“What?”
“Welcome back, Brother.”
I sat back in the chair and watched as Relay stalked out of the hospital. He wasn’t wrong. I’d been here, but not myself for the last few days. Now that Collin and Devyn were stable, I was coming out of survival mode.
I kept eating, but pulled my own phone from my pocket and called my parents while I finished up. Remembering Relay’s advice, I gave them a couple tasks I could use some help with. I could hear the relief and happiness in their voices as we spoke. They’d probably been just as scared as I had over all this.
“Why don’t you stop by tomorrow?” I asked. “Spend a bit longer meeting your grandson?” I made a mental note to call and speak with Devyn’s dad too. I’d been checking in with Hope each day as she sat with Dev, but I wanted them to both get time with Collin also.
“We’d love that,” Dad replied.
We spoke for a few more minutes, then I told them goodbye and disconnected the call.
Spending time with Collin right now didn’t look like what it did with a lot of families where they all got to hold the new baby. They could only stare at him through the isolette. But no one was complaining about that. As it was, Devyn was the only one who’d held Collin for skin to skin against her chest. And that was fine by me. She’d be the only one to do skin to skin until they were both ready and then I’d hold my son. Everyone else would have to wait until he came home.
Watching Dev and Collin together yesterday, as she held him, had made all the emotions of the last few days get balled up in my chest. It had taken all my will power to hold back tears.
The most amazing part, though, was watching the way all of Collin’s numbers on the monitors had evened out. She’d held him for an hour and for an hour those alarms had stayed completely silent as our baby and Dev had enjoyed their time together. It was like Collin had been waiting for her to hold him. It had been incredible to see.
* * *
“Catch me up,”I told Relay two days later as we sat together in the NICU room.
“Not much to say,” Relay replied. “Our two groups keep taking pot shots at each other, but The Collective is hitting and bolting before we can nail them down.” He paused as a nurse walked past the door. “We’ll find them, though.”
“You going to get in on the fight?” I asked, keeping my voice low. We didn’t need anyone overhearing this conversation.
“Only when Ruck needs me. Otherwise I’m here.”
I frowned over at him. “If you need to go-”
“I don’t.”
My brows shot up. “You start climbing the fucking walls if you don’t get some…action,” I glanced over at the door, then back at him, “often enough.”
He huffed out a laugh. “You talking killing or sex?”
“Sure.”
“No one said I wasn’t getting sex.”
“Uh huh. While you’re living at home with our parents in the middle of suburbia hell?”
“Isaac’s having a rougher time than I am.”
“You going soft, Relay?” I asked with a grin.
“Fuck you.”
“I mean, it sort of seems like you’re…mellowing out,” I teased.
He scowled at me. “It would serve you right if I left your ass here to deal with all the parents alone.”
I shook my head. “No. No. I’m sorry. Don’t do that.”
We both laughed at that. Our, and Dev’s, parents were great, but it was nice having Relay here to balance everything out.
“What’s Ruck’s plan?”
