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I was up before the first light of the day started breaking through the dark sky. By the time daylight began to slowly filter into the cabin, I already had our few meager things packed.
Jaxon walked up on the porch and handed me four granola bars. “Figured you might be hungry.”
I shrugged. “I can deal, but she needs to eat before we begin trekking down the mountain.” I walked inside the cabin and gently shook Juliana awake. She groaned and slowly blinked up at me, her pretty eyes bleary with sleep. I smiled at her, reaching to brush some of her hair back from her face.
God, she was so pretty.
“We get to leave today,” I told her, “but I need you to eat two of these before we begin walking back down the mountain.”
Yawning, she nodded and sat up, grabbing one of the bars from me. I pressed a kiss to the top of her head before I began to put out the fire in the fireplace.
Once Juliana had eaten both granola bars and drank a bottle of water, I helped her into her boots and bundled her up upon Jaxon’s warning of facing snow flurries on the way down the mountain.
I shouldered our bag and grabbed her hand in mine, following Jaxon out of the door. It was another very long walk down the mountain, but it went a bit smoother than coming up, though I had to keep my hands on Juliana at some parts to keep her from slipping on the rocky terrain.
Once we finally made it to the base of the mountain, Juliana was visibly exhausted, her steps becoming more sluggish, but this time, I didn’t have to carry her.
But as soon as we were in the car, she stretched out on the backseat, put her head in my lap, and passed out.
Jaxon smiled and shook his head as he slid into the passenger seat, nodding once at the driver to let him know we were good to begin rolling towards the airport. “Sometimes, I wonder what it would be like to have what you and your brother have,” he confessed.
“It’s definitely something else,” I quietly told him. “Maybe one day soon, you’ll find her.”
He shrugged. “Maybe,” he mused, turning back to face the front.
I rested my head back against the seat and shut my eyes, getting more sleep before we hit the airport.
~*~*~
“I’m so tired,” Juliana whined. And I knew she was because she wasn’t really one to complain.
“I know, baby girl,” I soothed, brushing my lips to her forehead. “Come on. I’ll carry you onto the plane. After we’re in the air, I’ll put you to bed until we land, okay?”
She just groaned but stepped out of the car. As soon as her feet were on the ground, I swept her up into my arms, nodding once in thanks to Jaxon when he grabbed my bag and followed me onto the plane.
Juliana mostly complied with what I told her to do once I got her settled in her seat on the plane. She was being grumpy, and if I didn’t understand how tired she was, I’d bend her over my knee.
But though I was trying to be understanding, she was testing my patience.
“I don’t want anything,” she snapped at me, her tired eyes lifting to mine. “I just want to be left alone.”
I gripped her chin and leaned over her chair, bringing my face close to hers. Her breath hitched in her throat. “You’re not getting sleep until you fucking eat something, little girl,” I warned her. “I’m trying to be nice and understanding because I know you’re exhausted, but my patience is wearing thin.”
Tears blurred in her eyes before she suddenly threw up all over both me and herself. She burst into tears. Feeling like a grade-A asshole, I quickly lifted her from her seat and carried her to the back of the plane to clean both of us up.
I set her down in the bathroom and made quick work of her clothes. “Breathe, baby,” I soothed. “I’m here. It’s going to be okay.”
“I’m sorry,” she cried. “I didn’t mean— I just don’t feel good.”
I pressed my lips to her forehead, holding them there until she stopped panicking. I would never get pissed at her for throwing up. She couldn’t help it, and she was pregnant. “We’re going to get cleaned up,” I soothed. “And then, once we lift off, I’ll bring you to bed so you can sleep it off, okay?”
She sniffled. “Okay,” she croaked.
I pressed a kiss to her temple before I finished stripping her out of her clothes. I stuffed our clothes into a random plastic bag I found in one of the drawers before getting into the shower with her and soaping her body down to clean her up. Her face was pale, and her eyes were drooping.
Worry was settling in my gut, and I was praying she was only sick because of the baby. I hated seeing her anything but healthy and well.
After we were both clean, I dried her off and dressed her in a pair of sweatpants I found in the bedroom and one of the plain, white t-shirts. I knew the clothes were my brothers, but I bit down my irritation at seeing her in another man’s clothes.
As long as she was comfortable and taken care of, I would deal.
I carried her back out into the main part of the plane and set her in a different seat, buckling her in before I took a seat next to her. Jaxon handed me some crackers and ginger ale. I nodded once to him in thanks before turning to Juliana.
“Do you want to try eating these?” I asked her.
Nodding, she took them from me and began to nibble on a cracker with her eyes closed, her head resting on my shoulder. I wrapped my arm around her, gently running my fingertips up and down her arm as we began to take off.
Once we were at cruising altitude, I unbuckled her and took her to the room at the back of the plane, gently laying her on the bed. After kicking my shoes back off, I crawled into bed beside her, pulling her into my arms. I pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “Sleep, baby girl. Daddy’s got you.”
“I love you,” she whispered. “I’m sorry I was being so stubborn. I didn’t feel good.”
I brushed my lips to the back of her head. “And I love you, baby. But why didn’t you just tell me you don’t feel good? I can’t help you if you act like a brat and hide things from me.”
“You were already dealing with a lot—”
“Aht,” I halted her. “Don’t pull that card with me, Juliana. You know you can always tell me how you’re feeling. You are always my first priority.”
“I’m sorry, Daddy,” she whispered. “I won’t do it again.”
