Page 123 of Sacrifice (Corrupt Empire 2)

“You have me. I’ll teach you.”

And this was now getting officially out of hand. I looked down at her face and the mischievous glint in her eye told me she was messing with me.

Ben opened the door to their room and we all walked in. Skye was sat up in bed with a bundle in her arms. She looked tired but happy.

“Aiden, come meet your nephew.”

I eyed Avery who was grinning from ear to ear. I tugged her over to the bed and we both stared down at their son. I wasn’t sure what to say because to me, babies were these tiny humans with squishy faces who looked like they could break any moment. Plus, they were usually kind of ugly.

“Do you want to hold him?”

“Um…”

She smiled at me and indicated her head towards Avery.

“Oh… shit, okay, Skye, this is Avery.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Skye said. “You’re welcome to hold him since Aiden looks like he’d rather be thrown off a cliff.”

“I know that look all too well,” Avery replied. “But yes, if that’s okay.”

Skye nodded and passed her son over to my girlfriend. She held him like she was a natural, cradling him to her chest with one arm. She stroked his little face and he reached up, grabbing her finger in his tiny hand.

“What’s his name?”

Skye looked up at me with a glint in her eye.

“Joshua Aiden Andrews.”

I glanced back at Ben who shrugged as he came around and sat in the chair by Skye’s bed.

“Don’t look at me, it was Skye’s idea.”

“Hello Joshua,” Avery whispered, rocking him in her arm whilst he held her finger. “I’m Avery. Maybe one day you can call me Auntie Avery and this here, is your Uncle Aiden. Your mummy named you after him.”

Fuck. Seeing her like that with a baby gave me a really weird feeling in my chest. Her eyes twinkled and she looked so fucking happy. It made me wish we lived normal lives where this sort of thing didn’t seem like a pipe dream. Unless we could sort out the shit with her family, we’d never be free.

“Are you sure you don’t want to hold him?”

I didn’t know how. He looked so small and fragile. Avery gave me the softest smile and turned to me.

“Here, you just need to support his head properly,” she told me as she held him out to me.

I carefully put my hand under his head and took him from her, holding him close to my chest. Such a tiny human. He had blue eyes and a little tuft of dark hair on his head.

“You got him?”

“Yeah… I think I do,” I replied.

I stepped back, letting Avery speak to Skye as I stared down at the little human in my arms. My nephew. The weird feeling remained. I wanted to protect him. I carried him over to where Ben was sitting.

“Never thought I’d see the day you held a kid,” he said, grinning.

“You’re the one who decided to knock your old lady up.”

I almost didn’t want to put him down.

“You sure you’re not getting broody?”

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