Accidentally in Love

Like Coming Home

"I have never been so exhausted in my life," Connor sighed dramatically as plopped down on the couch and propped his feet up on the table.

Yawning, I sat down next to him and lay my head on his shoulder as I nodded in agreement

I had convinced our neighbor, Eliza, to let us babysit her three-year-old daughter, Nicole, for the day. As much as I hated to admit it, my mother had been right about one thing: I had no idea what it was like to raise a child. So I figured spending a day with a small human being would give Connor and me insight into the day in the life of a parent.

Little did I know how difficult it would actually be. After what seemed like an eternity of playing with dolls and coloring, I thought she might be tired and want to do something less active. But no; she wanted to play tag.

Seeing as running was problematic for me at the moment, I had watched in amusement as Connor had chased her around the local park. Afterward, Connor had the grand idea of buying her ice cream, which later turned out to be a grave mistake.

Apparently children become hyperactive and uncontrollably excited after consuming massive amounts of sugar. Who knew?

So the next two hours were spent with Connor and I alternating between chasing after Nikki and telling her to stop doing things or yelling at each other. She finally crashed from her sugar high about ten minutes before Eliza came to pick her up. Of course Connor and I gushed about how Nikki was a perfect, angel of child before shutting the door behind her and collapsing on the couch.

All in all, it had been an exhausting day.

Connor rubbed his palm down my arm as we lay curled up against each other on the couch. "Do you still think we can do this?"

I tilted my chin slightly so I could look at him and smile reassuringly. "Of course."

As hellish as our day had been, I had somehow managed to enjoy every minute of it. And although there were times I wondered why anybody would ever have kids, one adorable smile from Nikki set me straight. I couldn't look into her big blue eyes and not feel calm.

It was amazing to think that in less than two weeks, Connor and I would be parents. We would have a child who was ours. It still seemed surreal.

"What do you think our daughter will be like?" Connor asked.

"I don't know," I replied, "I just hope she has your eyes."

Connor smiled and looked down at me, his gorgeous eyes sparkling, "Really? Why is that?"

I blushed slightly. "Your eyes were what first attracted me to you. I still remember that even in that dark club, I could see them sparkling."

His smile grew, causing my cheeks to redden even more. "You're too adorable for words, you know that?

Not knowing how to respond to his compliment, I scrunched up my nose and made a face at him. "Am I still adorable now?"

Laughing, he nodded as he placed a light kiss on the tip of my nose. "Always."

I smiled back, before laughing. "Let's hope she's not as smooth as you. I don't think I'd be able to handle it."

Connor threw his head back and laughed, squishing his eyes closed as his curls shook. Seeing him the laugh so genuinely was one of the most beautiful sights I had ever laid eyes on. His smile, his real, no bullshit, no pretending smile, could light up the darkest room. My lips couldn't help but mirror his happiness and it elated me to no end that I could cause such a wonderful sight to occur.