Give Me Your Heart

Resting her head back against the couch, Riley let out a small grumble, her hand gently rubbing at her bump. It had been a quite morning, with her boss having started to scale back her work load ahead of her maternity leave, Riley had taken the morning off, but with the baby appearing slightly restless, she had spent a lot of it trying to get comfortable, something which had proved less than easy. Shifting a little against the material of the couch, Riley stretched her legs out before the sound of someone laughing reached her, causing her blue eyes to flash open, offering a glare towards Cassidy and Antonella who stood in the door way, watching her amusedly.

“This is not funny” she complained “I’ve been trying to get comfortable for the last hour and every time I do, he moves” she added, a small frown on her face.

Cassidy shook her head, a quirked grin on her face. “He’s Gerard’s son” she teased “I can’t believe you’re surprised” she added as she padded a little deeper into the room, taking the seat beside her friend.

Riley offered her a glare before she shook her head, resting it back against the couch. “Can I ask what you’re both doing here?” she posed, stretching her legs a little more. It was unusual, Cassidy tended to work through her lunch hour most days, and Riley was a little surprised to her, and Antonella, in the middle of the day. It wasn’t something they tended to do.

“Gerard mentioned that you were starting to take more time off of work and I thought we could head out to lunch. Cassidy was saying that it has been a while since the two of you have headed out for a girly lunch” Antonella mused, a soft smile on her face. It was a half lie, she had heard from Gerard that Riley was starting to scale back her work hours, but mostly, she wanted the chance to speak to the brunette. It had been a few days, after they’d been apartment hunting, Riley had pulled back a little from the defender, and after Lionel had failed to get what was wrong out of Gerard, he’d asked Antonella to talk to Riley, something she had been more than happy to do, not wanting to watch the two of them fall apart so close to the birth of the baby.

Riley lifted an eyebrow. “You want to go out to lunch?” she posed.

“It’s been a while” Cassidy noted with a small shrug “And it’s been even longer since we did something that didn’t involve boyfriends or husbands. I think it would fun” she enthused.

Riley offered her friend a small look before she nodded. “Alright” she enthused.

Antonella offered her a warm smile before she stepped towards her, moving to help her to her feet. It was going to take a little work, from what she knew of Riley, she could be awfully stubborn when it came to talking about her feelings or her concerns, but Antonella wanted to help her, even if it was only a little, she wanted to ensure that Riley knew that she had someone to talk to.

~#~
“You must be getting close, Ry” Antonella mused as she sipped on her glass of water, her eyes glancing towards the brunette who sat on the other side of the table, messing with the last of her food. It had been a pleasant afternoon, the three women had spent it talking and catching up, and whilst Riley had been a little hesitant about the idea of heading out, she had to admit that she had enjoyed herself. It had been a while since she had spent time with her girlfriends rather than Gerard.

Riley, who was finishing the last of her main course, nodded. “We’re still a couple of months out from the due date, but it’s not far off” she enthused.

“Are you excited yet?” Cassidy grinned “I know I am to meet my little godson” she added.

Riley rolled her eyes slightly before she nodded. “I’m a little excited” she admitted gently “I’m more terrified, but I can’t wait to meet him, something I know Gerard shares in. He’s already counting down the days” she mused, her expression softening a little. It had been a couple of days, after their conversation, Riley had been avoiding the defender slightly, and whilst she knew it wasn’t the best course of action, she didn’t quite know what else to. He wanted to be serious, he wanted to make step forwards, and Riley, who was still a little unsure of them, didn’t quite know what to tell him.

Antonella noticed the shift in her expression and sighed, leaning forwards slightly in her seat. “Something happened, didn’t it?” she posed softly.

Riley shook her head, something which made Cassidy scoff. “You’ve been quiet, Ry” she noted “And you’ve barely seen him in three days which, for the two of you, is a long time. Something happened, Ry” she added.

Riley took in a small breath before she shook her head. “I messed up” she mumbled “We went apartment hunting the other day and afterwards, we went back to his. I started to fall asleep and he suggested that I head to his room, something I rejected because I needed to get home. He then suggested that I leave a few things at his place and I…I kind of panicked” she babbled softly.

“Panicked?” Antonella posed.

“He was asking me to leave a few changes of clothes and all I could think about was last time” Riley mumbled, messing with the napkin which sat in her lap “We rushed through things in 6 months, Antonella, we moved too quickly, and I don’t want to do that again, not when we have him to think about” she added, her eyes glancing down towards her pronounced bump.

Antonella eyed the bump for a moment before she shook her head, a soft smile on her face. “I get that” she murmured gently “After last time, you have every right to be a little wary, but can I offer you some words of advice?” she posed softly.

Riley offered her a slightly uncertain look, but nodded nevertheless, something which made Antonella lean forwards, offering her hand a small squeeze “That man loves you, Riley” she noted gently “He’s so smitten with you, and with the idea of starting a family with you and your baby boy, and I don’t think he would do anything to risk it. Last time it didn’t work, you’re right about that, but you’ve got another shot at it and I can’t help but think if you spend all your time worrying, then you’re going to miss out of the best thing which is right under your nose” she enthused brightly.

Riley mulled her words over for a moment before she chewed on her lip, a hint of pink playing on her cheek. “He’s pretty great, isn’t he?” she babbled shyly.

Cassidy rolled her eyes. “He’s a keeper, Ry” she noted, nudging her friend’s ribs.

The blush on Riley’s cheeks darkened a little.

“Perhaps you could call him” Antonella suggested “Leo says he’s been moping around for the last couple of days” she added.

Riley nodded. “I will” she noted “Gracias for this, you two” she added.

Cassidy shook her head. “You have nothing to thank us for” she mused “But next time you freak out on Gerard, talk to us. We’d be more than happy to set you right” she added.

Riley mulled her words over before she nodded, offering the two women a soft smile, wordlessly thanking them for their help.