The ladies settled against the chaise longues and sipped on their drinks, waving as their men occasionally sped by the boat on their jet skis. A particularly rambunctious round of laughter drew their attention to where Brooks bobbed up and down in the water. Marcus reached out a hand and helped drag him back over to his jet ski, both men laughing and slapping each other's backs.
"So how's that all working out?" Kiersten asked, nodding at the two of them.
"Pretty well, actually."
"Brooks was okay with you giving Livy Marcus's last name?"
"Surprisingly, yes. Though he couldn't really argue that one."
"When is Marcus leaving again?"
"Next week. His new Hong Kong office opens soon so he'll be gone for a while this time. We'll keep him updated, send pictures, that kind of thing. And he'll get visitation when he's in town. He wants to know her, and be a part of her life. But with his job … It's easier for us to have full custody. He's going to stay based in Hong Kong, permanently."
"Yikes."
"And he signed papers giving Brooks guardianship if anything happens to both of us. None of us wanted there to be any problem with him maintaining custody if something ever happened. And since we don't need child support or anything like that he's going to set aside money every month into a college fund for Livy. He wants to be able to contribute to her life in some way."
"He sounds like a really great guy."
Leah nodded again. "Livy is lucky to have two such amazing dads."
"Yes she is," Kiersten said. "Now you just need to get started on giving her some siblings."
Leah laughed. "I'd love nothing more. Though I'd prefer to have Livy out of diapers first."
Kiersten snorted. "Amen."
Leah excused herself for a minute. The men had brought the jet skis in a few minutes before but Brooks hadn't reappeared yet. She wandered to the back of the boat and stopped short at the sight that met her eyes. Brooks sat on the deck cross-legged with the baby in his lap. He was pointing out the various interesting things on the shoreline. The baby didn't know what he was pointing out of course. But she gurgled contentedly, waving her little fists as he spoke to her. Brooks looked up and saw her watching them and beckoned her over with a smile. She sat down beside him, leaning in for a kiss.
"Sorry," she said. "I didn't want to interrupt. But you two looked like you were having so much fun, I couldn't resist."
He kissed her again. "Joining in the party, huh? What happened to my strict schoolteacher? I thought marriage wasn't supposed to be fun."
"Maybe you've changed my mind. I don't think marriage to you could be anything but fun."
"And that's a good thing?"
She kissed his cheek and wrapped her arms around him, cuddling into him. "Absolutely. I'm serious enough for the both of us. I definitely needed some fun in my life."
"I'm happy I can be of service."
She laughed and kissed his shoulder before reaching out to take Livy's little hand.
"And by the way," Brooks said, resting his cheek against her head, "you are never an interruption. I'm always happiest when I have both my girls at my side."
"Then I guess it's a good thing you'll always have us."
He wrapped his arm around her waist to draw her closer. "A very, very good thing."