Chapter 44
Vera
2023
H elping people bring babies into the world was the best feeling in the world for Vera, but there was just something extra special when it was her grandbabies. It had been three months since she’d helped Alexis deliver Archer and Reese, and Vera still couldn’t stop thinking about it. Alexis had been an absolute rockstar. Vera had let her break protocol by not having her deliver in the operating room, but it had all been worth the risk in the end.
Because now Vera was happily cuddling Archer and Reese as they slept on her chest in the recliner. They reminded Vera so much of Ellie and Brayden; they even looked like them. Vera couldn’t believe that somehow, it had been seventeen years since Ellie and Brayden were sleeping on her chest as she cuddled them. More often than not, Isla and Vera preferred contact naps over putting their kids down in their beds. Their kids preferred it, too.
And now so did their grandkids.
But Vera wouldn’t have it any other way. She savored the time she got with her grandkids because she knew time was fleeting. Vera still couldn’t believe Ellie and Brayden had started their senior year of high school. Brayden already had colleges trying to recruit him for their hockey teams, while Ellie was still a shining star on the stage.
Ellie was currently playing Katherine in the Moonflower Cove Theatre’s production of Newsies and loving every second of it. Isla and Vera had gone to opening night the night before, and offered to babysit so Alexis and Blake could see the show without worrying about the babies. Vera hated losing Ellie’s performance as she always made it a point to go to them all, but she’d settle for baby cuddles instead.
“Grandbabies look good on you,” Isla chuckled as she walked into the living room. She pulled the ottoman closer to the recliner as she marveled at Archer and Reese. Vera loved watching Isla; loved seeing the way she smiled as she gently touched Reese’s little fingers. “You doing, okay? Need me to get you anything?”
“I’m good.” Vera kissed Archer’s head. “They should be up soon and we’ll need to feed them. Do you want to get their bottles ready?”
“Of course.”
Kissing Vera, Isla headed off into the kitchen. Alexis was breastfeeding, so she’d left them plenty of milk to get them through the few hours she would be away. All Isla had to do was warm up the bottles in the fancy bottle warmer machine they so didn’t have when Ellie and Brayden were younger.
Archer stirred awake at the sound of the bottle warmer turning on. He reminded Vera of their dogs when their automatic food bowl went off. She laughed as she adjusted him in her arms carefully. It had been a while since she’d juggled two babies, but it was just like riding a bike.
“Hey, sweet baby,” Vera cooed as Archer looked up at her. “Do you hear Grammy getting your bottle ready?”
He seemed to understand what Vera was saying and started to cry. Which, of course, woke Reese up. She also started to cry and Vera carefully put down the footrest of the recliner and stood. Thankfully, Isla met her quickly and took Archer from her as she bounced him in her arms.
“Oh, what did Nana do to you, babies?”
“That wasn’t me,” Vera laughed as she bounced Reese, which helped to calm the infant's crying. “They heard their bottle warmer.”
“I swear, they have the best hearing and smelling. I swear they know as soon as Alexis enters a room.”
“Remember how Ellie and Brayden used to do that too?”
“And Everleigh,” Isla sighed, a happy smile on her face. “I miss our babies being babies.”
“Me, too. But being Grammy and Nana is pretty fun, too.”
Isla put her arm around Vera’s waist and pulled her in for a kiss. “There is no one I’d rather be on this journey with than you.”
“Ditto, babe.”
Archer’s scream in protest grew louder as they both laughed. Isla tried to get him to calm down, but Archer was having none of it. At least Reese had settled down enough that she was no longer crying.
“Geez,” Everleigh breezed into the kitchen from the stairs, a Mason-like smirk on her face, “do you two even know how to take care of babies?”
“We kept you alive, didn’t we?”
“Barely.”
Grabbing a juice from the fridge, Everleigh headed off into the living room without another word. Isla and Vera couldn’t help but laugh at their youngest daughter. They both knew she was teasing, which only added to the fact that she had one of the best senses of humor out of all their kids.
Her new service dog, Willow, was following behind her. Willow was a two-year-old chocolate Labrador retriever who had been with them for a few months. Mason and Mallory had trained her just for Everleigh, and she’d been a perfect addition to their family. Although they knew that Everleigh could maintain her diabetes without a dog, having Willow gave both Isla and Vera extra peace of mind.
“You know, she has a point. How did we ever do this with Ellie and Brayden?”
“Well, for starters, we were a lot younger back then.” Smirking, Isla took the bottles out of the warmer and handed one to Vera. They headed back into the living room as they settled on the couch beside each other. “And your boobs worked back then.”
“ Ew ,” Everleigh dramatically commented from the recliner. Her feet hung over the side as she held the juice in her hands. “Gross.”
“Hey, you breastfed longer than any of our babies, so hush.”
Everleigh stuck her tongue out at Isla, who did the same as they all laughed. Leaning her head onto Isla’s shoulder, Vera savored the moment. She loved all her kids more than anything, but there was something different about Everleigh. Maybe it was because she was their baby; maybe it was because of everything they had been through together. But whatever it was, Vera was beyond thankful for their baby girl.
After feeding, burping, and changing the babies, it was time to put them down for the night. Or, well, until Alexis and Blake got back. Isla and Vera had offered to babysit them at their house to make things easier, but Alexis had insisted it would be okay. After all, she’d told them, they’ll need to be fed when she arrives back anyway.
Isla had set up Everleigh’s crib in their guest bedroom again for Archer and Reese. The last time the bed was used had been when Harper was staying the night, and Vera couldn’t help but smile at how right she’d been about Alexis and Blake. She’d never told anyone but Isla her theory on how they could end up together, but she liked to think she had a hand in the invisible string that made that dream happen.
Vera marveled at the two babies asleep in the crib as she wrapped her arms around Isla’s waist. She rested her head on her chest as Isla held her close. “They’re here because Mason asked me over for spaghetti.”
“Mason is a mastermind.”
“She always gets what she wants. Especially if spaghetti is involved.”
“Well,” Isla kissed her head, “she does know pasta is the way to your heart.”
They stayed in the quiet room for a few more moments, soaking in their time with their grandkids. When Vera turned off the light and shut the door, she said a silent prayer of thanks for the life she’d been given. Once back in the kitchen, Isla pinned Vera up against the wall of the stairs and kissed her.
“I’m gonna go shower.”
“Want me to join?”
“I’m right here ,” Everleigh grumbled from the kitchen table. But the smirk on her face told Vera she wasn’t really annoyed. All their kids were used to seeing Isla and Vera show affection to each other.
“Sorry, Evie.” Vera noticed her diabetic supplies laid out on the table and knew she needed to stay with her. Isla knew without her saying and kissed Vera once more before heading upstairs.
Taking a seat by Everleigh, Vera watched as she carefully repacked the many bags they kept supplies in. There was one Everleigh always kept with her, as well as one each for Isla and Vera. Mason, Chase, Blake, and Alexis also had all the supplies they might need at their house, which added some relief to Vera’s constantly worried mind. At least cutting back on her hours at work had helped Vera not stress as much as she used to.
Everleigh was only eleven, but she looked and acted older for her age. Vera knew it was because she had to grow up faster than Ellie and Brayden because of her disease, and that broke Vera’s heart. There was still a part of her that blamed herself for Everleigh’s diagnosis, no matter how many times Isla, Mason, and even Everleigh told her she wasn’t to blame.
To top it off, Vera had also been struggling with Everleigh’s autism and ADHD diagnosis. Isla had noticed the signs first, which had been confirmed by a doctor a few years ago. Vera blamed herself for everything that happened to Everleigh, but, again, her family reminded her it wasn’t her fault. She knew it was a selfish thought since Everleigh struggled every day with her diagnosis. But Vera would spend every minute of every day fighting for Everleigh and her needs. Everleigh would never have to face anything alone as long as Vera could help it.
She watched as Everleigh carefully got a syringe full of insulin, injected it into her pump, and let it prime using the receiver that looked like a phone. When it beeped to signal it was ready, Everleigh looked up at Vera.
“Mama?”
“Yeah, baby?”
“Can you put this one on for me? It hurts less when you do it.”
“Of course. Where do you want it?”
“Here.”
Everleigh stood, turning slightly as she raised her shirt and pointed to her lower back. Vera carefully placed the device on as they waited for the loud click to signal it was working. Barely flinching, Everleigh quietly reorganized all her supplies as she zipped the bags up. Isla and Vera were so proud of her for how much she’d been on top of her diabetes since her scary low last year.
“Evie?”
“Hmm?”
“I’m really proud of you.”
Everleigh blushed, a rarity. “Thanks, Mama.”
“You wanna watch a movie?”
“ Turing Red ?” Everleigh asked with a grin.
It was Everleigh’s favorite movie, so it wasn’t a surprise she’d suggested it. When they had first watched the movie, Everleigh had cried when she saw one of the characters had a diabetic monitor on. Of course, so did Isla and Vera. Having Everleigh feel validated in a movie character was an amazing feeling for Vera. So much so she’d even written to Pixar to thank them for the representation.
Sitting up on the couch, Vera tried not to cry as Everleigh snuggled up against her. They had to take Everleigh cuddles whenever they could get them because she wasn’t as loving of physical touch as Ellie and Mason had been. Vera put her arms around Everleigh’s shoulder as she pulled her close. She kissed her head as Everleigh used the remote to navigate to the app.
It wasn’t long before Isla joined them, taking a seat on the recliner as they watched the movie. Vera had been shocked when Brayden emerged from his bedroom and plopped down on the floor in front of the TV to watch the movie as well.
The movie was almost over by the time the front door opened and Alexis, Blake, Harper, and Ellie came inside carrying pizzas. They all chatted in the kitchen about Ellie’s performance and how much Alexis and Blake loved it. Vera passed out plates to everyone as they dove into the pizza.
“Ellie was awesome ,” Harper gushed, in awe of Ellie. Vera understood. She was too.
Noticing Isla standing in the archway of the kitchen, soaking in the moment. She walked over to her, playfully bumping her hip against hers. Vera nodded at their kids as she smiled.
“Did you ever think we’d have this?”
“Never.”
“We just need Mason here to finish out the group.”
“Don't say her name too loud,” Isla laughed, putting an arm around Vera’s shoulder. “You know it makes her just appear out of nowhere.”
“She’s not Beetlejuice.”
The backdoor opened and as if on cue, Mason and Chase walked in carrying drinks for everyone.
“The party has arrived!”
“Told you,” Isla chuckled as Vera rolled her eyes.
“Oh, hush. We love having all our babies here.”
“It’s the best feeling in the world.”
Vera looked at Isla, their eyes so full of love for each other. She tenderly tucked Isla’s curly hair behind her ear as she wondered for the millionth time how she ever got so lucky. Not only was she Isla’s wife, she was also the mother to her babies and her partner in life. And nothing would ever take that away from her.
“I love you, Isla.”
“And I love you, Vera.”