CHAPTER 9

Andrew awoke early the following morning and was content to just hold the sleeping angel in his arms as his fingers stroked through her auburn hair and his lips occasionally kissed the top of her head. Andrew still could not believe she had been handling all of this alone for so long and when he thought about it, it made him angry at those who had enforced their separation. Monica had been going through hell over this; sick and afraid and he could have been there from the beginning if only others would stop judging them.

A baby. It hardly seemed possible but yet it was so, and despite how out of place it felt, the thought brought great joy to his heart. A little angel; a smaller version of the beautiful angel who had captured his heart so long ago. He was already hoping the baby was a girl, with cocoa colored eyes and sweet dimples when she smiled.

Gazing down again, he watched her pale face in sleep. He needed to get her something to eat and maybe to a doctor. Surely there had to be a free clinic nearby. She was pregnant and he could tell from holding her all night that she had lost weight and that shouldn't be the case; it was a testimony to how ill she had been for the duration of her pregnancy thus far. But for now, her sweet face was peaceful and he was content just to hold her close and love her in perfect silence. He remained that way for close to two hours before Monica finally opened her eyes.

"Tell me I'm not dreaming." She whispered after a moment.

"Definitely not dreaming," He replied softly as he kissed the top of her head once more, "How did you sleep, Angel?"

"Better than I have in a really long time," Monica snuggled closer to him, listening to the soothing sound of his heart beating beneath her ear. She could feel his hand in her hair and his other hand wrapped around her mid-section and it caused tears to prick the backs of her eyes, "Have I mentioned how wonderful it is to have you here?"

"I think I got that impression one or two times," He teased, before his voice turned serious once more, "But I'm the one who is blessed, Monica, to be back in your presence. You're all I could think about the last several months; finding a way back to you."

She sniffled, not surprised to feel tears trickling down her face as they fell into comfortable silence for a few moments. She was loathe to ask the question, too afraid of the answer; yet she was too afraid not to ask it. She had to know what they were dealing with, "What happens now? How long can you stay? Will Sam be coming for you soon? What about Tess?" Her one question turned into a flurry of frightened inquiries and Andrew was not surprised to feel her begin to tremble.

"Hey, hey," Shifting his weight so he could look into her face, his expression became pained at the sight of her tears, "I'm not going anywhere, okay?"

"But how can you not? We're angels, we just can't-."

Andrew laid his fingertips against her lips, silencing her worries, "I promise you. I'm not leaving you. Okay?" He watched as she slowly nodded her head, yet he could still see deep concern in her dark eyes, "What is it, Angel?"

Monica searched his eyes, looking for something and feeling foolish for needing to hear what she was sure she already knew. Reaching up to take his hand from her face, she drew it down to lay it against her flat stomach. Swallowing hard, a tremble went through her once more, "You never told me…how you feel about this…about the baby. I don't know if you're…happy or…sorry…"

"What? Monica!" His expression was incredulous.

"No, listen to me," The tears were back and she hated them. She wished she had more control over them, but they seemed to be controlling her of late, "I don't always know how to feel about it. I love him or her, I do, but I still don't understand why and that is why I don't know how to feel, and I've had a little bit of time to get used to the idea, which is more than you've had. But I don't want you feeling obligated-."

He was sitting up so fast he startled her and she scrambled to sit up as well, her heart pounding so loudly she was certain he could hear it, "Andrew?"

Turning to her, he grabbed her face in his hands, his eyes so intense she had to look away briefly, "Now you listen to me. Anything that comes from you, from our love for each other, is a gift and nothing less. A precious, precious gift. Were we expecting it? No, of course not, but that doesn't make it anything less than a miracle," He moved his hand to lay it once again against her stomach, "This little one is a part of you, baby, and for that reason alone I would lay down my existence for this little angel. I love this baby and I love you, more than words could ever say. Monica, I think I've loved you since the first moment I met you and it's only grown every moment since that one and I am not sorry for any part of that love. Do you understand me?"

She was sobbing openly and she flung herself into his arms and held on tightly, "I'm sorry…I didn't mean to doubt you. I've just been trying so hard to understand this and there are times I think this baby is a blessing and there are times when I think I'm being punished."

"Angel, why would you think you are being punished?" Andrew asked softly, as his hand rubbed her back soothingly.

"Because….because I've been so sick since getting pregnant," She finally confessed the last of her secrets to him and felt a shuddering sigh of relief go through her, "I can't keep much down; either food or water."

His protective instincts went on high alert at those words as he pulled away to look into her face, now understanding her weight loss and peaked features, "Okay, well, we're not letting another day go by without some answers on why that is and what we can do about it. It certainly isn't good for either you or the baby. Now, when are you supposed to work again?"

"Tonight," Monica sighed softly. She loved the people she was working with and she was certain that under normal circumstances she would be enjoying herself immensely, but she had been feeling so poorly, she spent most of her time in the diner only wishing to go back to sleep.

"And your boss, Allie?"

"This is her house. She lives in the big house next to us."

"Okay," Getting out of bed, Andrew threw on his jeans and t-shirt, "Why don't you, my beautiful angel, go and soak in a warm bath while I go take care of a few things?"

Her dark eyes took on a trace of distress, "Andrew? Where-."

Quickly approaching the bed, he cupped her face in his hands and brushed his lips to hers, "Stop worrying. Let me take care of things for awhile, baby. You've been doing things on your own for awhile now, so please, allow me to carry the load for now."

Andrew's emerald eyes were hopeful and she was unable to suppress a tiny, tired smile, "I think I'd be foolish to deny you that," She rested her hand against his strong jaw, "Thank you."

"Angel, taking care of you does not require any thanks. It is a complete pleasure."

Having already found a small market a few blocks away, Andrew carried the three plastic bags of groceries up to the farm house where Allie resided. He was hoping this would not be awkward.

Allie actually answered the door before he had a chance to knock, her blue eyes suspicious, "Can I help you?"

Andrew cleared his throat and smiled, "Hi Allie. My name is Andrew. I'm…I'm a…friend of Monica's. I was hoping we could talk for a few minutes."

She seemed to sum him up in a glance; this was the man who had somehow, for some reason, left the young woman who had been living with her the last two weeks. He was the one who probably had placed the sadness in those cocoa colored eyes and her gut instinct was to toss him to the curb and tell him to leave Monica the hell alone. Yet, there was a sincerity in his emerald eyes that gave her pause and made her second guess herself. She had nothing to lose by hearing him out, though she was still a bit begrudging as she let him into her kitchen.

"So what is your relationship with Monica?" She had never been one to mince words and she wasn't about to start now.

Andrew actually had to suppress a grin. Seemed that no matter where Monica was or who she met, she inspired a protective instinct in everyone she came into contact with, "Well, I guess that can best be summed up by being the one who loves her the most." He left it at that, as he had a feeling Allie was sizing him up and he had no idea where he stood.

"For the one who loves her the most you certainly have been around the least," She surmised with a pointed look.

"Yes," He agreed slowly, "I'm sure it seems that way…was that way, but it wasn't because I wanted to be away from her, Allie. I couldn't find her; she didn't tell me where she was going because she was afraid of…" He ran a hand through his hair nervously, trying to think of the best way to explain the situation. He knew that Allie didn't necessarily need to know everything but she had, in many ways, been taking care of Monica and for that he was eternally grateful, "May I sit?" He waited until she nodded her head and then he set the groceries on the floor by his chair and sat down at the kitchen table. Folding his hands together, he drew in a deep breath, said a silent prayer for guidance and then told the story as truthfully as he could.

"Allie, Monica and I fell in love despite the fact that some people in our lives are against it and that caused a lot of problems for us. People did all they could to keep us apart and at times succeeded. But we continued to fight against it and tried to find moments to be together. There is nothing I would not do for her, Allie. She is my entire world and when they tried to keep us apart, it was like my world was falling apart. We were desperate to be together…and that desperation led to some things that maybe should not have happened." Seeing the questioning look in her eyes, Andrew hoped for the best, "Monica is pregnant. I only found out last night, but that was why she left…she didn't want anyone to find out, so she left and she didn't know where I was at the time, which was never my choice. I wanted to stay beside her, but just couldn't."

Allie frowned. A part of her heart could sense his honesty, but she still felt as if something were missing, "You and Monica are both adults. How on earth did people keep you apart?"

He felt cornered; unsure of what to say. Telling her they were angels was the truth but not the answer, "It's complicated, Allie and though I can't go into great detail, let's just say there are people who have the power to do it." Seeing a hint of understanding in her eyes, Andrew continued, "I want to do right by Monica and not because I have to, but because of how much I love her. She hasn't been well since finding out she was pregnant and I need to know if there is a free clinic nearby….and I have a proposition for you."

Andrew let himself back into the little apartment Monica had been staying in and his expression instantly softened. His beloved angel had never made it to a warm bath and instead was curled up in bed, fast asleep. But what struck him so deeply was the look of peace that was etched on her beautiful face; a peace that had not been there for some time and he felt his heart swell with gratefulness at the fact that him being here, taking care of her could allow for such contentedness.

Moving to the tiny kitchen, he unpacked his grocery bags and quietly put away the majority of the items. He then poured some milk into a pan to heat it, before adding Quick Oats to it. He was hoping that oatmeal with banana might be bland enough for Monica to keep down, but whether it was or wasn't, he would be taking her to the clinic in a few hours. He was taking no chances with her health or that of the baby. He had no idea what the future held for either one of them, but he knew that this was his most important assignment.

Carrying the bowl to bed, he set it down on the nightstand and knelt beside the bed, content to watch her sleep for a few more moments, before he reached over to smooth the dark hair back from her face, "How did I ever get so blessed, huh Angel?" He whispered, his thumb tenderly rubbing her temple.

Sleepy, chocolate brown eyes slowly opened and a meek but sweet smile crossed her face, "I'm still not dreaming. You're really here. I suppose that means that dreams really do come true."

Andrew had to rapidly blink moisture from his eyes at her semi-groggy words before he could answer her, "Of course they do, Angel, because my greatest dream has always been you."

"I love you so much," Monica whispered, closing her eyes once more at the soothing feeling of his fingers in her hair.

"And I, you." Leaning in, he brushed his lips with hers, "Now, I have cooked you some breakfast, so why don't you sit up here and eat?" He moved to help her sit up, noting the worried expression on her face.

"Andrew, I don't think I can-."

"Baby, I need you to try, but we are also making a visit to a clinic today so we can get to the bottom of why you have been so sick.. We'll go as soon as you are ready."

Tentatively, she took a spoonful of oatmeal and allowed the warm cereal and sweet banana to seemingly melt in her mouth. Maybe it was because it had not come from a greasy diner, or maybe it was because Andrew had made it with great love, but it was delicious and nearly as delightful as Andrew's pleased expression. She finished most of it, unable to help herself; she had eaten so little lately as not long afterwards she would feel terrible, but everything felt possible with Andrew beside of her.

"I'm so sorry, Andrew," Monica murmured after she had lost breakfast over the toilet as he had held back her hair and rubbed her back. Her face was no longer pale, but red with embarrassment, as she laid her toothbrush back down on the counter.

"Hey," He laid firm yet gentle hands on her small shoulders, "You have nothing to apologize for and today we are getting to the bottom of this. You can't go on this way," He wasn't letting on just how worried he was; she was frightened enough and he shook his head, thinking of how she had been handling this alone for weeks. Sick human forms were not totally normal to angels, though Monica's system had always been especially delicate, but now it was undergoing major change and it seemed to not be too happy with those changes.

Blinking back tears, she smiled at him, "Have I told you how good it is to have you here?"

"You don't have to; I know what it is I am feeling, Angel. Whole, for the first time in such a long while and I don't plan on ever giving that up again."

She wanted to question how that could ever be possible but for now, instead chose to just believe it could be so. She only wished he could calm her fears, "Do you think we were wrong?" The words were a hushed whisper and were followed by the endearing, nervous biting of her lower lip.

Andrew's eyes drank in her quiet beauty, knowing his thirst for looking at her would never be quenched for as long as he existed. His hands moved from her shoulders to run down her arms, fingertips lightly tracing over her pale skin, before his fingers went back to her face, tenderly touching her and watching as her chocolate brown eyes closed as she drew in a trembling breath. Intense, green eyes flitted over every delicate feature of her face as his fingers gently touched her cheeks and traced her eyebrows, before cupping her face in his strong hands.

His kiss took her breath away as he captured her lips with his own, before delving deeper to taste her sweet mouth. A small whimper escaped her, of love and longing and she unconsciously pressed her slight body tighter up against him, feeling the strength of his beautiful male form even as she trembled.

The small eternity didn't last long enough, before Andrew pulled away but only to a hair's breadth from her lips, "Angel, did that feel wrong to you?"

Monica exhaled sharply and shook her head slightly, "No…no. It was…as normal as breathing. Andrew…the things you make me feel…"

"I feel them all too, Monica, which is why I believe with all my heart that this love we feel…that the Father is somehow at the root of it and that this," His hand rested against her abdomen, "Is a beautiful blessing."

"When you say it, I believe it."

"You should. I believe it is the truth; the only truth that makes any sense."