Soft, distant murmuring pulls me from a deep, refreshing slumber. I pry my heavy eyelids open as I stretch my arms up over my head and yawn big. When my eyes focus, I see that Tobias has pulled the light sheet and blanket off us and has my cami pushed up just under my breasts, exposing the skin of my tummy.
"Whatcha doin'?" I mumble, running my fingers through his unruly tresses. After a soft kiss just below my navel, he crawls up my body.
"Good morning, love," he says as places a tender kiss on my lips. "I was just having a conversation with Button and Bean."
"I remember when you used to do that with Teags," I say, caressing his cheek. "That's probably why she's such a Daddy's girl."
"You're probably right," he says with a chuckle. After another chaste kiss, he shifts so that he's lying beside me with his large hand splayed across my belly. "You have a little bump."
"I do?" I excitedly move my hand to join his and he's right. It's slight but there's definitely a protrusion there. "You do realize I'm going to be as big as a barn, right?"
"And you'll still be the most gorgeous woman I know, and I'll worship your body everyday like the temple it is," he murmurs against my ear, making me shudder.
"Oh, baby, you always know what to say to make me feel better. I love you, Tobias."
"I love you, too, Tris," he says as he rolls over on top of me. His mouth meets mine in a fiery, soul-stealing kiss. I immediately thread my fingers into his hair, pulling him close. He slides one hand up under my cami and covers a breast, pebbling the nipple with just the flick of his thumb as his other hand moves lower to cup my bottom. I wrap my legs around his waist as he grinds his erection into me, causing a flood of moisture to my core.
"God, I want you," I murmur against his lips. He lowers his hands to the hem of my camisole and starts to lift it off my body when movement off to my left makes us freeze. Tessa's standing in the doorway to the nursery, wide eyed.
"Pebbles, how did you get out of your crib?" Tobias asks, his voice gruff with need.
"I got out," she says matter-of-factly. I definitely made the right choice to go shopping with her later today. She needs out of the nursery and in her own room yesterday. "Mama, I gotsta potty." I notice she's dancing from one foot to the other.
"Well, you better go," I say. "I'll meet you in just a minute to help." She turns and runs toward the bathroom.
"Two more minutes and she would have seen things no child should ever see," he says as he relaxes on top of me. God, I still love the feel of his full weight on me after all this time.
"I know," I say, kissing his neck. "By the look on her face, she saw more than she should anyway. I need to get up, baby."
"Of course," he says. He rolls off me and just lies there.
"I'm frustrated, too," I say, looking down at his tented sleep pants. I can't help myself. I graze my palm along his length then squeeze gently. He groans.
"You're mean, Mrs. Eaton," he gruffly says.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Eaton," I say. "We'll just have to wait until tonight."
"Go help Pebbles before she comes back in here," he says then he laughs. "Who knew we needed to close the nursery door?" I giggle as I climb out of bed and make my way into the bathroom.
"Hi, Mama," Tessa says. She's sitting on the potty chair without a stitch of clothing on.
"I see you managed to make it to the potty without an accident," I say as I put her PJs in the hamper. "Did you climb out of your crib?"
"Yeah," she says. "I had to potty so I got out by myself." Part of me is proud that she was able to get out of her crib on her own but a larger more protective part is terrified she could have been hurt. I squat down in front of her.
"I don't want you to do that again," I say. "You could have fallen and really hurt yourself. Was Teags watching you?" Panic starts to strangle me thinking of my baby girl trying to climb out.
"No, she seepin'," she says.
"Teags tries to do everything you do," I say. "You'd feel bad if your baby sister fell and hurt herself."
"Yeah," she sighs.
"No more climbing out of the crib. Promise, little one," I say.
"Pwomise, Mama."
"And I promise that Daddy and I will get you into a big girl bed soon."
"Otay," she says. "I done."
"How about a bath?" I ask after I get her cleaned up.
"Otay, Mama," she says. I can't hide my shock when she doesn't argue with me. She sees this, too, and grins from ear to ear.
"Good morning, my lovely ladies," Tobias says as he walks into the bathroom about half-an-hour later with Teagan in his arms. They're wearing matching smiles.
"Hi, Dadda!" Tessa squeals as she splashes in the tub. He sets Teags on the potty and turns to us.
"Who's that taking a bath, Tris?" he asks with a mock serious expression on his face. "Our oldest daughter isn't fond of bath time, and this little angel appears to be having a good time."
"It me, Dadda," she says. "Tessa." He squats down and looks her over.
"By golly, I think you're right! You are Tessa!"
"Silly, Dadda!" she cries as she launches herself at him. I swear my heart stops until I see that she's safe and sound in her father's arms. She's going to be the death of me today.
"I think you're working on Mommy's nerves," he says to her as he wraps her in a towel but she just frowns in confusion. "You keep scaring Mommy."
"I sowwy, Mama," she pouts.
"It's okay, little one," I say, realizing my hand is resting over my racing heart. "Try not to be such a daredevil, okay?"
"Otay," she says.
"Let's get you dressed," Tobias says as he heads towards the nursery.
"I baff, Mama?" Teags asks.
"Yep," I say as I take the stopper out of the drain. "Sissy's water got cold. I'll draw you a fresh one."
"'Kay," she says as she leans against the tub, looking in.
"Did you have a good night?" I ask. I wrap my arms around her and realize she's shivering. "Are you cold, Teags?" She nods her little head up and down. I grab a towel off the warmer and snugly wrap it around her, and she sighs contentedly. "Is that better?"
"Mm-hm," she murmurs. Once just the right amount of water is in the tub, she reluctantly leaves the warmth of the cozy towel and I help her climb in. As soon as she realizes that it's just as warm, she's all smiles again.
"Hi, Mommy," Tyler says as he walks into the room. "Hi, Teags."
"Hi, Ty-Ty," she says.
"Morning, buddy," I say. "You sure look handsome today."
"Just like Daddy?" he asks.
"Exactly like your daddy," I say.
"He helped me get ready and picked out what to wear," he proudly says. "I even taked a bath. Are we gonna eat soon. I'm hungry."
"Me, too," Teags says, suddenly looking forlorn.
"I hungwy, too," Tessa says as she runs into the room. She skids to a stop when she sees her brother. "Hi, Ty-Ty!"
"Hi, Tess."
"As soon as Mommy and Daddy are ready, we'll go to the cafeteria for breakfast," Tobias says, hot on the heels of our daughter who is only partially clothed. "Is that okay with you, love?"
"That sounds great," I say.
"Come on, Pebbles," he says. "You've got to finish getting dressed."
"Otay," she says as he picks her up.
"Do you have to go potty again?" I ask.
"No!"
"All right," I say.
"Tyler, why don't you come with us," he says.
"All right, Daddy. I'll see you later, Mommy," he says then leaves with Tobias and Tessa.
"Are you about ready to get out?" I ask Teags after she's been playing for five minutes.
"No," she whines.
"But I thought you were hungry." When I mention that her face changes.
"Yeah! Hungwy, Mama." I let the water out of the tub and wrap her in a fresh, warm towel. After quickly drying her off, we walk into the nursery and I help her get dressed. I'm wondering what I'll put her in when I see that Tobias has already laid out an outfit for her, which looks remarkably similar to what Tyler was wearing, a simple black and gray t-shirt and black jean shorts. The only exception is Teags will be wearing sparkly gray sandals instead of black and gray slip-on boat shoes.
"Let's go find Daddy, Tyler, and Tessa," I say once she's dressed. I follow her downstairs and into the living room. Tyler and Tessa are sitting on the couch listening to Tobias finish the "fairytale" of how we met for probably the hundredth time at least. Teags starts pouting because she missed it.
"How about some cartoons while Mommy and Daddy get ready?" Tobias asks after he sits Teagan on the couch between her brother and sister. The kids eagerly nod in agreement, a rarity. He puts a DVD in of old Mickey Mouse shorts while I head upstairs.
I quickly undress and step into the large shower after putting my pajamas in the hamper. I'm rinsing the delicious smelling coconut conditioner out of my hair when I feel Tobias' strong arms encircle my waist.
"I thought maybe you might need someone to do your back," he says, his lips pressed against my ear and his erection pressed against the small of my back.
"I'm not sure I believe that's your intention for coming in here," I mumble as I slowly rub myself against him, feeling him lengthen and harden even more.
"You could be right," he murmurs as he glides his hands up to cup my breasts. He gently massages the aching mounds as he trails open-mouth kisses along my neck and shoulder. "Do you want to pick up where we left off before Tessa unexpectedly interrupted us? We have about five minutes before the kids come up demanding to be fed." Instead of answering, I turn in his arms and pull his mouth to mine. We let our tongues tangle as our hands roam over each other's naked, wet skin. His touch is light and teasing. When my body begins to tremble from unfulfilled lust, I drag his hand between my parted thighs where I want it. He immediately searches the moist folds to find my throbbing bundle of nerves and starts roughly circling it with the tips of his fingers. "Is this what you want?"
"Yeah," I whimper, slumping against his body. He wraps his free arm around my waist, keeping me upright.
"You could have just asked," he says.
"Please," I moan as his touch intensifies, although I'm not entirely sure what it is I'm begging for. "Please, baby."
"What do you want, love?" he roughly asks, his lips dropping feather-light kisses around my left ear. I don't know I'm close until his hot breath hits the extremely sensitive skin, and I slip over the edge into a very satisfying climax.
"You. Inside. Me. Now." I manage to shove the words out in between the final shattering explosions that rocket through my body. He sits on the shower bench and pulls me down onto his hard length. I moan, he feels so good deep inside. After wrapping our arms around each other, we start to move. It doesn't take long and we're carrying each other through the final moments of our shared release, panting against each other's mouth.
"We should probably finish our shower," he finally says.
"Mm-hmm," I murmur against his lips, not having fully regained the use of my lungs just yet. He gives me a quick but passionate kiss then lifts me off his lap. We both quickly run through our morning routine and make it downstairs before the cartoons Tobias put in the DVD player finish.
"We go now?" Tyler asks when Tobias and I come around the corner and into sight. "I hungry."
"Me, too," Tessa and Teags say at the same time then dissolve into a fit of giggles.
"You girls sure are silly," Tobias says. He picks them both up, one in each arm, and I take Tyler's hand, and we file out of the apartment.
"By the way, I'm taking Tessa and Teags to the furniture store after breakfast to look at bedroom sets," I say about halfway to the Pit. The girls begged Tobias to put them down when we reached the path so they're walking about six feet in front of us beside Tyler.
"I guess it's time after Pebbles climbed out of her crib this morning," he says with a sigh.
"They both got ready for bed last night without me lifting a finger," I say. "It made me so proud but…" My quivering voice trails off while I combat the emotion welling up inside me.
"But it made you want to cry," he says, finishing my sentence for me.
"I think I did tear up a bit actually."
"I would have, too," he says as he drops a kiss on my forehead. "I nearly did when Tessa was standing there all wide eyed and innocent this morning. Our girls are growing up too fast."
"All three of them are," I say.
"So, do you have a plan like you did with Tyler's room?" he asks.
"They were so excited when I told them we're going to look at furniture today that they gave me a ton of ideas for how they want their room to look and, in turn, it gave me a few ideas. I have to call Gunner and see if he's available for a mural at the very least."
"What's your idea?"
"Either a princess castle or a fairy castle," I quietly say then I proceed to repeat exactly what they told me they want for their room.
"How about fairy princesses?" Tobias says.
"That's actually a very good idea," I say.
"Are you going to have Gunner build the furniture, too?"
"I've thought about it but they have really cute bedroom sets in the furniture store for little girls," I say. "But if they don't have anything that will work with my vision, I'll have him build something."
"You are such a wonderful mother," he says.
"I just want them to have a happy childhood," I say. "I'm not saying my upbringing was bad but I feel like I missed out on a lot, and I don't want that for our kids."
"I understand," he says. "We just have to be careful though. We don't want to spoil them."
"I know," I say as I gaze at our three pride and joy. Unlike most Dauntless children, they're walking down the path in an orderly fashion, quietly talking and laughing amongst themselves. Anytime someone passes they hug the wall making sure there's enough room for the passersby to maneuver. "I think we've done a remarkably good job so far."
"We have," he says. "There's no doubt about that."
"Zane!" Tyler, Tessa, and Teags each squeal at the same time when they see the Parrish's come out of a hallway and turn toward the Pit. Zane turns at the sound of his name and the kids take off running down the path.
"So much for thinking they're well behaved," I say as Tobias shakes his head.
"Hey!" he roars, making our kids stop in their tracks. When they look over their shoulders at us, he motions for them to come back. They each hang their head and drag their feet until they reach us. "Are you supposed to run on the path?" They each shake their head, their pout bottom lips sticking out. "Why were you running then?" They all look at each other then back at us but don't say a word. "I'm waiting."
"I saw Zane and I got excited," Tyler quietly says. "I want to say hi so I runned. I think Tess and Teags followed me. I sorry, Daddy. I haven't seen him in so long." Tobias kneels down so he's no longer looming over the kids like a giant.
"You three listen to me," he says, his voice calm and controlled but I can hear an edge of fear. "Do you know what would happen if you were to fall off the path?" Tyler glances over the edge and shudders. Tessa and Teags lunge at me and tightly wrap their arms around my legs. "It would hurt you very badly. It could even take you away from Mommy and Daddy forever. Mommy and Daddy don't want that. That's why there's no running on the path." Just then two kids around Tyler's age, maybe a little older, go charging past us. It's obvious what's coming next.
"They running," Tyler says, confused.
"We don't make the rules for other little boys and girls," I say. "Just for you and your sisters. We want you safe."
"But you the leaders," Tyler says, a befuddled look on his face. "You make all the rules." I meet Tobias' eyes not really knowing what to say. Tyler is absolutely right. We do make the rules for the faction.
"You're right, buddy. Mommy and Daddy make the rules for Dauntless," Tobias says.
"Shouldn't we have the same rules, Daddy?" he asks. I study our son's face and he's not being disrespectful. He's genuinely confused as to why he and his sisters have to follow one set of rules and every other child in the faction has another set.
"Oh, Tyler," Tobias sighs. "Come here, buddy." Tyler flies into his father's arms and hugs him tightly. "Mommy and Daddy make the rules for the faction members to follow not for the kids. Do you understand?"
"No," they all say.
"Mommy and Daddy make your rules so that you are safe," Tobias says. "We don't tell other mommy and daddy's how to raise their kids."
"You see, most members have lived here all their life," I say.
"Like Tess and Teags," Tyler states.
"That's right," I say. "So, they're not afraid of falling off the path but Mommy fell off the edge of the path once and, let me tell you, I was very scared. I didn't think I was going to see your daddy again. So, we know accidents can happen but not everyone does. So, you listen to Mommy and Daddy and don't worry about what the other kids are doing. Okay?"
"Okay," Tyler says. "I sorry I runned. I got excited."
"Sowwy, Mama," Tessa says.
"Sowwy," Teags says still clinging to my leg.
"Try to remember in the future. All of you," I say. "No running on the path no matter how excited you get."
"Or there will be consequences," Tobias firmly says. They all nod at their father. "Come on, let's get breakfast. I know you're hungry." After a little coaxing, Tessa and Teags let go of my legs and grab ahold of Tyler's proffered hands.
"What's wrong?" I ask when I notice Tobias is brooding.
"I was too gruff with them."
"No, you weren't," I say. "They need discipline."
"Why do I feel like they hate me?" he softly asks.
"Your fear landscape, I imagine," I say. He blows out a breath and stares straight ahead. "You were right to do what you did. They needed stopped and talked to. That's what you did. You didn't lay a finger on them like your father did to you. You're not Marcus. You are a wonderful father. Believe that."
"Dadda, I want up," Teags says. She's standing in the middle of the path with her arms held out to him. This automatically puts a smile on his face. Hopefully, he'll get over the notion that the kids hate him just because he raised his voice. He leans down and scoops her up in his arms, and she rewards him with a sloppy kiss right on the mouth. "Lub 'ou, Dadda."
"Told you," I murmur as I walk past him and take Tyler and Tessa's hands and lead them to the cafeteria.