Page 25 of Waiting for Her

Once we’re done, I take all the dishes and place them in the sink and make sure to wipe up the table because if Addison is anything, she is messy. Before the nerves get the better of me, I take Addison’s hand in mine and lead her down the hall once more.

“Please tell me you don’t want me to go up those stairs again. Did you not hear me earlier?” she whines, the adorable pleading look in her eyes causing my nerves to shoot through the roof.

“I did, so you better hold on,” I say before picking her up bride style, hauling both of us up the stairs.

I would never admit this in a thousand years, but carrying her, the baby, and myself up those stairs was a lot harder than I expected, but the look of pure joy on her face when I set her down in front of the spare room is enough to make me do it a thousand times over, no matter how much it hurts my back.

“What are we doing up here?” Her eyes are sparkling with interest and I smile.

I turn my back so it’s up against the door and move Addison so she’s directly in front of me.

“Max, what are you doing?” she wonders, her eyes looking from side to side as I try to hold in my excitement.

“I have a surprise for you.”

To say her eyes light up is an understatement. The smile that graces her gorgeous face is enough to make my heart stop in my chest.

“I’ve been working on this since I moved in here, so if you want to change anything, you have to let me know, okay?”

Her head tilts, confusion clouding her gaze as I take her hand in mine and turn the doorknob, opening the door.

“Max…” she says breathlessly. Her eyes are taking in every detail of the room and I take a moment to try and picture this room through her eyes. “What have you done?” The awe in her eyes is enough to calm my racing heart. “You finished the nursery?”

I nod, her face still a picture of shock, her eyes still flickering over every small detail.

“I wanted to make sure you had everything you wanted. Kate and Hannah helped, of course. Drew tried, but he hated every second, although he did build the crib.”

I motion to the gray distressed-wood crib that sits along the far wall. Addison’s eyes follow mine as she takes in every detail from the light-gray-painted walls to the spattering of yellow throughout the room.

“How…” she whispers, seeing the rocking chair in the corner and the changing table beside her. “How did you know all of this? When we went shopping, I only showed you the essentials I needed… I never showed you everything…”

Fair question and I smile, basking in her happiness.

“Kate found your Pinterest board and showed it to me.” I still have no idea what the fuck it was, but it helped.

Addison laughs, the tears streaming down her face as she turns to face me.

“Do you like it?”

My stomach almost plummets when she doesn’t answer right away, but when her head gives a slight nod as she walks toward me, I breathe a sigh of relief.

“It’s perfect,” she whispers against my lips before kissing me softly. “You’re perfect.”

That’s where she’s wrong, but for her, I would try and live up to that statement tenfold.

“Come sit with me?” I ask, taking her hand and heading toward the rocking chair. After I sit, I motion for her to get on my lap, but she shakes her head. “Baby, we’ve talked about that. You are not too heavy and you will sit down right the fuck now.” I mock glare at her until she smiles, relenting as she sits on top of me.

“Max?” she asks softly as I wrap my arms around her, leaning her against my chest and slowly rocking us back and forth.

I don’t answer right away, just loving the feeling of her in my arms, knowing I’m currently holding the two most important things in my life.

“Max?” Addison’s voice is tired as I continue to rock us.

“Do you know how much I love you?”

Her sigh is the only answer I get as her head rests on my shoulder and I pull her closer.

“Do you know how much I love this little bean in here?” I ask, rubbing her stomach gently and laughing when I feel a kick under my palm.

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