Page 9 of Hell Hath No Fury
“I know that, but somebody,” Maddox gently points at Edie’s nose, which only makes her giggle harder, “isn’t in the mood to eat.”
“Daddy didn’t make a good breakfast?” I ask Edie, crouching down, so I’m at her level.
“Da-da.”
“I know; he’s the worst.”
She pounds her little fists against the plate. “Da-da.”
“How about we give you something else?” I pull her out of the chair and into my arms, nuzzling my face into the crook of her neck. Her sweet baby scent calms me as I inhale it deeply into my lungs. I pull back and press my lips to her neck blowing raspberries there. Her little body squirms in my arms as she laughs. “Coffee, maybe?”
“You can’t give a baby coffee,” Maddox protests as the two of us walk toward the coffee maker. I put a fresh mug under the machine, pressing a button to start it.
“Seriously? With the amount of coffee we drink between the three of us, I’m surprised she hasn’t been born with the addiction.”
“Want me to take her?” Aly asks, putting her own cup on the counter just as the machine beeps.
“Nope,” I shake my head. Balancing Edie on one hip, I grab my coffee with my free hand and add a bit of sugar and creamer before taking a sip. Edie watches me with her baby blues, so I dip a finger into the coffee before offering it to her. “Want some?”
The little girl grabs my finger and shoves it into her mouth, sucking it clean. “See? She does have the gene.”
Maddox shakes his head. “That’s not breakfast.”
“You didn’t say that the other day when you spent hours working on your code,” Alyssa chides. Grabbing the towel, she wipes his face. “You need a shower.”
“Wanna come with?” He asks, his voice dropping but not low enough for me not to hear. “Help me clean up?”
Aly giggles as she pushes him away. “As enticing as that sounds, I have to hurry up, or I’ll be late to work.” She presses a kiss to the corner of Maddox’s mouth before she comes to Edie and me to kiss her daughter goodbye.
“I feel left out,” I pout, looking down at baby. “Will you give me some love, Edie?”
“You’ll get one if you manage to put some food in her belly.” Aly pinches Edie. “Be a good girl and eat something for aunt Callie, okay? I’ll see you later.”
I lift Edie’s hand. “Say bye to Mommy.”
Edie waves her hand enthusiastically. “Ba-ba.”
Maddox pushes to his feet, grabs the bowl with half-eaten cereal, and puts it in the sink. “You okay looking over her until I wash up?”
“Of course, we’ll try to eat something. Maybe a banana?” Edie looks up at me, her hand tapping my cheek as she babbles something to herself. “How does that sound? You like bananas.”
“No more coffee,” Maddox calls out as he leaves the kitchen.
“You’re just postponing the inevitable,” I yell back, laughing.
Grabbing the banana from the bowl, I peel off the skin and break away a small piece before offering it to Edie. “Banana?”
Her button nose furrows as she sniffs the fruit and turns her head away.
“C’mon, youlovebananas.”
Coco starts to bark and rushes down the hallway just as the front door closes. A few moments later, Yasmin is standing in the doorway. “You’re not ready.”
“Ready for… Oh,shi—shoot.”
Yasmin shakes her head. “I’m really surprised Edie’s first word wasn’t some kind of swear word.”
“Hey, there’s still time.”
