After dinner with the rest of the family, Derek, Evelyn, and Samantha retired to the bedroom.


    Evelyn sat propped against the headboard with a quiet smile on her face as she watched Derek and Samantha.


    Beside her, Dereky on his back, his strong arms yfully holding up a giggling Samantha.


    "Higher, Daddy! Higher!" Samantha squealed, herughter ringing through the room like music.


    Derek grinned and lifted her into the air again, making airne noises that sent her into a fit ofughter. Her little legs kicked wildly in excitement, and her cheeks flushed pink with joy. "You''re going to fly away at this rate"" Derek teased as he brought her back down onto his chest. Samantha''s hands clutched his shirt, her face glowing with happiness.


    "I''m not flying anywhere!" she announced between giggles. Then, in a sudden, sweet moment, Samantha wrapped her arms around Derek''s neck, pulling him into a tight hug. Her voice turned soft, full of love. "I love you, Daddy."


    Derek''s heart melted, and his smile faltered as his eyes softened.


    He tightened his arms around her, pressing a kiss to the side of her head. "I love you more, baby."


    "No, I love you more"" Samantha argued, her face serious as she pulled back to look at him. Derek raised an eyebrow, pretending to look shocked. "That''s impossible. I love you the most." Samantha shook her head stubbornly, her curls bouncing. "Nope!! love you the mostest!"


    Watching the sweet scene from her spot on the bed, Evelyn couldn''t help butugh. Her heart swelled as she looked at the two people she loved more than anything in the world. "Alright, you two," she said, her voice light and yful, "you both are wrong. I love you both the most."


    Derek turned his head to look at Evelyn, a slow smile spreading across his face. Samantha turned, too, her eyes bright with curiosity.


    "I love you two the most," Derek said, and Samantha shook her head.


    "Mommy is always right, so she has to win"" Samantha said with a dramatic sigh, making her parentsugh.


    Derek and Evelyn exchanged a knowing look as the yfulness quieted. Something gentle passed between them, an unspoken agreement. It was time. Evelyn gave him a slight nod, her smile softening. "Baby," Evelyn began, her voice tender, "there''s something we want to tell you."


    Samantha tilted her head, her eyes darting between her parents.


    "Did you get me a new toy?" she asked curiously.


    Derek chuckled, "No, darling. But we can get you as many as you want," he promised.


    "Then what?" Samantha asked, looking from Derek to Samantha.


    Evelyn reached out and smoothed Samantha''s wild curls. "Well," she said with a smile, "there''s one more person for us all to love now."


    Samantha''s smile widened. "Is it Aunt Maya?"


    Evelyn chuckled softly, shaking her head. "Maya is very special to us, but no, sweetheart. There''s someone else we want you to meet."


    Samantha''s brows furrowed in confusion. "Who?"


    Samantha watched with curiosity as her father turned to the nightstand and opened the drawer, pulling out the ultrasound picture. He handed the picture to her, and she received it carefully. "Do you know what this is, baby?" Derek asked gently.


    Samantha frowned, studying the picture intently. "Is it a drawing?" she asked, squinting her eyes as she turned it this way and that.


    Evelyn and Derek exchanged a quietugh. "Not quite, love," Evelyn said softly.


    Derek sat up straighter and grabbed his phone. "Here," he said,


    swiping through until he found a simr photo. "Do you know what this is, Sam?" he asked as he showed her the image.


    Samantha stared at it, her face nk. "No..."


    Derek''s voice was gentle as he said, "That was you, sweetheart when you were in Mommy''s tummy."


    Samantha''s little mouth dropped open, and she turned her wide eyes toward Evelyn. "Me? In your tummy?"Content is ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org.


    Evelyn nodded, her voice barely above a whisper. "Yes, love. That''s you before you were born."


    "But there is nobody in this. I can''t see myself here," she said, looking back at the picture on Derek''s phone.


    "That''s because you were very tiny. But this little shape here was you," Evelyn said, leaning closer to show Samantha the shape she was referring to.


    Samantha looked back at the photo in her hands, staring at it with awe. "Is this a baby, too?" she asked, and her parents nodded.


    "Yes, darling," Evelyn said softly.


    "But this baby is not me?" She asked, wanting to be sure.


    "This is a different baby," Derek said with a slight nod.


    "Is there a baby... in there now?" Samantha asked quietly, her voice trembling with wonder as her gaze shot back to Evelyn''s stomach. Evelyn smiled and ced a hand on her belly. "Yes, Sam. There''s a baby in here right now. You finally get to have a younger one."


    For a moment, the room was silent.


    Samantha blinked, her small face filled with amazement. Then,


    without warning, she let out a tinvet


    gasp and scrambled forward, wrapping her arms around Evelyn''s belly as far as they would go. Her voice broke with excitement.


    "There''s a baby in there! Mommy, there''s a baby in there!"


    Evelyn let out a softugh, tears stinging her eyes at her daughter''s pure joy. "Yes. There''s a baby in here," she said as she embraced Samantha.


    Samantha lifted her head, her little face glowing with happiness.


    "Mommy, Daddy-I''m gonna be a big sister!"


    "Yes, sweetheart," Derek said softly, his voice thick with emotion as he watched his family. "You''re going to be the best big sister ever."


    Samantha turned to look at him, her eyes suddenly shiny with tears she didn''t quite understand. "Do you think it is going to be a boy or a girl? Or will there be two?" Samantha asked excitedly.


    Evelynughed, "I don''t think there will be two. And we can''t tell yet whether it is going to be a boy or a girl. Why? Do you have a problem with either?"


    Samantha pursed her lips, "If it''s a girl, we can y with my dolls and have lots of tea time together, but if it''s a boy, I don''t know what we can do together. Will the baby love me, too?"


    Evelyn''s heart swelled as she leaned closer, brushing a kiss over Samantha''s forehead. "Of course, the baby will love you, Sam. And there is a lot you can do with your little brother too. You can also have tea time with him and y with other toys." Derek reached out and ced his hand on Samantha''s shoulder.


    "You already have the biggest heart. That baby is so lucky to have you."


    Samantha''s lip trembled, and she


    looked as if she might cry for a moment. But then a bright smile broke across her face, and she threw herself into Derek''s arms first, hugging him tightly, before crawling


    back to Evelyn and pressing her


    cheek against her tummy,


    "Hi, baby," she whispered softly, her voice filled with love. "I''m your big sister. I''m going to love you forever."


    Samanthay curled up next to


    Evelyn''s tummy, her little hand


    resting there as if she could feel the


    new life within. "I can''t wait to meet


    you. You can be a boy or a girl; don''t mind as long as I get to be your big sister," she whispered again, her voice full of promise.


    Tears slipped silently down Evelyn''s cheeks as she looked up at Derek. His eyes mirrored her own, brimming with emotion. No words were needed between them.


    Evelyn reached for Derek''s hand, and as their fingersced together, they knew that this moment- this little family of theirs - was perfect, and the love in the room felt bigger than words.


    Derek leaned in close to Evelyn, pressing a kiss to her temple.


    "Thank you for this. I love you," he murmured.


    Evelyn turned to him, her voice soft but steady. "I love you too."


    Samantha continued to "talk" to the baby until she fell asleep, and then Derek took her to her bedroom and tucked her in.


    Derek smiled as he returned to join Evelyn in bed. "She was still talking to the baby in her sleep as Iy her down," he said, and she giggled.


    "That''s all she is going to be talking about now. I can imagine her telling my parents and Maya about it tomorrow," Evelyn said, and Derek chuckled.


    "I''m just so d she didn''t ask how the baby got into your stomach," Derek said, and Evelyn giggled.


    "That she didn''t ask today doesn''t mean she''s not going to ask some other time. So, get ready for it, Evelyn advised.


    Derek shook his head, "I have a lot of reading to do. I''ve gotten quite a number of books on parenting," he said, and Evelyn smiled.


    "Really? You''re such a good dad," she said, and he sighed softly.


    "I want to be a great dad to my kids. But mostly, I want to be a great husband to you," he said, and she smiled.


    "I do not doubt that you''ll be both," she said confidently.


    "Do you think we should tell Samantha about Maya? I''m not sure how to exin how we got separated and about our parents?" Derek asked, since the reason they were yet to mention it to her was because he wasn''t sure how to exin it. Evelyn shook her head, "We can always tell her when she is older and can understand. For now all she needs to know is that Maya is her Aunt," Evelyn said, and Derek nodded.


    "Yeah. Good idea."


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