And they loved his wife down to their souls and made herhappy.
“Nothin’, darlin’,” she murmured, turning toward the stairs.“I’mthinkin’ tonight’s a facial night.”
He caught her as she would pass him and pulled her in hisarms.
She looked up into his eyes.
“Tell me what’s troubling you.”
“Nothin’ is, sugar.”
“Then what’s on your mind?”
“Ally’s pregnant.”
His chin jerked into his neck.“Christ.Those people breedlike rabbits.How many is this?”
“Lee and Indy, two.Eddie and Jet, three.Hank and Roxie,two.Vance and Jules, three.Ava and Luke, two.Stella and Mace, one.Sadie andHector, two.Ren and Ally, this will be two.Which makes almost seventeen.”
Marcus had gone still.
She had them counted out.
Seventeen for her girls.
None for Daisy.
Marcus and his wife had everything.
But they couldn’t have kids.
They’d tried.
But according to the doctors, and after two failed tries atin vitro, they’d been told it most likely just wasn’t going to happen.
“Baby,” he whispered.
“I’m fine,” she lied.
He held her closer and dipped his face to hers.
“I’ll say it again, and I really want you to think on itthis time.We can adopt.Now, especially, we can adopt.”
He’d taken all of his concerns legitimate and gone intobusiness with Vito Zano’s nephew, Daisy’s friend Ally’s husband, Ren Zano.There was nothing preventing them from adopting.Not their ages.Not money.Nothis business.Not now.
She nodded.“I’ll think on it, Marcus.”Her eyes focused onhis.“I’m real happy for her, sugar.Just—”
“I know,” he said quietly, and fuck him, but he did know,and he hated knowing it.He bent to give her a soft kiss.“Go do your facial,darling.I’ll bring some champagne up.”
She gave him a distracted smile.
He let her go and watched her walk up the stairs.
Maybe he shouldn’t have pushed it, seeing her before theirwedding in her gown.Maybe he’d given them bad luck.
Or maybe there was a god, theirs, who wanted them toremember not to take anything for granted.
But he suspected there was a god, his, who wanted to use themost important thing in his life to remind him, to have the life he’d been ableto give her, there was penance to be paid.
