Page 83 of Taming You

“No,” Matt rushes out. “I get it. When I was sick, I wanted my mom, too. I love my dad, but it wasn’t the same.”

I still for a second, the gravity of his words hitting me, and I’m surprised they don’t make me want to run. In fact, they make me never want to leave.

I reach for Jayden, and Matt passes him. Jayden calms. “Okay, little man, can you eat a little bit for me?”

I offer him a bite of the pureed carrots, and he takes it. Thankfully, he eats a decent amount before he’s had enough and refuses any more.

We’re relaxing on the couch with him in my lap when he has a blowout. We spend the whole day doing everything we can to help Jayden. He takes naps on me, never wanting me to put him down, and Matt doesn’t leave our side. I finally convince him to take a nap, too, but he does it on the couch. Matt was able to get the TV set up above the fireplace, so I watch movies while the boys sleep.

It’s been crazy. I’ve managed to go through all the clothes I brought with me between the puke and baby poop. Standing in Matt’s bedroom, I quickly strip out of my clothes and open his dresser drawers. I grab the first things I find, a pair of his boxer briefs and a T-shirt and throw them on. I pick up my gross clothes and rush them to the washing machine before taking a wailing Jayden from Matt.

Matt’s eyes hungrily take me in as I sway Jayden, trying to calm him. Poor Jayden just can’t seem to catch a break today. When he finally stops screaming, I feel the tension in the room slip away. My shoulders relax, and I watch as Matt exhales and leans against the wall.

“You look good in my clothes,” he says, and my cheeks heat at the same time my stomach growls. It’s been so long since I’ve eaten real food.

“I guess that’s my sign to feed you some dinner,” he says as he pushes off the wall outside the laundry room and makes his way to the kitchen.

While I’m pacing and rocking Jayden, the doorbell rings and I call out, “I’ll get it.”

Pulling open the front door, I’m stunned to see my five brothers standing on the other side. They’re each holding canvas bags or a six-pack of beer, and Ezra is holding a bottle of red wine. Their eyes are huge as they take me in, and it hits me that I’m standing here holding a baby in a man’s clothes.

“Fuck. Shit,” I hiss loudly.

“You okay, Bug? Please don’t tell me he puked again or had another blowout. I’m not sure we have any more clean onesies,” Matt calls, and I turn to watch him round the corner in nothing but a pair of basketball shorts.Great.

My brothers’ eyes move to him and then back to me, bouncing a few times before they finally settle on me. I feel Matt approach before he offers his hand to my brothers, and they all shake it.

“Hey, guys. It’s nice to see you. To what do we owe the pleasure?”

“Well, Zoey didn’t show for family dinner,” Henry says, his eyes never leaving me as mine bug out.Fuck.I had totally forgotten about our sibling dinner we planned with Maggie out of town.

I run my teeth over my bottom lip. “Sorry about that. It’s been kinda crazy. How did you even find me?”

John holds his phone up, a giant grin spread across his face. “I guess it’s a good thing Henry is Mr. Overprotective and made us all share our locations with the family. It was pretty easy to figure it out once we got on the street and saw your car.”

I nod, not sure what else to say.

“You going to invite us in, or not?” Riley says as he lifts the bags in his hand. “We brought food.”

“And booze,” Kai says, holding up his six-pack.

Matt’s hand finds the small of my back. “Yeah, of course. Please come in. I’ll get the table set.”

“No need, we’ll figure it out,” John says as he passes.

Henry and Ezra hover while Kai and Riley follow John. They step inside enough that I can close the door from the brisk wind outside.

“Why don’t I take him,” Matt says, reaching for Jayden, and I quickly turn, moving him out of reach.

“So help me God, Matthew, if you make him cry one more fucking time, I will have your balls.” I’m exhausted and cannot deal with any more crying, or vomit, or shit. I don’t know how Matt dealt with this for hours by himself this morning, but I’m so tired. I need Jayden to sleep and get better, and if he’ll only do that while I hold him, then I’ll hold him.

He holds his hands up and takes a step back. “Okay. I’m just going to find the others. Call me if you need me,” he says, his eyes darting to Henry and Ezra before he leaves us.

I run a hand over Jayden’s back, and he snuggles deeper into me.

Henry and Ezra are both quiet. They’ve always been this way, and it’s one of the things I love most about them. They don’t push or speak to fill the space. When Henry does speak, I know I’m in for a conversation I’m not sure I’m ready for.

“A baby.” That’s all he says, as if that’s enough.

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