Chapter 12-Amazed

Mike watched as Danielle tried closing the zipper on her overstuffed suitcase, "Stop laughing and help me," she snapped.

Mike lifted the lid on the zebra print luggage and rearranged the top layer of clothes before shutting the lid and zipping it with ease, "Not that hard if you fold your stuff neatly," he smiled causing Danielle to glare at him.

"Smartass," she mumbled causing Mike to laugh.

"Next time zip your own damn suitcase," he replied as Danielle flipped him off before sitting down on the floor in front of the shower favor bags.

"What time is your appointment," she asked showing him the blue baby shoe filled with red and white M&Ms that had Landon's name on it.

"Should I fall over," Mike asked jokingly, "You have red and white M&Ms!"

"Kiley made these," Danielle replied, "So, shut up and answer my question, what time is your appointment?"

Mike tossed the favor back into the large gift bag and smiled, "1:30."

"Want me to go with you?"

Mike smiled, "You don't have to go if you don't want to, I know you have better things to do besides sit around in a doctor's office waiting for me."

"Mike, I'm not your ex-girlfriend. I care about you; it takes two to make a relationship work. I want to go," Danielle replied reaching her hands out for Mike to help her up.

Mike wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed his forehead against hers, "I feel like sometimes everything is too good to be true. I'm just waiting for something to happen to us. I feel like I don't deserve you or Landon," he admitted and Danielle pulled away, tracing her finger down his jaw.

Danielle pressed her forehead to Mike's causing him to wrap his arms tighter around her, "You're too good for me," she sighed, "I feel like I'm waiting for this to all be a dream, and when I wake up, none of this is real. I love you."

"I love you too," Mike replied placing his hands on her stomach as he felt Landon kick, "You too, little man. Let's go get some breakfast and walk around DC for a while, it's nice out today."

"Okay," Danielle smiled before grabbing her coat and boots out of the closet. There was a light dusting of snow on the ground but the sun was shining, "Can we go to McDonald's," she asked.

"You're a cheap date," Mike joked laughing.

"McDonald's has the best breakfast."

"Want to go to the American History museum after my appointment or do you want to call Kristi and Nicky to see if they want to spend the day in Georgetown?"

"Can we do both? You and I will go to the museum then we'll call Nicky and Kristi afterwards and go to Georgetown for dinner."

"Sounds good," Mike grinned, "Finish getting ready, I'll call Nicky."

Danielle gave him a quick kiss before he left the room. Walking into the bathroom, Danielle quickly brushed her teeth before taking a shower to get ready for the day.

"Mike, you ready to go," she asked as she walked into the living room.

Mike nodded his head and shut the television off before standing up. Grabbing his and Danielle's coats off the hooks by the door, he helped her into hers before shrugging into his own.

"What car are we taking today Mr. Bond," Danielle joked causing Mike to laugh.

"Lambo good?"

"Lambo to a doctor's appointment? How about something a little bit less Fast and Furious?"

Mike sighed laughing, "Alright fine, you win, we'll take the Escalade."

Danielle smirked in victory and climbed in the large black SUV. Mike drove into DC, stopping at McDonald's on the way. Danielle quickly threw a straw in her orange juice and started sucking it down.

Mike drove into the historical part of DC before pulling over near the national mall by the Lincoln Memorial.

"Come on," he whispered grabbing the bags as they headed towards the benches along the path. A light dusting of snow covered the trees making it picture perfect as they sat down to eat their breakfast.

Mike smiled at Danielle as she took a sip of her decaffeinated coffee through a straw. She had done well during the pregnancy so far eating healthy for her and Landon. She had cravings but they weren’t as bad as Mike thought and he didn’t mind practically falling asleep at the rink every morning from late night runs to fast food restaurants or to the grocery store for pizza and ice cream. Mike didn’t realize how much his life had changed since he had met Danielle. Call their romance cliché if you’d like but to people who didn’t know the story behind their relationship, they would think that they were together for a long time.

Danielle finished her breakfast before Mike and leaned back against the bench closing her eyes taking in the cold wind that blew around her. She fell in love with DC more than she thought she would and she saw the city as her second home. If Mike was ever traded from the city which was an annual rumor in the hockey world, she’d be just as devastated as he was. Danielle felt Mike stand up to throw away their garbage in a nearby trashcan and she watched him as he smiled at her when he made his way back over to the bench. She took everything about him in, from the jeans he wore to the grandpa slippers on his feet. People who called him a douchebag didn’t see the side of Mike that she saw every day. The side where he’d talk to her stomach when he thought she was sleeping and he’d tell Landon all of the things he was going to teach him when he was older like shoot a slap shot, fight, and how to throw a football. They also didn’t see the man behind the red jersey, the man who cried when injuries kept him out too long and he felt helpless to his team or the man who loved his family more than anything and would give people the shirt off his back if he had to.

Mike sat down next to her again and grabbed her hand, “What are you smiling about?”

“Nothing,” Danielle lied so that her tears wouldn’t fall. Her hormones were out of whack today and she knew if she told Mike what she was thinking, she’d break down.

“You’re such a liar,” he smirked and Danielle leaned up giving him a kiss on the lips before pulling her phone out of her pocket.

"Come on, take a picture with me so I can brag about you on Facebook to the bitches back home in Pittsburgh," Danielle said causing Mike to roll his eyes before pulling her closer to him kissing her forehead. Danielle held her arm out, snapping a picture with her phone as she and Mike smiled.

"My head looks huge in that," Mike said, "Take another one."

"I'll kiss your cheek and you raise an eyebrow while smirking."

Mike did as he was told, and they both laughed at how cheesy yet adorable the photo was.

"Send that to my sister so she can show my mom," Mike said and Danielle sent it to Megan before posting it to Facebook.

Mike looked at his watch and saw that they had twenty minutes until he had to be at his doctor's appointment. The two of them walked back to the car with Mike's arm around Danielle's waist, his hand in her back pocket.

Danielle smiled as Mike pinned her against the truck and kissed her into oblivion. She giggled as he rubbed his nose against hers like they were twelve years old, "Jackass."

Mike grinned while opening the passenger door to help Danielle into the SUV. They drove to his appointment where Mike waited impatienly to be called back.

"Stay here, okay," Mike whispered and Danielle didn't bother putting up a fight with him.

Danielle picked up a parenting magazine and began reading it. Half an hour had gone by and Mike still wasn't out of the office yet. Danielle checked her Facebook and laughed at the comments on the picture of her with Mike. Her cousins that didn't know she was dating him were going batshit crazy, asking when they would meet him. Her uncle who didn't know anything about hockey asked who he was and what the big deal was causing het cousins to lash out on him.

Hearing the door that led back to the rooms open, Danielle sighed as she saw Mike's arm in a sling and the frustrated look on his face. Mike reached for her hand and they walked out of the doctor's office.

Mike gave Danielle the keys because he couldn't drive. No words were spoken between the two of them as Mike leaned his headback on the seat, closing his eyes. Danielle kept one hand on the wheel as she reached over for Mike's hand. Mike squeezed it gently, giving her a small smile before running his thumb over her knuckles.

Danielle and Mike went with Kristi and Nicky to lunch later on that day, where Mike told the young Swede the news. Nicky sighed in defeat clearly just as frustrated as Mike was.

Danielle and Kristi talked about the baby shower, changing the subject to a more happier one than Mike's diagnosis. The walk through Georgetown saw Mike buying more baby clothes for Landon while Kristi and Danielle shopped in the lingerie stores.

Mike laid in bed that night thinking that he should feel worse than he did, but as he looked down to see Danielle sound asleep on his chest, he realized that his life was almost perfect and she made it that way by saving him from himself more ways than she could ever imagine. They were a long way away from marriage but Mike knew she was the one he'd be with forever.