CHAPTER 5
Greg
Melissa has been gone for a few hours now, and I’m still struggling to put the twins’ cribs together. You would think that something as simple as a bed for a baby wouldn’t be so complicated, but damn.
Throwing the directions that, of course, are only in German, I jog down to the kitchen to grab a beer. Propping my ass against the counter, I get lost in my thoughts, remembering when Melissa and I found out we were about to have two little ones and not just one.
There are moments in your life when you know that a higher power is at work. That someone is hard at work making sure that all the bad you’ve ever felt in your life is cashed in for something so incredibly perfect it almost doesn’t seem real.
For me, just finding out that Melissa was carrying my child is a moment I will never forget. We had become a family the day we officially adopted Cohen, and even though I love that boy as if he were my own, there’s something to be said about creating a life with the woman you love. Knowing that Cohen is just as excited as we are is just icing on the cake.
Complete. This is what it must feel like to own the whole world.
“Greg? Are you even listening to a thing I’m saying?” Melissa laughs from the passenger seat.
I look over and smile when I see her stomach. I would never tell her this, but I swear she grew again overnight. She started showing early and never really slowed down. At almost four months, I swear she looks further along. Her doctor explained that this was just because she is so small to begin with. Every day, her body changes more, and it’s sexy as hell to watch.
“Greg?” she prompts.
“Sorry. Just thinking.”
“Well, if that goofy grin is anything to go by, it’s nothing about our baby and more about your insatiable hormones.” She laughs and rubs her belly some more.
Reaching over I place my hand right above hers and drum my fingers softly. “Are you excited?” I ask, rubbing her stomach a few times before taking her hand in mine and lacing our fingers together. When she told me that we could find out what we’re having before her twenty-week appointment, I jumped all over that.
“God, yes! I can’t wait to find out if we’re having a boy or a girl. Cohen told me this morning on the way to daycare that he thinks he’s having a sister.”
This has been an ongoing discussion. Cohen and I both think it’s a girl, but Melissa thinks it’s a boy. I couldn’t care less as long as our baby is healthy.
“You still going with the whole ‘there is no way I would be this big if it isn’t a boy’ argument?” Her line of reasoning even sounds ridiculous to me, but hey, I’m not going to argue with her.
She looks over at me with a big smile. “Seriously, look at you, Greg! You’re huge. There is no way this is a girl. I bet you our son comes out with little baby muscles.”
“Baby muscles? Maybe we just have a really healthy baby,” I laugh. “You should just admit that your men know everything now and save you the let-down when the doctor confirms it.”
She smacks me on the arm and laughs. We continue to the doctor’s office in a comfortable silence, holding hands and enjoying the moment.
Pure happiness.
Once we get all checked in and back into the dimly lit room for the ultrasound, I start to get a little nervous. Even though I can tell my girl is pregnant, it still feels so much more real when I look at the monitor and see the life we created. Every one of her appointments has made me feel this way.
The first time I heard our baby’s heartbeat, I thought I was going to turn into a blubbering fool. When we got our first ultrasound picture confirming the pregnancy, I felt like I was having a heart attack. There really is no way to explain the overwhelming love I feel for this baby and Melissa.
“Ah, good morning, Cage family!” Melissa’s doctor comes in and starts asking her all the routine questions before measuring her stomach and pushing it all over the place. I hate this part. Melissa grabs my hand and just smiles up at me, reminding me that the doctor isn’t hurting her.
“Will we be able to determine the gender today, Dr. Nicholson?” Melissa asks softly.
I squeeze her hand out of reflex. We’ve both been looking forward to this since the day she told me she was pregnant, but more importantly, we have a little dude at home anxiously awaiting the news on his new sibling.
“Yes, Melissa dear. Sixteen weeks on the dot, perfect gestational age to take a look and see.” He smiles down at her, his weathered face clearly happy to be a part of this. I swear this man is never in a bad mood. “Are you ready, son? This is a big day for you, too.”
“Yes, sir. We can’t wait.”
He smiles and pats me on the back before getting Melissa ready for her ultrasound.
When he places the wand on her bump and starts spreading the gel around, I look up at his face. I don’t know why I was focusing on him and not the monitor, but I notice immediately when his bushy white brows pull together and his lips purse in thought. I immediately get worried. I know that Melissa senses that something is off because she’s looking at his face too.
“Doc?” I question, not even ashamed of the slight quiver that gives my fear away.
“What? Oh . . . yes, everything is okay. Just wasn’t expecting . . . that.” he says softly. Almost as if he’s questioning himself.
“Doc, I don’t mean any disrespect here, but you’re kind of freaking us out.” Melissa whimpers softly, and I know that she’s barely holding it in. I lean down and lightly kiss her before turning my attention back to Dr. Nicholson.
“I’m sorry, Melissa, Greg . . . I was just making sure . . .” He trails off and turns the monitor towards us before placing the wand back on her stomach. “All right, you see here? This is the first head, and you see here? This is the second. Quite tricky. You have a little hider!” He laughs.
Melissa hasn’t said anything. She’s just looking at the doctor in complete shock.
“What the hell? My baby has two heads!?” I practically scream. Why is everyone so calm? My baby is going to be born with two heads!
My outburst seems to clear Melissa of her fog. Before I can get another word out, she reaches up and smacks the side of my head.
“Seriously, Greg?” She laughs, joining the already laughing doctor.
What the hell is so funny? Aren’t they at all worried about my two-headed baby?
“Oh dear, I’m very sorry. I should have been more clear, Greg. This,” he says, pointing at the monitor again, “is Baby A’s head, and this one is Baby B’s. Congratulations. It appears as if you are having twins, and sneaky ones at that. Hiding this whole time. And . . . Oh yes, very clear. Do you two want to know the genders?” He looks at Melissa first, who I assume nods her head. I’m still stuck back at my two-headed baby.
No, not two heads.
Twins.
“Holy shit. We’re having twins?” I whisper, looking down at Melissa. She’s smiling her beautiful, blinding smile at me. Tears slowly roll down her cheeks. “Beauty, we’re having twins!”
She laughs as I cover her mouth in a passionate kiss. After a few seconds, she pushes me back, reminding me where we are. When I look up at Dr. Nicholson, he’s just smiling at the monitor.
“Please, we would like to know.”
“I figured as much. Quite a shock, but a happy one. And now that they have decided to let us know their little secret, they aren’t being shy at all.” He pulls the wand away and turns to us with a smile. “Congratulations again. Your twin daughters look perfectly healthy.” He continues to talk to Melissa while I stare at the picture in my hand of my babies.
Twins!
I don’t let her hand go once on the way to pick up Cohen. When we pull up at his daycare, I run in with a big smile on my face.
“Daddy!” Before I even have the door to his classroom open completely, his small body is barreling towards me. “Daddy, did you see it? Was I right? Is it a girl? Does it have a wiener? What is Mommy going to do if it has a wiener? She can’t look at them. Did you see it?”
I laugh and pull him up into my arms. “Well, hello to you too, C-Man.”
“Hi, Daddy. Do I have a sister? Is she pretty like Mommy? Do you think she can fight ninjas?” When I don’t answer, his small hands grab my cheeks and pull my face towards his. Nose to nose, smile to smile. God, I love this kid. “Was I right?” he asks with all the seriousness a four-year-old can muster.
“Can’t tell you yet. You know that wouldn’t be fair to Mommy. She wants to see your handsome face when we tell you the news.” I kiss his nose and continue out the door, waving to the teachers on the way.
“I know I’m right, Daddy, but I’ll still be happy for Mommy so she thinks she got a secret.” He snickers a few times before waving at Melissa from across the parking lot.
Cohen continues his questions during the whole fifteen-minute ride home. I think I’ve heard the word wiener more times than I knew possible to fit into one conversation. Melissa just continues to smile at him and holds off his questions.
By the time we pull up at the house, he is bouncing in his seat. The second the car shuts off, he takes off running around the driveway. I help Melissa out, and we make our way inside, Cohen still asking a million questions behind us.
“Cohen, baby, calm down.” Melissa laughs, pulling him closer.
“Can’t!” he screams with a big smile. “I gotta know! Was I right? Am I going to have a sister? I have to know so I can practice. I gotta protect my sister!”
I sit down next to Melissa and pull him into my lap. “All right, buddy. You know how we got to use that special camera today to see inside Mommy’s belly? Well, we found out something else today. The doctor said that there isn’t just one, but two babies in there, and you were right. You are getting a sister, only now you’re getting two sisters.”
“What? How did the other sister get in there? Is she magic? Do I have a magic sister?”
I can feel Melissa’s body shaking with silent laughter, and I know there will be no help from her here. “Uh, well . . . the doctor said she was playing hide and seek.”
Cohen starts smiling and nods his head. “This is good, Daddy. I knew my angels would give me sisters. I asked them.”
Melissa stops laughing and grabs my hand. “What do you mean, baby?” she asks on a whisper.
“I asked Nana, Mommy Fia, and Auntie Grace to give me a sister. I said I wanted a sister more than anything in the world so I can look out for her like Daddy looks out for you.”
“Oh, Cohen. You’re such a special little man.” she says, kissing his cheek.
“I know what I want to name my sisters.” he says, clearly proud of himself for his prediction and making Melissa happy.
“All right, let’s hear it.” I lean back, intertwine my fingers with Melissa’s, and wait. I don’t realize I am holding my breath until his soft voice speaks the names.
“I want my sisters to have my angel’s names. Lillian Sofia for Nana and Mommy Fia, and Lyndsie Grace for Daddy’s mommy and Auntie Grace.”
My breath comes out in a rush, and I can feel Melissa breathing heavily next to me. Cohen just looks at us with his little smile and bright eyes, waiting for the moment when we confirm that he’s allowed to name his sisters.
“Lillian Sofia and Lyndsie Grace? Cohen, I think those are perfect names for your sisters. You’re already such a wonderful big brother.” she whispers.
He gives us a big hug before leaping off my lap and running through the house. We can hear him talking to his ‘angels,’ telling them about his new sisters. I pull Melissa closer, resting my lips against her temple and my hand against her stomach. With all my girls in my arms and a full heart, I enjoy the moment of life coming full circle.
It’s times like this that I remember just how far I’ve come in the last few years. After losing my sister, I questioned my path in life. I questioned every single relationship I had. I wondered if having other people in my life was worth the pain if I was going to lose them. It wasn’t until Melissa and Cohen came into my life, that I realized living in fear is almost the same as slowly dying.
From the day I met her, I knew I would fight every day to be the man worthy of her love.
Hearing my cell ringing from another room, I shake off my daydreams and follow the sound.
I let out a relieved breath when I see Axel’s name across the screen.
“What are you doing?” No sense wasting time. If I don’t have these cribs together when Melissa gets home, there will be hell to pay.
“Well, I was enjoying breakfast in bed, but when your ass wouldn’t stop calling, Izzy made me stop. So, thanks for that, jackass.”
“Ha, yeah . . . sorry about that, but welcome to my world. Just wait until Nate is a master at cockblocking like Cohen. I swear, when that boy is home, he has some sort of sensor that goes off when I’m about to enjoy Melissa.”
“He’s already started. Last night, just sunk into Iz and he’s screaming about turtles. Do you have any idea what a two-year-old screaming about turtles will do to your sex life? Iz started laughing so hard that my dick got the message loud and clear.” He lets out a breath full of frustration, and the smile on my face grows. Yeah, sounds like a normal day in the Cage house.
“As much fun as this little chat is, I need you to come over and help me get these damn cribs together. I hold one end up, but then the second I go to attach something, the damn thing falls on my head. If I want to enjoy my wife tonight, I have to get this shit done.”
“Yeah? Poor guy.” He starts laughing; I’m sure he’s picturing me in a mess of crib parts.
I let a laugh out remembering how the last bang on the head must have looked. “Laugh all you want. The directions are in German, Ax. Luckily I can read the damn things, but it’s been a few years, and my German is rusty at best. It’s a shame Maddox isn’t here. Damn fool would have this shit done by now,” I bait, knowing Axel won’t be able to resist the challenge of being better than Maddox.
“The hell with that. I’m on the way. Be there in ten.”
I laugh, throwing the phone down when I hear him disconnect in my ear.
Maybe if I’m lucky, he’ll do all the hard work and I can sit back and enjoy a beer.