Chapter 431 - Baby Fever

JoAnna noticed Jeff's mood and that he didn't touch his food since they mentioned babies. She felt guilty for bringing up the topic. 'If I didn't mention that Sophia is pregnant, Elanor would not mention babies, and Jeff would not get upset.'

JoAnna said that she is tired and excused herself. Jeff, naturally, followed her full of concern that she got tired so suddenly. He was usually very observant, but this time he was deep in his thoughts and missed to see that JoAnna is worried about him.

…

In Jeff's bedroom, he was not able to control his anxiousness. "Did you catch a cold? Do you have any aches? Fever? … Come to bed. I will tuck you in and you can rest. … How about a massage? I'm not an expert like Felix, but I can give a good rub…" He made JoAnna sit on the edge of the bed and tried to get her to lie down.

JoAnna was moved by all the attention, but she wanted to talk to him. "I'm not tired."

Jeff paused for a second and continued with concern, thinking that she said that only so that he is not worried about her. "What? Why did you say that you are tired? You didn't even finish your food…"

"You didn't finish your food either… Come here." She patted the spot on the bed next to her.

Jeff sat next to her obediently.

JoAnna looked at him with a tinge of guilt. "Did you get a baby fever again?"

Jeff lowered his head and didn't respond.

That was a confirmation for JoAnna. She sighed. "Oh, Jeff… we talked about that, didn't we?"

"Yes. But I can't help it…" Jeff stopped talking and lifted his head to look into her deep blue eyes. "It's OK. I will be OK. I just need some time, and it will go away." He wanted her to stop worrying about him. And he definitely didn't want them to have children if she is not ready. Jeff scolded himself for letting her see that he was troubled. "I'm sorry. You know that I'm a person who wants to have it all. And I'm not patient. But I will be patient for you. I don't want to make you rush into things. I promise that we will do everything at your pace." He caressed her cheek. "Don't worry about me. I'm fine. As long as we are together, I will be fine."

JoAnna felt overflow of emotions. "Oh, Jeff…" She threw herself into his embrace. She knows that he is doing so much for her. And now this… forcing himself to be patient. 'It must be a torture for him. And he is doing it for me.' She lifted her head and their eyes met. "How about we set a wedding date?"

Jeff's eyes lit up. "Do you have something on your mind?" He held his breath while anxiously waiting for her response.

She shrugged and smiled and nodded at the same time.

He thought that she is adorable. But he didn't understand her nonverbal signals. "Which one is it?"

She straightened her back and smiled shyly. "I always thought that September is a good month for a wedding."

Jeff liked what he heard. 'That is only three months from now! And June is half-over, so it's maybe two and a half months away!' He started recollecting if there is anything big happening at that time. "Isn't your birthday in September?"

"Maybe that's why I like September so much." She giggled.

Jeff took few deep breaths to compose himself. "So… do you want to celebrate your birthday as your last as Miss Hill? Or as your first as Mrs. White?"

JoAnna held her chin while squinting, pretending to think. "Hmm… let's make it as my last as Miss Hill." She laughed when she saw that he was not very happy about that. She knows that he would prefer it to happen as soon as possible, and if it's after her birthday, that means it will be after September 10.

"Let me check the calendar… " JoAnna took her phone and checked month of September. "September 15 looks like a good date. What do you think?"

'That is few days less than three months!' Jeff was happy that it's less than three months. He held her cheeks in his palms and gave her a juicy kiss which made a loud smacking sound. He pulled her in his embrace and waited for her to stop giggling before confirming. "September 15 it is!"

~Seattle~

…Earlier that day…

Sophia was working from home. Because of her involvement related to Cox Industries, she needed to focus on that, and decided not to go to office. All her meetings were moved to next few days, and she only took important calls. Leah, her assistant was in the office, and she handled all the things that she could. Lea contacted Sophia only in few instances when she didn't have authority to make a decision, and the issue was urgent.

Of course, Felix was also working from home that day. But he was not focusing on work-work. His work for that day was to take care of Sophia.

Sophia was trying to arrange documents on her desk, but the fruit shake, herbal tea, platters with peeled oranges, apples, grapes, strawberries and three types of vegetable salad were occupying most of the desk.

"Felix!" Her frustration was obvious.

Door of the study opened and only his head was visible. "Lunch will be ready in a bit!"

"I'm not calling you for food… actually I am. Come here." Sophia took few deep breaths to compose herself. She looked at Felix who stood in front of her in attention, curious why she called him in. Sophia found him to be simply irresistible in that red apron with golden hearts embroidered around black letters which spelled: 'Kiss the cook'. She reminded herself not to be harsh. Whole day he is showering her with attention, so much that he is hindering her work. But he is doing it with good intentions, so she needs to be kind. "My dear Felix… can you take some of these fruits away? And stop bringing more? If I want to eat or drink, I will come to the kitchen. OK?"

Felix frowned. "But you don't come to the kitchen. When you work, you are neglecting your body. Look…" He gestured to the plates spread across the desk. "Even when I bring them here, you are not eating!"

"Because I'm not hungry…" Sophia defended herself.

"You are not hungry… but what if my child is?" Felix stood straight in front of Sophia with his arms akimbo. His stern expression might be intimidating, if not for that 'Kiss the cook' apron.

Sophia rolled her eyes. Felix was going deep into research related to pregnancy whenever he found some time, and then he would dump all pregnancy facts he discovered on her. She likes the attention and that he is committed, but there are times when he is overbearing. "I'm pretty sure that if baby is hungry and lacking nutrients, I will be hungry also."

Felix shook his head, dismissing her argument as invalid. "That is not how it works. If baby is hungry, and there is no fresh nutritious food in your system, the fat from your body will become food for the baby. Do you want baby to eat your fat?"

Sophia was outraged. "Did you just call me fat?!!"

Felix immediately got reminded of mood swings during pregnancy and realized his mistake. He did his best to pacify her fury. "Ma chéri...That is not what I said…"

She glared at him. "What did you say? Enlighten me."

Felix cleared his throat nervously while his eyes darted over the desk. "I wanted to say that I'm taking these fruits and salads away, and I will let you know when lunch is done." He was grabbing plates and stacking them one on top of another. "You can eat anytime you feel like it. No pressure."

Before Sophia could react, his hands were full of plates and he was out of the study.