“What the hell?” Blair asked, blowing her nose for what seemed like the ten thousandth time in the past five minutes. “I swear I was feeling just fine two days ago and now I’m all snorkel-y and congested.”
“The book said you might start feeling congested around this time because mucous membranes are swelling,” Justin informed her in a bored voice from the black leather Lazy Boy chair he was sitting in reading a magazine. “We might have to check with the doctor to see which meds you can take.”
“How the hell do you remember that kind of stuff?” Blair asked. “I read that book too, but I can’t recall all of those stupid facts.”
“I guess I’m just smarter than you are,” Justin said, making sure to hold the magazine in front of his face while he smiled.
“You’re smarter than me now?” Blair asked, trying to be serious. She stood up and stalked over to Justin’s chair, where she snatched his magazine away from him and crawled onto his lap. She smiled into his sparkly blue eyes and leaned in to whisper into his ear. “You’re not smarter than me.”
Justin’s arms wrapped around her growing middle while he smiled back at her. He linked his fingers behind her back as she settled into his lap. She snuggled against his warm body as she took in his scent once again. She loved the way he smelled. She rested her head on his chest and flung her legs over the arm of the chair. She sat sideways on his lap and basked in the comfort of him. She loved that he liked to cuddle with her. As of late, she had come to love cuddling more than she ever though anyone could. She liked to snuggle herself underneath his arm or right in his lap to be near him. She loved the way his arms fit so perfectly around her body, the way he smelled, the way her body fit next to his.
“How was work today, Bunny?” Justin had shortened his nickname for her to just Bunny. Originally it was Snuggle-Bunny because, for a while, all they did was cuddle. She would snuggled up against him whenever she could. He didn’t mind though, in fact, he had come to love their contact. He liked her warm, soft skin on his.
Blair sighed and closed her eyes, ignoring the television. “Fine,” she yawned. “The days seem longer now and I had to talk to those French-Cajun guys again about Creole cooking. First of all, I can’t understand anything they say and then, when I ask them a question about a certain kind of seasoning, I don’t get a straight up answer. I don’t understand why Michael and Chad don’t just go down and visit the stupid place if they like it so much. If they want to add an entrée to the menu based on food they had there, they might as well take a trip down there and talk to the guys themselves. God knows I can’t understand them.”
“That good, huh?”
“It was spectacular,” Blair said, breathing in Justin’s smell again. “My sister called me today.”
“Which one?”
“Kirsten,” she said, yawning.
“She’s the middle one, right?”
Blair smiled, her eyes still closed. She felt herself completely relaxing. “Yeah, she’s the middle of the three. Nikki’s the oldest.”
“That’s right,” Justin nodded. “What did she have to say?”
“She asked if there was anything she could do. She also called to tell me that no matter how ridiculous our parents and family is being, she’d always be there for me.”
“That was nice of her,” Justin replied.
Blair just made a “hmmph” sound. He felt her nod against his chest too.
“Tired?”
“Suddenly, yes,” she said quietly.
“Does that mean you’re staying here tonight?” Justin asked, knowing the answer.
“Why do you have to talk so much?” Blair asked, shifting her shoulders slightly. “I don’t have to go into work tomorrow until noon, isn’t that so great?”
“Fabulous,” Justin answered, yawning as well. He had become such a homebody, and he was beginning to like it. He felt his eyelids begin to feel heavy. “I’m not going into the studio tomorrow.”
“Terrific,” Blair told him. “Turn that light off over there.”
“You’re on me,” Justin said, “I can’t move.” Blair didn’t say anything. Her breathing was steady and shallow. Justin knew he was losing her to sleep. “Hey, come on. You’re drifting off.”
Blair made a whining noise when she felt Justin try to shift her. “I’m not sleeping.”
“Yes you are.”
“No I’m not,” she whispered and snuggled closer to him. She could hear his breathing and his heartbeat. If she was going to be moving at all, he’d be coming with her. She couldn’t remember feeling so relaxed and comfortable before right then.
“Come on,” Justin said, moving beneath her, causing her to protest. He smiled as he moved his arms to behind her back and under her legs. Blair automatically rested her arms around his neck as he moved slowly to stand up, making sure to have perfect balance. The last thing he wanted was to fall over while holding her. He wasn’t about to say anything about it, but Blair was definitely getting heavier each time he went to carry her around. Pretty soon he wouldn’t be able to do this anymore.
Justin walked down the hallway to the guestroom Blair liked the best and set her on the bed. She rolled over onto her side and curled up in a ball. Justin rolled the blankets down and told her to roll over. She opened her eyes for a moment and looked at him once she was under the blankets that he had tucked around her. Justin smiled at her as she looked up at him. He bent down to kiss her forehead as he whispered goodnight. Blair reached out and took his hand in hers.
“Stay.”
Justin didn’t say anything.
“Please?” she whispered back. “Just ‘til I fall asleep.” Blair didn’t see Justin move at all. “Justin, please.”
“Yeah, okay,” he nodded, trying to tell himself that this was okay as he walked around the bed to crawl in on the other side. “Just ‘til you fall asleep.”
“Mmhmm.”
Blair curled up against him, wanting to be close to him. He instinctively wrapped his arm around her and put his hand over hers, the hand she had rested on his chest. He felt her breathing slow beside him and he knew she was sleeping. He debated whether or not he should try to wiggle out from beneath her. Just when he thought he might try it, he felt her foot touch his and she loosely grabbed hold on his shirt. She made a noise before snuggling even closer to him. Justin finally decided he would just stay there.
It was now halfway through August, meaning she had entered her second trimester. Quite a bit had changed from the time of their chat about comfort and feelings. They were spending much more time together, all the while hiding and masking their feelings for each other. They both knew they genuinely cared for each other, but didn’t dare tell the other. Not after what she had said. Blair didn’t want to be a hypocrite, it was ridiculous to go back on what she said. No, she wouldn’t do that. However, she couldn’t help what she was feeling. Honestly, it was bound to happen.
Besides all of the time they were spending together, Blair was beginning to really show. Before, it was just barely noticeable, the fact that she was pregnant, but now, when someone looked at her, it was obvious. Although she was still small, she had a bit of a belly to her. Justin told her often that he liked the bump there, and for the most part, Blair did too, but sometimes she would cry about being fat. Justin didn’t like that part; the part where he needed to comfort her and tell her that she wasn’t fat. It was true though, she wasn’t fat, she was just pregnant. That’s part of the package.
Her mood swings were mellowing out and the hormonal changes weren’t as bad as before. Justin was thankful that she was getting used to the changes. He wasn’t sure how much more he could take. Her cravings were going away, but he had read they’d come back again or just strengthen later. At least he had a couple months before the hormones and mood swings and cravings would come back.
“I love you,” Justin whispered. He knew she was sleeping and didn’t hear him say it, but perhaps, he thought, that was better. He wouldn’t want her to get upset or uncomfortable because of his feelings towards her. It wasn’t long before he too fell asleep.
