Authors: Danielle Sibarium
She hit my c
hest with the back of her hand.
I took her hand and held it tight as I moved my head to within inches of hers.
"Happy Anniversary, beautiful."
It had been a year since the simple but beautiful wedding ceremony at the house that once served as my father’s office. Elizabeth expressed how much she missed going to work there, and since I owned the property for the time being, I thought it was perfect. In a strange way, it made me feel like my father was there with us. We kept the guest list small, and each person there played some role in our relationship. Her parents and sister, my mother, Aunt Rose and her family, and last but not least my best man, Trevor.
I couldn't help but notice the sparks fly between him and Violet. The day after they met at the rehearsal, she kicked Spike to the curb, and said she was ready for a grown-up relationship.
The nurse came in wheeling the portable crib. "She was just crying a few minutes ago, but it looks like the princess fell back asleep. If you change her diaper, it should wake her."
The nurse started to unravel the blanket enveloping our beautiful little girl and nudged her. "See," she turned to me, "Would you like to do it?"
"Yes, please." I'd been waiting since the moment I found out Elizabeth was pregnant to hold our child. In the hours since she was born, I only held her a few minutes. I didn't think I could wait anymore.
"Are you going to the center?"
"Hell, no.
They'll survive a week without me. Besides, my mother's like a drill sergeant. She'll make sure it runs like a well-oiled machine."
"The kids will miss you though."
I smiled, "Right now there's just one little girl that needs me, and I want to give her my undivided attention."
Life was perfect since we'd gotten back together. The center opened a month after we reconciled, and like me, Elizabeth put in countless hours overseeing its running so I could work my ma
gic with the kids.
It was fun watching her watch me. I enjoyed how she'd blush when I'd catch her looking as I redirected inappropriate behavior or swung a child up in the air in celebration.
One night while wiping everything down, I picked her up and spun her around. "I love seeing you smile, and knowing you're happy."
"I love what you do here, seeing the way the kids respond to you. You really have a way with them."
"I wouldn't be able to do any of this without you." I said, carefully placing her back on the ground.
"The money was supposed to go to you all along," she assured me for the thousandth time.
"That's not what I mean." I stroked her hair, making sure she wasn't further than a breath away. "Waking up next to you in the morning, knowing you're going to be in our bed when I'm home at night. You keep me inspired and motivated. I want to do everything I can to keep you happy and make you proud."
"You already do."
Her lips met mine, a soft sweet kiss. Elizabeth's hand moved from my shoulders, down my back. I pulled away as I felt them drop lower, knowing I didn't have much self-control at that moment.
"You'd better stop," I whispered, "Unless you want me to take you right now."
"Always with these warnings. Why do you always tell me what you're going to do first?" She pulled back and looked at me with a playful gleam in her eyes.
"Oh yeah?
You want me to just take what's mine?"
"We are alone.
Unless you need me to show you how."
I didn't need any further encouragement. I pulled her shirt off, over her head, "Did you ever do it in a ball pit?"
"Eww, those things are gross."
"Me either. But ours is exceptionally clean, and you know the balls were just sterilized." I said b
acking her up to the play area.
Her footing gave way, and as she fell onto the springy area of the floor, she pulled me down on top of her. We never made it to the ball pit. Instead, the in-ground trampoline sufficed. That was the night Chloe was conceived.
Chloe cooed, bringing me back to the moment, as if she knew how much I loved her and her mother. As I finished changing her diaper, Elizabeth's phone rang.
"My dad wants to know if you want him to bring clothes, or shaving
stuff?"
Her parents were staying with us for a few days to help out. Violet already threatened she'd be spending every weekend with us until Chloe grew into her obnoxious phase. I think that was just an excuse to try and see Trevor.
Although I always wanted Elizabeth to myself, I didn't mind the extra people hanging around us, they were family. Mine and Chloe's. And I was grateful for them.
I handed our beautiful baby girl to Elizabeth, taking care to make sure I supported her head. Any onlooker would never believe only a few months ago the thought of our precious angel terrified Elizabeth. She looked like a natural. I sat on the side of the bed and helped Elizabeth adjust into a comfortable position to nurse.
"She's got your heart shaped mouth." I smiled at Elizabeth.
"And your dimples."
"Boy, are we in trouble." Very gently I ran my hand over our baby girl's head.
As I looked on at my wife and daughter, I felt fulfilled with the life I made for myself. This was the life I wanted; a wife that was my equal in every way, and children that were a product of our pure, everlasting love. Any fear I had of not being enough was replaced with a fierce need to protect them. There was nothing I wouldn't do for them. Nothing I wouldn
't sacrifice to keep them safe.
I would work hard to make sure Elizabeth was happy every day of my life, the same way she devoted herself to me. A lesson I learned from the mistakes my father made: I had the perfect life, and there was nothing in the world worth sacrificing it for.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Danielle Sibarium author of For A
lways, To My Hero: A Blog of Our Journey Together and the Heart Waves Series grew up in Brooklyn, New York. Throughout her childhood, she transported herself into a fantasy world full of magic and wonder. Books were the gateway between her play world and reality. On any given summer afternoon she became Snow White sweeping and cooking for the dwarfs, or Cinderella waiting for the prince.
In 2004 Danielle won Honorable Mention in the Southern Heat contest. In 2007 she collaborated with Charlotte Doreen Small to write songs for her CD More. Danielle wrote the lyrics for Take My Hand, and Goodbye, while Charlotte contributed the melody. Danielle graduated from Farleigh Dickinson University with honors, and currently resides in New Jersey with her husband and three children.
Stop by and visit me at
[email protected]
Visit my Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/#!/DanielleSibarium
Drop me a line on Twitter @Sibarium
Bonus!
Here’s the first chapter of Maria
Montiero’s upcoming novel Wreck Me
1
The Morning After
The sun beams on my face forcing my brain to wake up from a deep sleep. I try to open my eyes but they
seam to be glued shut. Struggling, I manage to open one and then the other. Rapidly I blink bringing some needed moister to them.
My head feels like it has ten pounds of lead in it. A scent of stale beer brings on a wave of nausea. Without moving an inch my eyes begin to bounce around the room.
A white popcorn ceiling with an unrecognizable lighting fixture.
Bare windows with the blinds raised all the way up allowing the
sun to come in.
A chair near the window.
A dark wood dresser near the door.
A Yankees t
apestry on the washed-out wall.
This is no
t my room. Where the hell am I?
Heavy breathing enters my ears. My throat closes as each one of my muscles turn hard. This can’t be happe
ning! What did I do last night?
I gently lift the covers not wanting to wake whoever is next to me. Oh good my bra and undies are still on. Maybe I didn’t do anything last night. But
where’s the rest of my clothes?
The pain in my head becomes stronger as I try to recall what happened last night. I remember coming to the frat house with Amber. I also remember taking my eighth shot of Patron. Why did I have to drink so much last night? After that it all becomes fuzzy and ends in complete dark
ness.
My eyes squeeze shut as another memory swims through my head of a guy with a sexy smile. He and I kept sharing glances with each other all night. I remember dancing with him. But I don’
t remember anything after that.
Is that who’s sleeping next to me? I slightly turn to peek at him. I can’t see his face, but I can see his bare broad shoulders and back. Oh God, is he naked under these sheets? Should I
look? No. I don’t want to know.
I need to get out of here before he wakes up. I can’t believe I did this. This is bad, really bad. All I wanted to do was let off a little steam last night and not think about my issues with Mike. I’ve messed up big time.
I try to sit up but the bed creaks beneath me making my limbs freeze in place.
Please don’t wake up, please don’t wake up.
I peek over and see he’s still breathing heavily. I slip one leg out of the blanket and slowly begin to slide the rest of my body out of bed onto the cold hardwood floor.
Goose bumps appear all over my body. The sun is failing its job of providing warmth. I get on all fours and carefully crawl around searching through piles of the mystery man’s clothes for anything that belongs to me. I can’t believe how messy this guy is. I don’t see anything of mine.
I look under the bed, but only see balls of dust and one single sneaker that definitely belongs to the stranger in the bed. Damn it, where can my stuff be?
“Your clothes are on the chair by the window,” a low deep voice says, making every hair on the back of my neck rise as the floor d
rops out from under me.
Slowly I lift my head up and glare into the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen looking down at me. A wide smile spreads across his face and I realize this is not the guy I was trading smiles with last night. I’ve never seen this guy in my life.
“Good morning,” he says.
Without saying a word I get up quickly and grab my clothes. I slip into my pink tube top and jeans. I knew I
should have brought a jacket.
“Are you okay?” he asks.
“Did you slip something into my drink?” I ask without thinking. Not like I expect him to tell me the truth. But it’s the only possible explanation I can think of, because I don’t remember this meeting this guy.
“Are you kidding me?” He stands up revealing his tight abs. I turn away not wanting to see an inch of him. He’s already gotten to know me in a way only a few have. “I didn’t put anything in your drink. You were drunk and throwing yourself...”
“And you had no problem taking advantage of that. I don’t even remember talking to you last night,” I spit out, glaring at him again. I notice a tattoo of an eagle with its wings spread across the top of his chest, and his right forearm is covered in different tattoos. I can’t believe I didn’t see them before.
He slips on his black T-shirt and jeans. “I didn’t take advantage of anything! Instead I pulled that asshole you were all over at the party off you. He was having trouble understanding what the word no meant.”
My breath gets caught in my throat. “What?” I manage to utter.
“I happened to walk by and saw this big ass guy on top of you. You were out of it but you were still able to mumble the word no.”
My insides cringe at the thought of some monster on top of me. How did things get so out of control last night? All I wanted to do was spend a nice quiet night with Mike. Why did I have to go out with Amber instead?
“I kicked him out of the room and tried to get you out of here but you were out, and I wasn’t in any condition to take you home. So I put you in bed.”
“Why were you in the bed with me?”
“I was making sure no one else came in here to take advantage of you. I guess you can call me your night watchman,” he laughs. I don’t find it as funny as he does. “Look, we didn’t have sex or anything. I promise. I like my girls to be conscious and lucid.”
I stare at him not sure if I truly believe him. “I have to get out of here.”
“Wait I’ll walk you home,” he says getting his clothes on.
“It’s fine. I don’t live far from here.”
I turn to walk away, but he grabs my arm preventing me from taking a step. “Aren’t you even going to tell me your name? At least let me know the name of the girl I watched over last night.”
“It’s Melissa,” I lie just wanting to get away from this whole messy situation.
“Nice to meet you Melissa.
I’m Chase. Now I insist I walk you home.”
“I said no.” I pull my arm out of his grip. “Thank you for everything. I’m fine now. I just
wanna get out of here.”