Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 56591 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 226(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56591 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 226(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
Ismile as I man the barbecue with one hand, looking across the garden. The sprinklers are on, and the kids are running wild through the water. Liam’s got his niece—mine and my Songbird’s daughter—on his shoulders as he darts here and there. Melody squeals in delight, her hands buried in her teenage uncle’s wavy black hair.
Joy lights up my heart, especially when I really listen to Melody’s squeal of delight. She sounds just like her mother when she’s happy, just like her mother when I proposed. She’s my Songbird Number Two, as she proudly calls herself.
Past the water, on the other side of the party, my wife is sitting with her grandmother and Jennifer, along with a few other women. Funny how that happens at parties sometimes, the sexes self-segregating. She’s got one hand resting on her belly, a smile on her face. When she sees me looking, she takes out her phone.
Wife: The baby just kicked. I think he’s really keen to meet his family.
Dominic: I can’t wait to meet him either. If he’s anything like our Melody, we’re going to be the luckiest parents alive… twice.
Even from here, I can see her smile grow bigger, past the water and the giggling children. Soon, the burgers are done. I announce that we’re ready to eat. Liam and Melody run over immediately, each of them with a stack of paper plates.
I smile. “Are you going to be my waiters, like last time?”
“What’d you think, Melly?” Liam says, nudging his niece.
“Can we, Daddy?” Melody says. “Please?”
I smile. “Of course you can. You’re a good girl.”
She beams.
“Just be careful, okay?”
She nods, taking her job seriously. “I will, promise! Won’t we, Uncle Liam?”
“We’ll be careful, big bro. Chill.”
I chuckle. “Then have it.”
I dish up the burgers, then leave the two worker bees to distribute them on this side of the garden while I go and turn off the sprinklers. While I’m doing this, my Songbird sends me another text.
Wife: I just had a thought. All of this started because of uncles. Uncle Aaron. ‘Uncle’ Seb. Now, we get to see what a truly wonderful uncle really is. Your brother is the uncle we both deserved when we were kids, when we were innocent and didn’t know how rotten the world could be. I’m so happy for Melody.
I smile, savoring her words. My wife can get so beautifully poetic and emotional, especially when she’s pregnant.
I walk around the edge of the house, entering by the side entrance so I can surprise Izzy. When I walk onto the patio, I sneak up behind her, wrapping my arms around her. She moans approvingly and leans against me.
“How’s my baby doing?” I ask.
“He’s okay.”
I slide into the seat next to her, kissing her on the cheek. “I was talking about you.”
She grins up at me, even more beautiful than the day I met her, which should be impossible. She’s radiant with pregnancy. Every curve makes her even more attractive.
Love burns in me, swelling every time we’re close. And just as fierce when we’re not.
She’s proven how talented she is these past five years, working as a violin instructor while she raises our kid and keeps our home. She even did a recital while pregnant, last month, which made it into the newspaper. She’s everything I ever could’ve asked for, and I spend every day earning her love and devotion.
“Daddy, I got your burger!” Melody says, skipping over with the paper plate. “You vanished.”
She loves that word, she’s just learned it.
“Aren’t you a clever waitress?” Maggie says, smiling warmly. With her treatment, she looks even younger than the day I met her, with far more life in her every word, every movement.
“Thank you, Nuna!” Melody says, beaming.
I take the plate, biting into the burger, closing my eyes, and savoring the taste.
When I open my eyes, my daughter and my wife are both looking at me with so much love, it almost makes me tear up. “What?” I say, smiling.
“Just… you,” Izzy says.
“No, Mommy,” Melody corrects, giggling as she skips over and climbs between us. “Just… us.”
I put my plate down and wrap my other arm around my daughter, pulling my girls in for a hug.
THE END