“I’ll take her,” she said, accepting a freshly changed baby and sitting down in a nearby rocking chair to begin nursing her. A moment later, Marla brought her another, helping her shift the fussy baby into position so she could nurse her on the other breast. Marla changed the last baby and began giving her the bottle she had been preparing when Leslie had arrived.
“How are we on milk?” Leslie asked.
“Good for now. I’ve got enough to nurse them through their bedtime meal. So, what you pump today will begin getting used tomorrow.”
“Not bad,” Leslie replied.
She preferred to keep it fresh rather than use longer storage methods employed by some women. She’d never really had to store much before coming here as she had almost always nursed directly from the breast. With Marla helping, it was easier to keep some pumped, giving Leslie a break from nursing them every time. It was amazing how just that little bit of freedom in her routine brought such relief. She had been opposed to it at first, but the idea had grown on her as she realized how nice it was to have just a bit of time to herself.
The thought made her realize just how much her life had changed in the short couple of weeks since she had arrived here. She didn’t miss Blane at all, wasn’t concerned about him finding her either. There had been a bit of anxiety at first. As the days passed and there was no indication he was even looking for her, it had drifted away. In her old life, with him, she had been frazzled with responsibilities, but not here. There was a maid, a cook and a nanny. There was little for her to do except what she wanted to and while she missed some things, most of it, she did not.
“Hey Marla, you feel like eating dinner with us tonight?”
“Thanks, but I have plans once I’m done here. Thank you though,” she replied politely.
“No problem. I just haven’t cooked for a while. I thought I might make a homemade dinner.”
“I’m sure Mr. Rollins would appreciate that. I know he has a cook come in and prepare meals. I’ve eaten a few of them for my breakfast or lunch and they are quite good, but you can’t beat a freshly cooked meal.”
“True. I might have to go shopping when we get done here.”
She nodded and began to burp the baby she’d just finished feeding, laying her down on her stomach in her crib before walking over to retrieve another while Leslie took care of burping and laying down the last one. When they were all settled back in, she and Marla walked downstairs for a quick breakfast. Marla settled for nuking a breakfast quiche the cook had prepared, while Leslie had a bowl of oatmeal with some fruit.
They chatted idly about the girls and their quirks for a bit and then Marla excused herself to tend to prepare for their next feeding and changing. Leslie finished her oatmeal and looked out the window, smiling to herself as she revisited the night she had spent with Tucker. It was definitely a bad idea, considering the nature of their contract and how little she still knew about him, despite their practicing for the family’s questions. She just had to remember to take it for what it was worth, a moment of passion that might never happen between them again.
“Good morning,” Tucker said from behind her, catching her spoon as her sudden upstart dislodged it and sent it clattering across the table toward the edge. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“It’s okay. I was just lost in thought.”
“Anything you want to share?” he asked with a knowing smile.
“Not at the moment,” she replied.
Past that, there was no mention of the evening they had spent together or any lingering affections. He made himself a bowl of cereal and stood munching on it at the nearby counter while reading some thick booklet that looked like a motorcycle manual. She saw him nod to himself a few times, as if finding whatever he had been looking for, and then he closed it.
“I’m going to be out most of the day. I’ve got this import bike to work on and get back before a race. After I get done, I’m headed to the club to talk with some of the elders about coming back into the fold.”
“How is that going?” she asked, pushing down her disappointment that he didn’t seem any more affectionate after last night.
“So far, so good. Marshall is pissed, but that’s good. He’ll show his true colors a lot faster.”
“I don’t get that. He’s been a member of the pack his whole life, right? Surely, they see that he’s a troublemaker from past behavior?”
“To some extent, but they chalk up a lot of his shit to just being fearless. It just makes him that much more of an Alpha to them. They don’t see the dark side of him, the underlying deceit and self-enriching choices he has always made, and will make on their behalf too, if he isn’t stopped.”