Their Miracle Baby

“I’ve booked us a private flight. If we use regional airports, it cuts the travel time in half,” Lewis said, guiding her into the tiny plane.

She’d been sure that it would be an uncomfortable ride, but instead the plane had been plush and comfortable, the seats nothing like commercial airlines. It felt a little strange to be traveling in such luxury, but Lewis seemed to take it in stride so she decided to enjoy it.

“Where are we? I guess I fell asleep,” she said, rubbing her eyes.

“New York,” Lewis said, a huge grin on his face.

Venetia was too shocked to speak. On their first date, when they’d talked about traveling, she’d shocked him by admitting that she’d always dreamed of going to New York City. Embarrassed, she’d admitted that she wanted to go shopping at Macy’s and Saks Fifth Avenue, and see the art museum and a show. The whole thing was so unlike her, but since she’d been a kid, it had been a dream of hers.

“You remembered,” she said, tears springing to her eyes.

“I did. You deserve a little spoiling and I’m just the man to do it,” Lewis said, pulling her close for a kiss. “First, we check into our hotel, then shopping, then we’ll see where all that leads us.”

“That sounds wonderful,” Venetia said, feeling like a princess in a fairy tale.

The hotel was everything Venetia could have possibly wanted. It was downtown in the best neighborhood, with a beautiful view of the city from an adorable little balcony. Although it was winter, there was a heater that would make it toasty in even the coldest weather. She couldn’t wait to have coffee there in the morning.

There was a huge king sized bed, covered in more silk than Venetia had ever seen. The bathroom had a tub that was big enough for both of them, plus a shower with multiple jets. A small kitchen with a table for two completed the room.

“It’s a fantastic room, everything I imagined it would be,” she said, crossing the room and giving him a big hug.

“I could have gotten us a suite, but I thought this would be more intimate. Besides, I plan to have you in the bed most of the time we’re in the room.”

“Oh, yeah? Doesn’t look like I’m there now,” she said, sending him a playful little smile.

“That’s a situation I’d be happy to rectify.”

A few hours later, Lewis ordered a big breakfast from room service, which they ate sitting in the fluffy hotel robes that had been hanging in the bathroom. Venetia felt more relaxed than she had in a long time, a feeling she’d long forgotten. Lewis was watching her eat, thinking he was the luckiest man alive.

“What do you want to do for the rest of the day?” Lewis asked, pushing his empty plate away.

“Well, I’d really like to go to the art museum,” she said, stacking her equally empty plate on top of his.

“I remember that you mentioned that specifically when we talked about New York before. I didn’t know you had an interest in art.”

“I used to paint when I was younger. I painted all through college, but when I got to medical school I had to give it up and I’ve never started again. But I would still love to see the museum.”

“I’d be happy to accompany you to the art museum, but first we’re going shopping. I also remember that it was another thing you wanted to do,” he said, pulling a credit card out of his pocket and sliding it across the table to her.

“Lewis, I can’t do that. I have some money I can spend.”

“Nope, this is my treat. Remember I’m spoiling you. What good is my money if I can’t spend it on things that make me happy?” he said, taking her hand. “And seeing you happy makes me happy. Don’t worry, I’ll help you. Plus, I could use a few things of my own.”

“Okay,” she said reluctantly. “But I’m not going to go crazy.”

“What fun would that be? Come on, let’s hit the shower and get out of here.”

Venetia did go a little crazy with some poking and prodding from Lewis. By the end of their little shopping spree, she had doubled her wardrobe, including a new selection of very fancy dresses. She’d tried to argue that she had plenty of nice dresses and that the ones he’d chosen were a bit too fancy for her.

“You’re going to need these. What are you wearing to the awards ceremony next month?” he asked, hands on his hips.

“Well, I just figured I’d find something in my closet,” she said, knowing that she would have been hunting the second hand shops for something.

“What were you going to wear tonight?” he asked.

“Oh, I hadn’t thought about tonight. Where are we going?” she asked, momentarily forgetting about the clothes, allowing Lewis to silently signal the salesgirl to ring them up.

“Dinner uptown and then a Broadway show. You’re going to need something like that,” he said, pointing to an evening gown.

“Okay, but just one,” she said, grinning.

Lewis sent the sales girl a look, and she quickly disappeared into the back of the store. “Venetia, will you just let me do this for you? I’m really a pretty frugal man, you’ll see that when I show you my house. But I have plenty of money, buying you some clothes isn’t going to make that much of a dent. These are gifts with no strings attached. If we stop seeing each other next week, I’ll still be happy I did this.”

She looked at him and saw that he spoke the truth. “Okay, I’ll let you. But only within reason.”

“But I’m also hoping that I’ll have lots of opportunities to take you places where you’ll need something like that slinky little black one,” he said, pulling her into his arms and kissing her right there in the store.