Page 82 of Sunday

Cedar growled like a bear and flipped over, knocking Aspen onto his back. He tickled Aspen, who fell into a fit of giggles. I laughed at the two of them, and my heart leaped for joy at the love they shared and showered on me daily.

I was so blessed with these two beautiful guys in my life, and I looked forward to our growth. When Cedar stopped tickling Aspen, Aspen sat up and exclaimed, “Happy Favah’s day, Daddy.”

Cedar pulled him on his lap and kissed his head. “Thank you, little king.”

“Daddy, we got you a Favah’s Day gif.”

“What did you get me?”

Aspen looked at me with wide eyes and a smile. “Give it to him, Mommy.”

I reached inside the pocket of my apron, climbed on the bed beside my husband and son, and then pulled my hand out of my pocket.

“Happy Father’s Day, husband.”

I handed the gift to Cedar and watched as his eyes ballooned.

“Baby?”

“Yes?”

“Baby?”

“Yes, Cedar?”

“Baby! We’re having another baby?” He laughed and pulled me onto his left thigh after he moved Aspen onto his right one.

“Yes, CJ. We’re having a baby,” I confirmed with laughter.

“Aww, baby. This is the best Father’s Day gift you could give me,” he declared as he stared at the pregnancy stick and repeatedly shook his head.

He stroked my cheek and sweetly brushed his lips against mine. I wanted more, but I knew we needed to keep it PG in front of Aspen.

I pulled back and asked, “So, you’re happy?”

“Man, I’m over the gahdamn moon! I’ve been waiting for this since my king here was one week.”

“I’ve got more news, but you have to promise not to get upset.”

Cedar’s face scrunched up as he mugged me for that statement.

“Why you wanna try and mess up my day with bad news after something like this?”

I smiled shyly and bit my lip. “I know that I promised I would never hold a secret back from you again, but I did. You know my cycle is irregular, right?”

He nodded.

“So, I didn’t think anything of it until a couple of weeks ago when I still hadn’t had a cycle, but I was getting sick again. I already had an appointment for my annual checkup. I mentioned it to the doctor, and they gave me a test. At that point, they were able to tell me that I was ten weeks pregnant, and they also knew the gender.”

“Ten weeks, Mrs. Jackson?”

“Yeah.”

“What have you been doing during that time, wife of mine?”

“Well, I don’t drink or smoke. I eat healthy, so there’s that.”

“Yeah, but your ass has been lifting and carrying Aspen, and that’s gotta stop right away.”

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