More of Us ( A Love You More Rock Star Romance #3) - Laura Pavlov Page 0,107
her to the table and cleaned her face up. She was bleeding, baby,” I said, turning to look at Jade. We’d already argued about it this afternoon when my daughter ran in and told her what happened. Winnie couldn’t keep a secret if her life depended on it.
“I told Mama… Daddy was my prince today. He slays all the dragons for me. He’s a real prince, ‘cause that’s what real princes do, right Daddy?” Winnie asked, her eyes big as saucers, and I beamed with pride.
“How exactly did he slay this particular dragon?” Jack directed his question to Winnie and then looked up at me with a smirk on his face.
“I’ll tell you how. That kid could have cared less that he’d hurt her. He had zero remorse. He came running by our table while she was bleeding, and I was cleaning her up. He was yelling at his mom for more tokens. The kid was twice her size, and a bully,” I said.
“So, what did you do?” Jade moved closer and looked up at me.
“Well, my leg moved of its own volition, it just shot out—and the kid tripped over my foot and yard sailed across the floor. Served the little punk right. He didn’t get hurt, it just bruised is ego. He can thank me later.”
“Yep. He can thank Daddy later. Because that’s bad manners to push a lady, right Daddy?” Winnie said.
Jade laughed and wrapped her arms around my middle. Her hard, round belly pressed against me, and I tilted her chin up to meet her gaze. “Just protecting our baby girl.”
“Are you going to slay all the dragons for her?” she teased.
“I sure am, just like I’ll slay all the dragons for you,” I said.
“You always have.” She pushed up and kissed me, and I had to adjust myself in my jeans, so no one noticed the raging erection beneath my zipper from one small kiss from this woman. My wife had that effect on me.
“Are you doing okay, baby?” I whispered against her ear so only she could hear me. I knew this day was still tough for her, even if she put on a brave face to make it magical for Winnie.
“I’m happy. Really happy,” she said, smiling up at me and my chest squeezed.
Damn. The Winslow girls were my kryptonite. And now there was going to be another one I’d need to protect. There was nothing I wouldn’t do for them. They were my whole world. Jade had created this life for me that I never knew existed. I woke up every fucking day happy to be alive. Who’d have thought that was possible?
“Me too,” I told her.
My brother, Bailey, Wyatt and Ace came barreling through the door. The asshole never knocked. Jade ran over to give everyone a hug and pass out the goody bags she’d made for the kids. She was a fucking rock star. Always had been. She rocked being a wife and a mother, and I’d never wrap my head around the fact that she’d chosen me. I did my special handshake with my two nephews because the dudes were born cool. They’d obviously inherited the cool gene from me, at least that’s what I always told Lennon.
The doorbell rang again, and I rolled my eyes. It was grand-fucking-central at our house all the time, and Winnie fluttered around the room relishing the chaos. Jade answered the door and Adam and Tory stepped inside with the twins, followed by Ari, Jace, and their little four-year-old hellion, Felix. Before she could shut the door, Sam and Cara pushed inside with their brood of four boys.
“Daddy, can we go now? I want to ring all the bells and get all the candy,” Winnie said, tugging on my hand.
“Okay, let’s move it out,” I shouted, and all the kids charged the door with their trick-or-treat bags in hand.
Winnie flapped her wings and Jack grabbed her hand, leading her outside.
“Hey, Winslow,” Jade said from the kitchen, as she stood behind the large island.
“Yeah? Come on, baby. We gotta go.”
“Can you ask my dad to stay with Winnie?” she said, her hands resting on the counter.
I moved toward my wife, alarm bells going off. Maybe she was trying too hard to make this day okay. I always worried about how hard she pushed herself. “Are you thinking about your mom?”
She smiled. “No, but my water just broke.”
I rushed over to her, patting her down like I was checking for weapons, for reasons I don’t know. “Are you hurt?”
“No.” She broke out in a fit of laughter. “But we need to go to the hospital. Can you bring Winnie back inside so I can say goodbye to her?”
“Yes. Of course. Don’t move.”
I ran out the front door, shouting for Jack, and everyone turned around. “Jade’s water broke. Can you stay with Winnie?”
“Of course. What a day to be born, huh? I’ll bet Jaqueline is looking down smiling, making sure this day becomes better and better for this family,” Jack said, and I nodded.
“You gotta take care of Mama, right Daddy?”
“Yeah, baby. Can you come say goodbye, so she won’t be missing you too much?” I asked, scooping my baby girl in my arms, and jogging back in the house.
“Don’t be scared, Mama. Daddy’s gonna slay all the dragons for you, right?” Winnie asked, smiling at Jade.
“Yes, sweetie. He slays all the dragons. You stay with Grampy and Grammie, and they’ll bring you to the hospital tomorrow to meet your new baby sister, okay? And only two pieces of candy tonight and then brush those teeth real good.”
“’Cause the tooth fairy doesn’t want me to get those sugar bugs in my teeth, right?”
Jade laughed, and I clutched my chest. This kid was going to kill me with all her sweetness.
“And tomorrow I’ll meet my little baby, Presley?” she asked, patting my cheek with her little hand.
Presley Edington Winslow. Baby number two. Jade wanted each of our daughters to have a piece of her mother, so we’d chosen middle names that would honor Jaqueline.
“Tomorrow you’ll meet baby Presley,” I said.
Jack walked up and hugged his daughter, and I hurried to grab Jade’s suitcase from our room. Everyone huddled around the car as I buckled my wife in, and we waved goodbye.
I glanced over at Jade as I backed out of the driveway and tears streamed down her beautiful face. I stopped the car. “Should we call an ambulance? Are you in pain?”
She swiped at her cheeks and shook her head. The corners of her lips turned up. “No. I’m just happy.”
I pulled down the street and laughed. “Me too. We sure are lucky, huh?”
“We sure are. I love you, Cruz Winslow,” she said, squeezing my hand.
“Love you more.”
And I meant it.
I’d never get enough.
Because everything was good as long as I was with her.