“I heard Uncle Harry was needed?” Harry grins, sliding in beside Jack.
“Yes, we’re just talking about your lack of attention span,” Jack deadpans.
Harry ignores his jab and reaches for his niece. “Come to Uncle Harry.”
Jack passes her, as if she were made of glass, to him, and baby girl settles on his chest and begins to fuss.
“Hey, no crying,” he soothes, rubbing small circles on her back.
“Here, you are doing it wrong,” Brad states, trying to take my baby from Harry.
“Excuse me, I am her uncle. I know what I’m doing,” Harry says firmly, but baby girl wails, and my instinct is to take her.
Brad gestures for Harry to pass her to him, and Harry reluctantly places her in Brad’s waiting arms.
“She has wind. My nephew used to get it really badly. You want to put her up here.” He places her over his shoulder and stands up and begins to sway. His large tattooed hand covers her entire back, and he rubs three firm circles and then pats her, repeating the movements until a burp that sounds far too loud to be coming from someone so tiny leaves my baby’s lips.
“There you go, that’s better,” Brad coos.
“Ugh, I want one.” Gabby appears beside Brad.
His eyebrow quirks up. “Yeah?”
She nods enthusiastically. He whispers something in her ear that has her giggling, and Harry covers baby girl’s ears.
“Hey, no sexy talk around my niece,” he scolds.
“Come on, Uncle Brad is going to take you for a walk around the apartment and tell you about the time your daddy locked us out of our wagon, and we had to walk thirty miles…” Brad’s words drift off as he walks away with my daughter, and thick emotions creep up my throat. I love that they are telling her about Noah, but it only makes me miss him more. He should be here.
Harry gives me a look, that look that’s shared between twins, where we can tell what the other is thinking without saying a word. I give a nod and a meek smile to let him know I’m okay as he heads toward the kitchen.
They have all rallied around me, supporting me and loving on us both. My parents are due today. It was the earliest flight they could get after baby girl’s unexpected early arrival.
Ria comes up beside me and places a gentle hand on my shoulder. “How are you doing, babe? If this is all too much, you just say.”
I shake my head. “No, it’s fine, this is what I need.”
Being surrounded by them all helps fill the gap that Noah left, just a little. I turn to face Ria and take in a deep breath, feelingmy emotions creeping in before I’ve had the chance to say what I want to say. Blame the hormones.
“I, um, haven’t had the chance to thank you properly for what you did. You girls got me through her birth and I don’t know what I would have done if I didn’t have you there.”
Ria’s eyes well with tears.
“Next to giving birth to my own girls, helping you bring my niece into this world was the most amazing day of my life. I’m just sorry my brother wasn't there with you.”
Emotion clogs my throat, and I fight to get the words out without crying. “I had the next best thing,” I say softly, and she begins fanning her face with her hands.
“God, my mascara must be halfway down my face.”
I giggle and swipe a tear that’s rolled down my cheek and throw my arms around her.
“Okay, food’s ready,” Ria calls, stepping out of the hug and heading to the kitchen area.
The girls have been making lunch in the kitchen, preparing various dishes in anticipation of my parents’ arrival. The scent of cherry pie fills the air, and my stomach rumbles. I can’t remember when I last ate today. I haven’t had much of an appetite, but Ria keeps reminding me, if I want to keep my milk supply up, I need to keep hydrated and feed myself. The apartment is full of people, children, food, love, and support. It’s just missing the one thing I crave the most.
Noah.
Come home to us, please.
