“I love you, too,” I whispered, as I fell into the most blissful sleep I could ever remember.
Liam
Chapter 19
I groaned as an elbow jabbed me in the chest, then an arm whacked my shoulder. I wasn't ready to get up, but when I was nearly kneed in the balls, I started the slow process of waking up.
“Good morning, Liam,” Oscar said, mere inches from my face.
I was so shocked I jumped and nearly fell out of the bed. It took me a moment to realize where I was and what was happening. Maddie was still fast asleep as Oscar attempted to wedge himself between us.
“Shh,” I said, putting my finger to my mouth. “We don't want to wake Mommy, okay?”
He nodded.
“Too late,” she said in a sexy morning voice. She rolled over to the other side of the bed, freeing up enough space for Oscar to stretch out between us. “Good morning,” she said happily as she planted a kiss on his nose. “Did you sleep well?”
“Yup. And I made it the whole way through the night,” he said proudly.
She reached for her phone that she had set on my nightstand beside the bed and checked the time. I glanced over Oscar's head and saw that it was nearly ten in the morning. Late enough that I should have been up, but I really just wanted to curl back into bed and sleep some more. I groaned.
“I rarely get to sleep in this late, yet it doesn't feel like it's been long enough.”
Maddie readily agreed.
“Maybe you guys should go to bed earlier next time, like me and Zander,” Oscar said innocently, causing his mother to blush as she no doubt remembered the night before.
I knew it wasn't something I was going to forget that anytime soon. I thought back to how it felt watching her fall apart, laying naked in my arms, and I shuddered.Shit, think about anything but that!I didn't need to sprout any more wood than I already had in front of the kid, and I definitely saw a cold shower in my very near future.
“So, what are we going to do today?” Oscar asked, settling in between us. I suspected he wasn't going anywhere anytime soon.
I sat up, propping my pillow behind my back. Oscar leaned into my side, making himself right at home. I hadn't been around a lot of kids. I mean, I liked them and they seemed to like me, it's just that Zander was the first grandkid in the family and Chase was only a few years younger than me. None of my friends had kids, especially not actual kids—maybe a baby, or a toddler even, but definitely no seven-year-olds. I wasn't entirely sure what was going on. It felt a little awkward having him squished there between us, and yet a part of me really liked it, too.
My family. This was my family. They were a package deal. I'd known it all along, yet something about the intimate moment with the three of us crammed into my bed made it seem suddenly real. I was going to be the only father figure this kid ever had. I really hoped I didn't screw it up, screw him up.
“Grandpa Jason says I can watch the shifters change at the pack run tomorrow. I'll bet it's so cool. I can't wait!” he said excitedly.
“Um, maybe we should start off a little smaller for your first time,” Maddie told him.
“But Mom, please! I want to see the wolves,” he begged.
“Tell you what,” I said. “If it's okay with Mommy, we'll head out to the house site and I'll change for you. You can see what happens and we can answer any questions you have.”
“I think that's a very good idea,” Maddie approved.
“Okay, that's awesome! Thanks, Liam,” he said, turning around and hugging me. “Where's the house site?”
“Just a few miles away. You can pick out where you want your swing set to go while we're there.”
His eyes got huge as he looked back and forth between us before standing up and jumping excitedly on my bed. “You mean it's going to be our house? We're going to live there?”
“Well, it's not built yet, but it will be,” I told him, seeing no reason to keep it a secret from him, though I glanced towards Maddie just to make sure I hadn't overstepped some invisible maternal boundary again. I was relieved to see her smiling and happy.
“But I mean, we're going to live there? All three of us? You, me, and Mommy?”
“Yeah, of course, that's what I mean,” I said.
He stopped and his mouth opened. “You mean you and Mommy are getting married and we're going to be a family?!”