“Yeah, sweetie?”
“I’ve been thinking about something.” She’s picking at the edge of her coloring page, not quite meeting my eyes. “When the baby comes, she’s gonna call you mom, right?”
My throat tightens unexpectedly. “Well, yeah. Probably. Eventually, when she learns to talk.”
“I was wondering...” Chloe takes a breath, and I watch her gather her courage, this brave little girl who has already dealt with so much. “Could I call you something special too? Not Mom, because I have a mom. But something that’s just for us.” She pauses, still not looking up, her small fingers worrying at the paper. “Like Emmy-Mama?”
She finally lifts her eyes to mine, worried and hopeful all at once.
“I asked my mom and she said it was okay,” she adds quickly. “She said I should ask you.”
My eyes fill with tears immediately, helplessly, and I pull Chloe into a hug before I can even think about what I’m doing. I hold her tight against my chest, this incredible kid who I love as fiercely and completely as I’m going to love the baby currently doing somersaults in my belly.
“I would love that,” I manage. “Whatever you want to call me, Chloe. I’d be honored.”
Chloe burrows into me, her small body relaxing with relief. “Really?”
“Really. So much.”
“Can it be Emmy-Mama?” she asks into my shoulder, her voice muffled against my dress. “Because that’s what I want to call you. I’ve been practicing it in my head and it sounds really good.”
I’m crying now, can’t help it, tears sliding down my cheeks. Pregnancy hormones make everything more emotional, but this would wreck me regardless. “Yes,” I tell her, pulling back so I can see her face, brushing her hair out of her eyes. “Emmy-Mama is perfect. It’s absolutely perfect.”
Chloe beams at me, that huge smile that transforms her whole face into pure sunshine. “Okay good.” She pats my belly, addressing it directly in that way she’s been doing for months. “Hi baby. I’m your big sister Chloe. And this is Emmy-Mama. You’re gonna love her so much.”
The baby kicks in response, like she already knows her sister’s voice, and Chloe giggles with delight.
Theo appears behind the bar, dish towel over his shoulder, plate of something delicious-smelling in his hand. He stops when he sees us, his eyes moving from my tear-streaked face to Chloe’s beaming one, and I watch him try to piece together what’s happening.
“What’s going on?” he asks, setting down the plate. “Why is everyone crying?”
“Happy crying,” I say quickly, wiping at my cheeks.
Chloe bounces on her stool, the nervous energy of asking transformed into pure excitement now that the hard part is over. “I asked Emma if I could call her Emmy-Mama and she said yes!”
Theo’s face softens into something so tender it makes my chest ache, and when he looks at me over Chloe’s head his eyes are suspiciously shiny. He mouthsI love you, and I mouth it back, my heart so full it might actually burst.
He comes around the bar and wraps his arms around both of us, careful of my belly, of Chloe squished between us. He kisses the top of my head, then Chloe’s, and holds us there for a long moment while the restaurant hums quietly around us and the evening light turns golden through the windows.
“You two are my whole world,” he says quietly. “You know that?”
“We know,” Chloe says matter-of-factly, already wiggling in his embrace. “Now can I have ice cream?”
Theo laughs, that warm sound I fell in love with, and releases us. “Yeah, bug. You can have ice cream. Go ask Uncle Alex nicely.”
Chloe runs toward the kitchen, already listing off flavors she wants mixed together in combinations that sound genuinely terrible. Theo stays next to me, his hand finding my belly the way it always does, like he can’t help himself, like he needs to be connected to both of us at all times. The baby kicks against his palm, restless tonight, active through the whole evening, and Theo’s face lights up.
“She’s going to be a soccer player,” he says.
“Or a kickboxer,” I suggest. “Or possibly just very opinionated.”
“Like her mother.” He leans down and presses a kiss to my forehead. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
I smile.
“Emmy-Mama, huh?” he says softly, his hand still warm on my belly.
“Apparently.” My eyes fill with tears again, which is getting ridiculous at this point. “Victoria gave her blessing.”
