Page 95 of Storm

Rolling to his side, he grabs her foot and pulls her closer to him. The warmth of her body immediately registers when she slides down my body, not fighting him. He crawls over her and starts kissing her face until she starts laughing.

“Idoknow, but I’m fine with your plan.”

“Okay,mi soldado,” she says sarcastically without any heat behind her words. Then she twists her head to look up at me. “Are you okay with that,papí?”

I take her offered hand when she reaches out to me and run my thumb over her hand. “It’s fine by me.”

“Alright,” Richard adds. “Do you know when you’ll find out?”

She bites her lip nervously. “Yes.” Nothing more, which means we won’t know exactly how long until one of us is told. He nods once and we look at Tatum.

He’s surprised to have us all waiting on him. “Oh. Sorry. Figured you’d know I was fine with it. As long as you’re comfortable with that. Will you tell Gabriel?”

“I will, when he’s older and asks. But if you’re all sure you want this, I don’t think it really matters in the end except for health concerns, family history, that sort of thing.”

“Then whenever you want, you can share that information. But now, I think we all should try to get some more sleep. I can’t sleep in there alone, so I’m going to grab my pillows and lay in here. Fuck taking turns.” Tatum grumbles the last bit, and without waiting for permission, leaves the room, only to come back a minute later with an armful of pillows and his comforter.

“We’re going to have to figure something out if this is going to be a regular thing,” I comment.

Miriam turns on her stomach and wiggles her way out from where Ezra had her pinned to the bed, then crawls back up to me. She’s bounced back pretty well physically since having Gabriel. “Well, I’ll let you all sort that out. I, for one, am going to go back to sleep.”

She slips under the covers and curls against me, her hair tickling my few day’s growth of beard as she flips it away from her face. I reach over and close my laptop. The emails can wait until tomorrow. I’d rather spend the remainder of the night curled up with her since Richard currently is on baby duty.

He rises from the bed and carries the baby to the rocking chair in the corner to continue holding the sleeping infant.We’ve all learned that if he falls asleep against one of us, he’s there until the next time he wakes hungry.

Miriam’s fingertips trail over my stomach, my shirt pushed up slightly by my waist. “I didn’t think it’d be like this,” she whispers with a hint of embarrassment.

“What did you think it’d be like?” I ask. My hand follows hers as she runs her touch over my skin.

She shrugs a bit and Ezra interjects, “She didn’t know how awesome it’d be.”

“Pretty much.” With a soft laugh, Miriam kisses my chest then hugs me tightly. “Goodnight, boys.”

Kissing her head, I close my eyes and let my lips linger on her head as I reply.

“Night, love.”

CHAPTER 44

RICHARD

Tapping my thumbs on the steering wheel in beat with the soft music playing, I glance over at Miriam as she looks out the window.

It’s been almost two months since Gabriel was born, so I’m taking both of them to meet my parents for the first time. I’ve sent tons of baby photos to them, but they respected Miriam wasn’t feeling quite herself and didn’t want to impose by visiting immediately.

“Sooo,” I drag out slowly, trailing off to gain her attention. “About my parents.”

She chuckles and smiles warmly at me. “That doesn’t sound good. Should I be worried?”

“No!God, no. Not at all. They’re really kind people, just…” I trail off, rocking my head side to side as I consider how to explain. “They’re formal. Not elitists.” Her brow raises like she doesn’t believe me. “Okay, maybe they are a bit, but not from a foundation of thinking that you should be born into good families. They’re more of the mindset that education, good upbringing, hard work, and financial stability is a sign of success.”

Her other brow lifts in tandem with the first. “Boy, they’re really going to love me.”

I know she’s teasing, but I counter her statement anyway. “Miriam, they’re going to adore you. Youarefurthering your education, and your dad, while misguided, did bring you up right. You’re the hardest worker I know, and fuck if I’ve never been more wrong about you being financially stable.”

“I don’t have money, Richard.”

“That’s not what I mean. Even if you don’t have a lot, it doesn’t mean you don’t handle it well. Fuck, this just went way off tr—” I stop myself and take a breath. “Yes, they’ve got their opinions, but they’re going to love you becauseIlove you. They’re just awkward.”

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