Daddy's Home (Firebacks Book 1)

by Linda Verji

  “Zain.” Lucky called out. She turned and the moment her eyes landed on him she rushed in his direction.

  “Where’s my baby? What happened? Is she hurt? Is it bad?”

  “Baby, breathe,” he directed as he stroked her arms and kept his eyes locked on hers.

  She didn’t resist as he pulled her into his arms. Looking at him with panic-stricken brown eyes she asked, “Lucky, what did the doctor’s say? Is she going to be okay?”

  “Breathe.” Lucky dipped his head and brushed his lips against hers as he soothed her with circular motions against her lower back. It was intoxicating to breathe in that cherry scent she loved to wear, to touch her lush lips with his and to feel the curves of her body against his own again. He kissed her forehead. “Our daughter is okay.”

  “She’s okay.” She took deep calming breaths before pulling away from him. Lucky almost groaned in frustration but let her go. “What happened?”

  “She fell down the stairs,” Lucky informed her as he led her down the hallway to Iris’ room. “She was unconscious for a couple of minutes.”

  His plan was to stay as vague as possible. Hopefully, she wouldn’t discover that he’d practically conned her into coming. He held the door open for her before he followed her in. Zain stopped moving the moment she entered the room. Lucky bumped into her, only stopping her from falling by wrapping a steadying arm around her torso.

  Nadifa who was sitting next to Iris’ bed turned towards the door at their entry and immediately stiffened too. If the tension in the room were an earthquake, it would’ve blown up the Richter scale.

  Damn! He’d forgotten that the last time his wife and mother had been in the same room together Zain had tried to beat her. He kept his arm around Zain partly to calm her, but mostly to restrain her in case she decided to jump Nadifa again.

  Iris’ excited voice cut into the tension. “Mommy!”

  “Hey, baby.” The tension eased from Zain as she focused her attention on Iris and gave her smile. Lucky let her go and she went to sit beside their daughter. She placed little teasing kisses all around Iris’s face. “Why’d you scare Mommy like that? I was so worried about you.”

  “It was just a little booboo.” Iris giggled. In her own dramatic way she explained what’d happened. The more Iris spoke, the narrower the look Zain threw Lucky. She’d figured him out. Lucky shrugged. She’d come, hadn’t she?

  “How have you been Zain?” Nadifa interrupted Zain and Iris’ reunion with a smile. The married couple stared at her in shock. What in the hell is going on here? In all their years of knowing each other, Nadifa had never asked after Zain, let alone smiled at her.

  “Um…Fine,” Zain said as she looked at Nadifa like she’d suddenly grown two heads, “How are you?”

  “Fine, fine, but I’m sure I’m not as fine as you.” Nadifa’s smile widened as her gaze shifted between Lucky and Zain. “Congratulations! Why didn’t the two of you tell me you were expecting?”

  What?

  Lucky looked Zain up and down. He couldn’t really see much seated as she was, but he still had the memory of the little changes in her body. He’d noticed them when he’d held her in the hallway; her breasts were just a bit bigger, her waist wasn’t so slender…there might’ve been something there.

  He waited for her to deny it, but Zain maintained a stony silence.

  She’s pregnant!

  And she’d asked him for a divorce?

  Lucky didn’t say a word. He simply crooked a finger at Zain and walked out the door. He waited for her to follow him but Zain took her sweet time. He was about to go back in there and drag her out when she finally appeared.

  He waited for her to close the door before saying, “You’re pregnant.”

  It was a statement, not a question, and Zain didn’t accept or deny it. She just stood there mean-mugging him. He said the first thing that came to mind. “Is it mine?”

  “Are you—” She didn’t finish the statement, only pulled her arm back and slammed her fist into his face.

  Fuck! He’d forgotten about her right hook.

  CHAPTER 21

  How could a man make a woman so mad? Lucky knew just how to push her buttons – all of them. For a minute she’d actually been glad to see him then of course he’d had to ruin everything by running his mouth.

  Is it mine?

  Unbelievable! The question was straight up disrespectful. Did she look like the kind of woman who’d get pregnant by another man while she was still married? He was supposed to be happy considering how long they’d tried to make a baby, not suspicious.

  After she’d punched him Zain had walked away, but her fist still smarted from knocking against his hard jaw. She sat on one of the stone benches in the hospital’s courtyard with her back to the large building as she tried to calm down. It didn’t work. The more she thought about Lucky’s reaction, the more irritated she became.

  Is it possible to file for divorce twice?

  She was ruminating over the possibility of handing him papers again via Chryssa when she felt a hand land on her shoulder.

  “Don’t even start with—” She turned expecting Lucky but was instead unpleasantly surprised to find her mother-in-law standing behind her. “Nadifa?”

  If Zain wasn’t confused before, now she was legitimately baffled. First Nadifa had greeted her with a smile in Iris room, then congratulated her, and was now following her? In one day? There was only rational explanation. The doctor had accidentally pumped Nadifa with some of Iris’ painkillers.

  Nadifa settled beside her. It took everything in Zain to not move away or stand up. She shifted uncomfortably on the bench, stealing perplexed glances at Nadifa. What was going on? Nadifa sat silently beside her for a while, her eyes on her hands as she twisted the rings that circled her left ring finger repeatedly.

  “Are you eating well?” Nadifa finally asked. “You should eat lots of fruits and vegetables. It will make the baby healthier.”

  Zain wanted to tell her that she was a doctor and there was nothing Nadifa could tell her about keeping her baby healthy that she needed or wanted to hear. She didn’t. “Yes, I am.”

  “Oh! That’s good,” Nadifa nodded before she settled back into an uneasy silence. Her eyes were glazed as she stared into the distance. “I remember when I was pregnant with Halake. He was a rough boy, kicking and turning around. He kept me up half the night singing to him. I thought he was going to be a wrestler.” Nadifa laughed as she reminisced.

  “Football is close enough to wrestling,” Zain added to the conversation, reluctantly.

  “I suppose.” Nadifa turned to face Zain. “He’s a good boy. He makes mistakes, but he’s a good boy.”

  Was this Nadifa’s way of telling her to take him back? Was it her way of apologizing? Zain would’ve asked, but there was too much water under the bridge. She and Nadifa had never had a heart-to-heart conversation and as far as Zain was concerned, this wasn’t the time for it. Not when her daughter was upstairs in a hospital bed, waiting on her. Zain stood. “I have to go back in.”

  She left Nadifa seated at the bench.

  Nadifa may be ready to apologize but Zain wasn’t ready to hear it!

  * * *

  Zain found Lucky leaning against the wall as he stood outside Iris’ room. When she made to pass him he grabbed her arm. “What was my mother saying to you?”

  “None of your business!” On second thought, “You know what? Why would you ask me a stupid question like if this baby is yours?”

  “It’s a valid question.”

  “So you think that I would—” She stopped speaking to rein in her temper. They were in a hospital. “Fine! The baby isn’t yours.”

  Lucky stared at her for a moment in silence then shook his head. “Nah! You’re lying.”

  “What is your problem?” Zain was puzzled by the quick change in his demeanor. “I thought a minute ago you were asking me if this is your baby. Now I’m lying when I say it isn’t?”

 
“Cause I can read you,” he said, “and I know when you’re jerking me around.”

  “Something is wrong with you.” She tried to walk back into Iris’s room, but Lucky held her back, his hold firm on her wrist. She turned to snap at him – maybe even punch him again – but Lucky didn’t even looking at her. Her belly had his full attention. He pressed his palm against it.

  “We’re gonna have a baby.” The awe in his voice was palpable. His hands glided over the fabric of her t-shirt stirring emotions and feelings she’d tried to close herself off from. The smile on his face as he rubbed her belly was enough to suck every bit of anger out of her.

  “Yeah! We are.”

  “Zain, we’re gonna have a baby,” he repeated as he tagged her closer to him. His arms wrapped around her waist until they were nose-to-nose and both of his hands rested against the base of her back.

  “I know.” Zain was breathless from being in such close contact with him.

  “Ours.” He touched his lips to hers. He kept repeating the word as he pressed little kisses against her lips. Zain knew she should’ve made an effort to resist him, but it felt too good to be back in his arms.

  “You’re happy?” She whispered against his lips.

  “Of course! That’s a part of you and me.” He slid his fingers around her neck and angled her head. His touch raised the hairs on the back of her neck as his mouth slanted over hers possessively. Her breasts pressed against the hard planes of his chest and her fingers curled over his biceps. Zain held onto the firm muscles as he playfully nipped and sucked on her lower lip before he dipped his tongue into her mouth for a taste.

  The kiss was an explosion of suppressed desire and sensation, a testimony of how much they’d missed each other. It revealed everything words could not. It felt like home.

  “Baby, please come back home,” Lucky pleaded against her lips, his hands restlessly travelling up and down the length of her spine. “Please.”

  She wanted to say yes. It was so tempting to walk back into his life and act like nothing was wrong. It was tempting to be his again. However, she knew they had lots of issues to resolve between them and it just wasn’t the time. She hedged, “Let’s talk after we’re sure about Iris, okay?”

  Lucky reluctantly agreed.

  * * *

  The doctors, as expected, wanted to keep Iris overnight for observation. Nadifa offered to spend the night at the house with the other children so Lucky and Zain could stay at the hospital with Iris. Lucky saw the immediate protest in Zain’s face but he was pleasantly surprised when she agreed to Nadifa’s suggestion without voicing her protest. Zain didn’t trust Nadifa but was willing to try for a ceasefire. The two women he loved the most in the world could finally stay in the same room without trying to go for the other’s throat. Which was all Lucky wanted – for now.

  He was going to be a father.

  The thought kept running through his head. He had Ash, but having a baby by Zain just felt different. The woman he loved was finally having his baby. It was different! It was said that a baby couldn’t repair a marriage, but things had began to look up for them and he could tell Zain still had feelings for him from the kiss they’d shared in the hallway. What she had with Eli was nothing compared to what they shared. She was having his baby, not Eli’s.

  Lucky wondered if it’d be a little girl or little boy. Little girl definitely – with her mother’s pretty smile and hazel eyes! He smiled as he parked his truck back in the hospital lot. He’d gone back to the house to make sure that Maari, Lily, and Ash had settled in for the night at Zain’s bequest.

  The Pediatric wing of the hospital had quieted down. All he heard as he walked down the halls was hushed voices from various rooms and the soft, rhythmic beeps of different machines that periodically interrupted the silence. He was just about to push Iris’ door open when the doorknob turned effortlessly in his hand. A nurse glided soundlessly from the room with a small smile and nod,.

  His girls were both asleep. Zain sat in the single armchair with Iris in her arms, a large blue blanket covering their bodies. Lucky shut the door softly behind him. He walked to them then his head for a kiss against Zain’s lips. Her eyelashes flattered before she finally opened her eyes. Her lips curved into a smile as her gaze sharpened. “Hey.”

  “Hey.”

  Neither said anything more for a while. Their shared smiles were enough. He’d missed the way they could connect without words. Eager to hold her, he peeled the blanket away and moved Iris from her arms to tuck her into bed, then settled in the armchair with Zain on his lap.

  The moment he had her in his arms, their lips met in a tender kiss. It was meant to reaffirm that the love between them still burned, not inspire lust. He slanted his mouth over hers using his tongue to slip past her defenses and lure her back to him.

  Chemistry had never been their problem. The delicious kiss activated his body. Her shifting around on his lap didn’t help matters either. If their daughter wasn’t asleep a bed away, Lucky would’ve shown her that her body was his and his was hers.

  He ended the kiss with soft pecks. She laid with her head on his shoulder and her hand over his heart as they sat in silence. He stroked her tummy with the hand that wasn’t wrapped around her as he listened to her soft, even breathing.

  As much as he wanted to let the shit between them go, he still had some nagging questions that he needed answered. He broke the silence. “Is it over between you and Eli?”

  “Is what over?” she mumbled.

  “The affair.”

  She sat up on his lap, her eyes meeting his in the shadow-worn room. “Halake, there’s nothing between Eli and I.”

  “Didn’t look like that when you were kissing him.”

  “What kiss? The one on the cheek?” Her eyes angrily lit up. He could tell she wanted to yell at him, but her voice stayed hushed as she berated him. “Why do you always have to jump to conclusions? Do I look like the type of woman who would step out on my man?”

  He smiled both in relief and triumph,

  “So I’m still your man?” he asked. A smile dominated his features as he bent his head to kiss her.

  “No, don’t even.” Zain pushed his face away. “You have the nerve to come at me about kissing my friend on the cheek when you’ve got your mistress running around in my house?”

  “Look who’s jumping to conclusions now.”

  “I’m not jumping to any conclusions. Your little hoe told me that herself.”

  When had she talked to Sonia? Lucky sifted through his memories. Only one came to mind. The day Zain had come to the house to pick up the kids while he went to fix Iris’ doll, Sonia had been hanging out in the main house. Right after that Zain had hit him with divorce papers.

  The puzzle pieces fit together too nicely to be a coincidence.

  Sonia was the mistress of playing people like drums and he, Zain, and Nadifa had all lined up to be the next bongo.

  “She’s not my anything,” Lucky defended. “I wasn’t the one who had her running around in your house, baby. That was Ma. I sent Sonia out the moment she started playing around. The day you came to pick up the kids she wasn’t even staying in the main house.”

  Zain looked contemplatively at him, as if searching for the truth in his eyes. Lucky let her see it. Seemingly satisfied with what she’d seen, Zain took a deep breath and relaxed against his body again.

  “What? You thought I was just gonna replace you like that?” He tipped her chin up and kissed her lips. His tone was sincere and serious as he said, “I know I’ve been acting the fool these last few months, but I know what I got baby.”

  “Fool is an understatement.”

  “Uh uh. Don’t try to front like you’re all that innocent.”

  “What does that mean?” she asked. “You’re the one who’s walking around being a baby daddy to the whole of New York female population. I’m completely blameless.”

  “Is that right?” he asked. Zain nodded firmly, her eyes daring h
im to prove her wrong. “So then what do you call trying to divorce me when you’re carrying my baby?”

  That shut her up! Her mouth fluttered open as if she wanted to speak, but she couldn’t think of anything to defend herself and firmly closed it.

  “Oh! You thought I’d forgotten about that, didn’t you Mrs. Vendetta?”

  Her eyes lowered in embarrassment. As much fun as it was to not be the one in the hot seat, Lucky postponed the crowing for later. Right now their conversation was about laying all their cards down and hoping they came up with forgiveness.

  He tipped her chin up again, “I’m not mad. I just want you to come back home so we can be a family again. I miss you, baby.”

  “I miss you too.” She stroked his cheek. “I really do, but—”

  “No buts.”

  “But, I’m not ready to come back home. I’m not ready to trust you again.”

  “That’s what the counseling is for.”

  “I’m just worried it’s not going to be enough.”

  He’d fucked up, yes, but he was trying his best to earn back her trust and save their marriage without neglecting the responsibilities his fuck-ups had wrought. He’d apologized so many times that the word ‘sorry’ had gone stale on his lips, agreed to go for counseling and was keeping away from Sonia. For crying out loud he’d practically thrown his own mother under the bus for her.

  Frustrated, he ran his palm over his face.

  What more did Zain need? How many laps was she going to make him run until she was satisfied that she’d punished him enough? Was it ever going to be enough?

  “Baby, I’m not punishing you.” She said as she stroked the back of his head in an effort to soothe him. “It’s just that since I left, it’s like my life is actually coming together. I’ve got my job back, there’s no press drama about you and Sonia, and Nadifa isn’t here looking at me like the scum of the Earth. I didn’t even know I was unhappy ‘til I left you.”

  “Zain, you were unhappy with me?” For the last eleven years he’d prided himself on being a good husband, provider, and father. Anger and disappointment warred in him as her words pricked at his ego. “I make you unhappy?”