Page 57 of Cat's Outta the Bag

"Man, you're tough. Let me think." I pretend to mull it over when in reality, I've had the perfect name saved for months.

“Ok, I have one. What about Willa?”

She pauses, running a finger across our baby’s perfect little brow.

"Is that it, sweet girl? Is your name Willa?" Our baby slowly blinks her eyes open, seemingly looking right at us as if to say yeah, that’s me.

"Willa, it is then." I kiss Alexis on the cheek again, then sweep my hand over Willa's baby head, readjusting her tiny newborn hat. She's so soft and warm; I want to cry every time I look at her.

"What about her last name? We never really talked about it." Honestly, I haven't really thought about it myself. I've been so focused on just making sure Alexis and Willa were healthy that it didn't cross my mind that we should probably decide on a last name. When we got married, neither of us changed our names. Alexis had all her doctor licensure under Masters, and I had been building a name for myself in the romance genre. Neither of us wanted to go through the hassle of changing things. So we didn't. But now we have a kid.

"I kind of hate our names hyphenated. Adams-Masters or Masters-Adams. They just sound weird. And long." I nod. I completely agree. Then it hits me. The perfect solution.

“What if we make her middle name Adams and her last name Masters?”

Alexis turns, careful not to jostle the nursing baby but still trying to see my face. “Are you serious? It won’t bother you to not have the same last name?”

“Nah, we’ll still share a name, even if it’s her middle one. Plus, if she grows up and wants to, she can always change it.” Honestly, all I care about right now is that both my girls are healthy.

“Ok, but if you change your mind…”

“I won’t.”

We sit there for a bit, watching our baby.

“I love you.”

“And I love you.”

We sit together in silence, watching Willa nurse, cocooned in a bubble of love and safety. Eventually, Alexis and Willa drift off to sleep, and I just keep holding them, feeling like the luckiest man in the world.