Give Me Your Heart

“You know, if you really don’t want to do this, you don’t have to”

Gerard, who’d been fixing his hair, startled a little at the sound of Riley’s voice before he lifted his head, peeking at her via the mirror which stood ahead of him.

It had been a few days, after they’d talked about the idea of eloping, almost a week had passed, but with Riley’s parents in town for a couple of days, Gerard had been quick to suggest that they head out to lunch together, even if he didn’t love the idea of spending time with Riley’s mother and father, he wanted to take the opportunity to talk with her mother about the prospect of their wedding.

He knew that Audrey meant well, whether she loved the idea of Riley marrying Gerard or not, she merely wanted to offer her daughter a helping hand, but still Gerard wanted to ask her to calm a little, not wanting too much pressure put on Riley in the build up to the arrival of their daughter.

“I know that I don’t” he mused softly, moving to collect a pair of shoes “But I want to, Ry. You’re going to push our daughter into the world in a few weeks and I would like to make sure that those weeks are as calm and as comfortable as they can be. I don’t want you getting stressed” he noted, peeking up towards her gently.

Riley offered him a slightly shy look, something which made Gerard chuckle a little before he pushed himself up to his feet, moving to press a gentle kiss against her cheek. “I am just going to ask her to calm down a little, Ry” he mumbled, pressing a kiss to the other cheek “I am not going to upset her, I promise you” he added, pressing a kiss against her forehead.

Riley mulled his words over for a couple of seconds before she nodded her head gently. “I know that” she mumbled “But you know my madre” she added, her tone a little uncertain.

“I do” Gerard agreed “But I still want to talk to her. Besides, she’s never liked me much anyway” he added, offering her an impish smile.

Riley rolled her eyes a little, something which made Gerard chuckle before he leant towards her, pressing a soft kiss against her lips. “I’ll be on my best behavior” he mumbled between gentle kisses.

Riley smiled into the kiss softly before the sound of Alexander’s small voice echoed away from the monitor which sat on the nightstand, causing her to duck back a little. “I should go and get him ready to go” she mumbled softly, stealing another soft kiss.

“You should” Gerard agreed “But that would require you to stop kissing me” he added playfully.

Riley rolled her eyes playfully before she pulled away from him, offering him a small shake of her head before she padded out of the room.

Gerard watched after her briefly before he shook his head, a wide grin on his face. Things had been good, for a while, things between him and Riley had been at their best, and Gerard hoped that it stayed that way for a while, even if things were likely to change a little when the new baby arrived, he hoped things between him and Riley kept working as well for a long time.

~#~
“So, Riley, how is bump feeling?”

Riley, who’d been pushing the last of the meal around her plate, startled a little at the sound of her father’s voice before lifted her head, offering him a soft smile. It had been a pleasant meal, even despite Riley’s slight nervousness, the meal with her parents had gone off without a hitch, and Riley had to admit that she was pleased, even if her parents did make the odd snide comment about Gerard, she was pleased that they seemed to be getting along well.

“Bump’s feeling pretty good” she mused softly “She started to move a few days ago and since then, she’s not stopped, something we think she probably gets from her papa” she added, offering a teasing smile towards Gerard who rolled his eyes playfully.

Luis admired the small interaction between the two of them before he quirked a small smile. it had taken him a while, after they’d gotten back together, both Luis and wife had been particularly hard on Gerard, but he was glad that the defender had stuck it out with Riley, even if Luis and Audrey still weren’t entirely thrilled about it, he was pleased that Gerard had hung around for Riley and Alexander as well as the new baby.

Riley noted the smile on her father’s face before she shook her head, moving to push her seat back. “I am going to go and call a taxi” she noted softly.

“I’ll come with you” Luis mused, pushing himself up to his feet “We’re going to need one to take us back to the hotel” he added.

Riley offered him a small look before she nodded her head, leading him away from the table.

Gerard watched after the two of them for a couple of seconds before he flicked his attention towards Audrey, a small knot twitching in his stomach.

Audrey, who was cooing towards Alexander, felt his look on her before she shook her head, a small smile on her face. “Are you going to say something or just stare?” she posed.

Gerard shook his head. “How’d you know?” he posed.

“You’ve been quiet” Audrey quipped “And whilst I don’t know you overly well, I know that that isn’t normal for you. You’ve got something on your mind and you should get it off of it before Riley and my husband come back” she added, offering him a brief look.

Gerard nodded his head softly. “I just wanted to talk to you” he noted softly “It’s about Riley and the wedding” he added.

Audrey nodded, encouraging him to go on.

“I know that you’re excited” Gerard mused, his voice slightly uncertain “And, after the issues that have occurred between us, I am glad about it, but I need to ask to calm down when it comes to planning the wedding. I like that you want to be involved, and I know that Riley does too, but right now, we’re not even close to thinking about getting married and I’d like to ask you to…”

“To back off?” Audrey interrupted softly.

Gerard blinked a couple times, caught off guard by her interruption, before he nodded. “We’ve not even come close to picking a date yet, and when we do, it’s not going to be until after the baby’s here, probably a few months or maybe even a year. We’d love you to be involved in the planning, I know it means a lot to Riley, but right now, I’d appreciate it if you just calmed down a little. We’re going to have a baby, Mrs Cortez, in a few weeks, we’re going to have a new baby daughter, and we want to focus on that right now, something I hope you can understand” he mused, his voice gentle and kind.

Audrey offered him a look, mulling over his words briefly, before she quirked a small smile, something which caused Gerard to frown a little. “Mrs Cortez?” he posed.

Audrey shook her head. “I’m sorry” she noted softly “I know I’ve been a little pushy when it comes to the wedding, and I will do my best to calm down a little. It’s just…this is my daughter’s wedding, Gerard, and I am going to make a fuss” she added.

“I know” Gerard mused “And I wouldn’t have it any other way, but for now, I’d appreciate it if you just backed off a little” he added gently.

Audrey offered him a soft look before she nodded her head. “Ok” she agreed.

“Gracias” Gerard mused, offering her a small smile.

Audrey spared him another look before she shook her head, a soft smile on her face. “I know I’ve not been the best potential mother-in-law” she noted softly “In fact, for a while, me and husband, we were nothing short of awful to you, but I am glad you stuck around for Riley. She’s never been this happy and I think a lot of that is on you and the children you’ve given to her” she added kindly.

Gerard blinked, slightly surprised by her kind words, before he ducked his head, a soft hint of pink playing on his cheeks, something which made Audrey giggle softly. She knew that she hadn’t been fantastic, after Riley had gotten back with Gerard, she and her husband had made things more than slightly difficult for the two of them, but she was pleased that they’d made it work, even if she wasn’t the fondest of Gerard. She liked the way Riley was when she was with him.