“I know baby girl,” she cooed. “I’m just as excited to go home and see daddy. He’d better not be late though, otherwise -”
“Otherwise what?” I asked, leaning against the door.
Her head snapped up, and she smiled wide. In that moment I knew I wanted to give her everything her heart desired, and so much more.
“Hi,” she said. “I was wondering when you were going to get here.”
I pushed away from the door, and closed the gap between us, circling my arms around her waist with her baby bump between us.
“Hi,” I replied. “I got here as quickly as I could after my exam. You miss me?”
I lowered my head, and gently brushed her warm, lush lips with mine, savoring the way her breath stuttered from the contact.
“Always,” she sighed. “How did your exam go?”
“I nailed it, but we can talk about that later. I have something else I’d rather do, and it involves a little less talking.”
Jade’s eyes beamed up at me, the rich chocolate color shining. “Yeah? What’s that?”
“I’ll show you,” I replied. My lips slanted against hers, and my tongue snuck out to taste her bottom lip. She opened for me, allowing a breathy moan to escape before my mouth moved a little harder. I tasted her, she tasted me, and although I’d kissed her more times than I could count, something about this one was different. Her body leaned into mine, bringing us closer, closer, closer.
I broke away, panting, and watched as Jade’s eyelids fluttered open.
“Well,” she exhaled, “I’m glad to see you missed me too.”
A throat cleared behind us, and Jade rolled her eyes just as I turned to see Nurse Alba walk in. Jade was still not her biggest fan, but during her stay at the hospital they’d struck up the unlikeliest of truces.
“Mr. Cole,” she greeted, pushing a wheelchair in.
“Alba,” I replied, trying to hide my grin.
Jade scowled at the wheelchair. “I’m not sitting in that.”
“Oh yes you are,” replied Nurse Alba. “You are still on bed rest, missy. Doctor’s orders.”
“Are you sure?” Asked Jade. “How do I know you didn’t bring it just to torture me one last time before I leave?”
Nurse Alba’s lips twitched. “I brought it because you’ll get out of this hospital faster. The sooner you leave, the sooner I can get back to my more agreeable patients.”
“Please,” snorted Jade. “In order for your patients to be agreeable they have to like you, and I just don’t see that happening.”
“Maybe not, but I like them a whole lot more than I like you.”
Jade folded her arms over her chest, and smirked. “I don’t like you either, you old bat.”
“Finally, we agree on something,” retorted Nurse Alba. “I can’t say I’m going to miss you.”
“I won’t miss you either.” Jade shook her head. “Not even a little bit.”
They stared at each other for a bit, and then Jades’ mouth turned up into a smile. She stepped forward, and hugged Alba.
“Thank you for everything,” said Jade.
“You take care of yourself and that baby,” replied Alba, her voice stern as ever. “And no sex.”
I chuckled, and could practically hear Jade rolling her eyes again. The ‘no sex’ thing had been a sore topic for Jade, and Nurse Alba had always made a point of reminding us, although I suspect it was just to get a rise out of Jade.
They broke apart, and Nurse Alba helped Jade get situated in the wheelchair. I placed her bag on her lap, and spun her towards the door.
I looked at Nurse Alba. “Thank you for taking care of my girls. I appreciate it.”
She looked surprised for a split second, and then her face hardened again. “Just doing my job.”
She made a quick exit, clearly uncomfortable with the affection and gratitude, and finally I was alone with Jade again.
“You ready to go home?” I asked, wheeling her out the door.
Jade looked up, her expression radiating her contentment. “We’re ready.”
“IF YOU VALUE your life Reid Cole you will open this door, and take this blindfold off. NOW.”
I shook my head, a rueful smile on my face. We’d only been home for thirty minutes, and Jade was already bossing me around. “Patience woman,” I laughed. I nervously wrapped my hand around the brass doorknob, and inhaled deeply before pushing the door open. I ushered Jade in until we stood in the middle of the room, and lifted the blindfold.
Jade’s eyes opened, and her hand flew to her mouth as she took everything in. Two walls were painted a pastel pink, with white clouds floating here and there. The two adjoining walls were painted a light grey, with matching curtains draped alongside the window. In the corner sat a large rocking chair with a matching ottoman, and next to that stood a Cherrywood changing table. On the other side stood a large Cherrywood dresser and a four-in-one convertible crib with ‘Daniela Sofia’ in block lettering above it.
The room was perfect, and I’d spent the last two weeks with our mothers getting it ready for when Jade came home. I’d done the lettering for our daughter’s name last because we’d decided to keep her name secret until she was born.
I knew Jade wanted to do it herself, but after being away from home for so long, I didn’t want her to worry about it.
“Well?” I asked. I was growing more and more anxious the longer Jade stayed quiet. “Do you like it?”
She stepped just out of my grasp, and turned to see it all. Her watery eyes landed back on me, and then she was throwing her arms around my neck.
“It’s beautiful, and everything I told my mom I wanted,” she cried. “And I really want to hit you for making me cry.”
I rubbed my hands up and down her back, feeling relieved, and also proud. The room had turned out better than I had expected, but also everything I could have wanted for my little girl.
She sniffled, and lifted her head to look at me. “It’s perfect, Reid. I love it.”
“Our mom’s helped,” I told her, wiping her cheeks. “So it wasn’t just me. I also had some baby clothes delivered; they’re all in the drawers. Pretty sure I got everything, including whatever you’ll need in your overnight bag for when our Princess decides to make her appearance.”
“You thought of everything,” she whispered. “How did I get so lucky?”
I shook my head, cupping Jade’s face in my hands. “No, baby. You’ve got that all wrong. I’m the lucky one.”
I placed feather light kisses around Jade’s mouth, tasting the saltiness of her tears, and felt my chest expand. This was what life was all about – moments that took your breath away, no matter how small, and the way Jade looked at me right then, not only stole the air from my lungs, but also made me believe I could hang the damn moon if she asked me to.
“Can I look around?” She asked quietly. “This stuff is all so beautiful...” Her words trailed off, and I gave a brief nod of my head.
“You can, but I have one more surprise for you,” I said. I threaded our fingers together, and walked out into the hallway. We had two other bedrooms, but I’d decided to convert one of them into a studio for Jade. She was an incredibly gifted designer, and I wanted to give her a space she could call her own.
I pushed the door open and ushered Jade inside. Her eyes widened at the sight of the hardwood flooring, a workstation for her designing, another workstation for her sewing, and lastly a mannequin she could use for fittings. The walls were painted a pastel green on one side, closest to the window overlooking the backyard, and on the other side it was white, covered with boards that had all Jade’s fabric swatches stuck to them.
“So you can stay busy before you go back to school,” I told her, squeezing her hand. “I wanted you to have a place that was yours, and only yours. A place where you can make your dreams come true.”