Jack softly knocked on the bathroom door and nudged it open. I opened my eyes and lifted my head from the side of the tub. He was standing in the doorway. Teddy was curled against his chest, whimpering quietly.

"Elizabeth, I'm sorry for disturbing you. I know you're trying to relax, but the little man is hungry."

I sighed. "Just give me a minute to dry off."

I stepped out of the tub and quickly toweled off before slipping my robe on. I settled on the bed, and Jack passed the baby to me.

"I wish I could help with the feedings. You do so much for him."

"Right now, I don't really mind it, except sometimes in the middle of the night. But even then, it's not the worst thing." I looked down at the baby, a smile playing on my lips. He blinked sleepily as he ate. "We'll need to introduce him to a bottle eventually so I can go back to work. You'll be able to help with feedings then."

"It's crazy to think that it was just a few days ago when he was still inside you. I feel like he's been with us forever."

"I know exactly what you mean." I stared at my son's face. He was the little human who spent nine months inside of me, keeping me awake with his kicking, moving around when he heard our voices. Now he had spent three days in our arms. It was all so amazing. "I still can't believe we had a part in creating something so beautiful."

"He's a little miracle, that's for sure."

I brushed my finger across the bottom of Teddy's foot as he continued eating and watched his little toes spread apart. I smiled. "I love his little baby reflexes."

"Baby reflexes?"

I laughed softly. "I forget that you didn't take a bunch of classes on child development like I did. Babies are born with some reflexes that they'll eventually grow out of. The foot thing is one. Sucking on whatever is in their mouth is another." I shifted him in my arms, ensuring that he was eating again before I continued speaking. "Here, touch his palm."

Teddy immediately closed his hand around Jack's finger. Jack grinned.

"That's another one."

"Wow. You learn something new every day."

We both lapsed into a peaceful silence as we watched our son fill his belly. It was absolutely magical.

"Have I mentioned how happy I am that the power is back on?" The power had finally been restored that morning after two and a half days of being down. Carrying Teddy around all the time was like having a little space heater in my arms, and it was so nice to have the air conditioner back up and running.

He grinned. "You may have said something to that effect just a time or two."

"Hey, babe?"

"Hmm?" He rested his arm across my shoulders.

"I was thinking that maybe this weekend would be a good time for our parents to visit. Teddy will be a week old by then, and that gives us a few more days to get settled in with him."

"That's a good idea. I'll call my mom tomorrow."

"And maybe we can check with the pastor to see if we can have him baptized while our parents are here."

"I'll call him tomorrow, too."

Teddy pulled away, and I held him out to Jack. "Can you burp him so I can get dressed?"

"On it." He lifted the baby to his shoulder as I moved from the bed.

I quickly slipped into a pair of shorts and one of Jack's t-shirts. I stood by the dresser for a moment, just watching Jack and Teddy. The baby looked so tiny and fragile in Jack's arms, but Jack cradled him against his shoulder so carefully. It was amazing how easily he slipped into his role as a father.

He glanced up at me. "What's going on in that beautiful head of yours?"

I returned to my spot beside him. "I just love seeing you as a father. I've been imagining what it would be like for so long, but it's so much better than I imagined. I'm so glad that our kids get to have you as a dad."

"Well, I'm so glad they get to have you as a mom." He leaned over and kissed me. "Is the little one asleep yet?" He turned so I could see Teddy's face.

His little eyes were closed, his tiny lips opened slightly.

"Yes." I brushed my fingers through his soft hair and touched my lips to his forehead. "Night, Teddy Bear."

Jack kissed the little baby on the top of his head before he lowered him into the bassinet. "Let's see how long he lets us sleep tonight."

"I give him an hour to an hour and a half before he's up again."

We slid under the covers, Jack pulling me to his chest. I tucked my head beneath his chin as he traced gentle circles on my back.

"Mm, have I ever told you how much I love when you wear my clothes? It makes them smell like you."

I laughed softly. "Well, right now, I'm fairly certain that I just smell like everything that can possibly come out of a baby, so that can't be very pleasant."

He nuzzled his face into my hair, inhaling deeply. "No, you still smell like my Elizabeth."

"That's reassuring." I moved even closer to him. "We need to get to sleep. The little man is going to be waking us up way too soon."

"I love you, Beth."

I sighed into his chest. "I love you, too."

...

Just over an hour after we lay down, I woke to the sound of Teddy shifting around in the bassinet. I slipped out of Jack's arms to tend to the baby.

I settled into the glider with Teddy snuggled in my arms. I could tell he was getting frustrated that I was taking so long to get him situated. "Okay, little man. I know you're hungry. Hang on."

Within a couple of minutes, Jack woke as well and quietly sat up in the bed. He stretched and yawned. "That boy is insatiable, isn't he?"

I smiled. "Sometimes it feels that way. He's getting to the point where he gets mad if I don't start feeding him fast enough."

"That's my boy." He grinned.

"Don't act so smug. Soon, you'll be helping with feedings, too. Then he'll be getting mad at you." I covered my mouth as I yawned. "Okay, bud. Are you getting full? Let's get you burped and back to bed."

A few minutes later, he was back in his bassinet, sleeping soundly. I returned to the bed, immediately settling against Jack.

"You know, you don't have to wake up for all the night feeds."

"I know, but I like to. It's so peaceful in the middle of the night. Everything is so quiet, and the light is dim. It's almost like the three of us are in a different world."

"Peaceful, but exhausting."

"He's worth it."

"Definitely."

He slipped his arms around me. "Plus, I like to wake up for the night feeds because I love seeing you with him. The bond you two already have is just magical."

I smiled, leaning up to kiss him. "He's a little bit of me and a little bit of you, so I feel like I already know him. Not to mention the fact that I had nine months to get to know him when he was literally a part of me." I reached up and touched his cheek. "I can tell you already have a special bond with him, too. He loves his daddy. And, for the record, I love his daddy, too."

He kissed my nose. "I love you, Beth."

...

When I woke in the morning, Jack was sitting in the glider with Teddy curled up against his bare chest, looking so tiny.

"Good morning, beautiful." He grinned. "The little man hasn't been up for long, but he's already had his diaper changed this morning, and we've just been having some father-son bonding time since then. I imagine he'll start fussing for a feeding pretty soon."

I sat up and stretched. "Did you remember to cover him when you changed his diaper?"

"Well, um, no." He laughed. "You'd think I would've learned since the three times it happened before. But in my defense, I was still trying to wake up."

I chuckled. "I bet that little shower woke you up."

"That wasn't really the kind of shower I expected this morning. How did you know I forgot to cover him?"

I made my way over to him, running my fingers over the warm skin of his shoulder. "You were wearing a shirt when we went to bed."

"Busted." He stood up to let me have the glider. "Okay, little man, time to go to mama so you can eat." He lowered the baby into my arms. "Are you good here?"

I nodded, then glanced down at Teddy while I situated him in my arms.

"Okay, I'm going to take a real shower now, with water instead of…you know." He laughed as he walked toward the bathroom.

I smiled as Teddy started eating. "Good morning, Teddy Bear. Did you have some good bonding time with your daddy this morning? He's a good one. You don't know it yet, but you're very, very lucky to have him as your daddy. I love him a lot." I brushed my fingers through his soft hair. "You look just like him, you handsome little man. That's why I wanted to name you Jack. As soon as I saw your sweet little face, I knew you needed your daddy's name."

He was dozing as he continued to eat, his tiny fingers gripping the t-shirt I wore. His warm little body rested against my skin.

"What do you think we should do today, bud? We could go sit outside for a little while, maybe read a book or two."

Jack came out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his waist. "Please tell me you aren't planning to read Jane Eyre to our four-day-old son."

"Hey, you're never too young to appreciate the classics, especially a good Charlotte Bronte." I resituated Teddy in my arms. "Plus, his middle name is Edward."

Jack rolled his eyes playfully as he slipped on a pair of shorts. "I know you suggested Edward because of that book, but you know I chose it because of my uncle."

"We can say it's both."

He kissed the top of my head. "Lord, help us if he inherited your stubbornness."

I grinned at him. "You love it."

He grabbed a cloth from the stack on the nightstand. "I'll burp him when he's done."

I glanced down. Teddy was nearly asleep, his eyelids drooping as he turned his head away. "Perfect timing."

Jack and I switched places again. A smile stretched across my face as I watched him cradle Teddy against his shoulder. "Go get the book. I know you want to. I'll get him dressed and meet you downstairs."

"You're the best, Jack Thornton."

...

I was settled on the sofa with the book open in my lap when Jack came down the stairs with Teddy.

I felt the corners of my lips rise at the sight. "There are my two favorite Thornton men."

Jack sank down beside me, brushing his lips across my temple. "I love you."

"I love you, too. So much." I pressed my lips to his. "And every time I see you with our perfect son, I fall even more in love with you."

He snuggled Teddy close. "He is perfect, and to think that we made him, Elizabeth."

"We did." I felt a blush rise in my cheeks. "Okay, we came down here for family story time, so we should probably get on that before the little man gets hungry again."

He laughed softly and touched my cheek. "Good idea, because knowing him, we don't have long."

Bronte curled up in front of the sofa. Just as we had predicted, she was so protective of Teddy, and she was never far from where he was.

I smiled as I picked the book up from my lap. "Get ready for the best book, Teddy Bear." I brushed my fingers across his cheek before I opened the worn cover. "'There was no possibility of taking a walk that day.'"

Jack's fingers moved slowly up and down my arm as I continued to read aloud. Teddy cooed quietly. My heart was full.