Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 77127 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77127 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Daddy stood bigger and bigger and took my hand. “Slippers? Shoes? You can’t go outside in bare feet. You’re all clean.”
“Oh, helper.” Faster-faster to the tiny closet. “See?”
“There they are. Bunnies.” Daddy turned the bunnies over. “And they have good bottoms. Perfect.”
Bottoms.
Giggling as Daddy was the helper, I made him laugh too. “Not that kind of bottom, silly boy.”
Bottoms.
Wiggling my bottom like I was a little bunny made Daddy laugh. “Hmm, you’re not a silly boy…you’re a silly bunny.”
So funny.
Funny bunny.
Bouncing bunny.
“Not down the steps, silly bunny. Hold Daddy’s hand.” Daddy sighed. “You’re going to give Daddy a heart attack.”
“No break Daddy.” Careful. Careful. “See? Ground.”
“Now you can hop.” Daddy was silly and big sighed. “No hopping down the stairs, though. That was scary.”
Hmm.
No tattle.
“Good bunny, Daddy.” Yes, good bunny.
Daddy scrunched his face up. “Oh, baby boy, that wasn’t nearly as convincing as you thought it was, but I’m not going to ask because I don’t want to know the answer.”
Smart Daddy.
“Good bunny, Daddy.” Big smile. Big eyes. Kenzie cute. Lorne cute. Daddy’s bunny was a sweet bunny.
“Oh, dragons above, you’re doing it daily, you?” Daddy had big eyes too. Daddy didn’t like hopping.
“Jammie date, Daddy.” Yes, date time. “Helper.”
Daddy groaned and sighed and pouted. “Alright, date time. No more asking questions I don’t want the answer to.”
Nope.
Walking. Walking.
Good bunny.
Daddy sighed. “Yes, you’re my good boy.”
Nodding, I careful-careful Daddy’d to the trailer. “See? No falls. Good boy. Good bunny. Good helper.”
Daddy sighed. “I’m not going to ask. I’m not going to ask. I don’t want to know how many times you’ve fallen down those steps.”
One.
Two.
Three.
“Good bunny, Daddy.” Yes, cheek kisses made groaning Daddies happy.
“Silly bunny.” Daddy gave his silly bunny a forehead kiss. “Time to be a good helper.”
Yay.
Jammie date time.
Chapter 20
Grady
Little Alick around his friends and little-little Alick were almost two different people. And I’d gotten to see both already.
Best mate bond ever.
I knew he’d eventually remember to be worried, but for the time being, this young version of little Alick was happy and bouncy and used random phrases to explain things instead of anything that looked like a sentence.
He was so cute.
And utterly uninterested in naked things.
He hadn’t noticed when I was getting him dressed or when he was helping me get ready for our jammie date.
I was hoping that would continue when I shifted us into our nighttime routine, but I had a few things to figure out first…sleeping arrangements and diapers just to start with. I had to figure them out quickly, though, because we’d gotten to the end of what seemed to be his favorite old Disney movie and the yawns were coming one after another.
As the credits started to roll, he snuggled closer on the couch. “Again?”
No.
“Come here first. I have a question for my baby boy.” There didn’t seem to be a thought about being too heavy for me as he climbed on my lap and snuggled close, resting his head on my shoulder. “Good boy.”
My good boy whose thumb was slowly getting higher.
I might’ve waited too long.
“Alright, snuggle bug, where should Daddy sleep tonight. The trailer? The bed in the guest room? With his baby boy?”
I’d slept in the trailer on our first night together, but that’d literally been the day we’d first met. Mates were special, but I wasn’t stupid enough to move in after the first date.
But he wasn’t nearly big enough to leave alone.
Rubbing his thumb over his lips, Alick shrugged. “Bed.”
Oh, that wasn’t nearly enough of an answer. “Alick’s big bed? The trailer big bed?”
“Camping?” Alick’s one-word answer seemed to be a question, but after a second, I realized he’d been talking to himself. “No camping. Hmm.”
Adorable.
And his thumb was sliding in and out between his lips as he grasped for more words. “Snuggle. Big bed?”
Had we actually made any progress?
Deciding we hadn’t, I added more details to my answer, hoping it would help the situation. “Yes, I would like to snuggle and I would like to tuck you in and sleep beside you. Would you like to sleep by yourself or with Daddy?”
Narrowing down the options got me a better response.
“Yes. With Daddy.” And the thumb went in all the way.
That seemed to be his indication that he was done being verbal and probably that he was done being fully awake because he quickly started to relax against me. Yep, Daddy had waited a bit too long for a few things.
But it was a learning curve and I wasn’t going to beat myself up over it.
“No, no sleepies yet, silly boy.” That got a laugh around his thumb and he pretended to snore, but neither of those things seemed like he was agreeing with me. “Ugh, Daddy should’ve done bedtime stuff earlier.”
Making a mental note that physically taxing jobs required more sleep, I kissed his head and jostled him around a bit. “Hey, no closing your eyes. We have to brush your teeth and go potty.”