Author note:
This one got a little long. Some fluff and extra heat. ;) I hope you enjoy! Happy Cinco de Mayo!
CH 10-Daddy's Home
Finally getting Quinn down for her nap, Emma jumped into the shower. She didn't waste time, but washed her hair and used Clay's favorite, vanilla-scented body wash. She was surprised to find her hands shaking a bit. She wasn't completely sure if it was just the excitement over her husband's safe return from deployment, or also a small case of nerves regarding his reaction to her drastically changed figure. She knew she was being silly. Clay had obviously seen her pregnant before. But she knew she was much larger than she had been with Quinn. And, he hadn't been there to see her body gradually changing. He had seen her over FaceTime. But it wasn't the same.
As she rinsed the last of the suds from her skin, she was happy for the spa day she had been able to sneak in yesterday. Maria Lopez had watched Quinn while Emma had gotten a pedicure and a wax. She smoothed her hands over her extended stomach, where their son was kicking. There was no way she could have reached her toes or legs on her own. Let alone…other places.
Thankfully, she heard no noises coming through the monitor she brought with her into the bathroom. Quinn was still sleeping. She towel-dried her hair and then left the rest to dry naturally. She knew Clay preferred her natural waves to straightened hair. Before she got dressed, she went downstairs and worked on getting their dinner put together. When given options on meals, Clay always chose her lasagna. As she worked, she recalled a long-ago conversation with Naima. Her friend, and surrogate mother, had told her that Ray always wanted three things when he returned from a deployment, a home-cooked meal, to watch sports, and to make love with her. Emma smiled to herself. Ever since she and Clay had been together, their reunions had followed a similar pattern. Since Quinn had been born, he had substituted sports with time spent with his baby girl, but the rest stayed the same. She would be providing the meal, and she was sure Quinn would want to spend plenty of time with Daddy. It remained to be seen if he would want her in this state, or… if they would be able to manage it.
She got their dinner in the oven and checked the time. She was hoping Quinn would sleep for just a bit longer so she could get herself ready. Opening the closet door, she eyed the outfit she had chosen, a red maxi dress with an empire waistline. The long skirt fell to her ankles and the V-neck revealed a decent amount of cleavage and fell at the perfect spot for her to wear the pendant he gave her their first Christmas together. She looked in the mirror and second guessed herself. Maybe it was too dressy. She shook off her doubts and pulled it from the hanger. It wasn't like she had a lot of options that fit her at this point. She also wished she had some nice lingerie she could put on, instead of the cotton maternity panties and bras that she was using now. Shrugging her shoulders, she slipped on the dress and went to do her hair and make-up.
Just as she was finishing up with her hair, she heard Quinn stirring. She went into the little girl's room and picked her up from her bed.
"Hi baby. Did you have a good sleep?"
Quinn started chattering and Emma couldn't untangle most of it. "Are you ready to get dressed so we can go pick up Daddy?"
"Daddy! Daddy," Quinn squealed and started to dance around.
Emma changed her diaper and tried to get her dress on her. Once she had wrangled her overly excited daughter into her blue dress and sandals, she went to work on the tangle of blonde curls. She finally managed to pull the mass into pigtails and clip a red bow to each. She handed Quinn her stuffed horse and stuffed seal to occupy her and went about getting her bag together. She sincerely hoped the 2 ½ year old could manage to get through the next couple hours without needing a diaper change or making a mess of her outfit.
They got buckled in and drove over to base. Emma hadn't wanted to arrive too early, knowing that it would be hard to keep Quinn occupied. According to the last communication with Clay, they should only have to wait fifteen minutes or so until he should be free to come and meet them. Emma checked her hair and make-up once more before getting out of the car.
She helped Quinn jump down and held tight to her hand, making sure she didn't run off and get hurt. The toddler was pulling and twisting, trying to get free.
"Quinn, behave. If you want to wait for Daddy out here, and not in the car, you need to hold Mama's hand."
Thankfully, Maria Lopez arrived and saw her predicament. She walked over and greeted Emma and Quinn.
"Hi Em. And how are you Miss Quinn?"
Maria was one of Quinn's favorite people. Her appearance served to distract Quinn enough that she stopped trying to run off. Emma was watching her daughter's interaction with Maria, adding comments now and then. After a few minutes, all of them heard the gate open and saw the team start to walk through. All three stood with bated breath until they saw their men.
The first few team members through the gate were newer, and Emma didn't know them well. Vic was next. He jogged over to Maria and took her in his arms. The two held each other and kissed for long moments. Emma smiled at their happiness as Quinn began to giggle at their pro-longed kiss. Her childish laughter broke through and the couple stepped apart.
Vic addressed them. "Hi Emma, Quinn. It's great to see you."
Emma hugged their friend and Clay's 2IC and answered. "You too Vic. I'm happy you all are home safe."
Quinn squealed, wrested her hand from Emma's grip and took off running. Emma looked up and saw Clay coming toward them. She gasped, worried that Quinn would run into the path of one of the vehicles in the parking lot. But Clay rushed to her and scooped her up before any damage could be done.
Emma walked toward the pair, watching the joy on their faces as they greeted one another.
"Daddy! Daddy! I miss you!"
"I missed you too baby. You're so big Quinnie." He kissed her soft, chubby cheek and patted her well-padded bottom.
He looked up at Emma and shifted Quinn to his left arm. His eyes scanned over Emma again and again and he reached out his hand to her. Pulling her close he wrapped his arm around her and settled his hand on her lower back.
Emma spoke up, addressing what he surely must be thinking about her appearance. "I know…I'm," He cut her off.
"You're gorgeous."
She laughed a little and lowered her eyes.
"I mean it Emmie. I just…I can't …how do you get more beautiful every time I go away?"
She looked up, eyes searching his face. All she saw there was love and yearning. His hand stole up her spine and came to rest on her neck, under the fall of her hair. She wound her arms around his neck and tipped her face up to receive his kiss. At first, his lips touched hers softly. Then, as soon as he tasted her familiar flavor, he devoured her mouth hungrily. Who know how long they would have stayed there, if their son hadn't made his presence known? He was jabbing his sharp little elbows and knees into Emma hard enough that Clay could feel it where she was pressed up against him.
"Wow! He's a strong little guy, huh?"
"Yea, he is," she answered slightly out of breath. "He loves to play soccer with my lungs."
He slid is hand down and around to rest on her abdomen. His fingers splayed wide, taking in the baby's movements. His eyes met hers again and he leaned in for a quick kiss.
Not willing to cede his attention for any longer, Quinn reached out and patted Clay's bearded cheeks with her tiny hands.
"Me kiss Daddy."
He laughed and attacked her cheeks and neck with small, noisy kisses. She screamed with laughter.
"Is that enough Daddy kisses for you," he asked his daughter. She nodded her little head, still hiccupping with giggles.
He had to let go of Emma's hand to grab his bag. She walked ahead of him to the car. Quinn jabbered in his ear as he enjoyed his view of Emma from behind. Her dress was a little tight, not that he would have told her that. It afforded him a wonderful glimpse of her rounded ass. He threw his bag in the back and settled Quinn into her seat. Handing him the keys, Emma climbed into the passenger seat and buckled up. He reached over for her hand and brought it to his lips.
"Let's go home."
They pulled into the driveway and Clay went to get his bag while Emma got Quinn from the backseat. As they approached the door, he took a deep breath in.
"Is that your lasagna I smell?"
Emma smirked at him. "It sure is."
"You're the best Em."
They got inside and Emma went to check on dinner while Clay stood just inside the door, looking around. Coming home was always so strange to him, familiar, but different at the same time. Quinn didn't notice anything different in his demeanor and was chattering at him. He caught only portions of what she was saying. He shook his head, trying to focus on the here and now. He took Quinn's hand and went into the kitchen.
"Anything I can do to help honey?"
Emma was putting together a salad and getting out plates and cups to set the table.
"Can you get Quinn's meal out of the refrigerator and heat it up? I have to…I have to go to the bathroom."
He kissed her cheek quickly. "Sure thing. We can handle it, can't we Quinnie?" He picked up the little girl and gave her a squeeze. "Ewww. Now I smell something else," he joked. "Do you need a change little girl?"
"I can get her," Emma replied, reaching for Quinn.
"I got it. You go do what you need to do babe."
"Thanks. There's stuff in her bag. I left it on the couch."
Clay changed Quinn, washed up and sat her in her highchair. As Emma was coming into the kitchen, he was setting the table. He had already gotten the little one her cup of milk and had her meal in the microwave. Emma got the lasagna out of the oven and they sat down to eat. The conversation was light and centered around Quinn's accomplishments since Clay had been gone. He inhaled the lasagna and went for a second helping.
"This is so good Em."
"Thanks. So, you only missed me for my cooking, huh," she teased him.
"That, and…other things." He slid his hand up her thigh under the table.
"A'done," Quinn announced, diffusing the tension of the moment.
Clay chuckled. "I can see that baby. Did you actually get any inside you?"
She had apple sauce in her curls and carrots all over her face. But she nodded her head and answered.
"Uh huh, tummy." She raised up her dress to show her stomach as evidence of her accomplishment.
They both laughed at her antics. "I think someone needs a bath, don't you Daddy?"
"It looks that way. I can take care of the dishes if you want to take her up."
Emma got up to lift Quinn from her chair and went up to the bath. Clay joined them fifteen minutes later. He took a mental picture of the scene in front of him. Emma was on her knees, rinsing the shampoo from Quinn's curls as she sang her a silly song. The toddler was laughing and trying to blow the bubbles off her arm.
Quinn saw him and got a little too excited, splashing water everywhere, even all over her mother. Neither one of them had the heart to say anything. They knew how much she had missed him. He helped Emma to her feet, grabbed a towel and lifted Quinn from the water. He cuddled his little girl against his shoulder.
"I'll get her dressed and put to bed. If that's okay."
"Of course. I know she'd enjoy Daddy tucking her in tonight." She kissed Quinn goodnight and left them.
Emma went to their room, changed into her nightgown, washed her face, and brushed her teeth. It was still another twenty minutes or so until Clay made an appearance.
"I was afraid you might have already fallen asleep," he said as he entered their room and turned on the baby monitor. "I know I took longer than usual. I just couldn't seem to put her down."
She smiled in understanding. She knew how much it meant to him to reconnect with his baby girl. She watched him pull off his shirt and unbutton his pants. Clay never carried much extra weight, even when he wasn't deployed. His job demanded peak physical condition. But he was always a bit leaner when he got home, his musculature more defined. After months of longing for his touch, the sight of his naked torso made her heartbeat faster and her breathing speed up. If he noticed her reaction, he didn't say anything, just continued into the bathroom to finish getting ready for bed.
When he was done, he came to bed in just his boxer briefs, and after turning out the light, immediately reached for her. Emma went into his arms and relished the feel of him holding her. The strength of his arms around her and his body next to her was her anchor.
"I missed you so much," she whispered.
He put his finger under her chin and tipped her head up to his. "I missed you to Emmie."
He placed a sweet but firm kiss to her lips. He could feel her press herself closer against him and parted her lips with his tongue. He moaned into her mouth as his tongue stroked hers. She could feel his hands roaming down her body and lifting up her gown. He paused as he waited for her to raise her arms so he could pull it all the way off. She slowly raised her arms and allowed him to finish undressing her. There was silence and she didn't meet his gaze.
"Emmie, is there something wrong?"
"I just…I know I'm bigger than with Quinn. I…" she didn't complete her thought.
"You are perfect baby. You have no idea what you do to me. All your curves..." He caressed her thighs and ass and slid down to kiss her breasts.
"God, Clay!"
"Is this okay? Are we okay to…"
"Ummhmm. The doctor said as long as I'm not uncomfortable."
He continued to kiss and lick at her breasts, taking her nipples into his mouth. "Tell me if you need to stop, or if I'm hurting you."
All she could do was moan and arch her back to press herself closer to him. "Clay…"
He raised his head in concern. "Yea, babe?"
"More"
He reached a hand down to her core and felt her slick heat. "God baby…so hot."
He rolled her clit between his thumb and finger and she came in quick bursts. He stroked her thighs and watched her come down from her high. She looked at him from lowered lids and licked her lips.
"I love you Clay. I want you."
She needed to feel him, to connect with him in the way only they could. Clay managed to kick off his underwear as he claimed her mouth again.
"I want you," she repeated.
"I need you too Emmie, but how…"
Emma sat up and straddled him, sheathing him in one swift move. "God yes," he moaned.
His hands swept over every lush curve and settled on her hips as he thrust gently into her. Emma used his shoulders for leverage as she raised and lowered herself on his length. He could feel her tightening around him, and he urged her on.
"You're so beautiful Em. I love you so much baby."
She bit her lip and dug her fingers into his skin as she came around him. The pulsing of her internal muscles triggered his orgasm and he let go with her name on his lips.
He helped her roll to his side and held her close, kissing her brow. For the first time in months…both of them drifted to sleep feeling completely whole.