177. Liam's Baptism

Disclaimer: Not mine.

I can't believe it's been 75 days since I last updated. I apologize for the very long wait. Work is kicking my butt. I promise I'll try to update way sooner next time. Enjoy the chapter!

It was Saturday, the day before Liam's baptism and Easter Sunday. But what should have been a hectic weekend was made uncharacteristically calm thanks to the arrival of Derek's mom. Since arriving on Thursday for Derek's birthday, she'd been a godsend, helping out with Lilly and Liam, and best of all, insisting that Meredith take naps, an activity that had become foreign to her since Lilly was born almost two years ago.

After she finished nursing Liam, Meredith happily obeyed her mother-in-law's nap rule, and trekked upstairs to her bedroom. Too tired to change her breastmilk-stained shirt, she gracelessly flopped down onto the bed and closed her eyes. When she heard the shower running in their bathroom, she briefly contemplated joining Derek for some naked, soapy fun, but the comforter and pillows were too damn comfortable.

Only a few minutes passed before the sound of the shower spray hitting the tile ceased, and Meredith waited patiently for Derek to emerge from the other side of the door. With sex off the table for three more weeks, she reveled in other kinds of perks, even if the orgasms had to wait.

As anticipated, Derek stepped out of the bathroom with a towel loosely wrapped around his waist, amidst a cloud of steam. Meredith smiled when she saw him. "Hey."

"Hey. You okay?" he asked, drops of water falling from his wet curls.

"Yeah. Another nap. Your mom and Lilly are downstairs making spaghetti, and Liam's sleeping in his swing in the kitchen. I love her, by the way, in case I hadn't mentioned that before," Meredith said, rolling onto her side. "She told me to tell you to take a nap, too."

Derek chuckled. "Not gonna argue with that."

Meredith bit her lip when he let his towel fall to the floor, not so subtly admiring her favorite of his body parts. "I miss you," she sighed.

"Are you talking to my penis?" he asked.

"I am," Meredith admitted freely. "Eighteen days until I can mount you again."

"You should've taken a shower with me. Showers are always more fun with you," Derek said, hopping into a pair of boxers.

"I was going to, but our mattress held me hostage. Besides, showering with you is a tease when the farthest we can go is soaping each other up. What's a shower without the bendy thing?" Meredith pointed out.

Derek grinned as he rolled on his deodorant and pulled a t-shirt over his head. "Eighteen days, and we can do the bendy thing all you want."

"Good," Meredith said. She patted his side of the bed and smiled. "Come and lay down with me."

Derek walked over to the bed and slipped under the covers, spooning behind her. He wrapped his arm around her waist and wove his fingers through hers. "We need to do this more," he murmured into her hair.

"Nap dates? Is this what we've become?" Meredith joked, though given how warm his body felt and how good he smelled, nap dates were something she could easily get used to.

"A nap with you? Best way to end out my birthday week," Derek said. "You know, besides the... special attention you gave me the other night. Gotta tell you, I wasn't expecting that while putting the groceries away. Those hands of yours are very talented, Dr. Grey."

Meredith smiled at the memory, keeping her hand linked with his to avoid temptation. With Linda so close by, she knew better than to press their luck a second time around and risk getting caught. "Almost as talented as your tongue. You can make it up to me in eighteen days."

"This sex agenda is getting longer every day. We should keep a log," Derek suggested.

"We should," she seconded. "Oh, remind me to pack extra snacks in Lilly's bag for tomorrow. I don't know how long she'll sit still for during the baptism. String cheese seems to keep her entertained for at least ten minutes," Meredith said.

"Between the string cheese and the pop-up books I packed, she should make it through," Derek predicted, feeling his eyelids get heavy. "Should we set an alarm? 'Cause there's a very real chance I could fall asleep now and not wake up until morning."

"When my boobs wake me up, I'll wake you up. Liam finished eating fifteen minutes ago, which means he'll be hungry again in an hour and a half. Trust me, my boobs and our son are synced like clockwork," Meredith assured him.

"Kinda jealous of our son..."

"My boobs have been on full display twenty-four-seven since Lilly was born. Last week, I almost answered the door for the delivery guy with them hanging out of my shirt. The poor kid would've fainted on our door step if I hadn't realized as I was turning the handle," Meredith said.

Derek grinned. "Probably would've been the highlight of his week."

"Mhm," she played along.

"Hey, I delivered pizza in college. Very few perks. Trust me, he would've been tipping you."

Meredith nudged his foot with hers and laughed. "Shut up."

...

Napping, dinner, and the night had come and gone, quickly replaced with the bright sunshine of Easter Sunday morning. The baptism was due to start in just minutes, and while Lilly was happy as a clam, greeting everyone who walked through the doors of the church, Meredith was silently praying that Liam cooperated during his five minutes of fame on the altar.

Full after nursing, Liam lay in Meredith's arm, his eyelids heavy with sleep. But thanks to Derek's genetic gift of light sleeping, she knew that if a pin drop could wake up her son, there wasn't a chance of him sleeping through water being poured over his head.

"What if he freaks out?" Meredith asked.

"He won't. He likes the bathtub. A little water won't faze him," Derek predicted as he fixed Lilly's sandal.

"Mer, I work with babies all day long. If he starts to cry, I can handle it," Izzie assured her. "Now give me my godson. It'll look bad if we walk in late."

Meredith sighed, but handed Liam to her anyway. "Okay, but if he does start to fuss, just snuggle him into your boobs. He loves boobs."

"That I can do," Izzie promised.

"We've got it under control. Unless he poops, then he's all yours," Alex said as he adjusted his tie.

"Deal. Come on Lilly, let's go find Gammy. She's saving our seats," Meredith said, reaching for Lilly's hand.

Lilly grabbed hold of Meredith's hand, her Easter basket in the other. "Gigi?" she asked.

"Yeah, we're going to look for all the gigis that the Easter bunny hid as soon as we get home," Meredith promised, spotting the chocolate candy and marshmallow Peeps in Lilly's basket. "I'm glad you brought your candy with you. Mommy could use some right now."

"Mama some," Lilly agreed.

"Thank you, Lillybug," Meredith said.

She, Lilly and Derek walked up the aisle to their designated pew, and shuffled in next to Mrs. Shepherd. Alex and Izzie sat in the pew in front of them, Liam still cuddled in the crook of Izzie's arm.

Meredith waved at Lexie and Thatcher when they filled up the rest of their pew on the opposite end, grateful for her father's attendance, and Lexie's role as trusty buffer and conversationalist just in case. She smiled at the two of them. "Hey, thanks for coming."

"Wouldn't miss it," Thatcher said, his face lighting up when Lilly climbed across the length of the pew to say hello. "Hi, there. Don't you look pretty in your dress," he said.

Never one to shy away from attention, Lilly did an obligatory twirl, modeling her outfit. "Lellow dess."

"Yeah, you look adorable in your yellow dress," Lexie laughed.

"Hey, guys. Happy Easter," came Bridget's voice from behind her as she, Mark, and Charlotte filed into the pew. "Hey, Lilly. You look beautiful."

"Lolo!" Lilly said, clapping in excitement.

"Look how big you are, Charlotte. Beautiful just like your mommy," Linda said, smiling at the strawberry blonde baby in her purple dress. "Pass her up. I need to spend time with my granddaughters."

Mark placed Charlotte on Linda's lap and kissed her cheek. "Hey, Ma."

"Hi, sweetheart. I hope you don't mind if I hold her all day. I've been holding Liam since Thursday, so he needs a break," Linda teased.

"You can hold her a long as you want," Bridget said before patting Meredith's shoulder. "Liam is so handsome in that outfit. It makes him look like a little prince," she complimented. "And damn, look at you in that dress. I know we're in church, but I have to tell you, your boobs look amazing."

"And huge," Cristina chimed in as she and Owen entered the pew next to them.

Meredith looked down at her breasts, exposed more than usual because of her sundress, and she bit her lip. "I knew I shouldn't have worn this dress, but it's easy access for Liam when he needs to nurse. Do I need to wear Derek's suit jacket?"

Cristina and Bridget shook their heads in unison. "No, you look hot. Show those things off," Cristina encouraged.

"Show off my giant porn star boobs at my son's baptism? In a church?" Meredith clarified.

"Why not? I would," Cristina shrugged.

Before Meredith could contemplate her friend's advice, the baptism mass started, led by Bridget's brother, Father O'Hannon, the same priest who had baptized Lilly almost two years ago. And while she tried to pay attention to the ceremony, she found her mind and eyes wandering to Lilly and Liam, wondering if Liam had eaten enough to keep him content through the mass, and seriously contemplating ripping into the Peeps in Lilly's basket.

Sensing her distraction, Derek patted her knee, forcing her out of her thoughts. "You okay?" he whispered.

"Yeah. Just watching Liam. He's sucking his thumb. Sooner or later, he's going to realize that his thumb isn't my boob, and he'll get fussy," Meredith predicted, her mommy instincts on high alert.

"There's three other babies being baptized, too. If he cries, he probably won't be the only one. He seems pretty happy to me, though," Derek said, chuckling at how comfortable Liam looked with his cheek cushioned by Izzie's breasts.

Meredith shook her head in amusement. "He's such a boob man."

"Wonder where he gets it..." Derek teased.

"Mhm."

Overhearing their conversation from the pew in front of him, Mark poked his head between them, grinding their conversation to a halt. "Having a porny talk about boobs in church? You two are gonna burst into flames," he warned, unable to keep his grin at bay.

"If you haven't, chances are, we won't either," Derek countered.

"Would the godparents please approach the altar for the blessing over the baptismal font?" Father O'Hannon requested.

"Okay, here we go. You take pictures; I'll get the video," Meredith said as she reached for her phone.

Lilly stood up in the pew and patted Meredith's shoulder. "See Liam?" she asked when she spotted him on the altar with Alex and Izzie.

"Here, give me your phone. I'll get a video, so you can hold Lilly," Mark offered.

"Thanks, Mark," Meredith said, handing her phone over to him.

She picked Lilly up and sat her on her hip, so she could have a better view, but for Lilly, that wasn't enough. She twisted and wiggled in Meredith's arm, eager to see her brother's big moment. "Lillybug, hold still," Meredith said softly.

Saying that to a one year old was easier said than done, though, and to prevent Lilly from accidentally flinging herself from Meredith's hold, Meredith set Lilly on her feet in the aisle, so she would have a completely unobstructed view. But before Lilly's sandal-covered feet were planted on the floor, she was running to the altar as fast as her little legs would take her.

"Oh, crap," Meredith murmured, her face reddening, unsure of how to react. She glanced over at Derek, who just laughed as he snapped pictures on his phone. "This is not funny. What do we do? Do we get her?" she whispered to him.

Thankfully, Alex was one step ahead, kneeling down and extending his arms when Lilly made it to the altar. "Come here, kiddo," he encouraged. He easily scooped her up when she toddled over to him, and she sat on his hip with a smile, finally satisfied with her view.

"Hi. Wanted to join us for Liam's big moment, huh?" Father O'Hannon asked, amused and unfazed.

"My Liam," Lilly nodded.

"You're a good big sister, Lilly. Of course you can stay," the priest said before continuing with the baptism.

Feeling the stares of those around her, Meredith took Lilly's Easter basket that sat in the pew, and ripped open the cellophane on the pack of pink bunny Peeps. She shoved the squishy, sugar-covered marshmallow into her mouth and sighed, at both the sweet taste she'd been craving and the mild mortification of Lilly's great escape.

"Please tell me you got that on video?" Derek asked Mark in the pew behind him.

Mark grinned, the phone still in recording mode. "Oh, yeah. All of it."

Unfortunately for Meredith, the nervous Peep-eating only escalated when the priest poured the water over the top of Liam's head, abruptly waking him from his catnap. The baby wailed in annoyance, which Izzie was quickly able to calm with some soothing pats on his diapered bottom. Meredith ripped the ears off another Peep with her teeth as she tried to resist the mama bear instinct to cradle her son, and when Derek noticed, he squeezed her hand.

"He's fine. Izzie's got it handled," Derek said.

"I know, but for how long? Izzie has great boobs, but hers can't do what mine can," Meredith replied.

"It'll be over in a few minutes, then you can nurse him," Derek pointed out.

"Fine, but we need to stop at the store on the way home," Meredith compromised. "I'm halfway through Lilly's Peeps, and they're her favorite, too."

Derek chuckled, watching as she brushed some of the pink sugar off her navy blue dress. "Okay."

...

With the excitement of Liam's baptism behind her, Lilly was now free to focus on the day's second most important thing: chocolate. She ran around the backyard with her Easter basket, hunting not-so-hidden eggs like a woman on a mission. She plucked an orange one off the grass and held it up in victory. "Gigi, Mama!"

"You found another gigi? Good job! Bring it over, so I can open it for you," Meredith said from the patio, Liam asleep in her arm.

"She was just starting to walk a year ago. Now she's practically sprinting back here," Derek said, smiling at his daughter, still clad in her yellow dress. "Hey, Princess. Having fun?"

"Got gigi!" Lilly told him as she handed him the egg to open.

"Yeah, you're finding all the gigis. Pretty soon, you're gonna have a belly full of chocolate," Derek said, unwrapping the Hershey kiss from inside the plastic egg.

He handed it to Lilly, and she happily began chewing the small piece of chocolate. "Mmm," she hummed.

"You may look like me, but you got your love of chocolate from Mommy," Derek chuckled.

"Let's hope that's one of the only things she inherits off the list of Meredith's Favorite Things," Cristina replied, continuing when Meredith shot her a dirty look. "I'm just saying, tequila-fueled one night stands used to make the top three on that list."

"A tequila-fueled one night stand got me a hot husband and two beautiful babies," Meredith reminded her. "But yeah, she needs to stick to the chocolate for now. No men."

"What about that dreamboat from daycare? Did you see the way they were flirting that day?" Bridget recalled, sitting Charlotte on the grass next to Lilly.

Linda and Izzie walked onto the back patio with the first round of food, and having caught the tail-end of Bridget's sentence, had to investigate. "Who was flirting with whom at daycare?" Linda asked.

"There was no flirting. Lilly and another boy her age shared a plate of paint at the arts and crafts table, that's all," Derek clarified.

"A very cute boy with blue eyes and dark, curly hair. My daughter and I clearly have a type," Meredith smiled.

"You never know. He could be the one," Izzie said, piling macaroni and cheese onto Meredith's dish.

Derek sighed. "She's not even two. No boyfriends until college. Right, Lillybug?"

"Right," Lilly echoed.

"Iz, I can't eat all this," Meredith told Izzie, who was adding a turkey club to mac and cheese mountain.

"Sure you can. Your body needs fuel to keep up your milk supply," Izzie countered.

Meredith cringed at Izzie's lack of filter, but still relented, and forked a few pieces of the macaroni. "Fine, but can we not discuss my milk supply at Easter brunch? It's weird."

"Not any weirder than you letting her watch you push a baby out," Alex shrugged.

Cristina nodded in agreement, munching on her potato salad. "Yeah, I kinda still can't believe you let her do that."

"What? She was a huge help. She helped deliver my baby, then proceeded to make us breakfast, and do laundry. How many other OBs do that?" Meredith said in support of her friend.

"Happy to do it. And if you need me for the next one, I'm there," Izzie promised.

"Next one? So there's for sure going to be a third?" Lexie asked.

Meredith shook her head. "No, not for a while. Having two under two is all the excitement we need right now. One of you could have a baby, though..."

"It's a work in progress," Bridget said.

"Gigi Lolo?" Lilly asked.

"You want to find gigis with Lolo? Yeah, go ahead, sweetie," Meredith encouraged.

With Lilly's hand in hers, Charlotte wobbly rose to her feet, and the girls began walking toward the garden where a purple egg was sitting next to a patch of flowers. They kept a slow pace to accommodate Charlotte's tinier legs, and the sight of them made their parents smile.

"You're a lucky, little guy, Liam. Lilly's the best big sister you could ask for," Bridget said.

"She's so good with him. We knew she was excited about the baby, but we weren't sure what to expect when she realized he's here to stay. We braced ourselves for a little bit of jealousy, because she has to share the spotlight, but from the minute he was born, she's just rolled with it. She helps us give him baths, change diapers, all of that," Meredith said, letting Liam grab hold of her finger.

"She gets some of the best burps out of him, too," Derek chimed in. "A few nights ago, Mer and I tried for a half hour to get him to burp. Eventually, Lilly walked over, rubbed her hand up and down his back a few times, and boom. Huge burp."

Linda smiled fondly. "That's the same way the girls were, especially when Derek was born. They were like little mommies to him."

"That's how Lilly is. According to her, I'm her mommy, and she's Liam's," Meredith said as Lilly and Charlotte approached the patio. "Lilly, who's your mommy?"

Lilly pointed to Meredith with her free hand. "My mommy."

"And who's Liam's mommy?" Meredith asked her.

"I mommy," Lilly answered without hesitation, pointing at herself with pride.

"Yeah, Liam loves you," Meredith said, Liam stirring as he woke up, ready to eat again. "This little guy is hungry. We'll be back."

"You can feed him out here, Mer. We don't mind," Lexie said.

Meredith nodded, bracing her arm on Derek's shoulder before standing up. "I would, but I want to change him out of this outfit, too. He's looked dapper long enough. It's time for a t-shirt and sweats, right, buddy?"

By the time she stepped through the sliding glass door and into the kitchen, Liam was nuzzling his face into her chest. "You're ready for boob, I know. Almost there," Meredith said.

Once she climbed the stairs and reached the hallway, she made a beeline for the master bedroom, kicking off her heels. The soft carpet squished between her toes as she walked the few feet into the room, and she let out a happy sigh when she sat on the bed.

"This mattress is too comfortable for its own good, Liam. Seriously, I chose this over a shower with Daddy last night," Meredith said, grateful that her son was too young to understand what she'd just revealed. Knowing he preferred skin-to-skin, she wiggled him out of his christening outfit, leaving him in his diaper and socks.

She put the boppy pillow on her lap, then cradled Liam in her arm while she lowered one side of her dress. With Meredith's help, Liam latched onto her breast and began suckling with gusto. "I'm not going anywhere, sweetpea. Take your time," Meredith cooed.

Liam looked up at her as he ate, his chubby hand on top of her breast, the same way Lilly always nursed. Meredith stroked her fingers up and down the soft skin of his back, his gaze never leaving hers. "Mommy loves you so much, Liam. You did so good today."

With Liam contentedly nursing, Meredith decided to make the most of the next twenty minutes by squeezing in a catnap, a small luxury that was hard to come by with a toddler and a newborn, and one that she would miss once Mrs. Shepherd went back home. She leaned against the headboard and closed her eyes, her mind wandering into soapy, sudsy territory of what could've been last night, sans post-baby celibacy.

Dream Derek stood in the shower, running shampoo through his wet curls, the soap trailing down the length of his back down to his bottom. Meredith stepped over the lip of the tub, her arms wrapping around his torso. He spun around in surprise, a smile spreading over his face when he realized just how much more fun his shower was about to get now that she'd joined him.

He moaned when he felt her breasts pressed to his chest, a moan which Meredith reciprocated when she felt him hardening against her, right where she was urging to be touched. She felt Derek's fingers dip between her legs and she moaned louder, signaling to him that he was doing all the right things.

Meredith gasped when he picked her up and placed her against the cool tiles of the shower wall. Her legs wrapped around his waist, her heart racing because she knew what was coming. She smiled when she felt him pressed against her, hard and ready, and tilted her head back in pleasure when he pushed inside.

Just as she was about to rock her hips back and forth, Meredith felt the bed dip down at feet, and she opened her eyes to find Derek smiling at her and Liam, who was only gently nursing now that his stomach was nearly full.

"Hey, didn't mean to wake you," Derek said apologetically.

Meredith scrunched her nose at him in annoyance. "I was having a really good dream, and you ruined it."

"A really good dream, huh? What kind of dream?" he asked.

"I was riding you in the shower," Meredith replied, closing her eyes in the vain hope of picking up where her dream left off. "Even in my dreams, I can't get laid."

Derek squeezed her bare foot in empathy. "Sorry. I'd make it up to you tonight, but..."

"But I'm celibate for seventeen more days," Meredith finished for him. She reluctantly accepted the fact that her dream would have to wait until later, and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "What're you doing up here?"

"I had to use the bathroom, so I figured I'd check on you guys, see if you needed anything," Derek said.

"We're good. I just need to burp him, then change him. Can you go grab an outfit for him?" Meredith requested as Liam unlatched from her breast.

"Yeah."

She wiped the excess from Liam's lips with her finger, then rested his head on her chest to burp him. "I think your eyes are bigger than your belly. Can you give me a burp?"

"Got him his Yankees onesie with the matching sweat pants," Derek said proudly when he walked back into the bedroom.

Meredith rolled her eyes at the navy blue get-up and laughed. "I should say no, since you interrupted the best dream ever, but he'll look adorable in it."

"I know, that's why I picked it. Used his cuteness to my advantage," Derek grinned.

"Mhm," Meredith played along, looking down at Liam when he let out an audible burp. "Ooh, good one," she praised. "Got another one in there for me?"

"Does it matter which end it comes out of? He might be more willing if you give him options," Derek chuckled.

"He farted on me outside already. What's one more?" she said, feeling something warm and wet trickle down her skin. "Uh oh."

"Wet burp?" Derek guessed.

Meredith peeled Liam away from her chest, laughing when their suspicions were confirmed. "Oh, yeah. Milky spit up down my dress and between my boobs," she said, kissing the baby's forehead. "You couldn't have spit up on your Yankee outfit, could you?"

"He knows that logo is sacred," Derek defended, taking Liam from her, so she could change.

"More sacred than his mommy, who pushed him out of her body?" Meredith joked. "It's okay, Liam. I still love you to pieces." She carefully pulled her dress over her head, then unhooked her bra, both soaked through with spit up. "I'm glad Liam is with us, and not outside, or everyone would probably think you and I were up here... doing stuff."

"If only we could," Derek said, trying not to stare as she stood in front of him wearing only her panties.

"What? Oh. Yeah." Meredith bit her lip when she realized her near nakedness. "I probably shouldn't strip in front of you. It's cruel. "

"I find it charming that you strip in front of me to wipe spit up off yourself. Any kind of stripping, really," Derek encouraged. He cleaned Liam's lips and chin with a diaper wipe, then passed the pack to Meredith. "Here you go."

"Thank you," she smiled, reaching for a peepee teepee from the bassinet and tossing it to Derek. "You might wanna cover his penis when you change him, just in case he decides to share some of his bodily fluids with you, too," she said as she wiped the spit up off herself.

Derek nodded, covering Liam as a precaution. "Good thinking."

In the midst of wiping, changing, and redressing, Lilly's loud shriek of laughter carried all the way from the backyard into their bedroom, and the happy sound made Meredith and Derek smile.

"She's enjoying her sugar high, huh?" Derek grinned as he fastened a fresh diaper around Liam's tiny waist.

"I know. It'll be a small miracle if she goes to sleep tonight," Meredith said. Her chest now free of spit up, she slipped a striped shirt over her head, then hopped into a pair of jeans. It was a stark contrast to her dress and heels, but as the postpartum spokeswoman of the group, she knew had the best excuse in the book for dressing comfortably.

When Liam was fully dressed in his Yankee garb, Derek held him up in beaming pride. "Look at this guy. Look how handsome he is."

Meredith reached for Liam, and planted kisses all over his cheek. "You look so handsome. And you'll look even more handsome in your Red Sox outfit."

"His what?" Derek asked.

"Yeah, it should be here sometime tomorrow. Gotta love Amazon Prime, don't we, Liam?" Meredith said.

"I don't know if I'm prepared to see our son in a Red Sox outfit," Derek admitted.

Meredith smiled as she combed her fingers through the baby's light brown hair that matched hers. "Well, prepare yourself, because I ordered one for our daughter, too."

...

Mrs. Shepherd sat in the rocking chair in Lilly's room, staring at her sleeping granddaughter on her lap. It was a challenge getting her to sleep after her sugar-filled Easter and running around the backyard with Charlotte until sundown, but after a bath with Liam and a pile of bedtime stories, she was down for the count by 8:30.

Meredith stood in the doorway and watched her mother-in-law as she rocked Lilly, Liam content but wide awake in her arm, despite his full belly. "You need to give me tips on how to do that," she said, walking into the room and taking a seat at Lilly's tea table.

"Hi, sweetheart. Do what?" Linda asked, barely noticing Meredith's presence until she spoke.

"Even with the two of us, Derek and I would've struggled getting her to sleep tonight. You're a miracle worker," Meredith said honestly.

Linda laughed, shaking her head. "No, just lots of practice over the years, especially when Derek was her age. He was a ball of energy. Once he started crawling at eight months old, he never stayed still. Jim and I used to flip a coin over who had to get him to sleep. The winner got to take care of the girls. They were the easy ones. Derek would be bouncing off the walls even as we put him in his pajamas."

Meredith smiled when she pictured toddler-aged Derek, likely doing somersaults as his mom tried her darndest to wiggle him into a pair of race car pajamas. Lilly was generally cooperative with her bedtime routine, which made her wonder if she and Derek were in for it with Liam in a year or so.

"And when he finally fell asleep, it took a miracle to get him into his crib without waking him up. And once he turned two, he figured out how to climb out of the crib. None of the girls did that. Just him. I was brushing my teeth one morning, and he toddled in, dragging his stuffed elephant behind him. After a few days of that, we got him his big boy bed," Linda recalled, combing her fingers through Lilly's curls, the ones that matched Derek's.

"I guess we have that to look forward to with Lilly. She's our adventurous one. We're still figuring Liam out. He seems pretty mellow, which is good. A lot like Derek, actually. Content to soak in the quiet and think. Right, sweet boy?" Meredith said, smiling at her son.

"How about I take him, rock him to sleep. I need as much time with these two as I can get," Linda offered.

Meredith looked down at Liam, then at her mother-in-law. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely. Go relax, take a long shower, have some mommy time. I'll bring him in in a little while," Linda said as she got up from the rocking chair. She kissed Lilly's cheek, laid her in the crib, and draped a soft blanket over her belly without missing a beat.

"Wow," Meredith said, impressed.

"Like I said, lots of practice with her father," Linda laughed softly.

Once she sat back down in the rocking chair, Meredith placed Liam into her very capable arms, which had spent thousands of hours rocking her children and grandchildren over several decades. And Meredith knew that one day, she would do the same with her own grandchildren, though she was in no rush. If she could freeze these small moments of their babyhood, she'd do it in a heartbeat.

"I appreciate it; thank you," Meredith whispered. She placed kisses of her own on Lilly's and Liam's foreheads, then carefully tiptoed out of Lilly's room.

She walked into their bedroom where she found Derek sprawled out on top of the covers, flipping through the channels on the TV. "Hey," he greeted. "Where's Liam?"

"Your mom wanted to rock him to sleep. They're in Lilly's room. She said she'll bring him in later," Meredith said.

"Oh, okay," Derek said, turning his attention back to ESPN.

Meredith rolled her eyes at his obliviousness, too caught up in watching sports highlights to recognize their sacred free time. Instead of wasting extra seconds by being subtle in her approach, she stood in front of the TV, and pulled her shirt over her head. "I'm taking a shower. You coming?"

She smiled when her question produced the reaction she'd been hoping for, and he tossed the remote on the bed. "Really?"

"Yeah. Your mom told me to," Meredith said as she reached for his hand.

Derek froze in equal parts confusion and horror. "My mom told you to take a shower with me?" he asked.

"What? Eww. No. She told me to relax, and taking a shower is way more relaxing if you're in there with me," Meredith said, giving his hand a gentle tug.

Derek followed her into the bathroom where she was already wiggling out of her jeans and panties. He couldn't help but stare at her body, laid bare before him. While she'd changed in front of him since giving birth, he hadn't yet seen her naked in a romantic, semi-sexual-though-sex-was-off-the-table kind of context.

"God, you look beautiful," he said.

Meredith blushed, and smoothed her hands over her belly, the place that housed their son only two and a half weeks ago. "Thank you."

When Derek kicked off his sweats and boxers, Meredith quickly averted her eyes and turned on the shower faucets, afraid that if she stared too long, upholding her postpartum celibacy would be next to impossible.

"Just showering," Meredith said out loud, unsure if she was reminding Derek or herself.

Derek nodded as he took her hand, helping her step over the ledge. "Just showering," he echoed.

But once they were both in the shower, under the water spray, Meredith gave into temptation and kissed him. And when he moaned deep in his throat, she kissed him harder. "I missed this," she murmured.

"Me, too."

"This 'no sex' rule is stupid," Meredith said against his lips. "I mean, I get it. But still, easier said than done when I'm hornier than a teenage boy on prom night."

"Prom night, huh? That was fun," he grinned, running his fingers through her wet hair.

Meredith sighed at the memory and smiled. "It was."

"Just because we can't go all the way doesn't mean we can't make this fun, too," Derek said. He turned her around so her back was flush against his torso, and started pressing kisses from her shoulder to her neck.

Meredith was about to ask him what he was doing, but her train of thought derailed when he brushed his fingers over her breasts, then trailed down her belly until he reached dangerous territory.

"Did you already forget the 'no sex' rule?" she asked.

"No. This isn't about me; it's about you," Derek said, his breath warm against her ear.

"What're you... ooh," Meredith moaned when his fingers reached the cleft between her legs.

He found the bundle of nerves hidden there, and began stroking the sensitive spot with the pad of his thumb. Years of practice made him an expert at her body, knowing just what to do and how to do it. He smiled when she bit her lip and moaned again in approval of what his thumb was doing, and he decided to add more fuel to the fire by nipping at the skin below her ear.

She lifted her leg and braced her foot on the shower ledge to keep from falling, and in doing so, gave him better access to the tiny nub he knew so well. "Oh, God, Derek," she exhaled.

"Good?"

"Mmm," she hummed, which he translated as a resounding yes, yes, yes.

Derek kept up his ministrations on her body until he felt her breaths quicken, and then he backed off, determined to keep her on the edge as long as he could. She probably would've cursed at him in frustration, except she knew the payoff would be worth the delay. And sure enough, after several minutes, he'd worked up so much that she felt like her legs might give out.

Meredith leaned all of her weight against him as her orgasm ripped through her, bringing with it wave after wave of pleasure. She rode out the tide for a full minute until it subsided, her body feeling like Jell-O as she came down from the high.

"Holy crap," were the only words her brain could form, and she craned her neck to kiss what she could reach of his face. "Thank you."

"Hmm, relaxed?" Derek asked smugly, already aware of the answer.

Meredith smiled as she turned around to face him. "Very," she sighed.

"Good."

There was a short knock at their bedroom door, and they both froze under the water. "Crap," Meredith whispered.

"Derek? Meredith?" Linda called, Liam cradled in her arm. "I'm sorry to come in. I just need a diaper for Liam," she said. When she noticed clothes strewn in a trail from the bedroom to the in-suite bathroom, she connected the dots. "Uh oh. I think we walked in on something we weren't supposed to know about," she whispered to the baby.

Linda took a fresh diaper from the nightstand, then began backing out of the room. "Found one. Carry on. Sorry to interrupt," she said, closing the door behind her when she left.

Derek leaned his head against the shower wall and closed his eyes. "Oh my God. Did that just happen?" he asked, his cheeks red in mortification.

"Even though we made two babies together, and she obviously knows we've had sex, I can never look your mom in the eyes ever again," Meredith said.

"I mean, it could've been worse, right? She could've walked in on us in bed? At least she didn't actually see anything," Derek pointed out.

"Your optimistic spin on things doesn't make this any less awkward," Meredith countered as she squirt soap onto her loofah.

Derek followed her lead, and starting lathering shampoo into his hair. "Mark was right. We're lucky we didn't burst into flames at church this morning. Clearly, we're terrible people."

Meredith laughed in spite of their current predicament, standing on her toes to kiss him. "Yeah, but that orgasm was still pretty damn good."