“Did you
peepee?” Erin asked, glancing in the mirror and almost whimpering at the sight
she beheld—tangled hair, red face, and huge, ungainly body. She was surprised
that Seth had been brave enough to want to make love to her earlier.
“Yes,” Mackenzie
said, frowning and nodding her head.
“Then you need
to get up and flush.”
“Mac goes
poopoo too.”
This piece of
news, of course, deserved great praise. So Erin gushed appropriately and then
waited until her daughter was done. After they’d flushed and dutifully washed
their hands, Erin said, “Now you can go tell your daddy.”
Erin never got
tired of watching Seth respond to this sort of news.
Erin followed
her daughter into the kitchen, where they found him.
He wasn’t,
however, making pancakes. He was lounging in a chair with a cup of coffee and his
tablet, no doubt reading the news. He had put on a white T-shirt, but he still wasn’t
wearing shoes or socks.
Mackenzie ran
over to him excitedly and hugged his leg. “Mac goes poopoo on the potty. Mac
goes poopoo on the potty,” she declared, her rosy face crinkling with her grin.
Seth lowered
his tablet and looked down at her. “Well, that
is
a very impressive
achievement. Good job.”
Mackenzie
giggled up at him. “Up!” she demanded, raising her arms toward him.
With a
half-smile, Seth pulled her up into his lap, where she shifted around until her
cheek was pressed against his chest.
“Don’t get too
comfortable,” Erin warned them, frowning in Seth’s direction as she poured
herself some juice. “Your daddy still has to make us some pancakes.”
Mackenzie squealed
with joy at this announcement, but immediately got distracted. She started
pulling on Seth’s t-shirt. “Daddy shirt,” she said, staring at the fabric in
her hands.
“Excellent
observation,” Seth replied, smoothing down a few of the kinks in his daughter’s
red-gold hair. “That is in fact my shirt.”
Mackenzie was
frowning as she kept yanking on the t-shirt. “Daddy shirt. Bye bye,” she
insisted, as if she were frustrated by Seth’s denseness in failing to understand
her meaning.
Seth glanced
over at Erin, giving her a look of silent questioning. Then he pulled Mackenzie’s
little fingers off of his shirt. “I suppose it’s not the most attractive thing
I own, but I think I’m going to keep my shirt on.”
Erin suppressed
a laugh. “I could be wrong, but I think she’s wondering where the
rest
of your shirt is. You’re usually wearing a suit and tie for breakfast.”
Seth looked
enlightened. “I see. I’m staying home with you and your mommy today.”
Mackenzie shook
her head and let out a dramatic sigh. Leaned her cheek against his chest, her
fingers fisting the fabric of his shirt again. “Daddy goes bye bye.”
Seth looked
nonplussed, and Erin laughed out loud. Met his gaze warmly. “That should tell
you something. If your own daughter can’t believe you’re staying home.”
He narrowed his
eyes, as if he were slightly annoyed by her teasing, but his frown didn’t last
long. Mackenzie pulled herself up and pulled on his chin until he smiled.
“Daddy make
cancakes?”
Seth pulled his
daughter into a brief hug. “
Can
cakes are far beyond my skill,” he
replied, setting Mackenzie on the floor and standing up. “But I guess I can
muddle through a few
pan
cakes.”
Seth started
the pancakes, muttering about females ganging up on him. And how it was only
going to get worse when the third one arrived.
*
* *
Erin slowly lowered herself down
onto the sofa in the family room, sighing loudly and relaxing against the
cushions. She’d forgotten what it was like to be this pregnant—how awkward
doing the simplest maneuvers became.
“It’s not your
fault,” she murmured softly, looking down at the swell of her belly. “It’s just
that hauling you around everywhere really wears me out. But I'm really glad you're
here.”
With another
long exhale, she stretched out on the couch. Two more months and she’d have
another baby. It was thrilling and terrifying both, and sometimes she couldn’t
believe it was really happening.
This pregnancy
had been a little easier. She’d been sick a lot during the first trimester, but
she’d been able to handle it better. And there was something reassuring about
going through a pregnancy again, this time having Seth with her completely. There
was actually a lot about being pregnant that she liked.
But she decided
that two kids would probably be enough.
She had just
put Mackenzie down for her nap, and Seth had gone into his home office to “make
some calls.” Which of course meant that he was cheating—working on a day that
he’d claimed he was taking off.
Erin hadn’t
complained too much. The three of them had a good morning together and then had
a picnic lunch in the rooftop garden. If Seth felt obliged to work a couple of
hours while Mackenzie was napping, Erin wasn’t going to make a big deal about
it. He was at least trying, which meant a lot for someone as work-driven as Seth.
Besides, Erin
could use a little nap herself. Being pregnant was exhausting.
She needed to study
for the course she was taking, but she decided that could wait until the next
day.
She was
enjoying law school, which she was doing part-time, and was excited about what
might come afterwards. She still sometimes missed going into work, but other
things were starting to fill that gap in her life.
Lounging on the
couch, tired and pregnant, Erin knew she was happy. Three years ago, she would
never have dreamed that this kind of life would ever have satisfied her.
Sometimes she
could barely wrap her mind around it.
As she was
mulling over the irony, she dozed off for about a half-hour. Woke up feeling
better, except that she now needed to pee.
Which meant she
had to heave herself up.
After she went
to the bathroom, she went to find Seth, deciding he’d worked for long enough
this afternoon. When she peeked into his office, she saw he was on the phone. He
was rubbing his forehead, his eyes closed, and was talking very intently.
Erin knew that,
even though he looked stressed at the moment, this conversation wasn’t private,
since he hadn’t closed the door. So she walked into his office and flopped down
on the leather loveseat against the wall.
Hoped her
presence would be a reminder that he wasn’t supposed to be working today.
Seth glanced up
and gave her a distracted smile, then focused on his phone call again. Erin
didn’t pay much attention, since the conversation was made up of disconnected
information that meant absolutely nothing to her.
When Seth
finally hung up the phone ten minutes later, he leaned back in his desk chair. “Is
everything all right?”
Erin snorted. He’d
once again started up that refrain—that particular repeated question—after she
became pregnant the second time, and he couldn’t seem to give it up, no matter
how much she chided him about it.
“No. I had a
stroke in the other room and decided to stroll in here to tell you about it.”
Seth curled up
the side of his mouth. “Nice.” He rubbed a hand through his hair distractedly,
and Erin noticed lines of worry around his eyes.
Feeling a swell
of tenderness, Erin resisted the urge to go cradle him. Instead, she shook her
head. “You’re not supposed to be stressed out today.”
“I’m not
stressed,” Seth lied, forcing his face to relax.
“Yes, you are. Don’t
try to lie to me. You’re supposed to be taking the day off.”
“You and Mackenzie
were napping.” He stood up and stretched out his back. “What else was I
supposed to do?”
“Well,” Erin
murmured, slanting him a look that might have been alluring if she hadn’t felt
like a sloppy, blond hippopotamus. “You could have napped with me.”
Seth gave her a
predatory smile, a familiar hot look smoldering in his eyes, evidently not
noticing or not caring about her less than alluring appearance. “I thought you
were genuinely going to nap. Had I known you had something else in mind...” He
moved over toward the loveseat.
Erin grinned. “I
didn’t. I actually wanted to nap. But you could have napped with me.”
He lowered
himself next to her and draped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her against
his side. “I don’t nap.”
“Well, you
should. A couple of naps a week would be good for you. Even legal geniuses need
a little relaxation. You’re far too driven and obsessive.” Despite her sharp
tone, she nestled against him, snuggling into his warm, hard body.
Seth chuckled
and tightened his arm around her. “Not me. I’m just a simple family man,
hopelessly bullied by the women in his life.”
“Yeah, right.” She
stroked his chest. “Baby, nothing about you is simple.”
Seth kissed her
hair and didn’t respond.
She wasn’t
surprised. Despite everything, Seth still didn’t have an easy time making
himself vulnerable and wasn’t quick to open up, even with her.
She squeezed
his side and whispered, “I used to think you were cold and heartless, and
everyone else in the world still does.” Looking up at him with soft eyes, she
added, “We’re the only ones who get to know you for real. Me and Mackenzie. And
her sister, who I suppose will eventually have a name.”
Seth kept one
arm around her and reached the other arm over until his palm was curved over
the crest of her belly. “Just don’t let the news get around that I actually
have a heart.” He paused for a beat. “It would decimate my reputation as the
Bulldozer.”
Erin burrowed
against him—as much as she could with her awkward belly.
His hand
slipped down over the curve of her belly and then cupped her groin over the
thin fabric of her pants.
“Is there
something in particular you have in mind?” she asked, teasingly swatting his
hand away
Seth laughed
softly, his warm breath blowing against her hair, as he evaded her hand.
Shifting beside
him, Erin felt a few initial tingles of arousal when he found her groin again.
“I’m not sure we have time. Mackenzie will be waking up soon.
“I can be very,
very quick,” Seth murmured, his hand stroking over the swell of her breasts.
“Is that
supposed to sweeten the pot?” She laughed and stretched up to kiss him. “I know
the sex bar has been set rather high lately, but I’m not sure you’re going to
get lucky again today.”
“I guess we
have been having a lot of sex lately.
“That’s just
the pregnancy hormones. It has nothing to do with you.”
Seth's lips tilted
up into her favorite half-smile, the same one he’d given her in the library
over a volume of Byron’s poetry. “Of course not.”
They kissed for
a few minutes, and Erin was really starting to get into it. Seth’s tongue was
busy in her mouth, and she was scraping her palm against his jaw.
When a little
voice came from a few feet away, “Daddy is kissing Mommy?”
Seth tensed up
in surprise, and Erin released her breath in a loud gust. Then she slumped
against Seth’s body, giggling softly into his neck.
“Yes,” Seth
replied gently, turning his head to look down at Mackenzie. “I was kissing your
mommy, and she was kissing me back.”
Erin
straightened up a little, although Seth’s arm remained draped around her. She
turned toward her daughter, who was standing in front of the loveseat with
tangled red hair, bare feet, a wrinkled shirt, and green pants with one leg
hiked up to her knee. She was holding her favorite stuffed bunny—the first one Seth
had bought for her in California.
“Did you finish
your nap?” Erin asked, thinking her daughter still looked half-asleep.
“Yes,” Mackenzie
replied, nodding seriously. She stepped over and raised her arms up toward Seth.
“Up.”
Seth pulled her
up onto his lap, so that both she and Erin were nestled against him. Mackenzie
tilted her face up and puckered up her lips. “Kiss!” she demanded.
Seth dutifully
leaned over and gave her a little kiss. Then stroked her fine, messy hair.
Mackenzie
grinned up at her father and patted his cheek, until she got distracted by
something else. “Mommy, kiss,” she insisted, peering up at Erin.
Erin pulled up
the warm little body and gave her daughter a kiss too. “Mommy loves you,
pumpkin. Lots and lots.”
Mackenzie
sighed contentedly and snuggled against Erin’s large belly. “Lots,” she
breathed. After a moment, she turned back to Seth with a wide-eyed, questioning
look.
“I love you
too,” Seth assured her with a half-smile.
Mackenzie
relaxed again, still sitting on Seth’s lap but leaning against Erin. “Lots and
lots,” she mumbled vaguely, closing her eyes with a sigh.
In just a
minute, she’d fallen back to sleep.
With a fond
smile, Erin glanced over at Seth’s face. He was gazing down at Mackenzie, and Erin
caught a fleeting look in his eyes that was so deep, so tender, that it almost
took her breath away.
Shifting
carefully, so she could get herself into a comfortable position without
disturbing Mackenzie, Erin leaned against Seth and asked softly, “Are you
disappointed that we’re not having a boy this time?”
Seth darted a
surprised look over at her. “Of course not. Why would I be?”
Erin shrugged. “I
don’t know, but a lot of men really want to have a son.”
“I’m happy
with my girls.” Seth glanced back down at Mackenzie and brushed a strand of
red-gold hair off her face.
“Good,” Erin
replied simply, the slight tension easing in her chest. “Me too. Very happy.”
“Are you?” Seth
asked unexpectedly, slanting a quick, observant look over at her face.
Erin just
blinked at him, stunned he could even ask such a thing.