-Bec, how are you?She reread the message before sending it. Before long, she saw her message was successfully sent and that it had even entered the receiver's phone—Rebecca. It turned blue in less than ten seconds, showing Rebecca had read it. But after a minute had passed, there was no reply from Rebecca. And that frustrated her.-Is everything okay?She sent it. After that, she went through the same process with the same result. She almost got up from her seat in frustration. Her hand went up to ruffle her hair as another way of expressing it. What was wrong with Rebecca?"What's wrong with you?" Dave asked as he came out of the bathroom and walked toward her. He saw something odd about her, which was why he asked that.Anna looked up with pouted lips, furrowed brows, and a wet look. The latter caused him to quicken his pace. "What is it, honey?" He asked again, as they were only two steps away. Anna looked like she was about to cry, and he had no idea why."Bec didn't answer my me
Finally, she got what she wanted. Jenny was very kind and willing to grant her request. And in return, she didn't have a problem with working today. Anna would meet the client as a representative of Jessica Hall. She read it as a brand for baby clothes. So she guessed it was for Jessica's baby. Oh, Jessica had a cute baby boy.She waited at the cafe while having hot chocolate and fried fries with her. Unfortunately, no ice cream was on the menu even though she really wanted it. Yeah, to celebrate how everything went well lately. Her relationship with Dave, her pregnancy, and her work. It was really perfect that sometimes she thought whether it was a dream. But it was not. That was the fact.Brand representatives should come at ten. But it seemed that things did not go well with their previous meeting—they said they had an appointment before meeting her—or it was running over. They just said they would be late and probably came during lunch. That was why Anna replaced Liza, who should
Her body stiffened as Anna saw Linda's figure approaching her. No. Linda was already close when she called out to Anna and was so close as she was in front of her now. Linda had a smile on her face when she asked, "Can I sit here?"And Anna had no answer but a nod. She couldn't possibly reject it when she saw her bright smile as if meeting a friend. But they weren't friends, and she doubted they would be ones."Actually, I came when you were having a meeting with the previous woman. And I saw you were very professional in dealing with her."Anna wasn't sure she wanted to hear it. What was the point of explaining it to her? It was something an assistant like her usually did. Dealing with clients, arranging schedules, and accompanying talent to go there. That was the primary thing to do as an assistant. However, she only took the first one, as per her request. Of course, with a different salary."Especially when you said your rules. That looked cool."Anna couldn't help but smile awkwar
Anna gently massaged the bridge of her nose—the part between her eyes—to get rid of her feeling. No. That was dizzy. And it all started with an accidental meeting with Linda.How did it go?Well, it surprisingly went so well. Anna didn't explode, cry, get upset, and successfully restrain herself from whatever emotions ran through her chest. It also surprised her to find she could calmly deal with it. She had imagined she might run away or hide to avoid Linda. In fact, they sat opposite each other, and she even comforted her. How great she was!But the smoothness of the meeting did not guarantee its effectiveness. Anna came home dizzy, remembering their conversation and Linda's request for a friend. Everyone who knew her well would easily guess the answer. She accepted it. Foolish, wasn't it? But how could she refuse someone to ask her to be their friend?I can't be your friend because you're my husband's ex.Would that be a reasonable answer? Didn't that make her too afraid of somethi
She woke up alone this morning. The bed beside her was empty because it was already nine after glaring at the clock. Her brows furrowed. Why didn't the alarm go off?It must be Dave. After making sure there was no schedule today, he exhausted her with last night's sex. And she must have slept so soundly that she didn't hear her alarm and even felt his leaving. She used to wake up in his arms, and this morning, she couldn't have it.She looked at the folds of clothes with a note on them. If Dave woke up first after sex, he usually prepared clothes for her because she was definitely naked under the blanket.Wash yourself before coming down. And don't rush! I won't go anywhere.Her lips curved into a smile as she read the message. There was no morning greeting, but she liked how Dave cared for her. It was sweet yet calming. And as my queen, she now loved it. It showed how important she was in his life, didn't it?After cleaning up, she went down the stairs to find his whereabouts. She ya
She hummed all the way to Matt's house. She was happy that her plan to visit his house was carried out. Of course, Dave was with her to introduce him to them. Yes, you read right. She finally made up her mind to tell them everything."You sound pleased," he said next to her. His eyes fixed on the street, though he occasionally glared at her. She was looking out the window with a long, rhythmic hum from her lips. Anyone knew she was in a good mood. And it was so contagious to him that sometimes he smiled just hearing her voice.She turned at him and smiled widely. "Sure. I'm going to meet my best friends. They are so mean to not give me any news." Her sound was complex. Nice and ended with grumbling. But happy to be more dominant because her eyes flashed sparks even though she let out a soft snort."There must be a reason. And that's why we'll find out soon."She nodded enthusiastically. She had an image in her head of them accepting him as friendly as usual. Then they would open the g
Matt looked at his guests in turn. They were in the dining room, opposite each other, with Anna sitting on the right and Dave on the left. They were already in the doorway, and he couldn't possibly get rid of them, especially when he saw his best friend crying in Dave's arms.Anna crying? He couldn't remember the last time he wiped her tears. She rarely cried."I'm sorry you had to see that," he said weakly. As much as he cared about his best friend, Rebecca came first. She was his wife, even though they were in a misunderstanding. And it started with her pregnancy or their pregnancy. Just because Rebecca suspected Anna liked him, she thought they were having an affair, and Anna approached him. That was ridiculous, right? Worst, she wouldn't listen to him, no matter how hard he explained, including Dave and the conversation about him being the baby's father. She thought it was all just gibberish because she spotted nothing about their relationship. Jeff was out of the scene because s
"So these are all baby boy outfits?"Her head rising from the row of clothes caught her attention from the news of the arrival. Alexa sent it to the company, so she needed to check it first. Besides ensuring that she received the goods well, she was also excited to touch them. She wanted to know how baby clothes felt.Her lips curved into a smile as she watched Jenny walk up to her. "Yes. They are so cute, right?" She couldn't hold back her excitement. Oh, looked like she might be more enthusiastic than Jessica."Sure, they're cute like the babies. And you're like a mom who gets excited about baby stuff."She gave a wide grin. "I need to know a lot of things for my baby, too.""And it makes me relieved to have you take care of her.""Yeah, thanks."Then she unwrapped the last package and spread the clothes in beige. If observed closely, they only had slight differences. Yeah, what could be expected from newborn clothes? But the good thing was they came in a variety of colors. And they
Anna peered through the common bathroom door on the first floor before stepping out casually as if nothing had happened. She walked past Dave, who was sitting on the couch in their living room and reading a report on his tablet, with Zach crawling on the floor."Zach, baby, come here." She called for Zach's attention, which was never hard to get. "Let's play outside."And his reaction was predictable. He was running toward his mother excitedly. His smile was so big that it was going to explode.Being a child seemed fun, didn't it?She followed him, running out of the house to their yard barefoot. She couldn't help her own smile from forming on her face at seeing him and another happiness she had just found out about today.She was pregnant with their second child.But be quiet. Anna wanted to make a surprise for her husband.Oh, she couldn't wait to see his reaction!"Zach, come here. Mommy wants to say something to you."Zach halted his running to look at his mother with an indescrib
Three years later.She watched everything. Their every move, laugh, giggle, scream, and more. She couldn't help but grace a wide smile over that. It was too good to be true. But it was what that was as it was the reality.Baby Zach was now three years old and in his active days. He had run on every corner of the house and was always excited to run outside.Although it tired their body from following him around, she didn't complain, especially Dave. He always had the energy to play with him and never ran out of ideas. He raised their child with all his heart.She shook her head to force herself back to her place. She couldn't only observe them all the time, as she needed to finish the cookie dough.Zach had the exact liking as hers for sweets. So she tried to be the best mom by baking them instead of buying them outside or ordering chefs to make them. It was cheaper and could adjust to her family preferences, which she wanted, not too much sugar.As Dave said, sugar was a killer.She
"Hi, baby boy. I'm happy you're awake, and I can hold you. Your mother must feel the same way. But she's resting now, so let's not disturb her and play with me instead." His voice was laced with happiness as his eyes flitted the same feeling. There was nothing happier than this moment when he finally held baby Zach. And the fact that he was born healthy was wonderful. It could be perfect if his wife's recovery went well.Baby Zach wriggled his tiny hands and managed to capture Dave's finger. He gripped it though his eyes were still closed. Baby Zach might sense familiar and safe, so baby Zach didn't cry, which made Dave's heart swell with pride and warmth. Only his touch could do that, and he couldn't be more proud of that."What do you think about this world? It's amazing, isn't it? You have me, your mother, and your entire family by your side. And in the future, you will find your own friends."Baby Zach was just quiet, and if his grip was not still on his finger, Dave might have th
A few months later.Anna was closing drawers after checking what was inside was still inside.It might be confusing. The point was Anna had just finished looking at their baby’s needs, such as clothes, diapers, socks, blanket, and more. She wanted to make sure everything was ready when the time came, which was soon. Her due date should be this week, and she couldn’t be more excited to finally welcome their baby.She moved to the only bed in the room. It was big and had four wooden walls on four sides to protect the baby from falling. And it was the one Dave said could accommodate her body while breastfeeding their baby. She even could sleep on it too.Her hand touched the doll on the nearby side and placed it neatly between another doll and the pillow. She had some, mainly cute animal characters, to accompany him while he was sleeping.Yes, him. Their baby was a boy.“Do you like it, honey? It’s nice, right? Your father prepared them for you.” She spoke as her hand caressed her so big
"I saw everything, Anna. I know what you hide behind your back." His eyebrows raised as if waiting for her to reveal it by herself. There was no point in hiding it anyway since it was why he approached her. He already saw her enjoying the ice cream!"What do you mean?"So she was going to play with him. Unfortunately, he didn't want to pretend that he did not see that. "The bowl. Ice cream."And she could only force a grin."Come here." His hand reached out to invite her to come near him."No. You will scold me.""That means you know you were doing wrong. How many bowls have you had?""Hmm. Five?""Count it correctly, honey.""Okay. Okay. Nine." She raised both her hands in the air and surrendered herself."No, honey. The bowl in your back is the eleventh."He actually didn't have a problem with her enjoying the ice cream. But Anna liked overeating, and she might have more if he didn't watch her."Good job Dave. She needs to be more careful with her health." Rebecca, standing beside h
Finally, the day they had been waiting for came. It was hectic but also fun. Their friends and families gathered together to celebrate the happy day. What was more pleasing than that?The vow went well. Although Anna felt more nervous, everything was perfect this time compared to the real one. Her father led her to the altar and handed her to Dave, which generally did at a wedding ceremony. And she and his husband stated their vow again and became husband and wife one more time.And to make it perfect, he sealed their vow with a kiss on her lips. Then cheers and applauses filled the hall.It was indeed a favorable moment. And it lasted until night."It's a pleasure to finally meet the newest Mrs. Byrne." Alexander greeted Anna and took her hand to land a quick kiss, like how a gentleman met a lady for the first time. "My name is Alexander Green.""Oh!" Anna couldn't help but show her surprise. She heard a lot about him from Dave, but this was the first time they met in person."Based
She felt warm on her skin. Also, a soft and warm breeze brushed over her neck, bringing a shiver to her body. A second later, she sensed warmth moving on her swollen belly, rubbing it so gently as if fearing to wake her up."Hmm." She stirred from her sleep, the result of those doings. Only then did she realize hands wrapped around her, and she knew whose those were. "Dave." Her voice came throatily from sleep."I'm sorry I woke you up." He mumbled against the nook of her neck.She heard it but didn't want to answer him as her voice was stuck in her throat. But she couldn't do it anymore when her eyes fluttered open and dark welcomed her through a glass wall which gave a view of the dark sky. "It's still dark.""Yes.""What time is it?""It's past midnight.""Why aren't you sleeping?"Instead of replying, he tightened his arms and dug his face deeper into her neck. His hand slipped inside her nightdress and caressed her tummy. "I can't sleep.""Why?" She wriggled her body to turn arou
"The preparation is doing good, right?" Dave asked Eddie, General Manager of The Byrne Hotel in Los Angeles, as they took a look at the hall designated for his event to take place. It was still filled with other decorations, as it would be occupied for someone's event for tonight."Yes. We have everything that we need ready. Gifts also have arrived, and we're working to put them into goodie bags."Dave nodded his head in understanding. "Pack them nicely and make sure those are right for each occasion. Don't get confused." He gave further orders.As planned, they would split the event into two, the vow and the party. And because of that, they would use a separate hall, decorations, gifts for guests, food, and more. They had different preparation for each occasion."Sure. We have a lot of experience with these things. I assure you everything will be in expert hands. You can enjoy your time with your bride.""Okay. I trust you with this.""Yes."Then they walked together for a few minute
"I'm like a dolphin already!" Her voice echoed throughout the room. She was standing in front of the mirror, checking her appearance from the reflection. She wore an A-line midi dress in black, which fell nicely on her body. But it also made her baby bump visible."Says who?" Dave was walking toward her while buttoning his shirt."Me." She still focused on her own reflection, as if looking for something to satisfy her."Then you're wrong. You don't look like one at all." He slipped his arms around her waist. "Instead, you look sexier." He landed a kiss on her neck and began to stroke her stomach gently. It was almost six months, and the bump was pretty big."Don't lie to me, Dave. Look at me. Everything in my body is swollen now. Even my cheeks are full.""That's what makes you sexy, honey. I like how your body changes."She narrowed her eyes at his reflection. "Liar.""I'm not. I'm being honest with you.""I don't believe you."There was a sound of a sigh before he planted the last k