“You got a puppy?” Cami said, staring in shock.
“He’s the perfect dog for us, don’t you think? He goes right along with the whole firefighter image.”
Sinking down, she crooned as she stroked him and I wondered if she’d even heard a word I said.
“Hi, pretty baby. Look at you and how sweet you are?” There was some serious nuzzling going on. I could tell already that these two were going to get along famously.
“His name is Oreo.”
“Oh! I love that! It’s totally fitting for him!” she squealed with delight. “Isn’t that right, boy? Such a cute Oreo and sweet like cookies, too.” The dog was clearly eating up the attention. “Where’d you get him?” she asked. I chuckled; surprised she still remembered I was in the room. It looked like I was going to have some serious competition. Maybe I didn’t think this out very well.
“The Chief’s dog had puppies and he was trying to find good homes for them. I always hate leaving you here alone, so I thought this little guy might be a good companion for you. Plus, when he gets bigger he’ll be a good guard dog.”
“He’s adorable, though I’ve never potty trained a puppy before. I think cleaning up after him might make my pregnant tummy a bit queasy.”
“No worries there. He’s paper-trained. I’ll go to the store for some supplies to put in a doggy door that goes out into the backyard so he can learn to go out there and also get outside to run. And, just for you, I’ll clean up after him. He’ll need to be walked every day, though. This breed is pretty energetic.” Concerned, I stared at her, second-guessing. “Do you think you can handle this? I don’t want you to be overwhelmed. I know you get tired easily outside in this summer heat. I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”
“Don’t worry. We can walk him together in the evenings you aren’t doing your night shift rotation. It’s cooler then. That way his paws won’t get burned on the concrete. We can take him to play in the park down the street. I think he’ll be a great addition to our family. I love him already.” She picked up the squirming puppy and turned toward me. “He’s definitely not a purse puppy, is he?”
Laughter escaped me. “No, he’s not; but he still looks good on you.” I took the wriggling dog from her and set him on the ground. Straightening, I pulled her into my arms. “I love you. If the dog is too much, I can take him back. I just worry about you being lonely.”
“You don’t need to. I’m not just sitting around twiddling my thumbs, you know. True, I’m not putting out fires and saving people’s lives, but between the music gig, homework, and keeping this place clean, I’m staying pretty busy.”
“I’m glad you’ve been able to work from home. I know you haven’t always felt well with this pregnancy.” I kissed the top of her head. “I simply want you to be happy and not overworked.”
“I am happy. I couldn’t have a better life.” She grinned. “I’m exactly where I want to be.”
“Good, because I can’t imagine a life any better than this, either. I love you, Cami.”
“I love you, too.” She popped up on her toes to kiss me and I squeezed her tightly to me. We both started chuckling. “That baby is really starting to come between us, you know what I mean?” I asked as she slid my hands down to her stomach.
“I’m getting pretty fat, aren’t I?” She frowned a bit.
I snorted and dragged her back to me. “There’s not an ounce of fat on you. And you’re beautiful. I love knowing that part of me is growing inside you.”
She snickered. “Does that make you feel manly?”
Grinning, I nodded. “You bet. I’m thinking of having you wear a sign that says, “My husband did this,” just so everyone knows how awesome I am.”
Rolling her eyes, she giggled. “You’re hardly the first man to get his wife pregnant.”
“True. But how many can say they did it while their wife was on birth control?”
“Probably way more than you know. Besides, that doesn’t bode well for our future birth control needs.”
I shrugged. “We can try something else, or just have a bunch of kids. I’m okay with either, really.”
“Seriously?” She seemed surprised by that comment. “As long as it’s with you, I don’t care what size family we have. I simply want us to be happy—just like we are right now.” I bent to kiss her again, only to be interrupted by loud yapping from Oreo. Glancing down to where he was hopping about at our feet, I sighed. “That’s it. The dog has to go.”