Truth, Lies, and Silver Eyes (A Sequel to STRQ) [Book 2]

Chapter 22: Taiyang

"I'm sorry about him," Raven said to me, as we went back into the house.

"It's okay. I thought he'd be happier about it, though..."

"He probably just needs some time to adjust to everything. I mean... having a niece or nephew is a pretty big deal."

I sighed. "Yeah, that's probably it. Did you still want to go to dinner tonight? There's a nice café not too far from here. And it's pretty quiet, so you don't have to worry about it being too loud."

Raven nodded. "I could eat. Do you have any other plans after?"

I shrugged. "I'm not sure. I kinda figured we'd just do whatever once dinner is over. If you want to return home after, then that's perfectly fine with me."

"Okay. Ready to go?"

"After you," I said, holding the front door open for her.

She smiled and walked outside towards the car. I followed shortly after and drove us silently to the café.

Once we arrived, I parked closest to the entrance. Raven got out of the car and looked up at the place.

"Hm... it's a bit smaller than the cafés I've seen," she said.

I got out and walked up to her.
"Maybe that's why it's so quiet," I said.

She shrugged. "Maybe. Can we go in now? I'm starving."

"Right. Of course."

I quickly walked up to the door and opened it for her. She thanked me and walked inside.

"Is there anywhere in particular you'd like to sit?" I asked her.

She gazed around for a few moments.
"What about that table near the window?"

I looked over to where she was gazing. There was a small table sat in the corner near a window. There wasn't many other tables around, so the area would be even quieter.

"Sounds good to me," I replied, smiling at her.

After we had taken our seats, a waitress came over to us.
"Welcome. What can I get for you to drink?" she asked.

I looked over at Raven.

"You can order first," I told her.

"I'd like some tea, please," she said.

"Would you like sugar with your tea, ma'am?"

"Yes, please."

"Okay. What about you, sir?"

"I'll take some coffee. No cream or sugar, thank you."

The waitress smiled. "I'll have those ready for you."

Once she disappeared, Raven looked at me.

"Thanks for bringing me here," she said.

I smiled. "It's my pleasure. I thought you could use a nice distraction from everything."

She looked down at the table and was quiet for a moment.
"Have you thought about how we're going to prepare for our child?" she finally asked.

"Well... I think we need a nursery first. The baby is going to need a place to sleep."

"Yeah, that's true. Where would the nursery be?"

I thought for a moment. The only place I could think of was the spare bedroom, but that would leave Raven sleeping elsewhere.

"We could turn the spare bedroom into one. But that would leave you without a place to sleep."

Raven shrugged. "I can sort that out later. I'll just sleep on the couch or something."

"Raven... you're not sleeping on the couch. You're pregnant. You need somewhere more comfortable to sleep."

Raven opened her mouth to respond when the waitress returned.

"Here you are," she said, handing us our drinks.
"Would you two like to order anything else?"

I glanced over at Raven, who looked up at the waitress.

"Can I have a side salad, please?" she asked.

The waitress smiled. "Of course. I'll get started on that right away."

Once she was gone again, Raven turned to me.

"If you really want me to have a nice place to sleep, why not let me sleep in your bed?"

I felt my face get warm. "Like... sleeping in the same bed?"

Raven nodded. "Yeah. I've slept in your bed before, you know."

My face got even warmer. "Raven!" I snapped. "You can't talk about things like that in places like this!"

She just blushed brightly and looked away. We were quiet until the waitress brought Raven's salad. While she ate, the two of us continued to talk about the baby.

"We need to think about baby names," she said.

"I don't think we need to worry about that just yet."

She glared at me. "Yes we do. We need to be prepared when we have this child!"

"And we will be. For now, let's just focus on spending time together. You seem so stressed lately..."

Raven sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm just... nervous about everything."

Raven had finished her salad and was resting her hand on the table. I reached over and took it.

"I know. I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little uneasy. But we'll be fine as long as we have each other. Right?"

She smiled warmly. "Yeah."

After talking for a little while more, Raven started to yawn.

"Getting tired?" I asked.

She nodded. "Sorry..."

"Don't worry about it. I better get you home anyway."

After I paid for the ticket, I drove Raven back to the house. She basically collapsed on the couch once we walked through the door.

"I'm sorry for keeping you at that café for such a long time," I told her.

She sat up at look at me. "It's not a big deal. I... actually really enjoyed myself."

"Really?"

"Yeah. We should go on these little dates more often."

I blushed and laughed. "Only if you want to."

She laughed a bit before yawning again.
"If you don't mind, I'm going to sleep. I'm feeling really tired today."

"I'll join you. I'm a bit exhausted myself," I told her.

I followed her up the stairs and into the master bedroom. She took off her boots and some of her jewelry before climbing under the covers. I removed my own shoes and climbed in beside her. Once I was fully laying down, Raven rolled over and laid her head again my chest.

"Goodnight, Tai," she said quietly.

"Sweet dreams, Raven," I replied, wrapping my arms around her.