For Fiona

19. Mommy's Day

The sunlight filtered through the curtains cheerily, the kind of morning light that made the world seem as happy as Lucy felt. She down at Tim, who she was still laying on top of, and her chest warmed. He looked so peaceful, the hard lines of his jaw and the perpetual tension in his shoulders softened by sleep. She could not help the smile that stretched across her lips. It felt surreal, like she had entered a different universe, one she never wanted to leave, because the night before, they finally agreed to confront the feelings they had been dancing around, buried beneath layers of uncertainty, friendship, new parenthood, and fear. Tim had accepted that their connection was worthy of exploring, and nothing could have made her more giddy than that. Her heart gave a happy little skip just thinking about it. She wanted to wake him to share the joy buzzing in her veins, so she gently brushed a stray lock of hair from his forehead.

He did not so much as stir.

Emboldened by his stillness, she leaned in and pressed the softest kiss to the corner of his mouth. He twitched but did not wake. She grinned, her gleefulness bubbling up as she pressed her lips to his cheek then his temple. When he still did not open his eyes, she started to pepper his face with kisses from his jaw, to his nose, to the curve of his brow.

"Luce," he muttered, his voice gravelly and low, a sound that made her stomach flip. His eyes remained closed, but there was the faintest hint of a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"Good morning," she teased, her voice light and playful as she brushed her lips along his scruffy jawline.

His eyes cracked open, bleary and unamused. "Is this how it's going to be every morning? Snuggles and this?"

"Get used to it." She settled her chin on his chest, her grin widening when he reached up to rub the sleep from his eyes.

"You're extra chipper," he grumbled, but there was no real annoyance in his tone. His hand fell to rest lightly on her back, a gesture so easy it made his body thrum.

"I'm happy," she admitted. "Aren't you?"

His gaze softened as he looked at her, and for a moment, quiet stretched between them, heavy with unspoken feelings. Finally, he nodded. "Yeah, I'm happy."

Lucy felt her cheeks flush, the sincerity in his voice warming her from the inside out. She wanted to say something clever, something to lighten the moment, but before she could, Tim's hand slid up to cradle the back of her head, pulling her down for a kiss that was unhurried and deep, the kind that made time feel irrelevant. She melted against him, her fingers curling into the fabric of his t shirt as her heart hammered in her chest. When they finally broke apart, she stayed close, their noses touching. "I really, really like waking up like this," she whispered breathlessly.

He smirked, his thumb sweeping along her jawline. "It's not so bad."

"Oh, you love it," she shot back, grinning.

His eyes crinkled at the corners as he chuckled, the sound deep and warm. "I do." They stayed like that for a while, tangled up in each other to savor how their bodies felt like they were two halves of a whole with their mouths slotting into place confirming how real and right their connection was until the bedroom door flew open and in ran their favorite person.

"Mommy! Daddy!" Fiona shouted happily and tugged at the bedspread to help herself climb up to plop down next to the pile of limbs that were parents had made.

Lucy smoothed her daughter's messy brown hair and pushed it out of her face to admire that bright smile of hers. "Good morning, my love."

"Good morning!" Fiona chirped and clutched at what she could of her mom's shirt.