Mistaken Consequences

Chapter 37: August: 6 weeks

Vera threw an arm over her eyes as she stirred. The house was still quiet, the morning light just beginning to push through the window blinds. A part of her wanted to roll over and go back to sleep until Lily woke, but her breasts ached with fullness. They'd been introducing Lily to the bottle as well and Hamish must have taken care of the last feeding.

She peeked in at Lily, still sleeping deeply in her bassinet beside the bed. She needed relief sooner than Lily was likely to wake, so she tiptoed out of the room, pulling the door until it was just cracked open behind her, and headed for the kitchen.

Vera paused when she reached the living room. Hamish was still sound asleep, but she scowled as she realized the air mattress he'd been sleeping on had nearly entirely deflated during the night. It had been his idea after the couch had proven too uncomfortable for an extended stay, and the fact that it was able to be stored out of the way during the daytime appealed to her, but was this happening every night? Had Hamish been practically sleeping on her floor for the past month, never saying a word about it?

Hamish was usually already up by the time she came out of her room with Lily in the mornings, the air mattress already tucked away and breakfast started in the kitchen. It had given her an excuse to postpone sorting through the rooms upstairs, deciding which to give up in favor of a new guest room. She glanced over at the suitcase, partially hidden beside the couch. She couldn't keep avoiding it. Hamish had all but moved in to be able to be here to help with Lily. He couldn't keep living out of a suitcase and sleeping on her floor. She didn't know how he didn't have a constant crick in his back already – well, because of Tundra, most likely.

Knowing Hamish was likely to wake as soon as she started moving around, she didn't put too much effort into being quiet. Even the low pulsing of her breast pump felt so loud in the otherwise silent room, but it wasn't until she began pulling things out of the fridge that Hamish groaned softly and began shifting.

He slowly sat up, covering a yawn with his hand before spotting her. "Morning," he murmured.

Vera gave him a small smile. "What time did you feed Lily this morning?"

He leaned over to grab his phone. "About an hour and a half ago," he said, checking the time. "She got a little grouchy waiting for it to heat up, but then she did fine."

Vera looked down, letting out a tiny breath. It was good that Lily was accepting the bottle now – she'd protested horribly the first week they'd attempted it – but she couldn't help but feel it was all moving so fast. It felt like just days ago when they'd brought Lily home from the hospital, a tiny, cuddly, newborn entirely dependent on her.

Lily was growing every day, becoming more alert, more aware of the world around her. Her first real smile had come days ago. Vera had been home alone with her; Hamish had gone back to the Den to get more clothes, and as soon as he'd walked into the house, he'd come to greet them, as if he'd been gone for days instead of an hour. Lily's head had turned as soon as she heard his voice and, when he spoke to her, she'd smiled.

Lily was growing, and that meant it was time for Vera to turn her attention back to the outside world, as much as she wished she could just stay here in these moments forever.

Vera forced a smile. "Biscuits are in the oven. Do you want anything other than bacon and eggs?"

Hamish walked up to the counter opposite her, shaking his head in response to her question. "Vera, we'll be fine."

She knew they would be. Hamish was an amazing father and there was nobody she trusted with Lily more, but she hated the thought of being away from her baby for even a few hours. If she wanted to keep her position though - and she did, for Hamish and his Knights if nothing else – she needed to be able to take care of things within the Order.