Chapter 39
Three months had passed since the night I became his, and this place, this family, had become the steady centre of my whole world.
The scorching heat of the long summer spell had finally broken. My old life felt like something from another world – distant, faint, nothing next to how bright and alive everything was now. I hardly ever looked back anymore.
“Step to your left please, Tamer.”
Swift’s low voice cut soft through the quiet hum of the hospital entrance. I smiled to myself, shifting my bag higher on my shoulder, stepping easy to the side just like we’d done so many times before.
You couldn’t miss the two men watching over me.
To my right walked Tiny – broad as a mountain, solid as stone, with his long beard and that quiet steady way about him that made people step back before they even realised why.
Just a step behind me was Swift, lean and sharp, eyes never staying still, always watching everything around us like he saw more than anyone else.
When we first started coming here, everyone had been nervous.
Nurses froze mid-step, clerks looked like they were ready to run.
But three months on. Everyone knew us. Dr Cole, who’d been with the club for years, had sat everyone down and explained it all gentle and calm.
Now, the hospital staff were glad to have them around.
No more trouble, no more aggression – just quiet safety.
“Morning Danika, morning boys!” a midwife called out cheerfully as we walked towards the lifts.
Tiny gave a slow nod, while Swift flashed her a quick, charming grin.
“Morning,” he said. “Hope the boss aren’t working you all too hard today.”
I pressed the button for the third floor, my heart light and excited in my chest. My days fell into a perfect rhythm – evenings studying online, learning all I needed to know, and days here, working alongside Diamond, seeing my dream come to life right in front of me.
But as the lift doors slid shut, that bright feeling softened, twisting into something tender and aching.
Rage.
Three months living under the same roof, three months of looks that said everything, three months of a love so big and bright it felt like it could burn – and still, we hadn’t gone all the way.
We were close, so close. He’d come to my room some nights when the dark felt too heavy and hold me until I was calm.
We’d kiss until my knees went weak, until my head span – but every time it got too much, he’d pull back.
I knew why. He was scared his rough, fierce side would frighten me.
Scared he’d break the one thing he wanted to protect more than anything.
But I didn’t want protecting from him. I wanted all of him. I just didn’t know how to tell him that.
The lift pinged, and the doors opened onto the maternity ward – soft light, the gentle smell of lotion and new life, pulling me right back to the moment.
“Look who’s here!” Diamond called out warmly from the nurses’ station, grinning bright.
She looked lovely in her light blue scrubs, but she wasn’t alone. Further back in the quiet rest area sat Rose and Ivy, both glowing and round with baby. Ivy was smaller, hair tied up neat, resting one hand gentle over her bump. But Rose… Rose looked like she was ready to pop any day now.
“Oh wow,” I laughed soft, stepping closer. “Just look at you two!”
“Go on then, laugh,” Rose groaned playfully, though her eyes were shining happy. “I’m only five foot two, and this bump makes me look like I’m carrying a whole football team! Leo just stands there staring at it like he’s trying to work out some big puzzle.”
“You do look like you’ve got more than one in there,” Ivy giggled, patting Rose’s bump gentle.
“It’s not funny!” Rose huffed, though she was smiling. “Cole keeps saying it’s just because I’m small, and I’ve got to take it easy. Leos got me practically locked up! I can’t even walk from one room to another without him hovering.”
“He’s just looking out for you,” Diamond said gently, putting her files down. “It’s just a very big baby for someone your size, that’s all.”
As they carried on chatting about what Dr Cole had said, something he’d noted down earlier kept turning over in my head. My training, all I’d been learning, and the little things Rose had mentioned before… how her mum was a twin, how the measurements were bigger than they usually were…
It all clicked into place so fast it made my breath catch.
She wasn’t carrying one big baby. She was carrying two.
Determination sparked bright in my chest. I had to be sure. I’d find a way to look at her notes later, when no one was watching.
“You’ve gone very quiet all of a sudden,” Rose said softly, tilting her head at me with a warm smile. “Are you plotting something? Planning to gang up on me with Dr Cole?”
“Never,” I laughed, feeling my cheeks go pink. “I’d never turn against our queen. But… maybe I might have a little word or two.”
“Traitor,” Rose teased, popping a piece of apple into her mouth.
Laughter filled the room, light and warm and full of love. And right there, in that quiet hospital corridor, a secret was waiting – one that would change everything for our family.