Chapter 273

It was the last show of their tour. Pearl was exhausted. It had been two months of riding on a bus and playing sold out shows with little breaks in between. Erik had been present for it, with the last two shows the exception, as he had an obligation with his father back in London. They hadn't talked about anything. She had wanted to bring it up a few times but it seemed so heavy, so much that she couldn't muster up the energy to confront it yet. She needed rest.

"Thank you, Las Vegas!" She said as they took their final bow. It had been a grueling tour and they guys were tired, too. They all had plans to retreat after and they were taking a long hiatus until they began work on their second album in March. They were all millionaires now with the success of the album and the tour. Money wouldn't be an issue for them, ever again. The album went five times platinum in a short amount of time. Their record company was more than happy with their success.

Pearl had the rest of the summer, fall and winter to enjoy her pregnancy and the baby.

She boarded her flight to LA and was excited to be spending some time there in the summer by the pool. Alone time sounded amazing. The car picked her and Jim up and drive them up the king and winding road through the Hollywood Hills. She noticed a for sale sign posted in front of the house Rhys owned which was odd to her. He lived that house. Jim helped her carry her bags inside and Abigail greeted her at the door. "We are happy to have you here for the next few weeks. Welcome home." She said, helping her with her purse and sweater. "You are showing." She said, looking at Pearl's belly.

"Yes, finally. I was worried the baby wasn't growing, but the doctor said at the last ultrasound that the baby is big and healthy." Pearl said. Erik had sent the Royal personal physician with her on the last leg of her tour as she entered her third trimester. He would be arriving in LA soon after another obligation. Pearl had watched the ultrasound and although she and Erik agreed to wait to know the sex of the baby until after birth, the doctor had asked and she wanted to know. She was going to ask Erik if he also wanted to know when he arrived back in LA.

"Are you hungry?" Abigail asked.

"Yes. Starving." She said. Abigail nodded and went to the kitchen. Pearl walked out onto the patio and sat down in a lounge chair under the beautiful California sunshine. It was a gorgeous day and just what she had needed. Jim stepped out and wiped his brow. He was always sweating and warm. "Go back inside, waterworks. I don't want you to melt out here." Pearl said, smiling.

Jim shook his head and went back into the air conditioning.

Pearl's phone rang and she saw it was Erik. "Hey. How's it going in London?" She asked, pulling a hat down to shade her face.

"Better than expected. I should be flying to be with you in a couple of hours." He said.

"Good. I'm looking forward to some down time. It's getting harder to be as active now that I'm the size of a house." She said.

Erik laughed. "You are barely showing and are six months along. Stop it." He said.

"I love you." She said.

"I love you so much." He said and hung up.

************

A few hours later, Pearl had finally gotten out of the pool. She had stayed in until her skin pruned. Swimming felt amazing being pregnant. She could move without gravity and the buoyancy gave her body some relief. She put on a robe and Abigail had dinner ready for her. "This looks amazing." She said, looking at the baked, cheesy pasta and breadsticks. She craved Italian food pretty much all the time. It had helped Erik gain back the weight he had lost and then some. Suddenly, she had an idea. She knew they had decided to wait to know the sex but since she knew, she wanted to share it with him.

"Jim. I have an idea. Can we go shopping?" She asked.

"Oh no. Not this again." He said, not looking up from the book he was reading.

"Pleeeease." She begged. He rolled his eyes and put the book down. "Fine. Where are we going?" He asked.

"Yay!" She said, getting up and walking to the door to put in her sandals.

The paparazzi was brutal in LA and they were parked outside of the house gates almost all day, everyday, waiting for a shot or Pearl or Erik or one of the royal family members or band members. They were predators. Jim was good at dealing with them and the extra security detail helped as well.

They went to a hardware store, a fabric store and a party decoration store. Jim wasn't thrilled but he played along.

**************

"Well, what do you think?" Pearl asked as she finished stapling the remaining fabric on the mini throne she and Jim had built.

"It's... cute, I guess." He said.

Pearl smiled. It was adorable. They had put blue lightbulbs in the over head lights of the foyer and built a tiny version of the throne at Buckingham, placing a teddy bear with a blue bow around his neck and a gold foil crown on his head. She had made a banner that read, "It's a boy! Welcome Prince Robbie." She had tied gold and blue balloons all over the large foyer. She was so pleased. Erik would see it as soon as he came in and it looked perfect. Well, sort of but good enough. She smiled and patted Jim on the back. "We make a great team, buddy." She said. Jim nodded. Now, she waited for him to come home.