“She was wrong. She thought we were having a baby sister.” Lexie had, in fact, insisted lately that all new babies were girls.
“She won’t care once she holds him. You’ll see. He’s got your hair color and your blue eyes. He’s going to look just like you.”
“All babies have blue eyes,” he reminded his sweetheart. “And no kid wants to be as ugly as me.”
She shook her head. “No, Alex. Trust me. This boy will grow up to be strong and noble, like you. He’s your son. He’s… he’s beautiful.” She kissed Bradley again and again, her lashes spiked with tears, as she sobbed into his perfectly round head. A head that was probably as hard as his dad’s.
Alex never argued, just closed his eyes at Kelsey’s unrelenting love for him, and let her believe whatever she wanted. That was the one rule of marriage he’d finally learned: Never argue with the woman you love and always trust her intuition. Why not? He’d trusted his gut, why shouldn’t she trust hers? Those two inexplicable gifts might just come from the same place.
He pulled up a chair, content to sit with his wife and son for as long as he could. This was the closest he’d ever get to heaven. Why not bask in the glory?
His trusted senior agent, Mark Houston, would run The TEAM for the next two weeks, maybe longer if Alex decided to extend his family leave. Mark was capable. He and his wife Libby were two good friends. They’d understand.
“Would you like to try to nurse him before we invite the horde in?” McKenna asked, from the other side of Kelsey’s bed.
“They’re still out there?”
“Yes,” Alex confirmed. “They’ve been here all night.”
Kelsey smiled through her tears. “Guess they’ve waited long enough then, huh? Sure, let’s see if this little guy’s hungry after scaring his daddy to death.”
“I wasn’t scared,” Alex declared, but then added, “much.”
He smiled at how easily Kelsey bared her breast and handled this little boy like she knew what she was doing. There was a day not too long ago that she’d been timid and shy, afraid of everything, and so damned modest. Not anymore.
Hungrily, the little guy’s prehensile lips searched, then quickly, he latched onto his mama’s dusky nipple. Alex’s heart swelled with pride. He huffed out a soul cleansing breath, part relief and part job well done. His son knew just what to do with that nipple. Damned straight.
McKenna’s cell phone chirped. Lifting it from the pocket of her scrubs, she glanced at the screen and grinned. “It’s Beau again. He wants to know if they can come in yet?”
Kelsey drew the blanket up, covering herself and Bradley. “Sure. Let everyone in. Bradley might as well get used to his rowdy uncles and aunts.”
“Are you sure?” Alex had to ask. That was his brand-new baby son slurping like a little pig at his wife’s breast underneath that blanket. He wasn’t even an hour old yet. The whole damned world could wait a minute.
But right on cue, sweet Kelsey exclaimed, “Sure. I want to see Beau blush again.”
McKenna chuckled. “Oh, trust me, breastfeeding doesn’t embarrass Beau. But your unmarried agents might feel uncomfortable. Let’s find out.”
Walking briskly to the door, she flung it open, and in they came. Beau led the pack, then Mark Houston and Libby. Gabe Cartwright and Shelby. Maverick Carson and China. Seth McCray and Devereaux. Lee Hart and Tess. Hunter Christian and Meredith. My hell, they were all there. Even Renner Graves and his wife Tara Shanahan, the former Olympic hopeful, had come to welcome Bradley into the fold. Beckam and Camilla Garner, too.
As predicted, Beau gave his wife a quick peck, then headed straight for Kelsey’s bedside. “He’s hungry already? That’s a real good sign.” His dark eyes were bright as he grabbed the only other chair in the room and pulled it alongside Alex, as if it had been reserved for him. “How’s it feel being a dad again, Boss?”
“Good,” Alex offered easily. Damned good. Perfect, actually. So damned good he had to wipe a quick hand over his face again. Beau had changed dramatically over these past two years, first when he’d met McKenna, second when he’d become a father. If Alex changed as much as Beau had, hell, he’d almost be nice.
“Aww,” Ember Dennison cooed, a bulky gift bag in one hand as she came through the door. Here was another hard kick in the gut. She and Rory had suffered miscarriage after miscarriage since they’d married. It was about time they had a baby to show for all their trouble. Yet here she was. Supporting Kelsey and with a gift in her hand, but going home without her own baby in her arms.
She tossed the bag at Alex. “Rory said you’re gonna need this.”
Alex peered into the bag at the child-sized catcher’s mitt, then back into her bright green eyes. She had—that look. Was she pregnant? Again? That would make four miscarriages in three years. She’d always handled life differently than most. Hence the Nebraska Cornhuskers football jersey she wore. But how could she keep trying so hard to get pregnant when it always ended in heartbreak? What was Rory thinking to put her through that?
Come to think of it, that shirt was a little large—
“How’s it going, Ember baby?” Zack Lennox asked brightly as he cleared the door right behind her.
She whirled into his arms. “Today’s the day!”
“You’re finally going to tell everyone?” That cinched it. Zack had the uncanny gift of being able to tell when and if a woman was pregnant.
“Rory and me are having a baby!” she blurted to the room, stamping her feet like a little girl on a sugar-high. “Next month! It’s finally happening! I get to be a mom!”
“Ahem,” Rory cleared his throat. “We… get to be parents. Had
