Longing For The Beach Billionaire Daddy
Chapter 202

*Shelby*

The drive home from my thirty-week appointment was peaceful, though Michael seemed to have been acting strange ever since he got home from work the day before. I’d begged him to stop at my favorite sandwich shop on the way home and grab me a cheese and pickle sandwich. He’d acted like he had something to say to me, but I was only focused on the food. Then, I’d mentioned this appointment, and he’d let whatever it was go.

Now, we were driving down the highway, the sun setting with a brilliant display of color on the horizon. The appointment went well, so I felt better than I had in weeks.

I glanced over to look at Michael, and seeing his handsome features stoically watching the road took my breath away. I’d never get used to how gorgeous he was.

“I’m so excited to have made it to thirty weeks, babe,” I thought aloud to him. “It’s a huge milestone for twins, especially with as horrible as my b***d pressure has been lately. Thank goodness for high-risk doctors and weekly appointments, they’ve kept me sane.”

Michael chuckled and said, “You haven’t been sane since before I met you. But you’re right, we’ve officially reached a point where the babies are sure to thrive if they come now. Dr. Adams said any day, can you believe it? We need to look through everything to make sure we’re ready to bring them home.”

We continued chatting about how our lives would soon change with the arrival of our twins until we pulled up to our home and walked into the entryway.

“Let’s go sit in the nursery. I want to make sure we have a few packs of preemie and newborn diapers ready,” I said as I walked to the babies’ room.

Michael followed me, his hand on my lower back as I waddled to the nursery. As we entered the room, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of excitement and anxiety coursing through me. The room was filled with baby clothes, diapers, toys, and everything we would need to welcome our twins into the world.

As we sat on the matching rocking chair in the corner of the room, Michael handed me a stack of diapers. “I can’t believe we’re going to have two little ones relying on us soon,” he said with a smirk.

I rolled my eyes at him playfully. “Don’t remind me. I’m just hoping I can handle the sleepless nights and constant feedings.”

Michael took my hand in his and kissed it. “We’ll handle it together. We need to get a jump start on packing our hospital bags. Dr. Adams made it sound like the twins could be here tomorrow.”

“The diaper bags are hanging in the closet all the way on the right-hand side,” I told him.

He got up and began looking through drawers with tiny preemie and newborn clothes waiting for tiny bodies to fill them.

I felt a sudden rush of emotion as he held up the clothes, the soft fabrics and sweet designs bringing back memories of my own childhood. Seeing all these tiny little outfits made me think about how fast time flies by, and that our babies would be grown in no time.

Michael noticed the sadness in my eyes and knelt down beside me, taking my hand into his. He gave it a gentle squeeze and asked, “What’s on your mind?”

I sighed and chuckled, shaking my head. “Just being ridiculous and thinking about how fast they’re going to grow up so fast. And wondering how to keep things from their childhood to save for us later. Like I said, ridiculous.”

“It’s okay to be sentimental, babe. We’ll both have to get used to this new chapter in our lives, but we’ll make sure they have everything they need. I’ve seen how you’ve handled this pregnancy. I know you’re going to crush motherhood.”

He leaned in and pressed his lips against mine, a tender k**s that sent chills down my spine. I leaned into him, feeling his strong arms wrapped around me, and for a moment, everything else faded away.

As we pulled away from each other, Michael stood up and began to gather items for our babies’ hospital bags. I sat there, lost in thought, as he moved around the room. I couldn’t believe we were really going to be parents. I looked around the nursery, picturing our babies sleeping soundly in their cribs. It was hard to imagine what they’d look like or how they would act, but I knew that I would love them with all my heart.

Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in my lower abdomen. I gasped, grabbing onto the arm of the rocking chair for support. Michael turned around and rushed to my side, his eyes wide with concern.

“Babe, are you okay?” he asked, his voice filled with fear. He reached his hand up and cupped the side of my face, leaning closer to inspect me.

I nodded, trying to catch my breath. “I think it’s just Braxton Hicks contractions,” I said. “But we should probably time them, just to be safe.”

I had been having them a lot lately, especially after a doctor’s appointment or too much physical activity. My body was exhausted from the pregnancy, and I just held out hope that the babies would be healthy when they came.

Michael nodded, grabbing his phone and opening up a contraction tracking app. He helped me to my feet and guided me to the bed, where I lay down and tried to relax. As Michael sat beside me, timing my contractions, fear crept up my throat and threatened to choke me.

What if something went wrong during the birth? What if our babies weren’t as developed as they should be at thirty weeks? How the hell did people deal with these emotions?

Michael must have sensed my fear because he reached out and took my hand. “It’s going to be okay,” he said, his voice soft and reassuring. “We’re having these babies at one of the best hospitals in the state. You’ve seen Dr. Adams’ credentials. We’re going to have them delivered safely, then we’ll raise them to be as incredible as their mother.”

I nodded, feeling tears prick at the corners of my eyes. Michael was right. We would do this together, no matter what challenges we faced. The contractions subsided within twenty minutes, so we moved into our bedroom to begin packing our own things for the hospital.

I sat on the bed and allowed Michael to pack everything. He held nightgowns and robes up for me to look at, and then he neatly packed the ones I selected away in our suitcase.

When we were getting close to finishing, he sat and began to rub my back.

As Michael rubbed my back, he said, “So, my hacker called me yesterday. I decided not to tell you until after the appointment today, just in case you were upset about this news. But… Katie’s still in the wind.”

I sighed heavily and said, “I’m so worried, Michael. Do you think she’s going to try and come back into our lives? If the roles were reversed, I’d stop at nothing to have a relationship with my child.”

“I really don’t know, Shelbs. The good news is that the tech that helped pull off the scheme was arrested and charged with felony assault. He’ll never work around a fertility clinic ever again,” he finished, and I could hear the anger in his voice at the thought of the man who could’ve helped put someone else’s baby inside of me.

“I just don’t know how to feel. I know I love both babies, I’m not worried about that,” I said, “But if one of them IS Katie’s, we’ll always have that thought looming over our head. I’m so done with waiting for the other shoe to drop.” Michael gripped my shoulders, rubbing them with his thumbs.

“I know, Shelby. But whatever happens, we’ll deal with it together. We’ll make sure that our children are loved and taken care of, no matter what,” he finished his thought and kissed me on the top of my head.

I leaned my head back against him, feeling a sense of comfort wash over me. Michael was right; we could handle anything as long as we had each other.

After a few moments of quiet, Michael asked, “Would you like a foot rub?”

I smiled and nodded. “That would be nice.”

He got up and walked to the bathroom, grabbing some massage oil from the cabinet. He then returned to me and started working on my feet, kneading them gently with his strong fingers. It felt heavenly, and I could feel all of my worries start to slip away.

After he finished my foot massage, we discussed what kind of food we wanted for dinner.

“What sounds good to eat, my love?” Michael asked me as I leaned back and closed my eyes, feeling super relaxed after the foot massage.

“The babies want tacos,” I answered without hesitation.

Michael chuckled. “Tacos it is then. I’ll make sure to make them extra spicy for you.”

I opened my eyes and playfully glared at him. “You know, I can handle spicy food, Michael. I’m not a weakling.”

He grinned. “Of course not, my fiery queen.”

As he went to the kitchen to start on dinner, I couldn’t help but feel grateful for him, although I was also slightly regretting sending the chef away because it meant extra work for him. He had been my rock throughout this entire ordeal. From the moment we found out about the mix-up, he had been there for me every step of the way. And now, with the possibility of Katie coming back into our lives, he was still by my side.

I knew that no matter what happened in the future, we would always have each other. And for now, that was enough. If I kept dwelling on the what-ifs, my b***d pressure would spike, and I could endanger both my life and the lives of our babies.

As I sat there waiting on Michael to finish cooking, exhaustion started to set in. My eyes grew heavier and heavier, and eventually, I dozed off.

“Babe, wake up,” Michael’s voice woke me, followed by the incredible smell of tacos wafting through the air. He helped me sit up and handed me a plate. “We can’t have you skipping dinner. Our babies need tacos, remember?”

I hurriedly began to stuff my face full of spicy goodness, and Michael sat next to me. We ate in silence for a few minutes until we both finished our meals. I was stuffed and thoroughly satisfied. Michael grabbed our plates and stood to take them to the kitchen.

I waddled in to watch him clean up from dinner, there was something so sexy about domestic Michael. He stood at the sink, rinsing the dishes before putting them into the dishwasher. He hummed quietly to himself, and I recognized the tune as his favorite song.

Once he was done, Michael came over to me and gently picked up my tired body, cradling me against his chest. He carried me to the bathroom and began running a hot shower. He then undressed me and himself, before stepping into the shower stall with me.

Michael took his time as he slowly ran the warm, soapy luffa over my body, sending tingles up my spine. He paused to work out any knots in my hair, massaging my scalp with his fingertips until I was completely relaxed. Michael used the extending shower head to rinse us both, then helped me out of the shower and dried my body from head to toe.

He carried me back out to our bedroom where I fell asleep almost instantly in his arms as he cradled my sleeping form against him protectively. I felt so safe there like nothing could touch me.