Gage didn’t hesitate. He shoved the papers and plate to the side, then pulled Fallon into his lap and wrapped around him with arms and legs. Fallon felt safe. He felt brave.
He felt happy.
“It still doesn’t matter, right?” he asked.
Gage kissed him warm and easy on the side of his neck. “The only thing that matters is that you both are here. And that I love you.”
“And that we love you too.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
GAGE
He wassick with worry as Fallon was taken back and put under anesthesia. He had a strong stomach, but he decided not to watch as they cut the love of his life open to bring out the other love of his life. Instead, he sat by Fallon’s sleeping head, watching the monitors that were letting everyone know that Fallon was still alive. Still breathing. Heart still beating.
And he watched his eyelids twitching gently until suddenly he heard it.
A soft cry.
The nurse appeared after what felt like a thousand years with a wrapped bundle covered in all sorts of strange goo and offered the baby out to him.
“It’s a girl.”
Gage blinked at her. She was red in the face from crying, her fists scrunched up by her cheeks, and she had a full head of thick, straight black hair.
Just like him.
He nearly broke then, but he knew he couldn’t let himself fall apart. Pulling Zoa to his chest, he walked with the nurse over to the little cot they had prepared for her so they could get all of her birth numbers—whatever the fuck that meant. They’dskipped birthing class and everything like that because it would have been too hard for Fallon to be around all the pregnant women.
But the only thing that mattered was that she was fine—and she was. She stopped crying shortly after the nurse turned on the light to keep her warm, and her eyes were a little puffy from the drops, but she was still looking at him.
He had no idea how much she could see, but he didn’t really care.
“You can talk to her,” the nurse said. “She’ll recognize your voice.”
He swallowed heavily. “Hey, Zoa. Your dad’s almost done getting stitched up. And I know he can’t wait to meet you.”
She blinked at him, then opened her eyes, and once again, she began to wail.
The last thing Gage wanted to do was leave Zoa, but Fallon was still in recovery, waking up from the anesthesia, so he made his way to the waiting room, where everyone had gathered. They hadn’t seen much of their family in the last weeks before the birth. Fallon was feeling increasingly terrible, and his morning sickness had returned with a vengeance.
Everyone was kind enough to let them have their space, but Gage knew they were foaming at the mouth to know that everything was fine.
Frankie was on his feet first, dislodging Lucas’s grip on him, and Fenton was close at his heels. Gage smiled to let them know that everything was okay, and then he let Frankie tug him into a hug so tight, he nearly lost his breath.
“They’re good,” he murmured into Frankie’s grasp. “They’re perfect. Fallon’s just waking up, and Zoa’s napping in her little cot.”
Frankie pulled back, his chin shaking just a bit. “Yeah. Do you have a picture?”
Gage pulled out his phone and showed him the last one with her cap off, showing off all her dark hair. “Over seven pounds and super long. Good health. Breathing’s great. Took her first bottle like a champ.”
Frankie let out a trembling sigh, then stepped aside as Adele approached, looking like he was going to crawl out of his own skin. Gage didn’t say anything. He couldn’t. If he tried, he was going to fall apart, so instead, he handed the phone out to his dad and held his breath.
Adele stared at it so long, Gage thought maybe he’d broken. Then he lifted his head. His eyes were glossy and very red.
“She’s yours.”
“She was always mine,” Gage whispered.
