Jade was nervous. Her stomach clenched as she took a few deep breaths, trying not to let the panic overcome her mind. She placed her hand on the kitchen bench and took a few deep breaths, remembering her breathing techniques that Helen had taught her many years ago.

It was 3 in the afternoon on a beautiful spring day. The days were getting longer, and Jade knew soon she could do hydro therapy in her own pool once more. Once her breathing was under control, she wheeled herself over to the fridge to get everything for dinner.

Marcus was currently at the gym working with her 1:1 client as she had an appointment with Helen and her doctors all day. She was hoping for improvements with her brain scan, but again they still showed the dark shadows that were still embedded in her brain. While over the last 2 years they had reduced in size, there were still times when Jade forgot how to do something, and it annoyed her to no end.

She still had made no progress with walking however there were times she swore she could feel her toes and legs, however the doctors told her it was phantom pain and the chances of her ever walking again were 0%. Sighing, she tried to focus on the positives in her life, but it was hard. While she was getting better, there were still days where she could barely get out of bed and days when her depression or PTSD were at its all-time high she would spend the day in constant panic no matter how hard she tried to go through the various techniques she had been taught.

She heard the warning bark from her 2-year-old golden retriever, who trotted his way over to her and put his head in her lap. She gently patted the fluffy golden head of her therapy dog she got 1.5 years ago.

She got Ace when she had a terrible relapse when Marcus went away on a tour. She had been all by herself and it was her mind just snapped. She didn't know where she was or what she was doing until she woke up in hospital again and being admitted to a 72hr suicide watch. Her father had found her when he came over for dinner that night and she still felt bad to this day that he had to find her like that.

After lengthy talks with Helen, Sophie and Noah they decided putting Jade on the wait list for a therapy dog would be good not only for her but Marcus who also on occasions suffered from PTSD flashback and some mild anxiety.

Jade heard Ace bark again as he nuzzled his head further into her lap, trying to calm down her ongoing anxiety. With a combination of deep breathing and patting Ace, she could calm her mind.

"Thanks Ace." She gave Ace a scratch under his chin as he gave a happy bark to trotted away and out the doggy door into the yard. Letting out a deep sigh Jade got to work on dinner knowing Marcus would be home around 5ish.

She put on some music as she wheeled herself around the kitchen, knowing she would need to call Noah for help tomorrow. Noah and Sophie were still around, however they had become more like family than carers. Most days she didn't need them, and they were only there for when Jade needed something or just that little bit of extra help.

Jade got to work chopping up some vegetables for the roast dinner she was cooking. The lamb was already in the oven and once all the vegetables were in; she put them in the oven. After dinner was done and roasting away, she grabbed a bottle of water and wheeled herself outside to catch the last rays of the October sun before it chilled again.

When she rolled herself out the back door, she saw Ace lying on his back in the sun having the same idea as her. She gracefully transferred herself onto the swing and watched as Ace came over and jumping up to join her. He rested his head in her lap, and she gently stroked his head.

"I worried about this afternoon. Helen said it would be fine but still I'm worried how Marcus will react." Often, she talked to Ace. He never judged her and listened whenever she spoke.

"It's easier knowing there isn't a chance he can get deployed, but I still worry." It had been 5 months since Marcus resigned from the SAS, the Army didn't want to let him go just yet so he was a sub-contractor and went in once a week to train new recruits. Part of the deal he made was that he was happy to train new recruits for a year, but deployment was out of the option. It took a lot of stress and anxiety off her shoulders considering his last tour nearly broke her when she got a call saying he had been injured.

Her first thought was that he was gone, and she was glad Sophie and Noah had been with her. She remembered turning up to the hospital scared out of her mind that she would find him half dead lying in the hospital bed and she cried out in relief when she found him awake and smiling at her. He had been shot in the right shoulder and while there was no lasting damage they put him on medical leave for a few months. After that Marcus and Jade had a lengthy discussion and when he asked to join her growing business, she was more than happy to say yes.

Jade didn't realise how long she had been sitting outside for until Ace jumped off the swing and ran inside barking as the front door opened. Looking at her watch she saw it was 5 and moved herself back into her chair and wheeled inside.

"Hello Love. How was your day?" Marcus came over and kissed her forehead. He was dressed in shorts and a tight t-shirt with their company on it with personal trainer written in bold white letters on the back. She could help the lustful gaze she gave him, remembering the way those muscles flexed over her this morning before he went to work.

"Tiring. Scan are still the same as last time and they are still telling me the chances of walking again are 0%." She shrugged her shoulders and watched as he slowly removed his shirt as he walked over to the fridge. Her mouth watered as he hungrily ran her lustful gaze over his back and ass as he bent down the grab a drink from the lower shelves. She didn't realise how longer she had been starring until he chuckled.

"You know I'm not a piece of meat right." He cocked one eyebrow, and she just shrugged her shoulder.

"I mean you look tasty enough to eat, so I don't know." She smiled up at him cheekily and watched as he flexed his muscles as he showed off. Jade shook her head and wheeled over to the kitchen to check on dinner.

"I have some news. Did you want to hear it know or over dinner?" He asked as she stabbed the meat with a thermometer to see if it was done.

"Over dinner. I have some news too." She chewed her lip and looked over her shoulder to see Marcus watching her closing.

"It's about the doctor's appointment today, isn't it?" She nodded her head and asked for the tea towel, which he passed over.

"Is it good news or bad news?" Marcus asked again once she had pulled the meat out.

"Both." She chewed her lip as she pulled out the vegetables as Marcus took the meat out of the tray and started cutting it up. They both worked in silence as they finished getting dinner ready. Marcus fed Ace as Jade set to table. Once everything was done Jade moved herself into the chair at the table and turned down the music until it was playing softly in the background.

"You go first. What news do you have?" She asked, trying to delay her news as long as possible.

"Okay. I got a call today. They want me to go on one last tour. Marco said he doesn't trust anyone else on the team but me. They told me it is a low risk, and I said I would think about it." Marcus continued to talk as fear built up inside of Jade. She could no longer hear anything as water rushed into her ears and she tried to breath. She knew she was having a panic attack.

Not only by her short breathing and fuzzy head, but also the way Ace was barking and trying to jump into her lap despite her pushing him away. She saw Marcus quickly push his chair back and come over.

She was trying. She was trying so hard to take deep breaths as her stomach twisted with an unwanted feeling.

"Jade sweetheart, you need to take some deep breaths okay. I'm here. I'm not going anywhere. Ace heel." He had grabbed her hands into hers as together they took some deep breaths. She starred into his brown eyes filled with worry as she hyperventilated.

"It's okay, I'm here, I'm not going anywhere okay. Take some deep breaths. That's good. Keep doing that Jade." Jade continued to take a few deep breaths and soon she was able to get her panic under control. She burst into tears and covered her face with her hands as she felt a furry head nudging her side.

"Hey, I told them I would think about it okay. I'm not going anywhere if you don't want me to okay." He tried to reassure her, but it wasn't working, and she blurted out her news.

"I'm pregnant." She removed her hand from her eyes, and saw through her tears Marcus freeze.

"I'm sorry what." He asked as he blinked at her a few times.

"I'm pregnant. The blood test came back turns out I'm 3 months along." She waited for Marcus to say something, anything, but he sat there crouched before her, frozen.

"Marcus, say something." She asked wordily as a new round of tears started.

"No." She felt her heart break at that simple word as he stood up and stepped away from her. Jade sat there frozen in her chair and watched as he ran his hands through his hair.

"I'm sorry I know this isn't the right time and I know we aren't ready. I also know it will be a difficult pregnancy and the risk of a miscarriage is high, but I want this baby even if you don't." New tears fell down her face as she wrapped her arms around the small child that was no bigger than a plum. She watched as Marcus turned around with tears running down his own face and a smile.

"No, no. I meant no as in the tour. No way am I going now. We're having a baby?" He questioned and Jade nodded her head and before she could say anything else, he picked her up off the chair she was sitting in and grabbed her in his giant arms and swung her around.

"I was so worried you didn't want it." She sobbed into his shoulder as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Never." They had stopped spinning and Jade pulled back and brushed the tears off his face. Before he leant in and kissed her. The kiss was slow and lovely as their tongues danced together in a passionate dance of love.

When they finally pulled apart, they both had smiled on their faces as Marcus took them to bed forgetting all abut dinner that was sitting on the table left uneaten.

***

"You said it would be difficult pregnancy what did you mean by that?" Marcus questioned as they both lay in bed naked as Marcus reminded her of how she had gotten pregnant in the first place. Jade was tracing soothing circles on his chest.

"There are a range of things. My mental health problems means I have a high-risk pregnancy and the fact that I can't feel anything waist below worries the doctors that there might be complications during the birth as they are unsure if I will feel any pain. We will also have to change some of my medication which Helen said isn't ideal as we finally have the right combination, but the stuff I am taking now might have some effect of the baby's development. There is also the risk of the baby being premature. Helen said to try to not focus on the what if's but it hard not too." Marcus kissed the top of her head and rolled her until he was hovering over her.

She smiled up at him and touched the side of his face that had a shadow of a beard growing. He leant down and pecked her on the lips before shifting his weight onto his back heels so he was straddling her. Jade moved herself up the bed a little so she was leaning against the bedhead.

"What ever problems there may or may not be we will face them together okay." Jade watched as he rested his hands on her still flat stomach.

"I have an ultrasound appointment tomorrow at 9am if you wanted to come." She watched as a bright, beautiful smile graced his handsome face as he nodded his head like an excited child at Christmas.

"We will get to see our baby." Jade nodded her head and squealed as Marcus rolled them over again until she was straddling his waist. He rested his hands on her waist as he gazed up at her like she was the only thing that mattered in the world to him.

"I am going to get so fat. Exercising is hard enough in a wheel chair imagine a huge stomach to add to that." Jade laughed as she tried to image what that would look like, her stomach the size of a basketball when she was sitting in her wheelchair.

"You won't be fat you will be pregnant and there is a plus side." She raised an eyebrow and watched as his hand moved from her waist to her breast as he gently rolled her sensitive nipples between his finger.

"You breast will be bigger." She swatted his hands away as her body shook with laughter.

"You're such a man. I have to put my body through growing a small child and all you can think about are the size of my titties." Marcus laughed underneath her as he sat until they were face to face.

"Yes, I am a man. A man who didn't even have to try to get you pregnant, I'm that good." Jade rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Cocky bastard." She murmured under her breath and gasped when Marcus slide his hands between their body slide a lone finger inside of her.

"Cocky bastard you say." He curled his finger inside of her, causing Jade to let out a breathy moan. He leant forward and gently grazed her sensitive nipple between her teeth, causing Jade to hiss out in pleasure.

"Yes cocky." She moaned, and Marcus just chuckled.

"Well, let me show you how cocky I can be, miss Jennings." Marcus spent the next hour pouring orgasm after orgasm out of her until she was so tired that she passed out before he even finished cleaning them up.

***

They both sat nervously in the waiting room clasping each other's hands. If Jades' legs were still working, she would bounce it up and down instead she had to resorting to tapping her forefinger quickly on her thigh.

"It will be okay." Marcus whispered to her, but he was no better. He was nervous, scared, excited. Today he would get to see the small life he and Jade had created together growing inside of her. It still felt like a dream to him and he couldn't believe he would be a father. If anyone had told him 4 years ago when Jade burst into his life that he would be engaged with a baby on the way he would have laughed in their face and told them to fuck off. However, here he was engaged and waiting to meet his baby for the first time.

"Jade Jennings." He looked towards the nurse at the hospital who would do the ultrasound. After this Jade had another appointment with a specialist to go over her medication changes and signs that Marcus had to look out for. Marcus stood up and walked beside Jade as she wheeled herself into a semi-dark room.

"Okay, Jade if you would lie down on the bench and udo your pants and lift your shirt for me that would be great." The nurse smiled at them both as Jade put the breaks on her chair and moved herself onto the bench. Jade nervously undid her pants as the nurse tucked in a white towel into her jeans and moved them down a little.

"First time parents." She asked as both Jade and Marcus nodded their heads. Marcus held tightly onto Jade's hand as the nurse squeezed some cold gel onto her stomach before pressing the wand onto her stomach.

"Okay let's see your baby." The nurse turned the screen towards both of them and as she moved the wand around Jade's stomach a tiny head and body appeared on the screen.

"Okay here is your baby. You are about 12 weeks along, you can see the head and body along with hands and feet." Marcus starred at the screen in amazement as their tiny baby appeared on the screen. The nurse kept talking and pointing out the size and growth of the baby as Marcus stood their squeezing Jade's hand in shock and amazement.

"Okay and this is the heartbeat." A strong, fast thumping sound filled the room as tears fell down his face. He was overcome with so many emotions he couldn't pinpoint exactly what he was feeling.

"That's our baby." He said shocked as he stared at the tiny human on the screen. He looked down at Jade and saw she was crying. They were both a mess of emotions and Marcus thought back to when he thought he had nearly lost Jade. He didn't like to dwell on it often, but times like these it made him appreciate whatever god was out there for keeping Jade alive and bringing her back to him.

The nurse finished the scan saying she printed pictures and left the room to give the couple a few minutes of alone time.

"Wow, I still can't believe it." Marcus whispered as Jade sat up and wiped the last of the goo off her stomach.

"I know I have a tiny human growing inside of me." Marcus watched as Jade glanced up at him with a huge bright smile on, her face and he couldn't help but lean down and kiss this amazing strong woman that was before him.

"We are going to be parents." They both stared at the screen one last time before laughing and heading to the next appointment.

****

6 months later

"Marcus." He felt someone shaking him and he slowly opened his eyes to see Jade sitting in her wheelchair with a frown on her face.

"Yeah." He mumbled, still not awake. He felt Jade shaking him again as he slowly rubbed his eyes and looked at the alarm beside his table and saw it was 1 in the morning.

"Marcus, I think the baby is coming." Marcus sat up quickly and looked around the room to see Jade clutching her stomach with one hand as the other was shaking him.

"I'm up." He quickly got out of bed to find some clothes because he couldn't go to the hospital naked. He quickly put some clothes on and found Jade still in her wheelchair beside the bed.

"What wrong honey. Is it the baby?" He was worried. It hadn't been an easy pregnancy on Jade. At 6 months they had a scare when Jade started heavily bleeding but didn't notice as she didn't feel any pain. He remembered how scared he was waiting on the way to the hospital and how he kept praying that the baby would be fine.

After 2 nights at the hospital and many scans Jade was cleared to go home under strict bed rest and light activities for the remaining pregnancy. It had been hard for Jade already being restricted to movement because of the chair and she easily slipped into a heavy depression for the next 1.5 months. She was doing better, but it was rough that they agreed that Sophie and Noah would watch over her when he had to go to work and Jade was under 24/hr supervision for a month and a half before they saw her improve.

"No, but my stomach feels tight. I think I'm getting contractions, but I'm not too sure" She sounded so unsure of herself and after the near miss mid pregnancy the doctors were worried Jade wouldn't know she was in labour until it was too late which could be damaging to both her and the baby.

"Well, the doctor said it might be different for you. Lets go get the nurse to check you out and if it's nothing we come home okay. Its going to be fine." He reassured her. The last trimester had been painful for her. Marcus often had to move Jade around and she often complained about a sore back as the baby pushed down. She often spent most of her day lying down to avoid getting pressure sores and she often struggled to get herself dressed independently.