She’s finished eating, so I hand her over so he can burp her. She’s wearing herI’ve got the best daddy in the worldonesie that I secretly bought a few weeks ago, and the smile Nikolai had given when he’d first seen her in it was the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. I watch him hold our daughter against his chest, stepping into the role of daddy like it was always meant to be. She looks so small against his broad chest, and the way she immediately snuggles into him with a deep sigh, sensing that he’s her daddy and that she’s in the safest place in the world makes my heart swell with happiness. I watch my family, knowing that as long as I have them, then I have everything. Nikolai leans down and kisses Katya’s head before giving me a wink that, despite having just given birth a day ago, makes my heart skip a beat. He still has that effect on me. I’m guessing he always will.
I smile back and thread my fingers through his. I may not have planned on getting married and becoming a mother right before I’m about to turn twenty-two, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Knowing I have so many years ahead of me to spend with the two of them fills me with such joy that it takes my breath away. I’m more than ready to see where else our lives take us and to enjoy every second of this amazing ride.
Epilogue
Moira
Three Months Later
The soft sounds of Katya cooing draw me across the hall to her nursery. I’m not at all surprised to find that Nikolai’s beat me to it and is already holding our daughter with a big, adorable grin on his face as he looks down at her. I lean against the doorframe, watching him rock our daughter back to sleep, looking so impossibly sexy that I have to remind myself that this isn’t just wishful thinking. This is actually my life now, and this beautiful man is my husband.
“Can you believe she’s already three months old?” he asks, looking over at me with a smile.
I laugh and walk over. “I should’ve known I couldn’t sneak up on you.”
He runs his eyes over me in a predatory look that always makes my heart race and my cheeks blush. He notices and smiles even bigger when he sees it.
“I always know where you are.”
I stand behind the rocker and rest my chin on his shoulder, pressing the side of my face to his. Resting one hand on his chest, I bring the other to Katya’s cheek. Her big, green eyes lock on mine before she gives a big gummy smile.
Nikolai laughs and pulls her baby blanket back up to cover her legs. She’s wearing another onesie, this one saysI love my daddyin Russian, and I’m beginning to see a definite theme here. No wonder he always volunteers to get her dressed in the morning.
“I’m on to your game,” I say, running my finger over her onesie. “You’re not fooling me with the Russian. You’ve taught me enough for me to be able to read that.”
He turns his head and tries to give me an innocent expression that I immediately see through. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Uh-huh,” I say with a laugh.
The truth is I think it’s adorable how Katya has him so completely wrapped around her finger. I would’ve given anything for my dad to look at me just once like Kolya constantly looks at her. She doesn’t realize how lucky she is yet, but one day she will. We both watch as she sucks on her pacifier and slowly drifts back to sleep. Once he lays her in the crib and we turn the baby monitor on before softly shutting the door, he turns to me and gives me the kind of look that makes me feel like I’m already naked.
“It’s been too long,” he says, stalking towards me like a damn lion toying with his prey.
I keep my eyes on him and walk backwards into our bedroom. “You mean since the quickie we had during her afternoon nap?”
“Yes.” The raw desire in his voice has heat pooling between my legs. I’m still working on losing the baby weight, but Nikolai doesn’t seem to care one bit. He still eyes me like he wants to devour me inch by inch. The first time we’d had sex after the six-week check-up had been an exercise in massive amounts of lube and extreme patience, but things are finally starting to get back to normal, and we’ve been taking full advantage of it.
He closes the distance between us so quickly that I don’t even see it coming. His strong arms wrap around me, picking me up and laying me on our bed so his body is hovering over mine. I wrap my arms and legs around him, needing to feel him closer. When it’s not enough, I pull on his shirt, tugging it over his head and tossing it aside while he smiles down at me.
“I see I’m not the only one who thinks it’s been too long,” he says with a smirk that turns into a laugh when I slide my hands between us and try to undo the button on his jeans.
“I need you, Kolya, please.”
His face softens at my words. Instead of getting naked like I want, he brings his lips to mine and gives my bottom lip a soft suck that has my hips arching up to him.
“You have no idea how crazy you make me,” he whispers against my lips before giving my top lip a soft flick with his tongue that has me parting my mouth for more. “How badly I always need to be inside of you.”
I let out a soft moan at his words and cup the back of his head, running my fingers through his dark hair and pulling him closer. When he slides his tongue in to meet mine, I feel my body spark to life in the way that only Nikolai can do to me. He deepens the kiss, making me forget about everything except the taste and feel of him. When I drag my fingers over his back and let out another moan, he pulls back and quickly pulls his jeans off, grabbing a condom from his pocket before letting them fall the floor. He’s started carrying them around ever since we got the go-ahead from Doctor Reed, and even though we both hate them, it sure comes in handy when the mood strikes and we’re nowhere near our bedroom.
I eye his powerful body and the huge cock that’s more than ready for me. “God, you’re a gorgeous man, Kolya.”
He smiles and slides my yoga pants off, taking my panties with them. “I hope you always think so.” Sliding his hands up my legs, he says, “You are so beautiful that you take my breath away every time I see you.”
I’m about to say a smartass comment about how my thighs are too big or about the stretch marks the pregnancy left me with, but he stops me with a lift of his eyebrow. “Don’t you dare say anything bad about yourself. No one insults the woman I love, including you.”
I stay quiet, too overcome with love for him to say anything even if I wanted to, and sit up so he can pull my shirt off. He unhooks my bra and tosses it aside, leaving me naked as he runs his eyes over me. They’re always dark, but when he’s minutes away from sliding into me, they always look black. It’s one of my favorite things about him. As soon as I see those jet-black irises, it’s always like a mini jolt of pleasure straight to my pussy.
He gives me a sexy, wicked grin and grabs onto my thighs, letting his fingers dig in hard enough to make me gasp as he spreads my legs wide.