“Give me that baby.”
“Grandma, you just got here. Don't you want to sit down first?”
“I've been sitting for three days. I want to hold my great-grandson.”
Beth transferred Alexander carefully into her grandmother's arms. Grandma Sarah adjusted her hold with the ease of someone who had done this hundreds of times, which she essentially had. Three children of her own, several grandchildren, and now great-grandchildren. A lifetime of rocking and soothing and loving.
“Alexander Thomas,” Grandma Sarah said softly, studying the baby's face. “Strong name. Good name.” She looked up at Beth. “And his sister? Charlotte Victoria, your mother said?”
Beth nodded. “Charlotte after Gabriel's grandmother. Victoria after his mother.”
Something shifted in Grandma Sarah's expression. “Victoria?”
“Yes. Gabriel's mother passed away when he was young. He wanted to honor her.”
“Victoria was my mother's name.”
The room went quiet. Maggie watched her mother's face, saw the emotions flickering across it, surprise, recognition, something deeper that looked almost like grief.
“I know that, Grandma,” Beth said softly. “We wanted to honor both sides of the family.”
“I guess I didn't realize you knew that. Why would you? My mother died before any of you were born.” Grandma Sarah looked down at Alexander, but Maggie could tell she wasn't really seeing him. She was seeing something else, someone else. “Victoria Rose McKinnon. She was a firecracker, my mother. Raised a family during the Depression, outlived her husband, and still managed to laugh every single day.”
“She sounds amazing,” Lauren said.
“She was. I was the baby of the family. She would have loved this.” Grandma Sarah's voice wavered slightly, and Maggie saw what she rarely saw on her mother's face: tears. Not dramatic tears, not performative emotion, but the real thing. The kind that came from somewhere deep. “All these babies. All this family. Shealways said the best thing about getting old was watching the family grow.”
Beth reached out and touched her grandmother's arm. “I'm glad Charlotte will carry something of her.”
“Two Victorias now.” Grandma Sarah wiped her eyes with her free hand, careful not to jostle Alexander. “My mother and Gabriel's. That little girl is going to have a lot to live up to.”
“She already started the night she was born,” Beth said. “She came out screaming and hasn't really stopped since. Charlotte has opinions.”
“Good. Women should have opinions.” Grandma Sarah looked up at Maggie. “Don't just stand there. Go get me the other one. I want to see this Charlotte Victoria for myself.”
“I can get her,” Emily offered. “I know which floorboards creak. I can avoid waking her if she's still asleep.”
“That would be helpful,” Beth said. “Thank you, Emily.”
Emily disappeared up the stairs with her characteristic quiet efficiency. Maggie watched her go, marveling at how seamlessly she had become part of this household. It had only been a few days, but already Emily moved through the farmhouse like she belonged there.
“She's something, that one,” Grandma Sarah observed, following Maggie's gaze. “Different, but something.”
“She's exactly what this family needed,” Beth said. “Even if we didn't know it.”
A few minutes later, Emily descended the stairs with Charlotte cradled carefully in her arms. The baby was awake, her dark eyes blinking at the world, taking everything in.
“She was already awake,” Emily reported. “She was looking at the mobile. I think she likes the way the light catches the reflective pieces.”
“You made that mobile, didn't you?” Lauren asked.
“Yes. I read that infants respond to high-contrast patterns and movement. The design is based on research into early visualdevelopment.” Emily paused. “I also thought it was pretty. Beth said babies should have pretty things to look at.”
“It's beautiful,” Sarah said. “And thoughtful.”
Emily transferred Charlotte to Grandma Sarah's waiting arm, the exchange accomplished with careful precision. Now Grandma Sarah held both twins, one in each arm, her face a mixture of pride and wonder.
“There you are,” she whispered to Charlotte. “Charlotte Victoria. I've been waiting to meet you.”
