Chapter Fifty-Nine: Bella

February 8, 2024

Cambridge, England

"Come on, Spawn, you can say it."

My daughter gives me her most innocent look, and I huff. She's been so close to saying her first word for a while now, and the competition between Edward and me has reached critical levels.

I'm determined to have her first word be duck, which Edward swears will turn into fuck. Knowing my child, Edward is probably right, but it's better than boring old dada.

Money is boring to bet, so Edward and I have wagered something much more interesting.

Sex.

Our sex life has slowed considerably since Spawn came along, mostly because she shares a room with us, and both of us absolutely draw the line at sex with her in the room. There is a sitter that we use on occasion, but mostly, Spawn is always with us.

But I have our sitter on standby, because as soon as one of us wins this damn bet, there will be a list of sexual acts to perform.

It's been way too long since I sat on my husband's face.

"D-uck," I tell Spawn, trying to get her attention. She garbles some nonsense as she reaches for one of her toys.

I let out a breath, shaking my head. "Come on, Kiddo. Mama has to get laid good and proper," I tell her, giving her a stern look. "At this point, you could even say dada, I don't care. Just give me something."

Spawn giggles and I sigh, sitting back on my heels.

"Right, of course. Stubborn like your daddy."

It's horseshit. I know she's just like me, but I refuse to admit it out loud, lest Edward somehow magically overhear me admit it.

That's another battle I refuse to lose.

"You know, you'll be nine months old soon," I tell her, shifting to sit cross-legged on the floor. "According to your nerdy daddy, there is all this stuff you should be doing soon."

I reach for one of her stuffies, bringing it up to nuzzle her. She shrieks in laughter, grabbing for it. "Just a single, duck, please Spawn."

I hear keys outside the front door, and I look up as Edward comes inside. I sigh and turn back to my daughter.

"Out of time," I mutter to her. She gives me a gummy smile and there is no way to stay annoyed.

I scoop her up into my arms just as Edward comes into the living room.

"Hey," he says, hanging his backpack on a hook.

"Hi," I say, over Spawn's head before I turn to blow raspberries into her cheeks. She shrieks and I see Edward smile.

He comes over, settling on the floor next to us.

"Anything?"

I don't know why our bet has equated to us not having sex at all until she says her first word, but I know both of us are too stubborn to fold now.

"No," I huff, pulling her back. She twists in my arms and reaches for Edward. He takes her easily, kissing her chubby cheeks as she shrieks in delight.

"Come on, Duckling, do it for dada."

She bounces in his arms, her chubby little fingers reaching for him.

"Nice try," I grunt. "Kid won't talk."

Edward smirks, shaking his head.

"Stubborn like her mama," he mutters. I roll my eyes at him and stand up.

"I'll be right back," I grunt. I head to the bathroom, letting out a tight breath as soon as I'm behind the closed door. I miss my husband, and honestly, seeing him being such a doting father makes me honry on unreasonable levels.

If we don't have sex soon I'm going to lose my goddamn mind.

I pee and wash up, splashing some water on my face to calm the hell down. After a minute, I pat my face dry before I head back into the living room.

Spawn sees me over Edward's shoulder, and the widest smile cracks across her face.

"Mama!"

Edward and I fucking freeze, my heart skipping a beat in my chest.

"Did she just…" I start, my voice dying off. Edward turns to look at me.

"She did."

I burst into fucking tears. Not pretty ones either; they are deep chest sobs that make it hard to see as I come back to where Edward and Spawn are sitting. I fall to my knees right beside him as Spawn reaches for me. "Mama!" she says again, and I'm fucking ruined. I pull her into my arms, squeezing her tight to my chest.

"Yeah," I sob. "I am mama."

Edward pulls me gently into his lap as his arms wrap around us both. Spawn is giggling in our arms but I cannot stop fucking sobbing.

I can't believe her first word was for me.

Fucking hell, I'm never going to recover from this.

I feel Edward's lips press against my forehead before he reaches out to kiss Spawn.

"That's right, Duckling. That's mama."

Spawn starts chanting 'mama' as she bounces against us, and I turn to press my tears into Edward's chest. He chuckles, leaning down to kiss the tears away.

"I think we both just won," he says gently. I am able to pull myself together enough to look at him, though I have to blink through my still falling tears.

"You're not upset it wasn't dada?" I ask.

Edward smirks, shaking his head. "Are you kidding me? I wouldn't change this moment for any fucking thing."

I lean up, kissing him hard as Spawn wiggles in my arms. A few years ago, I couldn't even picture myself married, let alone being a parent. Now, I absolutely wouldn't change a thing. Parenting is hard, and it's only going to get harder, that I know, but also it's sort of the best thing that's ever happened to me.

And I get to do this for the rest of my life, how fucking cool is that?