Absently, Tommie brushed the delicate curls from the baby’s face.  They’d been a dirty blonde when she was first born, but were slowly turning a dark auburn as she aged, framing angelic blue eyes.  How could she have ever been afraid of this?  But she had been.  And because of it, she’d robbed both the man she loved and the daughter she’d come to adore their chance of knowing the other.  Well, almost, she amended mentally, considering William was next to her again.  “‘Ello, again,” she mumbled.  Unsure of how to proceed she finally moved her daughter so as to offer her to her father, eyes still averted.  ”Been callin’ ‘er Meredith.”

Tommie’s eyes shot open at the sound of her lover’s voice, smiling out of reflex.  She sat up, probably too quickly by the shot of pain in her stomach and how lightheaded she felt.  But she was so happy to see him!  ”Welcome home,” she said, voice warbling with joy.

She reaches out to her side in the dark, hoping to find William’s body.  Panic sets in until she remembers he’s gone for a few days, meeting with the Iroquois.  Shaking, tears threatening to spill from fear of loss, she curls back up, ignoring that his side is abnormally cool, burying her face in his pillow.

"Another?”  Tommie huffed, slumped backward on one of William’s plush chairs.  ”One is ‘ard enough ta handle!  I only jus’ got ‘er down for a nap!”  The younger woman didn’t want to admit she still had nerves about giving birth, even though she’d already gone through it and ended up with a beautiful daughter.  But at the same time… That comment could technically be a proposition.  ”We ‘ave a couple hours ‘fore Meredith wakes up, so consider my answer a ‘maybe’.”

Tommie stirred slightly when she felt a body press closer against hers.  She was unwilling to wake fully, scrunching her eyes shut further and rolling over into her pillow as much as her pregnant stomach would allow.  The soft voice in her ear forced her into consciousness reluctantly, a sleepy smile tugging at her lips anyway.  ”No,” she replied petulantly.  As much as she loved the tender way he ran his hand over her belly, she still grabbed his hand and curled it up to her heart, snuggling into her lover’s embrace.

Tommie hummed softly in her sleep, stirring slightly but too tired to wake up fully.  She opened one eye blearily, oblivious to the uncomfortable position she’d trapped him in, smiling groggily and leaning up to kiss his cheek before settling back down.  With a sigh she nestled herself further again William, his familiar scent and warmth and touch comforting her even as she fell back asleep.

“Alright, d’ya think we can ‘ave somethin’ to eat, too?” Even as she asked, her stomach lurched at the idea of putting anything in it.  She shifted in her seat a moment, torn between wanting food and something to drink and not wanting to lose it all over William’s floors.  Tea she could probably do, she hoped anyway, and it might help with the shaking.  It was far from what she really thirsted for, even though she’d sworn herself off it at least until the little one was born.