“Oh, baby,” he whispers, trying to soothe me as he pulls me closer. Then, the sweet asshole chuckles. “I know that. Hell,shealready knows that. You are such a good mom, Ashia.” He runs his fingers through my hair, tilting my head back so I can look up at him. “You’re the best mom our little girl could have, and I know when we meet her in a few weeks, all of the bad feelings will be worth it.” He peppers my face with kisses, wiping tears away that I didn’t even know fell, before pressing against my lips softly. “Come on. Let’s grab this and go home, okay?”
I nod gently and let him lead me inside. As we walk through the security entrance, Chris waves at me from the window and grins excitedly. We wave back, but I can't help but imagine Ezra there instead. That’s where he sat on my first day here, and it hurts to remember that he'll never sit there again. So much has changed in the past few months, but that's a pain that’ll last a long time. As if Damien can read my mind, he wraps his arm around my shoulder and pulls me close for comfort as we walk through.
The halls seem relatively quiet today, and barely anyone is walking around. Any other time, this would’ve been concerning. I would’ve thought the guys were gearing up for some huge battle, but now, it’s comforting knowing that there are no more surprises. It's crazy to believe this is the new normal. No alarms, nerves, or murderous rage. The air is light in here, probably for the first time ever. It’s weird how much I like it.
I walk past the rec-room when Damien grabs my hand, bringing me to a halt. As I turn to face him, a shit-eating grin forms on his lips that makes me instantly suspicious. I have a feeling that my thoughts on ‘no more surprises’ are wrong the moment he opens the door instead of leading me forward. A partof me should’ve known better, really. The blinds in the windows are lowered, and the lack of people in the hallsshould’vebeen my first clue.
“Surprise!” Voices shout from all around us when the lights flip on. My eyes adjust slowly, but I quickly recognizemostlyeveryone in all of their loud, Hartley glory. As I scan the room, I think every woman I’ve ever met is here. That’s an exaggeration, obviously, but it doesn’t seem that far-fetched. Marla, Ser, Jamie, Linette, and every member of the Hartley family are here. Victoria and Elizabeth stand close to Danielle, but Elizabeth is trying her hardest to scurry away and play with the other kids here.
Black, silver, purple, and pink fill the room in a mixture of balloons, banners, drop-down decorations, and table toppers—and almost all of them have bats on them. The large banner in the middle of the room reads ‘we’re going batty for baby Hartley’ in huge, black, gothic lettering, making the dark-yet-cutesy aesthetic clear. There are other tables and signs for food and games, and even the pieces of fruit are cut into spooky shapes like bats and coffins.
“I forced Serena to throw some pink in here,” Damien chuckles and wraps his arms around me from behind, immediately cradling my stomach like he loves to do.
How is it I still don’t know how to accept the things he does for me? I’m overcome by an intense mix of emotions every time he surprises me. I wish I was better at it. The happiness and adoration is there, completely overwhelming, yet that awkwardness of having everyone’s attention still lingers. I grew up thinking that when someone did nice things for me, I had to repay them somehow. With Damien, that’s never been the case. He does these things for me because hewantsto—because it makes him happy. His only real mission in life is to make me feel every ounce of love he can give, and he doesn’t expect anythingin return. Iknowthat, but I suppose my brain still has some catching up to do.
“You need to stop with the surprise parties,” I whisper to him, unable to fight the teary smile creasing my eyes.
“One of these days, little wolf, you’re just going to have to accept my dramatic shows of affection.”
I laugh as he leads me further into the room, once again getting swarmed by our incredible life. Everyone who means something to us is here, and if they’re not, I can feel them in spirit. Even as Alex, Carter, Zeke, and a few of the other guys huddle into the back corner, I can’t help but become overwhelmed with love.
Men don’t come to baby showers…but our guys do. I remember Damien telling me about their ‘ritual’ when one of their own has a baby, and I can’t believe I haven’t really thought of it before now. It’s crazy to think about how everyone just stands around drinking, waiting for the good news and a simple photo. Normal people don’t do that.
Thank God none of us are normal, because I can’t imagine belonging anywhere else.
Serena and Dani run up to me and take my hands from Damien, which he shockingly doesn’t argue with. They laugh and squeal as they lead me over to what looks like a throne, but it’s all black and covered in pink confetti. My husband plops down in the one next to me once I’m seated, grinning wide like he’s the proudest he’s ever been.
“Okay, everyone!” Serena shouts, holding pens and a bag of black ribbon in her hands. “Go ahead and get your snacks, then sit down so we can play our first game!” Everyone moves to the snack table, when Ser snaps back to look at Damien. “You can’t play this game.”
His jaw drops.
“Why the fuck not?”
“Because we’re guessing how big her belly is, and you know by heart, I’m sure. You can’t win your own games!” She bobs her head and starts to walk away.
“Oh, hell no. Serena!” Damien jumps up but turns to me before storming after her. “I’ll get you some fruit, baby. Stay right there.” He points at me playfully, but then marches after my best friend like he’ll lock her in one of the torture rooms downstairs if she doesn’t let him participate.
Everyone is standing around, mingling and not acting like they’re all from different families. The Hartleys are all extremely warm, welcoming people, and now that they’re paired with the Andersons, it’s even worse. Marla is talking to Damien’s nana and Leanne, shaking hands and hugging all of Damien’s cousins like she’s suddenly adopted them. Everyone’s kids are running around, playing and having a great time. Elizabeth is playing with Henry and Marrisa’s daughter in the corner, not really talking from what I can gather, but there’s a smile on both of their faces, warming my heart.
Then Zeke steps in front of me, blocking my view and sending a cold chill through my body. We haven’t really talked since he blew up in the hallway a couple of weeks ago. It’s not that we’re avoiding one another, but we haven’t had much to say, either. He shoves his hands in his jeans pockets and looks down at me with foggy eyes, like he feels just as weird as I do right now.
“Hey…” he says softly.
“Hi…”
“Can I sit?” He gestures to Damien’s seat with a nod of his head.
“Of course.” He sits next to me without another word, hunched in the throne like the awkwardness is filling the entire space—because it is. His eyes dart around the room like he’s trying to come up with what to say.
“It’s cute,” he mumbles, then looks down again. “They did a good job.”
“Yeah, they did.” I focus on my brother’s face, trying like hell to come up with something to say. He just shrugs softly.
“I personally suggested a ‘pick your poison’ sign for the snacks, but Serena hit me.”
Pick your poison.
After I was poisoned.
