Chapter 34: Passion hides Pain
"Hey." Lacey whispered. Danny rolled over. He propped his arm over his eyes. Lacey and him took turns with Ryker. The baby was exhausting but when his parents and grandmothers took shifts, it wasn't so bad.
"Do you need me to feed him?" Danny raised up onto one elbow.
"No. He was just fed and now is sleeping." Lacey fiddled with her nightshirt. "Uuuuuuuum…I miss you." Lacey stammered.
"Miss me…miss me?" Danny was wishing she meant physical contact. It had been three months since Ryker and Hannah were born. NOT anything but pecks. They had a lot of conversations though. Most were baby related or the jerks at school giving grief about them not socializing anymore.
A couple of weeks ago, they spoke about the nursery being approved by Green Grove High. Thanks mainly to contributions by none other than Gloria Crane. Then they went to a school soccer but Lacey worried about Ryker so they came home early.
"Yeah." Lacey blushed. "I…better go back to bed..This isn't right."
"No…Please…It'll be at least a couple of hours, right?" Danny sat up. Wheels turned fast in his head.
"Yeah, Why?" Lacey leaned on her elbows.
"I can come up to the bedroom. We can lock the doors….make out …and see where it goes." Danny rubbed Lacey's arms. Please let her go for this.
"Danny,we could get caught." Lacey bit her lip then glanced at Danny's chest. His working had definitely caused some new muscle tone. He was looking very fine. Why was she feeling so much desire tonight?
"Lacey, we don't have to do anything. I'll only go as far as you want." Danny closed his eyes. He didn't want to make her uncomfortable. "Just sit with me awhile."
Lacey climbed beside of him but Danny pulled her to his lap. He ran his fingers over her forehead pushing her hair to the side. "So how was your day?"
"It was good. Lacey cuddled closer to Danny. "I loved advanced chemistry…my compound worked perfectly. I have a new partner. So much nicer than Eloise. She treats me like a tramp. He seems smart. His name is Jason Tanner."
"Sorry. I noticed some of the girls doing that. You have been eating with the other girls that work in the nursery. I miss you." Danny ran his hand over the small of Lacey's back.
"I know. But we talk about the babies. You could come eat with us." Lacey breathed in Danny's scent. "Ryker will be there tomorrow. Mom wanted to show him off today so she took him to Tess's house."
"He really gets to come to our school? You did a great thing with the nursery, Lace. Do I get to come and see him during study period?" Danny leaned and nibbled Lacey's earlobe. "Hannah is growing. Did you notice her smile today?"
"Yes. She smiled for her daddy." Lacey rolled her eyes enjoying Danny, who was now sucking in skin on her neck.
"I hate when Ryker is already asleep when I get home from work." Danny ran his hand up the back of Lacey's cotton shirt.
"I know you miss him. This will help…seeing him at school." Lacey turned to straddle Danny.
"I…I took a test in Mr. Briar's AP Calculus class. I aced it." Danny was having a hard time concentrating on words with Lacey twisting on top of him.
"That is great. Especially with all the late nights….with Ryker... and your work...and visiting Hannah." Lacey bent down and kissed Danny's neck. She flicked her tongue then sucked in a small piece of skin.
"OH…Gawd." Danny grabbed Lacey and flipped her on the couch. His body hovering hers. "How did you do on the English essay?" His voice was laced with lust.
"Mrs. Rickey hasn't graded them yet." Lacey raked her hands down Danny's chest. She then moved her hands on top of his cotton pajama pants.
Danny grunted then kissed Lacey fiercely. He broke from the kiss. He tensed up as Lacey continued to move her hands on him. "I have….a …..mmmmmmmm….paper ….due…Friday."
"Do you need help?" Lacey kissed down Danny's chest as her hands continued to move.
"Yes…oh, yes." Danny muttered.
"With…..aaaaaaaaaaaw…your paper." Lacey felt Danny's hands touching her skin. He made her weak with desire.
"I want to do this right…..I mean the paper right." Danny licked his lips before assaulting Lacey's lips again.
"You always are so good at …writing papers." Lacey bucked against Danny as he made her feel pleasure pulse throughout her body.
"I try to do good…papers." Danny chuckled into Lacey's ear before flickering his tongue on her ear lobe.
"You…are…goood….oh….yes….yes….Danny…there." Lacey moaned trying to be less vocal then she was.
"I need you." Danny whispered as his hands continued to roam.
"Any..mmm..thing..you want." Lacey finally panted out. So much for being good. Lacey flopped back on the couch trying to take off her own shirt. Danny was pulling at his pants to rid his body of them.
Danny stood up to get them off. Trying to undress laying down wasn't going so great.
"Hurry..please…hurry." Lacey's confidence came back with her body returning to her thin self. Lacey started to push off her own cotton pajama bottoms when she panicked a little…this may hurt…Oh who cares…Look at the father to your baby. Back to pushing of her clothes.
"WAaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Waaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" Ryker's cry could be heard loudly.
"Oh No! He is mad. How long has he been crying?" Lacey pulled back on her pants. Danny did the same.
"I don't know. Geez, we got to get to him before Mom and Judy catch us." Danny ran upstairs leaving Lacey to finish dressing herself.
Danny had the infant in his arms frantically swaying him. "Shhhh…..shhhhh…Daddy's here."
"Here let me feed him." Lacey took the baby from Danny. This time Danny was not about to argue. He wanted his boy to be quiet.
Lacey soon had the baby breastfeeding. Danny settled down on the floor as Lacey sat rocking her baby in the rocking chair. They had moved Ryker to the nursery a little over a week ago.
"You okay?" Danny asked as Lacey seemed to wince in pain.
"Yeah. I just…I just am feeding him so much lately. I also have been feeding Hannah some along with pumping so much. It is making me sore." Lacey gave a crooked smile. "The doctor said that if he keeps being unsatisfied with his feedings I may have to change to formula." Lacey glanced at Ryker. "Does that make me a bad mom?"
"No. Of course not." Danny glanced at his family. He smiled widely.
"What?" Lacey asked as she looked at Danny.
"Funny, how all I could think about was being with you physically. Now all I can think is you are so much more than my physical need. You are the mother of my children. You are the reason that I need nothing. I have all things with you." Danny sighed contentedly.
"Yeah, you're gonna do fine on that paper…Creative Writing. You're so full of it, Danny Desai. You know I was still going to give you some without your lines." Lacey winked.
"Just making sure of that." Danny answered with a mischievous smile.
Danny and Lacey had to put off the intimacy session. Lacey fell asleep shortly after Ryker ate. Danny was close to being asleep himself. The next day, they went to visit Hannah. Ryker was doing great but Hannah was having more complications.
"Her lungs aren't developing as quickly as we thought." The doctor looked at the worried parents. "She also is having some mobility problems. We think she will outgrow those with intensive therapy." The doctor demonstrated what to do as far as physical therapy. "Exercise her legs like this and her arms."
Danny and Lacey both watched taking note of everything the doctor said. Then the doctor rubbed his neck. Danny took a deep breath before speaking.
"What is it? What is Hannah's prognosis?"
"She isn't doing so well." The doctor admitted. "Her surgery went well. She is healing up nicely from that. But pneumonia set in last night."
"How?" Lacey blinked back tears. She rubbed Hannah's forehead. "We've been so careful around her."
"It happens. Her lungs are so weak." The doctor watched the worry on the parents' faces. "Hannah needs her lungs to strengthen. If she doesn't start breathing on her own, I don't think she will be with us much longer."
"No." Lacey didn't know how much more bad news they could handle when it came to Hannah. "Is there anything we can do?"
"Not really. Hannah needs to grow." The doctor glanced at the small infant. "I'll let you spend some time with your daughter."
Danny flicked his large fingers through Hannah's black locks. Her curls had finally developed into short ringlets on her head. Her skin was no longer transparent but a light tanned color. Her lashes on her eyes almost touched her eyebrows. Despite the tubes and gadgets hooked to her, to Danny and Lacey, she was beautiful.
"All I want is for her to breathe, Danny." Lacey grasped Danny's free hand. "I want our daughter to take in air on her own."
The baby began to cry a small cry that sounded so weak. Danny laughed and nudged Lacey. "She will, Lace. Look how stubborn our girl is. She is our miracle and our grace just like her name." Danny took in a deep breath. "We've made it through so much, Lace. Our little Hannah comes from a family of fighters. She's going to make it."
Lacey agreed with a smile as she caressed her daughter's cheeks. Danny said the words to help Lacey but deep inside, he didn't even believe what he was saying.
His mind kept playing with tormented thoughts. Maybe this was the real punishment for taking Tara's last breath from her. Maybe his daughter was paying for his actions by not being able to take a breath of her own.
Later that night, Lacey found Danny crying as he stared into space. Lacey knew it was worry over Hannah. She had no idea that Danny was blaming his actions of murdering Tara as a reason for Hannah's condition. Lacey touched Danny's shoulder. He glanced up at her.
"I'm sorry, Lace." Danny blinked as tears dripped from his long lashes. "Maybe what I did..."
"Don't, Danny." Lacey pushed Danny back by his shoulders. She crawled into his lap as she placed each of her legs around Danny's hips. "Don't. You're my strength, Danny."
"I can't be strong anymore, Lace." Danny admitted. "I can't."
"Then lets be strong together." With those words, Lacey kissed Danny.
They made love for the first time in many months. Lacey had no worries of pregnancy due to taking a birth control shot. Their bodies met heatedly in a joining needed by both. Danny and Lacey did as they always did. They allowed the physical passion to heal the emotional pain.