I Won't Give Up

by Sophie Monroe

  But until then I’ll be with you through the dark

  Yes until then I’ll be with you through the dark

  Who else can say that about you baby

  Who else can say that about you now

  Who else can take all your blood and your curses

  Nobody I’ve seen you hanging around

  She clapped happily while devouring her food and I was enjoying watching her. I went to take a buffalo wing off her plate and she slapped my hand away just like the first time I saw her here. She moved her hand and put on a playful pout I made sure to moan when I took the first bite. I felt her hand trail up my thigh and instantly got hard.

  “Baby, just eat.” I didn’t want to walk around sporting wood all day, it was hard enough to control it on a normal day cause she was so fucking hot but pregnancy had made her insatiable; a she devil, but trying not to think about had only made me harder. She was lightly stroking me through my jeans so I moved my hand over up her skirt until I found pay dirt, I brushed my lips lightly against hers and she deepened it to a full-blown make out session. I felt her stiffen before coming around my fingers.

  “I need you.” She whispered, her voice thick with lust.

  She deftly undid my zipper freeing “little Cooper” before lifting the back of her skirt and lowering herself onto me inch by inch.

  “I didn’t know that you were such an exhibitionist baby.”

  “I blame pregnancy.”

  She lifted up and down picking up the pace, I felt her let go again moaning my name loudly causing me to follow shortly after. My favorite place in the world was inside of her. It made me feel whole. Once I was sure she was satisfied I fed her chocolate cake before telling her it was time to go. I felt my nerves jumbling. Once we walked out the door there was the horse drawn Cinderella carriage I had booked for the night.

  “Is this for us?” She asked with a shocked look on her face. I nodded. She said when she was a little girl she wanted to be like Cinderella. I helped her into the carriage putting the blanket over our legs and wrapping my arms around her making sure she was warm enough. She was smiling brightly the entire time. We stopped at a light, the same light that she almost killed me at, the light that I saw her for the first time. I pulled my arms free and looked her in they eyes.

  “Fiona, you are the earth beneath my feet, my gravity. You are my lifeline, my everything.” I dropped to one knee and pulled the ring from my pocket. I opened the box and revealed my moms engagement ring that belonged to my grandma before her. It was a princess cut diamond in an antique setting nestled in white gold. “Fiona, please accept this ring. It will symbolize my promise to always be true, to never pressure you, to listen to your problems and be the solution. I vow to always make you feel safe, happy and loved. I promise to move all your heavy furniture around, leave the toilet seat down and put my dirty laundry in the hamper, always. Will you marry me?”

  “Yes. Yes. Yes.” She beamed. “Thank you for not putting it in my food, I definitely would have eaten it.” She laughed making me laugh knowing that it was closer to the truth than either of wanted to admit. I pulled her into a kiss. This was one of the happiest moments of my life, the other being when she told me she was pregnant but the best were yet to come, our wedding and the birth of our baby.

  The rest of the evening went off without incident.

  Christmas morning came and she opened her presents I had gotten her a necklace from Tiffany & Co. it was a heart shaped locket with a keyhole and key attached, some new maternity clothes, and perfume. She bought me some bigger t-shirts, a new pair of badass bike boots and a black leather cuff that said I won’t give up. We had everyone over for dinner that night. I decided to test out my culinary skills making some of my mom’s recipes. I made a spiral ham and sweet potato casserole covered with marshmallows. Everyone seemed to approve.

  We spent New Years Eve at Gabby and Luke’s and rang in the new year with a magical kiss. This year was looking to be the best year yet, we’d get to welcome our baby into the world and were planning on getting married this summer.

 

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Full Circle

  Fiona

  The day had finally arrived and we were going to find out whether we were having a boy or a girl. We were almost at the appointment and I was practically bouncing in my seat. I couldn’t wait to paint the nursery and pick out bedding. As Cooper pulled into the parking lot his phone rang.

  “Baby I need to get this I’ll just be a minute.” He climbed out of the car and I was wondering what was going on with all the secretive phone calls lately. I trusted him implicitly so I wasn’t worried just curious. A few minutes later he came to my side and opened the door offering me his hand to help me out of his new SUV that was more like a tank. Once we were called to the back I could hardly contain my excitement but I really had to pee, they made me drink like a gallon of water and I was worried as soon as they pressed the wand to my stomach I was going to pee my pants but Cooper aka Mr. Research said they needed my bladder to be full so they could get a clear picture.

  When they called us into the room the tech pushed my shirt up and squirted some cold gel on my belly button before rolling the wand over my stomach. I saw the side profile of the face, arms and legs. I saw an extra appendage. She held the wand there.

  “Looks like you’re having a baby boy. Congratulations.” The tech announced. I looked at Cooper his eyes were glassed over with tears. He squeezed my hand slightly to let me know he heard. He bent and whispered he loved me in my ear making my heart speed up. She printed us some ultrasound photos and said she’d see us again before we delivered. We stopped and had a late lunch on the way home. Cooper was so excited we were having a son. I was going to have a mommy’s little boy. He called his dad. I called my mom, dad and Luke.

  “I think I’m leaning towards Mason. What do you think?”

  “I love it baby. I think it’s perfect. What do you think about Lucas for a middle name.”

  I was surprised he wanted to name him after Luke I thought maybe he’d want Cooper or Kurt or maybe after one his grandfathers.

  “I like it but you don’t have to do that for me.”

  “Baby I owe Luke a lot. Besides he’s honest and loyal and I want our son to have to have those traits.” I felt tears prick my eyes and I thanked him.

  We went home and made love before falling into a sated and blissful nights sleep.

  A week had passed and Cooper finally got this important phone call he was waiting for. He came into the den after he hung up.

  “Well that was the private investigator that your dad and I hired. I didn’t want you to feel frightened or unsafe before but now that everything is fine I want to tell you what happened. Remember when your dad came and took your R8?”

  I nodded.

  “It wasn’t to get work done, the windshield was smashed. It was Garrett. Some how Gigi ended up bailing him out of jail. I want to stress that you were never in any danger. Anyways the rock that was used was tied to Garrett in turn breaking the conditions of his release he’s back in jail and will not be being released for a very long time. Turns out that precious Gigi isn’t as clean as we all thought either she’s being charged with attempted murder, embezzlement, fraud, and perjury. Everything’s going to be fine.”

  I took in a deep breath. Feeling a burden I didn’t even know I was carrying being lifted from me.

  Winter turned to spring.

  The trials were expedited due to the nature of the crimes committed and the damming evidence collected by both the Fed’s and the private investigator that we’d hired. We’d gotten a call earlier from the DA saying that Giovanni was given a sentence of life without parole, turns out they were able to link him to some cold cases as well. Eli was charged as an accomplice and given a sentence of ten years. Garrett was given a sentence of twenty-five to life for the attempted rape of me, the attempted murder of Cooper, kidnapping, assault and battery along with a string
of other offences he racked up while working for Giovanni. Knowing he was going to be away for a long time was a huge relief since he was the one I was most worried about. Cooper had explained everything that happened while he fought for Giovanni but I knew he wasn’t like them. All he ever did was show up the night of the fight, he’d fight, usually win and wait for the next call. He didn’t really have too many dealings with Giovanni other than the initial meeting and when he wanted out. He’d speak briefly with him at the fights but he never got brought into the actual business end. I wouldn’t have cared even if he had it’s not like he killed anyone and frankly anything that happened prior to us getting together was ancient history at this point.

  Luke met a nice girl named Alexis. She wasn’t the type that he usually went for. She had reddish-brown hair and an oval face. She had big brown eyes and a petite frame, which was made even more petite every time she stood next to him. She was smart and funny and wasn’t at all like the bitchy girls he usually hung around but he admitted that they were usually just for sex and that he saw “long term potential” with Alexis. She was from Boston and down here for school. Her home situation was a lot like ours in the fact that she came from old money. Her dad was a neurosurgeon and her mom was an attorney. They met at the school library where he enrolled to finish up his degree in finance. They were perfect for one another and it made me ecstatic to see him so happy. We all adored her and we were hoping maybe we’d have even more wedding bells in our future.

  Life was really looking up for everyone. I think my mom had a crush on Kurt. It seemed like she was always flirting with him, which was awkward but if she was happy I think we’d all be fine with it, well except my dad maybe.

  I was looking forward to school ending. Graduation was only a little over a month away. I was becoming increasingly uncomfortable and as much as I loved being pregnant I couldn’t wait to meet our son. The nursery was all set up. Cooper painted the room a pale blue with a red accent wall where the crib was set up. Cooper and Luke had redone the floors in a mocha color to match the furniture. We had gotten an oversized plush area rug to put in the middle of the floor everything was in the nautical theme. We got mocha colored furniture and hung a mobile with sailboats and anchors above the crib. We adorned the walls with pictures and large wooden letters for his name. Mason. Sometimes I would sit in the glider chair in his room, it was peaceful and serene. I couldn’t wait until he was in my arms. I wondered who he’d look like. Hopefully he’d be a good mix of both of us.

  Cooper decided to open up a motorcycle shop. I was happy he was able to turn his hobby into a business. Luke was his partner at the shop and from what I’ve heard a very quick learner though he would eventually end up running more of the business aspect in the long run.

  I’ve been spending most of my free time with my mom. I’ve enjoyed getting our relationship back to where it used to be. I know my parents will never reconcile but at least they were amicable.

  We’ve started on wedding plans aiming for an August wedding at my childhood home. I couldn’t wait to marry Cooper. I felt like the luckiest girl in the world knowing that some people search their whole lives looking for what I already have. We were preparing dinner for the entire family tonight. I finished assembling the lasagna while she made meatballs and pasta, the smell of sausage and peppers waifing though the air was making my mouth water. Cooper arrived first and headed up to shower. Luke and Alexis showed up an hour later bringing a bottle of wine and dessert. My dad and Kurt arrived five minutes apart from one another. We all sat down at our oversized dining room table. Cooper proposed a toast.

  “Thank you for joining us tonight. Thank you for my beautiful fiancé and my future mother in law for preparing it. It smells amazing! To health and happiness. Let’s eat.” Everyone dug in and filled their plates, they boys going in for seconds and thirds. After dinner we moved to the living room where our little guy was playing soccer in my tummy. Alexis was in awe and kept asking me if it hurt, it didn’t. She said she wanted two kids making Luke’s eyes bug out of his head. Cooper laughed and said he wanted as many as I’d give him. He wouldn’t take his hand off my stomach the entire night. Once everyone said good-bye we turned in for the night Cooper helped me get in the bath which was getting more difficult each time, we were also having to get creative with our positions but we were having fun trying.

  The next month flew by and before we knew it we were taking our finals.

  It was hard to believe that almost exactly a year ago I thought everything good in my life was over. I realized sometimes things have to fall apart so that something better can come along.

  During my last exam I was having a hard time keeping my eyes open but I managed. I passed all of my exams with flying colors. My mom was taking us out to a celebratory dinner that night and she was also calling a family meeting.

  I went home and changed into a floor length black maxi dress that Cooper bought me last week since that was the only thing that I felt comfortable in that would fly at the Délicieux Bistro. Cooper changed into a pair of black trousers and a gray button up. He had been smirking about something since this morning but every time I asked him what was going on he would tell me he had no idea what I was talking about. Once it was time to go he helped me into his SUV and we headed to the neighboring town for dinner. We were last to arrive and I could tell by the way everyone was acting that something was going on. My dad kissed me on the cheek while Cooper pulled my chair out. My mom was grinning about something, I was happy to see her color return, her vibrancy was back.

  As everyone enjoyed their fancy French delicacies I stuffed my face with a shrimp po’boy making Cooper laugh at me. They were asking how we felt about graduating and if we were all ready for the baby to arrive. Towards the end my mom and Kurt stood at the end of the table to make an announcement. Cooper held my one hand while my dad held my other, what the hell was going on?

  “We’d like to thank everyone for coming and celebrating Fiona and Cooper’s last day of high school and we are all looking forward to the graduation this weekend. We are so proud of both of you. For being so young you are both already accomplishing so much and soon you will be bringing new life into the world. I personally cannot wait to meet my grandson though I hardly look like a grandma.” She winked at me.

  “Cooper.” Kurt was choking up. “I know that mom is looking down on you and she would be so proud. I know she wanted all of these things for you. I don’t know that she meant this soon but regardless she would be ecstatic for you. All both of us ever wanted was for you to be happy and you’ve found that in one another. I never thought I’d find anyone after Holly died. She was my everything but I think I’m starting to find that piece by piece with someone new.” He put his hand adoringly on my mom’s shoulder. I looked at my dad who just smiled and shrugged. “Gabby and I started seeing one another about a month ago, after I got Levi’s blessing of course. I know this might be um… weird but I promise to treat her like the princess she is.” This time I looked at Cooper who was smiling fondly at his dad. Then I thought back to the dinner at our house a month ago when my dad and Kurt walked in together. I guess I suspected as much and as long as they were happy I’d be happy for them not that I didn’t find it a little weird but Cooper and I were together first.

  We had dessert and I talked to my dad a bit and he said that Kurt had talked to him before he even approached my mom and he found that noble. My dad said it made him a little sad but knew that it could have been different had he made different decisions he knew my mom would have never left my dad for Kurt. He said he would never deny her happiness and that he would always love her especially since she gave him us. I guess we were all doing a lot of growing this year. Towards the end I couldn’t stop yawning so Cooper decided it was time to go home. When we got home he tucked me in to bed climbing in beside me telling me how much he loved me.

  The next morning we had a doctor’s appointment, turns out I’m three centimeters dilated and they are hopin
g that I won’t go into labor before graduation in two days. Cooper was pep talking to my stomach after the doctor left causing me to crack up. When we got home he double, make that triple checked the hospital bags making sure everything we needed was in there. He carried them to the car saying that I’d be in too much pain for him to remember them when it actually happened.

  When graduation finally arrived I donned my cap and gown, which made me look like a beached whale but I didn’t really care. Everyone already knew that we were pregnant I’m sure it would make some great conversation for out of state relatives visiting.

  When we arrived I found out that Cooper had made previous arrangements with the principal to sit next to me so he could help me up the stairs, I said I wasn’t an invalid but he insisted and I didn’t have the energy to argue with him. We got our diplomas, our families cheered us on, we tossed our caps in the air. When we were leaving Jack approached me for the first time since the beginning of the year..

  “You look nice Fi.” He said awkwardly.

  “Um. Thanks, I think.” I wasn’t sure where he was going with this conversation.

  “You’re a lucky guy Cooper. Take care of her, I wish I had.”

  “I fully intend to.”

  Jack gave me an awkward half hug. I didn’t really have anything to say to him since he’d pretty much abandoned me when I needed him most. We talked with a couple more people who promised to keep in touch, bleh.

  I started getting crampy from standing too long. I felt all the muscles in my stomach tighten.

  “Cooper I think I’m starting to have contractions.” His eyes bugged out of his head and he looked at his watch.

  “How far apart?”

  “Not close. I think I’ve been standing too long, too much excitement maybe.”

  “Okay let’s go.” He tugged on my hand making his way through the crowd. He called his dad letting him know we were going home and that we wouldn’t be making the dinner reservation they made. Kurt insisted on bringing dinner to us then. I kept saying I was fine and to let everyone come over, Cooper reluctantly agreed. He rushed us home and made me sit on the couch with my feet on the ottoman before he brought me a glass of Perrier and some crackers. I snuggled close to his side. The contractions subsided. Everyone arrived for dinner that my mom set up buffet style in the kitchen. Cooper made me a plate and insisted that I stay put even though I was feeling fine now. Around eight everyone said goodbye’s and I headed to bed.