I twirl my fork in my linguini, sorry to see that it’s the last bite. It was delicious. “So, did you like your meal?” Edgar asks. “Yes,” I say, emphatically, scraping the plate with the side of my fork to get the last of the sauce. “It was ama-“ As I raise the fork to my mouth I look at Edgar,
Mark was like that. Our connection was instant and fully carnal. We met at a children’s birthday party, of all the inappropriate things, when the twins were invited to tour a fire house and have cake. It was all fine – a little boring, honestly – until I saw Mark in the corner, staring at me, practi
The next morning, I wake up on Victor’s couch. It was such a disastrous end to a great date, I think, rubbing my head and yawning. Archie jumps up on the couch, giving me enthusiastic morning kisses, and I pet his precious face, cooing goodmorning to him but trying not to let him lick me quite so mu
“I am hungry!” Ian says, jumping up and down. Victor smiles and puts a hand on his head. “I am too. Are we having, by any chance, jumping beans for dinner?!” With this, he scoops the bouncing Ian up into his arms and pretends to take big bites out of his belly and arms. “I love jumping beans for d
“I – I – “ Amelia mumbles, reaching up with a shaking hand to touch the warm blood on her face. “Oh my god,” “Amelia,” Victor is suddenly at her side, taking the paper towels from me and helping her to sit up. I leave them to it, turning to glare at my boys, who are standing side-by-side with wide
That night, I’m not surprised to hear the phone ring in my closet. It’s another unscheduled call – Victor is used to getting what he wants, when he wants it – but he’s starting to develop a pattern with when he needs his therapist. Checking to ensure that the boys are asleep, I tuck Archie into my
“Really. Is that what you usually see.” “Nine out of ten times,” I say, confirming. “And in the tenth time?” “In the extraordinary cases,” I say slowly, “I usually find that…the patient is eager to be married in order to fix their childhood trauma. To demonstrate that they can hold it all togethe
I carry Archie out of the closet, wandering down the hallway, thinking about my phone call with Victor. As I walk by the boys’ door I quickly look in on them and am pleased to see they’re asleep, though they do it with small frowns on their little faces. I sigh and pull their door shut – they’ll be
“Me me me,” he says, hardly able to contain his excitement. “My turn, mama. Please.” And he looks down, again, at his little girl. “Well,” I say, shifting her in my arms and leaning forward so Ian can better see her face. She frowns in her sleep, squirming a little and making me smile. “I was think
Several hours later, I’m changed and curled up more comfortably in my bed with Victor by my side, a baby in each of our arms, and our boys curled up like puppies at the end of the bed. Archie is on the bed too, cuddled between them. We sit quietly together, all still focused on the two little babie
“It’s all right, doctor,” I say, giving her a little smile and nodding towards the boys. “We found them.” “Oh my god,” she says, shaking her head and placing a hand over her heart. Then she frowns at them. “How did they…” “Window,” Victor says, gesturing towards it and sighing. “It’s all right. Th
“Come on, Evelyn,” the doctor says confidently as Victor squeezes my hand, his eyes darting between my face and the first baby, which the doula is now wrapping in her first swaddle. “One more push, and then you’ll be done, and you can hold your little girls.” “Okay,” I huff, sitting up and shifting
Slumped on the couch, Ian heaves a gigantic sigh. “What is taking so long,” he mutters, glaring angrily at the steps as if they’ve personally offended him. “You knew it would take a while,” Bridgette murmurs, running a hand over Ian’s soft brown hair and smiling fondly at her nephew. She sighs and
“Oh my god,” Victor gasps, instantly wide awake. “Oh my god,” he says again, grabbing my face and searching it like it has answers. “Are you – are you okay?” “Yes,” I say, nodding but then belying my answer with an immediate moan. I grit my teeth, my hand going to my stomach as I weather the contra
And between them, my three Alphas have kept me sane. Even though every other part of the end of this pregnancy has worked hard against that sanity. Very, very hard. Even though the TV is on, capturing both of our attention, Ian very suddenly turns his head towards my stomach, like a dog hearing a w
As it turns out…I cannot. I cannot spend 3 months in bed, waiting for my babies to be born. Two and a half months later, I’m basically climbing the walls, I’m going so crazy sitting here in this bedroom, waiting for my little girls to be born. I’ve done it this long, though. I’ve stayed in my bedr
“Why?” Victor asks, suddenly serious in the sea of merriment. “Evelyn, why aren’t you here? What’s wrong?” “Um…” she says, her eyes glancing away awkwardly. “Because…I went into early labor…and I’ve been put on bedrest…” The tablet cracks as it falls to the floor. Rafe gasps, reaching down for it