Chapter 16
“What do you think?” Remy asked.
After breakfast, my guys had taken the kids into town to take care of any last-minute errands for today’s photoshoot. Ella had outgrown her shoes, and the boys needed to get their hair cut—or styled in Micah’s case since he was determined to grow his out. I had taken advantage of the quiet apartment by starting some of my school assignments. Even though we were taking our family and maternity pictures today, I wanted to get some schoolwork completed. The possibility of graduating early was getting closer and closer.Without my typical training and with the amount of help my family was giving me regarding the children, I was breezing through the majority of my work.
Remy set some papers down in front of me. The papers look like their real estate listings, some for lots and others for homes. I slowly shuffled through them, noticing they were all upstate New York locations.
“What exactly am I looking at?” I was both thankful for and confused by the interruption. My thoughts concerning the thesis I was working on were a jumbled mess.
“We need to make plans for our future,” Jace pragmatically stated. “We can’t stay here forever. Lincoln has a house for us on the West Coast. I’m selling my house since it’s not centrally located to anything, and Remy’s house wouldn’t be conducive to raising our children full-time. Our kids need a backyard to run in, so we need to decide what our future looks like.”
A spark of excitement alighted in me. I was afraid I was going to go into nesting mode without having a place to nest. At first, I’d thought a lot of those pregnancy idiosyncracies were silly, like nesting and crazy cravings, but I’d found myself becoming another statistic. I had odd cravings, and lately, I had been viewing our apartment with a little despondency.
All the guys had taken seats around the dining room table, and I could see my excitement mirrored in their expressions. They seemed just as determined to move out of the facility as I was. Even with the threat of Horatio still out there, they understood the need to stop pausing our lives for him.
My eyes landed on Lincoln, whose expression was nearly blank. I knew he was talking about our future, but did he really want to make another big decision based on my desires? It didn’t seem fair for his life to be in a constant state of change.
“What about your work?” I asked Lincoln.
“I’m cutting back on most of my projects. I already informed my agent that I want more jobs on the East Coast when I return. As it is, my next movie is already scheduled to shoot in New York City. Our kids and our family are going to be my number one priority here on out.”
He said it so matter of factly, like it was absolutely no big deal, that I figured a part of him understood how insecure I still felt. His career was huge, and I never wanted him to grow resentful of me. I didn’t want him to feel like his sacrifices were too great. Every time he reassured me with action and words, it helped. I just hoped my doubts would vanish one day.
“Should we discuss this with the kids too?” Drake hesitantly inquired. “Ella is enamored with Hazel. Alex and Kade are building relationships with Miranda, Harry, and Greg. And you know Pops and Megan will want to be as close to the kids and our children as they can be.”
The way Remy had proposed the idea, I knew my guys were already on board with it, but I could also see how the children shouldn’t be blindsided by a large change without a little warning. They all knew that the bunker wasn’t our forever home, but they had been building relationships with many other children here.Some of my excitement dimmed when I thought about our extended family not being included in our future plans.
“We could buy one of the larger parcels of land and build several homes on it,” Troy offered, pushing forward three listings.
“Pops isn’t in a hurry to build on the previous property. Plus, Megan hated that house. I’m sure she’d love a new start too,” Jaxson suggested.
I was sure there was a story behind that statement, but delving deeper into it could happen at a later date. For now, I had to focus on the broader picture and the implications of it all. They all looked at me as if I would object. Maybe it was weird that I wouldn’t, but the thought never even crossed my mind. The situation we were in wasn’t the greatest, but having family close by was awesome. It had so many advantages that I couldn’t imagine moving forward without them.
“We don’t need to have everyone super close together,” Noah pointed out, misunderstanding my silence. “This piece of land is over fifty acres, so that’s plenty of space without being on top of each other.”
“I love the idea of them being nearby,” I reassured them. “I was just thinking… Do we extend the invitation to Randy and Greg? How about Gavin and Sierra?I love the idea of Gavin and Sierra’s baby growing up with ours.”
“There will be room for both families. If you don’t want to extend the invitation to Miranda, it’s your call,” Remy stated.
I bit the tip of my finger as I thought about it. I couldn’t keep ignoring how close Miranda had gotten to the children. Apart from Micah, relationships were being repaired. Plus, Harry had become an extension of the kids. Every night that we had the kids, Harry was with them, and I couldn’t imagine shutting him out any longer.
“It’s not a decision that needs to be made today,” Lincoln said before grabbing me and settling me in his lap.
“Now, what house should we build?” Troy smiled, handing over a book of house plans.
With an equally big grin, I took them.“You guys have been putting a lot of thought into this.”
“We had to discuss a lot of things in your absence,” Jaxson explained with a shrug.
“Well, I like your way of thinking.” Inside, I lit up with joy, excited to make plans for our future.
η
Micah sighed heavily. “I’m not mad at you, Kade. I’m just disappointed, maybe a little upset.”
I paused in the doorway, not knowing if I should interrupt them since the conversation was long overdue. They hadn’t spoken to each other all week, and it had caused discord among all the kids. Of course, it didn’t help that Alex had read the minds of the teens and carried the information back to the other younger ones.
The guys had had to stop me from interfering several times. They hadn’t even caved when I began crying. Unfortunately, it happened more often than I liked nowadays—insert sigh here.
“I was afraid to tell you,” Kade answered. His tone was weary, betraying how weighed down he’d felt by the disconnect between him and his brother. “I knew you and Patrick loved her. I didn’t want to come between you guys, and honestly?” He huffed out a breath. “Right now, I just see her as a kid.”
Drake wrapped his arms around me, and I leaned into him. We had to get ready soon since we were taking pictures and having our gender reveal party today. The photoshoot plan had only grown since our first discussion of it, now including family portraits that Hazel had requested. She wanted photos of all her grandchildren, as well as Miranda and Greg. Initially, I hadn’t been crazy about the idea, but she guilt-tripped me into it.
“How did you even find out?” Micah inquired, bringing my attention back to the conversation. “I mean, I’m always around Vick and never saw her mark. Or yours, for that matter. I see you undressed all the time.”
When Kade hesitated, Micah snorted. “It’s been a long time, huh?”
“Since Blake was taken.” Kade cleared his throat uncomfortably. “I’m not her only connection either.” I could hear the grimace in his voice.
I barely concealed my shocked gasp, and Drake tightened his hold on my shoulders. I looked at him with wide eyes.
“Did he just say what I think he said?”
Drake’s eyes were as large as mine as he nodded. “Victoria has two connections.”
I gulped. Who was Vick’s other connection?
Micah muttered a curse. “Of course not,” he said a touch bitterly.“I wish…” His voice cracked slightly. “I wish she could be mine, too.”
“Me too,” Kade admitted.
“You do?” Micah asked in surprise, mirroring my emotion.
“Yeah,” Kade responded. “I’m not any good at any of this.” He blew out a loud breath. “I know Blake and the guys are convinced I’ll suddenly like her one day, but…” He paused, and I could picture him shrugging in my mind. “She’s just a kid. If she was with you and or Patrick, you guys could give her the attention she deserves until… I don’t feel like a creep.”
“She’s beautiful,” Micah said in a defensive tone.
My heart broke for him. I could hear the love he had for her clear as day. He would gladly step into Kade’s role.
“I know,” Kade confirmed. “I can’t deny that.” He gave a joking snort. “Well, when she’s not painting her face in black and hiding in emo clothing.”
I knew he was attempting to make light of the situation, but Micah seemed convinced that he had to list off all her virtues. “She’s brilliant.”
“I know,” Kade admitted, obviously disgruntled.“I’ve heard Mr. Bates say he’s giving her some high school work since she tested so high.”
“Any guy would be lucky to have her.” Micah’s voice cracked again.
“He would be, but I’m unsure if I’m the right guy for the job. How can I make this better?” Kade whispered. He sounded like he’d been eviscerated, all his feelings laid bare.“I hate not talking to you. I hate not hanging out with you.”
“Treat her the way she deserves,” Micah croaked out. “You can get to know her. Stop hurting her. Stop throwing those other girls in her face.”
“I’m sixteen. She’s thirteen . She can’t expect that kind of commitment from me,” Kade scoffed.
“No one’s asking you to make your connection right now!” The passion in Micah’s voice made it stronger, louder, this time. “Just give her a chance. Who knows? Maybe you won’t want to hook up with other girls, and you’ll be willing to wait for her. She’s worth it.”
A dresser drawer shut. “What if I’m more discreet with who I talk to?” Kade rationalized.
“You’re not the problem,” a girl’s voice scoffed, and my eyes widened once more. Victoria must have used her gift to sneak in there. “It’s the chicks you choose to hang out with.”
“Vick!”
“Victoria!”
“What are you doing here?” Kade inquired first, getting over his shock.
“I’m here to get my best friend,” Victoria staidly stated. “When are you going to stop avoiding me, Mic? You’re not a dick like Kade, so stop shunning me.”
“I’m not trying to—” Kade began before Vick cut him off.
“You are,” Victoria bit out. “You’re acting like a martyr. You behave as if this is something I want, but you know what? I don’t give a shit anymore. Be a slut. Be with whoever you want to. Ben’s already shown me that I’m not just some annoying kid.” I gasped, and I felt Drake’s startled indrawn breath. “You might as well just come in here, Blake and Drake.”
Huffing a laugh at her brashness, Drake ushered me inside. Micah was sitting on the edge of his bed, fully dressed in the outfit we’d chosen for him. Kade was shirtless, his shirt clutched in his hand.
“Umm, Ben?” I cleared my throat, somewhat chagrinned to be called out for eavesdropping.
“Yeah, Ben,” Victoria stated, crossing her arms over her chest. She no longer seemed like a heartbroken little girl. In her place was a hardened shell of herself. She was as caustic as she had been when she first got here.
I gaped. I didn’t know if I should go to talk to Ben first. In no way, shape, or form should he even attempt to do anything with her.
“Before you try to insinuate yourself further into my situation,” Victoria protested, “Ben and I have talked. We talked a lot while he was recovering.”
Suddenly, a flashback of her crying and protecting him while our base had been overrun flitted across my memory. I never would have seen this plot twist, but some clues had apparently been there.
“He’s willing to just talk to me,” Victoria continued as she glared at Kade.“He’s already made me realize that, at thirteen, I’m nowhere near mature enough to understand the full implication of our connection.He promised not to embarrass me or inform me of any females he may date, and so far, I don’t even know if he’s seen anyone in the last few months.”
“Fair enough,” Drake stated with a nod.
I didn’t know if I could be so blasé about the whole ordeal. It was one thing for Victoria to be connected to a sixteen-year-old boy, and something entirely different for her to be connected to an eighteen-year-old man . On the other hand, I knew Ben, and he was one of the good guys. Despite that, I still intended to talk to him about the whole thing. At the very least, he should have approached Pops and let him know about their connection.
“He’s even encouraged me to date and see other people,” Victoria supplied in an off-hand manner.
“You’re thirteen. It would be best if you weren’t worrying about stuff like that,” Kade scoffed, though I caught the trace of jealousy in his voice.
Victoria raised a brow at him before turning to Micah. “Come on, Blake and Drake were here to get you for the family photos, and you promised to help me with the gender reveal thing.”
Micah stood up and placed an arm over her shoulders. “I’m sorry,” he gruffly muttered near her ear.
“So am I,” she replied with a sad smile.
What a mess! Once again, my hormonal tears flooded my eyes.
η
“On the count of three!” Jaxson said with a huge smile.
I smiled back at him. Despite the heavy early afternoon conversation, I’d enjoyed taking pictures with my connections and family. I couldn’t wait to see the finished product, especially since the photographer was amazing.
Since he was gifted and had two connections, he barely blinked when Lincoln gave him all our requests for the day. He was outgoing, but most of the time I wasn’t even aware of his presence.
“One,” Noah bellowed out.
“Two,” Troy said next.
“Three,” we all yelled together as the colored smoke bombs erupted around us.
I lifted my head to the sky as pink and blue chalk rained down on us.
“Does that mean they’re having a boy and a girl?” Alex squealed in delight.
Remy embraced me from behind, his chuckle rumbling against my back before he twirled me around. Finally, the rest of my guys converged on me, and Jace cupped my face before bestowing a kiss on my lips. The pink and blue chalk clung to his face, hair, and clothes. I looked around and giggled, noticing the others were marked as much as we were.
The guys took turns embracing me and murmuring words of love and happiness. All the while, I was vaguely aware of the photographer snapping candid shots of us.
“It’s a boy and girl,” Jace confirmed before turning to our family and friends.
We exchanged embraces for the next few minutes and got well wishes from our close family and friends. However, it wasn’t until the kids began throwing blue-and-pink-tinged snow at each other that we boarded the helicopters to head back to base.
Troy had decided that we should take our first family portraits at the bluff I had fallen in love with on our mock mission. Despite the spring temperatures, the snow still clung to the mountains in some spots, making it the perfect backdrop for our pictures. The guys looked stunning in their white button-ups, gray slacks, blush pink or powder blue suspenders, and pink or blue boutonnières. Troy, Noah, and Jaxson were wearing the pink ensemble, while Jace, Remy, Lincoln, and Drake had worn the blue. It had taken a lot from me not to convince one of them to sex me up.
“Did you decide on any names yet?” Dawn inquired as she climbed into the helicopter with us.
“Everyone will find out their names the day of their birth.” I had been resolute on this. I was excited for everyone to know our babies’ genders, but I wanted to keep their names a secret. We were still tossing around our daughter’s name, and some things were better kept to ourselves.
Dawn pouted. “Boo, you’re no fun!”
“You’re right. I’m not,” I teased, leaning back into Jace’s arms.
He kissed my temple and murmured, “I love you.”
I smiled up at him. “Love you more.”