Lunch Date

He asked Lafayette to fix two plate lunches and grabbed a few bottles of water, stuck it all in some bags and placed them in the back seat of his jeep. He took the stairs two at a time and opened the door to the trailer. -Nicole? Hey, Nicole you here?-

He moved around the kitchen bar and looked into the bedroom area, wondering where she was. He called out again for her, -Nicole?-

She washed her hands and let out a sigh as she walked out of the small bathroom, wiping at her lips before waving at him to get his attention. Morning sickness had kicked in apparently, though it wasn't as bad as she had expected. Nausea on occasion, but other than that... she was great! This latest bout had come after eating a dill pickle earlier, and passed as soon as she had thrown up.

"Hey," she said with a small smile. "What's up?"

He wrinkled his nose a bit, smelling the sickness on her. Moving over to stand in front of her, he rubbed her shoulders and smiled. -Not feeling so well? I uh...had a surprise for you but if you're not feeling good we can just stay here.-

He was concerned, he also had never been in this predicament before. He dreamed some pretty vivid dreams of Luna, maybe that was all just a sign. They seemed to start right after her death which was odd. He pushed it from his mind, waiting for her answer.

"What'd you have in mind?"

She smiled at him and while listening headed back to the bathroom to brush her teeth; she knew she had forgotten something. She grinned as she put the toothpaste on the brush and then slowly and methodically brushed her teeth. When she finished, she turned back to him and raised a brow as he just stared at her.

"I asked what you had in mind?"

He watched her go to the bathroom and begin to brush her teeth, unaware he was staring at her. Shaking his head, he cleared his throat and blinked. -Oh yeah, right...it's a surprise. Come on, I wanna take you somewhere.-

He smiled at her and extended a hand towards her, watching her face as she looked at his hand and thought for a moment. When she finally placed hers in his hand, he pulled her towards the door and headed for outside. Locking up, he ignored her questions about where they were going and helped her into the jeep. -Surprise...remember?- He grinned and started the jeep, pulling out and heading to the place he loved to go alone, a place he went to think.

She pestered him the whole way wondering where they were going, when he finally pulled into a dirt road and drove into the wooded area, finally stopping and putting it in park. -It's peaceful out here, it's quiet...- He looked ahead out the windshield and narrowed his eyes because of the sun. -It's a great place for an afternoon picnic.- He turned his head to face her and grinned.

"A... picnic?"

She grinned at him and opened the door of the jeep then stepped out into the sunshine. She tilted her head back and closed her eyes as she soaked up the sun, warmth flowing all over her. It was a beautiful day, and a perfect one for a picnic.

"This is a brilliant idea, Sam. Thanks. "

Turning around, she squinted her eyes like he did and grinned. "Do you need help with anything?"

This was unexpected. She was still bewildered by everything; being pregnant when she had just met this guy, almost being killed by wolves, being kidnapped by that Rikki bitch. It had all been quite a shock to her body. But here was Sam, ever the gentleman. It was strange how they just sort of fell together. He was nice, though. He still seemed really nervous about her being pregnant, and sometimes even looked nostalgic about it, like he had been with someone pregnant before. She'd have to ask him about it. Hell, she'd have to ask him about a lot of stuff. She knew nothing about him, the father of her child...

Child. God, that was weird.

He stepped out of the jeep and smiled, looking over the hood at her standing in the sun so happy. She chose to stay here with him, even before he told her she was pregnant. He opened the back door and grabbed the bags of food and the blanket he'd put in there. -Nah I got it, you follow me.-

He moved in front of her and began to walk then stopped in his tracks and placed everything in one arm, holding out a hand for her with a smile. He led her to the opening where old oak trees hung and the shade they provided was tranquil. There was a small pond to the side and moss that hung, touching the surface of the water. The bayou water a murky brown, but the smells....the smells were so...relaxing. He set the food down and spread out the blanket, turning to look at her.

-Lafayette's famous burger and fries with water...how's that sound?-

"Ooo," she grinned at him and gripped his hand tight as he led her to the spot underneath the old oak trees. It really was beautiful here, peaceful. It suited him. Sam was so calm, such a good soul. She liked that about him. He wasn't selfish, he wasn't mean. He was just... Sam.

"That sounds like heaven. Sam, it's beautiful out here. How'd you find it?" She moved forward and lowered herself onto the blanket, reaching for burger and moaning as she opened it to take a bite. She seemed to be hungry... all the time. It was really only pickles that seemed to make her sick, but even stranger was it was only if she ate a pickle by itself.

She took a huge bite of the burger and chewed slowly as she watched him. He looked happy. As she waited for him to answer, she popped a french fry in her mouth before taking a sip of her water.

He took a seat on the blanket and looked over at her as she bit into her burger. Looking out at the scenery before him he chuckled at his own thoughts and shook his head looking down to his lap as he opened his plate. -I guess you can say I stumbled on it on one of my midnight runs. This place was where I liked to come and think, gather my thoughts. An escape I guess you can say.-

He took a bite of his burger and chewed, looking over at her and smiling. He really didn't know that much about her and still felt slightly guilty that he slept with her. He knew...he knew deep down he was hurting and it was a rebound. He didn't expect it to go anywhere, to lead to anything...boy, was he wrong. To say he didn't care or have feelings for her would be a lie, but right now he didn't love her...he didn't know her. Not much anyway.

After he swallowed he looked up at her and decided to ask it. -So, tell me about yourself. More than I know already...-

"Mmmm," she murmured around her mouthful of burger. Swallowing it with a sip of water, she smiled at him before popping a fry in her mouth.

"Let's see. My dad died on the job when I was 6. He was a cop and his partner messed up one night and he ended up getting shot."

Let out a sigh and took another bite of her burger, chewing it thoughtfully while she thought of what to tell him. She didn't have much to tell.

"Me and my friends that those wolves killed created a group, as you know, and we wanted to support and help shifters and weres. You saw how that went over. Um... My mom's my best friend in the entire world and I don't know what I'd do without her. I've had 2 boyfriends, not including you, in my life. I've been told if you look up the word gullible in the dictionary that you'd see my picture. And that's about it."

She took a sip of her water and turned to him, smiling a bit more. This was nice; just getting to know each other. Though they had slept together twice, and she was having his baby, she didn't really know him. She liked him, sure; he was nice and good looking, but she didn't know him at all. Love would take a while. Hopefully she'd get there before the baby was born.... hopefully.

"So. Tell me about yourself."

He listened to her background as he ate his food, getting a bit misty eyed over the loss of her father. Seemed he was a commendable man who died in the line of duty. Sam had nothing but respect for the men and women of the law, even though Andy could be a pain sometimes, he still honored him and all that he did for the community.

Looking up at her as he chewed and she talked, he looked down for a moment at the mention of her friends that had been killed. Raising his head to look back at her, his lips set in a line. -Still sorry about that, that we couldn't save 'em-

He chewed more and took a few gulps of water, hearing her question about him he shrugged and scoffed a bit. -I'm a no body. The only thing I ever wanted was to have my own business and be someone in a community, be normal. I was adopted, parents took off when I shifted in front of them for the first time. Abandoned, all along...life wasn't easy but I managed.- He figured the Mickens and Charlene for another discussion on another day. He smiled and continued, -So I did what I always wanted to do, I opened a bar and I'm just trying to...trying to move forward I guess.- He shrugged and bit into his burger again.

She frowned. That wasn't much information, but she wouldn't push. He didn't seem like he would like that too much. So she just nodded and continued eating, enjoying the calm of the pond and the singing of the birds.

"What's your favorite band?"

She preferred calmer music. She liked Adele and Delta Rae, relaxing stuff. But sometimes she preferred louder music. Really, she liked most of anything, but preferred calm. It was just... better.

Smiling he thought for a moment and shook his head as he swallowed. -You know I really don't have a set favorite. I am not a fan of the heavy metal scene but rock and country are pretty good. That's usually all we play at the bar anyway, rock and country.- He drank the last of his water and put the trash in the bags, looking back out onto the water and the scenery around them. Without taking his eyes from in front of him, he sighed softly and spoke lower.

-You know life never turns out quite the way you imagine it would. I've had some pretty shitty luck, especially when it came to relationships.-

He sat with his knees up and arms draped across with his hands hanging down, looking at his hands he chuckled. -I never intended on any of this, but...- He turned his head to look at her with a soft smile, -I'm glad it did.-

She smiled at him and moved over closer so that she could put a hand on his knee. She was having his kid, so why couldn't she touch him?

"I didn't plan on this either." She chuckled and shook her head. "God knows I didn't plan on having kids at all. I didn't want them. But, ya know? Maybe it's a good thing. Maybe it'll, I dunno, make me grow up or something." She shrugged again and met his eyes, reaching her hand out to grab his and giving it a squeeze. "I'm sorta glad this happened, too, though. Thanks, by the way, for not leaving me to die. That would really have sucked."

She debated on asking him if he had heard from Emma again, but wasn't sure if she should. He had seemed really, really upset about her leaving. It had broken her heart to see Emma so upset, then to see Sam crying as he said goodbye? That was just too much. It proved to her, though, that he'd be a good dad for their kid. If they stayed together...

He looked over at her hand resting on his knee and trailed up her arm to her eyes, her soft brown eyes that said so much with hidden worries she held so tightly kept back. He smiled when her hand found his and squeezed gently, a simple and silent reassurance that things would be okay. Funny how a girl so young had such a bright out look on things, even though she'd been through a lot for just a human.

-Guess the destination doesn't really matter as long as the journey is fun. I never thought I'd be a father either, but it doesn't sound so bad. Not anymore.-

He placed a hand on her cheek and ran his thumb across her smooth skin. -I couldn't have just let you die. That would have been a waste. Too many had died already.- He dropped his hand and smiled softly. -I just want you to know whatever happens...to us I mean...I'll always be there for our child. I'll never abandon them, ever. And as long as you'll have me, I'll stand by your side as well.-

He leaned in to close the small gap between them and pressed his lips softly to hers, very gently, very loving. Just lingering there for a few brief moments before pulling back.

She smiled as he spoke to her, her heart racing just ever so slightly at his words. He really was a good man, and she really was lucky. She just hoped that they could make it work. She didn't want to be a single parent. She didn't know if she could handle it.

When he put his hand on her cheek, she blushed slightly and turned her face into his palm; he moved his hand entirely too soon, but it was okay. They'd have many more times for that.

"Thank you. I want to make it work, Sam. I really do. It's just... I'm so young. I never thought that this would happen, ya know? But... maybe it'll be worth it."

She smiled into his kiss as his lips pressed against hers, feeling her heart beat start to steady back out. This could be good. It could be really good. When he moved away, she put her hand against his cheek and pulled him close so his forehead touched hers. "We can make this work."

The reminder of her being substantially younger than he was was a downer on the mood, but really when love was involved, who cared about age. Well, unless age was a no-no, but that was beside the point. She was a legal consenting adult and that's what mattered. -Maybe, but you're not young where it matters.-

She pulled him in so her forehead was against his and spoke. He agreed with her and nodded. -Yes, we can...we will. For us, for them...- He placed a hand against her abdomen and smiled then looked into her eyes. -Here's to the future....our future...-

She felt the shift in the mood and frowned.

"Hey, age is a number. It has nothing to do with a persons character or their heart. So don't let that worry you, okay? I'm a lot older than my age. I promise you that."

She smiled at him as he made his little toast. "Our future. We got this, Sam. No worries on my end."

Moving her head, she stared into his eyes and grinned before speaking. "I, um... Can we get some ice cream on the way home?"

He chuckled and sat up more, picking some of the trash up. -I'm not worried, I know you as a person and that's what matters.- He kissed her forehead and stood, gathering the trash and tying the bag up to set aside. Looking down at her, he smiled and held a hand out to help her to her feet.

Her request was innocent and sweet, simple enough too. Smiling, he gave her a nod and answered. -Ice cream sounds great actually. I could go for ice cream.- He pulled her into him and moved her hair to the side, kissing her once more. He hated to leave this spot, the serenity of it and everything. But ice cream was calling and it was pretty hot out. -Come on, let's get going.-