I'll Be Waiting up Counting the Stars

I froze and a look of shock was plastered across my face. If I felt this awkward, I can't imagine how Austin felt.

I took Jack to my car and buckled him in, pretending to listen to everything he was saying, although I couldn't stop thinking about Austin. As Jack was telling me about his day he kept mentioning everything that he and "daddy" did. Oh God, what if he was calling him that all day? I knew how freaked out he was at the prospect of me having a child, but I couldn't imagine how freaked out he'd be at the idea of Jack calling him dad. This was bad. This was really, really bad.

Although, I guess it was also good in a way. Jack finally had a dad. And an amazing one at that. I started to listen to all his stories and it seemed as though Austin was really responsible. I couldn't help but smile at my little boy's precious rambling about how much fun he had. I guess people can really surprise you after all.

When we got home we watched some tv, had a snack, and then I gave Jack a bath, read him a story, and put him to bed.

Afterwards, I laid down on the couch as I started to get an awful headache. I took some excedrin but it just wouldn't go away. I started to feel extremely cold as well, so I turned off the tv and took a hot shower before hopping into my bed. I fell asleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow, not waking up once.

But then I had a strange dream that Jack was being taken away from me and my legs couldn't run to go get him. I woke up in a panic, and went to go check on him. He was still sound asleep in his bed and I sighed with relief.

After my sigh came a hacking cough. I held my hand to my cheeks and forehead and realized I was running a decently high fever. I crawled back into bed, only having one more hour until my alarm was going to go off, but I fell asleep anyway.

The intense ringing of my alarm was barely enough to wake me from my slumber. I opened one eye and hit the snooze button. It seemed like just a second later the alarm continued. My whole body was aching and I knew there was no way I felt up to leaving my bed, let alone going to work. I picked up my phone and left a message for my boss letting her know that I wouldn't be able to make it in to work.

I continued sleeping until I felt my bed shaking and heard a voice whispering to me.

"Mama! Mama! I'm hungry." Jack whined.

I groaned and pulled my upper body away from my warm bed, making a shiver run down my spine instantly. I gave Jack a quick kiss on the forehead and took his hand so I could go downstairs and make him some breakfast. I could barely open my eyes and I felt like somebody plugged my nose completely shut with snot.

Once I got into the kitchen Jack sat on the counter as I made him toast and cereal and talked about a dream he had last night. I nodded as I caught bits and pieces of the story, but mostly focused on the throbbing in my head.

"Mama, are you going to work today?" He asked.

"No sweetheart, mama doesn't feel good." I told him in a congested voice.

"Oh. Do you want me to make breakfast in bed?" He asked.

"Aw, thank you honey but I'm not hungry." I smiled. He was such a little cutie.

He was about to say something else when my phone started ringing from upstairs.

"I'll get it!" He said as he zoomed up to my room. I heard him talking as he walked back down the stairs.

"No, mama's sick." He told the person. "Okay!" He squealed as he ran up to me, holding out my phone.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Hey Janie, it's Austin."

"Hey, what's up?"

Nothing. Are you feeling okay? You sound like shit.

"I'll be okay. It's just a cold."

"Want me to come over and watch Jack so you can rest?"

"Oh Austin, you don't have to-"

"I'll be there in thirty minutes."

He then hung up on me and I smiled and shook my head.

"Jack, Austin's coming over to take care of you." I told him, knowing it would make him elated.

He grinned and clapped his hands excitedly before eating his breakfast. We sat in the living room watching cartoons until Austin arrived.

He walked inside and Jack attacked him seconds upon his entry.

"Hey little man!" He smiled as he picked Jack up.

"Daddy!" He cheered.

I watched Austin's face light up at him. He liked it. He actually liked being called daddy. My heart stopped for a second in realization. Austin was better at being Jack's dad, not Jacob.

He walked over to me and sat down on the couch.

"Hey baby, how are you feeling?" He asked.

"I'm okay." I smiled. If I thought I was smitten before, I was in for a surprise now. It was just the way Austin looked as he held Jack in his strong arms. It was the way he looked at Jack in adoration and how easily they communicated.

"You should get to bed and leave the rest up to me." He smiled.

"Do you think you'll be okay?" I asked, looking up at him.

"We'll be fine, darling. Go get some sleep." He ordered.

I smiled and got up from the couch and walked over to my two favorite men. I gave them both kisses on the cheek and walked up to my bedroom. I sank into my comfy bed and took a long nap, waking up occasionally to the sounds of ruckus coming from the floor below me. It may have been the first time I ever smiled in my sleep.

By the time I woke up it was five o'clock at night and I smelled something delicious in the air. I got up, brushed my hair, and put on just a bit of makeup before going downstairs to see what the amazing smell was.

"Mama's up!" I heard as I rounded the corner into the kitchen.

"Hi baby, how was your day?" I asked as I sat down at the kitchen table, giving Austin a smile.

"It was so much fun! We played video games and we watched cartoons and we played tag and hide and go seek and we went to the store and we made you a card!" He told me as he ran to go fetch it.

Austin laughed as he was leaning over the counter watching us.

Jack came back with a big piece of construction paper in his hand and placed it in front of me. He eagerly watched my reaction as I looked at it.

It was bright green and had a picture of who I assumed to be Jack, Austin and I. On the inside it said, "Get well soon mama. Love, Austin and Jack" written by Austin judging by the legibility of the words.

"I love it you guys!" I gasped. It was so sweet and cute.

"Daddy said you would. I said we should buy you a hot tub but he said this was better." Jack said.

"Thank you." I smiled genuinely as I pulled Jack onto my lap and wrapped my arms around him.

"You're welcome!" He grinned.

"Thanks Austin." I said with a grin matching Jack's.

"Anytime." He nodded.

I looked at him and bit my lip. God, I wanted to kiss him so bad. He was such a great kisser.

The oven beeping pulled me out of my thoughts as the wonderful smell got stronger.

"What'd you make?" I asked.

"Chicken Parm." Austin answered as he pulled it out and turned the oven off.

"It smells amazing!" I said honestly, even through my congestion.

He made plates for each of us and grabbed forks and brought them to the table. He even brought drinks too. It felt nice to be waited on for once.

"This is great." I said right before taking another huge bite.

"Jack really wanted some, and I couldn't say no to that face." He laughed.

I giggled as he got spaghetti sauce in his mustache. I almost forgot how adorable he was.

After dinner Austin insisted on doing the dishes so Jack and I watched tv for a bit and he eventually came out to join us. Not long after that Jack had to go to bed, but not before whining about it. I took him upstairs and tucked him in, but he refused to go to sleep until he said goodnight to Austin as well so he came up and gave him a goodnight kiss on the forehead and told him to sleep tight. My heart almost melted at the sight.

Could things be like this every night? Could we eat a family dinner, talk about our day, and then tuck Jack in together? It was my idea of perfect.

"Are you feeling better?" He asked as we sat down on the couch.

"A little bit. My nose is still kind of stuffy." I replied.

"Do you need anything?" He asked sincerely.

I shook my head before scooting closer to him and resting my head on his shoulder. He looked down at me with a smile and wrapped his arm around me.

After awhile we changed positions so that he was lying down on his back and I was on my stomach on top of him. It was so relaxing and perfect that I just wanted to stay there forever. His arms were wrapped tight around me and my head was tucked under his chin.

"This is nice." He whispered as he stroked my hair.

"I know." I agreed.

"You're beautiful, Janie. You did a great job raising him."

I picked my head up and looked into his eyes.

"Thank you. That's the first time anybody has ever said that to me." I admitted.

"You're fucking mom of the century, sweetheart. That kid adores you." He told me.

"He adores you just as much." I replied.

"Not even half as much as he loves his mama." He argued with a small smile.

"What can I say? He's my baby." I smiled. "You know, his fourth birthday is coming up soon. I planned a trip to Philadelphia for him because he wants to see the liberty bell. You could come if you want."

"Yeah, I'd love that!" He said eagerly.

"I'm sure he would think it was the best birthday ever if you came." I smiled.

"Anything for him. That kid has me wrapped around his finger, just like someone else I know."

I blushed and laughed nervously.

"I still love you, Janie." He said seriously.

"I love you too, Austin. You're so great in every way imaginable. I wish I would've just told you up front about him." I sighed.

"It's alright, baby. What's done is done, but I'm not leaving you guys. I'm gonna stick around for awhile because I really want us to work. We could be such a good family." He said hopefully.

I smiled and pushed my lips against his roughly as I ran my fingers through his hair. He kissed back with the same intensity and placed his hand on the back of my neck to deepen the kiss. I moaned into his mouth. I pulled away and stood up, taking his hand and leading him to the bedroom.

Once we were both inside I locked the door and kissed him again. His hands traveled lower and lower until they rested on my butt for a moment and then traveled up to my chest. I pulled away again and started unbuttoning his denim shirt. Once it was open I ran my hands up and down his masculine chest and pushed him back onto my bed. I got on top of him and reattached our lips. He ran his hands up my shirt before slipping them underneath and feeling my bare breasts. I moaned into his mouth again, but stopped when I heard a noise.

"Mama? Daddy?" Jack squeaked.

I pulled away from Austin and unlocked the door to let Jack in.

"What is it, baby?" I asked, kneeling down to his level.

"I had a bad dream." He said. "Can I stay in your bed?"

"Of course you can sweetie. Go get your blanket and I'll make the bed, okay?"

He nodded and left the room.

"I'm sorry." I told Austin as I laid down next to him in bed.

"It's okay, I understand." He assured me.

"You know, you can stay over if you want?" I suggested.

"Are you sure?" He asked like the gentleman he was.

"I'm positive." I told him. He smiled as Jack came back in and crawled up into bed with us.

All three of us drifted off to sleep. We were like a real family.