Protect Me: Oakville Series:Book Three (36 page)

Tears begin to fill my eyes and slowly slip down my cheeks. Paul is right by my side, wiping them away. “Those better be happy tears, doll face,” he says with a grin that melts my heart.

“They most definitely are. And they’re all thanks to you. You’re amazing and I am the luckiest girl in the world.”

“No, doll face, I’m the one who’s lucky,” he says, and kisses my cheek sweetly. “You and our baby girl are my world. I never knew how happy I could be, but you’ve shown me.” I’m lost in his eyes and my heart swells from his words. We’ve saved each other. We’ve shown one another what true, unconditional love really is, and that we are both worthy of it.

“Your chariot awaits, Mrs. Walters,” Paul says as he carefully helps me into the wheelchair. He’s very cautious with me, worried he might hurt me if he makes a wrong move. Never would he intentionally hurt me. Protecting me. Keeping me safe. Loving me. Making me happy. These are his priorities and what makes me love him the most.

After a brief elevator ride, he’s wheeling me into the NICU. My hands are shaking and my heart is about to beat out of my chest. I’m both afraid and elated as we pass through the double doors. My heart swells when I see Angel in a rocking chair holding my beautiful baby girl. He’s softly singing to her. It’s one of the most touching things I’ve ever seen. He’s looking into her eyes as he sings, a sweet loving smile on his face. It’s obvious our little girl already has him wrapped around her little finger.

Tears flow freely from my eyes as I take in the sight of how much our friend loves and cares for our daughter and from the sight of the most beautiful little girl in the world. She’s even more beautiful than I remember from the brief moment I saw her in the delivery room. She makes a small whimpering noise and I can no longer hold it together. I start to whimper as tears flow heavily from my eyes.

Angel’s head whips around and his singing ceases. He turns back to Hope. “You have a very special visitor, baby girl. I told you your daddy would bring her back to you.” Hope lets out a little squeak of a cry. “Don’t worry, Uncle Angel isn’t going anywhere. I promise you. I’ll be here for you always. Anything you need,” Angel whispers. The connection between the two of them is so beautiful, it causes me to cry even harder.

Angel stands up and carries Hope to me. With the utmost care, he places my beautiful girl in my arms and kisses me on the cheek. “Welcome home, mama.” I look up and smile my thanks. My attention is quickly directed to my daughter.

It’s almost as if she was made especially to fit in my arms. I place soft sweet kisses on her forehead, nose, cheeks, and lips. I then count all ten perfect little fingers and toes. I’m in awe of her angelic face. She has Paul’s exquisite green eyes and my red hair.

“She’ll be able to go home with you tomorrow,” Angel says from behind me. “Her doctor says she’s a very strong little girl. I can’t possibly imagine where she gets that from.” I give Angel a smile as he claps Paul on the shoulder and walks out the doors. I have a feeling he hasn’t left this room or our daughter too many times. For that, I’m so grateful.

After a while, they allow us to bring Hope to my room. She is perfect in every way and I am so in love with her. I haven’t put her down since Angel placed her in my arms. I just can’t bring myself to let go of her. The nurses keep saying I’ll spoil her. To be honest, I really don’t care. She’s our miracle. And the fact that she’ll be an only child pretty much ensures she’ll be spoiled.

A light knock on the door drags me from my thoughts. Tanya’s head peeks around the corner. She has an enormous smile on her face, but her eyes look sad. “Hey there, are you up for some company?” she asks as she quietly walks over to look at Hope in my arms.

“Of course. Would you like to hold her?” I ask. She looks so mesmerized by Hope, but so sad at the same time.

“I’d love, too. It’s been a very long time since I’ve held a baby so tiny.” I hand Hope to her and see a tear slip down Tanya’s cheek.

“Why do you look so sad? You can talk to me about anything,” I encourage her. This woman helped me through the worst time in my life. We became great friends and I would do anything to help her if she needed it. I don’t know a whole lot about her, just that she came from a very strict and abusive home. When she was eighteen, she married, thinking it would take her away from the abuse. Unfortunately, her husband was worse than her father. She never talked about kids so I imagine she never had them, which is too bad. I know she would’ve made a great mother.

“Just remembering a time long ago,” she says with a faraway look in her eyes. “I had a baby girl when I was a teenager. I was forced to give her away. It was the only way I could keep her safe. I’ve thought about her every single day since.”

“Have you ever thought about looking for her?”

“I have, but I’m afraid she’d hate me. I was a coward. Instead of taking her and running away from my family, I left her to be raised by strangers. At the time, I really thought I was doing what was best for her. Who’s to say she wouldn’t feel the same way you do about your birth mom.” She has a point. I never went into detail about my situation with Tanya, but I did tell her I was abandoned by my birth mom. I never had any kind words for that woman either, so I can see where she’d be reluctant to seek out her own daughter.

“To be honest, Tanya, I’ve started to rethink my feelings toward my birth mom. I have no idea what was happening in her life, so I can’t judge. Who knows, my life could have been a whole lot worse if she kept me.” My confession has made her eyes brighten a little. “If you ever decide to look for her, I’ll help you every step of the way.”

“I’ll think about it. Thank you.”

The adoption subject is finished and the rest of Tanya’s visit is filled with fun topics of conversations. She asks a lot of questions about Beasley and every time she does, she blushes. I’m starting to think she has a bit of a crush on him. Personally, I think they’d be great together. They both need someone who will treat the other well. She’s also informed me that she wants to stay in Oakville. This news makes me very happy. I’ve missed her so much since I came here. She was my first real friend ever. I’m going to love having her here all the time. Plus, with Amber’s help, maybe we can get Tanya and Beasley together. We spend an hour or so just talking, laughing, and enjoying Hope.

Paul comes in and smiles when he sees how happy I am. “I hate to break up all the fun, but I think it’s time for my girls to get some sleep. After all, tomorrow will be a big day.” Tanya agrees and hugs Paul and I goodbye. Paul takes Hope from me and lays her in her bed.

“Where are you sleeping?” I ask him.

“With my wife, of course. As long as it’s okay with you. I don’t want to hurt you.”

“It would hurt me more to have you out of my reach. I need you holding me tonight. It’s the last piece needed to put us back together.” He smiles, takes off his shoes, and pushes Hope’s bed close to my side. Then, Paul climbs in bed with me, pulling me into the safety of his arms. Like Hope fits perfectly in my arms, I fit perfectly into Paul’s. This is happy. This is where I was destined to be. Wrapped in the arms of a man I love with every fiber of my being and watching the most beautiful baby girl in the world sleeping soundly next to us. This is the family I’ve always dreamed of having and now, I have it.

T
HE SUN
is shining bright and the sky is blue as I drive my lovely girls home from the hospital. I can honestly say this is the happiest I have ever been in my entire life. Glancing in the rearview mirror, I’m met with a glowing smile from Holly. I think it’s safe to say she’s feeling the same as I am.

We have both been through a ton of shit in our lives, but now we are finally getting the happiness we deserve. I have to laugh at myself for that thought. Before I met Holly, I didn’t think I deserved anything good in my life. I always felt like I would destroy anyone who tried to love me. Just like I did my parents. They were happy once, too. In love and blissfully happy. At least, that’s what my mom used to tell me. That all changed after meeting Holly, though. She made me feel worthy of love. She also showed me that by loving her, I made her life better. I wasn’t destroying her, I was helping to put her back together again.

“So, who all will be at the surprise welcome home party?” Holly asks with amusement in her voice. I laugh. I tried to tell Amber she’d never be able to surprise Holly with a party, but she was bound and determined to try it anyway. I don’t think the two of them realize how much alike they are.

“You know, just the usual. But you didn’t hear it from me. Amber threatened to cut my balls off if I spilled the beans,” I tell her with a chuckle. I’m pretty sure she was only half joking when she said it.

“Don’t worry, baby, my lips are sealed. I’ll act surprised. Besides, who do you think taught her?” she says with a hearty laugh. God, I love that laugh. It’s the kind of laugh that warms you from the inside out. When I hear that laugh, it reminds me of how happy she is and that I’m part of the reason why.

I glance into the rearview mirror again as we pull into our driveway. She has a smile from ear to ear as she watches all of our friends come to greet us. My smile mirrors hers. We never imagined we’d have a family at all, now we have an enormous one filled with the most amazing people. I couldn’t have picked a better family if I tried.

Not surprisingly, Angel is the first one to the car the second we come to a stop. I’m amazed to see how much he has taken to Hope and how protective he is over her. He has a massive bottle of hand sanitizer in his front pocket. He forces anyone who wants to hold Hope to sanitize their hands. It’s pretty fucking funny.

“Dude, what are you doing?” I ask him.

“You can’t be too careful. What if someone gets her sick? You have no idea the amount of germs that are floating around here.” I’m laughing so hard, my eyes are watering. He’s so serious. A small part of me wonders if I’m a shitty dad for not thinking of that myself.

“Don’t sweat it, baby. I didn’t think of that either. I never imagined we’d be getting schooled on baby care from Angel,” Holly says with a chuckle. At least now I don’t feel so bad.

We’re sitting in the back porch watching everyone talk and laugh. Marcus’ boys and Clark’s boys are playing football in the back yard. Holly is next to me on the porch swing. She grabs my hand and squeezes it. “Are you upset that I can’t give you any more children?” she asks with sadness in her voice.

“Doll face, I feel blessed to have Hope. I’m perfectly happy with just having her. Besides, there’s nothing stopping us from adopting later on. I think it would be nice to give a child a loving home when their natural parents couldn’t.” Before I know it, she’s in my lap and grabbing my face in her hands. Her lips crash to mine and she begins passionately kissing me.

When Holly pulls away, her eyes are filled with tears. “You’d be willing to adopt a baby someday?” she asks with surprise in her voice. “I’ve always wanted to give a child the opportunity for a family I never had growing up.”

“Of course I would. I think we should have a very big family.” I kiss her smiling lips and hold her tight. I have to be the happiest man alive in this moment. I have a beautiful, loving wife. A sweet, beautiful baby girl. The possibilities for our future are endless. I’m going to enjoy every day I have with my girls and I look forward to where the future will take us.