Indefinitely. Their mom grew up in an orphanage in Mexico, and their father was raised by a great aunt who is 85 now and not in good health.
Another text came through before he could respond.
They don’t have any other family. That means that my chances of being able to adopt Lucia and Mia are really good.
Debbie finally had a family of her own.
What a tough, but amazing opportunity for you all.
He really was happy for her, but that little inkling in the back of his mind that had been contemplating making Debbie a part of their family freaked out a little bit. It was one thing to consider bringing one person into their family but to bring three more?
Debbie would never expect him to support their family in the way he’d always felt like he needed to, especially with the level of upkeep a house the size of hers would require. But the need to protect and provide for those he loved was so deeply ingrained in him he didn’t know how to let it go.
* * *
Austin wasn’tsure what to expect when he arrived at Debbie’s house Monday evening for dinner, but it wasn’t the mad house that he walked into.
Debbie stood in the middle of a kitchen that looked like a disaster zone, holding a crying toddler on each hip, and Dallas and Cody arguing in front of her. The sink overflowed with dirty dishes, and spilled cereal and sippy cups littered the countertops and floor.
“Is not!” Cody propped his hands on his hips and scowled at his brother.
“It is too your fault,” Dallas said.
Debbie bounced trying to soothe the crying girls she held. “That’s enough boys.” Her normally loose curls were tangled and in disarray, and dark shadows ringed her eyes.
“But I didn’t do it on purpose,” Cody insisted. His little face had turned red, and he looked like he was near tears.
Austin stepped over a few toys as he approached his sons and put a hand on their shoulders. “Calm down, now.”
Cody turned and wrapped his arms around Austin’s waist. “I didn’t mean to hurt her, Daddy.”
“Hurt who, buddy?” He patted Cody’s back.
Was that why the girls were crying? Had he hurt them? If that was the case, there would be some serious consequences.
“Cody was supposed to be helping Lucia down the stairs, but she pulled her hand from his and fell halfway down.” A tremor filled Debbie’s voice as she continued to try to soothe the toddler who held a hand to her forehead. “And then Mia started crying because her sister was upset.”
Austin disengaged himself from Cody and stood in front of Debbie. He studied the two beautiful little girls in her arms. Both had the biggest brown eyes he’d ever seen—even bigger than Noah’s—and soft wavy dark brown hair. He searched for something to help him tell them apart. He finally spotted a pink bow in the hair of the one he suspected was Lucia and a purple bow in the other girl’s hair.
“If Lucia fell and bumped her head…” He gently rubbed the back of her head in a soothing gesture. “Then this must be Mia.” He put a hand on the other girl’s shoulder. “Will you let me hold you while Debbie helps your sister feel better?”
The little girl leaned into Debbie’s shoulder.
“It’s okay, Mia, Austin is my…good friend”
Austin smiled at her hesitation. He liked being her good friend, but he wanted to be so much more than that. His thoughts concerning Debbie often went way beyond friendship.
Finally, Mia held her arms out to him, and he lifted her up.
“Thank you,” Debbie said as tears filled her eyes.
“Hey.” He wrapped his free arm around her. “Are you okay?”
She nodded as she blinked away the tears. “Just tired and feeling overwhelmed, I guess. They’ve been really upset, of course, and didn’t sleep well last night. They’ve cried most of the day, and I have to hold them to soothe them, which means I don’t get anything done.”
“It’s going to be a big adjustment for all of you.” He pressed a quick kiss to her forehead before releasing her. “But I’ve no doubt you can handle this.” He turned and picked up the tongs and stirred the spaghetti noodles that looked like they were about to boil over. “I mean if you can handle Noah, then you can handle these two little cuties.”
“True.” She chuckled as she pulled ice cubes from the freezer and wrapped them in a paper towel. “Even though there are two of them, they aren’t nearly as busy as he was.” She sat on a kitchen chair and helped Lucia hold the ice to her head. “It’s just hard knowing how to comfort them and then to get drinks or food with both of them in my arms… It’s overwhelming.”
