Page 146 of Benjamin

After a bit of shuffling, they were settled so that Ben could hold the book, and Amelia could see to read it to Riley.

Contentment swelled within Ben. They could be anywhere in the world, and he’d be fine as long as he had his family with him.

They ended up reading three books. Two of them twice. Then, when both Riley and Amelia were yawning, Ben tucked the books back into the bag. He reached for Amelia’s hand, and she took Riley’s, where she sat tucked into Ben’s arm.

He rested his cheek on Riley’s curls and prayed. It was just a quick prayer. Riley didn’t really tolerate more than that yet, and it was always a prayer of thanksgiving.

When he said amen, Riley chimed in with her amen, and Amelia added hers.

“I’ll take her to Shiloh,” Ben said as he slid off the bed. “Give Mama a kiss, baby.”

Riley moved closer to Amelia and kissed her cheek. “Night, Mama.”

Ben lifted her into his arms and grabbed the bag of books. “I’ll be right back.”

He went to the suite Shiloh and Tracy were sharing and knocked. Shiloh answered and took Riley from him with the promise of a bath, which Riley loved.

“Thank you, Shi,” Ben said after giving Riley a kiss. “See you in the morning.”

Back in the room, Ben found that Amelia had dozed off. Moving quietly, he prepared for bed himself.

After shutting off the lights in the main part of the room, he settled into bed with only the soft light of the lamp on the nightstand.

As he shifted to get comfortable, Amelia murmured, “Benji?”

“Yes, love?”

When she attempted to move closer to him, Ben reached out to help her. He moved his arm so that she could settle against his side with her head on his chest.

“Perfect,” she said.

“Absolutely perfect,” Ben agreed.

As Amelia’s breathing evened out, deepening into sleep, Ben spent some time in prayer, thanking God for everything, and as ever, he prayed that Amelia would have a restful night and the strength to face the new day.

They’d had plenty of days when Amelia hadn’t had the strength to face the day. But they’d never had a day so bad that Ben regretted making the decision to be with Amelia. And they never would.

Every day, there was much to be grateful to God for. Amelia and Riley were always at the top of that list. And after seeing what God had done for them over the past three years of their marriage, Ben knew that he could trust God to see them through the days to come.

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