My alarm buzzes on the floor beside Savannah’s huge, comfy bed. I disentangle my legs from hers and roll across the mattress to snatch the phone up, silencing it with a single swipe. I don’t begrudge these early mornings. Not when they enable me to spend every night in Savannah’s bed. Under her. Over her. Inside her. But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t tired.
What I wouldn’t do for a lie-in.
I brush a tender kiss across Savannah’s glossy head and toss back the covers.
‘Stay,’ she mumbles, her arm reaching for my waist.
I hesitate, torn between what I want to do and the right thing to do. ‘But what about the girls?’
Savannah’s eyes prise open. ‘They’ve been watching you sneak out for weeks. It’s not like they don’t know you’re here, anyway.’
‘And you’re okay with that?’ Hope rises in my chest. First the Instagram picture, then dinner with her dads, now staying past the girls’ wake up time. It’s everything I ever dared to dream of and more.
‘I’m okay with that.’ She throws the cover over me andsnuggles against my chest, pushing me back against the plump, plush pillows. ‘When we get up, we’ll have to face the music. I want to hide here for a bit longer. I’m not ready yet.’
‘You were born ready, Sassy Sav.’ I snuggle closer, wrapping my arms around her. ‘It won’t be as bad as you think, I promise.’
Within seconds, I drift back to sleep again.
I’m woken an hour later by Isla giggling. ‘Do you think he’s got clothes on under there?’ A tiny finger prods my back over the duvet. ‘I never saw a naked boy before.’
‘Gross.’ Eden’s voice overflows with disgust at the mere prospect. ‘Well, what about Barbie’s boyfriend, Ken? Does he count? I took his pants off, but you can’t really see anything.’
Savannah’s slim frame shakes slightly like she’s suppressing a laugh.
‘Weird, right?’ Isla mutters, her breath brushing over my skin as if she’s poring over me like a science experiment while I sleep.
Thank God I’d had the foresight to pull my boxers back on last night.
I blink the sleep out of my eyes and roll onto my side to face the girls. ‘I do have clothes on. And nakedness isn’t gross, it’s natural.’
‘You’re awake!’ The twins yelp, bouncing up and down next to the bed, their matching pink pyjamas crinkled from sleep.
‘Hard not to wake when you’re being poked and prodded.’ I smile to show I’m teasing, while Savannah harrumphs beside me. I pinch her ass beneath the covers, and she muffles a squeal. She doesn’t mind being poked or prodded. Not by me, at least.
‘Let’s go get some breakfast before school, girls. LetMammy sleep in for a little while longer.’ I pull the covers back and grab my t-shirt from the leather tub chair in the corner of the bedroom.
Savannah hauls herself up into a sitting position, her fingers raking through her golden mussed hair. ‘I’ll sort them out, Ro, don’t worry.’
‘Let me, please.’ I pull the t-shirt over my head. ‘I’ll bring you up a coffee.’
A pink tinge flushes Savannah’s neck. ‘You don’t have to do any of this.’
‘I want to.’ I’ve wanted to for a long time. ‘Besides, you should probably check that.’ I nod towards her phone and she groans.
I leave her to it, padding down the stairs after the girls as they bombard me with a million questions.
Isla heads for the cereal cupboard. ‘Do you live here now?’
‘Are you taking us to school today?’ Eden asks as she takes a seat at the kitchen table.
‘Can I have Coco Pops for breakfast?’ Isla pulls out the yellow cereal box and shakes it hopefully.
‘Are you our dad now?’ Eden peeps up shyly from under her thick, dark lashes.
‘Wow.’ I laugh. ‘One thing at a time.’
‘Phoebe’s mammy left, and her dad found her a new mammy. We’re going for a sleepover there on Friday night. It’s Phoebe’s birthday,’ Isla states, taking the seat beside her sister and plonking the Coco Pops on the table.
