Devoted - The Complete Series: A BWWM Romance Boxset (26 page)

“Don’t worry, it’s ok. Besides, I could use a baby hug right now,” I smile. Two days ago this would’ve been impossible with all the tubes and machines attached to me. However, now I’ve been taken off the oxygen and IV, so the only thing tethered to me is the baby monitor. It’s annoying to try to sleep with it on, but I find the constant connection to the baby reassuring.

Bradley gently places Brooklyn on the mattress, and she snuggles in against me. I shimmy back until the cold metal guard rail is pressed up against my back and pull Brooklyn against my chest. “There’s room for one more in here.” I pat the sliver of space on the mattress.

“I don’t know,” Bradley’s eyes flicker over to the door.

“What are they going to do? Kick us out? Get in here.” I tease him.

Bradley looks at the mattress, then at the door, and gives in.
How can he resist?
As soon as the three of us, or should I say
four
of us, are squished together I feel a sense of peace wash over me that I haven’t felt in ages.

“Everything ok now?” Brooklyn asks me.

“Yes, hon. Everything is perfect.” I smile.

Brooklyn’s breathing grows deeper until I’m listening to little baby snores with a smile on my face.
Is there anything cuter?
“Brianna, I love you,” Bradley twists onto his side, so he’s facing me.

“I love you too,” I whisper. I watch his expression change under the moonlight. This hospital room, one of the luxury suites, is more like a hotel than any hospital I’ve ever seen. Complete with afternoon tea, and a view of the Hudson, if it weren’t for the nurses checking in on me and my monitor, I would forget where I was.

“This just feels right, doesn’t it? Our little family. Soon it will be a bit bigger,” he traces his fingertips over my belly, and I smile as the baby gives him a tiny kick. “We’ve got a fighter on the way. She’s gonna be a scrappy one, just like her Mama.” His eyes twinkle.

“She?” I raise my eyebrows at him. “What makes you so sure the baby is a girl?”

“Just a feeling I guess.” Bradley goes quiet,
did he fall asleep too?
“You know, the other day when Eileen attacked you…” His voice cracks. “I thought I lost you and the baby; I’ve never been more terrified in my life.”

“But everything is ok now,” I reassure him. “We got through it.”

“I know. It’s just, well, when I went on that walk with your Dad, I asked for his blessing.”

“His blessing?”

“Yes, I told him I would be proposing to you and asked for his blessing. He was really happy, I was walking on a cloud and then this happened. It shook me up, you know?”

He’s going to propose?
My heart flutters in my chest with excitement as my face cracks out into a huge smile. I’m feeling a little shook up myself right now, but not because of Eileen.
Bradley talked to my father about proposing to me!

“Originally I had this whole big Youtube style proposal in mind. I thought it should be larger than life, like a horse-drawn carriage ride and dancing. The whole nine. Now, I know it doesn’t matter. None of that matters. Not to me. The only things that matter are all lying in this bed. I love you
so much
, Brianna.” He rolls over and walks to the chair where his coat is lying and grabs a little box.

My heart leaps into my throat, I feel like I’m in a haze as he quickly slips back into the bed and opens the lid, revealing a stunning diamond.

“Oh my! Bradley, it’s gorgeous.”

“No, you’re gorgeous. This here, it’s just a ring. I had it designed for you because I wanted to get you something that was worthy of sitting on your finger, but I failed. There’s no ring in anyone’s imagination that is good enough for you. I hope this one will do.” I can hardly catch my breath as he pours out his heart. I’ve never seen him so vulnerable before, so open. “Brianna, I can’t imagine my life without you, and I hope you won’t make me. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?” He tugs the ring free from the box as my hand shakes nervously in the air.

“Yes. Oh my God, yes! Of course.” He has to hold my hand steady so he can slide the ring down my finger. Even when he lets go, I keep my hand hovering in the air, just staring in disbelief. Bradley leans over Brooklyn and kisses me tenderly. It’s all so perfect; I can’t help but wonder if I’m about to wake up and find out that this is just another vivid dream.

“I love you.” He whispers as he lies back down against the pillow.

“Bradley, I love you so much. This is amazing. I don’t know how I’m going to sleep now.”

“You should try, you still need to take it easy.” He murmurs, his voice betrays how tired he is.

“I’ll try, I promise.” However, two minutes later Bradley is breathing deeply, and I’m still staring at my finger.
Brianna Sheppard, it rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it. Brianna Sheppard. Mrs. Brianna Sheppard.
My thoughts drift off into white gowns and confetti as my eyelids grow heavier.

Chapter Five

Bradley

“I’m sorry, Bradley, but the law is the law. She’ll still be locked up, it’s just that her term will be served in a mental institution instead of prison. However, even with good behavior or whatever kind of dog and pony show she tries to pull off in there, they aren’t going to set her free. That much I’m certain of.” My lawyer prattles on as I stare of my phone in disbelief.

“Isn’t there anything you can do? That woman deserves to be behind bars, not in some cushy fucking country club for crazies.” After everything Eileen put my family through, even prison feels like it’s too good for her. There hasn’t been a night that’s gone by in the two months since the attack where Brooklyn or Brianna hasn’t woken in tears. Anger surges through me with the same potency that it did when I had to talk myself out of snapping Eileen’s pathetic neck.

“No, the ruling has been made. There’s nothing else that can be done. Frankly, I thought you would’ve been happy. Eileen isn’t going to be getting outside those walls for a long, long time. Plus she’ll be getting the help she desperately needs while she’s in there.” Dwight’s optimistic tone makes me want to reach through my phone and slap him with the back of my hand.

“Fine, well, at least she’s locked up. That’s something anyway. Thank you for keeping me up-to-date, Dwight.” I hang up the phone and take a deep breath. I
should
be happy that Eileen is out of our lives for good, but I can’t help but feel like she’s evaded justice, yet again.

“Where is Mama?” I whirl around as the hairs stand up on the back of my neck. Brooklyn is standing in the middle of the room, looking up at me with her big, brown eyes.
How much did she hear?

“Brooklyn, I didn’t hear you come in here. Where’s Brianna?” I look over her shoulder for my missing fiancee. She’s surprisingly stealthy for a toddler. Or maybe I couldn’t hear her over my yelling. It was probably the latter.

“Brianna is sleeping on the couch,” she explains matter-of-factly. I’m not surprised. At eight months into her pregnancy, Brianna tires quite easily these days. “Where’s Mama?”

“Honey, come here,” I crouch down and hold my arms out to her. Brooklyn crosses her arms across her chest and sticks her bottom lip out about a half mile.

“Where is my Mama?”
Christ she’s stubborn, and relentless. The teen years are going to kill me.
I walk over to her and swoop her up until I have her dangling upside down from my shoulder. Giggles erupt from her as I swing her around, under control. I stop and flip her back up, placing her back on her feet and she begins to squeal. “Again, spin around again!” I guess I still have a few distraction tactics up my sleeve. I pick her up to her delight smiling as her laughter bubbles up again. The question is; how long can I distract her before she starts wanting real answers?

“Bradley, I swear you’re meals are getting better everyday,” Brianna talks around her last bite of the prime rib I cooked for supper. It’s amazing that with her appetite lately she’s still so small. With a month to go until she’s due, I had expected her to be as big as a house by now. Instead, the only change has been in her belly, which is now the size of a beach ball.

“Well, it wasn’t very hard to make. However, I’m not one to turn down a compliment, so thanks.” I smile and stand to clear the table. I sigh as I pick up Brooklyn’s abandoned plate of food. Every night she eats like a bird, it makes me wonder if she’s getting enough nutrients. “Brooklyn? Are you sure you don’t want a little bit more of this, honey? I’m getting ready to put everything away.”

She looks up from her pony toys and scrunches her nose at the plate I’m holding. “No way. I want to play pony.” She declares.
Well, excuse me.

“What do you think, Mama? You up for a movie tonight? Or are you feeling tired?” Brianna smiles and rubs her hand over her belly thoughtfully.

“I’m feeling pretty good right now, but who knows how much energy I’ll have in an hour.” She heaves herself out of the chair with a grunt.

“No!” Brooklyn yells at us from the living room making us both stop in our tracks and look over at her.

“What’s wrong, Brooklyn?” Brianna’s eyebrows raise with concern.

“You are not a Mama! You are not my Mama.” She cries. “Braddy, where’s
my
Mama?” Her big eyes are searching my face for answers. I thought I’d escaped this earlier, I guess I was wrong.

I put the dishes down and pick Brooklyn up off the floor with her pink pony dangling from her hand. “Brooklyn, I’ve told you before, your Mama is at the doctor. Remember? Like Doc McStuffins.” I reassure her.

She begins violently shaking her head, “No, I don’t want Brianna anymore. I want my own Mama.” I start to walk her down the hall to her room, so Brianna doesn’t get upset. The last thing I need is both of them in tears.

“No, wait. Let me talk to her.” Brianna rushes to my side. I arch my eyebrow uncertainly.

“Are you sure?”

“Bradley, please. Let us work this out,” she holds out her arms expectantly. Against my better judgment, I hand Brooklyn off to her. To my surprise, she snuggles up against Brianna despite her earlier protests.

“Brianna, I want my Mama back. I miss my Mama.” Brooklyn whispers to her as Brianna walks her over to the couch. I head back to the kitchen so I can give them some space. There’s no telling how Brooklyn is going to react from one second to the next, so I don’t want to wander off too far. I start loading the dishes into the dishwasher as quietly as I can so I can listen in on their chat.

“Brooklyn, I know you miss your Mama. Those feelings are completely normal. Being away from someone you love isn’t easy. You know, when I was younger, I had to live away from my Mama too.” She runs her hand through Brooklyn’s hair lovingly.