Aidan shrugged. “It doesn’t matter to her.”

Megan laughed. “She has a mother with a killer voice, yet she likes to listen to you?”

Flashing his signature cocky grin, Aidan replied, “What can I say? All women love me.”

With a roll of her eyes, Megan said, “Give me a break.”

Glancing down at Caroline, Aidan said in a sing-song voice, “Don’t you have the sweetest, handsomest, and most wonderful daddy in the whole wide world?” Caroline cooed at his question and kicked her legs. “She’s a smart girl because she knows how lucky she is.”

“You’re terrible,” Megan said, with a grin.

Aidan looked from his daughter over to Megan. “You want to hold my most perfect little princess?”

“I would love to.” She held out her arms as Aidan passed Caroline to her. Outfitted in a frilly purple dress and purple bow, Caroline looked like she could be modeling baby wear. Unlike Noah’s strawberry blond hair, hers was a deep auburn. She had also inherited her mother’s green eyes. “I have to agree that you’re a lucky girl because you look just like your mother,” Megan said.

Aidan laughed. “Yeah, she is a little mini-Emma, isn’t she?”

“She is. Boy, she’s going to give you hell when she’s a teenager,” Megan teased.

“I know. Trust me, I know.”

As Caroline smiled up at her, Megan couldn’t help sighing. “You’re a bad influence, missy. You make me want to have another baby.”

“Is that a bad thing?” Aidan asked.

“No, it’s just…”

“Just what?”

“I asked Pesh to give me a year of marriage before we start trying. I know he’s ready right now, but I just want this time with him. You know, just the two of us.”

“That’s understandable.”

“But holding her…” Megan shook her head. “You’re just bad for business, Miss Caroline.”

Aidan laughed. “Tell me about it. Whenever I hold her or Noah, I think how much I’m going to miss it when they’re not babies anymore. It nags at me enough that I think I’ll be okay if we have more.”

“No vasectomy on the horizon?”

He grinned. “No yet. Still not ruling it out though. And as far as you and more babies, you’ll know when the time is right. And if anyone is patient and understanding, it’s Pesh.”

“That’s true,” Megan murmured.

Mason appeared in the doorway then. “‘Mon, Mommy. Want ice cweam!”

Megan laughed. “Okay, let me give your little bad influence back to you,” she said, handing Caroline to Aidan. She then took Mason’s hand and started out of the bedroom.

“Daddy says I have ice cweam first.”

“Did he?” Megan said, as she planned to strangle Pesh.

“Uh huh. ‘Cause it’s my ‘doption day.”

When she met Pesh’s eye, she raised her brows. Immediately, his face flushed. “Spoiling him rotten already, aren’t you?” she questioned in a low voice.

“I couldn’t help it. It’s a special day.”

“Mmm, hmm, and when this special day turns into an all nighter because he’s hyped on sugar, you’re going to deal with him.”

Pesh grinned. “I will. I promise.”

Megan leaned up to kiss him. “You’re too sweet for your own good. You’re always going to have me playing bad cop when it comes to discipline.”

“But you love me anyway, right?” he murmured against her lips.

“So much I was almost ready to reconsider our plan about when we’re starting a family.”

His eyes bulged at her response. It took him a few moments to speak. “That means a lot that you would do that, but deep down I know how you really feel. So, I’m going to be good and patiently wait ten more months before confiscating your birth control.”

“It’s a deal,” she replied, before kissing him again.

Epilogue

As soon as he finished with his last patient, Pesh practically sprinted from the exam room. He hustled into the doctors’ lounge, trying hard to keep his head down and not call any attention to himself. He wanted to be able to get out the door without anyone calling him back for a consult or to pull a longer shift. Once he had retrieved his things, he started for the parking lot.

“Dr. Nadeen!” Kristi called.

Inwardly, he groaned. “Yes?” he questioned, as he turned around.

“You weren’t leaving, were you?” she asked.

He exhaled a defeated breath. “I was planning on it. Does someone need me to cover for them?”

Kristi winked at him. “Thought you were screwed there for a minute, didn’t you?”

A relieved laugh escaped his lips. “I did.”

She smiled. “I have something for Megan.”

“Honestly Kristi, you didn’t need to do anything else for us.”

Waving her hand dismissively, she handed a pink gift bag to him. “I wanted to do this.”

After peeking inside, Pesh smiled before he leaned down to hug Kristi. “Thank you. I’m sure she’ll love it.”

“You tell her we miss her around here.”

“I will.”

She patted his back. “Now go on home to your girls.”

He nodded and then hurried out the door. Today had been his first day back after taking both paternity leave and some of his many amassed sick days. As he slid into the seat of his Jaguar, he felt a rush of embarrassment at how he had actually gotten teary on the way to work that morning after leaving Megan. It had been the longest shift of his entire life. He thought he would never be through so he could get home to her.

Even now, the usual ten-minute drive home seemed to take an eternity. He anxiously drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. He’d tried not to pester Megan with too many calls and texts, but after the tenth, “How are you guys?” text, she’d told him to lighten up and get his head in the game at work.

That’s why he didn’t even bother telling her he was on his way home. As he pulled into the driveway, he noticed Emma’s SUV. He was glad to know that Megan hadn’t been alone without him. When he pushed through the garage door into the kitchen, Emma was at the stove. “Hello,” he called pleasantly.

Whirling around, she gave him a beaming smile. “Hello to you, too.”

“How are my girls?”