You Took My Heart by Surprise

“You know, I don’t think I have ever seen you like this before” Sergio murmured as he slipped his arms around Emilie’s waist, his hands spreading out protectively against the bare skin of her stomach. It had been a couple of weeks, after the conclusion of the season, Sergio had relaxed into spending time with Emilie and the twins before he had flown his small family out to the coast for a small vacation, something which had relaxed him greatly. They hadn’t want to go far, the twins were still remarkably temperamental and Emilie in particular was nervous about a long trip, but Sergio was merely pleased that he had her, and the twins to himself for a little while, something he doubted he had had since the two babies had entered the world.

Emilie, who’d been sat with her feet in the pool, blushed a little. “It’s not exactly comfortable for me to be dressed like this” she mumbled, her blue eyes peeking down at her swimsuit. It wasn’t very her, Emilie tended to hide her skin away, but Isla had been insistent on packing the slightly more revealing blue and white bikini, wanting her friend to make the best of her break with her boyfriend.

Sergio, who’d sat down behind her, pressed a kiss to her shoulder. “I think you look amazing” he muttered.

“You’re bias” Emilie replied, kicking her feet in the warm water.

Sergio smiled against her skin. “Maybe” he noted “But you really do look spectacular. No one would guess that you gave birth 3 months ago” he complimented gently. He knew that she was still shy, her figure hadn’t quite returned to what it had been before the twins had come along, but he loved the way she looked. The slight curves she carried were the perfect reminder of the bump she had sported for 9 months and of the two adorable infants she had given to him.

Emilie shook her head. “Speaking of that, where are the twins?” she posed softly.

“Napping” Sergio replied, gesturing to the monitor which sat on the deck beside him “Ethan was a little sleepy and I figured Esmé would be too far behind so I put them down for a nap, something which means you have me all to yourself” he enthused, pressing another kiss to her warm skin.

Emilie smiled. “I do, do I?” she teased impishly.

“All to yourself” he repeated, scattering small kisses against her shoulders and neck.

Emilie giggled slightly at the contact and twisted around, peeking up at him. “And what do you suppose we do with this time, Sergio?” she mused, playing along.

Sergio quirked a grin. “I think we can come up with something” he mused.

Emilie let out another soft laugh before she ducked in towards him slightly, only to pause as the sound of a baby’s whimpers emanated away from the monitor at his side, something which made the defender groan slightly. “Unlucky, mi amor” Emilie teased as she carefully moved to her feet, trying not to trip into the pool.

Sergio sighed, making Emilie smile. “I am sure that you can wait, Sergio” she noted as she moved to pick up the monitor.

“I am not so sure about that, Em” he replied.

Emilie giggled gently and shook her head. “You’ll be fine” she mused as she ducked down, pressing a light kiss to his head before she moved to step back into the house.

Sergio watched her go and smiled a little to himself, glad to see that things were finally settled down for them.

~#~
Resting against the door of the nursery, Sergio grinned to himself, his dark eyes watching as Emilie carefully rocked their daughter in her arms. It had been a pleasant day, since the twins had been born, Sergio couldn’t quite recall a better day, and he hoped that there would be more like it. He wasn’t naïve, he knew that Emilie was just one mishap away from overthinking their relationship again, but he didn’t want to fixate on the negative. It had taken them a while, more time than he would have liked, but he was happy and he knew that Emilie was too, even if she did still have her moments when she wasn’t as sure as he would have liked her to be, they were finally in a good place.

“You’re staring” Emilie chimed as she carefully leant down, kissing the top of Esmé’s head.

“I can’t help it” Sergio replied, stepping a little deeper into the room “My girls are quite stunning” he added.

“And your son?” Emilie countered, a warm and cheerful smile on her face.

“Handsome like his papa” Sergio replied without missing a beat.

Emilie giggled. “What’s gotten into you today? You’ve not been this affectionate in a while” she mused as she rested back into the rocking chair slightly, allowing Esmé to cuddle into her chest as she drifted off to sleep.

Sergio shrugged. “I feel good about us, Emmy” he noted as he moved to sit on the floor beside the chair, his fingertips carefully moving through Esmé’s dark hair “For the first time in a long time, I feel like I did when we first tried this” he added.

“I’ve missed feeling that way” Emilie admitted “I can’t apologize enough for the shit I’ve put you through these last 2 years” she added.

Sergio shook his head. “I don’t care about it anymore, Emmy” he mused, kissing their daughter’s head gently “That’s all in the past and I am very much done looking back at it. I’m thinking ahead, not back” he insisted.

“How far ahead?” Emilie posed.

Sergio shrugged. “Just ahead” he mused “I’ve thought about the twins’ first Christmas, their first birthday, the day I ask you to marry me. I’ve thought about a lot of things” he added.

Emilie nodded her head quietly before she turned her stare down towards Esmé, noting that she was finally out for the night. Carefully, she moved back to her feet, laying the little girl down in her crib before she turned to back to Sergio, extending her hand to him. “I’ve always loved the idea of a spring wedding” she mused as she helped him back to his feet.

Sergio tilted his head. “What?” he spluttered.

Emilie smiled impishly and carefully led him out of the room, closing the door quietly behind them. “A spring wedding” she mused “Maybe early summer” she added before she pressed a kiss to his cheek, making her way into their room across the hall.

Sergio stared after her for a second before he followed, quickly catching up to her. “What are you saying, Em?” he posed, his brown eyes searching her blues.

Emilie smiled gently. “I’m not saying we do it next year, and I am more than happy to wait for you to propose, but I am saying I think I’d be Ok with it. It’s the next logical step, Sese” she mused “And I am done looking back too. I want to look ahead, I want to feel good about us like I do right now. I’m happy, for the first time in a while, and I’d like to keep it going” she enthused.

Sergio stared at her for a second like she had spoken in some foreign language before he smiled, ducking into kiss her. It had been a while coming, but he was glad that they had stuck it out. He doubted he had been that happy in a while.