Chapter 25
Chapter twenty-five
Greyson
No-go zone for oversized loads.
When we get home, Emma puts a sleeping Gracie in her crib as I watch her bend over and place a featherlike kiss to Gracie’s forehead, tracing the side of her face with a finger.
A smile worth millions is etched on Emma’s beautiful lips while peering down at my daughter, as if she’s her entire world.
A tightness forms around my heart, and my throat constricts as I gaze at them. She may not biologically be Gracie’s mom, but in my eyes and anyone who sees, she is.
Emma finally turns my way and wanders over. The smile that lights her face when she sees me leaning against the doorframe watching her takes my breath away. She’s so fucking beautiful.
She comes to my side, leaning her body against mine and resting her head on my shoulder, looking back toward our little girl.
“I love her, Greyson. I love her so much. How do people feel this way all the time? It’s like my heart gets this aching feeling every time I look at her, every time I hear her angelic laugh. ”
Her eyes take on this glassy effect filled with emotions.
“And then when she’s asleep or too quiet for longer than usual, I get so worried.
Or when we have her babysat to have alone time, it’s like I can’t shut my brain off.
All I want to do is have her in my arms again because I miss her too much. ”
“I know, Bunny. I get it.” Because it’s how I feel about you, too. “Come with me, I have one more gift for you.” I grab her hand and pull her with me down the stairs.
“Ooh, is it sex? Because I really like that kind of gift. Maybe some role-play sex where you pretend to be a big bad wolf about to devour the poor innocent little bunny? But then shit turns kinky and you decide to fuck her before eating her?” she whispers quickly, getting more and more excited as the words pour out of her.
I stop abruptly at the bottom of the staircase and turn to face her. “Do these scenarios just come to you, or is this one specific fantasy you’ve thought about?” I ask while chuckling.
“Well, most just come to me in the moment, but this one has been running through my mind for a little while now.” She shrugs; she has no shame in admitting one of her many strange fantasies. “So is that my gift?” She smiles brightly, hope shining in her vibrant greens.
“I’m afraid not.” But I guess we’ll have to make that happen sometime soon.
She pouts as if I just told her we weren’t going to Disneyland after promising for months. Damn, she really wants that specific role-play to happen.
“I promise you’ll like this gift, too. Then we can revisit this fantasy of yours.”
“Yay! You are the best boyfriend ever.” She throws her arms around my neck and squeezes me to her. Sober Emma is already a little intense. Drunk Emma is a whole other story.
“So because I accept to perform your strange requests, that makes me the best boyfriend ever?” I question, laughing into her hair.
“Oh, shush. You like them just as much as I do. Don’t act innocent.” She pulls away and pecks my lips. “So where’s my gift?”
Right, gift. Forgot about that for a sec. I lower slightly, grabbing the back of her thighs and lifting her into my arms, her own still hanging loosely around my neck as she giggles. I carry her over to the couch and drop her onto it in a very inelegant manner.
She gapes at me in shock. “Greyson! We were having a moment here, and then you just toss me to the couch? You aren’t winning any points right now. May I remind you it’s my birthday and you are supposed to treat me like a queen? Not Cinderella.”
I laugh at how dramatic she’s being. “And may I remind you that Cinderella becomes a queen? By the way, it’s past midnight, so it’s not technically your birthday anymore.” I bop her nose, then walk over to the TV, retrieving the gift I had hidden there.
“Oh, you are definitely not winning any points right now… What the hell, Greyson? First you hide condoms there, now presents? I’m gonna have to start checking that spot more often. Clearly it’s where you hide everything.”
I come back and settle on the couch beside her. When she notices the square box in my hands, she sits up straight, ripping it from my grip before I have time to hand it over. Jesus, she’s eager. She removes the wrapping quickly and lifts the top of the box.
Her brows furrow as she pulls out a folded map with her perfectly manicured hand. She begins to unfold it and examines the dots and lines I’ve drawn on it. “Greyson? I don’t understand.”
“The day after tomorrow, we’ll be leaving first thing in the morning to visit every one of those twenty-eight places. Then we’ll spend the night in a hotel and come back home by mid-afternoon,” I inform her, the smile on my face growing as her confusion deepens.
“Okay… but what are these places?” She traces her finger over the dotted line I’ve made, stopping for a second at each of the twenty-eight red dots.
“They’re thrift shops,” I say softly.
Her head whips up my way, emotions flicking through her eyes.
“I want you to pick out a silly mug from every single one of them. You’ve already started our tradition with the mugs; I thought it would be nice to incorporate your grandfather’s also.” I shift in my seat to face her and bring my hand up, cupping her cheek as I wipe the tear slipping down it.
“Oh, Wolf…” She throws herself at me, making the box and map drop to the floor while my body topples backwards, laying us down on the couch. She takes my lips in a fiery kiss, passion flowing through us as our tongues collide.
She pulls away and looks deep into my eyes while I reach up and tuck her hair behind her ear. “I’m crazy about you, Bunny.”
“I’m crazy about you, too,” she whispers back.
I don’t know why I didn’t tell her I loved her. It’s what I meant to say, yet that’s not what came out. I’m about to correct myself, about to finally say those three words that constantly run through my mind when I think of her, but she speaks up before I get the chance to.
“Did you make sure the hotel had a crib for Gracie? Or will we need to bring the portable playpen? We could always just lay her down between us like when she was sick,” she spurts out rapidly, her mind working a million miles a minute.
“Gracie won’t be coming with us. Morgan and Clay are going to stay over and watch her while we’re gone.”
Her eyes widen, and she pushes up, straddling me. “She’s staying here?”
I don’t understand the tone she’s using. It makes me think of the one my mother uses when I’ve done something wrong but haven’t noticed it yet, where she’ll repeat everything I say in the form of a question until I catch on.
“Yes…” I say cautiously. “I promised you we’d spend some time alone when I got back, and we haven’t yet.”
“But that’s a long time away from her…”
I push up into a sitting position as well, feeling like we’re having a very serious conversation when it shouldn’t be such a big deal. “She spent the night with Mira and John for Valentine’s Day. How is this any different?” I ask, frowning.
“That’s not the same thing. We had her during the day and picked her up the very next morning. Now we would be leaving her for over twenty-four hours. She’s never been without the both of us for that long.” She takes on this defensive voice.
I’m so confused, what’s going on? How did we go from almost saying ‘I love you’ to arguing over something that shouldn’t be such a big issue?
“Well, what do you want me to do, Em?! Do you want me to cancel our reservation, and we’ll just stay home?” My voice rises as irritation spreads through me. All I fucking wanted was some time alone with my girlfriend, and now she’s making me feel guilty for wanting that.
“No, that’s not what I want!” Now she’s getting mad too, her body visibly going stiff.
“Then what the hell do you want?! I’m so fucking confused right now, Emma.
I don’t get why you’re mad? I just wanted us to spend the night together and do something special for your birthday.
But now I feel like a shitty father for leaving my daughter for a day and a half.
So thank you for that.” My heart pounds in my chest as I breathe heavily.
I’m aggravated and annoyed. I just want to go to bed and have this conversation done with.
Her features soften as her eyes take on a little gloss, hurt manifesting through them.
Shit. I really have a way with words. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you feel that way.
It’s just that one night was already hard, a whole day is gonna drive me crazy.
But I’m just being a mother hen. I’ll be fine, everything will be fine. I want us to do this.”
I pull her to my chest, one hand behind her head, the other around her waist. “I’m sorry, too.
I didn’t mean to get angry with you,” I whisper against her hair before kissing it and letting out a sigh when I feel her body melting against mine.
“Would it make you feel better if I told Morgan to send you pictures and videos every hour? And made her video call us before Gracie’s bedtime so that we can wish her goodnight? ”
Her arms circle my torso as she squeezes hard. “Oh, yes! That would be perfect! See? I knew you were the bestest boyfriend.”
“Woman, you have the strangest mood swings,” I say in a strangled voice. For a skinny woman, she has one hell of a death grip. “And here I thought Cecilia was scary pregnant; you’d take it to a whole new level,” I chuckle.
She pulls back instantly, holding me at arm’s length as she stares into my eyes. “Why are you thinking about me pregnant, Greyson?”
Holy shit… why did I just think of her pregnant? I blink a few times, unsure how to answer this particular question. Bunny and I are nowhere close to thinking about kids. Hell, we already have one in the picture. No need for more. At least not yet.
“Umm… I… I’m… not?” Why am I saying it in the form of a question!?