Chapter 14
Sadie
Connor was lying on the sitting room floor. From my perch sitting cross-legged on the well-loved, comfy couch, I watched him coo over little Sammy with excitement. The tiny baby with his fluff of soft hair wriggled in his little bouncy cradle and gurgled at Connor with an infant’s bright happiness. My heart swelled with happiness and warmth welled up within me at the sight. I knew that Connor had not had much experience with babies, especially newborns, though he had taken to little Sammy immediately once my tiny nephew was placed in his arms at the hospital. A day later and we were all at the warm farmhouse, lounging happily around the cozy fireplace with a shiny, new baby for us all to fight over. Rose was sleeping soundly in the bedroom in the back of the house and Oliver dozed in the plush armchair close by us, his mouth open in deep sleep. Neither one of them had really slept a wink at the hospital with the baby, and Connor and I had been glad to give them a moment of respite before their world became one big sleepless night. My dad was off in town visiting friends and getting a couple of pizzas for us all to eat and there were gift bags and torn wrapping paper scattered all around from earlier in the morning when we had finally gotten a chance to open all of our presents. Connor proudly sported his new green Harlow’s Coffee hoodie and I wore the soft-knit scarf that my dad had given me, wrapped warm and cozy around my neck.
“I think he likes you more than me, Connor,” I told the man on the floor softly, laughing a little. I think I like you. I couldn’t stop smiling as I crawled down from the couch to sit cross-legged beside him, letting our knees brush warmly. The baby gurgled softly, and I reached out a finger for his chubby little fist to grab. I had loved tiny Sammy instantly, the first moment I saw him in my dad’s arms in the hospital.
“I never thought that babies could be so fun to watch,” Connor said, rubbing a gentle hand over the fluff of auburn hair atop little Sammy’s head. “I never knew anything about them at all, actually.”
Watching him touch the baby with such softness in his hands, with the warm glow of the crackling fireplace behind him, made me want to throw him onto the bed and have my way with him once more, this time without interruption. I cleared my throat quietly and forced myself to think pure thoughts, feeling my cheeks burn with my desire. I hoped the heat of the fireplace would mask the warm blush spreading over my skin. I nodded in answer, trying to keep my voice from shaking. “They’re new little humans. There’s bound to be some kind of excitement there I think. Until they start crying, that is.”
Connor blew out a breath of laughter, shaking his head. “I think that’s what parents are for.”
As if on cue, Sammy made a little noise of distress and then began to wail. Oliver was at his side in an instant, his auburn hair tousled and his eyes sleepy and low-lidded. He grabbed the baby gently and then stood up, bouncing little Sammy in his arms with all the prowess of a new father.
“I’m going to go back there with Rose, I think he needs a diaper change,” he said, turning swiftly to nearly jog down the hallway with his baby boy in his arms. “Thanks for watching him for us, it means a lot.”
“He’s a good dad, it seems,” Connor commented when Oliver was out of earshot, leaning back on his hands on the floor.
I stared at the length of his lean, pale body for a moment before I nodded, looking away and into the flickering fire. “I knew he would be. He’s always been a good man.”
“So, what should we do now? Your dad won’t be back with the food for a while,” Connor asked me, raising his eyebrows. His eyes were pale blue in the soft light and his mouth was turned up in a pleasant smile.
“Well, uh,” I said, thinking it over in my mind and getting excited as I thought about the stables outside. “We could take the horses for a ride. It stopped raining so we should be good. If you want to, I mean.”
“I definitely want to,” Connor sat up, looking excited at the prospect of horseback riding. “I took a few classes when I was a kid.”
I laughed a little, standing up. “You can ride Strawberry, she’s a sweet old girl and she won’t give you much trouble. She’s slow and she likes to walk.” Most of the other horses would be too jittery in the cold and I wanted Connor safe since he hadn’t had much experience.