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Bridget had been trying to convince Mark for weeks that cosleeping with William was a great idea. She was just shy of begging him, but Mark was staunch in his views.
“Bridget, I will not be responsible for rolling over in my sleeping and crushing our child. I just don't see it as practical or necessary, and that's that.”
It wasn't until William was approaching the month-old mark that Bridget figured out her ace in the hole. Mark was going to be leaving for a month-long job in South Africa within the upcoming week, and Bridget figured she could guilt him into letting William sleep in bed with her “for company”. She hadn't told him that she secretly snuck out of bed every night and just kind of stared at her slumbering baby through the slats of his crib, and had even accidentally fallen asleep on the floor some nights. Once or twice Mark had woken up when she returned to bed after waking up on the floor of the nursery, her hair rumpled and carpet marks clearly pressed into her face. Luckily she was able to play it off that she had fallen asleep mid-feeding in the rocker, and Mark never questioned it.
Bridget decided the best way to convince her fiancé that cosleeping was what her and William needed was to attack from a logical, researched standpoint. She printed out several articles online and purchased a copy of Sleeping With Your Baby: A Parent’s Guide to Cosleeping to present to Mark. He had come home from lunch one day to see her and William, and Bridget sat across the table from him with her stack of evidence in front of her. Mark sat at the table with William in his arms--he was still dressed from work, his suit jacket slung on the chair behind him, and he had a burp cloth thrown over his shoulder as he held William’s bottle. Bridget couldn’t help but smile at the love Mark’s eyes held for their son. He was muttering sweet nothings at William while their son suckled innocently on his bottle.
Bridget cleared her throat and Mark looked up at her. “Before you tell me no, I want to talk to you one more time about cosleeping,” she began. She could see the reiteration start to rise in Mark’s throat, and she put a hand up. “I said before you tell me no, so just wait. I’ve been doing a lot of research about it, and with you leaving for a month to go to South Africa, I think it will be best for William and I. I’ll be doing everything by myself at night, and if I have him in the bed with me, I can feed him and then we can go right back to sleep. There are loads of benefits that research has proven, and honestly, I think I’ll need the comfort of a warm body while you’re gone.”
Mark was still feeding Will, but his eyes were locked on Bridget’s. She could see the wheels turning in his head, weighing his options and picking his reply carefully. “Go on,” he said. Bridget took a quick breath and smiled. “I’ve printed out some really interesting articles, and I also bought this book that I think you’ll find useful. Just give them a look and let me know what you think...there are so many options besides letting him sleep between us, thus alleviating you crushing him at night.” She pushed the stack of papers and the book towards Mark. He glanced down at them, back up at her, and then said, “I’ll meet you halfway and read them.” Bridget grinned and said, “I knew you would.”
Later that night, Bridget found Mark in his office, hands twisted up in his hair as he bent over Sleeping With Your Baby . William was finally down for the night, so Bridget crept into the office. “You OK?” she asked, leaning against the doorframe. Mark’s head snapped up and he said, “Oh. Yes, I’m fine. Just reading the things you gave me earlier.”
“What do you think?”
“You’ve certainly done your research. There are a lot of good counterpoints to my argument...and of course, you went straight to the heartstrings with the whole me being away for a month. Which you know is killing me.”
“Soooo, is that a yes?”
“It’s not a yes and it’s not a no. I need to finish reading everything you gave me.”
Bridget smiled as she padded across the office to where Mark was sitting. She leaned down and pecked him on the cheek. “I can take that as an answer,” she whispered into his hair, running a hand onto his shoulder and across his chest in a sideways hug. She felt Mark lean into her--she knew he loved when she kissed him there, the place that only she would kiss him--so she kissed him against his hair, squeezing him to her. Bridget felt him sigh against her, his hand coming up to give her arm a squeeze.
“I also know that it’s killing you to be gone for a month. We’ll manage just fine, though. Jack will pop around, I’m sure, and you know the Urban Family won’t leave us alone if I paid them. Don’t worry yourself sick.”
“I know. It still doesn’t make it any easier. Luckily it isn’t anything too dangerous. And thank god for FaceTime.”
Bridget smiled. “I’m going to head to bed. Don’t stay up too late, OK?” she said to him, planting one more kiss against his head. He gave her arm another squeeze and said, “I won’t. I have one more article to read and then I’ll be in.” He leaned his chin up to receive a goodnight kiss from her, which Bridget happily obliged.
Two days later, Mark came home with a huge box in his hands. Bridget had come out of the kitchen to greet him, William slung across her front. “What’s all this?” she asked.
“I had something delivered from Amazon. Don’t worry about it just yet. You go take care of William and I’ll call you when I need you.” Despite her deep seated curiosity, Bridget shrugged her shoulders and said, “I can do that.”
Thirty minutes later, Mark called her name from their bedroom. When she went up, she found her fiance standing next to their bed, sweating and panting a little, but clearly proud of himself. “Well? What do you think?” he asked, taking a step back. Behind him was a beautiful wooden co sleeper, bumped up next to Bridget’s side of the bed. “I decided that this was our best option--William can sleep in this next to you and still have his own space, and you won’t be lonely while I’m gone. Besides, he can stay there when I come back, too.”
Bridget felt her eyes well up as she crossed the room. She threw herself into Mark’s arms, kissing him deeply. He’s the most wonderful, thoughtful man in the whole entire world. And with impeccable taste...that’s quite the sleeper, she thought to herself as she nuzzled into his neck. She felt Mark press a kiss against her hair. “I guess that’s a good reaction?” he murmured.
“A fantastic one. Thank you so much, Mark.”
The month without Mark went surprisingly quick. Bridget couldn’t believe the jumps Will made in size and milestones, and she thanked her lucky stars every night for FaceTime when Mark got to see their son. It didn’t help the gnawing ache in her heart when she missed him at night, or the frustrated annoyance she felt when she had to handle messy situations by herself, but it dulled the pain enough to be manageable. Since Johannesburg was only an hour ahead of London, Bridget and William were able to go to sleep every night with Mark telling them goodnight and repetitively telling them how much he loved them.
Even Mark could see that the co sleeper was a good idea--as Bridget lay in bed at night with Will’s little head next to hers, her phone hovering over both of their faces as they talked to Mark, she couldn’t help noticing the relieved smile on her fiance’s face. He even confided in her that he had screenshotted them one night and it was now his lock screen. She smiled at that, thankful to have such a wonderful man back in her life.
Now the month was over, and Mark was on a flight back to Heathrow. Bridget had bundled Will into the car and was en route to pick him up at the airport, excitedly chatting to their son. “Daddy will be home soon and all three of us will be together again. Wait until he’s seen how big you’ve grown! He won’t believe it. And Mommy can’t wait to have some Mommy time while Daddy has some Daddy and Will time. That’s the best part about all of this.” The month had surprised Bridget in its ease, but it had still taken its toll on her. She couldn’t remember the last time she had completely relaxed--her showers were milliseconds long and she never slept in. She relished the idea of having some time to herself as she parked the car in the Arrivals section of the airport.
“Here we go!” she said excitedly as she unbuckled her seatbelt. William babbled in the backseat, kicking his feet against the car seat. Bridget scooped him up into her arms and went to go stand on the sidewalk. Mark had texted her only five minutes before saying he had gotten through customs and already had his bags, so it was only a matter of time before he was going to walk through the glass doors and into their arms.
As Bridget scanned the crowd, she felt a tap on her shoulder. Assuming she was just in someone’s way, she politely muttered a, “Sorry,” and stepped out of the way. Suddenly, she heard a gravelly voice in her ear go, “I’m certainly not.” Bridget whipped around and was face-to-face with Mark. She felt her entire face light up and her mouth go agape as she soaked up all of the things she missed about him. He was grinning his crooked grin at her, his eyes crinkled and sparkling. “Oh, Mark!” she gasped, practically jumping in his arms. He dropped his bags on the ground to wrap her and William in a hug. “Hello, my lovely little family,” he whispered, kissing her on the cheek and Will on the forehead.
“We missed you so much!” Bridget exclaimed.
“I missed you more. At least you had each other...I just had my phone and memory to keep me warm at night.”
“Well, you’re home now. Let’s get you to the car so we can get out of here.”
Bridget handed Will to Mark and picked up Mark’s bags. Mark knew better than to protest--he secretly was dying to hold their son, and Bridget didn’t have to carry his luggage far. They made their way to the car and piled in. She could see the relief in Mark’s shoulders as he settled into the passenger seat, resting his head against the headrest and taking a deep sigh. “I’m so happy to be home,” he said, rolling his head to face her. Bridget grinned and said, “You have no idea how happy we are, too. I was just telling Will how excited we both are for some Daddy and Will time... especially Mommy.”
Mark scanned her face, taking in the bag under her eyes and the messy ponytail. “I think some Mommy Time is well deserved,” he said with a smile. “I’ll take Will for the afternoon. Why don’t you go get a manicure? Or pop around Shazzer’s? I’m sure he and I will be fine for a couple of hours.” Bridget glanced over at him, wrestling between guilt and glee at Mark’s proposal. “Are you sure?” she asked hesitantly. “You only just got back from Johannesburg. I don’t want to impose.”
Mark was not one to regularly roll his eyes, but he did with much gusto at Bridget’s reply. “Bridget, don’t be ridiculous. You know that I love you and can’t wait to spend some one-on-one time with you, but I’m equally excited to spend some time with Will. Go pamper yourself. Take a breather. It’s not an imposition at all.” Bridget grinned. “You’re the most amazing man,” she said, pressing down on the gas.
When they got back to their home in Holland Park, Bridget parked the car and helped Mark carry his things inside. Mark had his nose pressed into Will’s cheek, kissing him gently and whispering into his ear. Clearly the month had more of an effect on Mark than on them--it must’ve been tough being a whole continent away with no family around. Must not feel guilty about leaving Will with Mark. They obviously need the time together, thought Bridget as she brought Mark’s luggage up to the bedroom.
Mark called up the stairs to her, saying, “Bridget, are you going to head out? I promise I have it under control.” Bridget looked into the mirror of their dresser, startled by her appearance. Probably should get some pampering done, she decided, running a hand through the wisps of hair that had fallen out of her ponytail. “Yeah, Mark, I actually think I am. I’m going to pop into the nail salon and get a manicure like you said. Shouldn’t be more than an hour,” she called back down as she raked a brush through her hair to make her ponytail more presentable.
Bridget bounded back down the stairs to find Mark warming a bottle up in the microwave, Will still in his arms. She walked over to them both, kissing Will on the forehead before deeply kissing Mark on the lips. “We’re so happy you’re home,” she whispered, leaning her forehead against his cheek. She felt him press his lips against her forehead. “Me too,” he murmured. “Now go enjoy yourself. Us gents will be here when you get home.”
Bridget kissed them both one more time, grabbed her keys and coat, and made her way out to the car. She decided to only go to the nail place in her old neighborhood instead of the posh place Mark always bought her gift certificates to. As cushy and fancy as Mark’s place was, she much preferred the Thai nail salon in her old neighborhood. The women who worked there knew her face and loved talking to her about William--plus, they did a bang up job on her cuticles. The hour it took to get her nails done did her wonders. She felt exceptionally better as the woman massaged her hands, popping her knuckles and wrapping them in a hot towel. By the time she left, the tension in her shoulders had melted and she had a shiny new manicure to show off.
When Bridget returned home, she was surprised to find the first floor of the house empty. Glancing down at her phone, she saw that it was a little past 2:00. Usually Will went down for his nap around this time, so she assumed that Mark had put him down and was probably unpacking his luggage. She left her keys on the table near the front door and shed her shoes and coat before heading upstairs.
The light in Will’s nursery was off as she walked by, but she didn’t see Will in his crib. Hmm, that’s odd , she thought to herself as she continued down the hall. She could see the door to the master bedroom pushed open, but all was quiet. The other doors were all closed, so she figured they must be in the master.
Pushing the door open, Bridget peeked around the corner. Mark’s luggage was open on the floor, half unpacked, and she could hear a soft snore, but didn’t see Mark or William in the room. She pushed the door open a little further and stepped inside. What met her eyes was better than anything she could have imagined.
William was snuggled up in his co sleeper, swaddled in a teddy bear onesie. His little chest was rising and falling with contentment, arms splayed at his sides, and his little fingers curled around Mark’s finger. Mark was sprawled out on the bed next to him. He had clearly toed his shoes off at the foot of the bed and climbed in next to Will after futilely attempting to unpack his luggage. The maroon cashmere sweater he was wearing was rumpled and showing a bit of his hip bone, and his dark washed jeans were inching up his leg as he lay blissfully asleep next to his son. Bridget was also surprised to see a bit of striped sock descending from his pant leg--granted, the stripes were in muted colors, but it was a far cry from pre-William-Mark’s normal black-on-black attire. Daddy looks good on him , Bridget thought smugly to herself as he let out another snore.
Taking her phone out of her pocket, Bridget tiptoed over to her side of the bed. She engaged the camera on her phone and held it up to snap a quick photo of the moment before it passed. What she hadn’t realized was that her flash was on, and when she hit the button, the light from her phone erupted in Mark and Will’s faces. “ Shit ,” she whispered, quickly looking to make sure she hadn’t woken them up. Will gave a disgruntled wiggle, making little mewling noises, but simply squeezed Mark’s finger tighter and fell back asleep. Mark, on the other hand, snapped on eye open to look at her. “Bridget, what are you doing,” he said rather than asked. “Just...just making memories,” she replied sheepishly, stashing her phone on the nightstand.
“Well, stop all that nonsense and get in here,” Mark sleepily replied. Bridget grinned at his invitation and grabbed the throw blanket from the foot of the bed. Before she climbed in next to Mark, though, she swiped her phone open to peek at the photo she had taken. Despite the blinding flash, the photo was just as sweet as she had imagined. “My two boys,” she murmured to herself as she swiped to the menu. With a few jabs of her finger, the photo was now her lockscreen, and she smiled down at it.
Bridget crawled into bed next to Mark, throwing the blanket over both of them before spooning up against his back. She slid her arm around his waist, running a thumb along his exposed hip, and placed a kiss on the back of his neck. “Welcome home, Daddy,” she said. Mark snuggled his body closer to her and murmured, “Best welcome home present in the world. I could lie next to you both all day.”
Bridget smiled to herself as she sunk down next to her fiance, pulling him in a little closer and patting herself on the back for finally proving Mark Darcy wrong.