Chapter 33
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Jaxon stared down at the woman in his arms, her unruly dark waves tossed riotously over the pillow beside him. A few strands still clung to her face, and he brushed them away with his thumb. Her lashes fluttered, but her breathing never changed, and he knew she was asleep.
He tucked her against him as she snuggled close, not wanting an inch of space between them.
He loved watching her, loved every little sound she made.
He reached over to the nightstand and flipped off the baby monitor that rested beside the clock.
He was a light sleeper from his years in the service; as soon as Jaclyn cried out, he’d be up.
He wanted Adalyn to relax and get some sleep.
The stress from the shop was weighing on her, he could tell.
Adalyn worked too hard, and he wanted to help in whatever way he could.
Closing his eyes, he let his thoughts drift for a moment, inhaling the sweet scent of the woman next to him before finally falling asleep. Not long after, his eyes flew open, and he immediately took stock of his surroundings, trying to determine what had awakened him.
After a moment of silence, a stream of high-pitched chatter floated from Jaclyn’s room. A smile curved his face, and he glanced at the clock. With any luck, Adalyn would sleep for another hour or two before she had to get ready for work.
He carefully extracted himself from her lithe body, one lean leg wrapped around his like a vine. A tiny whimper left her mouth, and he tucked the covers around her. At the feeling of security, she immediately snuggled back in and dropped off to sleep again.
Yanking on the pants he’d worn last night, he crept from the room and closed the door behind him before making his way down the hall to Jaclyn’s room. She stood by the rail of her crib, talking softly to herself and bouncing on the squishy mattress.
“Hey, baby girl.”
She peered up at him over the railing, a trace of confusion in her eyes. “Mama?”
Her question sent a little pang of regret through his heart. He hated that he hadn’t been there for her—for either of them—when they needed him most. He hated that Jaclyn still looked at him sometimes like she wasn’t quite sure what to make of him, like she didn’t recognize him or trust him.
“Mama’s sleeping. Come to Daddy?”
He held his arms out and waited for her to come to him.
Though he’d spent most every night over the past week with her, she still hadn’t opened up completely.
When Adalyn was around, Jaclyn seemed to sense that everything was okay.
But she was reserved when it was just the two of them, like she was afraid Adalyn wouldn’t come back.
Maybe it was exactly as Adalyn said; Jaclyn had never been around men. They were big, scary, hairy creatures to be feared. He’d do anything to take that look of concern off her face.
His heart swelled as she reached for him, and he scooped her into his arms. Carrying her over to the changing table, he spoke to her while he changed and dressed her. “You hungry? Maybe we should make breakfast for mommy.”
She looked up at him hopefully as he tossed her soiled diaper in the pail and picked her up. “Cookie?”
He laughed and cuddled her close, brushing his nose over hers. “Good try. No cookies. Eggs?”
Together they strolled downstairs, and he whipped up some scrambled eggs while Jaclyn watched from her high chair nearby. She attacked the eggs with gusto when he set them on her tray, though he was pretty sure more ended up on the floor than in her mouth.
Once he had everything cleaned up and had prepared a plate for Adalyn, he picked Jaclyn up from her high chair and scooped up the plate. “Nothing like breakfast in bed. Right, sugar?”
“Bed,” she mimicked.
“That’s right.” A grin split his face. Adalyn hated not being in control, but he hoped she’d at least appreciate the gesture.
Cracking open her bedroom door, he spied her still curled up in a ball in the middle of the bed. Setting the plate on the nightstand, he used his free hand to part the curtains a bit and let the early morning sunshine spill through.
Settling on the edge of the bed, he set Jaclyn down and ran a hand over Adalyn’s dark locks. “Hey, beautiful. Time to wake up.”
Sleepy gray eyes peeked open as Jaclyn crawled on top of her. Extracting her arms from the confines of the covers, Adalyn pulled Jaclyn into a hug. “Morning.”
Her voice was rough with sleep but still the sweetest thing he’d ever heard. “Morning. I brought you some eggs and toast.”
Her eyes widened in surprise. “You made me breakfast?”
Jaclyn pulled free of Adalyn’s hold and crawled over to lay her head on the pillow he’d vacated barely an hour ago, then closed her eyes and pretended to sleep.
“We made you breakfast,” he corrected, holding up the piece of mangled toast Jaclyn had snatched from the plate on the way upstairs.
Adalyn let out a laugh, the soft, sweet sound burrowing deep into his heart. Unable to stop himself, he dropped his head and kissed her. Off guard, she hesitated for a fraction of a second before responding, her lips moving against his.
Threading his fingers through her long locks, he angled her head up to his. “You’re so lucky our daughter is in here with us right now.”
“I’ll make it up to you later.”
He tightened his hold on her hair and took her mouth in another hard kiss. “Bet you will.”
He nipped her bottom lip before letting her go and wrangling a wiggling Jaclyn with one arm. “Come here, princess. The sooner Mama goes to work, the sooner she can come home. And the sooner I can get her back under me.”
He shot Adalyn a wicked smile, allowing his gaze to peruse the parts of her exposed by the sheet that had fallen down. “I want to take you on a date.”
She blinked up at him. “Um. Okay.”
“I know it sounds dumb…” he started, then trailed off. What could he say? This was probably the dumbest idea he’d ever had. They were doing everything backwards. He should have done this two years ago; he should have done a lot of things differently.
“No.” Adalyn pushed to a sitting position and brushed the hair from her eyes. “I mean yes. To the date. I… I’d like that.”
Hope zinged through his chest like a pinball machine. He’d skipped this part last time—the part where he got to know every little thing about her, fall in love with her one detail at a time. He admired her intelligence and drive, and he knew she was a shrewd businesswoman.
But he loved this side of her—the soft, sweet woman, the mother of his child. He wanted more of this. He didn’t care what it took to win her over—he was going to do it. “What about tonight? Think Wendy will watch Jaclyn?”
“I’m not sure.”
“I’ll take care of it. You eat and get ready.”
Adalyn’s smile turned wicked. “I’m ready now.”
He pointed at her as he shifted Jaclyn to his hip. “Don’t start something you can’t finish.”
Her lips turned down in a pout and she slipped from the bed, pulling the sheet with her. “But it’s so much fun.”
With two strides, he closed the distance between them and fisted his hand in the fabric of the sheet, then yanked her to him. “You better get out of here while you still can. I’m sure Wendy would be more than happy to take Jaclyn for a bit so I can have my wife all to myself.”
Adalyn inhaled sharply, but he couldn’t tell if she was turned on or appalled at the fact that he’d called her his wife.
That single word stood out in his mind. Despite everything good that had unfolded between them over the past week and a half, he still felt a black cloud hovering over them.
Technically they were still married. But was that what Adalyn wanted?
Or was he just some fling until she found someone better?
They hadn’t talked about it at all, like the situation would just disappear if they ignored it.
He could leave well enough alone. He could pretend that they were both content to stay this way.
But he needed to know. He needed to hear it from her lips that she wanted him in her life—as both her husband and father to their daughter.
He didn’t know what he’d say if she still wanted the divorce. Could he convince her otherwise?
He knew that whatever connection had been between them two years ago was still there.
He’d felt something that first night. No, it hadn’t been love, but it had definitely been lust. And appreciation.
And chemistry—they had that in spades. Every time they touched it was like lighting a torch drenched in kerosene.
She made him feel things he’d only ever heard about. He wasn’t into all the gushy, romantic stuff that the movies talked about, but he did know one thing—whatever Adalyn and he had was different. He didn’t know if it would carry them the distance, but he knew for sure it was worth exploring.
Adalyn didn’t respond, and he spoke quickly to cover his faux pas. “Dinner and a movie. Then we’ll see where the night leads.”
She gave a little nod, and he slipped his hand up to cup the back of her head. He stared into her eyes for a long moment before dropping one last kiss on her full lips. Without another word, he left the room, praying he hadn’t messed everything up.