Temptation - Leigh Lennon Page 0,72

I never realized I’ve always wished for.

Chadwick

One year later

On the day of our wedding, which I hadn’t wasted any time executing, we laid in bed after I made love to my wife. When the discussion came up about where we’d call home, I’d live anywhere as long as I was with her. We wanted someplace we’d grow our family and build our memories together. “It started in Chicago. I’d love for it to continue in Chicago.”

And because my kitten gets pretty much anything she wants, I’ve bought a penthouse with the views of Lake Michigan she loves. It’s been our place since she said I do almost nine months ago. And we’re close to my grandmother’s farm, where she’s learning to become a trainer with all our horses, in the farm my grams left for me.

On our wedding night, we’d shared more than our wedding vows. We made a little person. And as I gaze upon my wife with a cup of tea, standing at the windows watching the sunrise over beautiful Lake Michigan with her rounded belly, I know we both made the right choice.

I had tried to throw away all her Converse when we moved in together, but she caught me right away. As I look at her, only I can tell she’s pouting. I won’t let her drink coffee while she’s pregnant. With each sip of her tea, she huffs, her way of telling me she’s probably not putting out tonight. But since the asshole in me has gone dormant most of the time, I, too, have switched to tea.

My eyes are still on her as she stiffens, drops her tea as the cup crashes in pieces on the floor, and doubles over. “Kitten.” I run to her and lift her out of the mess. I don’t need her in stitches if she’s in labor.

“Fuck, this hurts.” She’d been having Braxton Hicks contractions for days, but this seems different. “You’re pushing the next baby out, mister,” she informs me, and I raise an incredulous eyebrow.

“Oh, I’d love to see this,” I return, and in minutes, I have her downstairs with the car I’ve kept on high alert for the past month waiting for us at the curb.

We’re soon at the hospital, and they whip her into a room, and as much as they try, I won’t leave her side. “Pain, this hurts so fucking bad. Make it fucking stop.” The nurse tries to tell my pregnant wife to watch her language, and she flips her off, and it’s then, I laugh.

Once we’re out of the earshot of most everyone in the waiting room, the pain increases as do her screams. When the doctor rushes in, he smiles as he examines her. Fucking smiles, and all I want to do is punch him in the teeth.

“Ah, this is the reason you’re in so much pain, Mrs. Westbrook. The baby is crowning. You’re past the worst part.”

“This is the fucking worst part!” she screams at the doctor, who doesn’t bat an eye.

All the breathing we’d learned in the past several months is out the window.

“Bear down and push.” We repeat this ten times when my kitten is crying.

“Make it stop, Master, make it stop.” Either Eve is so delirious that she hasn’t realized she calls me Master, or she’s just that desperate.

I smile, squeezing her hand, only encouraging her. “You’re doing great, Kitten.” Though in my mind, we are repeating this one last time, and if there’s not a baby in her arms in the next three minutes, my money and I are getting someone else in here.

“One more time, Mrs. Westbrook.” She screams through a contraction, and the sweetest noise fills the room. The sound of our baby. “Congratulations, it’s a girl.”

The doctor gives me our daughter, and I carry her over to Eve, whose eyes fill with tears. Placing her on her chest, I lean down and give both my girls a kiss on the cheek. “So, Kitten, what do you think? Is she a keeper?”

She scowls at me and my not so witty humor. “Oh, Chadwick.” Tears are freely flowing from her eyes. “I knew I’d love her, but now. This is us, our love, together.” She kisses the top of our baby’s head, and her tears fall on our daughter’s forehead. “She’s the most beautiful thing in the world; absolutely beautiful.” She pauses, and I watch this moment to burn it to memory when she continues, “Welcome to our world, Josephine Westbrook.”

Bonus Epilogue

Three months later

Maddox

I’ve