Keeping Secrets

by Parker, Weston

  She gave the bump a gentle prod, and suddenly, a brilliant smile lit her face. “Good boy. Oh, dear. I guess that gave it away. Congratulations, family. It’s a boy.”

  “You hear that, baby?” Tiffeny whispered to me. “Your firstborn son.”

  I could only squeeze her hand back, my heart swelling to a size I’d previously had thought to be unhealthy or impossible. A son. I’m having a son.

  “I’m guessing you’d like some pictures of your son to take home?” the doctor asked, holding the wand in place as she pushed some buttons on her machine. The printer whirred a second later and she handed the roll of pictures over before removing the wand. “Do you have any names in mind?”

  Tiffeny shook her head while I took the pictures from her and just kept staring at them. I couldn’t take my eyes off my son. “We’ll have to start thinking about it now.”

  “Exciting times.” She winked at us, then motioned to her office. “I’ll be in there when you’re ready.”

  Standing up once the doc left, I leaned over to kiss Tiffeny’s lips, my voice the barest whisper as I tried to hold it together. “Thank you, Tiffeny. Thank you for taking such good care of our son while I was off getting my head together.”

  “I’m just glad you got it together eventually,” she said, then smiled. “Thank you for being here. It means the world to me.”

  Winter threw her arms over her legs as Tiffeny wiped her stomach down. “I’m having a baby brother. We should name him Duncan.”

  “Duncan, huh?” I asked, waiting until she withdrew her arms before scooping her into mine. “I like it, but we’ll talk about it.”

  “No, I like it, too.” Tiffeny wadded up the paper towels and sat up after releasing her shirt. Pulling her waistband back up, she accepted my hand to help her upright, then slid off the bed. “It was actually one of the ones I had on my shortlist if it was a boy.”

  “Seriously?” My eyebrows were high, my heart pounding. “Because it’s one of my all-time favorite names, which is probably why Winter thought of it. She had a male doll once and I called it Duncan.”

  “He was my baby,” she added. “Just like this will be.”

  “Well, I think that’s settled then.” She smiled at us both and took my hand, leading us into Dr. Malone’s office. Just before we closed the door behind us, she added, “Duncan Clark, I think. If you still want to.”

  I raised an eyebrow but smiled as we dropped into chairs across from the doctor’s desk.

  While she answered all of Tiffeny’s one hundred and one questions, I reflected back on the reasons why we’d decided about a week or so ago that if the baby was a boy, Clark’s name had to be in there somewhere.

  Over the last few weeks, I’d told her more about everything Clark had done for us while Alice had been sick and after her passing. I told her how he’d stuck up for me when I’d gotten into trouble for missing practices or interviews, how he’d been right there by my side every painful step of the way, and how he’d eventually been the one to make me feel like I was allowed to move on.

  Tiffeny had then come to the conclusion that without Clark, I wouldn’t have been anywhere near ready for us to happen when I met her, and even then, I probably would have left her for good if Clark hadn’t been there to talk me through it when I finally had.

  I didn’t completely agree with that last bit, considering that I decided to come back by myself, but I hadn’t argued with her. She was pregnant and everyone knew you didn’t argue with a pregnant lady.

  She also knew Clark had been my rock and, as such, was the reason why I could be hers now. Again, I didn’t completely agree, but I couldn’t really disagree either. The point was that we both figured he deserved to be honored for that.

  After we walked out of the doctor’s office, I swept her up in my arms and my lips brushed against her ear when I talked. “A boy. I never thought I’d see the day I’d get to be there to find out what we were having. I love Clark as a middle name, and I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” Her smile couldn’t be wider. “But you might love me a little bit less when I tell you we have to go to my mother’s now. I promised her we’d come right over after the appointment.”

  My eyes drifted to Winter, who was carefully inspecting a butterfly perched on a flower nearby. “We never told your mother about her.”

  “I know, but I don’t think she’s going to hold it against us. She’s been different. We had a talk just after I found out I was pregnant, like I told you, and she’s been a different person since.”

  “Well, I guess we’re going to see.” I took her hand, ushered Winter over to the car, and drove to Tiffeny’s mother’s house.

  Neither of us were expecting it, but she took to Winter even more than she had taken to me. She hadn’t seen me since I’d come back but spent her time playing with Winter first. Only after that did she spend some time with us.

  She cooed over the pictures of Duncan Clark, gave her seal of approval for the name, and by the time we left, it felt like we’d just taken another big step forward as a family. One which her mother was going to be part of. Her father? Well, we’d have to see.

  “I’m so happy for you two,” she said when she walked us out, embracing each of us in turn. “And for the big sister, of course.”

  I turned to her when we left her mother’s house, my hand on my leg, and a smile on my face. “You know, I think today is going to go down in history as one of my ultimate favorite days.”

  Epilogue

  Tiffeny

  “See, you have to hold his neck,” Callen said, helping Winter cradle her brother on her lap.

  He was on his knees in front of the armchair beside my hospital bed, and she sat in it, carefully trying to hold Duncan the way Callen was showing her to. My heart burst with pride as I watched the three of them together.

  My body felt like it had been run over by several freight trains, but my soul was so happy, it could burst. Duncan had blue eyes like mine, but the nurse had informed us they were likely to change color within the next few months.

  I was secretly hoping they’d turn into Callen’s forest green. Other than that, the little man was already the spitting image of his handsome father.

  Once Winter was settled with her brother, Callen sat down on the armrest of her chair and gazed down at them, then up at me. His eyes were misty, but a mischievous grin spread on his lips. “Right, so how many more of these do you want? I’m thinking we should have at least four more. Six feels like a good number.”

  “Six?” My eyebrows jumped as I bit back an incredulous laugh. “You’ve got to be kidding me. That means I’ll have to be pregnant four more times.”

  His grin widened. “I’m happy to do my part in making that happen. All you need to do is say the word.”

  “I don’t even want to think about that word right now.” I groaned, lifting the arm with the plastic hospital bracelet around my wrist. “Besides, given that this only happened this morning, I’m pretty sure we should take some time to see how it goes before deciding on having four more.”

  “It’s going to go incredibly well,” he said firmly. “Plus, Duncan was your first child and he was screaming fifty-two minutes after your water broke. I think that means we owe it to your body to give it as many more kids as it wants. You’re a champ.”

  My head fell back against the pillow as I laughed. Then I winced because laughing hurt. “Keep telling yourself that. My body definitely doesn’t want any more children right now.”

  “It will, but there’s plenty of time for that,” he said, gazing at me with this stupid, adoring look in his eye that made me want to give him anything he wanted. The man was sexy as hell, but man, could he be adorable when he wanted to be.

  “What do you think of your brother, Winter?” I asked, curious to know her answer.

  If anyone had been a champ throughout this whole process, it was Winter. She wasn’t even five yet, but when my water broke this morning, she was first to notice,
and then she’d even grabbed Callen’s wallet to yank a bill out to pay for our breakfast.

  Apparently, she paid a hundred dollars for two cups of tea and some pancakes, but hey, at least one of us had remembered to pay in our dash to get out of there.

  I’d been worried she was going to feel like we were replacing her, but based on the expression of absolute pure love shining in her eyes right then, I didn’t think we had anything to worry about. “He’s so small and perfect.”

  “He is, isn’t he?” I smiled and rubbed my chest, wondering if it was possible to explode from feeling way too much.

  It had been an overwhelming day but in the best way possible. Callen had asked me to move in with them several weeks ago. Then he’d had me totally moved before the sun set the same day I agreed.

  I’d taken charge of the kitchen and usually made breakfast, but both of them had insisted on going out for breakfast this morning. They’d said they wanted to treat me.

  Duncan must have decided he didn’t want to miss another family breakfast because Callen and I had still been waiting for our food when he’d decided he was ready to come out. Between Winter pointing out there was a puddle on the floor and then crying out that my water had broken, getting pulled over for speeding, and then having the same policeman escort us to the hospital, and Duncan being born shortly after, the day was a bit of a blur.

  Callen had gone outside a while after Duncan’s birth to thank the policeman, who’d told him he wanted to stay until he heard the news. It was sweet really, a very eventful birth story for our little man to tell someday. It seemed fitting, somehow.

  “Is my mother on her way?” I asked Callen. She’d been very involved in our preparations for Duncan’s arrival and had even set up an entire nursery at her house for when she babysat Duncan, which she insisted she would be doing often.

  Winter had her own room at my parents’ house now, too. It was beyond weird to see my mother in all her granny glory, as I’d started calling it in my head. My father’s grampy glory was a bit more toned down, but my mother’s new attitude seemed to extend to him, and things were going better with them as well.

  Callen nodded, holding up his phone. “She’s been hounding me for updates, but she’s also been giving me some of her own. They’ve just landed. She had to charter a plane because she refused to wait until tonight, but they’ll be here within the hour.”

  “My dad is with her?” I was surprised. As much as things were going better, he was still a workaholic, and the meeting they’d been in was a big deal. Something about getting their new line of baby products, which they’d named For Duncan, into stores nationwide.

  “Yeah, I guess so,” he said, coming over to plant a kiss on my forehead. “I’m glad he’s coming.”

  “So am I.” For my mother as much as for myself. “What about Clark and Julia?”

  “Clark’s flight will be in tomorrow morning. He’s got that show in Dallas tonight. Then he’s heading right over to the airport to catch a red-eye. He offered to cancel the show, but I told him we didn’t want him to do that.”

  “Definitely not.” Although I truly believed he would if we’d asked him. The man was already as crazy for his godson as he was for his goddaughter.

  He hadn’t been thrilled about the prospect of sharing said godson with Julia, but eventually, he’d agreed. Only after Julia had called him and threatened his balls if he tried to take her godson away from her.

  Those two as godparents were our obvious choices, but they truly were going to need God to help them if anything were to happen to us. Callen seemed to be thinking along the same lines I was.

  “Jules will be here in about two hours. She said she’d leave her client in the booth again, but I told her your parents were on their way. She wanted to give them some time with Duncan before she came barreling in.”

  “That’s considerate of her.” I smiled. “It’s probably only because she knows she’ll still get to meet him before Clark does.”

  “When did they become so competitive anyway?” he asked, a confused frown furrowing his brow. “One morning, they were all giggles, and the next time they saw each other, they were all giggles and competition.”

  I sighed, arching an eyebrow at my boyfriend and baby daddy. “She never mentioned it, but I’m not the only one who got left behind when you guys went on tour. They really hit it off, and I think she was hurt he left without saying goodbye.”

  There was no more hurt in Callen’s expression when I mentioned them leaving. His eyes darkened momentarily because I knew it would always bother him that things had gone down the way they had, but he also knew I’d forgiven him fully, so it didn’t necessarily hurt him anymore.

  The past four months had been like something out of a dream. Callen had been absolutely perfect and reminded me how much he loved me every day. He was also well on his way to proving to me that he wasn’t just going to leave again.

  Kraken’s hiatus had gotten extended indefinitely, thanks to him and Clark, but he assured me that even if they did get back together one day, it wouldn’t be for touring. It remained to be seen, but it wasn’t even on the horizon at the moment.

  Callen was still writing songs every day and he’d been contacted by quite a few other artists to write for them. His career as a songwriter was taking off and he was deliriously happy about it. He claimed it was the best of both worlds.

  “Yeah, I guess I never thought about it that way,” he said. “Anyway, they’ll all be here soon, so we’d better make the best of this last hour of family time. We’re only going to get it again in a couple of weeks once Clark leaves, your parents move out of our house, and—”

  “Did you say my parents are only moving out of our house in a couple of weeks?” I blinked, my eyes widening. “When exactly did they move in?”

  He laughed and leaned over to iron out my frown. “I wish you could see your face right now, but no, they haven’t moved in officially. I just think they’re going to be around constantly until their grand-maternity and grand-paternity leave wears off.”

  I rolled my eyes but smiled as I thought back to the day they told me they were implementing that at the company. I thought it was ridiculous, but my mother was deadly serious.

  She insisted that grandparents played such an important role in grandkids’ lives, they deserved special leave of their own. She claimed it was to support their own kids as they journeyed into parenthood too, so I kind of understood where Callen was coming from with the being around constantly thing.

  “Speaking about making the best of our family time,” he said, turning to Winter and giving her a small nod before lifting Duncan off her lap. “I think it’s time we gave Tiffeny her present, don’t you?”

  She nodded excitedly, jumping to her feet. Waiting for Callen to lay Duncan down in the bassinet beside the bed, she formed a little shield with her side pressed tightly against his and both their backs to me.

  When she turned around, it was with a blue-velvet box open in the palm of her hand. She presented it proudly to me, holding it out as she walked up to the bed carrying the most exquisite ring I’d ever seen.

  The silver band was made up of the finest, detailed filigree that wrapped around it all the way to where it disappeared into the black-velvet cushion. In the center of the band was one ridiculously large diamond with a trio of smaller diamonds around it.

  “That’s you in the middle.” Winter dipped her eyes to the largest diamond. “Because you’re the bright spot in the darkness and the one we all orbit around. The other three are for me, Daddy, and Duncan, because we will always be right with you. I love you, Tiffeny, and my Daddy does too. Will you be my second mommy?”

  “And my wife?” Callen added, lowering himself to one knee as Winter took the ring out of the box and held it ready to slide onto my finger.

  My hands flew to my mouth. I knew Callen would have told her what to say, but I also knew the significance of the question she’d asked me and, obviously, the signi
ficance of what she’d asked.

  Callen and I had been trying to explain to Winter that she had a mommy, but that I was there for her too. At some point, she’d asked if that meant I was her second mommy. He’d said that maybe, hopefully, one day, I would be.

  It had already felt like I was, but I knew what he meant, so I hadn’t said anything. “In my heart, I’ve always been your second mommy, sweetheart. I’d love to make it official.”

  And then I finally looked into those deep green eyes, the ones I’d once thought belonged to the sexiest man I’d ever seen and now knew there was so much more behind them than just good looks.

  He was the best man I’d ever known, as well as still being the best-looking one, and honestly, there was nothing I’d like more than to finally claim him as mine. Forever this time.

  “Yes, Callen. I’ll be your wife, but only because Winter here asked so nicely.” She laughed and slid the ring onto my finger, and as simple as that, we were engaged.

  Callen pushed up from the floor and claimed my mouth in a kiss that would’ve made my knees buckle if I hadn’t already been lying down. Then he rested his forehead against mine and smiled. “I love you, Tiffeny. Thank you for believing in second chances, and thank you for not giving up on us. I promise to spend the rest of my life making it up to you.”

  “I love you too, future husband.”

  The road to getting there had been bumpy—pun intended—but we’d made it. Now it was time for our happily ever after. When my parents burst into the room, all smiles and hugs and love for us all, I knew were well on our way to it.

  The End.

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