~ Earned It ~

Earned It; Chapter 30.

He watched her body intently as she swayed her hips back and forth. It was almost as she was dancing, but only she wasn't. She was rocking their 3 week old baby boy to sleep. He was sitting at their island, just admiring the two. This life was new for the both of them, and he had never seen Bethany voluntarily take off work until he was born.

Jacob Elliot Hough. Born weighing 7 lbs, 10 oz. he was as healthy as healthy could be. They were lucky, but more importantly blessed with a beautiful baby boy. Everybody swooned over his rosy cheeks and his small ears. Everything about him basically resembled Derek, the blue eyes, the nose. The only thing that he seemed to get from Bethany was his dark hair.

Derek continued to work while Bethany took the time she needed to recover and be there for their son. She was positive that she didn't want him to grow up only seeing a nanny. So she planned a meeting to fix her schedule and make sure other people were there to make decisions when she was not.

Their families couldn't get enough of the little one, and it almost every other day when they had someone at their house admiring him. It had been a while since there had been a baby around, so Bethany and Derek wanted to let their families take in the moment.

It was the peaceful moments that gave them the time they needed to be together. While it was mostly only for 10 minutes in the middle of the night, Derek held onto her tight, his body warmth comforting her. Their nights were long. At first they tried different shifts but that stopped working because any sound of Jacob's movement and Bethany was up.

It was a different lifestyle, one that they both were not used to. Before, everything was in the moment. Now, it was planned. Down to every last detail.

Tonight was one of those nights. Except one thing was different. Jacob slept for longer than 10 minutes at a time. He had been sleeping for a good 2 hours. Bethany was worried something was wrong, because this was not planned. This was not normal.

They were finally getting the time they needed, together. His arm caressed her side, up and down, leaving her body at a normal level of comfort. These moments were rare, so they took every chance they had.

"When are you going back to work?" He asked softly, scared to wake the sleeping baby only in the next room.
"I'm going in on Monday, to talk to Becca and rearrange my schedule so I can do more work from home."
"You mentioned that. You think the board is gonna let it happen?"
"Like they have any other choice. If I decide I want to change my schedule for my son, then I will do so."

Derek chuckled, bringing her body closer to his.

"Can you believe the life we're living right now?"
She sighed, her smile growing. "It feels like a fairytale." She took a deep breath, looking up at him. "This is life I've always wanted. Sure I love my job, but every last part of me has always wanted to get to this stage. Married and starting a family of my own."
"You already know I never thought this would happen. It just took the right girl at the right time." He smiled at her, pressing his lips to her forehead.

The two sat there, embracing the silence. It was comforting to them. Well, more comforting than hearing their baby cry out in the middle of the night anyway.

"What time do you have to work tomorrow?" She asked, running her hand along his cheek.
"Not early enough to miss breakfast with my two favorite people. But early enough to not wanna go."
She only smiled. "And you said you're gonna be home around 3? Cause we have dinner at my parents house. God only knows what would happen if Jacob didn't show up on time."
His low laugh filled the silent room. "Yeah, I'll be home around 3-3:30."

The room went silent again before the baby monitor erupted with cries. Bethany shot up, and moved into the next room immediately, where Jacob was laying in his crib, tears streaming down his face.

"Oh my baby boy, why are you so upset? Mommy's right here."

She picked him up carefully, holding him against her chest and taking him to their bedroom. Derek smiled and sat up, laying a pillow down in the middle of the bed. She placed him down softly, watching him begin to look around.

"You were sleeping so peacefully. What happened baby?"

He just looked up at her, holding onto her finger that much tighter. Derek smiled once more, placing his hand on top of Bethany's free one. She looked up and smiled back, the both of them putting their attention back on Jacob. His eyes were shut, and it looked like he was finally dosing back off.

"I can't believe he's ours. And this is our life."
"It's surreal." Derek whispered, pressing a kiss to the now sleeping baby's head. "But Bethany?"
She looked up, his gaze pouring in to hers. "Yeah?"
"We've Earned It."

She only looked back at Jacob, nodding her head slowly.

"Yeah, we have."

THE END
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Well, here it is guys. The final chapter to Earned It. What a journey this one has been. I hope you all enjoyed the ride as much as I have, and I can't wait for you guys to see what I have in store.

Please please please let me know what you thought of this story, overall and the final chapter. Feedback, as always, is appreciated.

Thanks for another great story, and another great journey. I love you all ❤️❤️❤️

-Emily