“Oh god. We’re having the babies!” he shouted. Thankfully, everyone was already leaving except the B&B staff. “What do I need to do?”
I took slow breaths in and out. “I need you to grab my packed bag. I’ll be in the car.”
I made my way over to the car, glancing in the back, thanking god we already installed the child seats. Having twins meant having two of everything. And I had tons of matching outfits because I was gonna be that mom. My contractions were coming quicker together. Levi rushed to the car, throwing my bag in the back.
“Alright. We’re all set. Let’s go meet these babies.”
My breaths were becoming quicker as I tried to breathe in and out like I was taught in lamaze class. Levi pulled up to the door and walked me in, explaining his wife was going into labor. I was so scared. What if something went wrong? The pain was becoming stronger. Thankfully, the nurses took me back while Levi went and parked the car.
After changing into a hospital gown, the nurse helped me settle in my hospital bed. The doctor came in to check me often until I was ready for the epidural.
***
Fourteen hours later, Levi and I were holding our healthy baby boys. It was so magical seeing them and holding them and staring at them. Tanner Gage Bateman was born at five pounds and six ounces. Liam Anthony Bateman was born at five pounds and eight ounces. I couldn’t wait to see what their personalities would be like. After feeding them and redressing them, Levi and I put them down for a nap. Thankfully, the boys got to stay in my room and Levi was able to help me. I was still trying to get a handle on breastfeeding, and handling both at the same time was challenging.
Even when we put them down, I couldn’t stop smiling and staring at them. “You did good, Mama,” Levi said.
We were so ecstatic. And suddenly I knew nothing else mattered but my little family of four.
I pushed a strand of hair out of my face. “I’m sure I look like hell.”
“You look gorgeous.” He bent down to kiss me on the lips and then on my forehead.
The first person to come visit was Levi’s mom Becca. She cooed at how cute the boys were, and she loved their names.
“Well, I have some news,” she said, clasping her hands together.
“What is it, Mom?” Levi asked.
“James and I found a house about ten minutes from you.”
“Oh my gosh. That is so exciting,” I told her.
“I want to be around to help with the grandbabies as much as possible.”
“I’m so happy, Mom.” Levi hugged her, and I could tell he was truly happy she was moving closer to us.
Becca looked at me. “Anything you need, I’m here to help. Date nights, wedding planning, honeymoon, anything.”
“Are you trying to plan our wedding, Mom?”
“No. I mean, I wouldn’t mind helping with it, if you wanted.”
I smiled wide. “I’d be happy for any help and ideas. We should do some planning, but I don’t want to walk down the aisle until the boys are at least six months to a year old.”
“That gives us… I mean, you plenty of time to plan things.”
Levi and I smiled.
“Speaking of marriages, when are you and James getting hitched?”
“We were talking about making a weekend of it and going to Vegas.”
If only she knew the story Levi and I had about Vegas.
“That’s a great idea.”
“We don’t have a date set yet. We would like you both there as our witnesses.”
“We’d love to,” I answered.
Her attention turned back to the boys. “I got them some outfits but I didn’t want to lug them here and then you have to lug them home. We’ll drop them off later in the week.”
“Thank you. I appreciate everything.”
“I’m so excited to be a grandma.”
We were so excited to be parents.
We bid Becca goodbye when she announced she had to leave. Aubrey and Chance showed up that evening and had enough time for a quick visit. After that, we skyped with my brothers, who were now proud uncles. Tanner and Liam were lucky to have this family.
Once everyone was gone, I fed the boys before getting what sleep I could. Levi’s phone rang and he looked bewildered when he saw the name and number. “It’s my brother,” he said.
“Answer it.”
I had yet to meet his brother, and as far as I knew, he hadn’t heard from him in a long time.
“Hey, Alexander.”
I could only hear Levi’s side of the conversation and they were talking civilized. “Yeah, we would like that.” Levi said.
When the call ended, I wanted to know what was said. But I didn’t want to pry too much in case I was misreading the situation.
“My brother wants to come to the house and see his nephews. Said he’s been clean for over a year now.”
“Do you believe he’s been clean?”
“He sounded different. Like my brother. I’m willing to at least give him one more chance. But I don’t know if I’m ready for him to be around our boys yet.”
“I get that. And it’s up to you. I’d love to meet him. Maybe we can meet him somewhere for lunch and you can gauge how he seems.”
“That’s a good idea. It would be nice to see him,” I suggested.
“Everything is turning out the way it’s supposed to. I’m happy he called you.”
“My mom mentioned it a few times to me,
