Baby on the Way {Arizona + Deacon}
After a few moments of tense silence, Deacon got up without a word, heading toward his kitchen. Nadia’s head turned away from her immediately, sensing the shift in the movement of the couch. The little one quickly hopped off her lap and went after her father, her little arms wrapping around Deacon’s legs as she reached him. He told her something in Russian and the small one’s soft whimpers continued. The little girl looked back at her, eye shining with brimming tears. Arizona nodded and got up, walking to Nadia and scooping her up into her arms just as Deacon closed the door down the hall. Her whimpers turned into soft cries and Zoe tried to hug her close, but she struggled in her grasp, little legs kicking at her ribs. She was at a loss, unable to speak to her, to give her comforting word of some kind.
Nadia’s eyes stayed locked on the door down the hall, waiting for her father to walk out of it again. Zoe reached for her phone on the table, speaking into google translate to try and explain that Deacon was coming back. She played the converted message back to Nadia, who gave her a funny look over the robotic sounding gibberish that came through the speaker. But she seemed to grasp what she was saying, that he was taking a bath, and her cries died down. Arizona bounced her up and down, before doing what she’d done with the sad kids she used to baby sit for when she was a teen. She held Nadia tightly and spun them around quickly, making them both dizzy. Nadia started giggling, patting her arm to go again. And she did, over and over until her giggles turned to happy squeals, her face finally expressing a little joy.
They didn’t hear the shower turn off, too engrossed in their own little games to hear Deacon moving around out of his shower. Their attention was broken when he walked back out into the living room, catching the two of them in the middle of Zoe swinging her around. She stopped and Nadia patted her arm over and over to get her to play again. The emotionless words made her frown, but she simply nodded, agreeing to stay here with his daughter while he went out. “Yeah, I’ll make it and send it to you while your out,” she replied. Arizona switched Nadia from one hip to the other, shifting her weight naturally. She looked at the clock on the wall and bit her lip. “Four hours maybe? But Deacon I can just tell them not to come, I’ll make something up if you want, that you’re not feeling well or something. They’ll understand. I can just go see them myself at their hotel,” she said.
As he retreated to the bedroom, for a quick shower and a change of clothes, Deacon kept wondering about just how much more he’d be asking of Arizona. Granted, he was happy that she had decided to stay without him asking her to. It was a new feeling--having someone choosing to stay by his side, choosing to help and accept this life. It was something that had been practically forced onto her, yes. But Deacon had never asked her to stay. The door would always be open, choose she want to leave. This life wasn’t for everyone. The violence, the gruesomeness that followed, and he knew that someone who’s had her upbringing, despite her noticeable issues with her mother, it couldn’t be compared to the abuse he went through and the violent childhood and young adult life that he had to live through. He couldn’t ask this much of her, never. And yet, she refused to leave. She’d taken upon herself the role of nurse, caretaker and companion. He had yet to say it out loud, but Deacon was glad that she did. He was, in fact, very much in love with that woman. Another new feeling on his part.
Love, was what he felt when he walked back in the room and saw his alleged daughter laughing, warming up to Arizona. The woman’s smile almost made one creep its way to his lips, but Deacon’s mind was elsewhere. He needed to get Nadia’s hair to a clinic to verify their DNA, he needed to head downtown and buy the little girl some things, since her mother was kind enough to literally drop her on Deacon’s life and leave, he needed to inspect on the weapons delivery that was supposed to be coming in a few hours and also, he needed to go by the store and buy some bottles of wine, because her family would definitely need more, considering there was a baby in their lives now. Or maybe Deacon was the one who needed more alcohol.
He wished that his tone had been less detached than it was. He wished that he could sound warmer, but, Deacon had never been a warm person to be around. Actually, Arizona was his sun. She was the one to literally bring light into his life, she was the warm one, but as he approached his--was she even his girlfriend? They had never set anything in stone... They were together, yes, but no labels had been placed on them. “No, don’t be silly.” Shaking his head, his arm moved around her small shoulders and he leaned closer, planting a kiss on the blonde’s head, letting his lips linger there for a second longer. “They’re already on their way and we’ve ordered the food already.” Because there was no way that he would let Arizona cook, or that he would cook. Not today, at least. His blue eyes averted from the older woman to the youngest, smiling brightly in the blonde’s arms, her own golden curls glinting under the dim light of the sun that invaded the living room through the big glass doors. “Be nice to Zoe, okay?” He said in Russian while his fingers brushed against the little girl’s pink cheeks. Deacon noticed the way her face contorted and how her smile soon became a pout. “I’ll come back soon, I promise.” With that, he kissed the toddler’s forehead and returned his gaze to Arizona. “Don’t forget to send me the list. Call me if she needs anything, okay? I won’t be gone for too long.” Especially because he knew that Arizona would chop off his private parts if he disobeyed doctor’s orders.
Before Nadia started crying again, he stepped out, sliding into his Range Rover’s driver’s seat and pulling out of the driveway. First, he hit the hospital, then on his way to check in on the weapons, Deacon received the list of things to buy for Nadia and proceeded to do just that. What should I give her for Christmas? He texted Arizona, because he had absolutely no clue of what a child would want. Deke moved slower than he usually would, because his sides burned if he did more effort than he should, hence why his trip to a children’s store took longer than expected. At least, he bought everything. The priorities were a car seat and a crib. Some clothes, too. Something nice for her to wear at dinner tonight. Something that wouldn’t show Arizona’s family just how dysfunctional Deacon’s life was. He bought some toys to distract her, things to eat and drink on--everything that was on the list. His last stop was by the liquor store, where he bought three bottles of wine and another bottle of Bourbon for himself.
The few hours that he had spent away from home had helped him clear his head. Deacon had never meant to be a father and yet, here he was, the father of a little girl. It really surprised him to be welcomed back by a giggly Nadia, who’s little legs were still a little wobbly from the running, possibly due to her young age? The hell if he knew. “Hello, little one. Can you go with Zoe, please?” Deep down, it bothered him to have her always go with Arizona whenever she clung to him, but he always had things to do. He made the trip to his car at least five times before he got everything out and finally sat down next to Zoe on the couch. “I’m sorry.” He huffed, shaking his head. “I’ve never thanked you for saying, but I think that I should be apologizing first and foremost, because this--none of this should be happening. You didn’t have to watch me get stabbed or to babysit a child that up until a few hours ago, I didn’t even know existed. I’m sorry for dropping all of this on your lap. You didn’t have to stay, but I’m glad you did.” He gently brushed his fingers against her cheek, tracing along her jaw line and taking ahold of her chin before bringing her to him, pressing his lips against hers. ”I’m sorry for all that I’ve put you through--but thank you. For staying. No one’s ever did. So this--all of this is new for me. I appreciate you being patient. I can stay with her if you have things to do. We should start getting ready for your family’s arrival.”
