“Will the baby share my room?”
I lifted her to my knee. “Nope. That is yours. I am going to make the baby a room.”
“Can I play with her?”
“Well, we don’t know yet if it’s a her or a him, and they’ll be pretty small, but you can help Momma. And once the baby is bigger, I’m sure they’d love to play with you.”
She nodded, happy, hugging Mr. Teddy. “It’s a girl. I know it.”
And she was right.
The day Shannon was born was one of the most amazing days of my life. Seeing Paige give birth was awe-inspiring. I had always known how strong she was, but that day, she was incredible. I was nervous and anxious, fumbling in my attempts to be helpful. She was calm and settled, only breaking down when Shannon was born, healthy and strong, all limbs intact. Even though the ultrasounds had shown no problems, I knew she worried. I held her as she wept in my arms when we were alone, letting her cry out the last nine months of secret apprehension.
“Let it out, Sweet Pea. Then we can move forward with all the good things.” I tucked her closer. “I need you to show me how to be a good dad.”
“You already are a good dad.”
“I’ve never had a baby before. Lucy came toilet trained and walking. She could even feed herself.” I teased. “This little bundle seems a bit uncoordinated.”
That made her laugh, the humor breaking her tension. She wiped her face and sat up. “You’ll be amazing at being a new daddy.” She let out a stuttering breath. “And this time, I get to enjoy it more.”
That led to another round of sobs, which I understood. I knew how alone and scared she’d been when Lucy was born. The lack of sleep, trying to work and look after a newborn all on her own took a toll.
But this time, she had me. My family. I had finally convinced her to give up her job. She’d enjoyed the latter part of her pregnancy, no longer worrying about money or bills. She concentrated on the house, Lucy, and me. And, for the first time ever, herself.
When she discovered she was pregnant again, her fears were lower. The tests showed everything was good, and she let it go.
I now had three daughters. Lucy, Shannon, and Erin. I was surrounded by all things girl. I felt sometimes as if I lived in a perpetual state of glitter and pink. Yet, I wouldn’t trade it for the world.
Squeals of laughter brought me out of my musings, and I went to the window, grinning at the sight that met my eyes.
My girls were in the back, dogpiling on my dad, who was laughing as loudly as they were. I saw Mom sitting under the gazebo. I hurried and got washed and dressed to go and join them.
I walked through the house, the changes in the place reflected everywhere. Some subtle, others very obvious. When I’d drawn up the plans for the house originally, I’d had it built to be able to add a second story if needed. Once Paige was pregnant, I put that plan into action, adding the addition with three bedrooms and a large bath. Lucy’s room was now up there, and Shannon was across the hall from her. Erin was still too little for the stairs, but eventually, she would move upstairs as well. I still had my office I shared with Paige, and once Erin was settled upstairs, we would have a guest room again. The rest of the house looked much the same, except for Paige’s touches. She added a softer element to the rooms. Warmer colors on the walls, toss cushions, thick, warm rugs underfoot on the hardwood floor. Lots of family photos. There were also endless toys, hair ribbons, bows, and little shoes everywhere that I constantly picked up.
I headed outside, grinning as the girls spotted me and deserted my dad. I was crushed in a mass of arms, smiles, and curls as my girls greeted me as if they hadn’t seen me for weeks instead of yesterday at breakfast.
I kissed Shannon’s cheek, her hazel eyes twinkling. “How was dance class?”
“I got a part in the recital!”
“Oh yeah?”
“I’m a dancing tree!”
“Awesome, my little ballerina. You’ll be the best tree ever.” She loved to dance, although she wasn’t very coordinated. We encouraged her, nonetheless, and would be there to applaud her waving of her twigs or whatever a dancing tree did on stage.
“Munchkin, how’s the arm?” I asked Lucy. She’d been fitted with a prosthetic recently that was pretty amazing. The fingers moved and bent, and it looked realistic. The wrist flexed. She had finally decided she wanted to try one, and I had been all too happy to encourage it. It would have to be replaced as she grew, but I was pleased she wanted to try. At ten, she was growing so fast. We were best buds, and I adored her. She was smart and funny and still looked so much like me, it was uncanny. No one thought she was anything but my biological daughter, and I rarely disabused them of that idea. She simply was my daughter, no matter what sperm had created her.
“Daddy,” she said, her eyes sparkling. “I caught a ball yesterday.” She held up her arm. “With Robby.”
I grinned and high-fived “Robby.” She had nicknamed her arm. “Awesome.”
I lifted Erin, kissing her chubby little cheek. She was tiny and sweet. The quietest of the bunch. She looked like Paige, with her dark hair and blue eyes. “How’s my little bee?”
She buzzed everywhere. She was always in the garden around the flowers, happiest when digging and planting. In the house, she had a window garden I’d made for her that she tended daily. She’d been two when she discovered plants, and since then, I couldn’t keep her away from them, not that I tried hard. At three, she loved everything about flowers and was with me as often as possible when I worked around the grounds.
“Good,” she lisped. “Momma bots me new flowas. You hep me?”
I bit back my laughter. No doubt they’d been in town and Erin had spotted some pretty flowers she had to have. Or half-dead ones she wanted to “fix.” Paige rarely said no to buying her plants—no matter their condition.
“Yes, Daddy will help. I’m gonna have coffee with Grammy, and then we’ll plant them, okay?”
“Otay.”
“Go back to PopPop.”
I high-fived my dad and headed to Mom. I kissed her cheek and sat down, accepting the cup of coffee she offered me. “Where’s Paige?”
“She had errands. She asked us to sit with the girls. She said you’d worked late the last couple of nights and were exhausted.”
I grinned. “And sore. I’m not used to it anymore. But it’s done, the building opens today, and the grounds look spectacular. Joanna is going to send me some pics today when she’s there.” I yawned. “Paige let me sleep in. I don’t usually do that.”
“You needed it.” Mom smiled.
“Guess so. How long has Paige been gone?”
“She’ll be home soon.”
“What kinds of errands?”
Mom shrugged. “Ones she had to do. I didn’t ask.” She smirked. “She’ll be home soon, Liam.”
The sound of an engine coming close filled the air. “There she is. Go help her with the bags, and I’ll go make the girls a snack. Your father will be hungry too.”
I laughed as I headed to the front of the house. Paige sat behind the wheel of the SUV I had bought her. She looked contemplative but waved when she saw me. I opened her door and she slipped out. I kissed her hello, smiling against her mouth. “Hey, Sweet Pea.”