The Right Kind of Wrong: A Brother's Best Friend Romance by Fabiola Francisco (open ebook .TXT) 📗

“Love you, too, Kiwi.” Camden winks conspiratorially and trails his hand to my ass.

“Seriously, bro?” Easton grumbles, turning around and sitting on the couch. Faith, Camden, and I laugh before giving my brother a break and ordering pizza. I’ll never be able to repay my family for the amount of love they’ve given me.

“Where’s Mom?” Easton asks as he scrolls through the channels.

“She went to dinner with friends. I told her to go, although she felt guilty leaving. She needs a break and to enjoy herself.” My mom has given up teaching a few classes to be by my side, but I want her to continue her routine and not worry more than she has, which I know is a lot to ask for now that I’m a mother myself.

“We should watch the new Ronan Connolly movie,” Faith suggests once we settle on the couch and wait for the pizza to arrive.”

“A chick flick?” Camden lifts his eyebrows.

“It has some action,” I defend.

“You only want to watch it because of Ronan,” Easton counters.

It’s true. Ronan Connolly is a Hollywood hunk, and his Irish accent adds to his hotness.

“Fine,” Camden appeases. His arms wrap around me, holding me close as his warmth and love surround me. I close my eyes for a bit, basking in the way he makes me feel cherished and protected.

I could stay like this with him forever, and soon we’ll be creating special moments like this with our son.

chapter 33

Camden

I take in Ally’s tired face and the dark circles under her eyes. I want to reach out and hold her, but our son is finally breastfeeding, so I’ll have to wait to have her in my arms. Despite the exhaustion she carries, Ally’s been a warrior. I’ve never met anyone as strong as her, and I have no doubt in my mind that she’s the best mother that exists. I’m a lucky bastard that I get to witness her day in and day out.

Our life has been turned upside down the last six weeks. Ally and I have been dealing with what we experienced in different ways. She cries when she’s alone, and I swallow my guilt. Rationally, I know that neither of us is at fault—it’s just something that happened as it does to many other parents.

I’m focusing on the positive—we have our son alive and healthy. Other parents can’t say the same. I’ve met some of the others who have their babies here in the NICU, and Ally and I are truly blessed. A lot of these parents don’t know if their child will make it through the night.

On the other hand, Walker will be going home with us soon, especially now that he’s breastfeeding.

We’re also lucky our families have been here to help us. My parents and sister came to Richmond for a few days to meet Walker and help us in any way they could. Sammy bought him a onesie that says, Auntie’s New Homie. I chuckled when I saw it—typical Sammy.

I smile when I hear a small sound come from him. He already looks so different than when he was born, a lot more alert to our voices. When he finishes eating, Ally keeps him on her chest so she can continue to bond with him.

I stand behind her and tip her chin back. When our eyes meet, all the love I feel for this woman crashes down on me, wonderfully overwhelming. I kiss her lips and place my hand on Walker’s back as he begins sleeping. The medical team has finally removed the breathing tubes, and his lungs are pumping on their own. That was a huge relief for us.

Each day since that dreadful one where I found Ally in pain has been stressful but followed by good news. Once Walker was born, and we knew he would survive, I dropped to my knees again and thanked God. If He wanted to make me more of a believer, mission accomplished.

“Do you want to hold him?” Ally whispers.

I shake my head. “You keep him there. He’s already sleeping. I’ll grab him next time.” I sit next to her again, gently stroking his back. We’re going to be all right.

A little later, a nurse comes in to check on Walker. I smile when she talks to him as if he were a big kid and not a tiny infant that has been fighting for his life.

“Mom and Dad.” The nurse smiles. “Walker is doing great. The doctor will be by this afternoon to check on him herself, and I’m sure she’s going to have positive things to say. He’s a fighter.” She gives us a few updates on Walker and moves on to another baby.

“A fighter like his momma,” I say.

Ally shakes his head. “I’m convinced it was my dad helping him fight.” Her eyes mist over, and I pull her into my arms.

“Kiwi…” I kiss the top of her head. “You’re right. It was him watching over our son and you. He wouldn’t let anything happen to the two of you.”

My lips brush over her forehead before finding her lips. I inhale all that is Ally, grateful that she’s here with me right now. I wouldn’t survive losing her.

“Thank you,” she mumbles against my chest.

“What for?” I lift her chin so I can look at those stunning eyes. Emotional and tired, Ally’s still the most beautiful woman.

“For staying when you could’ve left. I know this isn’t easy to deal with, but you’re here.”

My eyebrows pinch together as I stare at her. “Why would I leave? Babe, I love you and our son more than you’ll ever know. I’m not going anywhere. A premature birth isn’t enough to scare me away. I’m here for the long haul.”

She’s insane if she thinks I would leave her alone to deal with this. My mind wanders to the ring I bought before this all went down. Waiting for the perfect time