Chapter 47
Chapter Forty-Seven
Hadley
A month has passed, and things have been good.
Easton has been away more than home, but we’ve been making up for it when he is around.
Every day off, we do something together with Tanner.
Last week, Penelope and Decker babysat, and we went out just the two of us, which was weird but really nice.
He keeps saying he’s going to take me out using his name around town, but I think we should save that for after the season is over.
I lie on Easton in my bed that has become ours for the most part.
We haven’t talked about officially changing our sleeping arrangements, but every time Easton is playing from home, he’s in this bed.
When he comes home late at night after being at an away series, it’s my bed he slips into, usually waking me with sweet kisses.
I roll over, and Easton comes with me, spooning me, his hand slipping under my cami and cupping my breast. He was gone for ten days, so I know that one time wasn’t going to cut it. I press my ass into his hard length, and he thrusts into me, his breath hot at my ear, his lips on my earlobe.
That’s all it takes for me to be game on.
His hand slips down my stomach, past the waistband of my shorts. I turn slightly in his arms, opening my legs, offering myself to him.
He moans, and his fingers slide through my wetness.
It doesn’t take much these days.
We don’t talk, and it feels more intimate that way. I crawl over him, ready to take his length in my mouth when the sound of Tanner screaming rings out from the monitor. My head shoots up, and I look at the screen. I squint and see that he’s standing at the crib railing.
I climb off Easton, and he groans. “Give him a few minutes.”
But I’m already off the bed. “He was a little sniffly today. I wonder if he’s getting sick.”
I’m at the door when Easton gets up, pulling on his shorts and following me.
“You can stay here. You got home late. I’ll take this one.” I put my hand on his bare chest, glancing at his still-hard cock under his shorts. “You can take care of that.”
Tanner screams again, and I don’t need the monitor to hear him this time.
“I’ll wait until you can take care of it. And I’m already up.”
“That’s apparent.”
I open the door, walking through the dark condo to Easton’s room. Tanner has tears falling down his cheeks, and his arms rise the minute he sees us.
“Oh, baby, what’s going on?” I pick him up, but he doesn’t relax in my arms like normal. He squirms and cries.
Easton touches his forehead. “He feels a little hot, and he definitely sounds congested.”
Tanner sees Easton and holds his arms out, so I hand him over.
He paces. “There’s a bin in the bathroom with stuff Penelope said was a must.”
I go to the bathroom while Tanner continues to scream. I hear Easton trying to calm him when I find a container with everything for a sick baby. There’s one of those sucky syringes, a thermometer, and I grab the baby medicine we use when his teething has been really bad.
“Do you think he’s cutting another tooth?” I ask when I return.
Easton’s sitting on the edge of the bed. Tanner is crawling on the bed but getting frustrated and falling face forward, crying, his little fists gripping the comforter. Easton puts his hand on Tanner’s back.
“Let’s take his temperature first.” I search in the bin for the thermometer.
Easton grabs Tanner and flips him over on the bed. “I feel like we’ve been lucky not to have had to do this yet.”
I take out the rectal thermometer and the jelly.
He undoes Tanner’s pajamas and gets his legs out, then opens his diaper, the entire time sighing and acting as though he’d rather take a one hundred mile per hour fastball to the thigh than take his son’s temperature in the butt.
“You got this,” I say, and he quirks an eyebrow at me.
I position Tanner stomach down on the bed and lie by him, face-to-face, placing kisses on his cheek and telling him it will be okay.
“Okay, here it goes.”
I look at Easton and nod, giving him a thumbs-up before pulling my phone out and starting the timer. He practically shuts his eyes as he inserts it, his head rocking back as he holds the thermometer in place and I start the timer.
As Easton looks as though he’s having an internal crisis, Tanner has found a loose thread on the comforter and is pulling at it with complete focus, seemingly unbothered.
The buzzer on my phone goes off, and Easton takes out the thermometer, taking it to the small lamp and reading the temperature.
“One hundred and two,” he says. “He’s definitely got a cold or something.”
“Nothing like it happening in the middle of the night.” I pick up Tanner and grab a diaper and wipe to get him dressed again.
“Do I call the pediatrician?” I hear in Easton’s voice that he wants to.
“Callie?” I suggest since she’s only upstairs. “Or Penelope.”
“Not Foster or Decker?” His eyebrows rise as though he’s implying something.
“Or them, I suppose.”
He laughs.
“I’m just saying, dads are parents too. I’m here with you right now, not hiding in the other room.”
“Technically, you’re the only parent here. I’m only the nanny.”
He tilts his head and gives me an expression to say that’s not true. “We both know you’re more to him than a nanny.”
“Oh really, what am I?”
“You’re Daddy’s girlfriend.” Easton laughs.
Tanner doesn’t like it, so he starts crying again.
I hand Tanner to Easton. “I’m going to look up some stuff online. I feel like the pediatrician is overkill. And I don’t want to wake up Foster and Decker since they just got back like you.”
Easton smirks, walking him around the room.
I shouldn’t be so hung up on what I’m labeled as in Tanner’s life, I know that. I decide to put that aside and look up what we can do to help him.
“Okay,” I say, scrolling. “It could be a common cold.”
“Good.”
“Or RSV, which is basically like a cold but worse.” I bring my fingers to my lips, biting my nails.
Easton’s head snaps up.
“Or hand, foot, and mouth.” My heart rate picks up speed. Maybe the pediatrician is the way to go.
“Hadley—”
“Or—” I scroll further. “Okay, we’re ignoring that one. That’s not it.”
“What was it?”
“Doesn’t matter. Do we have saline drops?”
“I don’t know. Were they in the bin?” I can hear the panic edging into Easton’s voice.
I wave him off. “Never mind, it says to try a steam shower, but first pain meds to get the fever down.” I grab the baby medicine, double-checking the dosage.
Once we get him to take the medicine from the syringe—which is a little too easy—we hope that works to calm him down as much as possible.
“Steam shower?” I suggest, never knowing when I might be overstepping since I’m not Tanner’s parent.
“Okay.” He hands Tanner to me and goes into the bathroom.
I rock Tanner, whispering to him that it’ll be okay, knowing full well nothing I say matters. He calms slightly, but then he coughs and cries again.
I hate seeing him so upset. It makes me want to cry.
I join Easton in the bathroom. The steam is building, so I sit on the bathroom floor and Easton shuts the door, sitting across from me.
The steam seems to be helping Tanner—his crying has dulled to a congested whimper, but I feel my eyelids drooping.
“Here, give him to me.” Easton takes him, and I stretch out my legs. “I’m not built to see him upset. I’m in a world of hurt as he gets older.”
“I feel like I’m in a world of hurt watching you with him.”
He waggles his eyebrows. “Sexy?”
“Shirtless with a baby on your chest who looks like he’s about to fall asleep? Very sexy.”
“I like the steam making you bead with sweat. I’m hoping your shirt becomes see-through soon.” His gaze zeros in on my chest. “Come here.”
He pats the spot next to him, and I slide across the tiled floor.
I lean my head on his shoulder and put a hand on Tanner’s back. “I’m glad you were here.”
“Me too. I would’ve still been trying to find the nerve to put the thermometer in his butt if you weren’t.”
I laugh and Tanner jolts a little before calming back down. “You would have done fine.”
“You would’ve too, but I think we’re better as a team, don’t you?” Easton rests his head on top of mine.
He’s right. We are a good team.
“We’re a family,” he says, and for a minute I freeze, my hand almost slipping off of Tanner.
Family. I’ve been running from that word my whole life, but it sounds like something I want when Easton says it.