“Let me see!” Danielle was the first to approach. “Wow… she’s so cute.”“She has my daughter’s eyes,” Nicholas said, observing the baby.James looked at the baby in his dad’s arms and frowned. “Waaah…” He began to cry, calling for his father.“Calm down, James, don’t cry,” Max said, gently rocking him and trying to soothe him.“WAAAH!” Elizabeth also started crying, prompting a nurse to quickly take her back to the delivery room to return her to her mother.“Come here, jealous boy, don’t cry,” Jayden said, holding his son, who immediately stopped crying.“Haha, that’s what he wanted,” Danielle said, amused.“James, don’t tell me you’re jealous of your little sister,” the blond remarked, noticing his son hugging him without saying a word.“I’d say that’s a yes,” then they saw Caroline arriving with little Edward, accompanied by Christian.“Hehe, you’re going to have a tough time,” Christian commented.“Thanks for the moral support,” Jayden sighed.They chatted for a while unt
Elizabeth was born without complications and was a healthy baby, so the next day they were already home and received a warm welcome.Having recently practiced caring for James during the nights, they quickly adjusted to the sleepless nights with Elizabeth, organizing themselves to take care of her when she cried.To help Deborah, Jayden stayed home, supporting the office via video call and only going to the office at specific times, but trying to be away for as little time as possible.Two months after Elizabeth’s birth, Jayden had to leave the house for a meeting, taking advantage of the fact that Elizabeth was asleep at that moment.Deborah was playing with James. After a while, they went to check on Elizabeth.“Ma…” James said, looking at the baby.“James, don’t be jealous,” Deborah said, gently moving him. “We’re just checking on your sister.”“Ah…”“Come on, let’s play while she sleeps,” Deborah said, carefully leaving the room to play in the living room with James, where
“Yes,” Deborah said, carefully handing the baby to him.George smiled as he held the little girl in his arms.At some point in his life, George had dreamed of having a beautiful daughter, but it never happened due to various circumstances. Now, holding this little one and seeing her smile felt like living a dream.“Come here, James,” Elliot said, taking James to put the siblings together and see how they interacted.Deborah and Jayden stood up to watch the heartwarming scene.“Look what I brought for Ellie,” announced Eric as he entered the room and pulled out a fabric headband with a large flower on it from a paper bag. He carefully placed it on Ellie’s head.“The headband is bigger than she is,” Elliot joked as he looked at the baby.“My granddaughter looks beautiful,” Samantha said.“Now I’m going to get upset,” Nicholas said as he arrived. “There’s a grandparent gathering and no one invited me?”“Well, join us,” George suggested.“And I brought something for my lovely Ell
Epilogue: SiblingsYears passed, and it certainly had been a challenge to raise two young children who only had a year in age difference.Elizabeth and James were demanding in their own ways, but as they grew, things eased up. Instead of competing for their mother’s attention, they would team up to play tricks on the adults or have fun in the big backyard.Samantha and Eric loved seeing their grandchildren run and laugh throughout the garden, fully enjoying the play area, the treehouse, the pool, and the greenhouses.One of the siblings' favorite places was the treehouse with a slide that their dad built for them when they turned six and five years old. They also loved playing in Grandma Alexandra’s greenhouse because of the atmosphere in that place.They enjoyed visits from their Aunt Caroline, who would bring their cousin Edward along. Being in a group of three meant having even more fun together.It was a peaceful and perfect life for these siblings. But that happiness wavered
“Grandpa!” the siblings ran over to where George was sitting, welcoming his guests.“Ho ho, hello,” George greeted them with a big smile, receiving a big hug and a kiss on the cheek from the little blonde girl.“What a nice welcome,” said a blonde woman with curly hair, holding a three-year-old baby.“Aunt Erika!” James and Elizabeth greeted.“Good evening,” Jayden greeted.“Happy birthday,” Deborah said, handing George a gift box.“Thank you very much,” he said, taking the box.“Where’s Elliot?” Jayden asked, approaching Erika to take the baby.“He’s at the entrance talking to someone; he’ll be here soon,” the woman said, taking the chance to stretch her arms, as the baby was starting to get heavy.“Hi, Howie,” Elizabeth said, taking the baby’s little hand.“Howard has less hair,” James said with a smile.“That’s because we cut it recently so he wouldn’t feel too hot,” Erika explained.“Erika, dear, could you help me?” George asked, handing her the box.“Of course, George
“They’re not answering,” Deborah said worriedly, seeing that neither of her kids was picking up the phone.“Wait, love. Instead of calling, activate the phone tracker. I always leave that app on for them… I mean, that’s why I pay for this family plan,” Jayden said, pulling out his phone to activate the GPS and get their children’s current location.Thanks to that, they managed to see where their kids were: they had taken refuge in a park two blocks from the party hall.They ran to the park as fast as they could.“James! Elizabeth!” Deborah and James began shouting as they arrived, shining their phone flashlights around.“James, it’s Mom and Dad,” said Elizabeth, recognizing their voices.“You mean your parents,” James said sadly, hugging his knees.“James, they’re our parents.”“No, they’re not! I’m the son of that man who doesn’t want me…”“There they are!” They heard their father’s voice from their right, who was smiling as he climbed up the play structure where they were hi
Extra: ResponsibilitiesWhat had happened was a wake-up call for Deborah and Jayden. They had hoped they would never have to tell James the truth, but it was obvious they would have to have that conversation with him eventually.Now that they agreed they should tell him the truth, they asked someone to investigate Roger a bit to find out what he was up to.A week later, they received the results of that investigation. They were informed that Roger had gotten married a year ago. What was interesting was that this woman was divorced… but the problem George had with it was that she had a six-year-old son, whom Roger had adopted and treated and loved as if he were his own child.In fact, Roger loved and cared for that boy so much that he even dared to take him to a meeting with George and asked him to acknowledge the boy as his grandson… Obviously, this infuriated both George and Elliot, as Roger was acknowledging and loving a child who had no connection to them while neglecting his ow
Deborah and James gave them permission and waited at the entrance.A few minutes later, the kids came back, each carrying a pet: a Labrador puppy and a kitten.“Daddy, can we?” Ellie asked, showing the black Labrador puppy she had in her arms.“Yeah, can we?” James added, showing the small orange kitten he was holding.“Hey… wasn’t this supposed to be one pet for both of you?” Deborah asked, though she seemed amused because she had already imagined this scenario, where they would end up with two pets.“But…” The kids looked at each other and then pouted, trying to convince their parents to let them adopt both.“Hm… I don’t know. What do you think, love?” Deborah asked, looking at her husband.“Well… we have a big house, and if they’re going to be responsible…” he began, seeing how the kids’ eyes lit up.“We will!” Ellie said.“Yes, I promise,” James declared.The two adults exchanged a look before smiling.“If you’re going to be responsible, then I think we can adopt both,”