Page 79 of Secret Bratva Baby
As soon as Lily is out of the car, she bolts straight towards the water.
“This child!” I huff, running after her.
She’s at that age where she has to test my patience on everything. It’s funny but exhausting. And I’m doing my best to teach her manners and morals while also letting her experience things freely and safely.
I catch up with her and pull her to a stop, turning her to face me. She jumps up and down impatiently.
“Remember what Mommy told you?” I ask her.
She looks blank.
“The water is not safe to go in alone. You must wait for Mommy or Daddy.” My heart skips a beat. It’s the first time I’ve called himDaddyto her.
She frowns, but clearly this information isn’t important to her—not when the ocean is right there. I breathe a sigh of relief. That was close.
I meant to have that conversation with her in a calm and controlled environment.
I let her go and stand up. “Are you going to wait?”
“Come swim, Mommy,” she huffs, stomping her feet in the sand.
“When did you become such a little monster?” I ask, scooping her into my arms.
Luka arrives next to us. “I’ll set up, go take her for a swim.”
“Thank you,” I smile. It’s amazing having a second parent to help.
Don’t get used to it.
I strip out of my dress, leaving it on the sand next to the spot Luka chose, then I run with Lily into the water.
I’ve already smothered her in sunblock, and she’s wearing her long-sleeve swimsuit.
She leaps without any hesitation at all into a big wave.
The wave knocks her off her feet, and I lift her out of the water in panic.
The child is laughing. She’s ecstatic.
“Oh my goodness, you really are Luka’s kid,” I mutter to myself, setting her down again and watching her do the exact same thing.
I sit in the shallow waves, nearby, watching her take on the ocean as though she were fighting dragons and winning.
Luka sits down next to me. The water lapped around him.
He lets out a deep breath and gazes out over the ocean.
“This is what life is about, isn’t it?”
“Nature? The ocean making you feel small to put your life into perspective?”
“No,” he chuckles. “I meant family. Spending time with your kid, watching them enjoy the magic of life.”
A smile spreads over my face.No matter what happens, Lily will always have an amazing father.
Lily comes running up to us with something red in her hands. The moment I realize it’s a really big crab, his long legs flailing about as he tries to escape her, I scream and leap up, terrified she’s going to throw it on me.
Luka is laughing so hard he can’t get up, and Lily veers to change direction, running straight towards him.
