Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 73515 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73515 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
“Not an owie.” I gently wrapped my fingers around his wrist and pressed his palm over the spot where the baby was kicking. “Your sister is just reminding me that she’s in there.”
Excitement shone from his hazel eyes—the same shade as his dad’s. “Mommy have baby now?”
“Not yet.” I lifted four fingers. “We have four more weeks to go before your sister comes, sweetie.”
West nodded and pulled his hand free to pat Huntley’s cheek. “And Daddy take nap.”
“I’m never going to live that down.” Huntley groaned, his eyes narrowing as he shook his head. “I can’t believe my little man is getting in on the action of making fun of me for what happened when he was born.”
I giggled so hard that I snorted, earning me a glare from my husband. “Uncle Deacon reminded him of the story when he dropped off about twenty pounds of strip steaks for tomorrow.”
When the pool was finished a couple of months ago, we’d started having everyone over for a barbecue almost every Saturday. Huntley did most of the cooking on his new propane grill, smoker, and flat top grill. He basically had a whole kitchen setup outdoors, and the guys had a lot of fun putting it all to good use whenever we got together. “Remind me to burn his steak,” Huntley grumbled.
I clutched my belly as I laughed again. Deacon was picky about how his red meat was cooked, preferring it medium rare. He always tried to bump Huntley out of the way to take over at the grill when steaks or burgers were involved since he thought he was the only one who could get them done right. “That’ll teach him to get our sweet, innocent little boy involved in your manly insults.”
“Nuh-uh.” West puffed out his chest. “I not little. I big boy now. See, I swim!”
Our son wiggled his little body until Huntley set him free so he could show me the progress he’d made during today’s lesson. He only let West swim within easy reach, moving with him while our son showed me how he could kick his legs and put his face in the water before tilting his head all the way back to take a breath. After he swam around for a few minutes, Huntley guided him back toward me. “Show Mommy the bubbles you can make.”
“Oh, yeah. I forgoted,” West cried before plopping his face down in the water again and blowing bubbles in the surface of the water for a few seconds. When he lifted his head again, he had to blink his eyes a few times to clear them, but he didn’t whine about it at all. I wasn’t even sure if he noticed.
If I didn’t know better, I would’ve thought he’d been born in the water with how quickly he’d taken to it. “Wow, West! You’re getting so good. You’ll be swimming with Daddy in the ocean before you know it.”
He nodded enthusiastically. “Uh-huh. I gonna swim in da waves.”
“You have plenty of time to practice before our next time at the beach, buddy.” Huntley ruffled West’s wet hair before lifting him out of the pool. “We’re not going back until after your sister is here and big enough to come with us.”
With as big as I was, how often I needed to pee, and how hot I got, going to the beach was the last thing I wanted to do when the highs were in the mid-nineties lately. West didn’t mind too much since he got to swim in the pool almost every day, but he was still an impatient toddler. “Soon I be big brudder and we go to beach?”
“Yup.” I swaddled him in a towel and carefully pulled him onto my lap. “Your sister will be here before you know it, and then you’ll be her big brother.”
“It’s a good thing I’ll have you to help me, buddy.” Huntley pulled himself out of the pool and lifted West into the air. “It’s going to be tough on me when your sister grows up to be as pretty as your mommy.”
West looked like Huntley’s mini-me as he smiled down at me and said, “Mommy so pwetty.”
“I’m going to have my hands full with you since you’re going to be as handsome and charming as your daddy.”
And I wouldn’t have it any other way. The worst day of my life had led me to everything I’d ever wanted.
Extra Epilogue
Huntley
“Ugh…they’re kissing. Again,” Jenika, our youngest daughter, groaned as she slapped her hands over her eyes with all of the dramatic flourish of a seven-year-old diva.
I glanced over at West, who was standing away from the crowd in our backyard, locked in an embrace with his high school girlfriend, Amberlee. They’d both just graduated a couple months ago and were headed to college soon, but while West would be at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Amberlee would be attending Oxford.