Total pages in book: 151
Estimated words: 139803 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 699(@200wpm)___ 559(@250wpm)___ 466(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 139803 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 699(@200wpm)___ 559(@250wpm)___ 466(@300wpm)
“No, sweetie.” I applied some Neosporin to her cuts. “They’re just talking to him. Your brother is a lot like Daddy Julian, and he has a lot of pent-up feelings. That’s all.”
Axel stepped into the bathroom, and he grinned at his little girl. She might have looked like me, but those eyes and her hair were all her father. “Daddy!” she squealed.
He laughed and lifted her off the counter before he leaned down and softly kissed me. “Bubba wants to talk to you,” he told her as he carried her out of the bathroom and back outside.
I followed, curious as to what Holden wanted to say to Lana. He was always stubborn about apologizing; hell, he was stubborn about almost everything. But Julian always had a way with him. Maybe it was because they were so similar.
Holden hugged Lana once Axel set her on her feet. “I’m sorry for always being so mean,” he told her.
Lana hugged him back. “It’s okay, Bubba,” she told him, pressing a kiss to his cheek.
“I’ll be nicer from now on; I promise.”
Julian wrapped an arm around my waist, and Axel grabbed my hand in his. Lana looked up at him with a bright smile that reminded me so much of her father that it always made my heart swell. “You mean it?”
Holden nodded. “Yep. Daddy A and J said that you’re a goddess—like Mommy. And Goddesses are special.”
Tears flooded my eyes, and I covered my mouth with my hand. Axel tugged me into his arms. “Easy, sweet girl,” he soothed.
“You guys are so good with him,” I croaked.
“We love him, baby girl,” Julian softly reminded me. “He just needs some guidance; that’s all.”
They were giving both of my kids what I’d never had—father figures and love. So, so much love.
I rested my hand on my belly. “I love you both so much.”
Axel pressed his lips to my hair. “And we love you, sweet girl, and we love them just as much. Don’t forget that.”
Julian pressed his lips to mine as he rubbed my belly. “And we will love our little one that you’re carrying just as much as we love them,” he assured me.
“You guys are perfect.” My voice cracked on several words.
Julian grinned. “Only for you, baby girl.” He looked at Axel. “Go take care of our woman. I’ve got the kids.”
Axel grinned before he swept me up into his arms. “You never have to tell me twice, bro.”
Julian shot me a wink before he turned to the kids. Axel carried me into the house, and his lips covered mine as soon as we were out of sight of the kids.
* * *
✶ ✶ ✶
* * *
Alli burst through the front door, a wide grin on her face with her husband, Christian, right behind her. Axel and Julian both turned to face her. “Alli, I love you and all, but you really need to learn to knock,” Axel told her, but there was a teasing smile on his lips.
She only shrugged at him before she beamed at me. “I passed!” she squealed.
“Oh, my God!” I yelled. I rushed toward her and hugged her. “I’m so proud of you, Alli!” I beamed.
Alli had gone to school to become a pharmacist, and today, she’d had her board exams. She had been studying hardcore, basically nonstop. Poor Christian and Caiden had picked up all the slack for her so she could dedicate all her spare time to studying, but he never once complained.
And her hard work and extra stress had finally paid off.
Axel swept his little sister up into a hug. “So proud of you, sis. I always knew you could do it.”
She laughed. “I’m getting hired on at the hospital I did my last externship with,” she told us.
Julian grinned at her. “Congratulations, darlin’. Always knew you were a smart cookie.”
I slapped his abs. Holden and Lana ran into the kitchen, yelling Auntie Alli at the top of their lungs. They catapulted into her, and since she wasn’t expecting it, she landed hard on her ass on the floor. Axel barked out a laugh and grinned at her. “Payback for all the times you did it to me,” he teased her.
She rolled her eyes. “Kiss my ass, Axel.” She swept Holden and Lana up into her arms. “Have you two been good?” she asked them.
Holden shook his head. “I was mean to Lana.” Alli gave him a disapproving look. “But I apologized.”
Alli smiled at him. “Remember to always own up to your mistakes,” she told him as she ruffled his hair. “That will make you into a stronger man than trying to be tough ever will.”
Julian’s phone went off. He grumbled under his breath about his annoying agent before he pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “I have to take this.”
“Tell Lincoln I said hi,” I told him.