Obligation

“You know she’s just going to take them off again.”

“I know,” he mutters, pulling me closer, kissing first my forehead then my lips. “Are you excited to see your mom and brother?” he asks, pulling me closer to his side.

“Yes! I can’t wait to see all the kids together. And I know my mom is excited to be here for the baby shower,” I tell him, leaning deeper into his side.

He kisses my hair again.

“What do you feel like doing for dinner?” I ask him after a moment.

His eyes come to me and go soft. This is what he worked so hard to achieve, and even though it is something so small, I know that these are the moments he is always thankful for.

“Whatever you want.”

“Does that mean I’m cooking?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.

“Fine. I’ll grill,” he mutters, kissing the look off my face.

“Yum.” I smile, and he shakes his head.

“You owe me a cake,” he whispers.

I feel myself squirm at the word cake. Since having the house to ourselves, Kai has a lot of cake, and—lucky me—normally, I’m the plate he prefers.

“Daddy, come play with me!” our son Maxim shouts as he squats down in the sand in front of a castle he’s working on.

“Yeah, Daddy! Come help us!” Melanie shouts, and I notice that she is, once again, naked.

“Go on, Daddy,” I tell him, pressing into his side.

He turns towards me, where I’m sitting on the ground, and gets on his knees. Then he wraps his hand around the back of my head as he lays me back in the sand, taking my mouth in a kiss that steals my breath the same way he stole my heart.

“Love you,” he whispers then jumps up, walking over to the kids before I can reply.

I look at my husband and my babies and thank my mom and dad, wherever they are. I know that it’s because of them I have all of this.

The End