Claim
Page 112
His family had been thrilled to learn of Tessa’s pregnancy, and even more so when the sonogram had revealed that she was indeed expecting a daughter. Joanna in particular had been overjoyed to hear that she would finally have the granddaughter she’d always longed for, and had promised that she and Edward would fly to San Francisco to help out with the newborn when the time came.
But Ian had forestalled his parents’ arrival until two weeks after Gilly’s birth, wanting to have that time at home alone with his wife and daughter. He’d taken the time off from work so that he could help take care of them, and that quiet time together had laid the groundwork for the close knit bond that the three of them shared now. Ian wouldn’t have missed those two wonderful weeks for anything, and was looking forward to doing the same when the new baby was born.
They had just finished dessert - a delicious bread pudding served with a warm vanilla sauce - when Gilly began to yawn, rubbing her eyes tiredly
“Poor sleepy baby,” crooned Tessa, as she began to lift Gilly from her high chair. “You had a very busy day, didn’t you? Time for bed now, baby girl.”
Ian stood, pushing his chair back. “I’ll clean up the dishes while you get her ready. Or I can take her up, whichever you prefer.”
Tessa cuddled Gilly close for a moment before handing her into Ian’s arms. “Why don’t you bring her upstairs then? You haven’t had much time with her today, after all. You don’t mind?”
Ian smiled as their daughter rested her curly blonde head trustingly against his shoulder. “I never mind a chance to spend time with one of my two favorite girls,” he replied, kissing the top of Gilly’s head tenderly. “We’ll see you up in her room shortly.”
Tessa cleaned up the dinner dishes fairly quickly, since she’d already washed and dried the various pans and utensils that had been used in preparing the meal. And this was such a dream kitchen to work in, equipped with every imaginable gadget and convenience, that cooking always seemed like fun to her. She’d already begun to instill that sort of work ethic into Gilly, keeping her daughter close at hand when she fixed meals, and letting her help in small ways, like dumping a teaspoonful of seasoning into something she was preparing.
Gilly had been an absolute joy from the moment she was born - after a relatively brief and very easy labor and delivery. Jordan had joked that Tessa’s labor had been so easy, in fact, that she could have handled the entire process without any medical help at all.
“Just like the pioneer women of the Old West,” he’d joked. “Or the cavewomen, for that matter. You made all of this look so easy that I didn’t even need to be here.”
“Maybe I’ll just have a home birth next time then,” she had teased right back. “One of Sasha’s friends is a doula. And one of her students is a midwife. I’ll just hire them on next time so you can hang out on the golf course.”
“Hell, no,” Ian had declared firmly. “You’ll have any future babies right here in the hospital, Mrs. Gregson. I’m not sure I’d survive if you tried to give birth at home.”
Tessa chuckled as she finished loading up the dishwasher at that recollection. Her big, tough, strong husband had looked more than a little queasy in the delivery room, his tanned skin having paled noticeably during the birthing process. She could only imagine how much worse he would have coped with things if she had in fact opted for a home birth.
She slid a hand to the modest curve of her belly as she felt the baby kick ever so slightly. At barely five months, there wasn’t a lot of activity as yet, but she knew from past experience how quickly that would change.
And she knew, just knew, that the baby she was carrying now would be a boy. Just as she’d known all along that Gilly was going to be a girl. And while she was well aware of Ian’s desire for another daughter, Tessa longed to give him a son - a son who would resemble his handsome father, who would be as smart and strong and athletic, who would always remind her of Ian.
Before heading upstairs to help tuck Gilly in, Tessa glanced at the leather bound day planner that she preferred to any sort of electronic calendar app or program to see what the day had in store for her tomorrow. Beside her four o’clock doctor’s appointment, however, there was very little else on her schedule. Though with Thanksgiving just over a week from now, she needed to make sure everything was in order for the holiday that they would be spending, as usual, at the beach house.
It was a tradition that had begun the first year of their marriage - heading up the coast for several days and cooking Thanksgiving dinner at their second home - and Tessa was determined that the tradition would continue for many years to come. Gilly loved going to the beach house, adored digging in the sand and finding tiny shells to bring home, and especially watching the herd of deer who grazed among the tall grasses on either side of the house. They tried to get up to the house as often as possible, even if it was just for a weekend, enjoying the peace and serenity that awaited them there.
She headed upstairs towards Gilly’s bedroom - the one closest to their own - and paused in the doorway to gaze lovingly at the sweet, tender scene in front of her. Ian - her big, strong, thoroughly masculine husband - was sitting in the white oak rocking chair that he’d had custom made for her by Robert McKinnon, who was a skilled craftsman in addition to being a highly regarded architect. Gilly was cuddled up against her father, dressed for bed in fuzzy footed pink pajamas appliqued with white lambs. Her head rested trustingly against Ian’s shoulder, and he’d wrapped her securely in a white cashmere baby blanket. He rocked them gently to and fro as he read to her in a deep, quiet voice from one of her favorite picture books.
The sight of her husband cuddling their daughter so protectively made tears well up in Tessa’s eyes, and her heart to ache a little from the sheer emotion of it all. Ian was the most wonderful father, the absolute best she could have ever imagined, and Tessa knew how lucky Gilly was to have a man like him as her daddy. He was every bit as devoted to their child as he’d always been to her, and Tessa was thrilled that her daughter would always have the sort of unconditional love and devotion that she herself had never known growing up.
She smiled fondly to watch her baby clutching the white woolly stuffed lamb that Ian had given her for Christmas three years ago. Lambie now belonged to Gilly, and it was rare that she ever went anywhere without the precious toy.
But Ian had forestalled his parents’ arrival until two weeks after Gilly’s birth, wanting to have that time at home alone with his wife and daughter. He’d taken the time off from work so that he could help take care of them, and that quiet time together had laid the groundwork for the close knit bond that the three of them shared now. Ian wouldn’t have missed those two wonderful weeks for anything, and was looking forward to doing the same when the new baby was born.
They had just finished dessert - a delicious bread pudding served with a warm vanilla sauce - when Gilly began to yawn, rubbing her eyes tiredly
“Poor sleepy baby,” crooned Tessa, as she began to lift Gilly from her high chair. “You had a very busy day, didn’t you? Time for bed now, baby girl.”
Ian stood, pushing his chair back. “I’ll clean up the dishes while you get her ready. Or I can take her up, whichever you prefer.”
Tessa cuddled Gilly close for a moment before handing her into Ian’s arms. “Why don’t you bring her upstairs then? You haven’t had much time with her today, after all. You don’t mind?”
Ian smiled as their daughter rested her curly blonde head trustingly against his shoulder. “I never mind a chance to spend time with one of my two favorite girls,” he replied, kissing the top of Gilly’s head tenderly. “We’ll see you up in her room shortly.”
Tessa cleaned up the dinner dishes fairly quickly, since she’d already washed and dried the various pans and utensils that had been used in preparing the meal. And this was such a dream kitchen to work in, equipped with every imaginable gadget and convenience, that cooking always seemed like fun to her. She’d already begun to instill that sort of work ethic into Gilly, keeping her daughter close at hand when she fixed meals, and letting her help in small ways, like dumping a teaspoonful of seasoning into something she was preparing.
Gilly had been an absolute joy from the moment she was born - after a relatively brief and very easy labor and delivery. Jordan had joked that Tessa’s labor had been so easy, in fact, that she could have handled the entire process without any medical help at all.
“Just like the pioneer women of the Old West,” he’d joked. “Or the cavewomen, for that matter. You made all of this look so easy that I didn’t even need to be here.”
“Maybe I’ll just have a home birth next time then,” she had teased right back. “One of Sasha’s friends is a doula. And one of her students is a midwife. I’ll just hire them on next time so you can hang out on the golf course.”
“Hell, no,” Ian had declared firmly. “You’ll have any future babies right here in the hospital, Mrs. Gregson. I’m not sure I’d survive if you tried to give birth at home.”
Tessa chuckled as she finished loading up the dishwasher at that recollection. Her big, tough, strong husband had looked more than a little queasy in the delivery room, his tanned skin having paled noticeably during the birthing process. She could only imagine how much worse he would have coped with things if she had in fact opted for a home birth.
She slid a hand to the modest curve of her belly as she felt the baby kick ever so slightly. At barely five months, there wasn’t a lot of activity as yet, but she knew from past experience how quickly that would change.
And she knew, just knew, that the baby she was carrying now would be a boy. Just as she’d known all along that Gilly was going to be a girl. And while she was well aware of Ian’s desire for another daughter, Tessa longed to give him a son - a son who would resemble his handsome father, who would be as smart and strong and athletic, who would always remind her of Ian.
Before heading upstairs to help tuck Gilly in, Tessa glanced at the leather bound day planner that she preferred to any sort of electronic calendar app or program to see what the day had in store for her tomorrow. Beside her four o’clock doctor’s appointment, however, there was very little else on her schedule. Though with Thanksgiving just over a week from now, she needed to make sure everything was in order for the holiday that they would be spending, as usual, at the beach house.
It was a tradition that had begun the first year of their marriage - heading up the coast for several days and cooking Thanksgiving dinner at their second home - and Tessa was determined that the tradition would continue for many years to come. Gilly loved going to the beach house, adored digging in the sand and finding tiny shells to bring home, and especially watching the herd of deer who grazed among the tall grasses on either side of the house. They tried to get up to the house as often as possible, even if it was just for a weekend, enjoying the peace and serenity that awaited them there.
She headed upstairs towards Gilly’s bedroom - the one closest to their own - and paused in the doorway to gaze lovingly at the sweet, tender scene in front of her. Ian - her big, strong, thoroughly masculine husband - was sitting in the white oak rocking chair that he’d had custom made for her by Robert McKinnon, who was a skilled craftsman in addition to being a highly regarded architect. Gilly was cuddled up against her father, dressed for bed in fuzzy footed pink pajamas appliqued with white lambs. Her head rested trustingly against Ian’s shoulder, and he’d wrapped her securely in a white cashmere baby blanket. He rocked them gently to and fro as he read to her in a deep, quiet voice from one of her favorite picture books.
The sight of her husband cuddling their daughter so protectively made tears well up in Tessa’s eyes, and her heart to ache a little from the sheer emotion of it all. Ian was the most wonderful father, the absolute best she could have ever imagined, and Tessa knew how lucky Gilly was to have a man like him as her daddy. He was every bit as devoted to their child as he’d always been to her, and Tessa was thrilled that her daughter would always have the sort of unconditional love and devotion that she herself had never known growing up.
She smiled fondly to watch her baby clutching the white woolly stuffed lamb that Ian had given her for Christmas three years ago. Lambie now belonged to Gilly, and it was rare that she ever went anywhere without the precious toy.
