Текст книги "Faithful"

Автор книги: Kelly Elliott

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Текущая страница: 3 (всего у книги 25 страниц)

I watched as Victoria came out of Josh’s room. She glanced over at me, and the smile on her face gutted me. I didn’t trust her as far as I could throw her.

A few minutes later, the doctor came out.

When I looked over at Amanda, she was holding her stomach.

“What’s wrong? Are you feeling sick?” I asked as I got up and walked over to her.

She stood up and put her hand on her mouth.

“Oh god, are you going to throw up? Shit!”

I grabbed her free hand and pulled her to the restrooms. We barely made it in time before Amanda started throwing up in the toilet.

“Jesus, Manda. Do you have the flu? That hit you out of nowhere.”

As I stood outside the stall, waiting until she was done, I turned on the warm water and wet a paper towel for her. When she opened the door, I saw tears streaming down her face.

“Amanda! What’s wrong?” I asked as I watched her walk to the sink.

She started to splash water onto her face. Looking in the mirror, she began laughing as she wiped off her smeared makeup. Turning around, she leaned against the sink and smiled at me. “You know what’s so funny, Heather?”

“Um, no. What’s so funny?”

“I should be happy, but I’m not. He doesn’t want kids—not now, not ever.”

I stood there, staring at her. She was making no sense whatsoever.

“Who doesn’t want kids?”

“Brad. He told me last night. He doesn’t ever want kids.”

I sucked in a breath of air. Oh no. “Amanda, are you pregnant?”

When she placed her hands on her stomach, I saw the bump. Holy shit. How far along is she?

“I’m almost four months,” she said with a weak smile.

“Holy hell! Why didn’t you tell us?” I took a step toward her and hugged her.

“He said he didn’t want kids right away. We’ve been married for almost two years now, so when this happened, I thought he’d be okay with it. You’d think he would be happy, right?”

“Of course he’s happy, sweets. Why would you think he wasn’t?”

She started laughing. “Last night, he told me he doesn’t want kids. Ever. When I told him he should have mentioned that minor detail before we got married, he said…he said…” Amanda broke down, crying.

I’m going to kill Brad. Placing my hands on her face, I forced her to look at me. “He said what?”

She tried to control her sobs, but she couldn’t. Finally, after three good minutes of uncontrollable crying, she blurted out, “He said he’d lied to me because he knew I wouldn’t marry him if he never wanted kids. He knew how much I wanted kids, Heather. He knew, and he lied to me. He just hasn’t been himself for the last six months.”

“Oh, honey. Well, you know what? That dickwad asshole will just have to get used to the idea of kids because he’s going to be a dad in five months,” I said with a smile.

“No, Heather. I haven’t told you everything.”

Oh god, can I take any more bad news?

“He told me I either have to give up the baby, or he’s leaving.” She started sobbing again.

“Are you kidding me? What does he mean, you have to ‘give up the baby’? Amanda, he doesn’t mean…” I trailed off as I moved my hand up to my mouth. I felt sick.

“I told him I would never have an abortion, and he yelled at me for thinking that he could be such a monster. Then, he said he meant adoption. He’s already talking about hiding me from his parents for fuck’s sake. He doesn’t want anyone to know. He wants me to give up the baby, Heather. Give her away. I don’t know what to do! It’s like he’s not even himself. I don’t know him anymore.” Amanda slid down to the floor, crying.

Shit a brick…this sucks. I knelt down next to her, pulled out my phone, and sent Ellie and Ari a text message. We needed a code blue, but I couldn’t leave, and Ellie was still in the hospital. Shit.

Just then, the restroom door opened, and Victoria walked in. Amanda flew up so fast that she knocked me back on my ass. I jumped up as fast as I could.

“I thought I saw y’all come in here. Mr. and Mrs. Hayes are looking for you,” Victoria said to me, looking me up and down as if I were a bug she wanted to step on.

Turning to Amanda, I asked, “Are you okay?”

She smiled and nodded.

As we made our way to the door, Victoria grabbed my arm. “Heather, can I talk to you for a second…alone?” She directed a fake-ass smile toward Amanda.

Amanda threw her hands on her hips. “No. Whatever you have to say, you can say it in front of me. Right, Heather?”

I couldn’t even think to talk. Why does she want to talk to me? What could she possibly have to say to me? “Um…yeah, right Manda. I mean, is something wrong with Josh?”

Victoria gave Amanda a dirty look before she turned back to me with a smile.

God, her smile is pure evil. I think Lynda has a twin sister who she doesn’t know about.

“Listen, I get that you and Josh were together,” she said, throwing her hand back in the air like she couldn’t care less. “However, I’m telling you this now. Don’t push him into remembering you and your relationship. If you force it and he never gets his memory back, he could very well just be with you because everyone tells him he should. He needs to have the memories return to him…on their own. Right now, he only remembers…well, a relationship with me,” she said with a smile.

“You know what…Tori? I have this gift,” Amanda said, taking a step closer to Victoria.

Laughing, Victoria put her hands on her hips as she tilted her head to the side. “Oh yeah? And what’s your gift…Manda?”

Oh my god! What a bitch!

“Well, you see, I can spot a bitch a mile away. And, honey, I spotted you from two miles away. Mess with my friend, and you’ll have three very angry girls waiting for you in a dark alley one night.” Amanda cracked her knuckles.

I wanted so badly to start laughing, but a thought crossed my mind. When did Amanda start cracking her knuckles? She hates it when Ari does that. I shook my head to clear my thoughts.

Victoria stood up a little taller. “Are you threatening me? And who are these other girls?”

Throwing her head back, Amanda laughed. “Oh, honey, you should wish it was only a threat. I forgot to mention my two other friends. We have each other’s backs—always have and always will. You hurt Heather in any way, and I’d be more than happy to introduce you to Ari and Ellie.”

Victoria gave Amanda a dirty look before turning at me. She leaned in toward me and smiled slightly as she got right in my face. “I’m sure you’ve never satisfied him like I did. You’ll never be able to give him a blow job like I did. BJs from me were his favorite thing, but I’m sure you know all about how much Josh likes his BJs…now, don’t you, Heather?” She tapped my nose with her finger before walking out of the restroom.

I’m going to be sick.

“Holy fucking hell. What a bitch! Ari is so going to kick her ass. God, I can’t wait to tell her about this one. She makes Lynda look like a—” Amanda turned around to see me with my hands on my knees.

I can’t breathe. Oh. My. God.

“Holy hell, Heather. What’s wrong?” Amanda asked.

I looked up at her. I didn’t even know what to say. It was Lynda all over again. So many times, she had called or sent emails, detailing her sex life or relationship with Josh. Now, it was happening all over again. I’d only talked to Ari and Ellie about it. I’d told Josh that Lynda was contacting me, but I never told him what she’d said. I couldn’t handle it anymore, so I’d finally changed my number and my email address.

“Oh my god. Ari told me about how Lynda would call and write you. Oh god, Heather.”

I glanced up at Amanda with a shocked look on my face. I shouldn’t be surprised though. None of us could ever hold anything back from the others.

“Fuck her, Heather. Josh loves you, and his relationship with her was years ago. Trust me. The love you share with Josh is strong and true. He’s not going to forget that.”

I felt tears building in my eyes. “Amanda…I’ve never given Josh a blow job…ever.”

Amanda stepped back and covered her ears. “Oh. My. God! Heather…TMI! I don’t want to know if you’ve ever given Josh a blow job or not!”

Just then, Elizabeth walked in, looking between Amanda and me.

My face instantly grew hot. Fuck me. Just shoot me! Shoot me now ’cause this can’t get any worse.

“Okay…I’m going to pretend that I never heard those words come out of your mouth, Amanda,” Elizabeth said as she walked over to me. “Baby girl, Josh wants to talk to you,” she said with a smile.

My heart started pounding. “Me? He wants to talk to me? But he doesn’t even know who I am,” I said, confused.

She laughed and pulled me in for a hug. “Oh, it was the most romantic thing ever, Heather. He knows.”

I leaned away from her. “He remembers me?”

Her smile faded some before it returned. “Well, no…but he knows that y’all are more than friends.”

“Oh no. Did you tell him that, Elizabeth?” I asked, thinking back to what Victoria had said about forcing him to remember.

“No, not really. He asked Greg and me about you. He said when he saw you, his heart dropped to his stomach, and he has never felt like that before. He also mentioned that the whole time the doctor was talking, he just kept wondering who you were!” Elizabeth clapped her hands and then grabbed Amanda in for a group hug.

Amanda started laughing as she and Elizabeth began jumping up and down like little kids.

“See! A love like y’all’s can never be forgotten,” Amanda said with excitement.

My dad had left to grab some lunch for him and the girls while Mom went to look for Heather and her friend.

Shit, I can’t remember her friend’s name.

I was praying that Victoria wouldn’t come back in the room until after I had a chance to talk to Heather. Victoria had already given me a lecture about trying to force memories to come back. Then, she’d reminded me about how much I loved her blow jobs. Any other time, I would have pulled back the covers and told her to have at it, but something was different now. I felt like I was being unfaithful if I even thought that way. Unfaithful to whom though? Heather?

When I heard a faint knock on the door, I called out for the person to come in. The moment I saw the blonde hair, my heart started pounding. She closed the door and turned to face me.

Fucking hell. Her eyes…goddamn, those eyes are beautiful.

I couldn’t help but smile at her. She smiled back, and I swore if I were standing up, my legs would have given out on me.

“Hey, um…Elizabeth, um…your mom said you wanted to talk to me,” she said with the cutest damn smile on her face.

She’s nervous. Why is she nervous? Well, shit, Josh. It’s because you don’t remember her, you fuckhead. “Yeah, if you don’t mind, I’d love to talk to you for a few minutes.” Or a lifetime.

She nodded as she headed for the chair next to my bed. I watched as she studied my face. She frowned slightly, and her eyes looked so sad.

I wonder how bad I look. “So, I take it that I’ve had better days when I didn’t look this bad, huh?” I asked as I winked at her.

When her face lit up like Christmas morning, I found myself wanting to make her smile like that again. Then, she let out a small giggle that moved through my whole body.

“You could say that, but I still think you’re very handsome, and…” She stopped talking and looked away.

“Please…flattery will get you everywhere.”

“Listen, Josh, I know your parents told you we were dating, but I don’t want to force—”

“Dating, huh?”

I watched her as she gave me a confused look.

“Oh, um…well, your mom said you figured out we were more than friends, so I just assumed you thought we were dating.” Then, her eyes filled with anger. “Wait, did you think we were fuck buddies or something?” She stood up and stared at me.

Oh shit, this is turning south fast.

Considering my mother had told me they’d found an engagement ring in the pocket of my pants, I safely assumed that Heather and I were much more than fuck buddies. Just the way she made me feel in her presence told me that.

“What? God no, Heather. I didn’t think that at all!”

Her eyes instantly softened.

Damn, she’s cute as hell when she’s mad. I wonder if I used to purposely get her mad just to see that spit and fire come out of her.

“Oh. Well, okay…because…well…”

“Heather, please tell me about us. I know everyone keeps saying to let my memory come back on its own, but please tell me about you and me. I feel something between us that I’ve never felt before,” I said as I reached out for her hand.

The smile that spread across her face caused me to suck in a breath of air. Fuck. I wanted to know everything about this girl, and I wanted to know it yesterday.

She moved closer to me, and then she put her hand in mine. The moment she touched me, an electric shock ran through my whole body.

This is what I’ve been waiting for—for a girl who makes me feel like this. I couldn’t help but let out a laugh.

She tilted her head. “What’s so funny?”

I shook my head. “It’s nothing. I’ve just waited so long to feel this way, and I can’t imagine how or why I would forget it.”

“To feel what way?” Heather began to sit back down, not letting go of my hand.

I can’t move too fast. I need to do this right. “Do you think we could maybe start out by being friends?”

I noticed when her whole body sank. Shit, that didn’t come out right.

She tried to pull her hand away, but I held on to it.

“Wait, that didn’t come out right.”

As she stood up, she took her hand away from mine. “No, it’s fine. You’re right. I don’t expect you to just jump into this like nothing happened. I mean, you don’t even know me.” She gave me a weak smile.

Ah shit. Why do I feel like I just ripped out her heart?

“Heather, please…” I reached out my hand for hers, willing her to take it.

Just as she placed her hand in mine, the door opened with no warning, and Victoria walked in. She glanced down at our hands before her eyes snapped back up to focus on me and then Heather.

“Well, looks like you two are getting to know each other again,” she said with a fake-ass smile.

When she turned and leaned over, I couldn’t help but notice her ass. Damn…girl has been working out these last few years.

I quickly looked away and glanced at Heather. She was watching Victoria’s every move.

Thank God she didn’t see me checking out Victoria’s ass. God, I’m such a dick. I closed my eyes, wishing I could punch myself.

“Well, sorry to break up the reunion between you two, but I have to take Josh for his scan now.” Victoria winked at me.

Fuck. Why is she flirting with me in front of Heather?

When I glanced over at Heather, she was staring at me. I smiled at her, but she looked back over to Victoria.

“Not sure how long this will take, so feel free to stay in the room or go to the waiting room.” Victoria moved past Heather and lifted up the side rail of my bed.

“That’s fine. I’m going to meet Greg and Elizabeth down in the cafeteria for lunch.” Heather turned back to me and smiled.

I liked how she’d called my parents by their first names. Considering that along with how much my parents adored her and the engagement ring…yeah, we must have been really serious. It was bothering me that this was probably killing her. Shit. This girl has me in knots, and I can’t even remember a goddamn thing about her.

Heather stepped closer and leaned down slightly, like she was going to kiss me good-bye, but then she stopped herself. “Okay…well, I guess we’ll see you in a bit. Good luck with the scan.” She took a step away from the bed.

“I don’t even get a good-bye kiss?” I asked, knowing how that would make her smile.

Bingo! Right on cue.

I stared as that beautiful smile spread across her face. Just as Heather was about to walk back toward me, Victoria stepped in front of her and started to push the bed away from the wall.

“Say good-bye for now, Josh,” Victoria said to me before looking over her shoulder at Heather. “Don’t worry, honey. I’ll be sure to take real good care of him.”

I rolled my eyes. I went to look back at Heather, but my whole body screamed out in pain when I did. Closing my eyes, I tried to memorize her. Her blonde hair was beautiful, and it looked so soft. She had the most amazing blue eyes I’d ever seen. Her laugh was…incredibly sexy as hell. She was wearing jeans that fit her body like a glove and a Longhorn T-shirt that was a bit too big on her small frame. Deep down inside, I was hoping like hell that it was my T-shirt on her body.

I heard the elevator doors close, and then I felt lips on my lips. Those beautiful, soft-looking lips…

I opened my eyes to see it was Victoria kissing me. When her tongue pushed into my mouth, I started exploring it with mine. I let out a moan as I remembered all the times we’d been together. She responded with her own moan that ran through my body, causing my dick to jump.

Then, her face flashed in my mind. Heather. This is wrong. This just feels so damn wrong.

I pulled my lips away from Victoria’s and shook my head. “No, please don’t do that. This is wrong, Tori.”

Smiling, she moved her hand under the covers and grabbed my dick. “Doesn’t feel like it’s wrong, babe. God, I’ve missed you, Josh. I can make a small detour if you need a little…attention down here.”

Oh god, this girl gives the best blow jobs. “I, um…I don’t think that’s such a good idea.” I cleared my throat as I tried to ignore her hand stroking up and down my dick.

“Why? Because your parents tell you that you’re with some girl who they clearly want you to be with? How do you know they weren’t trying to push you two together before the accident? Do you really know if you were with this girl, babe?”

As much as I would have loved to have her suck my dick right now, something inside me was telling me it was a bad idea. “Thanks, Tori, but no thanks. Let’s just get this damn scan done and over with. My head is killing me.” I pushed her hand off my dick. As good as it had felt, I needed her to stop.

“Fine, but you know where to find me when you come to your senses.”

Victoria leaned down and kissed me on the lips before I quickly turned my head away.

When I closed my eyes again, I pictured a beautiful blonde lying on a blanket next to a river. She was reading, and as I walked toward her, she lifted her head to me…but her face was blurred. Is that Heather? Is this a memory?

I needed to find out more about Heather, but damn…I was aching for Victoria’s touch again.

In the backseat of my truck, Ellie was sitting on one side of Alex while I was on the other. Looking to the front, I saw my parents holding each other’s hands as my father pulled up to our house. I smiled and glanced over to Ellie. She was smiling back at me.

“Are you happy?” she asked as she reached over the car seat and grabbed my hand.

I brought her hand up to my lips and kissed the back of it as I grinned. “Never been so happy in my life!”

After Dad parked the truck, he jumped out and ran around to open Mom’s door. He helped her out and then opened my door.

“Mom, where’s Gus?” I took the car seat out of the truck and held on to it with all my might as I looked around for the little bastard.

Then, I heard Ellie laughing before she started talking to Gus.

Figures he would run to her first. Bastard. If he thinks he’s sleeping in the middle tonight, he has another thing coming.

As I started toward the house, I heard my dad laughing behind me.

“Jesus, Drew. Think you could walk any faster? You’re gonna have to let him meet her, or he won’t stop trying to figure out what the new thing is,” my dad said, catching up to me.

Asshole. I was still pissed that he had joined up with Gramps, and they had been spreading their little story about me fainting to anyone who would listen. I needed to think of a way to get back at them.

When I turned around, Ellie was bending over, giving Gus some lovin’. Damn, she loves that dog.

She had read up on how to introduce the baby to Gus, and apparently, we were just going right for it with introductions off the bat.

Well, not if I can help it. I’m taking little bear in the house and locking the rest of them out.

As I opened the front door, Ellie called out from behind me, “If you even think about locking us out, Drew Mathews, I’ll make you sleep on the sofa for a week!”

I stopped dead in my tracks. I moved out of the way to let Gus run in, and as he passed by, he must have caught Alex’s scent. I had to let out a laugh as he slid around the tile floor, trying to stop and turn around all at the same time.

“What’s wrong, dipshit? Haven’t figured out yet how to stop on the floors?”

When I felt a hand smack the back of my head, I turned to see my father walking by. What the hell?

“Don’t call that dog names, Drew,” my father said as he winked at me.

“Are you kidding me, Dad? You call him every name in the book!” I looked at Ellie and then back at my dad.

“Gunner, take Alex out of her car seat and bring her over to the sofa, so Gus can meet her,” Ellie said, practically skipping into the living room.

She’s way too excited about this.

“Dad, can you go get my twelve gauge?”

My dad gave me a confused look. “Shit, Drew. You gonna introduce her to your gun?” my dad asked.

“What the hell do you need your gun for?” Ellie asked me as she sat down.

As she held out her hands for little bear, I glanced down at Gus lying on the floor near Ellie’s feet.

Damn dog puts on a good show.

“I need it in case he hurts Alex. If he tries anything, I’m gonna shoot his ass,” I said, holding my baby girl in my arms as I looked down at her. I smiled at the sight of her sleeping so peacefully. God, I love her.

“Oh. My. God. You did not just say that about my dog!” Ellie stood up and put her hands on her hips.

Gus just stayed in his spot, his eyes moving from Ellie to me and back again.

“Look at him. He’s acting so calm now, but I know what he’ll do. He’s gonna think she’s a toy!” I turned to my mother with a pleading look. She’ll be on my side.

“Oh, for the love of all things good, Drew. Give Ellie the baby, so Gus can meet her already,” my mom said as she moved to sit down on the floor next to the dog.

My mouth was hanging open as I just stood there, staring at her, while she rubbed Gus’s ears. My own mother.

“Fine, but someone better be ready for when he makes his move,” I said, glancing down at Gus as I handed little bear to Ellie. Did that dog just smile at me? “He just smiled at me! Did y’all see that?”

Ellie let out a laugh as she kissed Alex on the cheek. When Gus slowly sat up, Ellie held Alex down near him. I sucked in a breath of air and just watched. Gus smelled, wagging his tail a little. After he smelled again, he looked up at Ellie.

“Hey, bubs, this is Alex, your baby sister,” Ellie said as she smiled at Gus.

Baby sister? What the hell?

“I need you to always watch over her and protect her, baby boy. She needs you.”

I watched as Gus sat down, still wagging his tail. I was waiting for him to pick up his paw and slap it down on the baby, but he didn’t. He just sat there, staring at Alex. Then, he put his head on Ellie’s leg.

I looked over at my dad as he slowly let out the breath he’d been holding in. He glanced over at me and shrugged his shoulders. Son of a bitch was just as worried as I was.

Ellie looked up at me with that smile of hers. I smiled back before leaning down to kiss her.

“I told you he would be a good boy. He loves her already,” Ellie said, glancing down at Gus.

I walked over to the table by the front door and grabbed the PetSmart bag. As soon as I took out the rawhide bone, Gus got up and ran over to me. After I opened it and gave it to him, he ran through the dog door in the kitchen and headed outside.

“Easy-peasy!” my mother said as she began heading toward the kitchen. “Who wants lasagna?”

My dad walked up and kissed her on the cheek. “I’ll make the salad.”

As they both went into the kitchen, I could hear them laughing and talking about how scared I’d been about Gus attacking Alex. Some parents they are.

I turned to look at Ellie as she started to softly sing to Alex. My heart burst from chest with so much love that I had to sit down slowly. I watched the both of them until my mother called us for dinner.

I sat down on the bed and stared at the bassinet holding the love of my life. As I felt Ellie crawling into bed, I saw something that shocked the shit out of me.

“Holy shit, I can’t believe it!” I said.

Ellie sat up. “What? What’s wrong?”

“Ells, look at your dog.” I pointed over to the bassinet.

Gus had walked up and peeked in at Alex before lying down near her.

“Aww…see, he loves her. I told him to protect her, and he’s taking his job seriously,” Ellie said, lying back down on the bed.

I looked over at her, and my mouth dropped open. Motherfucker. She had on a white silk nightgown, and I could see her nipples through the lace.

“Jesus, Ells, are you trying to kill me? You heard the doctor. No sex for six weeks,” I said, trying really hard not to jump on her.

She slid under the covers and smiled at me. God, how I love this girl.

“I’m sorry! It’s just…well, when I tried it on to see if it fit, it did, and I got excited. I want to feel sexy again, Gunner, and this makes me feel sexy,” she said as she rubbed her legs together.

“Good god, Ellie. You’re going to kill me. Do you know that? I’m not going to be able to wait six weeks, baby. I want you now.” I got under the covers and rolled over next to her.

“Touch me, Drew,” she whispered in my ear.

Fuck me. Where the hell do I touch her?

“Ellie…sweetheart.” I slipped my hand under her silk nightgown. I felt her body shiver as I moved my hand up and down the inside of her leg.

“Oh god, Gunner,” she said in between breaths.

She was breathing so hard I could barely stand it.

“Ells…I love you so much.”

I moved my hand up, taking her nightgown with it. She sat up a little as I slipped the gown over her head. I pulled the covers away from her, so I could see her entire body. She was perfect. No one would ever know that she had just had a baby. She was beautiful, and the stretch marks from being pregnant with Alex just turned me on even more. I needed to make her feel loved and wanted…at this very moment.

“Shit, Ellie...your body is so damn beautiful.” I traced one of the stretch marks with my finger.

She let out a moan that traveled through my whole body. If she were to touch me right now, I swore that I would come.

“I need to feel you up against me, Drew. Please…let me feel you.”

I flew out of bed quickly, and I almost tripped as I tried to take off my shorts. After I pulled my T-shirt over my head, I got back into bed. Pulling her toward me, I took her nipple in my mouth as I moved my hand down her stomach to between her legs and then into her panties. I knew she was still sore and bleeding, so I only touched her clit.

She jerked her hips and grabbed my dick. The moment she started moving her hand up and down, I knew I wouldn’t last.

“Gunner, I’m so close. Oh god, I’m so close.”

I leaned up and captured her lips with mine. As our tongues started moving together, she let out a long, soft moan. When I moved my thumb faster on her clit, she held me tighter in her hand.

I pulled away slightly from her lips. “Jesus, Ells. I’m gonna come, baby.”

And just like that, we both called out each other’s names at the same time.

There was nothing I enjoyed more than making my wife have an orgasm.

Her orgasm seemed to last forever. By the time she came back to me, her breathing was moving her chest up and down. I placed my hand there to feel her heartbeat.

She’s mine. This incredible woman who just gave me the greatest gift in the world…is mine. “I love you so damn much, Ellie.”

She smiled at me, and my world stopped. I’d do anything for that smile.

“Drew, I love you more than life itself. I’d be lost without you,” she whispered as she put her hand on my face.

Just then, Alex started moving around, barely letting out a cry.

“That’s my girl. She waits until Daddy gets his lovin’ before she wakes up!” I leaned down and kissed Ellie on the nose.

“And so it begins…the late-night feedings.” Ellie giggled.

I reached down and picked up her gown from the floor. After I helped her put it on, I slipped on my shorts and T-shirt, washed my hands, and then walked over to my little bear. Gus sat up and watched as I leaned down and picked up Alex. I moved to the changing table to change her while Ellie went to heat up a bottle.

I figured Gus would have followed Ellie because he never left her side, but he didn’t. He sat next me, watching my every move.

I lifted up Alex and walked into the kitchen with her in a full-blown screaming cry.

“Shit, I think she’s pissed ‘cause I changed her first!” I smiled at Ellie.

She was testing the milk on her arm with a frown I knew she was upset that Alex hadn’t taken to breastfeeding. Ellie had been looking forward to that. She had talked about it the whole time she was pregnant. When we had ended up having to bottle-feed, I thought Ellie was going to break down and cry. She was a trooper though, and she’d made a joke out of it, saying I had no excuses now to not get up in the middle of the night.

Alex was still crying, so I pulled out the little binky blue thing the hospital had given us. I put it in her mouth, and she sucked on it five times before she spit that bitch out. I swore that it flew halfway across the kitchen. I looked up at Ellie as she started laughing.

“Beautiful and smart!” Ellie said as she handed me the bottle.

When I put it up to little bear’s mouth, she went to town.

“Holy hell, this girl likes her milk!” I said as I followed Ellie into the living room.

I sat down on the sofa, and Ellie curled up next to me. Gus practically sat on my feet with his head on my legs, just watching my every move.

The next thing I knew, he slid down my legs and began snoring. My beautiful bride was sleeping next to me, and the most amazing little girl in the world was looking into my eyes while she ate.

“Life doesn’t get any better than this, baby girl.”

Then, I thought about Josh and Heather. We’d gotten a text from Amanda earlier, saying that Josh didn’t remember Heather…and something about him thinking he was still in college.

When Alex stopped drinking, I looked down at her, and she was just staring back at me. I smiled at her and said a prayer for Josh, hoping that someday, he would be looking down at his little girl while Heather slept peacefully next to him.