We’d climbed into bed together and she’d curled into my side like she was made to fit there, and I’d held her and whispered how
much I loved her until she fell asleep.
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I’d stayed awake for a long time after that, just watching her sleep, feeling grateful for this second chance, vowing to myself that I’d
never take her for granted again, never make her doubt how much she meant to me.
Now she was starting to wake up and I watched as her eyes fluttered open, watched as she focused on me and gave me a sleepy smile
that made my heart skip a beat.
“Morning,” she murmured, her voice rough with sleep.
“Morning baby,” I said, leaning down to press a soft kiss to her forehead. “How’d you sleep?”
“Better than I have in days,” she admitted, snuggling closer. “You make a good pillow.”
I laughed softly and ran my fingers through her hair, loving the way she relaxed into my touch.
“I’m glad,” I said. “Because I plan on being your pillow for the rest of our lives.”
She tilted her head back to look at me and I could see emotion shining in her eyes.
“I love you,” she said simply.
“I love you too,” I replied, meaning it with every fiber of my being. “More than you could ever know.”
We lay there for a while longer, just enjoying being close, neither of us wanting to break the peaceful bubble we’d created.
Eventually though, my stomach growled loudly and Athena laughed, the sound like music to my ears.
“I guess we should probably get up and eat something,” she said.
“Probably, I agreed, though I made no move to let her go.
She swatted my chest playfully. “Come on, the babies are hungry even if you’re not.”
That got me moving because she was right, she needed to eat, needed to take care of herself and our children.
We got up and made our way downstairs where we found Orion and Sarah already in the kitchen.
Sarah took one look at us and smiled, nodding her head to us.
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Chapter 354
We exchanged greetings.
:.
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I followed her, pulling out her chair before taking the seat next to her, and I noticed the way Orion watched the gesture with
approval.
Sarah made breakfast while we all talked, the conversation light and easy, all the tension from yesterday completely gone.
I kept my hand on Athena’s thigh under the table, needing the constant physical connection, needing to reassure myself that she was
really here and we were really okay.
After breakfast, we spent the day at Orion’s house, all of us just relaxing and enjoying each other’s company.
At one point Sarah suggested we go shopping for baby things and Athena’s face lit up in a way that made my chest warm.
“Can we?” she asked, looking at me with such excitement that I would have agreed to anything.
“Of course,” I said. “Whatever you want baby.”
So we all piled into Orion’s car and headed to one of those massive baby stores that I’d never paid attention to before but now
seemed incredibly important.
Walking through those doors felt surreal, like crossing a threshold into a future I was still trying to wrap my head around.
There were cribs and strollers and tiny clothes and so many things I’d never even known babies needed, and Athena moved through it
I all with a confidence that amazed me.
I wasn’t this available for Jess because I was so busy around that time, Sarah was the one who was present most of the time.
But I’m glad I get to share all these memories with Athena.
She knew exactly what to look for, had apparently done hours of research online about what brands were best and what items were
essential versus nice to have.
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
