Page 158 of Set Me On Fire

Millie looked tired, so tired, but she was a freaking machine, shifting so the baby could get into a good position to feed, letting out a sigh when our girl latched on. My head fell back onto the pillow, partially lulled back into sleep by the sound of her little grunts. The sun was up, birds were singing, and I could dimly hear the sounds of the street from outside our window, but it was all a comforting hum as I rolled over and pressed a kiss to Millie’s neck.

Let me stay just like this, I thought, knowing that if this moment stretched out to forever, I could die a happy man. Everything felt right with the world. My sighs, Millie’s, even the guys’, all combined together in this soft haze.

But babies aren’t really fond of peace and quiet. They’re too busy surviving to be concerned with such things, so when she popped free of Millie’s breast, she let out a wail that had me sitting up in bed.

“She needs changing…” Millie groaned, ready to get up, but I vaulted over her, landing on my feet beside the bed.

“I’ve got this,” I told her.

“You sure?” Millie’s eyes opened just a crack, the skin around them looking as thin as crepe paper.

“I got this, babe.”

I collected up our little girl and then pressed a kiss to her mother’s forehead, and then I carried her down the hall to the nursery, feeling that her nappy was indeed heavier. This was one thing I could do. I’d changed plenty of the boys’ nappies when they were little.

“Didn’t I?” I cooed as our daughter’s arm’s flailed. “Yes, I did, baby. I made sure they were all nice and clean and dry.”

She obviously couldn’t understand a thing I was saying, but the animated tone always seemed to help settle kids. I watched her arms still and for just a moment it felt like she looked at me, saw her dad. She didn’t, logically, I knew that, but… I felt a moment of connection and that seemed to summon the others. As I finished up the nappy change and then swaddled Bubs back up in a new wrap, they appeared in the doorway.

“You’re… gonna have to teach me how to do that,” Knox said, looking uncomfortable.

“Swaddling?” I asked.

“All of it.”

“Couldn’t exactly look up YouTube tutorials on nappy changing,” Noah admitted with a flush.

I tucked Bubs in against my chest, patting her back over and over until she let out a big burp, then seemed to sink into me.

“I can do that.” I grinned then, feeling that light that burned inside me since the moment she was born get brighter. “Astrid made sure I knew my way around a baby when it was clear Bill was going to be useless. I can run a daddy boot camp.”

Knox stared at me steadily, and for a second I thought he was going to bite my head off, but instead he thrust his hand out.

“Deal.”

Chapter 68

Millie

A few weeks later

“There she is!”

Sally and Belinda jumped up the minute we walked into the fire station conference room, making clear that everyone had made an appearance. For just a second, it was all a bit overwhelming. Brent was there, so were all the firefighters, as well as some people I didn’t really know. I looked down in alarm, worried that our baby would wake up, but she slept on, oblivious to all the fuss happening outside her baby carrier. I moved in a gentle swaying motion, just in case, trying to keep her sleeping for that bit longer.

“Oh my god…!” Sally squeaked that out as a whisper as she came over, hands to her face. “She’s beautiful!”

“What name did you settle on?” Belinda asked.

“Chloe.” I stood straight, feeling that weird flush every time I said it. Pride, that’s what it was, I realised. “This is baby Chloe.” When we came up with her name, and each time I said it, a possessive wave of love rose up, threatening to overwhelm me,but I’d grown used to surfing its tides. My baby, my daughter, my heart.

“Hello, Chloe.”

The two women whispered that as they stared into the carrier.

“Congrats, mate.”

The men all surged around Knox, Charlie, and Noah, like they’d done all the hard work. To be fair, they were more than pulling their weight post birth. Housework was always up to date, often in response to Charlie’s many alarms going off. Nappy changes and baths were all shared. Buster was walked, healthy meals were prepared, and I had everything I could possibly need.

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