Thank god.
I kiss the top of her head, and tuck her in tightly the way Ivy does, and switch on her night light. I creep out her room, and softly shut the door behind me, waiting for the click of the door's latch. I hurry down the hallway, anxious to get to Ivy.
I stop short when I see a bundled up, sleeping form under a blanket on the couch. Sighing, I walk over and smile at Ivy snoring peacefully. She’s so beautiful it’s hard to look at her sometimes. I perch on the edge of the couch next to her, and gently brush her hair out of her face. She moves, readjusting herself until her cheek rests on my knee.
I run the tips of my fingers through her soft, silky hair, just staring at her. She has absolutely ruined me.
She’s it.
If it’s not her, it’s not anyone.
28
Wes
“We almost found one Daddy!” Lilah shouts while slamming her tiny, greasy hand on the dining table.
“Almost found what?” I ask with my fork halfway to my mouth.
“Are you even listening Daddy?” My daughter scoffs. She’s definitely picking up Ivy’s sass.
Yes, but I was a little distracted staring at your nanny’s mouth.
“Yeah, bug. I’m listening. I’m sorry, say it one more time for me,” I tell her seriously.
Lilah takes a deep breath, like I’m testing her patience. “We almost found a dragon egg. Iby said she could sense it,” she says with pure confidence. She has both hands flat on the table and is leaning forward like the news she just shared is world changing.
I quirk my eyebrow and look at Ivy who’s nodding along with my daughter. With a barely contained smirk she says, “Icouldsense it. It was calling to me. We’ll find it sooner or later, don’t worry.” She nudges Lilah in the side, making her giggle as she stuffs her face with another bite of lasagna.
After Ivy moved in a couple weeks ago, I sat down with Lilah and told her about our new living arrangements. We told her the truth—that Ivy needed a place to stay, and we had a room. She was so excited that Ivy was going to be living right down the hall from her, that she asked zero follow up questions, which for her, is rare.
I don’t blame my daughter. If I was going to be right down the hall from her, I’d be ecstatic too. Unfortunately, I’m all the way on the other side of the house.
Tonight we’re having dinner together just like we have every night since she's moved in. Aside from the once a week family dinners at my parents house, I’ve cooked for just the three of us every night.
It's been business as usual after I brought Ivy home for good after the fair. I leave for work in the mornings, I think about Lilah and Ivy all day, then I come home to them at night. Most nights, I make dinner while they play in the living room. Sometimes, Lilah puts on a movie, and Ivy sits at the kitchen island, typing on her laptop while I cook.
Having Ivy with us everyday has been a dream. I can’t get enough of her.
Ivy and I have started playing this game. The second were alone, for even just a second, we sneak a kiss. Sometimes one kiss turns into two. Then two turns into some intense make outs, before distant, tiny footsteps have us wrenching ourselves apart like guilty teenagers.
I look forward to it all day.
It’s pathetic.
She helps me with Lilah’s bedtime routine, even though I tell her it’s not necessary. When I remind her that living with us doesn’t mean she’s on the clock all the time, she insists it’s not work for her, and she enjoys it. It makes me fall a little harder every time she says it. Having someone to do this with, to help take care of Lilah, it’s nice.
Really nice.
After we put Delilah to bed in the evening, Ivy and I spend time together. We talk, we laugh, we kiss, but then I reluctantly walk her to her room, and we go to bed. We’re, for the lack of a better term, dating.
I’m taking it slow. I’m terrified of pushing too hard, too fast. I don’t want to scare her off.
I want her, God, I want her so bad. But I don’t think I can come at this full throttle, not when everything has already moved so fast, and her life has already changed so much in such a short period of time. Now that she’s under my roof and in my orbit, every instinct in me screams to pull her closer, to latch onto her. But I want to give her some breathing room, give her time to figure out how she feels.
I know damn well how I feel about her, but I can’t just assume she’s on the same page. My feelings for her, they’re intense, overwhelming,real.
If my feelings for Ivy scare me this much, I can only imagine how much they’d rattle her. So I hold back. Not out of hesitation, but out of hope. This isn’t just about lust, it’s about building something real, something that lasts with her.
