Winter Legacy -4-

Agnes invited her nephew and aged sister over to meet Erika. Mortimer was immediately taken with the little person. "Oh my gosh! She's so cute!" He mused, he was the only child in his family for so long, and now he had a new little cousin. Of course there was an age gap, but he could live with that by protecting his little cousin and teaching her everything.

"She is, but you're nearly ready to be having babies of your own." Agnes winked, Mortimer blushed, his mind immediately drifted to his best friend Bella, he would marry her one day. 

Mortimer looked into his aunt's eyes and blushed deeply. "Don't look at me like that."

Agnes chuckled, "That's so cute, my little nephew has become a man. Well what can I say, you're hot."  The baby began whimpering in her arms, "I've got to go feed the baby now." Agnes strode away, a bemused smile on her face.

The baby quickly became the light of her parents life. They marveled over her, tiny toes, tiny fingers, giant eyes.

"Are you working tonight?" Agnes asked her husband one evening.

"I'm on call, so I may have to run back to the hospital."

"Of course." Agnes grumbled, she was becoming impatient with Erik's tight work schedule. He'd just come in an hour ago. "Well, Cornelia is having a party tomorrow, I'm gonna go over there to help her prepare some of the snacks this evening, I shouldn't be long." She told him and folded the computer.

No sooner had Agnes walked through the door, her cell phone rang. Erik told her to hurry home he and an emergency to attend to. With a frustrated sigh Agnes stuffed the phone back into her pocket.

"Erika is sleeping, I've gotta run." Erik said as he bolted past her.

"Remember you're babysitting tomorrow night." She shouted after him.

Agnes went to the nursery and picked up the baby girl who's big eyes flickered open as soon as she was in her mother's arms. Erika immediately began to gurgle and coo, Agnes smiled and bounced the baby lightly. Cornelia's party would be the first time she was away from her baby for more than two hours since Erika's birth.

The following evening, as soon as Agnes entered her sister's house, her nephew bounded up to her and excitedly announced that he and Bella were now a couple. 

"Well Congratulations honey."

"We're going to prom and everything this is the best thing that could could ever happen I'm so excited." Mortimer said in one breath causing his aunt to smile.

"Where's your mother?"

"Out back."

"Hello Agnes." Cornelia greeted her younger sister. "What's wrong?"

"It's Erik, he's always at work."

Cornelia brushed off her younger sister. "But it's worth it in the long run. When was the last time you've seen Gunther? He makes time for us when he has a break, in the mean time I find things to occupy myself, like these parties."

Agnes pondered her next question long and hard before asking it out loud. "Have you ever...you know...thought about being with another guy?"

Cornelia smirked, "It's hard not to think about other men, but I would never cheat on my husband. Does this have anything to do with the sexy contractor?"

Agnes scoffed, "Of course it doesn't, I can't stand that guy."

Erik was fast asleep when Agnes got home, with a wicked grin she pranced onto the bed bouncing around until he woke up.

When Erik opened his eyes Agnes attacked him, but it was just as well, he was glad to give his wife the attention she craved, after all, he missed her. It was hard to go to work every day, sometimes more than once and have to leave his wife and new daughter, his mind would be on his girls all day. Erik knew though that for his girls to live comfortably he had to go to work.

"Aggie, I didn't get a chance to tell you but I offered to have a staff party here, it's just going to be my boss and a couple co workers. I'm sorry. Look I'll take Erika out all day to give you time to prepare."

"It's your party, you do the work."

Erik blinked at his wife's sudden harshness. "I said I'm sorry, and you know you're better at putting parties together than I am."

Agnes frowned. "Fine." She picked up their plates and went to the kitchen.

Erik went to the nursery where his daughter was wiggling around and sucking on her fist. He picked up the baby. "Hey honey, let's go for a walk shall we?" 

He put the baby in the stroller and headed out on the town. It was a beautiful day, the bright sunshine made everything look vivid. Erika cooed happily in the stroller, she had been cooped up in the house since the day they brought her home. 

The baby giggled as a light breeze tickled her skin, it toyed with the wispy hair on her mostly bald head. Erik couldn't help but smile when the baby screamed excitedly. Why hadn't he done this with her before? Her pleased coos were completely worth it.

As they headed home, Erik decided that he would do this with her as often as possible, perhaps they would take Agnes with them next time.

"Here we go." Erik said to the exhausted baby as he fed her. She fell sleep before the bottle was finished and he tucked her in.

The guest arrived promptly, Erik and Agnes dressed in their formal clothes, Erik went outside to greet his boss and co-workers. Before they even set foot inside their medical talk started.

Agnes had sat down to dinner with her husband's colleagues but soon got frustrated and left when they giggled at the things she said like a parent would a small child. Annoyed she grabbed one of the books she'd written. So she was not as smart as they were, they were doctors for heaven's sake, that did not give them the right to undermine her. 

Erik turned on the stereo and his esteemed guests danced to classical music, Agnes sat alone while they spun around the room, he husband was completely oblivious to her foul mood and this angered Agnes even more, he didn't even have the decency to ask her what was wrong or ask her to join them.

Eventually Agnes retired to the nursery and this was where Erik found her when he finally said goodbye to his friends. 

"What are you doing in here?"

"Oh you know, spending time with someone who is my intellectual equal."

Erik frowned. "What are you talking about Agnes?"

"I'm never spending time with those people again Erik, they treated me like an idiot."

"No they didn't." Erik pulled her close to him, "So we get a bit carried away with talk of our patients and their illnesses, but you have to remember that we all have someone to go home to, someone who is not a doctor, someone who doesn't give a damn about how many people we cut open, or how much we make." He kissed her, "I'm the luckiest one of all, because I have two people who love me for me."

Agnes looked up at her husband, "You don't think that I'm inferior do you?" She asked looking up at him, "You don't think that I'm...dumber than you do you?"

"I'm a doctor Agnes, it's kind of my job to be smarter than you."

Not the answer was looking for, clearly. She pulled away from him and stormed away.

"Landscaping is not my thing." Jack told Agnes, it was early in the morning, he had at least an hour of sleep to catch up on.

"You haven't done the ceiling yet." Agnes said accusingly.

Jack frowned. "This isn't about the ceiling is it?"

"Jack do you think I'm stupid? Do you think that I'm just another weak-minded woman who will allow you to take her money and not do the labor?"

Jack gave her a long look. "No, I think you're a very sarcastic, quick mouthed woman, in fact you amuse the hell out of me."

Agnes became weak in the knees she  pounced on him, of course the regret followed immediately.