by Susan Stoker
Hollywood rolled his eyes, knowing Kassie couldn’t see him. His sister-in-law was a serial dater. He knew Kassie worried about her, but she was still young. She had plenty of time to settle down. Better she figure out what she really wanted in a partner now than regret a hasty decision later. “When is she coming to visit? Kate was saying the other day that she missed her aunt Karina.”
“I’m not sure. She loves it out there in California. I told her that maybe she’d meet some hunky Navy SEAL and could bring him home for you to check out.”
Hollywood grunted. “You better believe she’s bringing home any man she wants to marry for me to check out. I’ll call Tex and make him do the complete workup on him.”
Kassie turned in his hold again and laughed. She ran her fingers up his chest suggestively, and licked her lips as she looked at him. “Think we can talk Emily and Fletch into keeping Kate for a sleepover tonight?”
“You have something you need to do tonight?” Hollywood asked, knowing exactly what his wife was thinking.
“Oh, yeah,” she agreed. “There’s someone I need to do tonight.”
Hollywood leaned down and kissed his wife. Not caring who was around. Having a child meant they didn’t get as much private time together as he liked. Anytime he could have his wife to himself, he’d take it.
After he’d kissed her senseless, Hollywood lifted his head. “Fletch’ll take Kate for the night. I’m sure she’ll be thrilled.”
Kassie sighed in contentment. “Good.”
“Love you, Kass.”
“Love you too. Now go,” she said, pushing him away gently. “Tell your friend he’s on babysitting duty. I want to go home.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Hollywood said, and immediately turned around to find Fletch. He couldn’t keep the small smile from his face though. He was as much in love with his wife today as the day he’d married her. More. Life was amazing.
Fish and Bryn, ten years after the weddings.
* * *
Fish yawned and stretched, reaching out his good arm for his wife. When he encountered nothing but cold sheets, he frowned. It wasn’t unusual that Bryn got up before him, she didn’t need a lot of sleep, but he couldn’t deny that he hated waking up without her.
He quickly got up and pulled on a pair of jeans, not bothering with a shirt. He did what he needed to do in the bathroom and went looking for Bryn.
He found her in the living room. She was sitting on the floor cross-legged, hunched over what he thought was their toaster, with their six-year-old son.
Fish had known Bryan was different from most kids when he was talking at nine months. By the time he was two, he was using complete sentences and he’d even picked up Spanish from their nanny.
Fish had hired the woman when Bryan was six months old, when Bryn had gotten so involved in researching something she’d literally forgotten about her son. She hadn’t meant to, and she was devastated when she’d realized Bryan had been screaming his head off for quite a while and she hadn’t even noticed.
Maria was a godsend. She came in every day and spent time with Bryn and their son. She made sure both were eating properly and she also kept the house clean.
Fish loved his wife, but was aware of her quirks. Wanting to keep her safe, as well as his son, had made the decision to hire Maria easy. Now neither of them could imagine life without her. She was like Bryan’s second mother, and everyone was happy with the arrangement.
At the moment, Bryn was explaining to their son how the heating coils in the toaster worked. Bryan was sitting exactly like his mother and their heads were almost touching as they bent over the electronic. There were parts strewn on the carpet around them and it looked like they’d been at it for quite a while.
Fish grinned.
He must’ve made some sort of noise, because Bryan looked up and saw him standing in the doorway.
“Hi, Papa!” he said happily. “Mama is teaching me how the toaster works!”
“I can see that,” Fish said, pushing off the doorway and walking toward his family. He settled himself on the floor next to them then leaned over and kissed Bryn on the temple. “Good morning, love.”
“Morning,” she said distractedly. “So you see, Bryan, when electricity flows through a wire, energy is transmitted from one end to the other. Think of it like water flowing through a pipe. The electrons in the wire get jostled around and run into one another over and over, giving off heat. The thinner the wire is, the greater the electrical current and the more the electrons run into each other…thus…”
“Making more heat!” Bryan said energetically.
“Exactly!” Bryn said approvingly.
“But how does it know when the toast is done?” their son asked.
Fish smiled as Bryn went into an explanation of thermostats inside the toaster and how the dial for the different level of toasted-ness worked. Every day, his wife amazed and impressed him. He had no idea how he’d managed to create a human as smart as Bryan, but he figured it was mostly Bryn.
His wife had been opposed to kids for a while, but Fish had known she was just scared. She hadn’t had the best upbringing and didn’t trust herself. But after spending time with Annie and the other children of his Delta Force buddies, she’d loosened up.
Hiring Maria had eased all her worries, and she’d since taken to being a mother better than anyone he’d ever seen. She never got upset with Bryan. Instead, she tried to analyze and figure out why he was crying, unhappy, frustrated, etc. It was fascinating to see her take an academic approach to motherhood.
But it wasn’t all facts with her. Every day, she told Bryan how much she loved him and how proud she was of him. She made his lunches for school, including little notes letting him know he was loved. She frequently took him to the library, and to Coeur d’Alene to visit the zoo, museums, and even to antique stores, so they could find things to take apart to learn how they worked.
“Hungry, Bryan?” Bryn asked.
“Yes, Mama.”
“Want Daddy to make you pancakes this morning?”
“Yes!” Bryan leaped up, forgetting about the toaster, and threw himself into his father’s arms. Fish caught him with his good arm then leaned over and snagged Bryn around the waist with his stub. He hadn’t put on his prosthetic this morning, which he only did when he left the house.
He rolled around on the floor with his wife and child and did his best to tickle them, and to keep them from tickling him in return. When they were all winded, they lay on the floor, trying to catch their breath.
Fish turned to Bryn and said, “I love you.”
“I know,” she returned.
Fish merely smiled. He turned to his other side. “I love you, son.”
“I know,” Bryan replied, unconsciously echoing his mother. “I’ll go get the stuff ready for pancakes!” And with that, he leaped up and headed for the kitchen.
“How’d you sleep?” Bryn asked once they were alone.
“Good. Although I hate when you get up without waking me.”
“I heard Bryan up around five. I figured I’d get up to see what he was into.”
“Probably smart. Maria would have a fit if she came to work on Monday and the house had burned down.”
“Yeah, she wouldn’t be happy.”
Bryn still had a hard time understanding when someone was being sarcastic or kidding with her. But it didn’t matter to Fish. He loved her exactly the way she was.
Bryn sat up and pushed her hair out of her face. Then she began fiddling with the pieces of the toaster that were still strewn about. “Oh, I took that pregnancy test this morning. It was positive.”
Fish gaped at his wife.
He knew she had missed her last two periods, but had thought it was because she’d been sick recently. She’d had a nasty bout with the flu and had lost a lot of weight as a result.
She didn’t seem to realize the magnitude of the news she’d just shared with him. Fish reached out and took her hands in his goo
d one, making her physically stop fiddling with the electronics. He knew he’d never get her attention otherwise.
“You’re pregnant?”
“Yes. I believe I just said that.”
“You’re having my baby?” Fish was having a hard time wrapping his head around the bomb she’d just dropped on him.
“Well, technically it’s half mine, but yes, it looks like I am.”
“Oh, Smalls,” Fish said, and put his hand on her cheek, making her look at him. He couldn’t even come up with the words to tell her how he felt.
“Are you…okay with this?” she asked.
For the first time, Fish saw the trepidation in her eyes. She was worried he wouldn’t be happy?
Turning them so she was under him, Fish looked her right in the eyes and told her what she needed to hear. He’d learned that beating around the bush with her wasn’t good. “I’m ecstatic. I’m more than happy. I’m over the moon.”
“Did you know that the expression ‘over the moon’ originated from the sixteenth-century nursery rhyme called ‘Hey Diddle Diddle’?”
“Hadn’t thought about it,” Fish told her.
“Hmmm,” Bryn hummed. Then she leaned up and kissed him. “Love you, Dane.”
“Love you too, Smalls.”
“Hey! Are you guys comin’? I’m hungry!” Bryan said as he came back into the room and saw them still on the floor.
“We’re comin’, keep your pants on,” Fish said.
“Of course I will! Why would I take them off to have breakfast?” Bryan asked before heading back into the kitchen to wait for them.
Fish chuckled, and made a mental note to call Ghost and the others and let them know the good news later that day. He sat up and helped Bryn to her feet as well. Then hand in hand, they walked into the kitchen together, ready to start a new day.
“I’m the luckiest man alive,” Fish said later as he watched his son eat his chocolate chip pancakes.
“Maybe so. But if you are, then I’m the luckiest woman alive,” Bryn said with a small smile.
Fish had no retort to that. She was absolutely right.
Beatle and Casey, eleven years after the weddings.
* * *
“I can’t do it again,” Casey said, looking up at Beatle with huge tears in her eyes.
Beatle thought his heart was going to break. They’d done everything they were supposed to this time. Just as they had the last three times, and it hadn’t worked.
They’d started trying to have kids a few years after they’d gotten married. They’d wanted to wait until Casey’s university job was a bit more secure. After she’d gotten tenure, they’d started trying to get pregnant right away.
After a year with no results, even though the attempts were more than enjoyable, they’d seen a specialist. Thus had begun six years of doing everything they could to have a child.
They’d just found out that the last round of in-vitro fertilization had failed. Again.
Beatle held Casey as close as possible and didn’t say anything as she cried on his shoulder. His own eyes welled with tears. He hated seeing his wife so upset. Nothing tore at his heart more than not being able to give her what she most wanted, their child.
It wasn’t that they were opposed to adoption. They’d talked about it, and had followed Truck and Mary’s journey to adopt overseas closely. But Casey had really wanted her own child.
Knowing now wasn’t the time to bring up adoption again, Beatle closed his eyes and simply held his wife and thought about the calls he needed to make. He needed to call Blade and let him know that the procedure had once again failed. Needed to tell their parents. Needed to let the other women know, so they could do their thing and surround Casey with love and friendship.
But for now, he’d simply hold her.
How long they sat on the couch and soaked up the much-needed love and affection from each other, Beatle had no idea, but he jerked in surprise when his phone started ringing in his pocket. He was going to ignore it, but Casey pulled away and wiped her eyes.
“You should get that,” she said softly.
Nodding, Beatle pulled the phone out and clicked to answer. He didn’t recognize the number, but he always answered, just in case. “Hello?”
“Is this Mr. Lennon?”
“Speaking.”
“This is Doctor Harris from the fertility clinic.”
“Yes?” Beatle wasn’t sure why their doctor was calling them. They’d just seen him a couple hours ago, when he’d told them the bad news.
“This is highly unusual…but I just received a call from a colleague who’s an OBGYN. He just delivered a baby to a teenaged single mother who wants to give her up for adoption.”
Beatle froze. His eyes whipped to Casey, who was staring at him curiously. “And?” he asked, needing more information before he said anything to clue his wife into what was happening.
“She’s been adamant from the beginning that she didn’t want the child. Her parents refused to allow her to get an abortion. The father isn’t in the picture at all. Child services is looking for a foster home ASAP. I just thought… Can I be frank here?”
“Please,” Beatle said, still in shock.
“We’ve been through a lot together. The last thing I wanted to do today was break the news that the procedure once again didn’t work. You and Casey are the kind of people who deserve to be parents. You’d be amazing, I have no doubt. I know you both want children more than anything. So, I pulled some strings… You could pick up the baby tomorrow. But you’d have to go in and fill out the application to be a foster parent first. They’ll do background checks, and you’ll have to put up with home visits for a while too. Then there will be court dates to make sure the mother and her family have relinquished all rights to the child.
“It won’t be easy, but then again, what the two of you have gone through in the last six years hasn’t been easy either. This little girl needs you, Troy. Needs you and Casey.”
“When do I have to give you an answer?” Beatle asked, not taking his eyes from Casey.
“Sooner rather than later would be better, but I know you need to talk it over with your wife. Tomorrow morning would be best, as I can make arrangements for you to meet with child services and sign the paperwork, then you can take the baby home as soon as tomorrow afternoon, if everything checks out.”
“Tomorrow?” Beatle choked out, wanting to make sure he’d heard the doctor right.
“Tomorrow,” Doctor Harris confirmed.
“I…shit…” Beatle stammered.
“Talk to Casey. I’ll wait for your call in the morning.”
“Right.”
“Troy?”
“Yeah, Doc?”
“You deserve this. I know it’s scary, but it’s nothing you can’t handle.”
“Ten-four. I’ll call tomorrow.”
“You do that. Bye.”
Beatle clicked off the phone and stared at his wife. She still had tracks on her face from her tears, and she furrowed her brows in concern.
“What did the doctor want?”
Beatle ran a hand down his face and took a deep breath—then told her everything he’d just heard from the doctor.
For several moments, they stared at each other in shock.
“Tomorrow?” Casey whispered. “We can take her home tomorrow?”
“That’s what the doc said. What do you think?”
“What do you think?”
“I’m sorry that I couldn’t give you a biological child. But I think we both knew before we even started on this last round that the possibility of it failing was high. I want to give you everything your heart desires, and I hate that I couldn’t. But…I think this is a sign from God. What’re the odds that this girl gave birth today of all days? And that her doctor was friends with ours? I think we should do it.”
“Me too,” Casey whispered.
Beatle kissed her, then pulled back and asked, “Did we just become parents?”
<
br /> Casey chuckled. “Well…foster parents for now, but…yes, I think we did.” Then the smile fell from her face and her eyes got huge. “Oh my God. We don’t have anything. The house is a mess and we don’t even have a room to put her in. We need clothes. And diapers. And formula. Oh, shit…we need to go shopping!”
Beatle grabbed her right before she leaped up from the couch. “Calm down, Case.”
“I can’t!” she screeched. “We’re gonna be parents!”
He simply held her and arched his brows.
“Oh my God, Troy. We’re gonna be parents,” Casey whispered, then she burst into tears once again.
As he pulled his wife back into his arms, Beatle beamed. It was so strange how the world worked, but he knew they were meant to be this little girl’s parents. He already loved her. It was crazy. Insane. But true.
After Casey had gotten herself under control, he said, “Come on, let’s go call your brother. Then our parents. They need to know they’re going to be grandparents.”
Blade and Wendy, thirteen years after the weddings.
* * *
“I’d like to make a toast,” Jackson Tucker said as he raised his champagne glass.
Blade stared at his brother-in-law proudly. After his rough start to life, he’d not let anything stand in his way. Wendy had done a hell of a job raising him to be an amazing, smart young man. He was now thirty, and had just gotten married.
They were at his wedding reception, and before anyone could eat, they had to get through the toasts. His best man had done his thing, telling stories about a wild and crazy Jackson at college.
But now it was Jackson’s turn for a toast.
Wendy leaned into Blade’s side and he wrapped his arm around her. The thirteen years they’d been married had been amazing. They didn’t have children; Wendy said raising her kid brother had been more than enough child-rearing for her, and Blade didn’t protest.
He liked kids, but didn’t really want any of his own. He was content spoiling his friends’ children…then giving them back.
