Chapter Forty-six

37 weeks

After spending two wonderful weeks together, Richie had to leave. He had arranged something special for Ava's birthday with Heather. He wanted Sarah to go with them, for the last few days before he left for Europe but Sarah wasn't allowed to fly. Sammy was only a month away and the airline companies didn't trust it.

The day before, Abbey moved into the guest room to keep Sarah company and help her out whenever she needed something and Caleb and Noah couldn't help.

Richie had offered to hire a nurse during the time he was gone but Sarah claimed it was too much. Her mom's help would be just fine.

Every evening Sarah received a phone call at the same time, Richie sure was good at figuring out time zones and time differences. When it made her feel like Richie felt he needed to check in every night, she told him he didn't need to. She trusted him and knew he was busy with other things, especially next week when the tour would start.

"I just like talking to you." Richie said.
"As long as you don't feel like you have to phone me every night, I love talking to you too." Sarah explained.
"I know but I like telling you about my day."
"Alright, tell me all about it."

Richie continued to tell Sarah everything they had done for Ava's birthday in Vegas.

Hearing everything made Sarah feel left out but she knew there would be a lot more birthday that would be just as amazing. Ava's next birthday would be even bigger, that's how it went with turning 16 and having a daddy that could pay for the most amazing party of the year.

Sammy would be just as lucky.


As he waited for his plane to Amsterdam, Richie made another phone call to Sarah, he had to wait for several hours and thought talking to his wife and catching up was the best way to spend that time and calm his nerves.

He hadn't toured solo in a long time, it was different from touring with the band. He had to prove himself to the audience again, although he knew many of them would be Bon Jovi fans.

Luckily for him Sarah answered the phone on the first ring.

"We're almost taking off." Richie said, reading the time schedule once again. "It's gonna be a long flight." He sighed, knowing the flight would be over eight hours long.
"Just sleep on the plane." Sarah suggested, thinking that would be the easiest to do on such a long flight.
"Then I'll be jetlagged."
"Right, watch some movies then."
"That's what I plan to do. What are you doing?"
"The same, watching movies with mom. Relaxing, keeping calm."
"Good, you need to be calm."

Their conversation continued to more non important topics until Richie really had to go. He hung up after saying how much he loved everyone.

Along with everyone else from the band, he boarded the plane, found his seat and got comfortable for a very long flight across the world.



Amsterdam was a great city, next to sightseeing a little, they also went shopping.

Little tiny shops were most interesting to find unique items, he wanted to make sure he got something for everyone from each city he was visiting, make it extra special for everyone. Which also meant he had to look for 5 different things for 4 different people and one that still had to be born.

After a long search he finally found a onesie that would fit Sammy soon enough. Knowing Sammy's sex hadn't played in his advantage, he knew but he had to make sure he wouldn't tell Sarah in any way.

Gift shopping for everyone had been fun, but it also made him feel exhausted.

Along with Joel, they found a coffee shop, knowing well enough what coffee shops meant in The Netherlands. Those days were far behind but it couldn't hurt to just visit and find out if they sold any actual coffee too.

On the way back to the hotel it became noticeable that being around the fumes had an impact too, although it wasn't too great, it still made him feel a little different.


The next day was spent by holding rehearsals at the concert hall. The staff was great and helped as much as they could, answering every answer that was asked. That's how Richie found out the translation for Melkweg was The Milky Way which made him feel a little proud. He was performing in the milky way, the universe. He was greater than anyone else, except maybe the other bands that had played here, but even then he thought he was even greater.

They stuck to the schedule that had been set up, finishing rehearsals at 6 pm and going for dinner.

After dinner was when the good nerves started. He knew it was better to be nervous right before the show than hours or days before. Something he hadn't done in a long time but today was different. He was still confident, but a tiny little but nervous too. Nothing bad, he told himself.

An hour before the show, he decided to phone Sarah again to check up on things, maybe it would calm him down too.

Just as lucky as every other time, Sarah answered on the first ring. It became quite obvious she was carrying her phone with her all the time.

"Hey sweetie." He said gently, trying to let through he was feeling anxious.
"Hey, how are you doing? Aren't you about to go on?"
Richie checked his watch to be sure. "In about an hour, yeah. How are you doing?"
"Oh good, Sammy has been really calm today, no kicking or anything. Very relaxing today. Ava even stopped by to say hello after school."
"That's nice of her." He knew what a great daughter he had and how much she was looking forward to another sibling, still wishing for a sister.

They told each other about their days. Richie talked about his shopping trip the day before and how he was going to find Sammy a onesie in every city he was visiting. Useful souvenirs.

Sarah's days had been quite the opposite, calm and relaxed with very little going on. Everything around the house was taken care of by someone else, which made her a couch potato. She didn't object, with Sammy growing so much, there wasn't much she could do or wanted to do. Although today Sammy had been very calm, she had decided to agree with Sammy and keep calm.

"I gotta go." Richie finally said, a few minutes before he had to get ready.
"Go have fun. Good luck, I'm proud of you and I love you."
"Thanks, I love you too. I'll phone afterwards."
"I'll be waiting." Sarah said before disconnecting the call.

As she leaned over to put her phone on the coffee table, Sarah felt a strong contracting pain in her abdomen.

Chapter Forty-five

34 weeks

Monday morning was the first time Sarah had slept late in a long time. When she woke up, she was alone in bed. Richie didn't have plans for the day either but must have gotten up to make sure everyone had gone to school.

Craving a nice breakfast, Sarah slowly got out of bed. Lately she did everything slowly, Sammy was growing a lot, which made it harder for Sarah to get up or move fast.

She made her way down to the kitchen but it was empty, Richie wasn't preparing breakfast for her as she had hoped, instead Sarah took an apple from the fruit-bowl on the counter and took a bite.

As she ate apple she made her way around the downstairs room but found every room empty and quiet. If Richie wasn't here, there was only one place left that he could be.

On her way back upstairs, Sarah took a detour in the kitchen to toss the core of the apple in the trash can. Then she slowly made her way back up the stairs to Richie's office.

Once she stood by the door, she could hear a few voices and wondered who he was meeting with, making her feel selfconcious about still being in pj's. Even though she had now replaced the flimsy nightgowns for lounge pants and large shirts she found in Richie's part of the closet.

Carefully she knocked on the door, not wanting to disturb in case it was an important meeting but Richie called her in right away.

As she opened the door, Sarah was a little surprised to see her husband and two sons sitting on the couches casually.

Frowning, she asked. "Shouldn't they be in school?"
"We had more important things to discuss." Richie explained, showing her the adoption papers again. "We kinda just started talking about it during breakfast and since I had all the info here, we sort of forgot school."
"Oh, it's okay. You're right, it's more important."

Richie got up, told the boys he'd be back in a few minutes, took Sarah's hand and walked outside of the office with her, closing the door behind them.

"How's it going?" She asked curiously.
"Great. I told them about all the options but they only want me to adopt them, change last names and everything." Richie said happily.
"I know, they're as excited as you are about it."
"We just need to sign every, you too, then we have to inform Jonathan about it and he needs to approve too. He can still say no but if so, we'll find a way around it."
"He said he wasn't their father, he should just sign the papers." Sarah said annoying, thinking about what might happen when Jonathan refused to sign the papers that would make it official that he had stepped away from being a father. "He never was their father anyway."
"I know," Richie wrapped his arms around Sarah to hug her, "he will. Remember he got a couple of years jail for not paying alimony? If he signs, those years might go away."
"What?"
"It wouldn't make a difference, he's never getting out again. It would still be 60 years of imprisonment."
"Are you sure?"
"He'll sign." Richie said confident, then reached in to kiss his beautiful wife. "You should go enjoy your time off with Sammy."
"Shouldn't I be there for moral support?" The reduction of years had her a little worried and wanting to be with her sons.
"We're doing fine. Go back to bed or stay upstairs and you'll be close by."
"Okay but call me when something happens."
"Nothing's gonna happen." He kissed his wife again and went back into the office, continuing his conversation with his soon to be sons instead of stepsons.

Sarah sighed and hoped Richie was right about Jonathan. Even-though she didn't like the possibility Jonathan might get a reduction on his sentence, it would only be one or two years, Richie was right. By the time Jonathan ever got free he would be a 100 years old.

She walked back to Sammy's room, turned on the little radio they had added to the room to play music to help Sammy sleep and put in Richie's new album. She loved it and could listen to it all day long, it was amazing. Carefully she sat down in the rocking chair and listened to the music with Sammy.

As she listened, Sarah started thinking of all the possibilities. Soon Richie would gain three children instead of just one. It wouldn't change anyone their relationships in the family. Even if the boys became Richie's son, she knew Richie would still treat them in the same way and the boys would do the same.

Sammy was another matter, with Sammy they were starting over again, they were starting a whole new family.

In a year, Caleb would go off to college and soon after that Noah and Ava would follow, leaving Richie and Sarah with Sammy and the possible other children. She always wanted a big family but she also knew that with such a big age difference between the children, they might not bond the same as sibling with a smaller age gap would. Ava, Caleb and Noah would always be fifteen years older than Sammy.

Sammy needed siblings, otherwise it would seem like Sammy was an accident. Who knew what kind of rumors people would make up about that too.

It had been a complete surprise to find out she was pregnant, but not in the way of Sammy being an accident.

They had talked about a little sister or brother for Sammy even thought Sarah still didn't know what Sammy would be but siblings had to be there. Because of their age, they didn't want to wait too long either.

It was too early to get ahead of themselves, Sammy still needed to be born.

With the next song, Sarah brought her thoughts back to the adoption. It seemed strange to adopt teenagers, usually people adopted babies but this was entirely different.

Richie would become their father instead of stepfather, his role would change.

Considering that thought, Sarah realized it wouldn't really change at all. The boys were living with them and Richie had made sure they had a college fund too. He had taught Caleb play guitar and drive, now he was teaching Noah and Ava. He did everything for Caleb and Noah as he would for Ava. Everything a father would do, see their school games, teach them life lessons, help with school lessons, made time for them when they needed a little bit of time.

The day Sarah had moved in with her two sons, had really been the day Richie had become their father.

Now all they had to do was make it official.

For the remainder of the album, Sarah tried to shut off her mind and just think about the music and their baby. The thought of naming the baby David if it was a boy ran through her mind again.

A knock at Sammy's bedroom door made her look up to see Richie walk into the room, holding the same file.

"All done?" Sarah asked hopeful.
"Just need your signature, then I'm bringing it to my lawyer's office."
Sarah smiled and got up from the chair, walking over to her husband she kissed him and wrapped her arms around him. "Congratulations with your new sons."
His hand stroked Sarah's pregnant belly, knowing soon their extended family would become even more extended. "I never knew going to rehab could turn out like this. I should have met you 7 years ago."
"7 Years Gone? You had to weather the storm first." Sarah teased.
"And take a chance on the wind with you." Richie went along.
"Now I'll always walk beside you."
Richie laughed. "Alright, enough."
She gave him an innocent look and reached up to kiss him, then teasingly whispered. "Don't you want to be my sugar daddy?"
"That's it." The files forgotten, he took Sarah back to their bedroom.

Chapter Forty-four

34 weeks

Friday was Sarah's very last day. Today she'd be saying goodbye to the hospital, everyone she had met and became friends with, everything she had done and accomplished.

It felt like an ending of a chapter of her life. She was quitting her job as a receptionist and was starting her new job as a full time mommy. Sammy wasn't there yet but she had three other children to take care of.

Another part of her life was starting, she was going to be a mommy all over again. Her other children had grown up and soon would be off to college. With Sammy she was starting over again. It made her somewhat nervous too. Was she still a good mother? Did she still know how to take care of a baby? Sarah tried not to think of it and figured it was like riding a bike, something you weren't able to forget.

There were still 6 weeks to remember everything. Even though Richie wouldn't be there during the last final weeks, everything around the house was ready for Sammy's arrival. A few things were missing but they would be able to get everything in order after Richie got back. A car seat, a stroller, it could wait, as long as Sammy had a bed to sleep in.

After David's suggestion of naming the baby David, Richie and Sarah had agreed that it wasn't an option. David would have way too much fun with that. What they did decided to start thinking of was godparents, they hadn't picked out any yet. Richie had suggested Jon and Dorothea since Jon was his best friend but Sarah wanted to put more thought in to it. They both didn't have siblings so that wasn't a possibility either.

It were all worries for later, now she had finished her job and was leaving everything at the hospital behind her.

On the way home she felt both sadness and happiness about leaving the job.

She was glad to find Richie in the hallway when she got home and walked in. He must have known, immediately he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her.

"Think of all the time you get with Sammy." He said, before lightly kissing her.
"I know." Sarah sighed.
"And you made a lot of friends. As soon as Sammy is here, they'll all be around here to visit again."
Sarah smiled. "Yeah."
"We can go lay down for a bit if you want."

Sarah agreed again and followed Richie to their bedroom.

A few minutes later she was in bed cuddling him, perfectly comfortable with her fantastic husband. He always soothed her and made her feel relaxed again. Happiness took over of sadness.



Sarah woke up alone, turning over she checked the time. Two hours had passed. Her stomach reminded her that dinner was over.

Carefully she got up from the bed and walked to the bathroom to freshen up.

Walking down the stairs, Sarah could hear people talking in the living room. Quite a few people. She didn't remember Richie telling her he was having company tonight.

"Hey honey." Richie said when he noticed Sarah walking in the room. "Surprise." He smiled as he walked over to once again wrap his arms around her.

The room was full of Sarah's collegues from work, everyone she had called her friends.

Taylor wast he first to speak. "It's your goodbye party and baby shower."
"Baby shower?" Sarah asked confused.
"You hadn't had one yet and we all agreed to get a few things for the baby, something more useful than a goodbye present." Taylor explained.

Sarah looked around and noticed the table full of presents and two large ones standing on the floor next to the table.

"You didn't have to do this." Sarah said.
"We did." Taylor said happily.


After unwrapping the gifts, Sarah realized Taylor was right, they did need the gifts. The two large wrapped boxes were the last things they needed for Sammy, a stroller and a car seat.

The rest of the gifts were smaller, a few more clothes, bottles, stuffed animals  and other toys for the baby.

For Sarah it was great to see all her collegues after work, it made saying goodbye different, a more happy occasion and less like she was leaving forever. She had made friends and they would still visit her at home.

"Happy?" Richie asked her when they had a quiet minute to themselves.
"Yeah. Who's idea was this?" Sarah asked.
"Taylor of course, she asked me if she could throw you a party and after you went to sleep, that was just perfect." He smiled.
"You helped?"
"A tiny little bit." He held her fingers closely together to indicate how little.
"Thanks." She smiled up at him and kissed him.
Breaking apart from their kiss, Richie said. "You have to thank Taylor though."

Sarah nodded.

A few minutes later she had took Taylor apart and thanked her for the party. Taylor had been the first one that she had connected with on a friendship level among her collegues. Eventhough Sarah knew Taylor had a crush her hushand, Taylor had never made that obvious and hadn't invaded on their relationship in any way.

Taylor was a real friend.

The party made Sarah cheer up about quitting her job and staying home for Sammy. Especially now that they had everything they needed for Sammy.

Now the only thing they still needed was Sammy.

Chapter Forty-three

33 weeks

During the weekend they finished Sammy's nursery room. The room had already been painted in different tones of brown. Along with the furniture, all the decorations were put in place too. Both were please with how the room looked and the fact they had finished it in record time.

"Looks great." Richie decided.
Sarah agreed as she sat down in the rocking chair. "Soon." She rocked the chair gently. "Who's all coming Tuesday?" Sarah looked up at her husband for an answer.

Tuesday they'd celebrate Richie's album release with some friends and family. Everything for the party had been arranged and by how many times the record had already been pre-sold, they knew it would be a success.

The tour would be amazing and Sarah felt disappointed and left out she wouldn't be able to go until the last two shows that were closer to home and even then she doubted she would be able to.

Richie playing at home, just for her was great too but it wasn't the same vibe as at a concert. Last year she had started to love seeing Richie play in concert, it did something to him. It was special to him and everyone that could see him. Unique, passion and desire.

"Everyone we invited..." Richie hesitated.
"Except Jon?" Sarah asked, already having a feeling she was right.
"Yeah." Richie sighed.
"His loss." Sarah tried to help with her words but knew it didn't.

Slowly she got up from the chair to hug her husband.

"Your album is great. Everyone already loved the single, the tour is sold out and you loved working on it." She reminded him about it all.
"Yeah." Richie agreed unsure.
"You had every right to make the album, Jon promised you all a break but soon as you start recording he gets jealous and wants an album too. He's scared you'll be successful and he'll need a new guitar player." Sarah knew what happened the past year and was almost sure she was right about Jon.
"He's not jealous. He's the same as me, when the music comes to you, you can't help it. You have to write it, play it." Richie denied it.

Jon was his best friend, why would he be jealous if he was successful? David had been successful on his own and so had Tico with his art and clothing line for children.

"He delayed the album release and the tour so I could do my solo." Richie explained.
"Then why isn't he coming? He didn't even stop by when he was on vacation here in the summer." Sarah put in.

Word had been out that Jon and his family had visited parks in California during the summer, but they hadn't stopped by their house for a quick visit.

Richie shrugged. "His vacation, they must have had other plans."
Sarah wasn't that easily satisfied and didn't buy the story but it seemed like Richie did. "Lets go watch TV, we had a busy day decorating."
Richie nodded, agreeing. "It's perfect, Sammy will love it."


Tuesday Richie was busy with more promotions for his new album. He had been busy with promotions the last few weeks and would be busy with it for a while long. The interviews were great, he didn't only get to talk about his music but was also asked about Sarah's pregnancy and their baby. Almost everyone asked to know the sex of the baby but so far he had managed to keep it a secret. Although he hoped next time Sarah would want to know before the birth.

By now Sammy was fast becoming his favorite subject to talk about. At the moment it was a tie with the new album.

After his interview he drove to the airport to pick his mom up. She was spending a few days with the family.

For November they had made arrangements so Joan could stay a few weeks. By then Sammy would be born and she would want to spent time with her new grandchild.

Abbey lives closer-by, it was easier for her to come visit but while Richie was going on tour in Europe and North-America, she'd move in to one of the guestrooms until Richie was home again. By then Sarah was close to the end of her pregnancy and with Abbey there they both felt safer in case anything would happen while Sarah was alone.

After picking up Joan from the airport, Richie made a stop at the school to pick up his daughter and his soon to be sons. He still needed to talk to them, make sure of everything and what they wanted to do and how. He was excited about the idea and had been able to talk to his lawyer about the possibilities but so far he hadn't had the change to talk to Caleb and Noah in private.


Around 6 pm the guests started arriving. They hadn't invited that many friends and therefor Richie had decided to celebrate at home. During the day a caterer had set up in the kitchen so everyone would be able to have something to eat.

All the band members of both his bands had been able to make it to the party except Jon. He tried not to think of it even though he thought of Jon as his best friend. Somewhat, he felt left down by him but everyone else had made it and was praising him for the new album. So far they too loved everything about it, they all knew what had happened in the last few years with Richie's personal life and heard the process of those years through the lyrics and music.

Sarah's evening was very different from Richie's even-though they were in the same room all night. Everyone came up to her to talk about Sammy and ask all sorts of questions.

"You know what would be a great name for the baby if it's a boy?"
"No David, but I'm sure you'll tell me in a second." Sarah said, already fearing what odd name suggestion he'd have.
"Davey. It's a great name, strong too but I suggest you name it David so it doesn't have to go through life being a diminutive and also, if you'd have a godfather named David, it's even better."
Sarah nodded. "Are you trying be godfather, Davey?"
"Just a suggestion." He said, trying not to make a big deal out of it.
"We haven't really talked about godparents yet but I'll tell Richie you really want the job."
"Job? What job?" Richie had head the last few words Sarah had said.
She smiled up at her husband. "David wants to be godfather. He also thinks David would be a great name for Sammy."
"Davey while he's small though, that's cuter." David pointed out.
Richie considered it. "I don't know, I was really set on just using Samuel."
"Samuel Sambora?" David questioned. "That just repetitious. Davey is a much better name."
"We really haven't decided a name yet." Sarah stepped in again, already knowing Samuel wasn't on the list of names they agreed on.
"Just add Davey." David suggested again.
"We'll let you know when the baby is born." Richie said. "Anyway, you should meet my keyboard player." He pulled David away, ignoring his attempts to suggest the name Davey some more.

Sarah shook her head. Davey? She didn't think so, David would have too much fun with it while Sammy was growing up. Richie and her had set up a list of names that they both had agreed on and neither Samuel or Davey were on the list. Luckily, Samantha wasn't there either. About that David was right, it would be too repetitive so have those first 3 letters in both first and last name. They also hadn't agreed on a definite name yet but still had 7 weeks to do so.

When Richie had another free minute, to his surprise his lawyer showed up at the door with information about adopting stepchildren. He had asked for the information as soon as possible but hadn't thought about it being tonight.

He agreed to a quick conversation and lead the man to his office.

That's where Sarah found him half an hour later after everyone asked her where Richie had gone too.

He was finishing up with the lawyers and could add another folder of papers to the stack on his desk.

"What was that about?" Sarah asked after the lawyer had left the room.
"Adoption forms."
"Oh." His answers surprised her. "Did you get to talk to Caleb and Noah about it?"
"Not yet but with this," He gestured to the folder, "it might be easier. It's got all the info about what we can do and how. The bad thing is, we need to contact Jonathan for it. He needs to sign papers too." He sighed. "Do you think he will?" Having seen Jonathan in the summer, he knew what a jerk he was and wasn't sure if he'd allow them any sort of happiness.
"I hope so." Sarah said, having the same doubts.

Chapter Forty-two

33 weeks

Friday Sarah was at work at the hospital, all her colleagues and friends were getting exciting about the baby being born soon. Many said they had bought gifts for the baby and encouraged Sarah to throw a baby shower but Sarah had plans of another kind of party.

She wasn't ready yet to announce it and kept it quiet with her boss, she didn't want too much hassle about it.

One way she felt bad for leaving everyone but when Noah and Caleb were babies, she was the only one working and supporting a family of four. After divorce, when she became depressed, she had been home all the time and spent every day with them but for Sammy she wanted to stay home. To see the baby grow. She wanted to be there for every little thing and now she had the possibility to. A job hadn't been necessary for her, she didn't need to work to earn money, she had a loving and supporting husband.

After work she went home, feeling not too bad. She'd work another week before Richie left for Europe. That way they could still spend a week together before being separated. they both weren't looking forward to it in that way but Richie had a great opportunity to tour for his solo album. Sarah was so proud of what he had accomplished with it. The album was amazing and the tour would be too. Richie was very excited about it.

Arriving at home, the house seemed empty, the kitchen and the living room were deserted.

"Richie? Honey?" She called up the stairs as she walked up. Passing their bedroom, she quickly glanced in but Richie's swearing made her turn around to see Sammy's room.
"Fucking thing! Fit!" Richie ordered the wooden planks.
Sarah chuckled and walked in, seeing him sitting on the floor trying to put the bed together. Something inside her changed, all of a sudden she saw how handsome her husband was. His beautiful face, his luscious lips, his body, so manly. "You look so sexy." She stepped closer.
Richie looked up, thinking he had misunderstood her. "What?" He asked confused and started to explain what he was doing. "I thought I'd put the furniture together as a surprise. It all arrived this morning." He said as he got up to greet his wife with a kiss but Sarah didn't leave it as a greeting kiss and soon deepened the kiss, pulling her husband close against her.

She could feel his arms around her, his big hands stroking her back.

Finally Richie could pull back from the kiss. "Are you okay?" He asked a little surprised by the sudden turn of events.
"I've missed you." Sarah answered before pulling him back for another kiss.

Already she could feel Richie hardening against her. The man loved sex and was always ready for it. It had already been a month, but now she needed him and knew he needed her too.

Carefully Richie pulled back again. "Bedroom?" He asked, taking Sarah's hand and crossing the hallway to their room and shutting the door behind them.

Once the door was closed, he pulled his shirt over his head, he wasn't letting this opportunity pass. He helped Sarah out of her work clothes and soon enough they were both naked in bed.

"You're so beautiful." He let his fingers gently stroke over her belly.
Softly Sarah smiled at him, raising her hand to cup his cheek and run her thumb along his jawline. "So are you." She reached up to kiss him again as her hand traveled southwards, her eyes followed soon. "Haven't seen him in a while." She referred to his penis.
"Don't you see he missed you? He's very excited to see you."
"I see but he's always excited to see me." Her hand wrapped around it and started stroking.
"Let's not waste time with that." Richie pleaded. "I want you." He leaned back in to kiss his beautiful wife.

Gently he pushed her so she laid on her back again. Carefully Richie moved over her, breaking their kiss, he tried to keep most of his weight off of Sarah's pregnant belly, supporting on his arms. The thought of not being able to kiss in that position left both their minds as Richie entered her.

It had been to long. At first Richie maintained slow and long thrusts so Sarah could enjoy every second and every move they made together but soon passion took over, along with his arms getting heavier.

Richie thrusted faster but by Sarah's soft moans and whimpers, he knew she needed it just as much as he did.

They both had reached a high quickly. All of last month's bottled up emotions and desire.

Sarah moaned louder and tightened around him, the combination of it made Richie plunge over the edge. A few more stroked, he emptied himself inside her and rode out her orgasm before moving off of her and laid down by her side.

After catching her breath, Sarah spoke. "That was so amazing." She turned to her side to snuggle.
Richie wrapped his arms around her, pulling the sheets over them. "It was. I love you so much." He smiled as he found her lips for another sweet kiss.

Together they enjoyed the bliss of sex, letting silence surround them.

"I was going to tell you something but you distracted me." Sarah finally said, breaking their silence.
"Me? How did I distract you?"
"By looking so sexy and hot. So manly while putting furniture together."
Richie laughed out loud. "That's your new turn on? Me putting furniture together? I should have waited with all the rest then."
Sarah chuckled and kissed his chest.
"So what were you going to tell me?" Richie wondered.
"I'm quitting my job." Sarah said. "I want to enjoy our time before you tour, then I want to enjoy the rest of my pregnancy and I want to be there for Sammy afterwards." She felt like she had to justify her choice.
"It's up to you honey. If that's what you want, it's perfectly fine."
"Thank you." She showed her appreciation with another passionate kiss.

Chapter Forty-One

31 weeks

Next Tuesday was Sarah's next day off but she didn't plan on spending it leisurely. Richie had left to bring everyone to school as Sarah cleaned up the kitchen and went to get ready upstairs. She took a quick shower and dressed.

By the time Richie walked in to the front door, Sarah was ready to go.

"Going out?" He asked confused when he saw Sarah standing ready.
"We're going out." Sarah clarified.
"Where are we going?"
"The Little Red Barn, Drool maybe Babys R Us and Babyland." Sarah listed the stores as a way of answer.
"Shopping for Sammy?" Richie asked, already turning around, ready to leave again.

Sarah followed him.
"Yeah, we had a busy summer, we haven't been able to get anything yet and you'll be leaving in a few weeks."
"Off we go then. Which place first?"
"The Little Red Barn."

With satellite navigation they easily found the shop. Richie helped Sarah out of the car and together they walked into the store.

A lot of the baby furniture on display was very classic and mostly simple. Sarah pointed everything out that she thought was cute until a store assistant walked up to them to ask if they needed any help.

Together with the shop assistant, Richie and Sarah picked out a crib and a wardrobe, both in white. As mostly everything in the store, the two pieces of furniture were classic but child's safety wasn't neglected.

Picking out the bedding, they stayed neutral with the colors, which was hard for Richie to do.

They paid for the order and arranged for everything to be delivered before the weekend.

"Too bad they don't have a rocking chair." Sarah said as they walked out of the store again.
"You want one? Maybe at the next store." Richie opened the car door for her and helped her in.
She waited for Richie to get in the car too before continuing. "Yeah, to rock Sammy to sleep or to cuddle."
Richie nodded understanding. "We'll find one."

At the next store, Richie helped Sarah out of the car and took her hand in his as they walked into the store.

Again a lady came over to help them, she lead them to a corner where a few rocking chairs stood and informed them there were more than what was on display and left them alone.

Sarah sat down in a white chair, gently pushing off her feet so the chair rocked. Richie sat down in the chair next to her, it had a rocking foot chair to go with it but he wisely kept his feet off and watched his wife. Sarah was still rocking gently, her hands resting on her belly.

"Isn't this perfect?" Sarah asked, catching his gaze. "Just this, rocking. Sammy's calm."
"How about the chair? Want that one then?"
Sarah nodded. "Yeah, it fits with everything else too."
"What about a playpen or a bassinet? We're not done yet." He reminded her gently. Richie got up from the chair and held his hands out to pull Sarah up from the chair.
"I'm fat." Sarah complained, being so big she needed help to get up sometimes.
"No you aren't, you're pregnant, carrying our baby in there. Our flesh and blood." Richie pointed out.

They found a playpen that would fit in the living room so Sammy could be with family during the daytime. It was big enough to play and sleep in. Sarah hadn't picked out white wood but a color that would blend in with the rest of the living room.

The play pen they agreed on would even be useful as Sammy grew up, they could lowed the platform once Sammy would learn to roll over and sit.

It was almost noon by now and Sarah was getting tired but she'd rather finish the job than have to start over the next day she wasn't working.

At the next store they picked out little clothes. The offer was immense but they knew a tiny baby wouldn't fit the same clothes it wore the week before and because Sarah didn't know the sex yet, they decided on simple colored onesies that would work with a boy and a girl. The baby needed something to wear but they also decided not to overdo it and keep the cute outfits for when Sammy would be able to wear it at least twice before growing out of it.

Even though he tried, Richie couldn't resist a shirt with a guitar on it.

"It works for both, girls like guitars." He claimed.
"Girls like the guys that play guitar." Sarah pointed out.
"It still works." He added the guitar shirt to the cart and went on to add a purple shirt.

Sarah watched him pick out clothes, one item would make her think Sammy would be a girl, the next, a boy. It was confusing and she gave up as they went to look at bed sheets.

There she found the most adorable baby blanket with Winnie the Pooh on it. It would be perfect for the playpen. Winnie The Pooh was a classic and popular with boys and girls. In the ends they had two sets of sheets, clothes and stuffed animals, all Winnie and his friends.

They added a few more baby toys, blankets and a comforter and made the last big purchase of a chair that would let a baby lay back and a sitting baby sit, all the way to the age of toddler and a special car seat that could be used to travel.

"Is that it?" Richie asked when they concluded their shopping.
Sarah thought hard, crossing things off her mental list. "Bottles, breast pump and pacifiers, maybe diapers."
"We should wait with diapers but lets get the bottles." Richie suggested.

And instead of checking out they turned back around into the store to find the last items.

"I'm beat." Sarah announced when they finally arrived home.
Richie reached to hug her. "Go up to bed and nap, honey. I have to pick up everyone from school anyway." He gave her a short kiss..
"Wake me up when you get back?" She asked when her lips were released.
"I will."

Sarah went upstairs to bed as Richie unloaded the car, relieved that all the large items would be delivered later that week. He had a big car but it wouldn't have fit all of that.  They had spent a very large amount of money but he couldn't be happier about it. Everything Sammy would need, Sammy would get.

Chapter Forty

31 weeks

"I've missed this." Sarah said as they sat down at their table.

Richie had reserved a table at a beautiful restaurant. If it had any stars, didn't matter to Sarah. The restaurant had a romantic atmosphere, tables with white linen, candles on every table and a small vase with a single red rose stood in the middle.

She could always depend on Richie to find the most romantic places to go.

"Going to a restaurant?" Richie asked. "We went to Pizza Hut last month."
"No, romance."

A small smile formed on his lips as he looked at Sarah. She was right, the romance had been cooled down during the last month. He understood Sarah was going through a rough patch with the lawsuit going on. Besides that she was in the last two months of her pregnancy.

He loved how large her belly was now, knowing his child was growing there. Only two more months before Sammy would finally really be there.

Sarah wanted a daughter, she had told him a lot while they were still trying to get pregnant a year ago but since she was pregnant, she hadn't mentioned it anymore. He wished he could tell her but he had promised to keep it secret and was determined to do so.

Now that the lawsuit was behind them and everyone was back in school, their lives should turn back to normal.

"We have a lot of other things to do now. We still need to decorate a room for Sammy." Sarah reminded him.
Suddenly Richie realized it too. "We haven't even decided which room the baby would get."
Sarah smiled at what he said, Sammy was her most favorite topic to talk about right now. "I was thinking the room across of ours or next to us. That way we're always close by."
Richie nodded. "That sounds like a good idea. do you want to hire a decorator for the room?" He asked.
Sarah shook her head. "No, you're leaving soon. I want us to do it together. All of it, decorating, putting the furniture together and go buy clothes."
"Sounds like we have a plan for next week."
"I have another plan for right now." Sarah informed him.
"What's that?"
"Dessert." She smiled at him.
"Good plan." Richie said as he motioned for a waiter's attention.

The waiter cleared off their table and brought them menu's again so they pick out a dessert.

A few minutes later their conversation continued over dessert.

"I was wondering about something." Sarah started, remembering what she had discussed with Noah earlier, but she hesitated now.
"About what?" Richie urged.
"Now that we're having Sammy." She thought about how to go on. "Where do we stand on your wish to have a big family?"
"You mean if we're having more kids after this one?" He asked confused about what she actually meant.
"Not really but lets talk about that too. I think Sammy would need a little brother or sister to play with."
Richie nodded. "I agree. I'd rather not think of it but Ava, Caleb and Noah will go to college and move out and then Sammy would be all alone."
"And that would be lonely." Sarah added in. "So we're having another one after this one?" She rubbed her hands over her belly.
"If there's no medical reasons that object, I don't see why not." Richie scooted his chair until he was next to Sarah and cover her hands with his.

Sarah smiled at the gesture and looked down at their hands, her small ones covered by his. She knew how much he loves Sammy already.

They both pulled their hands away when they felt a kick, then chuckled.

"Guess it got too crowded." Richie shrugged and reached in to kiss his beautiful wife. "Anything else you wanted to know?" Richie looked her in the eye as he asked.

Knowing he could read her eyes easily, she decided to be straightforward. A little sigh escaped her before she started. "I know you love Sammy." She looked back at him and saw nothing but love in his eyes.
"You're worried I don't love Caleb and Noah as much?" He cut in.
"No, I know you love them too."
"What's the problem then?" He asked confused.
Sarah sighed again and just told him. "Did you know stepparents can adopt their stepchildren?"
"I can adopt them?" He sounded surprised but Sarah was sure she heard excitement in his voice too.
"You could. Jonathan denied them now, so you could."
Richie smiled, thinking it over. "I'm sure my lawyer knows more about it."
"He probably does. You really want to do this?" Sarah asked, surprised how easily he jumped on the idea.
"Yeah, do you think the boys will want to? How cool would that be?"
"I think you'll have to talk to them."

They finished their desserts and headed home.

The house was dark and quiet when they arrived. Even though it was late, they had three teenagers, it would be unusual if they had gone to bed already.

As they walked into the front door, they had been right be suspicious. From the living room they could hear murmuring, some whispers and someone silencing the rest.

Sarah gave Richie a questioning look, asking him what was going on. Richie merely shrugged and took her hand in his, walking to the living room.

As soon as they walked in, everyone's head shot up to look in the direction of the doorway.

A few seconds of quiet passed before Richie decided to break it.

"Hi." He said confused by seeing their three children by the coffee table.
Ava's dog eyeing something as a delicious treat.
"We got you a surprise." Ava said, stepping away from the table and picking up the dog.

Noah and Celeb stepped away too, revealing a simple but definitely home made cake on the table. The icing covering the cake was a little sloppy  but it was clear they had tried their best, with a single candle finishing off the cake.

"You made that for us?" Sarah asked them
"For your anniversary, we thought you'd like it better if we made it ourselves." Caleb explained.
"We love it." Richie said. "But we better eat it before a certain dog gets to it first."

Noah left the room and came back with forks and plates, along with a knife to cut the cake.

They certainly had done their best, the cake tasted great, it was no wonder Rocky wanted it so bad.

After everyone had a piece of cake, including the dog and the left overs were stored in the kitchen, everyone dispersed to their bedrooms.

Once in their bedroom, Sarah wrapped her arms around her husband and stood on her tip toes to kiss him. "I love you so much. Tonight was great. Thanks." She softly smiled up at him.
"I love you too." Richie answered and kissed her again, deepening their kiss.

It had been a while since they had shared such passion and Sarah wasn't going to stop him. Richie's hand disappeared under her skirt, touching the smooth skin of her thighs.

"Lets get ready for bed and then we can continue this." Richie said, pulling back from the kisses.
Sarah nodded softly and let go of him, then lead the way the the bathroom.

"You go on to bed." Richie said as Sarah finished brushing her teeth while he was only getting started.
"See you in a minute." Sarah smiled and softly kissed his cheek before leaving.

After rinsing his mouth and cleaning up, he walked back out to the bedroom that was only lighted by the reading lamps on the side tables.

One glance at Sarah and he knew she was asleep. Part of him wanted to wake her up, the other part knew that she was seven months pregnant and needed to rest.

The latter part won and he quietly got in bed behind Sarah, putting his arm around her so his hand rested on her large belly, softly stroking.

He tried to forget the hard on that had started to develop since they had entered the bedroom. It had been a while, too long according to him but he wouldn't wake Sarah up just to have sex. He'd wait. Then, he regretfully realized it might be months before Sarah was in the mood again.

He'd wait.