Chapter 13 #2
“That’s right. But he’ll get bigger, and some day you’ll be able to play with him like you play with Tyler and Zoe and Mason and Nathan and Anneka.”
Anton made a delighted squeal at the names of his cousins.
“You two have a play date with Zach and little Anneka this afternoon,” Karen reminded Finn as they made their way to the maternity wing. “Julia and I are headed to Lisa’s to stock her freezer with meals.”
“Zach reminded me this morning,” Finn told her. “We plan to take them riding—which means about three minutes for Anton and a couple times around the arena for Neka.”
“They’ll have a blast.” She smiled at him. “You’re having too much fun with this dad business.”
“Never too much, but yeah. I’m enjoying pretty much every minute.”
They stepped into the room they’d visited the night before and found not only Lisa and Josiah with Silas, but the other couples they’d come to see.
Kelli sat in the recliner; Kyle curled up in her lap. Beside her, Luke held a small bundle wrapped in a bright green blanket.
On the opposite side of the room, Tucker was unfolding a portable playpen while Ginny sat with Demi on her knee, and a bundle of yellow in her arms.
“You’re saving us wandering through the halls to find you,” Karen offered, swooping in on Kelli. “Congrats on making it through.”
“Much better this go-round,” Kelli said after accepting the hug. “Ginny had the worst go of it.”
“The longest,” Ginny admitted. “But after the marathon of walking was over, delivery went well.”
The playpen ready, Tucker took Demi and plopped her into it. “You watch from there, sweetie.”
Demi popped to her feet, bouncing as she hung onto the top rail and looked around the room. Her grin widened. “Anton. Hi, hi, hi.”
“Hi.” Anton waved.
Ginny patted the seat beside her. “Here, Karen. You can have your first official cuddle from David.”
Karen greedily took the baby as Finn slipped in close and knelt so he and Anton could both see better.
David’s face was screwed up as if concentrating.
“Baby.” Anton shot out a hand as if to pet him. Finn leaned back barely in time to keep little uncoordinated fingers from poking David in the eye.
“Gentle hands,” Finn warned.
Anton’s eyes widened and he patted the edge of the baby blanket he could reach with as much control as possible. Which wasn’t much, so Finn stood and went to the other side of the room and stopped in front of Luke and Kelli.
“Congrats to you guys as well. We see you tried to make it simple to remember birthdays by stacking them up on top of each other?”
“Tried,” Kelli said. She pointed at Ginny. “But that one messed it up.”
“Three minutes after midnight. Sorry for being so slow,” Ginny drawled.
“Maybe the clock was wrong,” Tucker offered.
Next to him, Luke rose and took Anton. “Sit. You can have a go at cuddles with Kayla. She’s delighted to meet you.”
A moment later, Finn’s head was full of new-baby scent, his arms cradling a teeny wide-eyed infant who stared up at him as if memorizing his face.
Had Anton once been this small and helpless? Finn could barely remember those days even though he knew they’d happened.
Yet now his son had so much personality, with opinions and so many things that gave Finn delight.
He glanced around the room. Luke had put Anton in the playpen with Demi, and they were busy meowing at each other. Luke had stolen Silas from Lisa and was holding him up next to David. Josiah leaned over the playpen and offered the toddlers toys from the bag stowed by the side wall.
It was a moment of perfection. Not only the time shared with friends, but the way everyone was there for it. Babies passed through hands that cared for more than their own. Smiles and teases and laughter that was real and comfortable.
Finn was still thinking about it later that day when Zach arrived with little Anneka.
His best friend walked in the front door, Anneka tottering at his side. “We’re here, and I’ve got everything ready.” Zach spotted Anton standing by the couch. “Hey buddy. Ready to go see the horses?”
“Hoss!” Anton shouted. He dropped to his knees and crawled at breakneck speed across the room toward Anneka.
“Buddy.” Even as she shouted her name for him, she knew the routine. She dropped to her butt so Anton couldn’t tip her over, so when he reached her, they ended up rolling on the ground like puppies until Finn and Zach detached them.
Zach grinned. “God, I can’t believe we’ve got more of these beasties around. When did we all get so grown-up and mature?”
“Mature?” Finn offered his friend an amused grin. “I saw you doing summersaults on the lawn yesterday.”
“Neka wanted to learn how,” Zach offered, deadpan. “Active learning requires full participation.”
Finn chuckled. “You were grinning harder than she was but go on about it being a learning tool.”
“You got me there.” Zach scooped Anneka up. “Come on, cowgirl. Let’s go see your horse.”
They wandered out to the yard, where two patient geldings waited at the rail, saddled and half asleep in the afternoon sunshine. Zach had chosen the oldest, calmest, and most bombproof horses on the ranch. The animals they gave to nervous beginners and sleepy children.
“Hoss.” Anneka clapped when she spotted them. Neither horse so much as twitched an ear.
“Horse,” Zach corrected automatically.
Finn settled Anton at the front then swung into the saddle. The little guy immediately leaned forward, both hands disappearing into the horse’s mane.
“Easy there,” Finn murmured.
Anton glanced over his shoulder with a grin that showed all his tiny teeth. “Hoss!”
“You bet,” Finn agreed.
Beside them, Zach got into position with Anneka on the saddle ahead of him. She gasped as the gelding shifted his weight, followed by a delighted squeal.
“Again,” she ordered.
Laughter escaped Zach. “We haven’t gone anywhere yet, kiddo.”
They walked in slow circles around the arena, no faster than an easy stroll. Anneka pointed excitedly at every bird, fence post, and butterfly that crossed their path. Anton was quieter, content to pat the horse’s neck every few seconds as if making sure the animal was still there.
After one lap, Finn reined in. “That’s enough for this little cowboy.”
Anton didn’t protest when Finn lifted him down and carried him outside the arena before lowering his feet to the ground. He toddled for two steps before letting gravity win, happily speed crawling toward the sandbox they’d placed nearby for distracting little ones.
Anneka begged for one more round, and Zach took her around again before dismounting and sending her after her cousin.
A butterfly floated past, and the kids immediately focused on it, Anneka running, Anton crawling at top speed. Both of them shrieking in delight as Finn and Zach leaned against the fence and watched.
Finn finally broke the comfortable silence between them. “You know, if you’d told me ten years ago this would be our lives, I’d have said you were crazy.”
Zach glanced at him.
“I figured I’d work hard, maybe find someone.” Finn shook his head. “Never pictured this.”
“The kids?”
“All of it.” Finn gestured to the horse and the yard and the mountains beyond them, then pressed a hand to his chest. “Karen, Anton. You and Julia and Anneka. Cousins growing up together. A day where we spent the morning passing babies around a hospital room and the afternoon teaching these two about horses.”
Anton had found a dandelion. He turned to give it to Anneka, lost his balance, and sat back on the grass. Neka giggled and plopped down beside him.
“Life keeps getting fuller,” Zach agreed.
“It’s a thousand little things.” Finn nodded toward the kids. Anton was drumming his boots on the ground and laughing at the thumping sound. “But I especially like that all our kids can grow up together.”
Zach was silent for a moment before turning a wide grin on him. “You’re a sentimental sap.”
A laugh burst free. “Shut up.”
“Still true.” Zach nodded. “I wouldn’t change a thing either.”
They stood there for bit longer watching the toddlers play under the wide blue Alberta sky.