“…I hope you can’t hear my stomach growling. I completely skipped breakfast. I know, I know, you’re probably scolding me as we speak…” She laughed, and so did I, because she knew me so well. My job as her wife was to look after not only our children but their mother. If she skipped any meals, I got on her ass about it.
“…just so much to do. I might be late tonight. Please don’t be too mad. I love you. Kiss the babies for me. Bye, love.”
An idea came to me then.
Fully dressed now, my hair still damp, I returned to the kitchen, to the mess my children had made of their meal. There were clumps of oatmeal everywhere — all over them, all over their chairs, all around the chairs. Some even managed to get over to the refrigerator several feet away. That must have taken skill.
“Did any of it get into your mouths?” I asked, shaking my head and sighing at the cleaning I would have to do. “I think you’ve both had enough of that now.” I went to take their bowls away but was met with loud whines of protest.
“No!”
I laughed, though I really shouldn’t have. It was impossible trying to teach them discipline when I couldn’t keep a straight face. Everything they did fascinated me. I adored them, even when they were little terrors.
“We’re going to see Mama, how does that sound?” I said, offering them a compromise.
The crying ceased instantly.
“I wanna see Mama,” Skye said, and Gabriel parroted her sentiments.
I laughed again. “Then let’s go see Mama.”
*****
The underground parking lot of the Ankh Building was more spacious than the ones at my old buildings, both the Pharaoh and Sekhmet. This was where the company bigwigs were based. It was easy to get lost. Luckily, I’d been here a couple of times before, since Naomi got a promotion and moved buildings, so navigating around wasn’t a problem.
What was a problem was stopping the twins from trying to run off and “explore”. Getting one to stay still while I took the other out of the car seat was pure hell.
“Skye, you can’t go over there, honey, it’s dangerous. A car might come,” I said, as she tried to tug out of my grasp. At this age they didn’t yet know what real danger was, so my warnings fell on deaf ears.
Gabriel, who was holding my left hand, seemed subdued, a rare thing for him. He was usually the one trying to explore. Maybe he was so excited to see his mama that a dark parking lot held little interest for him.
With one of the twins’ backpacks slung over my shoulder (when you become a mother, fancy purses become an impracticality), I eventually managed to lead the kids to the exit, remarkably without any major incidents or tantrums. We rode the elevator to the lobby on the first floor.
One of the receptionists recognized me immediately and smiled warmly as the twins dragged me over.
Holy crap! The dad!? THE DAD SHOWED UP!? Oh dear me, here comes some dramaaa…
Damn Heidi, this was AWESOME. Was totally grinning ear to ear the whole way through. THIS fic is totally what I yearned for after the epilogue. Been wanting the happy ending extended so badly. Finally seeing the aftermath of their life together has my heart doing all kinds of happy flip-flops. Thanks for the feels!
Also, it’s nice to read some well-written, grammatically correct, ultimately flawless fan fiction! So thanks for that added gift. You must have one hell of a beta team. Very well done, you. Can’t wait for the next chapter. —oh, I personally prefer chapters as their finished opposed to waiting for the whole story. More frequent updates, plus more time to reflect and appreciate what you’ve already written. But that’s just me.
Brilliant piece once again, Heidi! Thank you VERY much. Please never stop writing 😀
Haha! Yeah, bit of a cliffhanger there.
Glad you liked the chapter. The family dynamic was something I also couldn’t wait to explore. But you know it wouldn’t be one of my stories if it wasn’t filled with drama 😉
I’ve said this and I say it again you are one of my favorites hands down. Thank you so much for this series continuation. I can’t wait to see what happens next, now that the abusive dad has showed up.
Aww, thanks for the kind words. Glad you liked it.
Why would Dove bring their dad unannounced?! Is he being threatened? What about when Naomi and the twins come back? 😳 Just, wow!
Great work with this chapter! I loved seeing the marital bliss, Dakota navigating being a mom, and battling those nagging fears/struggles with self-worth. The scene at Naomi’s office – so beautiful ♥️
I prefer you to release the chapters as they’re ready. Thank you for this fantastic chapter!
Glad you liked it! And I’m sure Dove has his reasons 😉
Yeah, I really enjoyed writing the scenes with Dakota and the kids. I’m a sucker for that sort of thing, lol.
The consensus seems to be that people want the chapters posted as and when they’re ready, so that’s what it’ll be.
I’m completely intrigued and caught up now. I want..no..need to know what are the dynamics between Dak and her father. Please keep them coming. I can hardly wait!
Haha, me too! His arrival will NOT go down well, that’s all I’ll say. I’m sworn to secrecy 🙂
OMG! I just finished reading this book and it was one of my favorites of yours outside of “Her Lesson to Love” and “A Scarlet Kiss.” I was wondering about the characters Naomi and Dakota and how they fared. I was so happy to stumble upon this. It was nice to see that their love made it and they each saw happiness in their lives. Dakota especially was deserving of a good family, to give her anything less would rob her of what she truly deserved in life. Although my allegiance is to Naomi as my favorite of the two. Everyone needs a Naomi in their lives to love them. I can’t wait to read the other chapters. I hope this trend of yours continues with your other works.