CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Blake was sitting in the garden with the dogs, just scratching their ears and nodding her head, listening to them as they spoke to one another and to her. She heard the crunching of gravel and then it became louder and more intense.
Standing, she saw people running toward something.
“What’s wrong?” she asked as Stephanie ran by. She stopped, smiling at Blake and holding out her hand.
“Come on! Lennon and Marnie are both in labor.”
“Oh, my gosh,” she laughed.
Both women were in the clinic, both being watched carefully by the medical team. Marnie was having difficulty remembering that she was the patient, not the doctor.
Five baby beds lined the wall, ready for the twins and triplets about to appear to the world. Brooks and Mitchell could only smile at one another. They’d come into the world together and now their children were coming into the world together. It seemed right.
“When did they go into labor?” asked Blake, truly curious. She felt the callused, thick hands of Zane fall on her shoulders as he kissed her neck and smiled.
“During breakfast,” smiled Priscilla. “They didn’t want anyone to know at first. I mean, labor can go a long time. Marnie is a few weeks early but they’re triplets, so that makes sense.”
“Is there any danger?” asked Blake.
“No,” smiled Marissa. “They’re perfectly healthy and we’re used to delivering multiples around here.”
“It’s so exciting,” smiled Blake. “I’ve only been around animals during birth, never any humans.”
No sooner had they filled the waiting rooms than the diner brought in rolling carts of food to keep the faithful happy and full.
“Zane? What happened to Josh?” asked Blake quietly. He stared at her, kissing her forehead.
“Do you really want to know?”
“I do. I know that he’s, well, gone. I just wanted to know. I want to know the truth.” Zane looked over at Saint and CJ who were seated nearby. Both men looked at him and knew he didn’t want to answer the question.
“Blake, sometimes men don’t deserve to live. Even though he was your stepfather, he was one of those men. He was prepared to sell you, literally, for your gift. He beat your mother, he owed more than just Marco Rodriguez and it wasn’t going to stop.”
“I know. I know all of that,” she said patiently.
“He was taken into the bayou with Alvin, and the Komodas. Honestly, it didn’t even require much effort on their part. Josh couldn’t swim,” said CJ.
“What? I don’t think I ever knew that,” she said in obvious shock.
“Thank you for telling me the truth. I just don’t want to think about him still being out there.
I know I’m safe here and I know I’m safe on the island with the animals but sooner or later I’m going to want to leave here, to go shopping or visit another city. ”
“Do you?” asked Zane. “I mean, what city do you want to visit?”
“I don’t know,” she laughed. The others chuckled with her. “I was just thinking about it that’s all.”
“Well, maybe we could go somewhere special for our honeymoon,” said Zane turning a fiery red. Blake stared at him, then turned to CJ and Saint, trying to determine if this was a joke.
“Are you,” she whispered, “are you asking me to marry you?”
“I guess I am,” he laughed. “Although it sure is a shitty way to ask. I don’t have a ring yet but I know that you and I should be together. This could be us having a baby in a year or two. I can see that. I can feel it. Can you?”
Blake was so quiet Zane worried that maybe he’d read too much into their relationship. He’d been warned that love came quickly at Belle Fleur but there was so much conflict around them, he almost lost sight of that.
“Yes,” she nodded. “Yes, I’ll marry you!”
Before they could leap to their feet and cheer, Brooks came through the door wheeling two basinets and two wrapped pink-cheeked bundles.
“Boys. We have two boys,” he grinned. His parents and grandparents gathered around first, staring down at the adorable pink faces. The boys were a healthy weight, long and lean like all the males of their family.
“They’re beautiful, Brooks,” said his mother with a tear in her eyes. “Do we have names yet?”
“Dawson and Davis,” he grinned. “Lennon liked both of those names.”
“I love those names,” grinned Christopher. “Dawson Jordan and Davis Jordan. Good strong names.”
While everyone got a quick look at the babies, Marnie was cursing her husband out in the back.
“You will never touch me again!” she screamed.
“I know, honey,” he said kissing her hand. “I’ll never touch you again.”
“No,” she cried. “You’re not supposed to say that. You know I love it when you touch me.”
“Okay,” he smiled. “I’ll touch you whenever you ask.”
Her deliveries took a bit longer, eventually forcing them to make the decision to do a c-section. It was for her safety, as well as the babies, who turned out to be a bit larger than expected, especially for being early.
Although they couldn’t be wheeled out, Mitchell appeared to tell everyone the good news, with a tear-streaked face, wringing his hands.
“Well?” smiled Christopher.
“Two boys and a girl,” he grinned. “All three are nearly five pounds. We had to do a c-section but she’s good, we’re good.”
“Oh honey,” said Ramey hugging her son. “I’m so happy for you.”
“We named her Hollis. The boys are Harrison and Henri.”
“The three H’s,” smirked Christopher. “Perfect.”
“How are Brooks and Lennon?” he asked.
“They’re good. Two boys, Dawson and Davis,” said Ramey. “Go. Go back to Marnie and give her our love. We’ll come back when they say we can.”
The celebration moved to the cafeteria, to allow the parents and babies some time to acclimate to their new lives. For a few short hours, the focus was on birth, new life, and the future.
In a short while, it would be focused on something vastly different.