“No. Carter, get the damn car and take Jackson with you. Brice, you go, too; you know what to do.”
“I’m fine,” Delaney panted. “Everything’s fine. Where’s Emma?”
I scanned the yard, found Emma, and answered, “Blake’s got all the kids by the bouncy house.”
“Can you walk?” Carter asked.
Why was he so calm?
She nodded but whispered, “My water broke.”
“Okay. Do you need me to carry you?”
“Emma came fast, Carter.”
He dropped his forehead to hers and I couldn’t help but admire what a perfect couple they made.
“Laney, you think we’re not prepared? You Walker girls are trouble. We planned for this. It’s not ideal, your midwife thought I was crazy when I asked her to come to the wedding just in case. There’s a birthing tub set up in Uncle Clark’s master bathroom. Everything’s ready to go. Here or at the birthing center, what’s the difference?”
“I liked the tub when I had Emma.”
“Then let’s go have a baby.”
“Let’s go have a baby.”
The crowd parted as Carter led his wife across the backyard to the patio. Jasper and Lenox were already there with the door open.
“Mom?” Quinn’s voice trembled.
“Quinn, my beautiful daughter. It’s your wedding day. Enjoy it.”
“But, Laney—”
Emily looked around before she stepped closer to her daughter and softly said, “We all knew you were joking, but Delaney, she liked the idea of your niece or nephew sharing this day with you. She’s been having contractions for days; she knew the risk. Carter knew what she was up to and arranged everything. Now, in a few hours when she’s up there with no pain meds, she might be rethinking how important it was to share this day with you and Brice. But it’s happening, and soon you’ll get to meet the newest member of our family. And he or she will come into this world with a new uncle to welcome him or her.”
Quinn seemed pleased with her mom’s explanation and nodded.
“Oh, and tell Hadley she’s not off the hook with that little announcement. And tell Addy, we have big problems if she was kissing boys like I kiss your father when she was a teenager.”
“It’s an expression,” Quinn defended her sister.
“It’s a stupid one. Trust me, your father’s a man, not a teenager and he kisses—”
“Aunt Emily, my ears are bleeding,” Liberty thankfully interjected.
Emily Walker smiled at the crowd and winked. Then she walked away, sheets of the shiniest black hair I’d ever seen swaying behind her.
“Well, you got what you wanted today,” Brice told Quinn.
“No, honey. I had everything I wanted the day you told me to knock on your door.”
Brice’s gaze heated. Then Quinn was up over his shoulder and he was carrying her to the side of the house.
“We’re being invaded,” Logan muttered.
“Invaded?”
“They’re multiplying. In a few hours, there’ll be a new Lenox. In nine months, a new Walker. Quinn and Liberty will start soon, then Addy. Total invasion.”
I thought it was awesome. But by the look on Logan’s face, I wasn’t so sure he felt the same.
“We need to even the playing field,” he declared.
“What?”
“Inject fresh blood.”
Fresh blood?
“I don’t understand.”
“You and me, we need to add some Haines into the mix. All these damn Walker women, they’ll take over, populating the family. The rest of us need to pitch in, even the playing field.”
Was he…
Did he…
“You want kids?”
“Yep.”
“You said—”
“I didn’t want them. But with you I do.”
I tamped down the excitement dancing around in my belly and instead narrowed my eyes.
“Shit timing, Logan!”
“Baby—”
“Don’t baby me. You suck. You tell me here, at the reception, that you want to have children with me when I can’t cry without ruining my makeup or looking like a fool. Or maybe show you how happy I am by kissing you.”
“Kiss me, Ren.”
“No. I’m pissed at you.”
“Kiss me, baby.”
“Really mad, Logan.”
“Kiss me, Lauren.”
“No.”
“We’re naming the first one Anabella.”
Bella.
I loved it.
“And the second one Jane. You can name the rest.”
“The rest?” I blanched. “How many are we having?”
“Sixteen.”
“Are you crazy?”
“Yep. Now kiss me.”
I was not having sixteen children. I wasn’t having five children. I might have four if Logan pushed it, but I wanted three.
“Three.”
Logan didn’t respond. He kissed me and it was a highly inappropriate kiss. Thankfully, the party-goers were too wrapped up with the bride and groom and the baby being born in the master bathroom to care.
One hour later, Carter and Delaney didn’t break tradition when they welcomed their son into the family.
There wasn’t a dry eye in the backyard when Carter went straight to his brother, wrapped his hand around the back of Ethan’s neck, gave him a manly jerk, and asked him if he wanted to meet his namesake. Ethan Ford Lenox.
Cheers, hoots, hollers, and loud cries filled the yard. But before the brothers went back into the house they went to The Tree.
It had been years since it was planted in memory of Carter and Delaney’s first child. One who didn’t make it to earth but was never forgotten.
Lenox joined his sons, and like Jasper and the rest of the men who were all-men, the best men, he didn’t shield his emotions. They had a lot to be grateful for, a lot to celebrate, but they’d always feel the loss of the baby who was a Lenox.
Six hours later Logan did as promised.
My dress was ripped.
My panties torn.
The sheets pulled off the mattress.
We fell asleep sweaty, with no blankets, and with Logan smearing his climax on the inside of my thigh. I should’ve tried to stay awake a little longer. I shouldn’t have stopped memorizing all the moments. I should’ve cuddled a little closer. I should’ve told Logan everything I thought I had time to say. But I didn’t know time wasn’t on our side.
25
Have you ever woken up and thought to yourself, today’s gonna be a shit day?
That was how I felt as soon as my eyes opened. Two seconds later with my eyes still blurry I heard Lauren moan.
“What’s wrong?”
“Shh,” she hissed. “My head hurts so bad.”
I thought back to last night and how much Lauren had to drink and I couldn’t remember her drinking anything but water.
It was three days after Quinn and Brice’s wedding and my family was leaving today. They came over the night before, which was what had become the normal. Lauren had selected furniture she wanted online and the guys and I went to pick it up. Now, I had a revolving front door. Ian, my mom, and my sister had been staying at Lauren’s old place but they were at our house every night. Matt, Echo, and Dylan were frequent visitors, Luke if Shiloh was working. Echo I suspected only came around to spend time with my sister. I was getting used to the idea they obviously liked each other, though neither had said anything. But the way they looked at each other had changed after Quinn’s wedding. I was actively ignoring the reason behind the change. I was a man, I knew the look, and if I thought about it too much I felt my temper flare. Matt and Dylan stopped by because they knew Jackie, Lauren, or my mom was going to cook which meant not only did they get free food they got homecooked free food.