21. Errol

Chapter 21

Errol

Everything went really quickly after we put an offer on the house. Davien's house sold remarkably fast, and as soon as that closing happened, we were able to close on ours. There were a few things that had to be done before we could move in—painting, a couple of electrical updates, a new sink—nothing too big. And since we both sold our houses and his home had been mortgage-free, we were able to cover all the costs without going into debt.

We were starting life in the perfect way financially, which was amazing because it wasn't too long ago that I was borrowing $500 to bail my grandmother out. It was hard to believe how different things were in just a few short months. Thank gods for a wrong phone number.

Today, we began moving in. Between me being pregnant and our items in multiple places, we were moving in chunks. First, we emptied the pod and got all the furniture into place—kitchen items and things we hadn't used in months were in boxes in their corresponding rooms. That part was pretty easy since everything had been ready to go.

The hard part came with the things we had at Grams's house. It wasn't a case of moving things out of storage and inside. We needed to decide what to pack from her place, what to leave there, and what to get rid of. From there, we needed to pack, carry them next door, and put her things back in place. She insisted on helping, which actually slowed things down a bit, but that was okay because she was happy. My mate was happy. I was happy. And honestly, at this stage in my pregnancy, I couldn't really do as much as I wanted, and it was nice to feel like I didn't have to.

We planned to stay at Grams's house again that night because there was no way we were going to get everything unpacked and ready to go in one day. I was glad for that—it took a lot of stress off my shoulders, and after the long day we had, I fell asleep almost instantly.

The next morning when I woke up, I was all alone. My mate wasn't in my bed, and when I wandered through the house, Grams was MIA, too. There was a sticky note on the microwave letting me know that one of them had made me breakfast. It was super sweet and also told me not to rush.

Normally, I would've been like, "Nope, I can do this," and hurried over to the house, but the day before had worn me out. Muscles I didn't know I had hurt, and I could still use another hour of sleep.

I took a shower to help wake me up, ate my French toast, and then waddled over. I wasn't fully in the "waddle stage" of pregnancy yet, but I sure felt like it. My pre-pregnancy pants had stopped fitting already, and as often as I could, I donned my mate's sweatpants and an oversized hoodie that was three sizes larger than I usually wore. When I was at work, I wore paternity clothes, of course, but they flew off the second I got home. If I was going to grow an entire being, I was going to be as comfortable as I could.

"I'm home," I called as I walked through the front door, surprised to see that the living room was already completely put together—lamps, curtains, everything.

"You guys have been busy," I said, but no one answered. "Guess it's hide-and-seek time."

It took me a bit to find them. They were upstairs, putting a handlebar up in the bathroom.

"What's that for?" It was one of those grab bars, the kind you hold onto when you're older or have mobility issues. No one here fit that bill, not even Grams.

"Oh, you're going to thank me," Grams said. "In another month, maybe two, you're not going to want to climb over into this tub. It's extra deep."

She was right. It was one of many things we loved about the house. The downstairs shower was in a shallow tub. It would be fine for giving our baby a bath and for showering, but it was useless for adults who wanted to soak away a hard day. This one, however, you could sink into it, have the water cover you, and just relax. I was really looking forward to it.

I didn't argue with her that the bar was not needed, because at the rate I was growing, she might be right.

"Guys, what time did you get up?" They had accomplished so much while I only managed to eat French toast and bathe.

"I take the fifth," Grams said, which meant it was before dawn.

"You didn't need to do that, you know. I can help."

"I don't need to do anything," she said, planting her fists on her hips. "I wanted to. Now come see what I did to your bedroom."

There was no arguing with her, so I took my mate's hand, and we followed her. Davien and I had purchased new furniture for the bedroom. Even though we each had our own beds before, it just felt better to get something that was ours. The last time I had been in the room, it felt almost like a hotel room—but not anymore.

"Davien and I got the curtains and bedding up," she said proudly.

"It looks great. And I love the little nook you've made over there." They had turned an awkward corner that wasn't quite the right shape for much into a cozy reading nook. I loved it.

"You guys are the best."

"We know," Grams said, while Davien kissed the top of my head.

"We still have a lot to do today." Davien held me closer. "I don't want you overdoing it."

"I don't plan on it."

"I've got this." Grams took my arm and started to walk toward the door. "I'm taking him shopping, remember?"

Davien might've, but I didn't. Grams was definitely back to her old self, which was such a relief. She would never be the cutesy old lady sitting on her front porch with a cup of tea, waving to people who walked by and talking to the neighborhood cats. That wasn't who she was. Worked for me. I liked her this way.

The rest of the day included buying everything we needed to have a decent pantry, getting the kitchen set up and ready to go, and emptying boxes.

It was pretty much Grams telling us what to do, and us doing it. By the time we were ready for dinner, we were done. Well, done enough. Our house was ready for us.

Grams had dinner plans—ones she didn't divulge—and Davien and I had our first pizza delivery.

"Is it everything you thought it would be?" Davien asked, wrapping his arms around me, our dinner eaten and cleaned up.

"And more. But there's still stuff to be done." I reached up and rested my hand on his cheek.

"What do you mean?"

"Well… we haven't christened any of the rooms yet." I nipped on his bottom lip.

"You do have a point." He kissed me breathless. I half wondered if it would ever stop feeling like this, so magical. I didn't think it would; he was a unicorn, after all. "Should we start with this one?"

"Well, had this been a few months back, I'd probably say yes, but I'm not so flexible right now." There was no chance that I wouldn't end up on the floor. "How about we start with the bedroom?"

Without hesitation, Davien bent down and scooped me up. "That works for me."

"Wait! Put me down! I'm the size of a horse… unicorn… you know what I mean."

"You, my sweet mate, are the absolute perfect size for growing our baby and I am going to carry you upstairs and do some very naughty things to you."

And off to the bedroom we went.