We hada lovely meal at a local seafood restaurant, then checked in at the at the East Hampton Bed and Breakfast that we had booked along the coast father north, in a room overlooking Gardiners Bay. We literally fell into bed at nine-thirty, and without much fanfare, kissed each other and fell asleep.
I woke up in the middle of the night in a room of total darkness with the exception of the light from the clock radio on the bedside table, which read three thirty, and a thin sliver of moonlight from under the heavy curtain at the window.
At first, I didn’t know where the heck I was…
All I knew was that my breasts felt like twin watermelons and both nipples were leaking.
It was feeding time.
Then, I remembered…
I was in the bed and breakfast. Leif was back at the beach house with my mother and father.
“You okay?” Luke sat up beside me, his voice hushed. He was as exhausted as me. He switched on the lamp beside the bed. “Time to pump?”
“Yes,” I said and sat on the side of the bed, acutely aware of the wet spots on my lacy nighty. “I guess Mom and Dad will be up now feeding Leif.”
I glanced down and touched my nightgown. The nursing bra and nursing pads hadn’t managed to protect it.
Oh, well. At least I had ample milk, which was a godsend.
Luke went to the bathroom and switched on the light. While I got out the sterilized bottles from the bottle bag, and removed the pump from its case, Luke had a quick pee and then I heard water running while he washed his hands.
He came back into the room, fully naked, his delightfully buff physique not yet taken on the Man Bod appearance that John warned it would.
He pulled on some boxer briefs and came over to help me.
I was lucky to have such a supportive spouse and I knew it. Maybe all men of our generation were as interested in taking part in the daily life of parenthood. I knew that my father missed out a lot when he was so busy with his career while I was growing up. He intended to make up for it by being as involved in Leif’s life as he could be.
I plugged the breast pump into the socket on the nightstand and then proceeded to pump my breasts, emptying them of the milk that would go immediately into the small refrigerator in the dining room area of the suite. Luke sat beside me and put an arm around my shoulder. “Six hours straight. I think that’s a record.”
“I know,” I said and smiled. “I feel positively half-refreshed.”
He leaned over and kissed me. “We get to sleep in today. I feel like a king. Your mother and father are angels of mercy.”
I laughed. “Don’t kid yourself. They love it. My father never had the chance to be with me much while I was a baby, so he’s eating the granddad thing up.”
“It’s actually really sweet,” Luke said and sighed. “I wish my stepmother wasn’t such a bitch and didn’t have a grudge against you. That way, we could all be one big happy family, the way I always imagined.”
I exhaled heavily. I wanted us all to make amends and be happy, but Luke just didn’t think he could forgive her for what she’d done to hurt me — to hurt us. He insisted that releasing the video of Blaine assaulting me was a bridge too far. We’d talked about it, wondering what we would do if she did come around and apologized for everything, and was on good behavior going forward.
“I can’t take her back,” Luke had said. “Not now. Not after what she did.”
So, my parents and Luke’s Stepdad Grant would have to do. Luckily, Grant was on good terms with us, so at least he would be invited to family get-togethers and holidays. I wanted Leif to know what it was like to have a big family around him, supporting him throughout his life.
I filled up two bottles worth and when finished, I handed them to Luke, who dutifully put them in the refrigerator. I put the pump away, got up and had a pee, and then went back to bed. Luke was back under the covers and when I snuck in beside him after replacing the nipple pads with fresh ones, he pulled me into his arms for a kiss.
“Feeling better? Less like squeezing two basketballs between your arms?”
“Yes, thanks,” I said and snuggled into his embrace. “I love being able to nurse Leif, but honestly, I’m looking forward to when he feeds less, and you can get up and give him a bottle while I sleep.”
“You know I’d be happy to do it now,” Luke said defensively. “I told you I would…”
“No,” I said quickly, sensing the hurt in Luke’s voice. “I want to keep nursing at night until he’s older and my milk supply is more certain.”
“Okay, if you’re sure. Kaylee said that you could let me do one feed in the night as long as you pumped.”
Kaylee was our new Nurse Practitioner, who helped get me settled back home with Leif after the hospital visit.
“I know, but I want to wait until Leif is older. Kaylee said that at six months, babies often stop feeding as often at night, so we could try at that point. Until then, I’ll be fine.”
Luke kissed me forehead. “Okay, but the offer stands if you change your mind.”
With that, we snuggled down and soon fell back to sleep.