Unlook'd for joy in that I honour most

"Daddy, I'm so glad you could come by." To be honest, I was afraid he might not. I'm married and have a home of my own. It's the whole 'I should be a responsible adult' thing. And there were a few things I wanted to talk about to my dad. I would have to talk to Jared at some point in time but not yet.

"Kitten, when have I ever failed you?" He looked at me with one eye brow raised. "I've always been there for you and that's going to be true for as long as I live."

"Well, you do have Mason and Dixie at home still. I don't want to keep you from them too much."

Dad slowly shook his head. "Kitten, you are a long way from doing that. They have Shannon who spends as much time as she can with them. For a long time, it was just you and me. You can still count on me, though maybe not quite as much as when you lived at home."

We went inside since dusk was rapidly turning to nightfall.

"Now why did you want me to come over, Kitten? I can tell it's not about music, you didn't ask me over as Mr Bass Man." I saw his eyes flicker for a moment. "And you should be very aware by now that I'm a worrier. I hate not knowing things. Life is stressful enough as it is."

"I'm sorry if asking you over caused you to worry." I should have known better then to ring without a brief explanation. Daddy does have anxiety issues. "It's nothing for you to be concerned over. I just wanted to ask a couple of questions."

"And you couldn't ask on the phone?"

"No, daddy, I couldn't. You see, I wanted to talk about babies. How did Mum tell you when she was pregnant."

He rubbed one temple for a moment. "Actually, it was your Aunt Brooke who knew first. Alaina and I didn't realise why she'd been feeling off..."

I was watching his eyes closely and could see when he knew why I'd asked him over. He pulled me into a hug. "Kitten, you think that you're having a baby?"

"Pretty sure, daddy. I have an appointment tomorrow to confirm it but I've been feeling nauseous a lot lately."

"I'm going to be a granddad? Wow." He blinked a couple of times. "Umm, wait I'm not old enough for to be a granddad." Daddy was actually grinning like an idiot, no matter what he said.

"But the problem is that Jared and I haven't even talked about children. What if he doesn't any now? What if he doesn't want any ever? And I don't even know if I'm ready."

"Stop worrying, that's my job." Dad smiled at me. "I'm not sure that anyone is ever really ready for a baby. It's one of the ultimate learn-as-you-go experiences. As for telling Jared, sooner is better. Be prepared for him to be a little quiet at first. It will be a bit of a shock. If he doesn't come around soon, kick his sorry arse to the curb."

"Daddy!"

"Seriously, he should be supportive. But my impression of him is that he'll love the idea of being a father and he'll be there for you."

Dad gave me a final hug and went home. I spent a restless night worrying about the next day.

Fairly early the next morning, I went to the hospital for a check up. The test results came back positive, I was definitely pregnant.

Since I'd suspected it for a couple of weeks, I'd had a chance to prepare myself. I hadn't really thought about kids before getting pregnant but Jared and I have a lovely home, some money to spare and it wasn't like having a baby would put an end to my career. I had a band, we could meet whenever.

The tricky part was definitely telling the daddy-to-be that we would soon be a family of three. I was nervous and decided to wait until dinner to try.

"So how was your day today, Jared?"

He stopped eating for a moment. "It was pretty awful. I was manning the desk and you wouldn't believe how many people came in. I didn't even know that many people lived around here."

"Really?"

"Well, nearly. I've been answering questions, asking more questions and filling out forms all day. It's exhausting." He sighed. "One of them was a pretty nasty accident. I think everyone in the car was seriously injured. The cops at the scene handed me the notes to type up while he went to inform relatives."

"You poor baby." This did not sound like a good time to bring up my news. If it made him happy, it would be fine but it might not. I decided that perhaps the morning would be a better time.

I had another restless night. It was full of bad dreams about accidents and unknown threats.

Eventually I gave up and found a book to read. I didn't want to keep Jared awake just because I couldn't sleep.

An hour later, I heard footsteps on the stairs.

"Honey," Jared said softly. "Are you okay? The bed is very lonely without you."

I looked up at my handsome hubby, "I wasn't sleeping very well and I didn't want to keep you awake too."

I closed the book and stood up. It was time to tell him. "I went to the hospital yesterday."

His eyes grew big, "I hope it isn't serious. Please tell me it isn't serious."

"Well," I said. "It's kind of serious. Jared, I'm pregnant."

For an awful moment, he just sort of stood there, staring. Then he got the biggest grin. "Pregnant? We're pregnant? We're going to have a baby?"

"Yes, we're going to have a baby." My fears of his reaction melted away.

"Do you think I can feel anything yet?"

"You can try but I don't think you'll feel anything but me." Jared patted my tummy for a moment any way.

"I can't feel the baby," he said sadly.

"You will be able to, I can promise you that. So you are all right with this? We haven't talked about babies."

His answer was a cheeky grin and a big smooch. When he eventually let me go, he said, "Yes, I want this baby. I love the idea that you and I will have a baby. Do you think it's a boy or a girl? Did they tell you at the hospital?"

"I told them I didn't want to know. It will be more fun to have the surprise, don't you think?"

"I guess. I think I'd like a boy though."

I laughed and he looked hurt for a moment. "Daddy said you'd want a boy. I think it's cute that he was right."

"Your dad is a great guy. I like him a lot."  He glanced at his watch.  "Bye Cat, I have to hustle to get to work on time. You take care of yourself and that baby."

"I will, Mr Policeman. You take care too. Don't drown in paperwork."

Since Jared was going to be at work all day, I decided to go over to the town park and see if I could raise a little money by busking. Merlot was available for some practice and my dad promised to drop by later as well.

It was a pretty quiet day at the park. Clayton came by for awhile with his dad. And that was the extent of our audience.

Clayton did grow up well, I must admit. If I didn't have a spouse already, I'd give him another chance. Except, he's not available either. He married a few weeks before Jared and I did. At least we are back to being friends again. Having friends who have known you since forever is a good thing.

So the busking was a bust. Thomas dropped a few bucks in the jar but he was pretty much the only one. I wonder what we have to do to earn a gig in town?

"Honey, I bought a little gift for you. It's not a lot but I just want you to know how happy you make me."

"Jared, this isn't fair. I didn't get you anything."

"You gave me something this morning. Granted, I don't get to see the baby for some time but that's a big gift. I'm going to owe you many many things to make up for that one."

"Jared, thank you. You are just the sweetest thing."

"I try, Cat. I try. And I want you to know that I love you. I love that baby too."

"I must be doing something right to have someone as great as you in my life, Jared Grant."

"I feel the same, Cat."

---
Bonus Pics

Apparently I like taking pics of him eating.

Merlot rings Catherine to come hang out. This is how he greets her.

Merlot, no, you lost out to Jared. Cat is happy and is not impressed by your chest. Just forget it and have fun with your housemate.