Chapter 37
Chapter Thirty-Seven
RILEY
“It’s official,” I whisper. “You and Ronan make the most adorable babies in the world.”
Ciara lets out an exhausted laugh as she looks over at where I’ve curled myself into a chair with Addison bundled in my arms.
I can barely stand to take my eyes off of her. My fingers trace the soft curve of her cheek, and she twitches slightly in her sleep, her little rosebud mouth almost forming a smile.
Ciara looks down at Nico, who is tucked against her chest. “Until your own baby arrives to give them a run for their money.”
I stare in wonder as Addison lets out the faintest little yawn. I could sit here all day and just watch her, memorizing every detail of her perfect face.
But my eyes flick back to Ciara, who is blinking slowly, clearly fighting off sleep. She looks utterly drained now that the adrenaline of the birth has worn off, so I slowly get to my feet and adjust Addison so that she’s cradled in my left arm, so I can scoop Nico into the other.
“Rest. Aunty Riley’s got this. You just close your eyes.”
Ciara cracks a sleepy grin as she leans her head back against the pillows and closes her eyes.
“Aunty Riley better be around in a few weeks when the sleep deprivation really starts to kick in.”
I chuckle as I gently bounce up and down to soothe the twins.
“You’ll have all the help you need. As much as you want, I promise.”
“You’re a good friend. I meant it when I said you’re like a sister to me.”
“You’re like a sister to me too.” An overwhelming surge of joy floods me as I look down at the twins again, marveling at how utterly small and vulnerable they are.
Addison shifts in my arms and makes a faint cooing sound. Nico follows suit, letting out a soft sigh as he nestles closer to my body. It’s a moment I want to imprint into my memory forever.
The world outside of these four walls, all of the chaos and the pain and the fear, doesn’t exist. Right now, all that matters is these two tiny humans in my arms.
A few minutes later, the door opens slowly, and Ronan peers around the side.
He catches my eye, and I nod in Ciara’s direction.
He glances from the sleeping twins in my arms to his sleeping wife, and his entire face softens.
“Well done on getting her to finally sleep,” he says quietly, and I grin.
“Has anyone ever told you that you have a very stubborn wife?”
“Once or twice.” He chuckles, opening the door wider to reveal Kieran standing just behind him.
When our eyes lock, I can’t stop the huge smile that breaks out across my face at the sight of him.
“Looks like you’ve got your hands full.” He eyes the twins in my arms, the way his lips lift at the corners makes me melt.
“I wanted to give Ciara a chance to rest.” I glance over to where she’s sleeping peacefully in the bed. “She’s been through so much.”
Ronan moves to my side and gently lifts Nico into his arms.
“I’ve got this little guy.” He smiles faintly at the tiny bundle in his arms.
Nico’s fingers curl around Ronan’s thumb, and for a moment, the man who can easily command a room without saying a single word looks completely disarmed.
“How’s Cormac?” I ask him quietly as Kieran moves to take a seat beside me.
Ronan shrugs, brushing his free hand through his hair in that familiar way that Kieran does when he’s stressed.
“Much the same. Brennan’s keeping an eye on him, so we’ll know if there’s any change.”
“I’m not sure leaving Brennan alone in a hospital full of nurses is a good idea,” I joke to try and ease the tension in both of the brothers’ faces.
Ronan seems so preoccupied with Nico that I don’t think he heard me, but when I glance sidelong at Kieran, he offers me a forced smile.
I know he doesn’t want me to worry, but not knowing what is going on with my family only makes me worry more.
Before I can press him for details, he reaches for Addison.
“Let me.”
I blink as he takes her into his arms and instinctively adjusts the blanket, and settles her against his chest.
There’s a gentleness in the way he handles her that makes my chest ache with a mixture of awe and relief as I imagine him holding our own baby.
“It’s like peeking into a crystal ball,” Kieran echoes my exact thoughts. “This will be our life soon.”
I nestle closer against his side, resting my head on his shoulder as I stare down at Addison.
“I can’t wait,” I admit.
“You won’t be saying that when we’re deep in the trenches of no sleep and constant diaper changes.” He chuckles.
“That’s the part I’m looking forward to the most.”
I tilt my head up to smile at Kieran, but he quickly captures my mouth with a quick kiss that leaves me breathless and covered in goosebumps.
“Neither can I,” he murmurs against my mouth.
Before I can deepen the kiss, he pulls back and looks down at me with a frown.
“What is it?”
“Your internship…”
“What about it?”
“Did you turn it down because you’re pregnant?”
In all of the craziness that has happened over the past few weeks, I had almost entirely forgotten about the internship.
It was always meant to be a conversation for after I told Kieran about the baby, and seeing as the secret is officially out, I guess it’s time to untangle the rest of the lies I felt I had to feed him in order to keep the pregnancy secret.
My cheeks flood with color as I avoid Kieran’s eye, feeling that familiar twinge of guilt in my stomach.
“Yes.”
“But why? Was there some kind of pregnancy clause in the contract? Because they can’t legally—”
“No, it was nothing like that,” I interject quickly before Kieran decides to sue Ross Lever.
“Then what was it?”
“Honestly? I didn’t think it was possible for me to balance it all. I figured it was just a sacrifice I was going to have to make…”
When I glance up under my lashes at Kieran, I find him smiling down at me.
“What?”
“I appreciate that you have this ‘strong independent woman’ identity and all, but I want you to know that I’m not going anywhere.”
“I know.”
“Do you? Because turning down the internship because you didn’t think you could do it all makes me feel like you didn’t view me as a true partner.”
His words sting, but only because they hold so much truth to them.
“I was worried you were going to bolt when I told you about the baby, and I was trying to protect myself. I’m so sorry, I should have given you the benefit of the doubt.”
“No, you shouldn’t have,” Ronan chimes in.
“Screw you,” Kieran retorts.
“You don’t exactly scream father material, no offense.”
“Offense taken. I mean, look at me. I’m clearly more of a natural than you,” he says as Nico starts to fuss in Ronan’s arms.
“Stop bickering,” Ciara mutters with her eyes still closed. “I’m trying to sleep.”
“Sorry, Tine Bhaeg.” Ronan bends down to brush a kiss against her temple. “Go back to sleep.”
“I think you should do it,” Kieran whispers in my ear while Ronan is distracted.
“Really?”
“Really.”
“But—”
“We can make it work, even if it means I take on more responsibility with the baby.”
“Who would have thought, my brother, the stay-at-home dad,” Ronan teases, and I swallow a laugh.
“Speak for yourself. You’ll be trading your Glock for a set of golf clubs soon enough.”
“And I give Ciara full permission to use it on me because I will not be seen dead in khakis and a polo.”
“Even if it was all black?” I fight a smile.
“I know what I’m getting you for Christmas,” Kieran says, and Ronan flips him off.
“Well, jokes on you because you can’t have Elena. She’s under a strict contract that means she can never leave us.”
“That’s okay because we’re not moving out.”
I have to stifle a laugh as I look between Kieran and Ronan.
They may be two of the most powerful and feared men in New York, but right now, they’re nothing more than a pair of squabbling brothers.
“Please be joking.”
“Not even a little bit. Soon, there will be three screaming babies under your roof,” Kieran reminds him.
“Help me out here, Riley,” Ronan pleads.
“It was Ciara’s suggestion.” I shrug. “Besides, you have a bigger TV than Kieran’s, so I’m definitely not leaving.”
“Don’t bring size into this,” Kieran warns.
Ronan scowls. “Gross, not in front of my kid.”
“I was talking about the TV!”
“What did I just say?” Ciara grumbles.
“She has the mom voice down,” Kieran mutters in my ear.
“I heard that.”
“Now look what you’ve done,” Ronan sighs as Nico starts crying.
It’s enough to wake Ciara fully, so while they both tend to Nico, I take the opportunity to speak to Kieran.
“So… Are you sure about me taking the internship?” I reach up to brush my fingers over his stubbled jaw.
His eyes meet mine, and all I see in them is unwavering certainty.
“I’m sure. The last thing I want is for you to put your life on hold, and this is my way of showing you I’m committed. To us. To our little family.”
Tears prick at the corners of my eyes.
I blink rapidly, trying to hold them back, but it’s no use. The hormones circulating through my body and the lack of sleep have turned me into a blubbering mess.
“I love you. So much.”
“I love you too, little dove.” He wraps an arm around me and pulls me closer. “More than anything. And I’ll spend the rest of my life making sure you never doubt it.”
“You should go home and get some proper sleep,” Kieran murmurs in my ear.
“Mmm…” I didn’t even realize I had been drifting off as I rest my head against his shoulder.
My body feels overwhelmingly heavy with exhaustion. “I’m fine.”
“I think we might have officially found someone who is more stubborn than Ciara.” Ronan chuckles.
I flip him off even though my eyes are still half shut as I fight sleep.
“I can carry you to the car if you need me to,” Kieran suggests.
“I’m awake.” I sigh as I lift my head.
It feels wrong for me to feel so exhausted, considering I wasn’t the one who just gave birth, but also the thought of the plush bed waiting for me back home is almost too good to pass on.
“Fine, I’ll go. But only for an hour or two, and then I’m coming right back.”
“You do realize there are medical professionals who are paid to help, right?”
I scowl at Kieran before forcing myself to my feet and quickly giving Ciara a hug goodbye, which is tricky as she has both of the twins tucked against her chest.
“Thank you for everything,” Ciara says.
I laugh. “You did all the hard work. I just got to reap all the rewards.”
“Same here.” Ronan smiles, and Ciara rolls her eyes.
“Let me know if you need anything else from home, okay?”
“If Elena wants to make some of her famous cinnamon sugar cookies, I wouldn’t say no to them.”
“I’ll see what I can do.” I wink.
Kieran’s hand finds the small of my back as he follows me out of the room.
Once the door closes, however, he takes me by the hand and pulls me to the side as a team of doctors runs past.
“There’s something I need to speak to you about, little dove.”
“What is it?”
“While Ronan is at the hospital, if I can’t be home, Brennan will watch over you. Sean’s dead, but Lorcan… He’s still out there, and there’s no telling what his next move will be, so I’m not going to take any chances.”
I frown. “Lorcan?”
Kieran nods, his jaw tight.
“He’s the one who put Cormac in the hospital.”
“What? Are you sure? He’s your uncle.”
“That didn’t seem to be an issue for him when he almost bludgeoned my brother to death. And that’s only the start of what he’s done. So, until we find him, we can’t afford to be careless.”
I know all too well what it’s like to feel betrayed by someone close to you. I felt it my whole life with my father and almost with Oscar too.
It cuts deeper than you can possibly put into words, and I know there is nothing I could say to Kieran to make up for what Lorcan has done. So, I simply reach for his hand, squeezing it hard.
“I understand. I’ll go along with whatever you think is necessary.”
He exhales as relief floods his face. “Good, because I can’t lose you again, Riley.”
“You won’t.” I reach up on my tiptoes and press a soft kiss to his lips. “In fact, I’m never going to leave your side to the point where you’re going to get sick of me.”
Kieran smiles against my lips as he wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me flush against him.
“I could never get sick of you, little dove. You are my everything.”