Page 28 of Levi
“Thank you, Brody.”I kiss his cheek and we share a moment over everything that has transpired on this amazing day.
“Who wants some snuggles with this little princess?”the nurse asks, coming over to the bed.
My eyes fill with tears again as my little girl is placed on my chest.Skin to skin.Brody wraps a thin blanket over us to cover us both up.
“Here, let’s get the first family photo,” the older nurse suggests, and Brody digs for his phone in his pocket.
After a million photos, everyone leaves the three of us to have some bonding time as a family after the little princess took right to the breast without any problems.I should’ve known she’d be a total boob monster like her father.No, don’t think about him right now.
“Well, she definitely takes after her momma in the food department,” Brody jokes of my healthy appetite.
My eyes are growing heavy after the exhausting day, but I don’t want to miss a single second with this little girl.
“Have you thought of a name?”Brody asks as he takes a seat next to the bed.
I look down at my princess and can’t help the smile that has taken up permanent residence on my face.
“I have thought of a million over the last few months but none seem to fit.”
“Maybe someone close to you?Or a family name?”he suggests.
I pause and think it over, there’s no one on either side of my family that comes to mind.Wait, I know of someone who thought this would be the perfect name.She has come to mean a lot to me before all of this craziness happened.
“Halo,” I say as she lets out a content sigh, making me think I made the right choice.
“Halo, that’s a beautiful name for this little one.”Brody lightly touches her head.
“I was thinking about having Landry as her middle name, if it’s okay with you.”Brody’s full name is Brody Landry Jackson, and I wanted to somehow honor everything he has sacrificed in taking us in and making sure we are protected.
The smile spreads across his face and I’m concerned he’ll split in half if he keeps it up.
“Halo Landry.I love it, Sadie, thank you.”
We sit there in comfortable silence, just watching her sleep.I didn’t think you could love something so small so fast but I do.
I can’t fight the sleep as I doze off, but Brody is right there to lift her up as he cradles her to his naked chest, wanting to continue with the bonding the nurse said was important for both parents.
“Brody,” I sleepily say getting his attention.“You may not be her father by blood and if something were to ever happen and this situation were to change, I still would want you to be in our lives.”He nods, patting Halo gently on her diaper.
“Wild horses couldn’t keep me away from either of you now.No matter where this life takes us, you will always be a part of my life at any capacity.”
“I know when we leave here her birth certificate will say that you are the father and it will be a fake document, but I really and truly want you to be her Godfather.”
“Oh, Saylor.”I gasp as he uses my real name.“I’d be honor to have such a title.”He leans down and kisses the top of her pink beanie.“Get some sleep before your next feeding, Momma Bear.”
Brody
I lean back in the lounge chair as little Halo Landry quietly sleeps on my chest.Never in my life did I think I’d end up like this.Looking down at this precious baby girl makes me think that having a family is just what I need in my life.Halo and Sadie have become my whole world in such a short amount of time, and I’m not focused on the task I was given.
When I received that call from my Uncle Burt, I almost said no.I hadn’t seen him in almost three years since my Aunt Genie passed away, but we spoke regularly.They were never able to have children so they more than latched on to me when the time came.They were the last of my family, since I lost my parents towards the end of my senior year in high school.I stayed with them in Los Angeles until I graduated, then shipped off to the Marines the day after I walked across that stage.Uncle Burt always supported me in any venture, and even helped get me with some contacts when my patent for my scope and glasses came through.He and my dad were close.
The call I received a few months back rocked my world.It was his secretary, Judy, calling to say that Uncle Burt had a massive heart attack in court and they weren’t able to revive him.He was the last of my family, and that was a tough realization.I flew over to Los Angeles to handle the funeral arrangements, but told Sadie that I had a business meeting for a potential company wanting to license my goggles.I hated lying but I didn’t want to upset her.We’d just gotten her out of her depression and I didn’t want her to relapse or set her off again.
I was in Los Angeles for two days, then flew back as soon as I could.I hated being away from Sadie and it was then that I realized that I was alone, and the only person I had left was her and the little jellybean she was carrying.I’d read up on Levi Thorne, his entire file and the one I was able to obtain through my contacts, not to mention watching the videos of the restaurant was horrifying.Uncle Burt brought me up to date on Thorne being one of the many who was sucked into the web of Blaire Hutchins, who was caught as the leader of a prostitution ring.My uncle also told me that Levi had become just like Blaire, in following her into becoming one of her clients, but from the files I thank my lucky stars I was able to get Sadie away from that asshole.If he could throw something so wonderful and perfect away then he didn’t deserve to have them.He was still in a coma when I was there handling everything.None of my uncle’s colleagues mentioned any pending cases, so I know Sadie is safe now.My uncle always had a backup plan for everything, and he told me that this was one time he didn’t want anyone to know about securing her away.She is now my responsibility, and I plan on keeping her and this precious little one safe and hidden.
A month later, I got another call from Uncle Burt’s estate attorney, wanting to have a sit down to go over the will and his assets.I left once again telling another lie, but I did promise this was the last time I’d leave her alone until the baby was born.When I arrived at the attorney’s office, we spent three hours going over his estate and signing over all of his accounts and properties to me.
When I was leaving the office, I was approached by two bulky men wanting me to come with them for a chat with their boss.
