Page 71 of Love Me Again

So,Cole and I had sex.

Come to think of it, simply saying ‘we had sex’ doesn’t do it justice—no, we made love—for hours, tirelessly, to a point where we were both soaked in sweat, with our heart beating wildly against one another's chests. After almost seven months, I couldn’t keep it together anymore. I wanted him—and I wanted him bad.

I woke up early the next morning, wrapped up in his burly arms. I can’t begin to explain how good it felt to wake up in his embrace again. Granted, we have many issues to work through still, but I think we are on the right path, and I’m praying and hoping that this was it for us. I’ve still got my guard up just in case, and just because we slept together doesn’t mean our problems are automatically fixed.

We’ve got a long way to go before we get back to how we used to be. I hear Alaia cooing away happily in her crib, and I break away from Cole's hold and pull his shirt on before I pick up Alaia and walk back to the bed. “Shall we wake up, Daddy?” I whisper as I crawl up on the bed and lay her beside Cole. I lay on my side and watch as she reaches for Cole's nose with her little fingers. He stirs and peels his eyes open and lazily grins when he sees his daughter. He groans and wraps his arm around her, kissing her cheeks.

“Oh, my goodness, if this isn’t one of the best ways to wake up, I don’t know what is.” He mumbles, his voice gruff from sleep. Cole reaches over and laces our fingers, his emerald gaze on mine. “Morning, sweetheart.” He whispers, brushing his thumb along my knuckles.

I smile, holding his gaze, “Morning.” Cole rolls onto his back and picks up Alaia laying her on her stomach on his bare chest, and he pulls me against him. I look at him, and he smiles at me lovingly before he presses his lips to mine softly.

“How did you sleep?” He asks with a knowing smile making me blush ten different shades of pink.

“Like a baby. You?” Cole smirks and nods, kissing my temple.

“Best sleep I've had in a very long time.” He replies earnestly and turns his gaze to Alaia, watching us both with those beautiful big eyes of hers. “And how did you sleep, my little angel?” Cole pokes her sides gently, and she smiles at him, her little nose crinkling. “Did you sleep well too?” I smile, laying my head on his shoulder and watching our daughter make cooing noises trying to talk back to him. If I could start my day like this every morning, I would be a delighted woman. I’m so in love with them both. It’s insane. Alaia begins to fuss, which usually means she’s hungry and in need of a change.

“Oh no, come on, grumpy, let’s change and feed you,” I say, picking her up off Cole’s chest and kissing her soft cheeks before I lay her down on the bed and change her. Alaia absolutely hates being changed and screams bloody murder every time I change her. “All right, baby, shhh shh mummy’s almost done.” I shush her while I dress her in her pink and white daddy loves me, baby grow.

I pick her up and look at her, and she stops crying, her bottom lip poking out while tears trail down her cheeks. “Oh princess, it breaks my heart when she cries like that,” Cole pouts, wiping away her tears with his fingers. “She cries like you,” Cole states looking at me. I scowl at him.

“Are you saying I cry like a baby?” I question, put out, and Cole laughs, shaking his head.

“No, sweetheart, I meant when you cry, it’s heartfelt and hard to watch.” Cole rectifies, quickly kissing my shoulder while I feed Alaia. I fight the urge to smile and nudge him away when he tries to nuzzle my neck. “Is my queen upset with me?” He mumbles, nipping at my ear gently, making me sigh.

“Maybe a little,” I grumble, biting my lip, trying desperately to resist the urge to moan when he massages my shoulders.

“Forgive me yet?” He burrs huskily in my ear, and I shake my head smiling.

“No, it’s going to take more than a little massage to get back into my good books, Lord Hoult,” I say teasingly and lift Alaia so I can wind her. Cole looks at Alaia’s face and smiles before he kisses her forehead.

“Say the word baby, and I’ll worship the ground you walk on,” Cole whirrs kissing along my neck but groans when I elbow him in the ribs gently. “No? Okay.” He falls back on the bed with a huff.

“We’ve got our next session in a few days, and I don’t even know how we’re going to tell Natalie that we had sex,” I sigh, getting up from the bed and laying Alaia down next to Cole.

“Who says we have to tell her?” Cole asks, rolling over onto his side, smiling at Alaia, making cute little noises while kicking her little legs.

I give him a skeptical look as I pull my hair up into a messy bun. “You think she’s not going to take one look at us and know that we had sex?”

Cole laughs, shrugging, “Of course we’re going to have sex. When you put a sex ban on two people who already have this intense sexual tension between them, what did she think would happen?” He states matter-of-factly and regards me thoughtfully for a moment. “Do you regret it?”

I shake my head, “No. Of course I don’t. I just don’t want us to get all caught up in sex and brush aside all of our problems.” I sigh, looking at him. “Because that’s what we do, sex alone isn’t going to fix us, Cole.”

Cole sits up and leans back against the headboard of the bed, “I know that, sweetheart, and I told you I was willing to go as slow as you want, and that still is the case.” I sigh and nod, chewing my lip gingerly while he watches me intently.

“Okay, good, because I don’t want to fuck this up again,” I voice my thoughts sincerely, and he nods, holding his hand out to me. I crawl up on the bed and take his offered hand. Cole pulls me, so I was straddling him, his large hands resting on my waist.

“We won’t, baby.” I place my hands on his chest while he looks up at me dotingly. “I know what I want, and it’s you, Shayla.” I close my eyes and nod when he cups my face into his hands. “I’m crazy about you.” Cole declares, kissing me softly.

“I’m crazy about you too,” I admit curling my fingers at his wrists as he draws me in for a longer, deeper kiss that left me breathless.

Reluctantly, Cole had to leave us and go to the office to get some work done. It was almost Christmas, and the office would shut on the 23rd till the 2nd of January for the holiday season. While he was away at work, I was planning Christmas Day festivities. We decided we’d do it at our place with everyone we love, and on New Year's Eve, we would celebrate at a swanky Gala Cole’s parents throw every year.

Alaia and I went out Christmas shopping hunting for the perfect gift for Cole, but what do you get someone who already has two of everything? It was so frustrating trying to find something special for him. “This is impossible.” I sigh, defeated as I push Alaia in her stroller, and Jo looks at me with a smile. I called her having a meltdown on the phone, and she came to help me find a gift for him.

“Shay, he’s going to love whatever you get for him, babe.” Jo tries to persuade me, and I shake my head with a groan.

“No, it has to be special. It’s our first official Christmas together as a family,” I utter with a heavy sigh and look at Alaia in her stroller. “You’re not very helpful either.” I smile when she grins at me, showing her gums.

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