Page 45 of Monster Daddies
Years will still add up, and our beautiful girl will age, while we will not.
But I can't think of that now, worry about that now.
For now, we will do what needs doing and have the time with her we need.
And just in time for those first few guests to come.
Chapter Nineteen
Avalon
I don't know how I'm still standing.
My knees feel like they're made of pudding, and my heart is thundering against my ribs so hard it hurts.
Jodrick cradles the book against his chest like it's some priceless treasure, and Viraat... Viraat is looking at me like I just handed him the whole damned world.
It’s too much.
I turn away under the weight of it all and pretend I’m busy fussing with Sparrow’s fur.
"I’m sorry," I whisper into the crook of Sparrow’s neck, even though I know they can hear me.
"For what, little one?" Jodrick’s voice is gentle but firm, like he already knows all the words piling up behind my teeth.
"For... asking too much," I say, squeezing my eyes shut. "For being selfish."
Heavy footsteps cross the nursery floor.
I don't have to look to know it's Viraat. His presence is a thundercloud, all pressure and heat and that strange tenderness he doesn't know how to hide anymore.
A calloused hand slides under my chin, tipping my face up.
"Listen, babygirl," he growls, voice rough as gravel, "if you ever apologize for giving us a chance to love you again, I'll put you over my knee so fast your head will spin."
My mouth falls open, a squeaky little protest dying before it can form.
"I mean it," Viraat rumbles. His thumb brushes across my jaw. It’s not a threat. It’s a promise, thick with the kind of fierce devotion that makes my chest hurt.
I reach for Jodrick with my free hand, needing him too. Needing both of them.
Without hesitation, he steps forward, pressing his big warm body against my side. Between the two of them, I feel like I might actually be able to breathe again.
"You don't ask too much, sweetheart," Jodrick murmurs, his voice a low rumble against my hair. "You don't ask enough. This isn't us giving up something, it's us gaining the most precious gift in the world."
"But your magic?—"
"Means nothing without you," he cuts in gently.
I believe them.
Ido.
But part of me still trembles with the weight of it.
I press my forehead against Viraat’s chest, letting the thud of his heartbeat ground me.
"Okay," I whisper. "Okay."
