She frowned but lay her head on the pillow.
A few moments later her eyes closed.
The first trimester was always tough.
Iskra
After my shower I slipped into my nightdress and walked into the bedroom. Vadim lay in bed, hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling with a pensive look.
My acting skills were immaculate. I should have taken drama classes at school. It was so easy to mess with him.
I strode across the room to check on Alexei.
He was sprawled across the cot, head off the pillow, one foot sticking out between the wooden slats. I eased it back in and placed the pillow beneath his head. If he continued to sleep like this he would need safety rails into his teens.
When I reached the bed Vadim turned toward me.
“What did you mean earlier?” he whispered.“Why don’t you want to share our bedroom with me?”
“What are you talking about?” I asked with a frown, turning to open my drawer for my hand cream.“I didn’t say that.”
“Right before you fell asleep this afternoon,” he said, though he didn’t sound entirely certain.
I rubbed the lotion over my hands, pretending to think back.
“No, I definitely didn’t say that.”
I could see his brain churning.
I’d bugged his office so I heard everything. It was Valentin who suggested the vasectomy—I was almost certain. But I wasn’t about to tell him that. I liked Valentin.
He pulled the covers back for me and I switched off my lamp, plunging the room into darkness. I’d barely settled on the bed before he dragged me onto his side.
“The children will grow older and then we will only have each other,” he murmured.
I was mentally calculating which of the five could give us grandchildren first when his lips began moving along my jaw.
“I could spend every second of every day with you and never want more,” he murmured.
That was sweet.
Sweeter than anything he’d ever said to me in the basement.
“We can stop at five if you want. Or if you want more. Whatever you need,” he said, sliding his hand beneath the silk.
A pause.
“Fuck, we probably both need therapy,” he muttered. “Even now I'm thinking of ways to plant another inside you.”
I smiled in the dark before gripping his jaw between my hands and kissing his face until his lips found mine. I didn’t say a word.
He always gave me what I needed.
??????
Sunday morning snuggles were the best. All the children joined us in bed—three dark-haired babies and one fair. Anna was the only one with blonde hair. Runa was his princess, but he called Anna his little sun.
The girls clung to their father while Alexei and Nikolai tumbled between us. Runa held her hand out and I high-fived her. Anna leaned over for one and I tapped her little hand too.
