“Hey, that’s a good one.” Maybe I’ll hit her up to help brainstorm. “So, everyone’s really okay with this?”
“Oh, absolutely.” Callie’s smile wobbles a little. “Well, the circumstances aren’t ideal. We’d obviously prefer it if there weren’t an element of hardship involved, you know?”
“I hear ya.” I guess Hazel shared more than expected. Did she straight-up tell them our twins were conceived through an anger bang in her foyer? “I’m more of a glass-half-full kinda guy. I’d rather focus on the fun part of how babies get made, you know?”
“Oh.” Calliope frowns, lacing her fingers with Parker’s. He’s chatting with Kaleb about fishing, so he’s missing out. “I guess that’s one way to look at it.”
“I think I know what you mean.” Cassidy glances at Jake, then gives me a meaningful look. “Want to hear a secret?”
“Sure.” Sipping my beer, I watch Hazel hurry in with a platter of buns all arranged in a pyramid. Looks like she’s toasted them all to golden perfection. “I can keep a secret.”
“I guess it’s not such a big secret.” Cassidy laughs. “I was being dramatic. I just meant it was kind of a surprise. The pregnancy, I mean. I wasn’t expecting it.”
“Same.” I wonder if Hazel filled them in on how she dropped her bombshell in the boardroom. She’s already dashed back to the kitchen, so I can’t ask. “A nice surprise, I hope?”
“Totally. I can’t wait to experience all the sweet little firsts.” Cassidy’s face starts to glow. “Feeling those first tiny kicks in utero. Buying the baby’s first blanket. Being the very first person on earth who gets to cradle a brand-new human in my arms. What a miracle, right?”
“Yeah, sure.” Maybe a little presumptuous. Seems like it ought to be Hazel’s decision who gets to be first in holding our daughters, but maybe they’ve already discussed it.
“My mom says it’s magical,” Cass continues. “The moment they latch on and start nursing?”
“Um, yeah.” I don’t even know yet if Hazel plans to nurse, let alone how she’d feel about Cass offering…um, whatever the hell this is. “I’m sure it’s a cool feeling.”
Hazel swoops back in with my slaw in a big crystal bowl. She gives me a smile steeped in gratitude as she sets it between Cass and Jake. “I can’t thank you enough, Luke. You really saved the day. Everything looks amazing.”
“Glad to help.” And even gladder everyone seems to be taking our pregnancy news well.
Hazel looks great in a flowy blue top, concealing the swell of her belly. I love knowing it’s there, knowing everyone in this room is so casually cool with the two of us raising twin daughters together.
“Two babies at once,” chirps fourteen-year-old Harper from the opposite side of the table. “This is gonna be great.”
“Right?” I’m glad they all think so. “I mean, I’m obviously not the one giving birth, but I still think it’s awesome.”
“I agree,” Calliope pipes up beside me. “Babies are miracles no matter how they become part of a family.”
Parker picks up the thread of discussion. “Been thinking it might be nice to get a tattoo of the birthdate.”
“That’s a cool idea.” Wait. Does he mean I’d get the tattoo, or is he really this psyched for the new family members?
“How sweet.” Callie cozies closer to her fiancé. “I’ve got a cousin in Anchorage who owns a tattoo studio. I’m sure she’d cut us a deal if we both did it.”
Oooh-kay. Guess I’m not used to being part of such a huge family. But it’s great that they’re all so supportive, right?
As Hazel heads back to the kitchen, I glance over at Lucy. This can’t be easy for her and Peter, given their struggle to conceive. But she aims a warm, sincere smile at our end of the table. “I had way too many people in the delivery room with Harper. That’s something you guys will want to suss out in advance—who’s helping, who’s cutting the cord, who’s staying put in the waiting area so Mom doesn’t get overwhelmed.”
“We plan to be in the delivery room,” Calliope says. “She said it’s okay, and her doctor agreed.”
“Oh.” I’m kinda surprised Hazel’s up for an audience. “Well, the more the merrier, right?”
To be honest, I hadn’t pictured the birth of our daughters as a spectator sport. But hey, it’s up to Hazel. Whatever makes her happy, right?
“I’m not sure I can watch,” Jake grumbles on the other side of his wife. “With my luck, I’d faint and be a pain in the ass for the doctors.”
“Jake—” Lucy warns, chiding her brother for cursing.
But Harper’s already off and rolling. “Swearing makes me want to run through the hospital stealing stuffed animals from kids with cancer.”
“Harper Ann.” Lucy throws down her napkin.
