Wavering Faith - Chapter 11
Shannon rubbed his eyes as he walked slowly down the stairs. Penelope’s nightmares, for the second week in a row, had made it hard for either of them to get a good night’s worth of restful sleep. Add in the fact that she was getting bigger everyday, and it wasn’t surprising that no one was comfortable.
He hit the button to start the coffee as soon as he rounded the corner in the kitchen, knowing that he was going to need a certain amount of caffeine coursing through his veins in order to make it through whatever the day held for either of them. Then he headed right for the fridge, falling into the muscle memory of it all, and pulled out his favorite creamer before heading back to the counter to wait not-so-patiently for his cup to fill up.
He closed his eyes for just a second as he propped his elbow up on the tiled counter, listening carefully for the slightest noise from the library upstairs. It had become their makeshift bedroom since it made her feel the safest, but it was intended to be anything but a bedroom. That much was clear.
“Shannon!” Penelope suddenly screamed, jolting him out of his impromptu nap. The hysteria creeping up in her voice quickly had him racing toward her, taking the stairs two at a time. “Shannon!”
As soon as he appeared in the doorway of the library, she visibly relaxed. Then the anger set in. Like it had every other time before. She had already told him how much she hated that she depended on him. And no matter how much he told her he didn’t mind at all, she still got mad. Mostly at herself.
He’d never say it out loud, but he preferred this to the alternative. An alternative that he had lived for too long.
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Where were you?”
“Making coffee, baby,” he explained easily. “Are you okay?”
Shannon reached out and wiped a tear away as he crept closer, knowing the answer. She hated feeling vulnerable. That wasn’t a secret.
“No,” she answered truthfully.
“Wanna come with me?” he offered, pointing toward the door. “I’ll make you some decaf.”
She scrunched up her nose, but made a move to get off the padded bench anyway. He held out his arm for her to take as she waddled with him across the room. He stopped at the top of the stairs and stared down at her before bending slowly to give her a kiss. She closed her eyes just as slowly, leaning into the feeling before he pulled back and helped her down the steps, one at a time.
She winced a couple of times as they made their way to the kitchen, reminding him more and more just how much he’d missed of her pregnancy. He had no idea what was bothering her, or why, and most of the time now the days just faded together anyway, not helping his case at all.
“Do you remember when we’d sleep in the library before?” he asked absentmindedly, trying to conjure up a happier memory than the one he was delving into at the moment.
“You mean when we had sex everywhere in there and were too tired to make it to the bedroom?” she asked, perking an eyebrow at him.
He chuckled low. “There wasn’t 4 of us. It wasn’t as crowded.”
