There are so many what-ifs that worry me. Our relationship has been perfect ever since we met, but what if this changes it? Or if he decides it’s too much? Or I decide that?
“The only thing I’m absolutely sure that I want is you, Emma Grace. I don’t need anything else. Just you. In any form I can have. Big, Little, Baby Girl. I want it all becauseI want you. I love every part of you. That will never change. We will do what works for us. Remember that we can make adjustments at any time.”
I slide my arms around his neck and hug him, nuzzling my face into his neck. “I love every part of you, too,” I whisper.
He kisses me gently, several soft pecks on my lips, before he helps me lay back so he can change my diaper.
Neither of us speaks as he cleans me up and replaces the soiled one with a new one. We don’t need to. Our souls talk to each other in the silence.
“This has been the best Christmas ever,” I tell him as he helps me sit up again and then carries me on his hip out of the room. “I hope we can come back here.”
Beau
I smileas I carry my girl downstairs for our last night here. Little does she know we’ve already booked to return next year for Christmas.
We’re leaving in the morning, and I’m a little sad about it. We came here knowing our girls would have an amazing time, and they did. All of us did. It feels like I bonded more with my brothers and Pop, and I grew even closer to my wife.
When we get to the huge living room, almost everyone is already there, the girls all dressed in their pajamas. As soon as I glance up at the mounted TV hanging over the fireplace, I groan.
“Elf? Again? Are you kidding me?” What is it with these girls loving this fucking movie? The guy eats spaghetti with maple syrup on it. That’s probably exactly why they’re so obsessed with it. They’re a bunch of sugar addicts themselves. The amount of candy us guys have confiscated this week is obscene. I don’t know how they got all of it past us when we were packing. Sneaky little brats.
“It’s so funny,” Kylie chirps from her spot on one of the couches.
Nora bobs her head, an ice cream cone in her hand. “It’s a classic.”
Angel snorts. “I don’t know if it’s a classic, baby, but I guess if you say so.”
She grins at Angel and offers him a bite of her ice cream, and it doesn’t go over my head that Nora just spoke out loud to me from halfway across the room. When she meets my gaze again, Iwink at her. She smiles softly and holds up her hand to show me she’s about to sign.
Merry Christmas.
I smile and sign the same thing back to her, addingI love youat the end.
Nora’s eyelashes flutter several times before she pulls her gaze away from my hand and looks at me.
Then she holds up her hand.I love you.
Angel watches our interaction, his eyes sparkling, though he quickly swipes at the corners.
“Before we start the movie, we have something for you girls,” Wolf announces. “We know you wanted us to giveallyour gifts to the shelter, but we kept one present for each of you here.”
I go over to the tree where Wolf is pulling matching tiny boxes from one of the middle branches where we hid them. We pass them out to the girls and then sit and watch as they start tearing at the paper.
A second later, squeals and oohs and awws fill the room.
“This is beautiful,” Emma says as she stares down at the silver ankle bracelet with a heart charm hanging off it.
“I love it so much,” Claire tells Pop as he carefully props her leg on his so he can put it on her.
“They’re all the same. We’ll be matching,” Ellie announces.
Kylie looks over at Ellie’s and then at Addie’s, her eyes narrowing. “Are these trackers?” she demands.
“Yes,” Ash says. “And you’re going to wear it.”
I bite the inside of my cheek, trying to keep from laughing at my brother’s bluntness.
Emma looks up at me, her eyes asking the same question Kylie just asked.
