The Free Pass

Chapter 61

Shawn

I woke up as I felt Mallory slip out of my arms. I grabbed her wrist and pulled her back into my embrace.

"Where do you think you're going?" I asked.

"I was just going to poke my head in the nursery to check on Gracie."

I reached over Mal and picked up the video monitor that was on the nightstand. "Babe, she's clearly asleep. If you open the door you might wake her up."

"But she's never slept through the night before," she said anxiously.

"Maybe having the room to herself helped with that. Your snoring probably woke her before or kept her from sleeping deeply."

Mal gave me a dirty look. "I do not snore."

I opted to let this one drop. I knew for a fact that she snored lightly all night long.

"Regardless of the reason, you need to just let her sleep. She'll wake up when she's hungry."

"Okay. But now I'm wide awake."

I grinned. "I'm sure we can find a way to entertain ourselves."

Mal shook her head. "I'm honestly in more pain than I was after having Gracie."

"Why am I oddly flattered by that?" I asked.

"Because you're you."

"So how long do you need to recuperate? Please tell me it won't be too long. Now that I've had you again, I'm going to want you constantly."

"I think it was a combination of the condoms, not having sex in forever, and doing it four times back to back. Maybe a hot bath and some Advil would help."

I kissed her forehead. "Sorry, honey. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"Stop. It was incredible and I loved every second of it. I just need to get back into shape."

"It'll be a huge sacrifice on my part, but I volunteer to be your training partner for that," I said.

Just then we heard Gracie start to fuss.

"Good thing we didn't start something," Mal said as she climbed out of bed.

                              ~~~~~~

Mallory and I had a really relaxed day. It was like all the tension that had been surrounding us like a thick fog had evaporated over night. For the first time, everything was perfect between us.

I was hit with the urge to write, so I pulled out my notebook and started playing around with lyrics. Since I'd realized my love for my wife, I'd written four new songs. I had ideas for half a dozen others.

Late in the afternoon, I was playing guitar in the living room while Mallory cooked dinner. Gracie was napping.

"I love that melody," Mal said to me.

"Yeah, I'm just trying to find a way to connect it all together. The bridge is alluding me."

"So you're already working on your next album? Your first single from the new album hasn't even dropped yet."

I sighed loudly. "If Island would let me, I'd scrap that album and start over. I'm not feeling great about it."

She put down the cucumber she was peeling and joined me on the couch.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Last year was nuts, for obvious reasons. My head was all over the place. My focus was not on my music."