Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 92930 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92930 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
***
A week after our friends’ visit, I was lying in bed when Jake’s voice streamed through the baby monitor on my nightstand. He was in the other room changing Kennedy, talking to her as he always did and probably didn’t realize that every word that came out of his mouth was being transmitted to me in our bedroom.
“Don’t tell her about our little surprise, okay?”
What was he talking about?
“Speaking of surprises, damn girl! Momma must have known you were due when she sent me in here. That wasn’t very nice of her. How do I always get stuck with these? Huh?”
She must have had a massive dump. Whoops.
“Well, you’re lucky you’re cute. I’m gonna call Popeye, though, and tell him my baby is harboring some of his spinach in her diaper. Call the authorities.”
Kennedy cooed.
“Yeah…you think that’s funny?”
I covered my mouth in laughter then closed my eyes, listening to the sounds of the diaper crinkling and Jake’s smooching her.
“Ow. You like to pull on my lip ring, huh? I know. That’s your favorite thing to do.”
More smooching.
“All clean.”
More smooching.
“I love you to the moon, little alien.”
The sound of the door closing in her room prompted me to straighten up in bed to deter from my eavesdropping.
Jake walked in. He was shirtless and smelled so good after his shower. His tanned skin was amazingly smooth. He’d recently added two star tattoos on the right side of his chest. They represented each of our two children, the stars to his moon.
Jake sighed as he joined me under the crisp sheets. “It feels so good to be in bed.”
“Long day?”
“Yeah…work was a cluster fuck. But kissing my little alien goodnight and getting to end the day right here is what gets me through.”
We were waiting six weeks per the doctor’s suggestion before having sex again. We still had one week to go, and I knew the wait was killing him. Even though I felt ready physically, we’d decided to follow the doctor’s orders.
Pressing my ass into him, I encouraged him to spoon me. Exhausted, we both nodded off within minutes.
Sometime in the middle of the night, what seemed like a bad dream woke me up. It wasn’t your typical nightmare, though. It was an actual recollection of things I thought had been erased from my memory. I could suddenly clearly remember all of the terrifying moments from the day Kennedy was born: waking up in the ambulance, the fear that I was bleeding to death, the fear that I’d never see Jake or my babies again. Up until tonight, I’d suffered amnesia when it came to the events right after the delivery. I remembered the baby coming out of me then Jake at my hospital bedside in tears, but everything in between had been a blur.
Sweat was pouring off of me. The realization of how close I’d come to possibly dying hit me.
Jake turned on the lamp. “Nina?”
“Huh?”
“Are you okay?”
“No.”
“What happened?”
“I remember waking up in the ambulance now. I thought I was dying. The thought of never seeing you again…you know what’s crazy? I was thinking about you more than even our children. Somehow, I knew they’d be alright because they’d have you. But I didn’t think you’d be okay without me. And I didn’t want to leave this Earth without you. Does that make sense? I knew you’d be there for them because you had to be, but I didn’t think you’d really be okay.”
He held me tight. “You’re right.”
“This might sound strange, but I feel like we’ve been together before this life and like we’ll be together again. It’s as if we’re—”
“Truly connected. I know. When they made me stay out of the operating room and I had to wait not knowing whether you were okay, I came to that same conclusion. I felt dead until the doctor came out and told me you were alive.”
“That must have been so scary for you.”
“Try not to think about that. Just be with me now. We have to trust that even when our time here is over, the powers that led us to each other will bring us together again. In the meantime, don’t waste another second worrying about what could have happened that day. Okay?”
“This moment…that’s all there ever is.”
“I’m glad you remember some of what I’ve taught you over the years.”
I reached over to kiss him on the cheek, but he abruptly turned his face toward me. His mouth devoured my lips in a ravenous kiss. My body melted into his. It had been too long. My hand started to slide down to his crotch.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. I thought we were following the doctor’s orders,” he said over my lips. “I’ve been very good, but if you touch me like that, I can’t be responsible for what happens next.”
“This is what the doctor ordered tonight.”