We enter the nursery, and I place the car seat on the floor then unclip her. I wander around the room, speaking softly to her and showing her everything.
I take a seat in the rocker, resting her on my chest. She instantly snuggles against me, and I smile, inhaling her baby scent. In this moment, I am done, ruined. This is a moment in time that I never realised I needed. My princess will make me the man I was always destined to be.
We rock gently back and forth savouring this moment. The door opens, and Hell walks in. When she looks at us, her eyes are full of love.
“It suits you,” she whispers.
“Who’d have known the Pres would go soft in his old age?”
“I can’t believe what we made,” she gushes, full of pride.
“She’s just like her mum, complete perfection.”
Hell rolls her eyes and smirks at me. “I’ve thought of a name,” she says.
“Whatever you want,” I say, inhaling the scent of her deeply.
“Daisy,” she whispers, staring at the artwork on the wall.
I look up, watching her. “It’s perfect.”
“Drifter, I’ve done a lot of thinking over the last few weeks,” she whispers, placing her hand over mine resting on Daisy’sback. “I’m ready to give it another go.” I smile widely, hope building in my chest. “It won’t be easy, and I think we need to go to marriage counselling. I want to do this properly. We have to figure out what the fuck went wrong and how we move forward from this.”
“Anything. I’ll do whatever you want.”
“I saw the club whores are gone.” She stares at me as if trying to figure me out. “Thank you.”
“I did it for you both. You were right—it’s no place for kids. I want to change for you both.”
“I know, and I believe you, but it’s going to take me time to trust you again.”
I nod. Fuck, I don’t care right now as long as she’s giving me the opportunity to put this shit right.
ROCHELLE
We really seem to be getting into a pattern since we’ve been home, and it’s strange how it feels like Daisy has always been part of our lives. I reach over to her crib and pull her to my chest as Drifter walks into the room.
“Should you be lifting like that?” he asks, concerned. I turn and roll my eyes. Even though it is nice having him help, sometimes he was slightly overbearing.
I pat Daisy gently on her back. “I’m fine, Drifter. They said I just need to take it easy, not lifting anything heavier than Daisy and only to do things as I feel ready for it.”
He walks across the room to us. “How’s Daddy’s little princess doing?”
“She had a great night. She woke a few times for a feed, but went straight back to sleep.” We still aren’t sharing a bed. I wantto get marriage counselling arranged and our marriage back on track first, before he comes back to our marital bed.
“Want me to do the same tonight? I’ll come settle her after your last feed, so you can go and get yourself some rest.”
I smile fondly at him. He really is becoming an amazing dad. I dreaded having to do this all alone, but he had stepped up to the mark. We are a long way from fixed, but we are making progress.
“Do you mind?”
He leans in, placing a featherlight kiss on my lips, which almost takes my breath away, before placing one on the back of Daisy’s head. “For you . . . anything.”
Daisy squirms against me, so I pass her to her dad. He cradles her against his chest and looks down at her lovingly. “Why don’t you go take a soak in the bath? I’ll take her for a walk.”
I go into the bathroom to find Drifter has already run the bath for me whilst I fed Daisy. As I step into the room, the smell of lavender fills my nostrils, and I inhale deeply, closing my eyes briefly. When I open them, I’m greeted by the bathroom lined with lit candles.
I take off my clothes and find my scar is still red but no longer weeping. I look at my reflection in the mirror and am reminded that these scars are my battle wounds, the reason Daisy is here today and breathing.
