Longing For The Beach Billionaire Daddy
Chapter 218

*Michael*

“Michael, listen to them,” Shelby nudged me awake with her bare leg against mine. We were still tangled up in the sheets, the curtains open wide, letting in the early morning sun shine brightly through the windows.

“Listen to what,” I g*****d sleepily. I reached over across the bed and pulled Shelby’s naked body against mine. It had been so long since we woke up naked together, I wanted to relish it for as long as possible.

“The babies, silly. They’re talking to each other,” she answered. As she stopped talking, I heard their delighted coos and laughter carrying into the room through the baby monitors. They babbled away unintelligibly, and the sounds made both of us beam with love and adoration.

“I still can’t believe we’re parents. Every morning I wake up, and I’m blown away by the love I have for them. Do you think that’s how everybody feels?” Shelby rolled over and rested her chin on my chest as she asked me this. Her eyes were bright, and her hair was tangled from the intensity of our lovemaking last night.

“I’m not sure, Shelby. I know that Thomas and Amelia are so incredibly lucky to have a mother as excited to be there for them as you are,” I told her honestly. Her vigor and love for the twins inspired me every day. I was so thankful that they’d grow up knowing unconditional love and acceptance, and I couldn’t have picked a better mother to nurture my babies.

“Let’s get dressed and go get them up. I miss their little squishy faces,” Shelby said as she jumped from the bed and threw on a tank top and shorts. Before she headed to the nursery, Shelby grabbed the portable breast pumps and put one on each side.

“I’m going to go ahead and pump some fresh milk so we can both feed them once they’re changed and dressed,” and with that, she left me naked in bed.

I rolled over and checked my phone to make sure the surprise for later was still a go, then got up and put on a pair of shorts. I walked to the door that connected the nursery and watched Shelby sing the good morning song she made up to Thomas and Amelia, “The sun is bright, and so are you. Good morning, my stars, who I love so true.”

I walked into the nursery and grabbed Thomas, and we both began changing diapers and dressing the babies. They had both started to fuss as we finished, so Shelby grabbed two bottles and dumped the breast milk from her pumps into them. We walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table, looking out at the expansive ocean before us.

“I could get used to a view like this, Michael. Tell me we can’t move to Maui, or I just might,” Shelby said as she took a long, deep drink of her coffee. She set the cup down and sighed constantly.

“Say the word, and I’ll buy this house right now, my love,” I half-joked with her.

“Oh, Michael, can you imagine having a home in paradise?” Shelby asked, her eyes longingly staring at the rising sun.

“I’ll tell you what, let’s finish our vacation, then we’ll talk about buying a vacation home in paradise, okay?”

“Deal,” Shelby said as she propped Amelia onto her shoulder to burp her. Amelia looked around curiously, then belched loudly.

“Damn, kid. That was loud,” Shelby acknowledged Amelia’s burp while laughing. “Look how much they’ve grown, Michael. They don’t even look like newborns anymore. What happened to the preemies learning to eat in the NICU?”

I looked into Thomas’ chubby face and gave him a big k**s on the cheek before I answered, “Time has flown by, that’s no joke. They’re both so strong now. They’ll be crawling and getting into everything before we know it.”

Amelia cooed and laughed at the silly faces Shelby was making at her, then Shelby said, “We really need to babyproof the house soon. We have too many pointy edges and stairs for babies on the move.”

I stood up and walked to the highchair across the room and placed Thomas inside, buckling him in to make sure he didn’t slip and fall over. I turned around and watched my beautiful wife snuggle our daughter, both of them laughing and smiling. I was so lucky to be able to call them mine, and I vowed silently to never take a moment of this life for granted.

Shelby stood and put Amelia in her highchair and began helping me make breakfast. We discussed our plans for the day while making pancakes, eggs, and bacon.

“What’s on the agenda for today, Mr. Travel Planner?” Shelby asked as she stirred the batter for the pancakes.

“Well, I thought we could spend the morning on the beach, playing in the sand and collecting seashells. We can hit up a local kid-friendly restaurant for lunch, then head to the local aquarium to see some fish. I think the babies will love that,” I answered while frying bacon.

Shelby smiled and agreed. “Oh yes, they’ll love riding in their strollers watching the lights and colors.”

We sat down to eat before the babies got restless. They chattered away at us between our bites of food, their faces lighting up as we talked about taking them to the beach later in the day. They may have been too young to understand most of what we said, but that didn’t stop them from hanging on to our every word.

“The cleaners will be by in the next half an hour. Why don’t we go ahead and get ready to walk down to the beach?” I asked as Shelby gathered a fussy Thomas from his highchair.

“Good idea. Keep these squirrels entertained while I go pack up some stuff that we’ll need.” Shelby handed Thomas to me and disappeared into the bedrooms.

I rocked back and forth to soothe him, once again checking my phone. The surprise would be ready in about an hour and a half, so we just needed to kill a little bit of time at the beach.

Twenty minutes later, we trudged down the steep, grassy path that led to the hidden beach. The sand was so blindingly white it made me squint, and the sound of waves crashing against the shore filled my ears.

“Of course, the little stinkers can’t hang,” I said, pointing to Thomas and Amelia asleep in their double stroller.

“Let’s let them nap while we set up,” Shelby said, then began unpacking the bags she had carried.

We spread out the blanket and set the stroller beside us. Shelby unfolded the portable pack-n-play we bought specifically for the beach and set it up next to our blanket, then she laid toys and baby books inside for the babies to play with when they woke up.

“I want to gather some seashells to make a necklace, I’ll be right back,” Shelby called out behind her as she walked down to where the water met the sand.

I glanced up and watched Shelby walking along the beach, bending and reaching to scoop up shells. She was a sight to behold. Her long wavy hair blew in the wind as she walked barefoot along the shore. Her cute polka-dotted one-piece bathing suit showed off her curves, and I couldn’t help but stare. This was my favorite time to admire her–when she didn’t know anyone was watching.

She made her way back over a few minutes later, her hands full of an array of seashells. She sat next to me on the blanket and arranged them in order from smallest to biggest. Then, she turned to me and said, “Which is your favorite?”

I pointed to a white shell. It looked old and worn, but it shone a brilliant white. “This one,” I answered.

“Hey, that was my pick!” Shelby said before she nudged me in the side, and I wrapped my arm around her. We sat in silence for a while taking in the beautiful scenery surrounding us. It had been an hour since we’d gottrn to the beach, and I could feel the sun growing hotter with each passing minute.

“You okay with heading back now?” I asked Shelby, who was staring out at the ocean seemingly lost in thought.

She shook the thoughts from her head and turned to me, “Yes, I don’t want the babies to overheat.”

We packed up our things as quickly as possible, careful not to disturb the babies who were still snoozing away in their stroller. The occasional sound of a seagull flew above us and echoed across the shore. Thomas and Amelia stirred in their sleep but didn’t wake.

Once our things were packed away, we made our way back up the steep grassy path toward our house. We walked along the pathway covered by trees, and the cool air and sounds of nature kept us company as we went along.

Once we were inside, I helped Shelby get ready to nurse the now hungry, impatient twins. Once they were set up on the couch, the twins contently nursing, and Shelby laid back and relaxed, I said, “I have some adult-only plans for this trip. I hope you’re okay with that.”

Shelby’s face noticeably blanched, no doubt worried about who would watch the twins. She tried to hide the anxiety in her features and replied, “Oh, really? I’m not sure I’m comfortable having strangers watch the babies, Michael. But that’s so thoughtful of you.”

“Well then, I guess it’s a good thing strangers won’t be watching the babies,” I tried to keep my face neutral, but the timing was perfect. There was a knock on the front door, and I smiled conspiratorially.

Shelby whipped her head toward the entrance and asked, “Who is that?”

I chuckled and swung open the door to reveal Lin, Aubrey, Gianni, and Jerrick. “Surprise!” they shouted in unison as they burst into the room like a collective wave of energy.

The twins peeked up from their nursing session and giggled at the group of visitors in front of them. Shelby was speechless but smiled widely as she surveyed the scene before her–her closest friends and I had planned this big surprise for her. I took the twins from her lap, and she squealed with glee as she hugged each one of them tightly and thanked them for coming.

Aubrey and Lin both made a beeline for the babies, grabbing one in each of their arms.

“We brought lunch,” Aubrey beamed brightly, smiling at a cooing Thomas.

“Yeah, so go eat while we play with our favorite niece and nephew,” Lin ordered Shelby.

Shelby walked over to the basket of fresh cheeses, fruits, and breads that Gianna had in his arms. She took the basket and walked to the kitchen table, then grabbed plates and utensils before making herself a plate.

“How in the world did you guys plan this and keep it a secret?” Shelby asked, unable to contain her happiness at having everyone here. She looked radiant as she beamed at the roomful of people she loved.

I shrugged nonchalantly as I watched our friends playing with the twins. “It wasn’t easy, but it was totally worth it just to see the look on your face right now.” I walked over to her and hugged her from behind while she munched on a fresh, juicy piece of pineapple.

We all laughed as we watched Thomas grab a handful of Aubrey’s hair and wrap it around his chubby little hand. She jokingly told him to be nice to Aunt Aub, then looked at Shelby and said, “We wanted to experience this vacation with you guys because we love you, and Michael made it happen. It’s as simple as that.”