I place the blanket over her and do my best not to jostle her awake while I tuck the edges under her so it doesn’t fall again. She lets out a soft hum as she snuggles under the blanket. I slide her e-reader away from her slowly and place it on the coffee table next to her phone.
Just as I turn to walk away, I hear her voice.
“Niko.”
Sadie sits up, and I’m back by her side in an instant. “Shh, go back to sleep, baby.”
Even half asleep her stubbornness shines through. “I’m awake. How was your flight?” She leans into me, and I wrap my arm around her as she snuggles into my chest.
“It was fine. Quiet. Even Jefferson didn’t have anything to say.”
She attempts to laugh and when I look down, I see her eyelids slowly close as she falls back asleep. Knowing she’ll wake up again when I move, I make the decision to carry her to her room. I slide my other arm under her legs and she mutters something incomprehensible when I stand with her in my arms.
I laugh at how tiny she feels in my arms. I’ve held her in my bed and on the couch, but walking with her up the stairs only accentuates how much smaller she is than me.
Once I get to the guest bedroom, I carefully place her onto the bed. The moment my arms are free of her, she stirs, opening her eyes again.
“Will you stay with me until I fall asleep?”
I want so badly to poke fun at her and remind her she just fell asleep in three seconds flat downstairs and didn’t so muchas crack an eye the entire walk up the steps. But I’d be stupid to turn down an offer to stay with her a little while longer.
Sadie crawls under her covers and holds them up so I can slide in next to her. Once I’m nestled in, she finds her place on my chest again, her hand resting gently on my stomach.
It doesn’t take long for her breathing to even out, and although I know I should probably go, I want to enjoy the feeling of her in my arms for just a few more minutes.
Just as I always do, especially after a loss, I replay tonight’s game in my head and go over everything that went wrong. I don’t know why I do it—a nasty habit, I guess—but I find it hard to improve if I don’t first identify the problem.
But the season’s over, what’s the use in rehashing the bad stuff?
It’s hard, but I push the negative thoughts about the game away and try to stay focused on the present. On the beautiful woman sleeping peacefully in her arms. On how lucky I am to have her here with me.
And in no time at all, I fall asleep with thoughts of Sadie on my mind.
“Dad! Where are you?” Sophia screams from somewhere in the hallway.
It takes me a few seconds to remember where I am, but when I figure it out, I pull Sadie so her back is against my chest before kissing her head.
“Good morning, beautiful.”
Sadie hums groggily and snuggles back into me. Her ass pushes against my crotch where she’s greeted with my hard dick. It’s the morning, there’s nothing I can do about that situation.
“Good morning, indeed,” she says as she purposely rubs herself against me again.
I groan and squeeze her ass, which has her squealing and probably letting Sophia know exactly where we are right now. I should be worried that my daughter is about to see us together, but all concerns disappear when she flings the bedroom door open and launches herself into bed with us.
“Good morning, Daddy! You had a sleepover with Miss Sadie without me?” She puffs out her bottom lip, exaggerating her disappointment. I’m breathing a sigh of relief that shedoesn’t think anything of the situation while she’s busy pouting that she wasn’t a part of it.
Sadie moves away from me, turning and sitting up to lean against the headboard. She has a beautiful smile on her face and seeing her like this, first thing in the morning, may be my favorite version of her. Her hair is disheveled, the purple streaks popping against the white fabric headboard. Her eyes are still heavy with sleep, but she looks so content in this moment I have to fight the urge to lean down and kiss her.
Sophia crawls across the bed, situating herself right in between us and snuggling underneath the comforter. I reach over and ruffle her messy blonde hair.
“Happy Birthday,Rakas.”
Her face lights up and she starts bouncing her body up and down, full of excitement first thing in the morning.
Sadie giggles next to her and pulls Sophia’s body into hers. She hugs her tight and kisses her on the side of her head.
“How does it feel to be a five-year-old?”
