I woke up early to a message, grabbing my phone to see Becca’s name.
She slept all night. She woke us up at seven!
That’s great. Want to do breakfast with Gram at eight?
Becca agreed, and I looked at the clock to see that it was seven-thirty. Not that early, after all. I rose to make coffee, knowing that Gray would follow, and we’d put ourselves together enough to head over to breakfast.
“How did they do?” He asked, stumbling into the kitchen in sleep pants and a sexy bare torso.
“She slept all night.” He grinned as I handed him coffee. “They’re going to be at Gram’s at eight.”
“In that case, we should get dressed.” He sipped his coffee, and I followed him to the room to change into jeans and sweatshirts, shuffling next door in bare feet. Gram was at the kitchen table, holding the baby as Mari finished the meal. She had a smile on her face as she held Ava tight, talking to the little girl as she squealed in response.
“How are you?” I asked as I sat in the chair across from Becca.
“I’m tired, but it isn’t her fault. We didn’t sleep well because we were checking on Ava all night. She’s so peaceful at night.” Becca shook her head, looking to her left at Gram. “Is that normal?”
“Every night can be different,” Gram told her, taking in the chubby baby. “I think this one might be in a growth spurt, so she’ll sleep more and eat more. I hope that you’re prepared.”
“Mama Bear has plenty of food up there.” Becca playfully rolled her eyes as Mari mock glared at her.
“Breakfast is ready,” she told us, securing a highchair to one of the chairs at the kitchen table. We helped pile the table with scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage, freshly baked cinnamon rolls and juice and coffee. Ava had a bottle with some formula in it as she was secured at the table.
I watched as Becca and Mari cut up food for Ava, eating as they gave her little bits at a time. They seemed to already be good at the process, but one night was not how it would always be. She ate a lot of everything offered to her, focusing on the eggs and the bacon. Ava even finished her bottle, and Mari held her on the couch after the meal, rocking her gently.
“That’s a good baby who is definitely going through a growth spurt. Did you see her eat?” Gram asked with a smile on her face.
“I did,” Gray said with a smile as he reached for his coffee. Her eyes drooped closed as Mari leaned back, sighing in contentment.
“I didn't realize how much I wanted this.” She let her eyes close as she stroked the baby’s soft hair.
“You’re a natural at this, Mar. What’s your secret?” Gray asked as she smiled. He winked at Becca, not wanting her to feel bad.
“I was a babysitter and a nanny. A lot.” She snuggled deeper into the cushions, holding Ava tight. “I’ve dozed with so many kids on their sleepless nights.”
“That’s not to say that she’s alone in this. I love sleeping holding her,” Becca chimed in as the girls smiled at each other.
“We will both be doing a lot of that,” Mari assured her with a tired smile. “It’s a good thing that we have so many people to help out.”
“You do,” Hayden said as he and Becca shared a smile.
We chatted for a bit longer, helping Gram put the leftovers away after she packed some for Mari and Becca. They promised they would be over for Sunday dinner, and told us to take a walk with them if we ever wanted to. Once they headed back upstairs, Gray and I each took a recliner and leaned them back.
“I’m tired watching them,” I joked as Gram sat on the couch with some tea.
“She’s at that age where she’s going to crawl everywhere. Wait until she can walk in a few months.” Gram giggled, and I smiled at her. “They’ll need your help. I need to stay young so that I can help them.”
“I’ll find us all a fountain of youth,” I said, making us all laugh.
I started work that night again, leaving Gray behind to work on projects. None of us were going to smother the new family since they needed to adjust to each other. I also promised Gray that we were going to focus on each other more than anything while keeping our family close. There would be plenty of time with our new niece, but I was still in a play.
Chapter Fifteen
Gray
It felt like time started to fly by. Hayden and I both worked a lot, and the girls were busy being mothers. They each had a few months off work to adjust and bond with Ava, and they were all loving it. Ava loved her moms. It seemed easier that she wouldn’t remember her past life in some ways.
I came out to the living room one morning to see Hayden reading something on his phone. He looked shocked as I paused, taking him in.
“Are you okay?” I asked as he blinked at me.
“I came across an article about the accident in the paper. We never looked into it further once Ava got here.” I nodded, wondering where this was going. “The social worker mentioned that a guy hit them and died.” I tilted my head at him. “The guy was Ryan. He was Ava’s father and ran a red light.”
“Fuck. He killed her?” I asked as his eyes filled with tears. “He was with you when she got pregnant, right?”
“It would seem so. Not that I’m surprised. He is-was an asshole. He was never there for Ava, to begin with.” I could tell that Hayden was working through this as he spoke. The tears weren’t personal as much as they were for Ava and the mom that would never know her.
“That was a strange circle to bring us here. Are you okay?” I asked, stepping forward to stroke his cheek.
“I don’t know. He won’t hurt us again. He can’t get to Ava. That’s all good. I just can’t imagine the two of them in that car, seeing their fate.”
I kissed him. “They likely didn’t know what was happening. Those things happen quickly.” He hugged me to him.
“I hope so. He was drunk on top of everything else.”
“Asshole,” I murmured as we held each other. “Let’s not mention this to the girls. They don’t need to know how much Ryan was involved with things. When it comes time to talk to Ava about her real parents, they can make up something vague.”
“I hate keeping secrets from Becca, but I agree with this. They need to move forward.” He stroked my hair, and we fell silent for a moment. “He can’t hurt us again.”
Once we finished coffee, Hayden asked if I wanted to go for a hike. He had the day off. I made a habit of doing my stuff when he was at work, so we’d have time together. “We can grab some food before or after.”
“That sounds perfect.” We showered and dressed for the outdoors, walking into the foyer to see three girls coming downstairs. Becca had the stroller, Mari was carrying the baby, and all three beamed at us.
“Where are you boys headed?” Becca asked as I reached out for Ava. This baby was special to me, giggling as I tickled her.
“We’re taking the three of you to breakfast to start if you’ll have us. After that, we’re taking Ava hiking for the first time.” Hayden grinned as they laughed.
“I’m all for breakfast. The hike would probably suck since she can’t even walk yet.” Mari laughed as she watched me with her daughter.