Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 76953 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76953 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
But as a whole, the place had been transformed into a completely different place with rustic tables and chairs and more flowers than I could even count.
It was a touch feminine. But when I’d worried about that, Perish had waved my concerns away, saying that was what he loved about me: how soft I was.
“Hey, sweetheart,” my father said, his eyes looking a little watery. “You ready?”
I slid my arm through his and leaned my head against his shoulder.
“Yes.”
The wedding itself was outside on the sprawling green that Perish had brought back to its former glory. Not a single weed could be found as my father led me to the arbor, pausing for the grand entrance—and for the photographer to get some good shots—before walking me down the aisle toward Perish.
It was all a watery blur as my father handed me off to my soon-to-be husband.
Perish reached up, wiping away a tear.
Then he leaned down and whispered, “If you get too watery, just think of the ice penis.”
It was the little bit of levity I needed to get me through the ceremony without crying through my supposedly waterproof mascara.
Perish - 3 years
“I can get my own tea,” Gracie insisted as I lifted our one-year-old off her chest and set him in the crib.
We’d gone ahead and started our family on that very quiet, very secluded island honeymoon of ours. Several weeks of loud, sweaty, outdoor sex that would forever be some of my favorite memories.
Gracie had been sick as fuck on the plane ride home. At first, we’d figured she’d picked up a bug somewhere along the way.
But, nope.
The stick turned the right color, and we were gonna be three instead of two.
Luckily for us, the house had finally been done, and all we needed to do was decorate the nursery to be ready for the next phase of our lives.
The thing was, well, Duke and Penny had taken the baby so we could have a weekend away.
And we’d gone ahead and taken advantage of a lot of naked adult time and gotten Gracie pregnant again.
“You need to rest.”
“You’ve barely let me lift a finger all morning,” she reminded me.
“Good. You don’t need to. I got you.”
“My doctor and my midwife both agreed that activity is good for me and the baby.”
“Maybe. I want a third opinion. Maybe a fourth and fifth too.”
To that, she laughed softly as she got to her feet.
“If you try to carry me, I swear to God,” she warned.
I held up my hands and followed her out into the living room, where she immediately dropped down on the couch and reached for a blanket.
She could say she wanted activity all she wanted, but the first few months of a pregnancy took the piss out of her. She was always sick. And when she wasn’t sick, she was exhausted from being sick.
She needed all the rest she could get.
If this pregnancy was anything like the last, once she got to the fifth-month mark, she would magically feel better and be ready to take on the world.
Until then, I didn’t mind picking up the slack.
“Want some crackers with your tea?” I asked.
She looked momentarily green at the idea but nodded. “Yeah, I guess.” She needed the calories, even if we both knew she’d rather just starve her way through these days.
I was back in a few minutes with the ginger tea and crackers.
“Just stay as still as possible,” I reminded her after she managed to choke down a few before washing them down with tea.
“You know why women have the babies?” she asked, leaning her head against my chest.
“Because there’s no way I’d be signing up for this kind of torture?” I asked, fingers drifting through her hair.
“Yep,” she agreed. “Remember when you had the flu last year?”
I’d been a big fucking baby about it, I’m willing to admit now. Especially after seeing her go through pregnancy, childbirth, and the recovery from both.
“You should have shipped me off to the clubhouse to suffer.”
“Nah,” she said, her fingers tracing over the tattoo that peeked out of my neckline. “I like taking care of you.”
“I like taking care of you too.” There was a cry from the other room. “I like taking care of you both,” I amended as I got up to get the baby.
And I did.
Fuck, more than I ever could have known I would.
I’d had a lot of time to get used to and comfortable with the role of caretaker for Gracie. In the years before we even hooked up, then more so after.
I’d been nervous about fatherhood, though. I knew from a physical and financial standpoint that I had what it took. I’d been worried about the emotional shit, though. The kind of thing I’d never known from my own parents.
I’d been surprised how easily it came.