Devil's Gambit

Chapter 35

Harley's eyes blinked open drearily, glancing around the pitch black room to gather his bearings. He could see through the bedroom window that the moon was still high in the night sky, and the small digital clock on their night stand confirmed that it was very early in the morning- but something had woken him up.

Suddenly, the baby monitor on their nightstand crackled to life, the wailing cries of an infant piercing through the silence.

"Shit," Harley breathed, rubbing at his face as he blinked away the sleep. He looked over his shoulder at Lucas, who was sprawled out on his back with his mouth wide open, snoring loudly. Harley never understood how he could sleep through his boyfriend's snores but still be awoken by the baby, perhaps it was just those paternal instincts he had acquired.

Jackie had given birth only a week ago, at the end of February, so to help her rest and heal they decided to switch off who kept the baby monitor in their room to tend to the baby for the night. It was a good system, and Harley and Lucas were happy to be involved. It allowed them to bond with the baby, and Jackie was doing remarkably well in the postpartum stage due to the proper sleep she was getting.

"Luke," he mumbled, reaching out to shake Lucas awake. The older man still remained comatose, so Harley shook him with a little more fervor as the cries only got more intense. "Lucas, wake up. The baby is crying."

With a groan, Lucas finally rolled over, rubbing his eyes before peering up at Harley. "Alright. How do you want to do this?" He sighed, his eyes slipping back closed.

"You hold her. I'll go make a bottle."

The two men slipped out of bed, Harley rubbing his hand along the wall until he felt the light switch, flicking it on to bathe the room in warm light.

"Fuck, Harls," Lucas hissed, wincing against the brightness.

"Sorry," Harley said sheepishly, opening the bedroom door. "Forgot to warn you."

While his boyfriend went downstairs, Lucas padded down the hallway towards what used to be his old room, now converted into a nursery. He opened the door slowly and turned on the light, eyes immediately settling on the squirming baby in the crib.

"Baby girl, why so sad?" He cooed while approaching the little bed, reaching in to grab the infant under the arms and haul her up into his hold. The tiny baby's wails declined slightly now that she was receiving attention, but whatever was ailing her still persisted. She was usually hungry at this hour, and Lucas knew that was likely the culprit.

He walked over to the rocking chair they had in the corner, sitting down gingerly with the baby cradled in his arms. Staring down at her, Lucas took in her beautiful features, remembering the day he first held her.

They were the only ones there for Jackie during the birth, aside from her friend Dakota, a shorter blonde woman with more of a country look, who kept by Jackie's side through the entire process while Harley and Lucas waited outside. When a nurse came out to inform them that Jackie was giving them permission to come in, Lucas recalled his stomach dropping to the floor in that instant.

So many emotions were rushing through him as they nervously walked through the door. He worried that someone as rough and tumble as him would be too harsh for a delicate baby, that he wasn't cut out to be a positive male figure in this little girl's life, and that even just seeing the baby would bring back the pain of losing Axel.

Lucas' nerves calmed slightly when he saw Jackie sitting up in bed, alert and holding her baby, gazing down at her with the biggest smile they had ever seen on her. She was stroking the baby's cheeks with the back of her knuckle, and it wasn't until the couple got closer that Lucas realized there were tears streaming down her face.