“Are you sure?” When I nodded, she sighed. “Okay then. To be continued tomorrow night?”
I smiled. “Oh yes.” I leaned over and pressed my lips to hers. “Love you.”
“Love you, too,” she murmured.
When I exited the bathroom, I kept my eyes glued to the hardwood floors. “Jake?”
Shit. It was AJ. “Yeah?” I questioned still not glancing up.
“What’s this I hear about you ogling Mia’s boobs?”
I jerked my head up to glare at him. “Excuse me?” I demanded.
Mia smacked AJ’s arm. “You’re such an ass!”
He grinned at her and then back at me. “I’m just screwing with you, man. Mia and I don’t give two shits about what happened.”
As I took a step toward him, he motioned down to where he balanced Bella on his hip. “Easy now.”
“Using a baby as your shield? You’re such a pu**y.” When I glanced at Bella, who was giving me a toothless smile, I grimaced. “Sorry for the p-word.”
“It’s okay. He deserved a lot worse,” Mia replied with a grin.
“I gotta go get ready,” I said, as I motioned to the door.
“I’ll walk you out,” AJ said. He glanced at Mia. “Do you need any help getting Bella ready?”
“We’ll be fine. Of course, if you want to go get changed and come back to get her while I’m getting ready, that would be wonderful.”
AJ smiled. “Anything for you, amorcito mio.”
“Thanks, baby.”
I snickered as I went out the door. “What?” AJ demanded behind me.
“I just never thought I would see the day that you were completely and totally whipped.”
“Oh yeah, well, I could say the same damn thing about you,” he countered.
I skidded to a stop in the hallway, causing AJ to bump into me. “Oh God, we’ve become the dudes we used to make fun of, haven’t we?”
He winced. “Yeah, I think so.”
With a sigh, I added, “We probably owe Brayden an apology for ragging his ass all these years.”
AJ grinned. “Nah, no use in letting him know he was right. It’ll just inflate his head even more.”
Poking his head in the hallway, Brayden said, “I heard that, dickweeds.”
“Dammit,” I groaned, as we came into the living room.
Brayden rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Like I didn’t already know I was right, and you two shitheads were wrong,” he scoffed.
“Daddy, what’s a shithead?” Melody asked.
As Brayden flushed, AJ and I busted out laughing. He glanced up to narrow his eyes at us. “Laugh now. Your time is coming.” He pointed to AJ. “Especially you.”
I laughed at AJ’s grimace. I could only imagine he was thinking of how bad his potty-mouth was, along with Mia’s. If Bella’s first word was a cuss word, I wouldn’t be surprised. “Well, on that note, I’m going to run upstairs and get ready. See you guys in a few?”
Brayden nodded while AJ replied, “Wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
Chapter Two
After Jake left me partially sexed-up with no finish in the bathroom, I slipped into the cold shower that I knew was in order to get me through the night. As I lathered up my hair, I could barely contain the excitement that bubbled within me when I thought about my wedding day. I was probably most excited about the honeymoon, which for me wasn’t just about the sex. It would be the first time that Jake and I were actually alone together. The last few months had been so hectic with our touring schedule. Since my brothers wanted to cut a new album, most of my free time was spent working on material with them. Even though I’d helped Jake write I’ll Take You with Me, I still felt like a total and complete newbie when it came to songwriting. Luckily, Micah was willing to lend his skills to our cause.
While I was spending late nights at the studio, Jake and Runaway Train were also working on their next album. Considering the last one had been Grammy winning, the pressure was on to make the next album even bigger. So, between the touring and the albums, we rarely had time when it was just the two of us. And while we would only have a week alone together, I planned on making the most of every single second.
After I finished showering, I got out and toweled off. Grabbing my robe off the door, I slipped into the silky material. At the sound of a squeal in the bedroom, I grinned and padded over to the door. When I opened it, I saw Bella on the bed with Mia bent over her. As Mia blew raspberries on Bella’s naked belly, Bella giggled and kicked her feet. Mia pulled away to c**k her head. “Now can we put on your pretty dress without you pitching a hissy fit?”
Bella replied with a coo and a wave of her arms. Mia glanced over her shoulder at me. “I’m putting her in the one you gave her at her baptism.”
I smiled. “She’ll look beautiful in it, I’m sure.” I had been both surprised and honored when Mia and AJ had asked me to be Bella’s godmother. I felt there were other more deserving family members, especially AJ’s sister. But Mia had insisted. So four months ago I’d stood with AJ’s brother, Antonio, at the altar of Christ the King as Bella was baptized. Among several gifts I’d gotten her was a dress I’d hoped she’d be wearing to her parent’s rehearsal dinner since it was lacy and frilly. But it looked like she was going to be debuting it at mine since Mia and AJ weren’t getting married for another four months.