“You could quit lawyering and be a stay-at-home dad.” Her laughter at what was clearly a ridiculous option was loud in the room. She cut it off immediately, realizing Eric wasn’t laughing with her. “I’m kidding, Eric.”
“I know.” Each dip of his chin brought his lips back to the top of Lila’s head—a sequence of soft kisses so sweet to watch it made Alace’s heart melt. “To be honest, I have given it some thought. I love our little Lady Lila here, even when she rules our lives with an iron baby fist. When I leave for work, the first thing I think as I’m in the car driving away is ‘I wish I were home,’ because this is where I want to be.” The swaying stilled, his only movement a hand continuing to slide up and down Lila’s back. “But I know myself well enough to realize I’d be unhappy if that were the reality. Not because I don’t love her, or you, but because I am validated at work. I help people, too. Just in a different way from what you do.”
“You think I help people?” The question had flashed through her head a split second before she decided to give it voice, pulling down the curtain of insecurity slightly. Eric knew all her secrets and never flinched from giving her feedback that was real and from the heart. She instinctively knew he’d understand this wasn’t a self-serving request from her, wasn’t a false cry for reassurance. This was the war she waged inside with every gig she accepted or turned down, balancing the driving need to find vengeance for those who had been denied, doing it against her own feelings of guilt, and the very real fear of getting it wrong.
“I don’t have to think it. I know it, Alace. To me, it’s an undeniable fact. What you and Owen do isn’t legal, and some may consider it immoral, but the justice you deliver is indisputable. Truly.” As he resettled their daughter against his chest, she saw Lila’s eyes had closed. “And for as long as you find the work fulfilling, as long as the good outweighs the bad in your mind, I will continue to support what you do. If you decided to ever stop and put that part of your life on the shelf, I’d back you a hundred percent. I support you, beloved, and that will never, ever change.” He came to her and bent to press his lips to the top of her head, much as he’d done with Lila only moments before. “I don’t just love you, beloved. I believe in you, too.”
Going with her gut, she put words to the feeling she’d been holding close for a long time, allowing herself to believe a little more. “What did I ever do right in my life to deserve having you?”
Leaning over the bassinette, he darted a glance at her face, mouth wryly twisted to the side. “I’m glad you added the qualifier of ‘right’ to that statement, or I’d wonder if I was a plague and a trial.”
“Never.” Alace cleared her throat, salt burning the back of her nose. “Still hormonal here. Might wanna put a throttle on all the sweetness, husband mine.”
“The horror. Wouldn’t want a rampaging new mother on my hands.” She stood as he walked towards her, and they met in the middle, her hands winding up the back of his neck to tangle her fingers in his hair. His arms slipped around her, iron bands holding her tight against his body. “My mother’s due to be back in thirty minutes. Wanna make out until she gets home?”
“Defini—” Her murmured response was cut short by his mouth on hers, lips dragging a soft caress side to side. Two backwards steps and her calves pressed against the footboard. Eric’s arms shifted and lifted, and she settled in the middle of their bed, his weight pressing her into the mattress. Kisses followed. Long, drawn-out caresses, mouths moving against each other, whimpers and moans swallowed down, heated air expelled on voiceless gasps. She mapped the planes and contours of his back with her palms, fingers slipping down to play along the edge of his waistband. Eric’s hands stayed determinedly above the waist, his thumb flicking relentlessly against a nipple until her milk started flowing. Clenching her thighs together, she focused on the points connecting them, dragging her lips along the edge of his jaw to his ear, where she alternated sucking and nibbling on his earlobe, his protests lost in a deep groan of arousal.
The proximity alarm pinged quietly on her desktop, and they parted slightly, gazes locking together. “Bebe.” “Mother.” Their explanations overlapped, and Alace found herself grinning at Eric’s lopsided smile.
“I love you.” The damned evocative catch in his breath got to her as it always did, and she arched up to capture his lips in another kiss. “So much, Eric.”
“Beloved.” That single word wrecked her, tears springing from the corners of her eyes. Head shaking side to side, Eric captured the drops with his fingertips, brushing the tip of his nose against hers. “Mine.”
Fucking fucking Eric.
God, how I love him.
Chapter Nine
Owen
Headphones on, Owen waited in front of the computer for Alace to initiate a call, glancing at the clock in the corner of the screen. He was a couple of minutes early, but knowing Alace, he was surprised she wasn’t already on the line. They’d opted for a video call so he could share the dirt he’d found on his neighbors without sending any files over. Yet. Discovery phase, he reminded himself.
Right on cue, the video icon lit up, and he clicked to connect the call. The screen quickly resolved into an image of Alace, wet hair slicked back from a makeupless face, headphones covering her ears much as his did.
“Hey.” He lifted his chin as he smothered a smile. She wouldn’t have any way to know it wasn’t amusement but pleasure, and trying to explain to her would take up time he didn’t want to waste. Under the supervision of Doc, Kelly and Shiloh were browsing an online website for backyard playground equipment, and Owen wanted to be there to urge the discussion into realms of absurdity. The kids were so cautious about being a burden, they probably would settle on a kickball or something, when what he truly wanted to see was a castle for Shiloh to rule over from the upper ramparts. Too long in the system to believe themselves worth the effort. Narrowing his eyes, he pulled his thoughts away from his kids and back to his partner, noting the dark circles underneath her eyes. “How’s the little one?” Now he did smile, because the memory of holding Lila during the short visit to the Wards’ house had become a favorite. He’d missed out on Emma’s early childhood, meeting his daughter for the first time when she was six months old. “She still smell like baby powder and happiness?”
Alace snorted and rolled her shoulder, eyebrows lifting towards her hairline. “Eric might have mentioned to me how the two of you bonded over the addictive quality of newborn baby smell. It was such a quick visit I didn’t get to witness your transformation myself. We’ll have to organize another visit again sometime.” Her lips quirked. “Soon.”
Owen had never met a father prouder than Eric had been of his and Alace’s daughter. “He’s a great dad.” Studying Alace’s expression closely, he noted the tension lines at the corners of her eyes when he spoke, and he tested it by semi-repeating, “Eric’s really good with Lila.” The momentary stress indicators reappeared as if he’d called them up by magic. “And you’re a good mother, Alace. Both of you are great.”