You Always Have Me

Part 24

"I swear, Lily, if you tell your mother about this..."

"Just sit still, Daddy." Lily said and Lindsey did as asked, every time the girl would call him that, it put a smile on his face.

"I will, but you cannot say a word, okay? First of all, we took your Mommy's makeup and that's a big no no in itself. Second of all, I'm a man and men don't wear makeup!"

"Oh, I don't know, Linds... What about your rebellious Tusk era?" Stevie then suddenly appeared in the doorway, just about giving Lindsey a heart attack. 

"Jesus Christ, Steph! You're back! You weren't supposed to be back yet!" Jumping to his feet, he rushed to the bathroom to was his face off, although, Stevie still got a glimpse of that dark blue eye shadow and pink lips.

"You're a little devil, miss Lily, you know?" Stevie chuckled, sitting down on the bed. "How did you get him to do it?"

"I said, I love you Daddy and please." Lily smiled way too innocently, as she got onto Stevie's lap. 

"Yeah, that works for me, too." 

"Really?" Lily frowned. "But he's not your Daddy, silly!"

Stevie blushed, a little unsure of what else to say. Thankfully, Lindsey came out of the bathroom, kneeling on the floor to clean up the makeup studio Lily opened up. 

"Everything okay?" He asked, referring to Stevie's trip to San Diego. 

"Yes, everything is just fine." She nodded, smiling. She was emotionally drained, but despite that, she was happy with how it went. More than that, she was happy to come back home to the two people she loved the most in this whole wide world.

"Well, we'll talk later about that." Standing up, Lindsey bent over to kiss Stevie, but she put up her hand.

"You've got some lipstick left on you." He furiously started wiping his lips, while the girls chuckled at him. "Pink is seriously not your color, Lindsey."

"I'll get back at you for laughing at me." He looked at her pointedly, now finally being allowed to kiss her.

"Right you two. I'm going to make something for dinner. Just don't go into my closet, trying clothes on, Linds, while I'm at it." Stevie couldn't help but tease him again. 

"You got me into serious problem, princess." Lindsey sighed, taking Lily over from Stevie. "I won't ever hear the end of it."

"I'm sorry, Daddy. Don't be mad at me, I had fun!" Lily wrapped her little arms around his neck, pressing a big kiss to his cheek. 

"How could I stay mad at you?" Shaking his head, Lindsey got a better grip on the girl and they followed Stevie into the kitchen. Sitting Lily down on the kitchen table, Lindsey went to put the kettle on to make a cup of herbal tea for Stevie, knowing she always had one after a long stressful day. "You look exhausted, babe."

"I am." Stevie nodded, opening the fridge. 

"Then don't cook."

"What, don't tell me you are going to?" A look of fake dread crossed her face.

"No." Rolling his eyes, Lindsey said. "We have leftovers from yesterday. You take a seat and I'll heat it up."

"You sure? I could just-"

"Steph, it's fine. Really." Kissing her briefly, Lindsey walked Stevie to the table and pushed her down gently. 

"Why don't you want Daddy to cook?" Lily then asked.

"Because Daddy can't cook to save his life, honey." Stevie replied, smoothing out Lily's hair.

"Now that is a massive lie." Lindsey disagreed. "I've tried cooking for you ages ago, you should really give me a chance, Steph. I've gotten better."

"Oh, yeah? Alright then. Breakfast in bed tomorrow." She challenged. "Eggs, bacon, toast, freshly squeezed orange juice and coffee."

Starting to laugh, Lindsey shook his head. "You don't even eat any of that. It's not on your diet."

"I'll make an exception." 

"Okay." Shrugging his shoulders, he pointed at her. "You're on." 

"Sometimes I wonder if you're more mature than Daddy is." Stevie said to Lily, tickling her tummy, making her giggle. 

After they ate dinner, Stevie took Lily upstairs to bathe her, which of course resulted in water being splashed all over the tiled floor and Stevie's clothes, while Lindsey cleaned up the kitchen. He didn't even realize he was smiling, hearing Lily laughing and screeching from the bathroom upstairs. He didn't dream in the wildest of his dreams to have a family with Stevie anymore. He was sure they had missed out on their absolute last chance around The Dance. One blow after another, diminishing his hope; Kristen's first unplanned pregnancy, then the second and the third, their marriage itself, then it was Stevie's turn, telling him of her plans to wed... How they managed to go through all of that, he will never understand, but he wasn't going to question it either. 

Switching the lights off downstairs, Lindsey jogged the stairs up, following voices, entering Lily's room, where she was sitting on her bed in pajamas and a big fluffy robe, while Stevie brushed her hair. 

"Make my hair curly, Mommy!" Lily clapped her hands excited. 

"Maybe another time, sweetie? Mommy's tired." Lily then stuck her bottom lip out, looking up with her best puppy eyes. Sighing, Stevie showed to the top drawer. "Get a couple of hair ties from there, Linds."

"Your the best Mommy!" Lily smiled big and that was enough to melt Stevie's heart. 

Once Stevie finished braiding Lily's hair, she took off her robe and lifted the covers up. "No story tonight, baby, I'm sorry."

"... Daddy?" 

Lindsey came up behind Stevie, kissing her temple. "It's Daddy duties time now. You go lie down and I'll be right there with you."

"I love you." 

"I love you more." 

Stevie left the two alone, going to the bedroom, dying to get out of her clothes and put on her nightgown instead. She then went to sit at her vanity to take her makeup off, before getting under the covers, letting out a heavy sigh. 

Lindsey joined her in no time, closing the door behind him. "Out like a light." Seeing Stevie yawn, he sat down on the edge of her bedside. "Do you want me to read to you as well?" He joked, brushing her hair out of her face. 

"No, I want you to get into bed and hold me."

"Did everything really went okay?" He asked, after that reply. 

"It did. Jeremy said he's alright with everything that has to be done, so I can adopt Lily on my own. He won't cause any problems concerning the divorce either. It's just... it was an emotional day." Stevie scooted closer to Lindsey, resting her head on his chest, his arm going around her. 

"But are you okay? Is this still what you want?"

"Of course, Lindsey. I'm beginning to think that it was stupid of me to get married in the first place. I can't believe I thought it would last."

"You loved him."

"I did, but nowhere near as much as I love you." Pressing her lips against his skin, she got comfortable and closed her eyes.

That put a smile on his face, as he played with her hair. Wanting to say something, Lindsey quickly realized Stevie had already fallen asleep, her breathing even. Kissing her on the forehead, he then drifted off to a peaceful sleep as well.