Page 75 of Filthy Business

He scowled at the memory.“I was traumatised. Blood. Screaming. Fluids. You have no idea what that did to my psyche.”

I laughed softly, then winced at the soreness.

He was immediately up and adjusting my pillows.“Don’t move. Ever again.”

“I had a baby, not a hip replacement.”

“Same thing,” he muttered, kissing the back of my hand.“You’ve done enough for a lifetime.”

We sat like that in silence for a while. Daddy, for once, not plotting, commanding, or scheming. Just… still. Watching Evan with the kind of reverence that only made me fall harder.

“I’ll take care of him,” he said suddenly.“You don’t need to worry about anything, Iris. You gave me everything.”

I blinked back tears. Hormones. Definitely hormones.

“You gave me everything too,” I whispered.

He reached over and brushed my hair from my face.

“Sleep, sweetheart. I’ll still be here when you wake up.”

And he was. Watching over both of us like the possessive bastard I’d married.

Magnus

Iris slept while I held Evan. He’d woken up hungry, and I’d somehow managed to get him latched onto her for his first feed. She didn’t even wake—just cradled him in that dreamy way only she could.

I knew in my gut our son would grow up to be a good, kind-hearted human—with a mother like Iris, how could he not?

This wasn’t an unexpected teen pregnancy. This was a calculated breeding.

I almost snorted thinking about the bullshit I spouted during labour—swearing I’d stick to anal sex only from now on. No chance. Not when her body was made for me.

“You be good to your mama,” I whispered to my son, kissing his plump cheek.

We’d need a daughter to balance out the house. I had two months to plan that.

Benedict and her parents would be arriving in the next few days.

I just wanted to take my family home.

???

Evan always slept with his hands beside his shoulders. He was such a peaceful baby, but he was only two weeks old and had no teeth. I was sure he recognised our voices. He sure as hell sniffed his mother’s milky breasts out.

Iris was in her element. She had a scheduled routine for him, and I made sure to help her any way I could. The routine would keep adapting as he grew. I hadn’t realised how crazy she was with her colour-coded spreadsheets.

But I wouldn’t say that shit to her face.

I had no leg to stand on after my behaviour in the hospital. I was surprised no one called security on me.

I didn’t think of Luke. It was a relief when I found out he wasn’t in the country. What they did to Iris was unforgivable. My heart ached whenever I saw Evan. I wanted him to grow up to be a gentleman.

Exactly like his dad, of course.

When I returned to the bedroom, Iris had fallen asleep with the laptop tipped sideways beside her. I picked it up and saw her updated spreadsheet with a new tab.

Poor Evan.

I closed the laptop and dimmed the light. As I stripped down to my shorts, I took a moment to reflect on the past year. As much as Iris was still healing, I was grateful for her quiet invasion of my life. I’d been running on fumes before her light poured in.

I slipped into bed, easing her into a comfortable position before pulling her against my chest. She was the one and only love of my life. And although our marriage contract had started out as a joke, I’d need to revise it.

She sighed against me, like she somehow knew I was plotting to add a spreadsheet clause. And a baby-hogging clause.

I smiled, already imagining her outrage.

My little firebrand was a fighter. And I, for one, was glad.

The End.