Driving away was hard, because I desperately wanted Nick back. Not the Nick that I’d just left behind, but the Nick I knew before Carmina came along.
I should have been happy to be leaving…I was finally rid of Carmina, but the cost…the cost was far too high.
As I drove, my mind drifted back to how happy our life was before…
I thought back to the day I came back from the hospital after finding out I was pregnant.
In the beginning, Nick wasn’t even sure he wanted kids.
Especially when his frequent business trips and constant work from home began to put a strain on our marriage.
But when I started feeling tired and experiencing a little morning sickness, he began to get very excited about the possibility of me being pregnant.
I cleared my throat to let Nick know that I had entered the room.
“Am I a daddy?” He asked as soon as he saw me.
Nick was so much warmer and kinder then…he cared about my feelings. He was protective and affectionate. I’ve missed that.
“Nick…we’re going to be parents.”
Nick stared at first with the same type of smile on his face that I had when the doctor told me…one full of disbelief and joy.
Then he pulled me in close, ”Diane…this, this has to be the happiest day of my life…”
“Mine too,” I whispered as I held him as tight as I could.
He pulled back suddenly, “Say it again…say I’m going to be a daddy!” He said as if he hearing the words again would make it more true.
“You’re going to be a daddy…we’re going to be parents!” I confirmed.
Nick spun me around with a smile on his face.
Then he startled me with a sudden unexpected dip. “I hope we have a little girl and I hope she’s as pretty as you,” he said.
“I hope she’s prettier than me,” I added.
“Impossible,” he said before leaning down and kissing me.
I felt so safe and loved there in his arms…as if nothing could ever come between us.
After our kiss he pulled me back upright, “Thank you for coming into my life and making me so happy.”
“Well, I didn’t exactly do this on my own,” I said with a giggle.
He laughed for a while before becoming very serious. “I couldn’t imagine sharing this moment with anyone else in the world…you mean everything to me.”
“Same here,” I responded with tears threatening to escape my eyes.
“So I guess I’ll be giving up my office soon,” he said.
“Yeah…so sorry, this room will soon be overrun with smelly diapers and spit up!”
“Sounds good to me…very good,” he said which meant a lot, because Nick spent most of his time in his home office.
I responded with a kiss.
I was so happy then; so much prettier, healthier and excited about the future…
But I came back to reality the closer I got to my destination.
