Epilogue
“Mama, why can’t the baby share my room. She’s a girl. I’m a girl. It makes sense.” Kit had her little fists at her sides, determination on her face.
They had been home with Sarah a grand total of ten minutes before Kit started in. She was nothing if not determined.
“Because, sweet Kit”—Justin kneeled down, looking her straight in the eye—“Sarah likes to eat all the time. If she is in your room, you will have to call us, and we would have to come from our house to come feed her.”
“If you had listened to me and added a connecting tunnel, that would not be an issue.” She pouted.
If they had listened to all of Kit’s design advice, they would also have a slide instead of a staircase in their house, a bathtub shaped like a fish, and a drawbridge. Aside from the issue of how one would go to the second floor without stairs, her ideas were fun, and Adrian and Justin had tried to find the fish-shaped tub because spoiling Kit had become one of their favorite pastimes.
“Did you want to hold her?” Adrian winked at Mariah who mouthed her thanks in his direction. There was no point in arguing with the little girl, not when distraction would work much more easily.
Kit clapped her hands before sitting on the couch where Justin was pointing, holding her arms out. Adrian settled Sarah into the little girl’s arms as Mariah sat beside her daughter, ready to “help” if the need would arise, or so Adrian assumed.
It was nice like that. His new family with his newly adopted family all together. Growing up, he’d never believed he would ever have a life as amazing as his turned out to be. He had a true mate, a perfect little baby girl, a thriving business, and a place where he felt he could be himself.
“Be sure not to squirm too much,” her mother advised.
“Babies like motion, Mama. That’s why Uncle Justin bought that rocker for the nursery—the one with the stars on it to match the rug.”
Adrian chuckled. He may have gone overboard on the decorating of the nursery. He’d found a little rug that had the moon and some stars on it and fallen in love. From there, things began to spiral until even the light-switch plate had a star on it. It was adorable, but far from a theme that could grow with the child. It screamed infant.
Justin’s response to Adrian’s realization they had created a room with little functionality past a year was that they should just keep having babies so it was always useful. At the time, Adrian had been on board with that notion, but after the scare with Sarah, he just wanted to settle in and enjoy all her newborn awesomeness before jumping into future planning.
“She likes me.” Kit beamed, bringing Adrian back to focus.
“No, little one, she loves you.” Justin tapped Kit’s nose playfully.
“We all love each other. We’re a family,” she agreed.
And she was right. They were a family, and there was not much better than that.
“I made you guys dinner.” Mariah took the baby from Kit who looked like she had had enough sitting still time. “Lasagna. Should be enough for two meals.” She stared at the baby, her warm smile turning to the shape of an O. “Your little one is going to need a change. How about I get that while Justin turns on the oven to three fifty and pops the lasagna in, Kit sets up the table, and you change into some pajamas?”
Mariah was amazing at giving orders in the form of a question. She got up, carrying Sarah with her as the rest of them obeyed and not because she was a scary-ass witch, which she was, but because dinner sounded like the best idea ever.
By the time Mariah came back with a sleeping Sarah in her arms, Justin was wearing his favorite flannel pants, the aroma of the lasagna was already tickling his nose, and Kit had the table mostly set.
“I forgot to mention, there is a huge salad in the fridge. If we start with that, we should be ready for dinner when it is warmed up.”
Of course she had. They sat around the table, passing Sarah from one person to another as they took turns eating. It was fair to say she was going to spend most of her first days being cuddled and not in her crib.
By the time they were done eating and Kit was being ushered home and to bed, Sarah was ready to eat. Adrian took her to her room and sat in the star rocking chair, singing her a lullaby as she ate.
“You know she can’t sleep in here tonight.” Justin stood in the doorway, leaning against the frame.
“Absolutely not. What if she cried and we didn’t hear her?” Both of them ignored the high-tech it could pick up the sound of a tissue falling to the floor baby monitor they had in place. Neither of them wanted her out of their sight, and that was a good enough reason.
“She can stay in the bassinet.”
“It’s a good thing Mariah convinced us to have one in our room.” Adrian helped his daughter switch sides.
“I will go make sure it is ready. I imagine you are as tired as she will be when she is done eating. What did the nurse call it—a milk coma?”
“Something like that. She’s just about down and then I vote bed.”
Justin agreed and left to get things ready, and Adrian was soon to follow as little Sarah slept, a look of contentment on her face. He settled her in after kissing her forehead gently and climbed in bed beside his mate, who immediately wrapped his arm around him and snuggled in close.
“Thank you,” Justin whispered in Adrian’s ear.
“For what?”
“For giving me everything I wanted and all the things I didn’t even know to want. For being the mate I need, the father of my daughter, the one who tells me when I am being a butt, my partner, my everything.”
“It is I who should be thanking you.” Adrian rotated so he was facing his mate. “For it was you who did all of that for me and so much more. I love you.” He leaned in kissing Justin gently.
“And I love you.”