I actually gave Patrick his 'present' five days later, to preserve the surprise. I'd set things up precisely as I wanted, decking out my bedroom with scented candles and changing the sheets to a set of black satin that I thought would look wonderful against Patrick's pale skin. On the pillow, I set a small box, while I wore my lingerie underneath a plain looking bath robe and cotton pajama pants, although I did brush out my hair and styled it up a little bit. Checking myself in the mirror, I thought I still looked "plain" enough to fool Patrick for a little while. I didn't normally wear a lot of makeup around the house, and Patrick didn't feel the need for me to wear it anyway.
I found Patrick in the entertainment room, happily playing with Andrea, who was lying on her back in the middle of the carpet. It was heartwarming to watch my future husband smiling blissfully while tickling the little infant and allowing her to grab his fingers and yank. I watched for a minute until I felt a presence behind me, and turned my head to see Sophie, who was still wearing the same style of casual house clothes she'd worn the entire time she'd been home. She had told me that she was going to get back into shape, but that it would wait until after the holidays. Considering she'd just had a baby, I thought it was a well deserved vacation.
Sophie leaned in and rested her chin on my shoulder, watching the two in the room. "Hey, little early for the bathrobe and PJ's, isn't it?"
I smiled and shook my head, turning around to face her. "Not quite," I whispered, pulling one side of my robe out a bit to show her what I had on underneath. "Think I can pull it off?"
Sophie laughed quietly and leaned in. "Just go easy on the poor man. He's not going to last long after he sees you in that.”
"Then I'll just have to take some time and let him recover for rounds two and three," I responded. I wasn't lying either, I was more than ready for it. "You want your daughter back?"
Sophie nodded and placed her hand on my chest, just above my heart, looking into my eyes to confirm something, then smiling. "Sure. Just, give me a minute before you two get started. Mark was planning on getting into the gym, I don't want your evening ruined by pounding heavy metal and I doubt he wants to lift to Barry White songs. I'll make sure he takes his iPod."
"Thanks. Who knows, maybe we can make magic tonight, you know?"
Sophie nodded and arranged my bathrobe, making sure the surprise was hidden well. “Maybe. But don't worry about that and just enjoy yourself.”
I nodded and the two of us went into the entertainment room, getting Patrick's attention. "Hey Patrick, having fun?"
"She's amazing," Patrick told Sophie, a simple expression of joy on his face. "That hair, those eyes, she's just so cute."
“She is, but she's also due for a bath," Sophie said, "especially since we had a missed poop this afternoon. So I'll need to take her from you if you don't mind."
"Not at all, go ahead," Patrick said with a chuckle. Turning his head to me, he just kept grinning. "The advantages of being the uncle-ish. Play time is mine, diapers and bath time isn't. What's up, sweetie?"
"I have something for you, can you come with me?" I asked. "A late Christmas present."
"Sure," Patrick said, his smile staying easily on his face. His arm wasn't stiff any longer, he'd been stretching it and working it lightly in the gym, one of the reasons I'd waited the extra few days. That and to let him forget after Mark kind of half gave it all away. I understood why, he needed a decent segue to get Patrick off of his guilt trip, but it did slightly tick me off for half a day. Only half a day though, considering Mark did save his life.
Taking Patrick's hand, I led him through the halls of Mount Zion. "Have you enjoyed the holidays?" I asked. "I know you wanted to get that vote in on your motion, but after what happened...."
"Yeah, I didn't mind at all," Patrick said. After his kidnapping, we'd used Andrea's birth as an excuse to delay his motion on the Union bidding scam until the first meeting of the new calendar year, on January fifth. We couldn't exactly say it was because he'd been taken hostage and rescued by a masked vigilante who happened to be my housekeeper. "As for all this, it has been like a dream come true. All those years in the homes, living in orphanages, Christmas was both the best and worst time of the year for me."
"How so?" I asked. We were in the kitchen and I paused to grab a glass of water.