Freya tilts her head back. “Do me too!”
Gabe huffs a laugh. “Good morning, Freya.”
I can’t believe they’re six already. The years have gone so quickly, and the way he looks at them, eyes so soft and full of love, makes me want him more each day. Freya gives a satisfied grin, then scrambles up onto a chair at the island. “Are we having faces?”
“Always.” I wink at her.
“Everyone’s coming over for dinner tonight. I got the ingredients for that new recipe you wanted to try,” Gabe reminds me.
Freya is immediately interested. “Who?” she practically shouts.
“All your uncles and your aunt,” Gabe replies patiently.
“And Rose and Heather?” Elodie asks softly. She’s crazy about her cousins.
I nod. “Yeah, they’ll all be here.”
“Will Kai bring his guitar?” Freya questions excitedly, making me laugh. So many questions.
“Very likely,” I tell her with a chuckle. He brings that thing everywhere, and the girls love when he plays for them.
I place the first pancake onto a plate and bring it over, then start adding banana smiles, blueberry eyes, and hair made of strawberries. Freya bounces in her seat, heels knocking the chair.
Gabe watches me, and I give his ass a little tap as I grab more fruit. He sets the syrup on the table, then moves to my side to grab his tea. Our shoulders brush, and his fingers hook briefly in my waistband, giving a snap that makes heat curl low in my stomach.
“Careful,” I murmur. “Kids are present.”
“You started it,” he says under his breath, eyes flicking to the way I’m standing. “I can tell you’re sore, you know. Too old to keep up?”
I scoff, keeping my voice low. “You can do all the work next time then, I’ll just lie there and take it.”
He snickers, whispering, “You wanna be my pillow princess?”
“Oh, shut up and eat your breakfast, Papa,” I shoot back, laughing. I love when he teases.
“Daddy?” Freya says, already slathering syrup everywhere. Face, hands, the table, I think I even see some on the floor. “We’re all the Shaws, right?”
“Sure are,” I say, sitting opposite them. “Why?”
She licks a smear of syrup off her thumb. “Ms. Collins said yesterday that some kids have different names than their dads.But we all match.” She looks so unbelievably pleased with herself. “We’re a set.”
Elodie nods, very solemn. “We’re a matching set.”
Gabe’s hand finds my knee. My throat goes tight.
“Yep,” I say. “Some people have different names, they're still family though. Having a different name doesn't change that. But I wanted to match my favorite people. That’s why I changed my name when I married Papa.”
Freya beams at that, cheeks sticky. Elodie ducks her head, a soft smile on her face as she lifts her fork. The girls giggle amongst themselves. The sun hits the fridge magnets just right, neon Oreos lighting up.
I lock eyes with Gabe, his soft eyes taking me in. I wink just to see that shy smile and blush rise. With my husband’s hand warm on my knee and our daughters arguing over whose pancake face is funnier, I sit here and think, Noah Shaw is who I was always meant to be.
Well... until Ciarán gets bored.
