“Oh, okay. Did you want to have dinner after he goes to sleep?”
I do. I really do. But I don’t. “No, thank you. I’ve had a long day. I’ll just turn in.”
Aiden seemed puzzled, but didn’t argue. “Okay.”
Sarah retrieved Oliver’s bottle and left Aiden to his own devices after a brief overview of what to do. Since Oliver’s nap had been cut short that day, she was sure he’d fall asleep quickly. Apparently, exactly that had happened, since she didn’t hear another peep for hours. She stayed in her room, tucked under the covers, trying to banish thoughts of Aiden from her head.
Deep in the middle of the night, Sarah woke to the sound of Oliver’s cries. They caused her physical pain, made worse by the fact that she couldn’t go to him. Aiden had to learn how to deal with it. The baby let out another screech and Sarah rolled onto her side, squinting at the alarm clock on the bedside table. Two forty-three.
This was normal. No big emergency. Oliver cried again and her instinct told her to go to him, and if she were honest, there was sympathy for Aiden, too. He’d been through a lot today and had risen to the occasion. She sat up, dangling her feet off the edge of the bed, listening. There was quiet. She was just about to lie back down when another cry came.
As did a knock on the door. “Sarah? Are you up?”
Hearing Aiden’s voice in the middle of the night did something funny to her. “Yes. Need some help?”
Oliver wailed again.
“Yeah. If that’s okay.”
“Two secs.” Sarah climbed out of bed and opened the door. There stood a nearly naked Aiden, wearing only a pair of gray boxer briefs, and a red-eyed Oliver. The baby lunged for her and Sarah took him, bouncing him in her arms to comfort him. “What’s wrong, buddy? Why are we giving Daddy such a hard time on his first night?”
Aiden walked in and sat down on the edge of her bed, running his hands through his hair. “I thought I was in good shape. He started to get fussy and then he started to cry, so I got up and changed his diaper. He was pretty wet.”
Sarah nodded, pacing back and forth, partly to comfort Oliver, and partly to distract herself from the vision of Aiden. “Good.”
“He didn’t want a bottle.”
“Did you try his pacifier?”
“I couldn’t find that thing. I think it’s somewhere in the bed.”
“That might help. Let’s go look.”
She followed Aiden down the hall into his bedroom, where he flipped on one of the bedside lamps. His daddy instincts were already becoming attuned. Most first-time parents would’ve flipped on the overhead light. She bounced Oliver up and down while Aiden kneeled down on the bed and began rummaging through the sheets.
“Ha. Found it.” Aiden stood, victorious, and brought his finding to Oliver. The baby grabbed the pacifier with his hand and plugged it right into his mouth. “So that’s what he wanted.”
“Apparently.”
Aiden blew out a breath. “I have a lot to learn. But thanks for your help.” He reached for Oliver, but the baby was having none of that, clinging to Sarah and whimpering. “He wants you. Maybe you should take him for the rest of the night.”
“Oh no. You have a way bigger bed than I do. And you two are supposed to be bonding, anyway.”
“So sleep in my bed with us. I’m too tired to argue.”
“That hardly seems appropriate.”
“Why? We’re going to have a baby between us. You’ll have to trust me when I say that nothing will happen, however tempting you might be, Sarah Daltrey.”
Tempting? Yeah, right.
“And there’ll be plenty of room. You’re practically a miniature human being.”
“I’m not miniature.”
“Like I said, too tired to argue. Just get in the bed. Please.”
“Fine. But tonight only.”
“I won’t need to have you in my bed tomorrow night. There’ll be a crib.”
Well, that certainly solved that, didn’t it? She walked around to the other side of the bed, and climbed in under the covers. Even with the mattress directly on the floor, she’d never been on a more comfortable bed in her entire life. Oliver must’ve been really unhappy to have had a hard time sleeping.
Aiden turned out the light and joined them, lying on his side, facing her and Oliver. The baby relaxed and let go of his iron grip on her shoulder, settling in on his back between them. The quiet was thick and nearly unbearable. She was too keenly aware that she was in bed with Aiden and that Aiden was aware of her and that Aiden was still awake. It was going to take forever to fall asleep.
“Sarah,” Aiden whispered.