Modern Arrangements: Complete Trilogy (Modern Arrangements #1-3) (58 page)

"Don’t be embarrassed." I
squeezed her hand. "Should I be embarrassed that I’m jealous?"

"Jealous?" She looked
confused. "You want to leak from your..?"

I laughed. "No, no, no. I mean that
I am jealous that they get to put their mouths on you and I don’t." I
smirked.

She smacked my arm.

"Don’t make it sound like
that!" She laughed.

We sat at the dining room table where
Rachel had set the food out. As we were eating, Jay announced that Sarah had
arrived.

"Hey, Mom." Lilli went to
stand up.

"Don’t get up. Eat, you’ll need
it." She smiled.

"Please, sit and eat with us."
I stood and pulled a chair out for her.

"Thank you." She smiled up to
me.

We sat in comfortable conversation until
the first cry in our home broke up the conversation. Lilli got up and I
followed her.

"Someone is finally awake." I
said halfway up the stairs.

"It’s Walsh." Lilli laughed.

"How do you know that?" I
asked her.

"I can just tell." She
shrugged and headed toward their room.

Sure enough, it was Walsh. Livy was
lying quietly awake in her bed, though she was slightly fussy. Lilli changed
Walsh and then sat in the chair with him, lifting her shirt to feed him. I
changed Livy and then stood rocking her in my arms while watching Lilli.

It was the most natural thing to watch
and yet it was so erotic. She was naturally good at this and it scared me that
maybe I wasn’t as good.

"Can you hand me that receiving
blanket?" Lilli pointed toward Walsh’s crib.

I walked over and looked around at the
different blankets that were hanging and lying around. I heard Lilli giggle and
turned around.

"The one with the ducks." She
smiled affectionately.

I grabbed it and held it up. She nodded
in approval. After handing it to her, she laid it over her shoulder and draped
it down over Walsh.

"Why are you covering
yourself?" I walked over and sat on the stool in front of her. She
shrugged. I pulled the blanket back and she glared at me slightly.

"I like to watch. If I can’t feed
them I want to be able to at least be a part of it this way." She sighed
and relaxed back into the chair. "Besides, it’s not like I haven’t seen
your…"

"Aidan." She hissed and then
threw a bib at me. I laughed.

She handed Walsh off to me and gave me
his receiving blanket with orders to burp him, though he may not burp. This
stuff was just a tad bit confusing.

Lilli took Livy and placed her against
her other breast. I sat patting Walsh as Livy fed. I was glad that I had taken
the week off from work and planned to work mostly from home the week after
that. Then an idea hit me.

"Lilli?"

"Hmm?" She looked up from Livy
to me.

"What if we have your mother stay
here this week?" Lilli’s brow furrowed. "She can help you out this
week and I will work half days from home. Then, when your mom leaves, I will
arrange for a full two weeks home."

"You don’t have to do all of that.
We will be fine."

"I know you’ll be fine, but this
will give you more help during their first month home, until we all get
adjusted."

"I’m fine with asking my mom to
stay, though you don’t need to take more time off from work. I’m going to start
interviewing nannies like we discussed."

"Lilli, please let me do this? You
can still interview nannies but, this way, you will have help with these two
while you look." I put my hand on her knee and rubbed. "You do
realize that I want to be here with you three? I want to be a part of their
lives."

She sighed in defeat and nodded.
"Okay. I guess when you put it that way." She squinted her eyes at me
playfully.

"Good, then it’s settled." I
pulled Walsh up and held him in front of my face. "You hear that, buddy,
I’m gonna be home with you for a while." I turned Walsh around to face
Lilli. "Yeah, Daddy!" I mimicked a baby sounding voice and moved
Walsh as I spoke. Yeah, I used my son as a puppet.

Lilli laughed loudly and Livy jerked.
"Stop it!" She laughed. "He’s not a doll."

Sarah had agreed to stay with us for a
week and a half. The first night home was interesting. We were up every couple
of hours to change, feed, rock and soothe the twins back to sleep. However, we
were up to the challenge.

The second night, Lilli was falling
asleep while she was feeding the babies at four in the morning. Sarah had to
keep tapping her on the shoulder to keep her awake.

The third night, I let Lilli sleep while
Sarah and I took care of the babies. Lilli had pumped earlier in the day to
start building up a supply so that I could help out more with feeding time.

The fourth night, Lilli let me sleep
while her and Sarah took care of everything.

The fifth night, we let Sarah sleep and
handled the babies throughout the night.

After our first full week at home, we
had hoped that we would have Walsh and Livy sleeping better at night.
Unfortunately, when it comes to newborns, not everything goes as planned. They
still had odd sleeping patterns and we couldn’t figure it out.

Sarah left to go back to Canada and I
began my two weeks of working from home.

Lilli began interviewing women from
different nanny services. I had to insist that she look for a live-in nanny.
She wasn’t happy about ‘hiring someone for around the clock services when she
was fully capable’, but finally relented when I mentioned her going back to
work with the foundation.

The first few interviews had not gone
well. Lilli made some phone calls to different agencies in the area hoping for better
applicants. When that didn’t work out, she resorted to about five hours of
online research and phone calls in order to find reliable information for
hiring a nanny.

I had suggested calling Elora to find
out about their nanny, Mya. Lilli then told me that they had lucked out in finding
a college student with classes only three nights a week. It was perfect for
Elora, but wouldn’t work out for us.

A week, and multiple exhausting nights,
later, Lilli found Kimberly. Kimberly was a forty-five year old divorcee who
had been a kindergarten teacher during her twenties and thirties. She was the
mother of one thirteen year old son, which Lilli immediately figured could move
in here as well.

Three days after I met Kimberly and her
son Peter, we hired her. We decided to renovate the third floor to fit in
another bedroom suite like Rachel and Alex’s. We needed to tear down a couple
of walls, install some doors, install a kitchen and add on a second bathroom
for Peter. It took a little over a week to get everything set up.

Kimberly and Peter moved into the house
and it was almost odd at how quickly they acclimated to the family. Alex looked
to Peter like an older brother, and Rachel and Kimberly seemed to have a lot in
common.

Lilli was so happy with Kimberly that I
saw an immediate change in her. She started to relax a little more, which she
needed.

Kimberly had also helped us achieve what
had felt like the impossible. The babies slept almost an entire night, five
hours straight. All she did was put them in the same crib together.

She explained that since they had spent
all of their time together inside of Lilli, it was only natural to miss that
presence. She would eventually put them in separate cribs, moving them side by
side and slowly working the cribs apart. But, for now, as infants, it was
perfect for them. We couldn’t have agreed more.

"You know, you pay me to get up
with them." Kimberly laughed quietly as I sat feeding Walsh in the rocking
chair.

"I know, but it’s my last few days
of being home with them." My voice sounded just as sad as I felt about
being gone all day.

"It’s really nice to see a father
take such an active role with his children." She smiled at me warmly.

"I’m sure that my lifestyle makes
it easier for me to do so." I shrugged.

"Ah, even so, not all men would sit
up at night as you do." She patted my shoulder and went to check on Livy.

The days passed and soon I had to return
to work. I headed to the twins room to tell Lilli and the babies good bye. As I
entered, I looked around the room but didn’t find Lilli. I leaned into the crib
and kissed both of the twins. As I was walking back to their door, I heard a
noise in the bathroom.

I walked toward the door and knocked.
"Lilli?" I could hear a buzzing noise.

"Yeah?" She called through the
door. I tried the doorknob but it was locked.

"What are you doing?" I
knocked lightly.

"Um…pumping." I could almost
see the blush on her face as she said it.

I swallowed down the chuckle that
threatened to pop through my lips. "Can you open up? I’m leaving for
work."

Nothing. No response and no sound of her
opening the door. "Just give me one minute, okay? I’m almost
finished."

"I could care less that you are—"

"I am not opening this door until I
can cover up." She cut me off with a firm tone.

I sighed. "Okay."

Two minutes later she came out of the
bathroom, leaving the door halfway open. I could see the pump on the counter.

She put her arms around my shoulders and
kissed me. Trying to pull away from me, I grabbed her and deepened the kiss, my
hands starting to roam. My hands were just below her breasts,

"Aidan…" she mumbled against
my lips. I put my hand out to the side, palms toward her. She giggled and
pulled away from the kiss.

"Have a good day." She smiled
and turned toward the bathroom.

"You, too. I won’t be staying late
tonight, so I should be home before six." I smiled at her.

"If you need to stay then I
under…"

"I have already informed everyone
that I would not be staying late like I used to now that the twins have arrived."
My voice and face had gone completely serious. She simply nodded and went back
into the bathroom. I heard the buzzing sound of the machine begin as I left the
nursery.

After grabbing some coffee, I headed
toward the door.

I was surprised to see Loreley standing
in our foyer, Jay taking her coat.

Chapter Seven

How Do I Mend a Broken
Heart?

Lilli

Once Aidan had gone, I heard Kimberly
enter the room while I was finishing up in the bathroom.

"Good morning." I whispered to
Kimberly, trying to not wake the twins. She smiled warmly and I exited the
room. I was halfway down the stairs when I heard Loreley's voice.

"Loreley." I smiled and walked
toward her.

"Lilli." She smiled back and
placed her hands on my biceps, kissing each cheek. She stood back and appraised
me. "You look fantastic!"

"Thank you, but I'll definitely
feel better when I can start to work off some of this extra weight." I
huffed out. I motioned for her to follow me toward the dining room.

"Non-sense, dear, you look
amazing." She followed along behind me.

We sat down around the table as Jay
brought the food out to us. I smiled my thanks to Jay before turning back to
Loreley.

"Loreley, I really want to thank
you again for telling us about—"

"It was honestly my pleasure."
She smiled warmly.

I furrowed my brow. The reason I had
called Loreley to come over was simple. I was wondering why she had helped us
by providing the information. I knew that the Iverson's were not exactly
friends of her family.

"What is it?" She asked
curiously, mirroring my furrowed brow.

"Um, I don't mean to sound
ungrateful, but why did you help Aidan and me? Why would you provide that
information to us? I know that your family—"

"I know that our families are not
exactly friendly and I am also well aware of what people say about me; the
cold, callus, manipulating bitch. However, and I am being honest, I had that
information for almost a week before I finally called Aidan." She laughed
a little at her admission. "But, I just couldn't, as a woman, keep that
from you. You hadn't done anything other than marrying into this family. Hell,
to me, you were simply just another woman until we spoke at the charity
ball." I raised my brow at her.

"Yes, it was only for a short
moment, but you didn't shy away from the conversation with me as most people do.
Especially, the Iverson's and those that are associated with them." A
small smiled played on her lips.

"A week?"

She nodded. "I'm far from perfect,
dear."

I nodded with a small smile and we continued
small conversation during breakfast. Though I had been a little concerned with
her admission of holding information, I appreciated her honesty.

Slowly, over the next few months,
Loreley and I became frequent associates, having brunches and lunches together.
It had been a great way for me to get out of the house for a little bit, aside
from when I met up with Phoebe, Celia or Viola.

Viola was very up front in warning me
about Loreley.

"Lilli, dear, you have to be very
careful. I know that she may seem friendly but I assure you that, given the
chance, she would push you down an elevator shaft if it suited her." Viola
put her water glass to her lips.

"How very 'soap opera' of you to
say." I giggled out.

"I'm serious." She tried not
to crack a smile at my comment.

"Thank you for worrying but I can
assure you that I am being careful with Loreley. Honestly, our time revolves
around simple gossip and casual topics. We do not discuss families." I
shrugged and put the forkful of lettuce into my mouth.

Viola leaned forward and covered my hand
with hers. "Please be careful." I smiled in acknowledgment.

Aidan was my other obstacle when it came
to Loreley. He didn't hide his distaste for Loreley's presence in our home.

"Why do you insist on associating
with her?" He growled.

"I really don't see how you can
take your hatred of Gideon out on her! She is the one who called you to tell
you about the birth control pills. I think you owe her a little bit of
gratitude." I argued.

"You don't know them, Lilli. Or
what they are capable of." He sighed and plopped down onto the bed, his
head in his hands.

I scooted across the bed on my knees and
pressed my chest to his back, wrapping my arms around him.

"We aren't the best of friends or
anything. She is simply a casual friend." I kissed the side of his neck.

"If she hurts you, I will kill
her." He picked up my hand and kissed the back of it before holding it to
his chest tightly.

I ruffled his hair as I started to pull
away. He quickly rolled around, pulling me down to the bed and crawling over
me.

I could feel his lips pressing against
me through my nightgown as he ascended my body. When he got between my breasts
he lingered, lightly brushing his nose over my hardened nipples.

I could hear the low rumble in his chest
as he pushed aside the lacy trim and slid his fingers across my overheated
skin. My breathing hitched as his tongue darted under the material and over my
nipple.

"Aidan..." I moaned.

"Shh..." He murmured against
my skin. "I want you so badly." his voice still muffled by my skin.

I slid my leg under his body, drawing
him between mine. Lacing my fingers into his hair, I gripped roughly as his
mouth closed over my nipple and his sucking increased in strength. At first, I
grimaced at the raw soreness of my nipples from pumping and breast feeding, but
eventually it gave way into bliss.

I moved my hips forward, seeking
friction between my legs. Aidan realized quickly what I was looking for and
pressed his body into me. Grinding against each other, he moved his mouth to my
neck and over my jaw. I could feel his hard length against me, rocking into me
with a familiar rhythm.

His mouth locked onto mine. I could
taste Aidan mixed with the sour milky taste of breast milk as he ravaged my
mouth. Soon his fingers were slipping agonizingly slow up my thigh, dipping
into my underwear. He grasped and yanked my panties down to my knees by the
crotch before slipping his fingers between my wet folds, massaging the swollen
lips and briefly rubbing my swollen, sensitive clit. My back arched up off of
the mattress and I could feel Aidan's smug smirk against my lips.

Moving his lips back to my neck, I
gasped out.

"Mmmm...so fucking hot and ready as
always." He growled. I wrapped my legs around him, trying to pull him
closer to me. He shoved my underwear all the way off and quickly divulged
himself of his own.

Positioning at my entrance, he hesitated
and looked into my eyes. I grabbed his face and kissed him deeply as I pulled
him into me with my legs. The scream that escaped my lips as he filled me
caused my head to snap back so far that I was almost looking at the headboard
upside down.

"Ooohhhh ffuckkkkk!" He pulled
out and then thrust back into me. I gripped his forearms tighter and tighter.

The rumble in Aidan's chest exploded
from his lips in heavy grunts and moans.

"Fuck Lilli...so good...Fuck, I've
missed this...oh god....Yes...scream for me baby....fuck!" With each
quickening thrust he groaned out something else.

When his forehead pressed to my chest
and his breathing became more labored I could tell that he was close. Placing
my feet flat on the mattress next to his body, I pushed my hips up to meet each
thrust.

"Shit...Fuck...Lilli...if you
keep...OH FUCK...can't stop..." soon the last guttural moan erupted from
within him as he released inside of me. I kept my hips moving to help him ride
out his orgasm.

"I love you." He whispered
into my skin.

"I love you, too." I ran my
fingers through his hair.

He propped his head up, his chin between
my breasts.

"Can I just say how much I love
that I can fuck you again?" He smirked and then crawled up my body.
"Are you okay?"

I nodded and smiled. Then I kissed his
lips lightly. We curled up next to each other and fell asleep until the first
cry woke me early the next morning.

Aidan was definitely happy about sex
being reestablished between us. After that night, he took me at any chance that
he could: the stairs, the library, his desk in his office, our bedroom, our
shower, the closet; any and everywhere that he could.

While Aidan still wasn't thrilled that I
associated with Loreley, he had become more cordial toward her when they
crossed paths. I was thankful he was at least attempting to be pleasant.
Loreley and I had truly found a common ground that didn't involve anything that
dealt with family other than talking about the twins.

Soon December had arrived and everyone
was preparing for Christmas. Viola and I had been out shopping for the past
three weeks; getting gifts for the children's homes, as well as decorations and
celebratory foods. It was so much fun knowing that everything we bought would
be going to the children, some of which who had never experienced Christmas. We
had even hired an actor to dress as Santa and visit the homes. I was excited to
take the twins with us on that visit.

I had also gone shopping with Elora,
Celia and Phoebe. Shopping with Dixon, however, had been the most interesting
experience.

"Dixon, as much as Celia loves you,
and cars, I do not think that she wants a model car." I tried not to laugh
at his suggestion.

"It's only part of the gift, Lilli."
He rolled his eyes.

"Um, Dixon..?"

"Trust me, okay?"

"I still think that she won't want
to put that together as much as you think." I smiled and rubbed his arm.

"Listen, this BMW is her favorite
and I intend to put it together for her." He beamed.

"Oh Dixon...that's romantic...sort
of."

"Well, it's the next stop that adds
the big wow factor." He smiled with a cocky swagger to his step.

"And that stop would be...?" I
pressed, standing by his side as the cashier handed him back his card and the
bag with the model car.

"Tiffany's of course."

"Oh my God, Dixon! Really?"

I was jumping up and down, so excited that
I might faint. Happy to have the stroller to hold onto, I grabbed it for
balance.

"Yep! My baby is getting some awesome
diamond earrings!"

I froze. Dixon kept walking.

"Earrings?" I questioned,
rushing to catch up with him on the crowded street.

He nodded eagerly and then took the
stroller to get us across the street to Tiffany’s. As we entered the store, he
continued on.

"I'm going to put the earrings
inside the car, like on the steering wheel or something, so she sees them after
she opens the car."

"Dixon, that's really sweet."
I forced enthusiasm. Honestly, I was disappointed it wasn't a ring.

"What can I say? I am just a big
pile of sweetness!" Chuckling, he looked down over the selection of earrings.

I sighed louder than intended. He looked
up from the jewelry case.

"Alright, what is going on over
there?" He asked, after pointing to a pair of half carat earrings.

"Nothing." I smiled.

He smirked.

"Will that be all, sir?" The
attendant asked, stuffing the earrings into the signature Tiffany's box.

"Actually, I will need one more
thing..." He hesitated.

I looked up and could tell he was watching
me from the corner of his eye. "I'll need to see something in a diamond
engagement ring."

"Dixon!" I shouted, smacking
him in the arm. "Damn you." I hissed.

He was laughing wildly.

"Oh, shit, Lil, you should've seen
your face...too damn funny." He kept chuckling.

"That was so not funny, you
jerk." I laughed then realized everyone was staring at us.

"Yes it was." He grabbed the
stroller and pushed it down to where the attendant waited to show him rings. "Now,
help me pick out a ring for my future wife." He grinned.

I wrapped my arm in his as we headed to
the counter of engagement rings.

Christmas Eve was spent at Viola's with
the family. The twins were now four months old and starting to really show
their personalities. Walsh was the loud one where Livy was quiet and shy. Livy
really didn't care for men. Only Aidan could hold her without her fussing.
Other than that, men seemed to trigger something in her.

Abby was fully pregnant and quite tired.
Everyone watched her closely, waiting for any sign that she was in labor. Liam
was surprisingly more watchful of her than anyone else. Viola stated that he
was the same way when she was pregnant with Maggie. Something just kicks in and
he can't help but be attentive to pregnant women.

Little Jimmy was seven months old and
already quite the handful. He babbled a lot and even rocked on his hands and
knees as if he were going to crawl at any moment. Jimmy had also discovered
that he loved Aidan's hair. He had been whining on the floor and Aidan picked
him up. Before anyone knew what was going on, Aidan was yelping and Jimmy was
giggling loudly with fistfuls of Aidan's hair.