Page 82

ONE YEAR LATER

W hen we decided to try for a baby, I expected to be slightly anxious considering what happened in the past. But what I did not expect was for Vlad to be the one who was most anxious.

From the time we took the first positive pregnancy test, he’s been by my side twenty-four seven. And by that I mean that even when I go to the bathroom, he waits by the door and he asks question after question to ensure I’m all right.

At first, it was sweet. But as time went on, he became more and more overbearing. To the point that he’s enrolled us in three different expecting parents courses, because in his own words: we have to be ready for any eventuality.

I’m six months along now, and I desperately wish to be done with this pregnancy. Not only because I can’t wait to meet our little one, but also because I need to go back to having a modicum of privacy.

Not that before the pregnancy I had much, but I could at least go to the bathroom by myself, or make myself a sandwich without a shadow hanging over my shoulder.

Vlad, being Vlad, will not let me eat anything until he reads off the label to make sure there isn’t any type of toxic substance inside the food item. He’s become so bad with his ‘food safety’ rules that he now will not let me eat anything that’s overly processed.

Next thing I know, he might as well open a bakery, a butcher’s shop or even an entire chicken farm just to make sure the products come from a safe environment.

“Hell Girl!” He calls my name as he thuds down the hallway. I’m propped up on a chair watching TV when he comes inside the room with a huge grin on his face.

“What is it?” I raise a brow, expecting something outlandish.

“I have great news!”

I narrow my eyes. Lately, our definitions of ‘great news’ haven’t aligned as much.

“Do tell,” I add drily.

“I finally closed the deal on that business.”

I tilt my head to the side.

“What business?” I don’t remember him mentioning anything about a certain business .

Then again, with pregnancy brain, I’ve filtered out most information about business—he does have a lot of those.

Sometimes I don’t even know how he has time for it.

He’s always here . And yet, he always has time to run an insane amount of business and not run them into the ground.

I’ve always found that fascinating about him, my clever boy.

“It’s the beef jerky you like,” he says, pride emanating from his voice.

“Say what?” I take my legs off the chair and get into a seating position as I glare at him.

“The one you always order online? I told you I wasn’t exactly sure how organic they were but you loved it so much that I didn’t want you to stop on my account.”

I blink. “So you did what?”

“I made them an offer they couldn’t refuse. Now I have access to all their accounts and certifications and I am happy to say they are organic.” He smiles to himself.

I’m still in shock. While I jokingly thought he might do something like this, I did not expect him to…actually go through with it.

“You bought off the company?”

“On the bright side, now you can have all the beef jerky you want! And they also own another side business, it’s a monthly subscription box of the top cuts of beef. So that’s an added perk.”

“Yes, the monthly subscription I have,” I mention drily.

“And now you can have it for free! How cool is that? And I can vouch the beef is top quality. You know, you can never trust labels these days. At least now you can eat in peace knowing it’s the best of the best.”

“Vlad… I was already eating it in peace.”

“Well…” He scratches the back of his head. “Now I can watch you eat in peace.”

I close my eyes and massage my temples.

“Since this is out in the open, tell me, what else have you done that I might not have any knowledge of?”

“W-why do you think I might have done something?” He stammers, eyes wide like a deer caught in headlights.

“Spill it.”

Panic enters his features.

“I—”

“The truth, Vlad. I want the entire truth.”

“Well…” he clears his throat and straightens his back. “Not that much.”

I let out a long sigh—it is that much.

Tapping my foot on the floor, I wait for him to continue.

“The supplements you’ve been taking. Supplements are never FDA approved, and I saw they had this little thing called proprietary blend, and you never know what a company might put in that and not disclose it.”

“So you bought it off?”

“Not entirely, just enough stocks so I could have access to the information. I’ll have you know I attended a board meeting and demanded they add more transparency to their labels.

I’ve also visited their labs and they seem to be safe.

The formula, too, is good—I consulted with a doctor on it, I’ll have you know. ”

“What else?”

“Uhm…”

“Vlad, it’s the moment of truth.”

“Let’s see. I really did not do that much, all right? It’s just that I was worried about some products you used.”

“What products?”

“Your shampoo and body wash,” he blurts out. “Any small amount of toxins might be bad for the baby.”

“So you bought it off too?”

“Just enough stocks so I could ensure their testing is rigorous enough for pregnant women.”

Good Lord! This is getting out of hand. And I don’t even think we’ve scratched the surface.

“Fine, what else?”

“A chicken farm!”

My lashes flutter in disbelief. Perhaps I have a knack for clairvoyance because damn… I was on point.

“You eat eggs daily. I couldn’t let you eat some random eggs. Who knows how some people take care of their chicken?”

“So you bought a chicken farm to what? Spoil the chicken?”

“Well, yes. But this was right around the time you got pregnant. Haven’t you noticed how much better the eggs are? The flavor alone is much more potent.”

“Good God, Vlad. What else?”

“Why are you looking at me like that? I did what I thought best.” He says with a pout and he reminds me of a cute puppy. I shake my head at him. He won’t win me over with his cuteness today—not until I get all the information out of him.

“Vlad, tell me.”

He takes a brief moment to speak. And that’s how I know we have barely scratched the surface.

“You also eat a lot of cheese…” he adds sheepishly.

“All right, got it, you bought a cheesemaker.”

“Actually, I invested in an Amish-run farm and that gets us all the best cheese and milk—most natural too. No preservatives.”

Another sigh.

“Continue.”

“I bought stocks in a few other companies, but nothing over the top, just baby toys and other baby products—I have to make sure they don’t have any toxic substances in them,” he adds vehemently.

“Oh, Vlad…”

“Are you mad at me? Please say you’re not mad.”

He comes over to my side and drops to his knees in front of me. Placing a quick kiss to my bump, he lays his head on my stomach as he wraps his arms around me.

“I’m not mad. But you’ve gone overboard with this.”

“I know, but I need to make sure anything you consume is good for you and the baby.”

“I appreciate everything you do,” I murmur as I thread my fingers through his thick locks. “You’ll be the best dad.”

He lifts his head up, his eyes wide and hopeful.

“You think so?”

“I know it.”

Xanthiya Kuznetsova came wailing into the world and into the waiting arms of her father. Classic Vlad, he would not let anyone else help with the birth—no, he got a midwife certificate to do it all himself.

Poor girl, she might have to wait until she’s seventy to date with such an overbearing father.

But one thing is for sure: she will be so loved, she will never have to wonder what love feels like.

THE END