you want to hang back for another fifteen minutes, I’ll be grabbing some lunch. You can join me if you want.”

Steve nodded. “Yeah, that’d be great. I’ll be over by the café, waiting, when you’re ready.”

“Alright,” she fake-smiled. She turned back at Austin, “You good to grab lunch by yourself in a bit?”

He’d been watching the interaction between ex-lovers with a skeptical eye. “Sure. Do you want me on standby, though, in case you need an excuse to bail early?”

Audrey snickered. “No, I got this.”

After wrapping up the first half of signings, Austin passed her jacket and purse to her. She checked her cell phone, which she had turned off, and checked to see if Noel had called, which he had, so she called him back.

“Hello, milady.”

Audrey chuckled. “I can’t talk but a minute. I’m going to lunch with my ex-boyfriend.”

“Wait, what?”

“Remember I told you about Steve, the guy who got pissy when I suddenly got success and made more money than him?”

“Yeah,” Noel replied, apprehensively.

“Well, apparently he just moved here to Seattle over the summer for a bigger and better job, because obviously it’s still all about the money to him.”

“And you’re going to lunch with him because?”

“Well, either I’m a sado-masochist or I’m thinking this is could be good for me, therapeutically, you know? Him and I didn’t end on the best of terms and if I can walk away from him this time on better terms, I might feel better. The least amount of moments in my past I can look back on with bitterness, the better, I guess.”

“Well, as long as you don’t get yourself upset and worked up.”

“Oh, don’t worry. He’s not worth getting worked up over.” Then, as a lovely side note, she added, “He’s not you.”

“I get you worked up?” She could hear the amusement in his voice.

“You get me lots of things,” she said to him as she approached Steve. “I gotta go. Love you.”

“Love ya too, babe.”

Audrey smiled and hung up, placing her into her purse as she gave Steve her most pleasant smile. “I’m ready when you are.”

Steve stood up from the Starbucks café chair he’d been sitting it, skimming through the first few pages of her novel. He gestured to her phone. “New boyfriend?”

“Fiancé,” she corrected, proudly.

He then showed her the dedication page in the front of her novel. “Is it this guy?”

On the otherwise bare page, there were only a few words typed out.

To Noel,
My love and inspiration for everything I do from here on out

XOXO,
Audrey

She nodded. “One in the same.”

“It also says in the back of the book that ‘the author lives in North London…’” He closed the book and raised an eyebrow at her. “You’ve become quite the jetsetter, haven’t you?”

Audrey shrugged as they made their way out of the store. “What can I say? I’ve moved on to bigger and better things.” Then she looked at him and smiled sweetly. “No offense, of course.”

“None taken,” he smiled back.

They went across the street to Von’s Roadhouse where they were shown to a table. Audrey ordered a soda while Steve ordered a bottle of Guinness.

“Wow, Guinness already? It’s only one o’clock,” she said in a teasing tone.

He shrugged. “It’s five o’clock somewhere.”

What a lovely mentality to have, she thought to herself as she perused the lunch menu. Eventually she ordered the Portobello sandwich with a side of fries and a salad while he ordered the Chicken Deluxe sandwich.

“Portobello sandwich? Are you a vegetarian or a vegan now?”

“No, I just like mushrooms.”

She stirred her straw around in her drink when it arrived, and it suddenly felt awkward sitting there with Steve. She had given him a once over, noted how in the years since she’d last seen him that his blonde hair had thinned along his hairline and he had a few greys already. Wrinkles were becoming more pronounced around his eyes, mostly in the form of crow’s feet. He was wearing glasses now, which he would reveal he now needed for reading and when he was driving. He was also a bit thicker in his middle where once he was as lean as they come.

“So, you’re engaged now.”

“Yep.”

“His name’s Noel,” Steve stated. “What’s Noel’s last name? What does he do for a living?”

“You sound like a father trying to feel out his daughter’s new boyfriend.”

Steve shrugged. “I’m just curious. We’re playing catch-up, remember?”

Audrey stared back at him for a moment, took a sip of her soda and then sat back in her seat. “His last name is Fielding, as mine will be next year when we get married.” She really just needed to get that dig in there. “He’s a bit of a maverick, really, when it comes to his career. He does it all. He’s a comedian; literally, not just as he’s funny, which he is that, too. He has his own show that he writes, acts in, produces and creates the music for with a friend of his. He’s an artist; a painter, who has gallery showings now and then. He has one place where his art is displayed all the time. It’s in Soho, in the upstairs gallery of this patisserie called Maison Bertaux. He’s also one of two captains on this music panel game show type of thing that’s pretty popular, called Never Mind The Buzzcocks. It’s how we met, actually.”

“On that show?”

“Yeah. Two years ago, this past October, I was on the show two weeks in a row. The first week I was on his team. We just hit it off really well pretty much immediately. I think I knew he was the one within a few days, and vice versa.”

“Really?” He sounded doubtful.

“Yes, really. In fact, after a month of knowing each other, he surprised me on Thanksgiving and showed up on my doorstep. We spent the week together, and came to the realization that we loved each other. It didn’t matter that we had only known each other a month. My dad’s parents only knew each other a month when they got married and they were together forty-seven years until he died.”

“How long before you got engaged?”

“February 13th of this year,” she replied, just as their meals were brought to the table. “He surprised me with a trip to Nice. We were staying at this amazing hotel that looked out onto the Mediterranean. It was breathtaking. After dinner that night, we took a stroll on a beach, which is where he asked me, and I said yes.”

“Sounds like you snagged a wealthy Brit. He'll be able to take care of you financially for the rest of your life it seems.”

“Technically, I make more than him.”

“He’s cool with that, then? Being a kept man?”

Audrey frowned and stared back at him. “He’s far from a 'kept man'. And there’s nothing for him to be cool with. He’s the most supportive person I know in regard to whatever I do with my career. He’s happy when good things happen for me, like in September when I won two Emmy Awards for my TV show.”

Steve narrowed his eyes as he picked at his sandwich. “Wait, you have a TV show, too? You won Emmys?”

“Wow, you’ve been under a rock, haven’t you?” She snickered and took a bite of her sandwich before washing it down with a sip of soda. “My first book, primarily, is what inspired the show. The second book was used as some inspiration, too. I wrote the script for the pilot episode and another one about halfway through the first season. I also hold an executive producer credit. It was the pilot episode which was submitted for judging by the Academy. I won for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series, and then the show one for Outstanding Comedy Series, which I received the second Emmy for as I am the show’s co-creator and executive producer. I wrote the premiere episode for the second season, too, which finished filming at the beginning of September. It should be airing after the beginning of the year, in March sometime.”

“Wow, you’ve been busy. The books, TV shows, moving to England, getting engaged. Your life seems perfect.”

“It doesn’t seem, it is.” She took another bite of her sandwich, then a few fries. “Enough about my life; what’s new with yours?”

“Well, how can I compare to everything you’ve done and achieved in the last few years?” He smirked but it was forced. It would seem his idea to catch up with her had backfired. He clearly wanted to come off as how better his life was now, but she had topped him again, tenfold. “Well, I was engaged about a year ago, but we broke up. I had moved on to that other financial firm in Pittsburgh after we broke up, which is where I left before coming here to Seattle. I have a great condo, though the view is of another building. I’m gonna start biking in the spring. A few friends at work have talked me into it, but I don’t want to start until the weather is a bit warmer.”

“It’s nicer here than in Philadelphia, temperature wise.”

“Yeah, but more rainy.”

“That’s how London is. I mean, it’s not like we get absolutely no sun, but most days during the winter, if you blink, you’ll miss the sun.”

“Do you like it there?”

“I love it.”

“What about your family?”

“Well, my brother Mark got married and lives permanently in South Dakota with his wife, and my parents just sold their house and moved to Columbus where my sister and her family live now. My parents are having a house built, so they’re staying with Christina and Jeremy.”

“I saw Austin was with you today.”

Audrey nodded. “Yeah, I hired him as my PA. He was going nowhere with these part-time jobs here and there. He lives with Noel and me in London now and he’s happy, too. He actually seems to really love being my PA. He likes the traveling, I think, and getting to meet all these different people.”

“Celebrities?”

“Yeah, some. He’s making friends, too, so he has a life of his own and it doesn’t revolve around me 24/7, which is not what I want it to do.”

Steve just smiled politely and continued to eat. They both fell silent until Audrey felt a rumbling in her stomach. It wasn’t nausea or gas. It was different, like popcorn popping, but inside her. It made her giggle when she realized what it was and on instinct she placed her hand to her stomach.

Hello, baby, she said, internally.

“Hmm?” Steve looked up at her.

She met his gaze and shook her head. “Nothing. I mean…I’m gonna have to go.” She smiled as she realized, she didn’t want to be there playing catch-up with her ex anymore. Her life and his had nothing to do with each other anymore and she was happier that way. She just wanted to get back across the street and call Noel again before she had to return to signing more books. “There’s something I remembered I have to do before I continue with the signing.” She wasn’t exactly lying. “It’s was nice catching up, though.”

“Oh…okay.”

Audrey signaled for the waiter to come over. She asked him to pack up the rest of her food in a to-go container; she’d finish it at the store or later on. Audrey pulled her phone out along with her credit card. She handed the card to the waiter when he returned with her food.

“Here, put the bill on this card, thanks.” She then looked over at Steve and smiled. “This has been nice.”

“Yeah, yeah, definitely…uh, you don’t have to pay for the bill. I can pay my share. We can go halfsies.”

“Oh, don’t worry. I got this,” Audrey assured. He was still so weird about her making more money than him, and not just him, but it seemed strange and foreign to him that any woman should make more money than any man. Well, fuck that shit. She was going to rub her affluence in. “I shelled out just over eighty-thousand for a two week stay in London when I first met my fiancé. This…is nothing.”

The waiter came back once more with her credit card and the receipt for the bill; the restaurant’s copy, which she signed, and the guest copy which she got to keep. She pulled a fifty dollar bill out of her purse and placed it inside the booklet that contained the signed copy of her receipt. She returned her credit card to her wallet and the wallet back into her purse, and then stood up with her purse, her phone and food container.

“Well, it was nice seeing you again.”

Steve stood up with her and reached across to give her a platonic hug which she barely leaned into. “Same here. I’m glad things are going so well for you.”

“Ditto.”

Whether she meant she was happy for herself as well or that she was happy he was doing okay, he’d never know. With a small wave of her hand, she walked away and handed the booklet off to the waiter when she passed him.

Stepping into the cool, rainy Seattle air was refreshing. It was like she was having the awkwardness of that lunch washed off her like dirt. She shook a shudder away as she looked both ways and crossed the street to head back into the store.

Audrey found the manager and asked if it would be alright to finish eating her food in his office or the employee break room, which he obliged her with, offering his office. She picked at the rest of her sandwich in silence, as she was alone, when her baby fluttered around again, bringing a smile to her face. She sat back and lifted her sweater up, placing her hand to her stomach, just in time to feel another fluttering. Dropping her sweater back down, she dug through her purse and pulled her phone out to call Noel back. It was nine-thirty at night in London, so she knew he hadn’t gone to bed yet. Far from it, really. They never went to bed before ten at night, ever.

“That was a quick lunch.”

“Yeah, he’s still a tool,” Audrey spoke, picking at a cooled down French fry. “He wanted to know if you were okay being my kept man. Can you believe that shit?” Audrey sighed. “I couldn’t really be bothered hanging around much after that, but mostly because of the baby.”

“What about the baby? Is the baby okay?”

“More than okay. He or she decided to start dancing during lunch; probably just as nauseated by Steve as mommy was and wanted to get the hell out of there.” She placed a hand back to her stomach. “Little one’s still moving around a bit right now. I wanted you to know.”

“Ugh, make me jealous, why don’t you? I want to be there feeling that with my hand.” She could practically see his grumpy look. “I’m missing out on crucial moments.”

“This isn’t the only time it’s gonna kick, Noel. I have the next six months left to go. There’s plenty of time for you to feel baby go bump in the night.”

“I know, I know.”

“Just two more weeks to go; we can do this.”

“Can you do me a favor?”

“Anything.”

“Can you put the phone up to your stomach? He’s almost the size of a lemon now’s he bound to have somewhat developed ears.”

“He?”

“It’s easier than calling the baby ‘it’ or ‘he or she’,” he replied. “Can you do that for me, though?”

“Yeah, okay. Go ahead.” She quickly placed her phone to her stomach and could hear Noel talking, a bit muffled, but she knew it was directed at their baby, and it made her smile.

There was a knock on the office door a few moments later, which scared the shit out of Audrey. She dropped her sweater back down over her stomach to hide her bump and brought her cell phone back to her ear. Noel was still rattling on, thinking he was still talking to the baby. In walked the manager with Austin in tow.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” the manager remarked. “I hope I’m not interrupting your phone call.”

Audrey waved it off. “S’alright. It’s just my fiancé being a weirdo on the other end.” She wasn’t exactly a lie.

“People are lining up again if you wanna finish eating,” Austin said.

“Where’d you go to eat?”

“I stayed here and grabbed a sandwich from the Starbucks café,” he replied. “I only just now realized that Starbucks cafés inside of Barnes and Nobles charge more than regular Starbucks. What’s with that?”

“Who knows? You want some fries, help yourself.” She turned her attention back to the phone. “Noel? Yeah, hey, I’m gonna hafta go. I’ll call you later on our way to the airport, okay?”

“Okay. Love you, and love to the little one.”

“Love you, too.”



The following night, Audrey and Austin had just landed in San Francisco, after having spent the day in Portland for the book signing there. The turnout was small like in Orlando, but it wasn’t the manager’s fault this time. Apparently Portland just didn’t give any fucks about Audrey Woods and her new novel. It was a little disheartening, but given how well the book tour had gone so far, it was fine. In the bigger cities, like New York, Toronto and Philadelphia, where she had spent more than one day, it hadn’t been only just book readings and signings. Or the occasional interview on TV, like when she was on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, there were morning radio shows she visited or called in to before heading to the bookstores for the day. The first thing she had planned for the following morning in San Francisco was a visit to a local radio station for such an interview, to promote the book and get people to come out to the signings.

With their luggage in tow, they grabbed a shuttle from the airport to the hotel, Loews Regency San Francisco. Austin was able to grab a luggage trolley while Audrey occupied herself with sending a text message to Noel, letting him know they got to their hotel all right and she’d call him in the morning. She wandered into the lobby and right up to the front desk, tired and ignoring anyone else in the lobby at nine at night. She checked in, having booked two deluxe rooms since the hotel seemed to have no rooms available with two double beds for her and Austin, and she wasn’t about to share a bed with her brother.

When she was handed two card keys (one for her and one for Austin), she nodded to Austin to grab their bags and as they began to head for the elevators, a man walked out in front of their path and caught them off guard.

“Need help carrying those?”

Audrey’s heart leapt into her throat as she reached out and smacked him on the chest.

“Oh my fucking God, Noel! What the fuck!” she squealed and laughed at the same time.

He grinned back at her and grabbed her up in a hug. “Surprise,” he muttered into her hair. “I told you I couldn’t wait until Christmas.”

“Oh, you sly asshole,” she beamed; kissing him fully on the lips and letting it linger for what felt like forever. When she pulled away, she looked over at Austin. “Did you know about this?”

Austin shook his head. “Nope.”

“Well, shit, I’m really glad I have two separate rooms this time.”

Austin winced. “Yeah, me too.” He pressed the ‘up’ button for the elevator and then patted the walls. “How thick do you think these walls are? Should I call the front desk and warn them about some loud noises that might be coming from your room?”

“Might be?” Noel snickered. “More like will.”

“Don’t gross Austin out,” Audrey chided.

“Yeah,” Austin agreed. “Don’t gross Austin out.”

Hand in hand, Audrey and Noel stood in the elevator when it opened for them, with Austin standing in front of them, pressing for their floor. They went into their separate rooms with Austin reminding Audrey to call the front desk for a wake-up call in the morning. As soon as they were in the room, Noel shoved their bags off to the side while Audrey got a bit distracted with the room and the view of the bay with the city and Oakland, across the bay, glittering like stars.

She felt a pair of hands slide onto her hips and under her shirt, trying to pull it up while a pair of lips was at her neck. Audrey closed her eyes and hummed with contentment. “Lovely boy,” she muttered.

“I’ve missed you,” he mumbled, pressing his face into her hair and inhaling the smell of whatever hotel shampoo she’d been using. It was nice…whatever it was.

She shimmied her jacket off with his help and then off came her shirt, leaving her there in only her bra, pants and shoes. Noel twirled her around and placed his hands on her stomach and smiled. Off came his jacket and shirt next, and then he kicked off his boots while Audrey moved toward the bed, sitting down on the foot of it. Noel sauntered over and knelt to the floor in front of her and pulled her closer to the edge so he could place his lips to her stomach and kiss it.

“Hello, Carlin,” he said.

“Carlin, huh?”

“That’s what you said you’d want to name your future son. Remember? You said it when we went to Stonehenge.”

“You remember that?” Audrey smiled, running a hand through his hair as he looked up at her through his eyebrows.

“Of course I do. If it’s a boy, it’s going to be Carlin. It’s the name you wanted; it’s the name it’ll have.”

“Carlin,” Audrey repeated. She cocked her head to the side, watching as Noel kissed her stomach some more. “What about a middle name?”

Noel shrugged. “I don’t have one.”

“I do.”

“Alright, what kinds of middle names do you like with Carlin?” Noel asked, sitting back on the heels of his feet.

This time, Audrey shrugged. “My brother Eddie has my dad’s middle name as his first name and Austin has my dad’s first name as his middle name, so I don’t need to name a son after my dad in any way. We could name him, if it’s a boy, after you. Carlin Noel.”

“No,” Noel shook his head and made a face.

“Then what about your dad? How about Carlin Raymond or Carlin Ray?”

Noel considered them both, and then nodded. “Carlin Ray sounds nice.”

“Then Carlin Ray, it is.”

“Carlin Ray Fielding. Carlin Fielding,” Noel repeated over and over, letting the words roll around his tongue. “I like it. Though, my mum might die a bit if we have a boy. She’s outnumbered as it is.” He grinned up at Audrey, who shrugged.

“Eh, she’ll get used to it. She won’t have a choice in the matter, anyway.”

“True.” Noel knelt back up, hooking his thumbs in the belt loops of her pants. “No more chit chat, let’s get this shit off you so I can fuck you blind and tide us over until Christmas.”

Audrey giggled and laid back on the bed, allowing Noel to do the honors.



A few hours later, Audrey lay curled up against Noel; their bodies flush from physical exertion and working up a lovely sweat. Her stomach was gently pressed up against his side while one of his hands wrapped around her back to hold her there and the other rested on the side of her stomach. He had his lips pressed to the top of her head as they stared at the windows, the curtains wide open so they could see the City by the Bay still glittering below.

“So, you’re here in San Francisco until Wednesday Morning?” she asked.

“Yeah,” he muttered. “My flight leaves when you’d be on your way to your second signing.”

“Which means you’ll be leaving as soon as I’d be getting up.”

“Yeah.”

There was a moment of silence, which was soon broken by a tiny sob escaping Audrey’s lips. Noel craned his head back to get a better look at her, tilting her head up a bit to see she was crying.

“What’s wrong?”

“I miss you and you’re not even gone yet.”

Noel laughed, but in a soothing way, if that makes any sense. “I’m here now and that’s why we’re gonna make the most of tomorrow.”

She nodded, lifting a hand to wipe her tears away. “Fuck going out and sightseeing or anything like that. When I’m done with my signing, it’s straight back here for nothing but sex and room service in bed.”

“Sounds ideal.”

She turned her face and buried it into the skin of his chest, only to start crying again.

“Why are you still crying?”

“Because I love you and I’m pregnant, therefore I’m a goddamn fuckstorm of emotions right now, so fuck off,” she cried and laughed at the same time.

“Aww, babe,” Noel cooed and wrapped her tighter in his arms. “Would you categorize this fuckstorm as a hurricane or a tornado?”

Despite herself, Audrey began to laugh more, looking up at him through the tears stinging her eyes like acid rain. “A tsunami.”

“Oi, better batten down the hatches,” he teased. “Thar she blows!”

Audrey snaked out of his embrace and pulled herself up to lean over him and kiss him. “Okay, I think I’m fine now. Let’s go again.”

“So soon? I’m no spring chicken, love.”

“Yeah, well, I’m pregnant, emotional and really horny. Remember the tsunami?”

“I do like it when you’re horny.” He made devil horns at her just as she claimed his lips again. In retaliation, he pulled her on top of him so that she was straddling him. “Alright, let’s go. Giddy up,” he remarked, slapping her ass.

Audrey just laughed.