have to momentarily disconnect them from the monitors.” At her panicked expression, Carla hastily reassured her. “Don’t worry, we do that from time to time anyway, like to give them a bath. It’s not a big deal for a few minutes.”
“I’ll bring the group over to the window,” Denise said as she turned to leave the nursery.
Carla disconnected the twins from their monitors so that Alyssa and Jadon could hold the babies up in the window for Seth, Kylie and Ben to see.
“Wow, they’re so tiny!” she heard Ben exclaim.
“Very tiny,” Kylie agreed with a wide grin. “They’re beautiful, Alyssa,” she called through the glass.
“Thanks.” She and Jadon only stayed for a minute, before turning back so that Carla could reconnect the babies to their monitors. Then they tucked the girls back into their isolettes and headed out to visit with Seth and Kylie.
“Hey, congrats to both of you,” Seth said when they met up in the hall. He held out a hand to Jadon, who looked somewhat bemused as he accepted the handshake. Seth then turned to give Alyssa a hug. “You didn’t call us,” he complained in a light, teasing tone. “I had to hear the news from the ED staff.”
“Yeah, and I thought I was supposed to be your birthing coach?” Kylie added, giving both Alyssa and Jadon a hug. “Looks like you did fine without me.”
“I’m sorry, Kylie,” Alyssa said. “Everything happened so fast.”
Kylie rolled her eyes. “I’m only kidding, it’s not a big deal. I’m just glad they’re both doing all right.”
“How come I can’t hold the babies?” Ben wanted to know.
Alyssa reached down to give him a hug. “They’re too little yet. We need to restrict visitors until the babies grow bigger and get stronger.”
Ben looked disappointed.
“Ben, don’t forget to give Alyssa the card you made for her,” Kylie reminded him.
“Oh, yeah.” He looked down at the rather crumpled piece of paper that he’d been clutching in his hand as if he’d forgotten all about it. “Here.” He thrust it at Alyssa.
“Thank you, Ben. It’s beautiful.” He’d written a crooked “Congratulations, Alyssa” on the front with what she assumed were two babies in cribs and not tiny people in jail drawn on the bottom of the page. Inside the card he’d painstakingly penned a short message that she read out loud. “‘Thanks for saving my life. I love you, Ben.’”
For a moment the words swam in her vision as her eyes misted. She drew him close for another hug. “This is my favorite card in the whole world, Ben. Thanks so much.”
“Welcome,” he muttered, giving her a tight hug and then breaking away, his attention already moving to the next thing. “Can we get something out of the vending machine, Mom?”
Seth and Kylie exchanged a questioning glance and when Kylie nodded, Seth dug several quarters out of his pocket. “Sure, here you go, sport.”
“Cool!” Ben dashed off.
“Jadon, I picked up your Saturday-night shift for you,” Seth informed him.
“Thanks.” Jadon looked pleasantly surprised. “I appreciate it.”
“No problem.” Seth shrugged it off but Alyssa knew the gesture was a peace offering. She and Kylie exchanged knowing grins.
Shortly after Ben returned, Kylie and Seth prepared to leave. After they left, promising to return for another visit soon, Jadon stood, too. “I’d better let you get some rest.”
She masked her disappointment, knowing there was no reason for Jadon to stay overnight. She was fine. Gracie and Gretchen were fine. He deserved a good night’s sleep, which he wouldn’t get sleeping on a recliner in her room.
“All right. Get some sleep,” she told him.
“You, too.” He leaned over and kissed her. For a moment their lips clung and then he deepened the kiss, exploring her mouth in a way that made her breathless when he finally lifted his head.
“See you tomorrow,” he promised in a husky voice.
She relaxed against the pillows, her lips tingling from his kiss, and nodded.
This time she believed him.
“Simon, are you off work yet?” Jadon demanded over his cell phone. It was late, eleven-thirty at night, and he’d been waiting impatiently for Simon’s call. “I need your help.”
“Yes, I just finished, we had another busy night. Why? What’s up?”
“I’m at Alyssa’s apartment. I need your help to move the two cribs, the baby swings, the dressers, and everything else that she has here in her storage bin to my place.”
Simon let out a heavy sigh. “Where in the heck are you going to put all that stuff?” he asked.
“At my house,” Jadon repeated as if he were a tad slow. “I rented the truck again this afternoon so I have most of the stuff loaded in there already, except those two baby dressers because they’re darned heavy.”
“I’ll be right there,” Simon said in a resigned tone.
Jadon knew he’d set an almost impossible task, getting the bedroom totally painted and the furniture all set up as a surprise for Alyssa once she was discharged from the hospital. Yet he also knew he’d get it done, even if he had to stay up all night.
Simon arrived and they carried the two baby dressers down to the truck. Once they arrived at Jadon’s house, he elicited Simon’s help to take apart Alyssa’s bedroom set.
His friend placed his hands on his hips. “But if we take Alyssa’s bed down, where is she going to sleep?” he asked with feigned innocence.
Jadon sent him a narrow glance. “Ha, ha. Very funny. Give me a hand, will you?”
“Okay, but remember it was only a couple of days ago that you asked me to help you put it together in the first place.”
He grimaced. “I know. But we didn’t plan on having the girls seven weeks early either.”
“Listen to you,” Simon said as he took a screwdriver and attacked the bed frame. “You sound like an old married man.”
His words made Jadon’s stomach clench. He still wasn’t sure how he was going to handle things, but somehow he’d make it work. He didn’t really have a choice. “Alyssa’s going to be thrilled to see this,” he said. “I’m painting the walls pink.”
“Pink?” Simon’s gaze was skeptical. “You might reconsider. You’re going to get sick of pink with two girls.”
“Never.” Jadon grinned as he hauled the mattresses out of the room. He was going to store Alyssa’s bedroom set down in the basement for now. Simon had already helped him haul all the baby stuff inside, so maneuvering through the living room with the mattresses wasn’t easy.
He didn’t mind. He already had everything all planned out. Once Alyssa had been discharged from the hospital he’d bring her here to see the nursery he’d made for their daughters and then he’d tell her the truth about his brother.
The answer to his problems was simple. He could keep his dysfunctional family separate from his new one. With this arrangement, he could minimize the stress of Jack’s illness for Alyssa and the girls.
This could work.
The next day Jadon didn’t show up until almost noon,