TWO YEARS LATER…
I’m covered in clay and need to shower before heading in for the night, but I can’t pass up the opportunity to sneak inside the nursery first.
My gorgeous wife is rocking our baby and humming as she nurses him. It’s the most beautiful image in the entire world, everything I ever could’ve imagined. And more.
“How’s it going?” I whisper, grabbing her attention as I lean against the doorway.
She smiles up at me, a noticeable glow circulating her face.
“He’s just like his father. Gravitates to the left more than the right.” She chuckles, holding his precious little hand.
“We Rochester men know what we like,” I say with an unapologetic shrug. “Plus, the left one is bigger.” I flash her a wide, knowing grin.
She rolls her eyes and looks back down at him. Pushing off the doorway, I walk over to them and press a kiss to her head.
“I still can’t get over how much he looks like you,” Vada says, rubbing her finger along his soft cheek.
“Yeah, but he’s probably got his mama’s sassy mouth.”
She chuckles softly. “And his daddy’s crass attitude.”
“The kid’s gonna be a spitfire, no doubt.” I lean down and press a soft kiss on her lips. “I’m going to hop in the shower if you want to join me after he’s asleep.” I flash her a wink, telling her everything I need to.
“You know we can’t have sex for six weeks after giving birth,” she reminds me as if I could’ve forgotten that little detail.
“I know, but that doesn’t mean I can’t feast on other parts of you,” I tease.
Shaking her head at me, she bites down on her lower lip to conceal her smile. “You’re bad.”
“And you wrote a whole book telling everyone how much you love the bad boy, so there’s no turning back now,” I remind her smirking, and she wrinkles her nose at me before I lean down and kiss the top of London’s head. He barely fidgets from my contact—too busy eating.
I head to the shower with a toothy grin on my face. I can’t help it. I’m happier than I ever thought possible.
When we found out Vada was pregnant, I panicked at first. Although I was excited to be starting a family with her, I couldn’t help that fear inside that something was going to go wrong again, and I’d lose everything all over again. I knew Vada felt it too, but we leaned on each other for love and support, which helped get through those nine months.
Everything went great during her pregnancy, and even her labor was smooth without any complications. The relief that struck me when he was finally here was unlike anything I’d experienced before. Just knowing I could hold him brought me on an emotional roller coaster. London was born a whopping nine pounds and a head full of dark hair. It was an indescribable feeling and one I’ll never forget.
As soon as we found out we were having a boy, I was flooded with memories of Alana and Paris. I hated that I felt like I was replacing them somehow, although I knew that was far from the truth. Vada knew how important it was for me to keep their memories alive. She didn’t change much in the nursery, knowing I’d want to keep certain things. She never pressed me on it, and I loved her even more for that. She wanted to keep the memories of my family alive too, and that meant more to me than anything.
I’m on cloud nine as I begin rinsing off my body in the shower and hear Vada sneaking in behind me. Spinning around, I gasp when I see her kneeling down in front of me.
“What are you—”
“Taking care of my man.” She smiles up at me, grabbing ahold of my shaft as the water cascades on my back and blocks her. “Unless you’d like to jerk off in the shower alone again?” she teases, feistier than usual.
“Fuck, Vada…” I groan as she swirls her tongue around my piercing, knowing just how much it turns me on. “And for the record, I don’t jerk off in the shower.” I pause before continuing, “Anymore.”
She chuckles, releasing the tip. “Yeah, okay, Casanova. That’s not what you inspired in chapter sixteen of my newest book,” she reminds me with a wink.
“That was one time,” I defend. “And only because you were being a cock tease.”
She bursts out laughing. “I was six months pregnant and out of clothes to wear,” she reminds me, and memories of her wearing my T-shirts starts getting me hot all over again.
“Yeah.” I flash her a knowing smile. “You should always be pregnant, wearing my shirts, and only my shirts.”
She waggles her brows as she licks the length of my shaft and begins pumping it. Fuck, she’s so good at knowing exactly what I like. I wrap my hand in her hair and fist it as she works me all the way to orgasm.
Reaching down, I grab her hand and pull her up. I press my mouth against hers and kiss her until both our lips are swollen. I clean both of us, taking my time as I wash and rinse her off.
“God, you’re so beautiful,” I tell her along her ear as I inhale her fresh, sweet scent. “Perfect in every way.”
“That’s always a nice thing to hear after having baby spit-up and poop on your clothes all day,” she says, choking back a laugh.
I smile, turning her around so I can look into her eyes. Cupping her cheeks, I press one more soft kiss against her lips. “I couldn’t imagine life getting any better, baby. Starting a family and being truly happy is all that matters.”
“Look at you, smooth talker,” she teases, resting her lips against mine. “Guess my writing is starting to wear off on you.”
“Oh, sweetheart,” I drawl, pulling back slightly. “Gorgeous brunettes who suck my cock like that…” I glance down, smirking, “…are my kryptonite.”
“I bet they are,” she says, laughing at the seriousness of my tone.
I lead her out and dry us both off. As I wrap a towel around my waist, I hear London stirring in his crib. Vada starts heading for the nursery when I stop her and pull her back.
“I’ll take this shift, babe. You get some sleep.” I kiss her on the cheek before walking the rest of the way to the nursery.
Before opening the door, I glance down the hall and see Oliver and Wilma snuggled up together. Oliver’s licking Wilma’s face, and Wilma’s purring loudly.
“Get a room you two,” I mock, rolling my eyes at how much they love each other. Once Vada confirmed she was moving in, we flew up to Chicago together so I could help her pack and arrange for all her things to get shipped down here. Oliver didn’t exactly warm up to me right away, which caused concern on how he’d react to Wilma.
Suffice it to say, he warmed up to Wilma much sooner.
After meeting Nora though, I could see why Oliver was hesitant about meeting new people. He was used to being around strong, hard-headed women and saw me as a threat. Eventually, we had a heart-to-heart and agreed to both be the men of the house.
Walking into the nursery, I peek in the crib and see London’s fussing and unraveling from his swaddle. I pick him up, check his diaper, and wrap him back up in his blanket before seating us in the rocking chair.
“Listen, little guy,” I begin, brushing my finger softly along his face. “Your mama hasn’t slept in five weeks, and I’m going to need her to be as refreshed as possible in about the next week or so, which means you have to start sleeping for a few hours at a time. Now, I’m not above bribery and negotiations, so you just tell me what you want. A playset? Jordan High-tops? A Mustang when you turn sixteen? I mean, you name it, and I’ll make it happen, okay? As long as you give me one hour alone with your mama. Well, let’s just say two.” I smile as he eyes me curiously as if I’ve lost my mind. “Do we have a deal?”
I press my finger to his little palm and high-five him.
“If I didn’t think that was the cutest thing I ever saw, I’d call you pathetic for trying to bribe our newborn baby so we can have sex.” Vada leans against the doorway, shaking her head at me and smiling.
“Not just any sex, though,” I defend, and her smile widens. “Postpartum sex, which means as soon as the doctor gives the thumbs up, I’m stripping off all your clothes.”
“We’re not having sex in the doctor’s office!” she warns.
“Babe…” I tease. “Never say never.”
She rolls her eyes and shakes her head.
“C’mon. Think of all the good book inspiration.” I grin.
“You’re horrible,” she quips. She walks over to us and presses a gentle kiss on London’s head. “Your daddy is bad, London. Such a bad boy.”
“Yes, but a good, bad boy,” I correct with a smile.
“For now.” She winks.
After getting London back to sleep and in his crib, Vada and I head into our room. “Are you writing tonight?” I ask, knowing she’s been gradually getting back to it.
“I think so. Olivia’s been sending me some juicy details,” she explains with a knowing grin.
“Really?”
“Yup. Apparently, the new author she’s assisting is forcing her to road trip with a new cover model to a signing event across the country.”
“Oh yeah? Is he a bad boy, too?” I wink.
“According to Olivia, he’s worse.”
“Worse? How?”
“He has quite the reputation of being a fuck boy and Olivia isn’t happy about it.”
I laugh. “I give them a week, and they’ll be doing it.”
She winces. “Ethan!”
Chuckling, I shrug. “What? You know that’s exactly what’s going to happen.”
“Well, in my book, of course. But Olivia is a bit uptight,” she reminds me. “She’s not one to sleep around.” She told me all about Olivia when she worked for her before moving here.
I smirk at my internal prediction. “Then I guess he’ll have fun breaking her in.”