by Cee Bowerman
Finn chuckled as he moved out of the doorway so I could get by. I went to the sink and washed my hands as I watched Finn in the mirror. He tossed the washrag into the hamper and stalked over to me, coming up behind me and pressing his hard cock against my ass, pushing my hips into the counter.
“I liked that. Hard and fast. But when we come home, I’m going to fuck you so slow you beg me to let you come. I want to hear you speaking in tongues, Lena, and only then will I push you over the edge and let your orgasm take over. I want to do that over and over again until the only thing you can say is my name, the only thing you can feel is my cock inside you.”
“Holy shit.” I whispered as I watched his eyes in the mirror. “Please.”
“Already begging me. I like that.” With that, Finn slapped me on the ass and walked out of the bathroom.
I guess he taught me not to tease him, or at least he thought he did. If anything, it made me sure that teasing him would get me everything I want and then some.
10.
“You better buckle up, big guy. It’s happening soon.”
Advice from the nurse
FINN
When the door opened, I opened my eyes just enough to see that it was Royal walking in. He had a paper tray holding four coffees. Ronan came in behind him with his arms full of boxes, all marked from a donut place that was popular here in town.
Royal quietly set the coffees on the little table, and then pulled one of the boxes off Ronan’s pile before the two of them quietly walked back out the door.
I smiled, knowing that my brothers were trying to take care of the nurses that were taking care of our niece and nephew.
As if he could read my thoughts, Dylan started squirming on my bare chest. His little butt wiggled, and then he stretched his skinny legs out. His arms stretched out next, and then he nuzzled his head around for a second before he was still.
I’d been napping with Dylan on my chest for the last two hours. And, like clockworks, the little guy moved about every fifteen minutes. I woke up every time he moved, and had to smile, remembering how my sister used to flip flop around, hogging the bed.
Bella, on the other hand, was completely still. She rarely made a sound and had been sleeping deeply for the last two hours on Lena’s chest. Lena had stripped down to her bra right before she snuggled up with Bella, and the sight caused my chest to hurt, yearning to see her holding a child that the two of us had made together.
After just a few minutes, the door opened again and my brothers came back. Neither of them had looked at me yet, so I watched them as they got settled in the chairs across the room. Ronan set the box of donuts on the chair between them, and the two big men started to eat quietly. After his first donut, Royal looked up and saw me watching him.
He smiled and gestured to the baby as he took his shirt off and tossed it over onto the windowsill. He walked over to me as I stood up, and he gently took Dylan into his arms and held him to his chest as I helped him adjust the blanket. Royal sat down in the chair I had just moved from and then reached down to pull the lever to tilt it back and bring up the footrest.
The nurse had referred to that chair as a recliner when she brought them in to us yesterday, but I wasn’t sure she really knew what a recliner was. Those chairs were torture devices after about fifteen minutes, but at least they tilted back a little bit so you could sleep, even if it did feel like you were laying on a piece of plywood.
I stretched my arms above my head and reached over to get my shirt from the hook on the back of the bathroom door. As I pulled it on, I walked across the room to get Royal’s shirt and then went to hang it up in the spot I had cleared.
I looked down at the coffees, saw one with my name marked on it and picked it up for a sip. Oh, hell yeah, I thought to myself. I sat down next to the donuts and made my choice for breakfast and then leaned back to enjoy my sugar and caffeine.
The three of us didn’t speak, trying not to wake Lena and the babies.
We sat like that for about twenty minutes before Lena started to stir in her chair. She held one hand on Bella’s bottom and stretched out her other arm, then she swapped and stretched her other side. Her legs were next, and I smiled when I saw the socks she was wearing peek out from under the blanket. They were bright pink and fuzzy, with little sections for her toes, like a pair of gloves for her feet.
The toes I was looking at wiggled a few times and then disappeared back under the blanket as Lena shifted in her chair. She tilted her head from one side of the other, probably trying to work the kinks out, and then she sniffed the air.
The end of her nose twitched, and she sniffed again before she opened her eyes and zeroed in on the coffee cup that was sitting in the middle of the little rolling table in the center of the room. She didn’t say anything, probably not realizing that Royal and I had traded spots, or that Ronan and I were sitting over on the other side of the room.
Lena stared longingly at the cup of coffee so long that I heard Royal’s breath huff out as he tried to hold in a laugh. It didn’t faze Lena though; her laser focus was still on that coffee cup as if she could will the table to roll across the room within reaching distance.
Ronan smiled at me and shook his head before he stood up and sat his coffee on the table. He stripped off his shirt and folded it nicely before he made his way toward Lena. Lena, sensing she was about to be relieved of duty, sat the chair up and started to get Bella ready for the trade-off.
It went without a hitch, and in just a few seconds Ronan was reclining in the chair as Lena adjusted her shirt. She shuffled to the table in the center of the room, rubbing her eyes with one hand and scratching her butt cheek with the other. I glanced at my brothers and saw them both smiling, the babies on their chests bouncing as Ronan and Royal both laughed silently.
Lena grabbed the coffee and put it up close to her face, sniffing the little hole in the lid for a second to get the smell into her lungs before she took a cautious sip. As I’d noticed before, she held the coffee in her mouth for a minute and enjoyed the flavor, probably willing her body to absorb it so she didn’t even have to swallow.
Lena stood there, both hands on the coffee cup until at least half of it was gone. Finally, a little more alert and caffeinated, she turned her head and saw me in the chair next to the donuts. Her eyes lit up, and I hoped that was from seeing me and not the sugar at my side.
She walked the few steps over to me and put her arm around my neck as her other arm held the coffee cup. She leaned down to kiss me on the lips and then nuzzled her nose close to my ear for a second before she leaned over and peered down into the box of donuts.
I smiled, happy that I had won out over the sugar.
Lena took her first bite of donut and closed her eyes, savoring it like she had those first few cups of coffee. After a few minutes, she looked over at Royal and Ronan and caught them staring at her.
“Why are y’all so quiet?” She asked in a regular tone of voice. Royal pointed at the baby and then put his finger to his lips to shush her.
“Oh, no no no. That’s not how this works at all. From the get-go you make noise like it’s a regular day, do everything you need to do around the kids. Let the phone ring, run the vacuum, have conversations. Don’t let them get used to sleeping somewhere that is quiet as a tomb or you’ll have kids that wake up at every damn sound.” Lena shook her head and looked down at me. “Not happening. Be normal. They’ll adapt and be better off for it.”
A nurse walked in while Lena was talking, and as she looked at the little monitors that were attached to each baby, she agreed, putting in her two cents. “Lay them down in the living room with the lights on and people all around. Later, when you guys want to go to a restaurant, or you go on vacation and rent a hotel room, you don’t have to worry that the kiddos won’t sleep, because they’ll be able to sleep through anything. Tried and true method, believe me.”
“That makes sense, I guess.” Royal chimed in. “Mom had all of us up there at the offi
ce with her, people coming in and out, the bell on the door ringing, phone going crazy, and I remember Tavin and Chess sleeping through it all.”
“Exactly. And since these little ones will be in the office with me all day, I’d like to get them used to hearing noises while they sleep. It will make my life so much easier.”
“You’re going to take them to the office every day?” Royal asked Lena quietly.
“Well, yeah, we can’t exactly leave them at home alone you know.” Lena looked down at the donut box to pick another one and didn’t see the look that passed between me and my brothers. When Lena looked back up and saw us staring at her, she flinched. “Did I say something wrong? I just assumed I could take them with me places. If that’s not okay, I understand … “
“No, babe, that’s fine. I mean, we hadn’t really thought of that option. We just figured that we would all take shifts and keep them at the house or maybe hire a nanny if we had to.” I put my hand on her leg and squeezed. “You can take them anywhere you want, and if you think it would be okay to keep them in the office that’s fine too. One of us can always be there to help you.”
“I have Lily at the office to help me, and I have interviews set up for another person who will be answering the phones in the front. I’ll make sure that whoever I hire is okay with kiddos and willing to lend a hand if necessary.” Lena pinched some of the cherry frosting off her donut and put it in her mouth before she continued, “If whoever I interview has a problem with kids then they can just take their ass somewhere else.”
“She sounds just like Mom.” Ronan whispered, and when I looked at him, he was smiling. “Just like Mom.”
“Stop whispering, Royal, I mean Ronan. Shit.” Lena peered over at Royal and then looked at Ronan. I could see the wheels turning in her head for a second and then she said, “Dammit. Ronan. Stop whispering.”
Ronan let out a deep belly laugh, and soon Royal joined him.
“Mom couldn’t tell them apart sometimes either. She’d have to compare them just like you did, then she’d say ‘Dammit’ and call him by the right name. That shit was a flawless impression of our Mom.” I chuckled. “That’s too fucking funny, babe.”
“It’s like they’re clones. The other guys, they look the same, but I can see the differences, especially since Angus has the bead woven in. Tavin and Chess are easy because Chess’s face is naked like yours.” Lena reached up and ran her hand along my jaw. “Have you ever thought about growing a beard, babe?”
Ronan and Royal laughed. The two of them teased me and Chess all the time about our bare faces, as if that made us less of a man since we didn’t have facial hair.
“I can grow a beard, woman.” I growled at her and then nuzzled her neck with the stubble on my face. She squealed and moved away, and I was happy to see that her pale skin was a little red where I had caught her. “I’ll just quit shaving today, especially if it will make you happy.”
“I think I’d like that. You’d look sexy as hell.” Lena kissed me on the end of my nose and looked over at the smiling nurse who was checking the wires connected to Bella. “You like bearded men?”
“Oh, honey, who doesn’t?” The nurse chuckled. “All of your men that have been traipsing in and out of here for the last few months have the nurses at the desk all aflutter. I’m immune though, takes a lot more than a beard to rev my engine.”
I saw Royal checking out the nurse, taking inventory of her from the top of her blonde head all the way down to her feet. I could tell that her comment had piqued his interest, and once I took a good look at the nurse I could see why. She was damn good looking, and obviously had a good sense of humor to boot.
“My poor brothers. That’s all they’ve got going for them. The beards. Probably couldn’t touch your engine.” I smiled as Royal shot me a glare. I did notice that the nurse glanced over at Royal and blushed before she turned away.
Lena elbowed me and when I glanced at her she let her eyes go wide and nodded her head in the nurse’s direction and then Royal’s. Apparently, we had a little matchmaker on our hands. I smiled at her and shrugged.
“The two of them seem to be doing great. The doctor will be in around ten, if you want to let the rest of your crew know. We’ll see how long he wants to keep your little ones.” The nurse adjusted the blanket back over the baby on Royal’s chest, and I saw her smile shyly at him before she stood back up. “I’m so happy that they’re doing so well. All of us have been cheering for them.”
“What if we’re not ready?” I asked her.
The nurse chuckled as she walked out. “You better buckle up, big guy. It’s happening soon.”
“Calm down, babe. We’ll take care of it.” Lena leaned her head to rest against mine. “Progress has already been made toward getting the house and the office ready for the two of them. Don’t worry.”
“How? You’ve been here all night.”
“I have magical little elves at work as we speak. All is good on the home front, Finn. I got this.”
Just then, the door opened, and Mace and Angus walked in. Each of them was carrying a car seat. Mace was carrying a diaper bag, and Angus was holding what looked like a photo album. My friend Shirley and I had texted back and forth for over an hour yesterday evening, and then Lily had left our house and stopped by the office for the credit card before she picked Shirley up for a shopping spree.
I had seen Shirley at the mall before, and I knew what sort of damage she could do at Walmart and Target. I had faith that the babies had everything they needed and then some by now, and Lily and Shirley had been busy washing clothes, blankets, and bedding in preparation for the babies release from the hospital.
“I’m half in love with that little spitfire you hired, Lena.” Angus growled as he sat the car seat and album on the ledge in front of the window. He immediately walked over and peered down at Bella and then Dylan before he walked over and grabbed a donut from the box beside me. “She’s a drill sergeant. Pointing at this and that so we’d do what she wanted.”
“She has a lot of brothers and sisters who are younger than she is. The woman can hold her own, believe me.” Lena stood up off my lap and hugged Angus and then Mace before she sat back down on my lap. “Shirley didn’t raise a little flower.”
“We met Shirley too. And her husband Ralph. Good people.” Mace had a donut in each hand and walked over to enjoy them in the chair next to Royal. “Shit, that man Ralph is a pro. He had almost all the shit put together before we even got one thing done. Practice I guess.”
“What was he putting together?” I asked Mace and Angus.
“Two swings, two little bouncy seats in the back room of the office where the old crib is at. Two more swings and two more bouncy seats at the house in the living room. A little frilly basket thing in the living room, but it didn’t need any assembly.”
“Oh! She found a Moses basket! I was hoping she would.” Lena wiggled on my lap and smiled up at Angus. “What else?”
“While Ralph put things together, Shirley and Lily were sorting stuff and folding it, then when we left, they were putting shit up in the nursery.” Angus smiled over at Lena. “You done good girl. We didn’t know what half that shit was, let alone that we’d need all of it.”
“The office credit card took quite a hit, I’m sure but I’ll get it sorted out by the end of the month. I can just enter it as an employee loan and then close it out once I get my money transferred over. I’m glad they were able to get everything we needed and get it all organized. I’ll have to cook them dinner quite a few times to pay them back.” Lena stood up and stretched before she walked over and picked the book up that Angus had carried in. “I’m going to run down to the nurse’s station and get them to sign this for the kids. I thought it would be a nice keepsake for the babies, since we’ve got pictures of nearly all of them in here loving on the babies. I’ll match the pictures up with the signatures later and we can show the kids when they’re older.”
Lena walked out of the room
, and all five of us were silent for a few minutes.
“She thinks she’s paying for all that stuff?” Angus asked quietly. “Girl’s got a screw loose.”
“She is just like Mom, you guys. Someone needed something and she found a way to get it done. She’s not asking for money or thanks, she just did it because it needed to be done.” Royal smiled over at me. “You better move heaven and earth to make that woman happy, Finn. She’s already making all sorts of plans to raise these babies as if they are her own, and I think it’s fucking great.”
“Yeah.” Ronan agreed. “She’s fucking awesome.”
“I really wish she had a sister.” Angus grumbled. “I want one just like her, except maybe a redheaded version.”
“Did you make the call to the newspaper, and get in touch with the priest?” I asked my brothers.
“Yeah. Everything is set, and the service will be day after tomorrow.” Angus answered.
I nodded, knowing we had one more hurdle to get over before we could move on to healing. I looked over at the baby girl in my brother’s arms. She and her twin, along with Lena would help us find the joy in life again, after all this sorrow.
11.
“Naked naps have to become a thing now. I decree it.”
Lena to Finn
Lena
Finn squeezed my hand as we started down the aisle behind his brothers. The church was filled to capacity, with not a space left for anyone else to sit. There were people standing around the edges of the chapel, and as I glanced around, I saw quite a few men and women I knew.
I walked slowly next to Finn until he paused to let me go ahead of him to sit in the pew. I found myself between Finn and Royal, and I put a hand on each of their knees to lend them my strength. None of the brothers had said much since we rode together in the limousine to the church this morning, and I understood how solemn and heartbreaking this day was for them.
My gaze moved up to the front of the church, and I saw the huge pictures of the family members who had died in the accident. In front of each picture was a decorated urn holding the ashes of that family member.
