“So, it’s a happy secret?” I ask, nudging him.


    “No, I’m taking you to a sewage nt. I thought you would enjoy the smell since everything seems to set you off nowadays.”


    He’s not wrong about that. Things that never used to bother me suddenly turn my stomach. Even the smell of coffee. Ste swears that’s perfectly normal, and everything I’ve read online backs that up, but I can’t wait until things go back to normal.


    Considering I’m going to get a baby out of the whole thing, it’s not that much of a sacrifice.


    So, this is what it’s like, being part of a family. It’s been so long since thest time I felt like I had one. I hardly remember those days, and I’ve tried.


    This is the next best thing. Joking around with my best friend and my husband while my baby sleeps soundly. Of course, they are, now that I’m not trying to fall asleep. The dance party usually starts up after dinner. I don’t mind that, either, even if I miss sleeping. I get the feeling I should get used to going without as much as I want. Things aren’t going to get easier once the baby arrives.


    “Just a few minutes more.” His left leg bounces up and down now. The closer we get, the more excited he is.


    I’ve never seen him like this. This has to be better than good, whatever it is.This text is ? N?velDrama/.Org.


    He slows the car before turning onto a narrow road which soon opens onto a gravel driveway. Now he drops the speed further until we’re almost crawling. Something about this is vaguely familiar.


    “Have I been here before?” I look at him, then at Ste. She has a funny look on her face.


    “No… Not here, though it does look familiar.” She stares out the window, frowning. “Uncanny.”


    “What is this? Tell me. No joking.” I’m speaking to Niki but staring out the windshield. Every roll of the wheels makes me more convinced I’ve been here in the past. When I was little, of course.


    “You tell me.”


    He nods, and I follow the direction he’s looking in. Now I can’t believe my eyes. Now I know what I’m looking at…at least, what I think I’m looking at. It can’t be, though.


    “Niki!” Ste ces her hands against the window. I turn my head to watch her. She looks like she’s on the verge of a meltdown, but in a good way. If there is such a thing. “How did you do this? Is this the surprise?”


    “You’re looking at your new home if you’d be so inclined to share it with us. There’s plenty of space. You should know that.”


    “Julia,” Her hand grips my shoulder now, hard enough to make me wince. “Do you know what it is? Do you recognize it?”


    “If… I had to guess,” I venture, “it’s the house I lived in when I was little.”


    “Close. It’s a replica of your childhood home.” He takes us the rest of the way up a winding driveway before pulling to a stop in the circr courtyard. Ste weeps softly in the back seat while I stare up at the sto walls, the tile roof, and the lushndscaping.


    He turns in his seat to look at both of us. “I located the ns for the original house. I wanted you, Julianna, to live somewhere that reminds you of how life was before your grandma died and your parents began mistreating you,”


    “But we didn’t need a new house.” Why that’s the first thing thates to mind, I don’t know. My brain’s not moving in a linear fashion right now.     Yes, I had tons of memories in this house. I lived here with my grandma, she was my world, she never let my parents scold me or even be rude to me.


    After her death, dad sold this house and we moved to California and after that San Francisco.


    “No, but you can’t pretend being in my home doesn’t remind you of everything I did. I don’t want to put you through that. You deserve a new home where you can build new memories. With our family.”


    He looks at Ste next. “I meant what I said a minute ago. I would be happy to have you living here with us. You’d have all the time you want with this child and the others whoe after them. You and Juliana would have the opportunity to be together, too. You deserve that.”


    My heart’s too full to speak. I look back at Ste, waiting for her to respond.


    Instead of saying it in words, she bursts out of the car and runs around to the driver’s door. Niki opens it and barely manages to get on his feet before she throws her arms around him. “Thank you. Thank you.” He pats her back and murmurs about it being his pleasure.


    She leans in a little. “Youing in to look around?”


    I’m sure I’ve never seen her this happy, except maybe when she learned about the baby.


    “Give me a minute. I need to take it all in.” I open the door, and Niki is quick to hurry over to help me. Under any other conditions, I’d wave him off, but right now, I need all the help I can get.


    “What gave you this idea?” I ask once I’m on my feet. “And how the hell did you keep it a secret?”


    He’s glowing from his cleverness and pride. “I made sure the contractors andndscapers knew their asses were entirely mine if they so much as whispered to their girlfriends about this project. Word spreads fast. They signed agreements to keep it confidential.”


    “Smart.”


    “As for myself…” He grins, shrugging. “I told myself it would be worth watching you when we arrived. Are you happy?”


    “Happy?” It seems like such a needless question. Don’t I look it? “I’ve never been so happy in my whole life.”


    “Then it was all worth it.” He pulls me in for a hug, kissing the top of my head. “Every bit. I can’t wait to watch you make it a home. You have everything you want at your fingertips. The sky’s the limit.”


    He leans down, his lips brushing my ear. “And while this is a replica of your childhood home, where you were once young and innocent, make no mistake about it. I intend to degrade you in every single room, in every way possible.”


    “I’d be worried if that wasn’t on your mind.”


    We exchange a knowing smile before starting toward the house. I can’t wait to explore. I can’t wait to raise a family here.


    With my husband at my side, always.