140. Love is in the Air

Disclaimer: I wish, but no. It's not mine.

I'm sorry! I never meant for a month to pass between updates. Please forgive me, and I hope you enjoy this update!

It was Valentine's Day, one of the few days a year that Derek got a free pass to be cheesy, and he always took advantage of it: romance, flowers, chocolate, and sex, though now that they had Lilly, the last item would have to wait until she was tucked away, sleeping soundly in her crib.

Derek walked up the path to the front steps of their house, his arms full of the Valentine's Day gifts for Meredith and Lilly, ones he bought on his way home after a morning spent at the hospital doing neuro consults. He managed to open the front door, his eyes narrowing in amused curiosity when he heard music playing.

He followed it to its source and ended up in the kitchen, where Meredith was dancing with Lilly on her hip, the baby's laughter echoing over the song Meredith was singing to her. He set the presents down on the table and watched the mini concert going on in front of him.

"Can you blow my whistle baby, whistle baby! Let me know! Girl I'm gonna show you how to do it and we start real slow! You just put your lips together and you come real close! Can you blow my whistle baby, whistle baby! Here we go!" Meredith belted out like a pro, unfazed by Derek's presence. She turned down her iPod, docked on the radio.

"Hey," she greeted.

"Hey."

Derek put his hands on her cheeks and kissed her, getting in a few extra pecks in before pulling away. "Hi, Lillybug," he said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Happy Valentine's Day."

"Happy Valentine's Day," Meredith echoed.

"Having fun in here?" he asked.

Meredith smiled. "We are, actually. Lilly and I were bored after breakfast, so I decided to paint my toes, then hers. Pretty right?" she said, holding up Lilly's bare, chubby foot with freshly painted, pink toes.

"It looks gorgeous," Derek complimented, tickling the bottom of Lilly's foot. "Wait, you own a bottle of hot pink nail polish?"

"God, no. Lexie gave it to Lilly for Christmas. It's called Piggy Paint or something. It's made for babies, so it's all natural ingredients," Meredith said. "We were dancing around, so the air would dry it."

"I love it," he chuckled. "Not sure I can say the same for the song, though."

"What about it?"

Derek smirked, pouring himself a cup of coffee from the pot on the counter. "That song is about... blowjobs," he said, mouthing the last word because he couldn't bring himself to say it out loud in front of his daughter.

"Yes, but Lilly doesn't know that. She just likes the tune," Meredith said, leaning into him. Her lips trailed from his neck to his jaw before she nibbled on his earlobe. "But it is Valentine's Day, so maybe you and I can live out those lyrics later on."

Derek shuddered at the thought as he tried to regain composure and get the images of that out of his head. Although if Lilly weren't in the room, he wasn't sure he'd able to resist having his way with Meredith on the counter top.

"Is that a promise?" Derek asked.

"Have I ever gone back on a S-E-X promise to you?"

"No, you haven't. One of the many reasons I married you," he teased.

"Right back at you," she said, pointing to the kitchen table. "So, what's all that?"

"Gifts for my two favorite girls. I may have gone a little overboard, but I couldn't help it," he said.

Meredith smiled when she saw the two flower bouquets he'd bought. "You got us lilies?"

"Seemed appropriate," Derek said, mirroring her smile. "And I know you both love purple, so I went for those. There's also the required box of chocolates that I get you every year."

"With extra cherry ones?"

"Yes."

Meredith stood on her tiptoes and kissed him again. "I love you."

"Hmm, because of the chocolate?"

"Amongst other things, yes," Meredith replied, spotting two stuffed animals next to her box of chocolates. "Ooh, what did Daddy get for you, Lilly?"

Derek picked up the monkey toys off the table to show them both how they worked. "Daddy got you kissy monkeys. See? If you put their lips near each other, they kiss," he said, separating the toys before letting the magnets pull them back together.

Lilly let out a squeal of delight when Derek gave her the monkeys, and she wasted no time in putting one of their ears in her mouth to chew on.

"Those are adorable," Meredith said, handing Lilly over to Derek when he reached his arms out.

Derek hugged her tight and breathed in her soft, baby smell. "Dada missed you this morning," he said.

"Dadadada," Lilly echoed, saying her new favorite word every chance she got.

Derek grinned with pride. "You really are the smartest, cutest baby on the entire planet. You know that, right?"

"Not that we're biased or anything. But yeah, she is," Meredith agreed as she pulled the cellophane wrapper off the heart shaped box of chocolates. "So, where are you taking us today?"

"What do you mean?" he asked.

Meredith cocked her head at him. "Don't play innocent. You've always got something up your sleeve. Secret double datey-ness with Cristina and Owen like last year, ferryboat rides, an ambush baby shower disguised as a brunch date," she recalled.

"Fine, you got me. I made lunch reservations at that little café near Pike Place. I figured we could do the Valentine's thing early, so we could hang out with Lilly tonight," Derek said.

"I like that plan," Meredith said before she bit into a chocolate. She tasted the coconut center and scrunched her nose. "Should've checked the diagram in the lid first. Want it?"

"The coconut ones are the best," Derek said, popping the other half into his mouth.

"Eating chocolate at ten thirty in the morning... I'm so glad I got you to join the dark side," Meredith joked.

"I'm still trying to lose the sympathy pounds I gained during your pregnancy," Derek said as he patted his stomach with his hand.

"I'm the one that gained the weight, not you," she countered.

"Yeah, all six pounds and seven ounces of Lilly. Once she was out, boom. Back to being a supermodel," Derek said.

Meredith laughed. "You're already getting laid tonight. The flattery is just overkill."

"It's not flattery if it's the truth."

"Well played," she complimented. "How was work?"

"Good. Boring, but good. It's not as much fun without you," Derek said, catching one of the monkey toys before it could reach the ground. "Oh, I almost forgot! I saw Mark and he gave me a copy of Bridget's latest sonogram. Four months now."

"Really? I want to see it," Meredith said excitedly, taking Lilly so Derek could get the sonogram photo from his pocket. "Do they know the sex?"

Derek handed her the picture and shook his head. "They're still debating on whether or not to find out, but the baby's legs were crossed, so they couldn't tell, anyway. Mark is convinced it's a girl, though. He said if it were a boy, everyone would know it."

Meredith rolled her eyes playfully. "Of course he would think that," she said, admiring the 3-D ultrasound picture. "Look at the little face!"

"Yeah. Boy or girl, they made a cute kid," Derek said.

"Remember last Valentine's Day? It was the day I felt Lilly's first real kick from the inside. I miss that," Meredith said, squeezing one of Lilly's feet, much bigger than it had been a year ago when she was still in-utero.

"Well, if all goes according to plan, this time next year, baby number two will be kicking you from the inside," he reminded her as he put the sonogram on the fridge, securing it with a magnet. "And tonight is the perfect opportunity to practice."

Lilly reached up to touch Meredith's lips just as Derek leaned in to kiss her, effectively blocking the kiss from happening. They both smiled against her hand, smushed between them.

"Hmm, apparently Lilly wants us to put a kibosh on the whole new baby thing," Derek said.

Meredith laughed. "I think she does."

...

"People who say romance goes out the window once kids come along clearly never met you," Meredith said, smiling at Derek and Lilly from across the table at the café where they were having lunch.

"What do you mean?" he asked as he spoon-fed Lilly some of her pears.

Meredith swallowed a bite of her salad, then broke off a piece of the pumpernickel bread from the basket at the center of the table. "You. When you're in Daddy mode, it kind of makes me swoon," she admitted.

"Swoon, huh?"

"Yeah. I mean, moonlight and flowers and candy are always welcomed, but you two... nothing tops that," Meredith said, lathering her bread with butter, calories be damned.

Derek wiped Lilly's chin with her bib, chuckling. "What about people trying to feel you up?" he said, recalling the rant she'd had on the porch of the old house years ago.

"As long as you're the one feeling me up, go for it," she said. She bit into the piece of buttered bread and moaned at the taste on her tongue. "Mmm, and big chunks of carbs in a basket? Thumbs up."

"This is the 'carbs in a basket' place I had in mind way back when I suggested it all those years ago. But you chose tequila on the porch instead," Derek said, feigning hurt.

"Yes, and because of that, you got dirty, hot car sex," Meredith added, not buying into his pity.

Derek smiled at the memory. "Good sneaking."

"Very good sneaking," she echoed, looking at Lilly, who was wearing the pink and red dress covered in hearts that Derek's mom sent her, along with the matching headband. "We've come a long way since then."

"Wouldn't trade it for anything." Derek pressed a kiss to the top of Lilly's head, then clinked his water glass against Meredith's.

"Me either."

"Oh, by the way, don't think I haven't gotten you anything. Your gift is forthcoming," Meredith said.

Derek raised his eyebrows at her slightly. "I'm all for the coming. Multiple times, actually."

"Really? In front of our sweet, innocent baby?" Meredith scolded him, taking Lilly so Derek could have a chance to eat.

"She's all about her monkeys right now. She couldn't care less about any... forthcoming gifts," Derek said.

"I'm serious. One gift is from Lilly; the other is from me. But yeah, mine is of the porny variety," Meredith admitted, giving Lilly a sip of her bottle after she finished off the last of her pears.

"I'd expect nothing less of a Valentine's Day present from you," Derek replied before taking a bite of his sandwich.

"Is that a compliment?"

"Yes."

Meredith smiled. "Good."

Just as Derek was reaching for his water glass, the woman at the table next to theirs let out a gasping cough, her brown eyes wide in panic. They both turned toward her, their lunch forgotten as they went into doctor mode in a split second.

"Amanda? Amanda, what's the matter?" asked the man sitting across from her.

"Miss, are you okay?" Derek asked, getting up from his chair.

The man reached for her dessert, frantically pulling it apart with his fingers. "She swallowed it! The ring! I had an engagement ring hidden in the cake!" he yelled.

Derek knelt down next to the woman, maintaining his always reassuring presence, while Meredith stayed close by, dialing 911. "Amanda, my name is Derek. I'm a doctor. I need you to stay calm, okay?" he said softly. "Do you think you swallowed it?"

Amanda nodded, pointing to her throat. Derek gently palpated Amanda's neck with his hand, and stopped when he felt the ring lodged in her trachea. "I feel it. It's actually stuck in your airway. I know it's hard, but try not to cough or take big breaths, or it'll drop farther down. Can you breathe?"

Amanda gave a small nod, one that Derek mirrored. "Good. That's great. Just take small, slow breaths, okay? Do you think you can do that for me?" he asked, to which Amanda nodded again.

Meredith propped Lilly on her hip and walked over to stand next to Derek. "Amanda, my name is Meredith. Derek and I work at the hospital nearby. I already called the paramedics, and they'll be here in a few minutes," she said, addressing the man who was with her. "Sir, what's your name?"

"Kevin," he answered, white as a ghost. "Is she going to be okay?"

"We're going to take good care of her," Meredith said. "How about Derek stays here and comes along with both of you in the ambulance, while I go on ahead to the hospital. Once you get there, we'll get that ring out right away."

"Yes, please, if you don't mind," Kevin said, running his fingers over the back of his girlfriend's hand.

Derek nodded in agreement. "Sure, not a problem," he said, turning to Meredith. "Are you okay with Lilly?"

"Yeah. Alex is working, so I'll have him watch her while I get everything prepped for a bronchoscopy," Meredith said as she buckled Lilly in her car seat. After gathering the rest of their belongings, she put her hand on Amanda's shoulder. "I know this is scary, but you're in good hands," she said. "I'll see you soon."

"Okay," Derek said, pulling his chair over next to Amanda in an attempt to keep her calm.

Meredith quickly made a beeline for the exit, ignoring all of the gawking stares from the employees and other restaurant patrons that watched the whole thing unfold in front of them. She spotted the restaurant manager waiting at the front door, holding it open for her, and she smiled.

"Thank you," she said. "My husband is going to wait for the ambulance, but he has his credit card for the bill. Sorry for the scene."

"No, no trouble at all. It's on the house. We're relieved you were here to help. Thank you," he returned.

She smiled politely at the man, then walked out the door and into the parking lot, clicking the unlock button on her key fob when she reached the car. "See, Lilly, this is why people should never, ever hide jewelry in food. It's not romantic. It's just stupid," she said, imparting her wisdom on her daughter while she fastened the car seat in the base.

Meredith rummaged in the diaper bag and pulled out Lilly's baby doll, the one thing that ensured getting from Point A to Point B without a fuss. "But I guess that's the upside of Valentine's Day, right? One person's romantic proposal is another's opportunity to do a bronchoscopy. Can you say bronchoscopy?" she asked, handing her the doll.

"A dada," Lilly replied, before her thumb made its way into her mouth, the doll clutched in her other arm.

Meredith laughed, kissing her forehead. "Close enough."

...

The ride to the hospital was quick, mostly due to the back roads Meredith took to save time, ones she knew like the back of her hand after years of living in Seattle. She pulled into the employee lot, and after unloading Lilly and their bags, she practically jogged to the front entrance, and took the elevator down to the tunnels, which was the fastest way to the ER.

Meredith carried Lilly on her hip as she walked, and the baby looked around at the older part of the hospital with interest. "This is where Mommy used to hang out with all of your aunts and uncles way back when. There's vending machines, wheelchairs, broken gurneys we all used to lounge around on. And oh, look! That's the gurney Daddy and I broke when we—never mind," she said before deciding to censor herself, sparing Lilly the NC-17 tale.

"Dada," Lilly babbled, her tiny voice echoing in the tunnels.

"Dada and I were wild back in the day. That's also how we both knew billing was in the basement," Meredith said. "But that's a story for another time... or maybe never."

Once Meredith finished navigating the tunnels, she walked into the back entrance of the fairly quiet ER. It only took a few moments to scan the room and find Alex, who was sitting at a chair behind the nurses' station.

"Hey," Meredith said, sitting Lilly on the counter top.

Alex looked up from the patient chart he was filling out. "Hey. Aren't you off today?" he asked.

"Yeah. Derek, Lilly and I were out to lunch, and the woman at the table next to ours accidentally swallowed her engagement ring that her boyfriend hid in her dessert. Derek is coming with them in the ambulance, so we need to do a bronchoscopy," Meredith said, spinning Lilly around on the counter to face him. "And Lilly was really hoping that her awesome Uncle Alex could spend some time with her for an hour."

Lilly reached for the eskimo doll that was a staple of the nurses' station for as long as they could all remember, and Alex pushed it toward her. Lilly happily grabbed hold of it, much to Meredith's mild horror. "Lilly, that thing is covered in germs," she winced.

"Oh, come on. She loves it," Alex said, scribbling his signature on the chart, then flipping it shut.

"Fine, just no chewing on him," Meredith compromised, her arms cradled around Lilly to keep her safe on the counter. "So, what do you say? One hour with the world's prettiest, little Valentine?"

Whatever resolve Alex had melted to mush when Lilly smiled at him, a line of drool running down her chin. "Fine. Sitting down here is lame anyway. I'll page a fourth year to come babysit the interns."

Meredith breathed a sigh of relief, taking Lilly's hands and clapping them together. "Thank you."

"You're not just messing with me, right? This isn't just some hoax so you and Derek can go bang one out in the on-call room," Alex asked.

"I wish. All of the banging is happening tonight," Meredith said, biting her lip to keep herself from rambling any further.

"Nice."

"So I promise, not a hoax. The ambulance is going to be rolling in any minute, and I need to get upstairs to make sure there's a procedure room available," Meredith said.

"Alright, what do I need to do?" Alex asked, standing up from his swivel chair.

Meredith slung Lilly's bag up onto the counter and managed to unzip it with one hand. "You're gonna need her baby doll. She has magic powers, and can ward off nearly all freak outs, so have her handy at all times. She may not want it, but I packed a bottle. Usually, she'll drink most of it," Meredith said, handing it to Alex, so she could show him the zipper compartment in the bag.

"Dude, is this breast milk?" Alex asked, holding it at arm's length.

Meredith rolled her eyes. "No, we let her drink piña coladas," she joked. "Yes, it's breast milk. Okay, there's diaper cream in this zipper part, diapers and wipes on the left side of the bag, bibs and spare clothes on the right. I doubt you'll need any of it, except for maybe a diaper, but just in case you do, it's all here."

"Got it."

"Are you sure you can handle this? Is Izzie around?" Meredith asked.

"If I can manage the peds. floor by myself, I can watch your kid for an hour," Alex said, handing Meredith the bottle back. "The fact that this came from your boobs is creeping me out a little bit, but I can handle it."

Meredith kissed the top of Lilly's head, scooting her toward Alex. "Thank you; I owe you for this," she told him. "Dada and I will come to get you a little later, baby girl."

"Dada," Lilly repeated as always.

"She talks now?" Alex asked in surprise as he picked Lilly up and held her on his hip.

"She just says Dada. But since Dada is Derek, she'll probably be a Chatty Kathy by the time she turns one," Meredith said proudly. "Love you, Lilly. I'll see you soon."

Alex waved her little hand and smiled with the hope that Lilly would mirror it rather than flip out as Meredith walked away. "See ya," he said. Once Meredith was out of ear shot, he bounced Lilly his arm. "If I find your parents doing it in the on-call room, they're toast, kid."

...

Derek stood in the scrub room washing his hands, watching as Meredith prepped Amanda for her bronchoscopy. It wasn't exactly a high-tech neuro surgery that he and Meredith were accustomed to, but they were going to do it anyway. Or Meredith would, while Derek watched. It was another procedure she could add to her résumé, and he was happy to let her do it.

After he finished scrubbing in, he walked into the procedure room on the other side of the glass. "Hey. How are we doing in here?"

"Great. She's numbed from the local anesthetic spray, so we're good to go. Do either of you have any questions?" Meredith asked the two of them.

Amanda shook her head, glancing over at her boyfriend. "No, we're ready," Kevin said.

"Okay. This shouldn't take more than a few minutes. This probe has a camera on the end of it, as well as a grasper, so once I spot the ring on this screen, I'll just grab it and pull it out. It'll feel strange, but you're numbed, so it shouldn't hurt. Just try not to cough or swallow. Small, shallow breaths like you've been doing, okay?" Meredith explained calmly.

Amanda nodded, holding onto Kevin's hand, while Derek pulled up a chair on the other side of the reclined exam table. "Dr. Grey's known how to do this since she was ten. You couldn't have asked for a better doctor," he said.

Meredith smiled, trying to conceal the slight smirk on her face. "Thank you, Dr. Shepherd," she said. "Okay, Amanda, I need you to open your mouth as wide as you can and relax your tongue."

Amanda did just that, and Meredith easily snaked the probe down the woman's airway. She kept her eyes focused on the video screen next to her, stopping the probe when she spotted the diamond ring about halfway down. "There it is," she announced.

"Pretty ring. Despite this whole ordeal, I'd say he's a keeper, Amanda," Derek said in good humor.

Meredith bit her lip in concentration, making sure she had a good grip on the ring before slowly removing it. After a few seconds of snaking the probe back up Amanda's airway, the ring was out, and Meredith dropped it into the emesis basin filled with saline solution to clean it. "All done," she said. "How are you feeling, Amanda?"

"Good," Amanda rasped, clearing her throat.

Derek raised up the exam table to a sitting position. "You did well. Can you take a few deep breaths for me?"

Amanda inhaled and exhaled deeply, and Derek nodded in approval. "Very good," he said, walking around to the other side of the table. He patted Kevin's back subtly. "Second time's a charm," he murmured.

Meredith dried off the ring with a paper towel and handed it to Kevin, expecting him to put it back in the box and map out a new game plan for a proposal. But when he got down on one knee for the second time that day, Meredith looked at Derek, eyes wide in shock.

Derek chuckled softly and slinked his arm around her waist, scooting backward a few steps in a respectful distance. "Seriously? Here?" Meredith whispered into his ear.

Derek pressed his lips to her temple and she leaned into him. "Sometimes, you just can't wait," he said.

Kevin smiled at Amanda, looking even more nervous than she had with a piece of jewelry lodged in her throat. "I know this isn't exactly what either of us thought would happen when I proposed to you, but you know, at least now we'll have a really good story to tell our kids one day," he said, holding up the ring. "So Amanda, if I vow to never hide anything in food ever again, will you marry me?"

Amanda wiped the tears from her eyes with the back of her right hand. "Yes," she laughed, watching as Kevin slid the ring onto her finger. She put her hands on his cheeks and kissed him, unconcerned about the presence of two doctors standing a few feet away.

"That's a much better place for it," Derek said.

Meredith rolled her eyes playfully. "You mean on her finger instead of almost in her lungs? Yeah, I'd say so."

Amanda glanced over at the two of them, an appreciative smile on her face. "Thank you. Thank you both so much," she said.

"You're welcome," Meredith replied, barely able to say anything more before Amanda wrapped her arms around her. "Congratulations," she said, hugging the woman back. "We're just glad we were there to help."

"Believe me, whenever we tell this story, you two will be the stars. We'll be singing your praises forever for this one," Kevin said as he shook Derek's hand.

"So sorry for interrupting your lunch with you and your daughter," Amanda apologized.

"Don't worry about it," Meredith said, waving it off. "She's hanging out with a friend of ours who volunteered to be her Valentine for a little while. She's in good hands."

...

Meanwhile, Alex was wishing he had just one more hand. He sat with Lilly in the back of an OR gallery, studying for the upcoming boards. Lilly, though, had no interest in his studying, much preferring to practice her crawling skills on the plethora of books scattered around them.

"Whoa, Lilly. I need to return you in one piece, so how about we don't try to scale book mountain," Alex said, picking her up and setting her back on her bottom.

Lilly heaved a heavy sigh of annoyance at being sidetracked from her mission, and Alex couldn't help but laugh. "It's rough being a baby, I know," he said. He scooped her into his lap and pulled his phone from his pocket. "Alright, check this out. See this picture? That's a heart that Dr. Altman and I are growing from scratch in the lab for this preemie. Well, technically we're growing it from stem cells. Pretty cool, huh?"

Lilly looked at the picture, her blue eyes wide in fascination. "Yeah, you're definitely the offspring of two surgeons," he laughed.

"What're you doing up here?"

Alex turned around and saw Bailey standing behind him, box of chocolates in one hand, charts in the other. "Hey. Meredith and Shepherd were out to eat when some chick swallowed her engagement ring. Mer asked me to watch Lilly while they took it out," he said.

"You sure she and Derek aren't off... celebrating the holiday in the on-call room?" Bailey asked.

"Better not be," Alex said, swiping a chocolate from the box Bailey set next to his books. He scrunched his nose when he smelled something unpleasant, then reluctantly peeked into the back of Lilly's diaper, dropping his head in defeat. "Aww, come on."

"You're gonna be a peds. surgeon, Karev. Surely, you can handle a dirty diaper," she said, rolling her eyes at him. Alex picked Lilly up off his lap and held her out to Bailey, who crossed her arms over her chest. "Uh uh. You volunteered yourself. Poop comes with the territory."

"Yeah, but you have a kid," Alex said.

"Tuck is five. I haven't changed a diaper in years," Bailey upheld, taking Lilly from him. "I'll hold her while you get out what you need, then I'll walk you through it."

Alex groaned as he rummaged through Lilly's bag, pulling out what he needed for a diaper change. Once he was finished rolling out her changing mat, he reached for Lilly. "Okay, let's get this over with," he said. After shimmying off her leggings and pulling up her dress, Alex braced himself, peeling back the tabs on Lilly's diaper.

"Good, now just lift up her legs and clean her with the wipes front to back. And don't put her legs back down until you move the old diaper out of the way," Bailey instructed, deciding to help him by taking out a diaper disposal baggie and opening it for him. "Toss everything in here."

"This is gross," Alex said, his nose buried in his shoulder.

"If she were a boy, she could be peeing on you. Consider yourself lucky," Bailey pointed out, smiling at Lilly. "Would you look at that girl's hair. Just like her dad's."

"Dada," Lilly replied in her tiny voice.

Bailey's eyes went wide. "She talks now?"

"Same thing I said. Mer said that's all she says so far," Alex relayed, shaking out Lilly's new diaper and sliding it under her bottom.

"Hmm, I bet Shepherd loves gloating about that one," Bailey mused as she surveyed his work. "I had my doubts, but I'm impressed, Karev."

"Impressed enough to let me scrub in on your diverticulectomy later today?" Alex asked.

Bailey took Lilly from Alex after he finished re-dressing her, and bounced the baby on her hip. "I thought you were scrubbing in with Robbins on the girl in 3218?"

"I was supposed to, but then her stupid friends snuck her some chocolate even though she was NPO, so we had to push it to tomorrow," Alex said.

"What do you say? Should we let him scrub in?" Bailey asked Lilly, who was amusing herself by shaking one of Alex's highlighters in her hand.

"I fed you a bottle full of your mom's breast milk, burped you, and changed your freaking diaper. You owe me, Lilly," Alex said, giving Lilly a thumbs up as motivation for her to mirror him.

Lilly gave him a thumbs up back before sticking it in her mouth, and Alex clapped his hands in victory. "Ha! I knew you were cool, kid."

"Fine, as long as you prep the guy, you can scrub in," Bailey agreed.

After Alex finished packing up Lilly's diaper supplies, he held out his arms to take Lilly back, but Bailey turned away. She scowled when Alex plastered an accusatory look on his face. "Don't look at me like that. I'm not soft. I just haven't held a baby in a while, and this one happens to be exceptionally adorable, so I'm getting my fix," Bailey said in defense of herself.

"Admit it. You're smitten," Alex said.

"I am not—"

"Who's smitten?" Derek cut in, walking into the OR gallery with Meredith close behind.

"Bailey over your kid," Alex said as he twisted a rubber band around his stack of study cards.

Meredith smiled when she saw Lilly in the arms of her former resident. "Yeah, that happens to everyone. She's too cute for her own good. We're in trouble when her teenage years roll around."

"How's your girl with the ring in her throat?" Bailey asked.

"She's good. No more foreign objects lodged in her airway, and she's newly engaged. All in all, I'd say her Valentine's Day went well," Derek replied.

"Hmm, just checking," Bailey said.

Meredith kissed Lilly's cheek when she turned toward her. "What do you mean?"

"I was half convinced you made the whole thing up to go off and have a no-pants party somewhere," Bailey confessed as she fixed one of the buckles on Lilly's shoes.

"No, but if you're willing to watch Lilly for twenty minutes, we'd love to," Derek joked.

"Save it for the bedroom, Shepherd. Your own bedroom," Bailey said, rolling her eyes.

Derek grinned. "Oh, well. Gave it a shot."

...

Lilly lay snoozing on Meredith's chest after nursing, sound asleep even before her normal bedtime. Meredith kissed the top of her dark hair, still damp after her bath. "Uncle Alex must be very entertaining," she said.

"Must be. She's out cold," Derek chuckled. "Does that mean I can't have my gift from her? I've been waiting all day."

"I think she'd forgive me if I gave it to you on her behalf," Meredith said, taking the wrapped present off her nightstand and dropping it in his lap.

Derek neatly unwrapped the gift, smiling wide when he saw what was inside. "This is adorable," he said, admiring the pink clay heart with Lilly's tiny hand prints impressed in the center, a picture of Lilly and Derek in between. "You two made this?"

"We did. And Lilly cooperated, so we got the hand prints on the first try, too. It's just something little," Meredith said.

"I love it. Any Lilly related gift is an awesome gift," Derek said, leaning over to press a kiss to Lilly's cheek. "Thank you, Lillybug," he said softly.

"Is she your new favorite Valentine?" Meredith asked playfully.

"Can't I have two favorites?" Derek asked as he made room for Lilly's gift on his nightstand. "Because really, I couldn't choose between the two of you."

"Me either."

"Although, if future fictitious baby number two is another girl, it'll be a tie between the three of you," Derek said. He put his hands on Meredith's cheeks and kissed her. "Speaking of baby making, you and I haven't made good on our practicing yet."

"I didn't give you my gift yet either," Meredith said.

"Hmm, wanna give me a hint?" Derek asked.

Meredith covered Lilly's ears with her hands. "It may or may not be something you can lick off of me," she divulged. "Oh, plus, I promised you we could bring those lyrics to life, so there's also that."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," she echoed, kissing Lilly again. "So, how about you take Lilly and get her settled in her crib, and when you get back, we can celebrate Valentine's Day Meredith-style."

"Meredith-style, huh?" Derek asked as he scooped Lilly off Meredith's chest, careful not to wake her. In his experience, Meredith-style celebrating involved all of his favorite things, and after building the anticipation all day, he couldn't wait to cash in on that promise.

"You know, gurney-breaking, sneaking off to the abandoned billing office in the hospital basement kind of celebrating..." Meredith hinted coyly.

Derek glanced back at her on his way into the hall with Lilly, and he smirked. "You better be naked when I get back," he said.

Meredith laughed, pulling her shirt over her head. "Way ahead of you."