UNDER CONSTRUCTION, CHAPTER 30

 

Charlie was amazed at how quickly the days and months passed. She’d been sure the time would move at the pace of a snail as her body grew big and fat and ungainly. She had also thought there would be plenty of time for her to complete everything she needed to complete before the baby arrived. She’d been both right and wrong.

Once Charlie and Adam had returned from the honeymoon, their first appointment was with the ob-gyn to have the pregnancy officially confirmed as well as to set up future appointments and verify the delivery date. They’d also spent time showing everyone photos and talking about the wonderful safari, especially Charlie. And as soon as the first trimester was past, they began to tell everyone they knew about the forthcoming happy event. Everybody was thrilled to learn the news although Sandi told Charlie that if she spent as much time and energy showing off baby photos once it arrived as she had the Safari photos, her friendship list would surely dwindle down to almost nothing.

Adam’s remodel was also close to being complete upon their return, so he was busy for the first month or so with the punch list, making sure a secure but lovely fence was installed to keep kids from getting into the lake and drowning before if they didn’t know how to swim. There was also the landscaping he pretty much managed on his own with only some minimal help when it came to dump loads of gravel and soil. He did consult Charlie and Ruth Ann about some of the plants he wanted to include because they’d lived their whole lives in the area. He also wanted to make sure he didn’t plant anything that would be poisonous to children or pets.

The one thing Adam had done in early spring before the wedding and honeymoon was to plan out and install the raised planting beds he wanted so Charlie and her mamma could plant their garden. He’d never had a garden so he hung out with them during the time they worked on it and helped as much as possible because the very idea of a garden at this point in time annoyed the hell out of Charlie…”Plant a garden with everything else that’s going on in our lives?” she’d exploded when she found the planting beds. But they’d gotten it planted and her mamma looked after them while they were gone. Adam looked forward to learning how to freeze and can the harvested vegetables. He counted on Ruth Ann because he knew Charlie wouldn’t be amenable to the process.

The one thing he insisted Charlie help with was the selection of furnishings for the remodeled house. There were certain things of his he would keep and certain things of hers that would come over from her little house. They planned to rent out her little house, at least for a while before deciding if they should sell or keep it.

When it came to furniture, they were amazingly on the same page. Both liked bright colors as well as comfortable. As a result, the area rugs were very abstract in design and colorful. The furniture was large with big comfy cushions in a couple of colors drawn from the rugs. The various wedding gifts, once removed from their boxes went into cupboards, were placed around the home or returned if it was a duplicate item or they agreed they didn’t particularly like it. And, when it came to the wedding gifts, Adam didn’t just rely on Charlie to do all the thank-you cards. While she wrote what they decided to say, he addressed and stamped the envelopes. Charlie was very grateful for that since she’d heard most other brides complain about having to do it all.

Adam’s remodel had included three bedrooms as well as two small offices, one for each of them, so they decorated one for the baby. Since they didn’t want to know the sex before the birth, they’d stayed away from blue and pink. The creamy yellow walls, decorated with baby animal photos, a big dark wood crib and matching changing table were complemented by the bright yellow cushions on the rocker and footstool.

Meanwhile, Charlie’s mamma had decided to convert her old room into the baby’s room. Ruth Ann was annoyed by their decision to not know the baby’s sex. How was she supposed to decorate anything? If she did blue and boy stuff, it would be a girl and vice versa. Charlie told her to do what she’d done when pregnant with her…”Make it up so it will fit either sex.” That still didn’t make Ruth Ann happy, but she went ahead with pale white walls and decorated with both touches of pink and blue as well as toys that would delight the baby no matter the sex. Charlie was sure her mamma was counting on babysitting on a daily basis while Charlie worked in her office and Adam wrote. So far, Charlie had avoided talking about Adam keeping the baby while she worked and vice versa. That would not make granny the least bit happy.

Since Charlie knew she would have to take time off, not necessarily want to take time off, but have to, she worked toward that goal. First, she talked to Stephanie about becoming the office manager which would make her responsible for all the daily chores which Charlie normally handled. She would work with human resources and the accountants as well as all the project managers to direct and oversee the various projects for which the company was responsible while Charlie was out of the office.

Next, she talked to Dennis about him becoming the company’s representative with new clients and projects. While he hadn’t been with the company as long as some of her folks, she knew he would be perfect for the job. She also knew the other company employees would see that as well. Dennis was delighted to take on those responsibilities while Charlie was out.

Charlie also talked to her daddy about maybe spending one day a week in the office as a resource for both Stephanie and Dennis. He was agreeable, actually delighted, to return and would have signed on for five-day weeks, but Charlie told him he needed to let Stephanie and Dennis grow into their new roles. He agreed, but he would have preferred to be there full-time.

For the last couple of months, Charlie worked with both Stephanie and Dennis so they would be comfortable in their positions when she left to give birth. As both individuals moved up to take on more responsibilities, Charlie was actually happy about their enthusiasm and abilities to take over. She really didn’t want to admit it, but being pregnant wasn’t the easiest task she’d ever undertook.

Charlie didn’t get hugely fat or ungainly as she’d assumed she would. She was still fairly slim except for the large protrusion in front. As time progressed and the baby grew, Charlie began to believe she had more than one in there because of the amount of her body it seemed to occupy. Even when she questioned the doctor, she was assured there was only one. Still, when she had to sit or stand up as tall as possible because the hands or feet were pushing her lungs into her throat, she couldn’t believe one small baby could possibly make her so uncomfortable. And that didn’t take into account the bladder issue. Charlie drank a lot of water, always had, and over time, it looked as though she should just move into a bathroom because it seemed like she spent more than half her time in one.

For the last couple of months, the baby decided awake time had to coincide with Charlie’s sleep time. Even Adam was amazed at how the baby kicked hard enough for him to feel it when Charlie’s belly was up against his back. Then, there were the swollen ankles rivaled only by her swollen boobs. Adam, of course, loved the fact her breasts had increased so much in size, but Charlie was used to much smaller ones that didn’t get in the way. The new boobs seemed to bump into almost anything and anyone, sometimes much to Charlie’s embarrassment. Her mamma and Sandi, and any other woman who’d given birth and had the opportunity to weigh in told her that was nothing, that just “…wait until that milk comes in honey. You think them things are big now, you just wait.”

On the other hand, Charlie had feelings she’d never had before. She felt so tender and loving toward the lump in the front of her body. Her hands seemed to caress it often and of their own accord. Sometimes she didn’t even realize she was rubbing her belly until the baby kicked or punched her hand. She hadn’t expected to feel motherly, at least not until the baby was born, but she found herself fantasizing about a little boy or a little girl and the various things they’d do together.

Charlie, and Adam for that matter, had expected her sexual drive and desire to disappear as her body changed, but it was just the opposite right up until almost the last month. She couldn’t get enough sex and there was times Adam did what he could to bring her to orgasm rather than engage in mutual sex and satisfaction. Initially, Charlie was chagrined. “You don’t find me attractive any more. I look like a cow with these big jugs and this big belly. No wonder you don’t desire me.”

Adam would do his best to reassure his weepy, and sometimes almost hysterical wife with a variation of, “You’re beautiful Charlie. I love you. I do want you, but I’m just so exhausted from moving that pile of rocks.” Or whatever excuse he could muster.

Most of the time Adam was as eager as Charlie and he was amazed at how frequently she wanted sex as well as the various locations and positions she initiated. There was even a part of him that was sure the baby was being affected, but when he asked Charlie’s doctor, the doc just laughed and said, “Adam, honey, you just enjoy it every chance you get. Once that baby arrives and begins making demands, it’s gonna be a whole different story. You’ll be lucky if Charlie has enough energy to even look at you let alone have sex.”

Even though this baby wasn’t Adam’s parent’s first grandchild, they planned to come down for a visit right around her due date. Meanwhile, Charlie and Adam had gone north again for Thanksgiving and spent Christmas with Charlie’s folks. Adam’s siblings kidded the two of them about becoming parents and shared some of the most horrific and amazing stories. Charlie wasn’t sure if they’d scared her half to death on purpose or if some of the stories were actually true. She thanked Adam’s brother and sister and their mates for being so sincere in their encouragement which made them all howl.

At Christmas, Charlie’s mamma talked for almost the entire meal about how much fun it would be to have a little one in the house for the next Christmas. Charlie tried to convince her a nine-month-old wouldn’t be all that enthused about opening packages and pulling down the tree, but Ruth Ann was convinced her first grandchild was going to be a genius and would be absolutely delightful and delighted with Santa and all the Christmas trimmings. The very idea made Charlie feel exhausted.

Adam and Charlie spent a quiet new year at home. It was what they wanted although they did drop in at Sandi’s and Les’ for a glass of punch early in the evening. They were very aware of the fact their two-person partnership would be ending in just a couple of months and decided, almost without discussion, that they wanted to spend as much time just the two of them as possible. They’d partaken of the food Sandi had put out for her guests, so dinner wasn’t an issue. Instead, when they returned home, Adam built a fire and poured them glasses of bubbly, not the alcoholic kind, but the nonalcoholic. They cuddled in front of the fire and toasted each other and the future.

For a while, they lay there, content to be warm and close. Charlie was almost nodding off when Adam’s hand found her breast and began to rub the nipple through her sweater. He’d barely begun when the feeling went directly to Charlie’s clit which stood up and almost demanded immediate sex. Charlie turned to face Adam and reached between them to grasp the hard length of him through his jeans. He kissed her passionately, pushing his tongue in and out of her mouth while she tried to do the same to him. Both of them sat up and Charlie pulled her sweater off over her head. Adam reached out and unclasped her bra which was now several sizes larger than it had ever been. The weight he’d come to know and love now rested in his hands and he gently massaged while rubbing his thumb on her nipple. She moaned and pushed her chest toward him, wanting more, needing more.

Adam watched her heavy breasts sag as he pulled his own shirt off. Then, he lay Charlie back on the blanket and laved her breasts with his tongue and mouth. While that was happening, he pushed the stretchy front of her maternity pants down below her belly and used one hand to rub it gently before moving further down. Adam came back to her mouth and murmured, “We need to get completely naked.” While Adam stood up to remove his pants and boxers, Charlie wiggled around until her pants were around just one ankle. She didn’t care if they came off or not.

Then Adam was back beside her, kissing and loving and making her want and need him to give her more. His hand went down to clasp her sex and as he squeezed, she began to come, so he continued to massage and squeeze until she was panting in completion. He’d held himself back because the one thing he’d learned with his sexually demanding wife, at least during her pregnancy, was that one orgasm was almost always followed by another one or more if he was patient enough.

Adam returned to kissing and stroking Charlie, sucking her nipples into his mouth as hard as he could. He’d learned in birthing class the nipples had to be toughened up or they’d become very sore once the baby began to nurse. He figured he was only doing his part in helping with the preparation. His hard sucks soon sent Charlie right back to almost where she’d been when he’d clutched her pussy just a short time before. Since her belly was starting to get in the way, Adam helped her turn so her ass was presented to him and she was leaning on her forearms.

Charlie was wet and so ready, but Adam teased her by pushing his cock barely inside and then pulling it back. She was moaning and pleading when he took hold of her hips and rammed himself all the way in. His hands left her hips and moved to Charlie’s front where he could stimulate her clit as he increased his thrusts. He moved faster and faster and when he began to feel Charlie’s orgasm begin, he moved even faster, pushing himself deeper until he exploded inside her as she came.

Charlie could barely move beyond allowing her legs to straighten out, but her belly prevented her from lying completely on her tummy. Adam moved with her, still inside until they were spooning in front of the fire which was drying down. He thought perhaps he should get up and add some more wood, but it was so comfortable and he could tell Charlie had already fallen asleep. It was much later when Adam opened his eyes and realized they were still on the floor in front of the fire which was almost out.

He woke Charlie and helped her up and together they made their way in to their bed. They were both almost back to sleep when Adam looked at the clock and found the new year had come. He hugged Charlie and said, “Happy New Year Charlie. Here’s to what’s going to be the best year of our lives.”

Charlie rubbed her ass against him, reached back to pat his bottom and murmured, “G’nite honey. Happy New Year to you too.”

The next sound Adam heard was Charlie’s snore. He smiled as he, too, went to sleep.