Page 74 of Second Chance with Seth

“Are you okay?” Seth looks up at me.

“No. The coffee shop opens in forty-five minutes. There’s no way I can…”

He kneels up, revealing himself in all his aroused glory, and I stop talking as he sidles over to the edge of the bed, standing up and taking my hands in his.

“Calm down,” he says, like this isn’t a problem. “Just tell me what you need me to do.”

I can’t think straight, partly because I’ve only just woken up, and my brain isn’t functioning, partly because I’m running late and I’m panicking, and partly because Seth is standing in front of me… and all I want to do is stare at him, for the rest of my life.

That’s not an option, though, and I quickly run through my morning routine in my head, thinking about the elements of it that I might be able to hand over to him.

“Can you get a bottle ready for River?”

“Sure. If you like, I can go get her, and get a bottle ready for her, and feed her while you take a shower. How does that sound?”

“It sounds like heaven. But are you sure you can manage?”

“You’ve been managing for the last three months,” he says. “I’m sure I can take the load for one morning.”

I lean up and kiss him, keeping it brief, and then turn and run toward the door.

“Aren’t you forgetting something?” he calls, and I turn, just as he throws me my sleep shirt. I catch it and throw it back.

“No,” I say and he chuckles, catching it and grinning at me as I dash from the room.

The shower feels lovely, and I can’t stop smiling, or thinking about last night, and how Seth took my fears and my nerves and all my worries about my appearance, my stretch marks and how I might feel to him, and he turned them into something beautiful. He took us back… and yet he didn’t. There were reminders of how it used to be, but just like I’m different, so were we. I think, if anything, we were better, although I have to say, I was relieved we’d talked first. It meant there were no doubts. There was nothing to cloud our love, or overshadow the joy of being joined to him again. I’m glad we talked about forgiving each other, too. He may have said there was nothing toforgive, but I feel as though we’ve crossed the divide. We’re back where we belong, and even though I haven’t told him I’m still deeply in love with him, I know I will…

And in the meantime, I need to hurry. It might be luxurious for me to have someone else to help with River, but there’s more to getting her up in the mornings than just giving her a bottle… and I’m running out of time.

I shut off the water, wrapping a towel around myself as I quickly brush my teeth, and then I step out of the bathroom, into the living area, my hair dripping over my shoulders as I smile at the sight before me.

Seth is sitting on the couch, facing me, with River in his arms. The bottle on the table before them is empty, and he’s whispering something to her while playing with her fingers. She’s gazing up into his eyes, like he’s the most precious thing in her world, and while I know I could feel jealous of that, I don’t. It feels like all my stars have aligned in this one perfect view.

I’m not aware of making a sound, but Seth suddenly looks up, his eyes meeting mine, and he lets his gaze roam lazily down my body before wandering up to my face again.

“Yep…” he says, giving me a smile. “Still got it, babe.”

I chuckle, feeling myself blush, and I wander a little closer. “What have you been telling our daughter?”

“How much I love you,” he says. “And how much I love her… and that she’d better get used to me being here, because I’m never gonna leave either of you.”

A lump forms in my throat, and try as I might, I can’t swallow it down. The room’s a blur, and I raise my right hand, biting on my thumbnail, just as I feel Seth’s arm come around me.

“Hey…” he says, as I blink back my tears, and notice he’s cradling River in one arm, and me in the other. “Don’t cry.”

“I’m not.”

“Yes, you are. But I promise, you have nothing to cry about.”

“Not even being happy?”

He smiles. “Are you? Are you happy?”

“Yes.”

He leans down, kissing my forehead, and whispers, “Then cry all you like.”

I nestle in to him, feeling safe in his arms, until River’s gurgling brings me to my senses. “What are we doing?” I say, pulling away from him.

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