“Mommy loves you both,” Emma said as she kissed their cheeks. Mia hugged her around her neck and kissed her cheek.
“Mia loves mommy too.”
Max hugged her too and he did not want to let go.
“Do you want me to stay till you fall asleep?” Emma asked. He nodded and let go. “Okay, I will.”
The twins shared the same room and had their own corners with their own beds and belongings. Between the beds was a large rainbow colored beanbag and Emma settled onto it and watched her babies fall asleep.
It was about an hour later that she found herself stepping out of the room. She switched off the light and the glow-in-the-dark stars that were scattered across the ceiling and the walls shone bright. As usual, she left the door open and crossed the hall to her grandfather’s. Her room was next to the twins.
As soon as she entered his room, Maxwell pulled the covers up and pretended to be asleep. Emma poked him as she settled on the bed. He emerged and smiled sheepishly.
“What is with you and big parties, Gramps? When the kids were one, you got two bouncy castles for a party they would never remember. Last year, you rented a kiddies’ party bus. A couple of months ago for their third, wasn’t it some world-class magician? I am afraid to ask what you are planning for a birthday that is almost a year away.”
Maxwell shrugged and he winked, “I am not alone this time. The twins are planning with me.”
“Of course they are.” Emma sighed. “How are you doing, Gramps?”
“I’m fine, my dear. I should be asking you that, you look exhausted and your hand has ran through your hair three times in the last five minutes.”
Emma smiled as she said, “I’m fine, Gramps. I’ve just been busy with the expansion plans and the opening preparations but I'm good.”
“Did you even eat lunch?”
“Can’t recall,” Emma shrugged. In a bid to change the subject, she said, “You should get some rest, Gramps.”
“Hmmph, fine. I'll let it slide this time because I can see how tired you are.”
“Thanks, Gramps. And oh, Maria went to the hospital, right?”
“Oh yes, she’ll be back by the morning.”
“She must be so stressed out. She divides her time between the hospital caring for her mom and here. I'll call her and tell her to come in at noon tomorrow. I'll handle breakfast and the kids.”
“Are you sure? I can help...” he started saying.
“Nonsense. Sleep, Gramps. You need it more than me.”
He grunted but said nothing else. Emma hugged him and headed out the room, shutting the door behind her. She checked on the kids before heading to her room. She was worried about Maria. Her mother had been in a home for the past five years but she had gotten really ill last week and had been transferred to the hospital. She knew Maria feared she would give up and she tried to do her best to reassure the woman but Maria could not help being scared and she understood Maria’s worries. What would she do if Gramps became that sick? She got worried whenever he had to go for his regular checkups, there was always the thought that the doctor might find something really wrongwith him. If she got that worried over a simple checkup, she could not imagine how she would feel if it was something else.
Emma shook her head and hurried into the shower stall. The bath tub in the center of the large bathroom looked inviting but Emma did not have the strength to run a bath. And there was also the hunger pangs, reminding her of the lack of food in her gut.
She stepped out of the shower, pulled her damp hair up into a messy bun and slipped on comfy sweatpants and an old tank top.
Emma smiled when she saw the covered dish in the fridge. No matter what, Maria never stopped caring for her. She popped the dish into the microwave and as she waited, she dialed Maria.
“Hi, my dear.”
“HI, Maria, how are you? Thanks for handling everything here.”
“No problem, child.”
“How is she?” Emma asked softly.
“Better than last night. The doctor says all we can do is watch and see...”
“Don’t worry, Maria, she’ll be fine. Are you alone? I can come over if you like and-”
