This Man Confessed(189)

Her head rests on my bicep, her palm spread across both of our babies’ little rumps. “Does it have a happy-ever-after?” she asks quietly.

“It does.” I sigh.

“Can I listen, too?”

I smile and nestle my face between the babies’ heads again, taking another hit of that incredible baby scent. “There was this man,” I begin quietly. “Good-looking fucker, fit, toned, confident, strong… pretty much amazing at everything—”

“Except cooking,” she interrupts, turning her mouth onto my bicep and gently sinking her teeth in.

“Except cooking,” I agree, my smile widening. “He was a little lost when she found him. She was his angel.” Her face turns up to me and our eyes lock as she reaches up to kiss me. “This man was quite taken by the angel,” I say against her lips, feeling her smile. She cuddles back into my side on a sigh and I resume my own nuzzle between my babies’ heads. “Every time she was near, this funny feeling came over him and he had no idea what to make of it. It kind of sent him a little crazy.”

She hums quietly and begins stroking my forearm.

“She was too beautiful for words,” I whisper. “And this man had seen some beautiful women in his time.” I smile when she nudges me, but she doesn’t say anything. “But this woman was something else. He didn’t think she could be real, but when he looked into her eyes, something happened.”

“What happened?” she asks quietly, snuggling closer, warming me further.

“His heart started beating again.” I know she knows this, but her tender kiss on my arm confirms she likes hearing the words. “For the first time in forever, he felt alive.” Jacob stirs, rubbing his nose into my bare chest on a tiny whimper.

Ava’s palm shifts to his back and starts circling softly. It settles him immediately. “Shhhh,” she breathes. The sight of her natural way with them only enhances my constant sense of bliss.

I watch my three angels settle again and take a long pull of breath. “He knew she wanted him,” I say on a steady exhale.

“How?”

“Because those eyes told him so. Every time he looked into them, he saw salvation for him and addiction for her.”

“She’s still addicted to him,” she proclaims, making me smile.

“I know. She couldn’t resist him, and that was the only hope he had. He made it his mission objective to turn that addiction into need and if he could do that, then he hoped that need would turn into…love. He wanted to look after her forever. Nothing and no one existed anymore—just her and the incredible feelings they shared. She smiled and set his heart alight. She spoke and made his ears ring with pleasure. She touched him and he would stop breathing for a few moments before his heart sped up some more. She became his everything.”

“Those feelings are still incredible,” Ava murmurs, sounding sleepy.

“It’s still bliss, baby. Total gratification. Absolute, complete, earth-shifting, universe-shaking love.” I drop my gaze down to my perfect babies and sigh, my eyes brimming with tears of pure, powerful love. “And now we get to share that love with these two little people and live happily ever after.”





Five Years Later



Fuck me, how long have I got to endure my home being bombarded and my wife and babies being hogged? Too fucking long, that’s how long. I should snatch their gifts and throw them a piece of cake before shutting the door in their face. I smile on the inside, picturing Elizabeth’s face if I did exactly that. This is going to be painful, and to rub salt into my moody wounds, we have school friends this year, too. And their mothers—lots of women, who have taken Ava up on her offer to stay, if they would like to. And, of course, they would like to.

My stroppy feet are pounding down the staircase of our lovely little Manor, as I button up my shirt and chew my lip, thinking of any excuse to avoid this. I come up with nothing. My babies are five years old today, and not even Daddy’s amazing negotiation tactics will convince them that a party is a bad idea—not now that they have their own minds. I’ve tried for the last four years and fallen flat on my face, but only because my beautiful wife always intervened on their behalf. I know this year, though, if I got them alone, I could break them down with something. Skiing again, perhaps?

Hitting the bottom of the stairs, I take a quick glimpse in the mirror and smile. I get better looking every day. I’ve still got it, and she still can’t resist me. Life is fucking good.

“Daddy!”

I spin around, and my hard muscles liquefy as I watch my baby boy running down the stairs, his dark blond hair a tousled mess around his handsome little face. “Hey, birthday boy.” His greens sparkle as he launches himself at me, the good-looking little fucker. “Whoa!” I laugh as he slams into me, crawling up my body.