Dangerous Temptations(53)

     



 

"Well, it only took me five hours to finish one blog post because Colton  wanted my attention every three seconds. Then I planned to work on it  during his nap time, but he made me lay with him in bed until he fell  asleep and then I ended up falling asleep instead." I chuckled at her  scowl. "Oh, your dad called. He's invited us over for dinner this  weekend for you to meet his new fiancée." She smirked and let out a low  laugh. "Anyway, we're supposed to come at six. Will you be home on  time?"

I narrowed my brows at her, curling my upper lip up. "Yes." I sighed. "But I'm not calling her Mom," I mocked.

She burst out in laughter, wrapping her arms around me. "I'm glad we can  all be in the same room together at least." She flashed a genuine  smile. "It makes it easier for Colton. William's his only grandparent,"  she reminded me.

"I know." I kissed her softly on the nose. We finished our shower and  lay in bed together. I rubbed my hand over her belly and pouted. "She  never kicks for me."

"When she wakes me up at three a.m. kicking my ribs to death, I'll make sure to wake you up."

"We need to get you on a better schedule, kid," I teased, rubbing my hand over her belly once more.

"We're not going to call her kid, are we? She needs a name," she pouted.  We've been discussing names for months and we haven't been able to  agree on anything.

"Okay … tell me your list again."

"Cora, Caitlin, Camila, and Cassie."

"Why are they all C's?"

"So they match Colton's," she replied in an obvious tone.

"Um … okay." I laughed. "Well, then I guess I like … Cora and Cassie."

"You don't sound very enthusiastic about it." Oh, god … the hormonal mood swings.

"I am, sweetheart. I'm just very tired." I kissed her and pulled her closer to me. "Can we talk about this tomorrow?"

She grumbled. "That's what you always say."

"Sweetheart, I promise. We'll talk about it. Just not now when I'm half asleep."

"Okay." She smiled and kissed me, curling her body into mine. "Love you."





Three Months Later …



"She looks just like you," I said, admiring how perfect our new baby  girl looked. "She has your same cheek bones. And your cute little  jawline." I rocked her next to Mac's hospital bed, in complete awe at  how much I already loved her. "Maybe she'll have your feisty attitude,  too." I winked.

"We can only hope."

A knock came at the door and her nurse walked in, smiling wide. "I have  some papers I need you to fill out." She handed them to Mac. "You had  the baby so fast we didn't even get to that yet." Mac and I were at  dinner when her water broke. She delivered a half an hour after we  arrived at the hospital. "What's her name?" the nurse asked.

The smile on my face dropped, and I turned to look at Mac, who wore the same expression I was. "Um … " She started to stumble.

"We're still deciding," I interrupted. The nurse looked at us with an  odd expression but just nodded in response and told us to page her when  the paperwork was complete.

As soon as the nurse shut the door, Mac turned and scowled at me. "Don't give me that look," I pleaded.

"Our baby is going to be named Kid," she cried. "It's all you called her  during my pregnancy so it's probably all she knows anyway."

Oh, hello, postpartum hormones!

"Not true," I reassured. "Let's just go over your list again and decide which one she looks like."

She rambled off the names again, but nothing stuck out. I thought for a  moment and said, "What about Lauren Elizabeth?" It was her middle name  and her mom's name combined, so I partially expected her to yell at me  how stupid that idea was, but surprisingly, she didn't.

"I like it!" she gushed, smiling. "Lauren Elizabeth … it fits so perfectly." She looked down at her and started crying.         

     



 

After a couple days in the hospital, we were able to take our baby girl  home. Colton met her for the first time that night and absolutely adored  her. He wanted to know why she didn't do anything but sleep, but I knew  he'd be wishing she was sleeping when she wakes him up crying at two  a.m.

"Can you grab her blanket? I left it in the kitchen," Mac asked as he  cuddled Lauren on the couch. I jumped up to grab it, but just before I  walked back in to hand it to her, I stood in the doorway and just  watched the three of them. Colton was standing on the couch cushion next  to Mac, looking down at his new sister. Mac was smiling, holding Colton  close to her as they both just stared down at her.

When I met Mackenzie five years ago, my world tilted on its axis. Before  her, it felt as if I was drowning in the expectations that were put  into place, and I had no say in the matter. Coming home after graduate  school was something I wasn't looking forward to, but I knew it was  time-time to face my dad and the media again.

Meeting Mac that first night was the game changer. She was filled with  such a bright energy that it completely changed my perception of having  to be home again. When I woke up the next morning with her in my bed, I  knew I didn't want to let her go. I may not have known much about her,  but I knew I wanted to know more about her.

The first moment she turned around to face me, it hit me like a freight  train. I made sure to not let it show, but just like everything else in  my life, nothing ever went my way. I had realized who she was. I  recognized her from the articles the press did on my father, but she was  so much different than I originally anticipated.

That was when I knew.

He wasn't good enough for her. He was a lying, deceptive son-of-a-bitch, and I wasn't going to let him keep her.

"Alex?" Mac's voice grabbed my attention back. She raised her brows at  me, looking down at the blanket in my hands. "Can you bring that here,  please?"

I pushed off the doorframe and walked toward the three of them, covering Lauren up with her new blanket.

I picked Colton up and set him on my lap as I sat down next to Mac,  wrapping my arm around her shoulders and pushing us closer together. "I  can't believe how much she looks like you."

"Yeah … she looks a lot like my mom, too. It's kind of perfect." She  tilted her head up at me and smiled. "I wish I had pictures of her."

I pulled her head toward me and kissed her temple. "We'll always take a lot of pictures."

"Well, we should all get to bed early," she sighed, then leaned over me  to speak to Colton. "Daddy has a big birthday tomorrow! The big 3-0,"  she said, emphasizing the 3 and 0. "We're going to get up and make him a  special breakfast." She smiled over at him, and I sighed. "No  groaning," she warned me. "We're having your dad and new stepmom over  for dinner. They're excited to see the baby."

I wrinkled my nose at her, narrowing my brows. "Isn't it weird your old assistant is my ‘stepmom'?"

She snorted. "No, it's fate. They deserve each other … " She looked over  at Colton, who was overhearing everything. "In the best way possible,"  she added, grinning. She was right about that. Chelsea spent months  selling stories about William and when he recently found out, he  threatened to sue for slander. Instead, Chelsea asked him out to  ‘explain' and apparently, he bought it because they ended up dating.  Shortly after, he proposed and they married.

Apparently, the third time was the charm.

After we tucked Colton in and got Lauren to sleep, we headed to bed  ourselves. The past few days have been another life-changing chapter for  us, and I couldn't be more excited about it.

"So do you think after the awkward birthday dinner you're going to make  me suffer through, we can lay low a few days before I have to get back  to work?" I whispered, holding her tightly against me and tracing a  finger along her jawline.

"I wish." She sighed. "Staci's wedding is next weekend," she reminded  me, "which means I have to fit my post-pregnancy belly into a dress that  is probably two sizes too small."         

     



 

I pulled her chin toward me and brushed my lips over hers. "You are  going to look beautiful no matter what." I kissed her lips again as I  pulled her closer. "So … how long do we have to wait to have sex again?" I  asked between kisses.

She laughed as she shout-whispered, "Longer than three days!"

"Damn." I grinned.

"At least six weeks," she reminded me.

I groaned. "Longest six weeks of my life."

"It'll go by fast, I promise," she reassured. "Between feedings, diaper  changes, chasing after Colton, and work-those weeks will fly by."

I covered her mouth with mine, intertwining our legs together under the  sheets just as Lauren started to cry. I pulled away and groaned, "Not  fast enough."