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“You got it.” She kissed me again and smiled.
I wanted to tell her right then and there about what happened earlier but decided to wait until dinner. What I needed was ten minutes alone with my wife. She’d be able to get my mind off of the doctors.
Chapter 17
Hailey
Vince and I stood looking over our precious son tucked safely in his bed. The fairy lights overhead offered a comforting glow. Vince pulled me into the crook of his arm. He turned on the mobile, and the sweet tune of “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” began. When Vince started singing, I held my breath. Usually, I was the one who sang to Hudson, and hearing Vince’s deep baritone voice singing a lullaby completely floored me.
With our son asleep in the other room, Vince and I lay in bed, facing each other. “I love you so much, Hailey.” His voice was as soft as his eyes.
“I love you, too.”
“What are you thinking about?”
“You. And how lucky I am.”
“I’m the lucky one. I am married to the most wonderful woman in the world. And I’m a dad. Sometimes I still can’t believe it.”
“Me either.” When I sighed, Vince’s brows furrowed together.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Nothing.”
“Hailey?” His intonation told me my white lie didn’t fool him.
“I don’t want to fight about it.”
“About what?”
“You’re overdoing it.” When he grumbled, I sat up and pulled the blankets over my lap. This might just lead to an argument. “I don’t want you to get upset.”
He propped up onto his elbow. “Hailey, I had a pretty big breakthrough today. I’m not overdoing it.”
“But the doctors said—” He grunted and rolled his eyes.
“I get enough of this from my parents, Hailey.”
“I know you do. But listen, all of the laundry, and fixing things, and making dinner. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it. Not having you here was a lot of work for me, so I know how much time you’re spending doing all of this stuff. Then there’s your PT and therapy sessions. Not to mention how much work it is taking care of Hudson.” He snorted. “What?”
“I take care of Hudson while my parents babysit me. Do you know how that makes me feel?” He rolled onto his back and closed his eyes. “I get it. But seriously, I feel like an idiot who can’t take care of his own fucking kid without supervision.”
“If you want to watch Hudson on your own, all you have to do is say so.”
“You’re joking, right? You know my parents would freak out.”
“No, they won’t.”
“Uh, yes, they will. They’ve been here every day to check up on me under the façade that they want to spend time with Hudson.”
I chewed my lip and considered his words as he regaled me with much detail about everything that happened this past week. “I hate to break it to you, baby, but they’re not over here every day to hang out with Hudson. Maybe that’s part of it. But that’s not all of it.”
“Then why do they feel like they need to babysit me?”
I leaned over and cupped the side of his face. “They’re making up for lost time, Vince. They come over to be with you. Hudson’s just a bonus.”
His eyes went misty as he considered my words. “Damn,” he sighed. A minute of affectionate silence passed as he let that information settle in. “Now I feel like a jerk.”
