Page 92 of Double the Redemption

Scarlett gave a soft laugh, drawing Naomi’s attention once again. Scarlett’s eyes were bright with laughter, and her lips stretched wide. “He took it about as well as I expected. He lost his shit.”

A smattering of laughter moved through the group. “So he freaked the hell out, or he went all alpha-protector mode and started laying down the rules until you had to brain him over the head with something?” Karissa asked, with a snicker. She was sitting beside Naomi, her hair finished and styled in loose black curls. She’d gone much darker, but it suited her.

“He stared at me for a good three minutes then lost his shit. He started rambling about needing to finish the house, how he was going to have to start a new college fund, and then he was worried about how the girls might feel. Oh, and then he started on giving orders. How I was going to start being careful, not drive myself, and quit my job. He couldn’t protect me if I was on the other side of town at the library. Oh, and he also started on getting me a new vehicle and researching the best one to have kids in.”

“I really thought he’d pass out or something.” Harlow laughed. She hadn’t joined in on the hair, but she was giving Royal a manicure at another table.

“I thought he might in the first couple of minutes.” Scarlett laughed. “Thank God I convinced the girls to let me talk to him privately. They’d have made it so much worse.”

“How are they handling the news?” Saylor asked. She was on the couch, lips twitching, trying to contain her laughter as she worked away on her computer. Apparently, her work was keeping her plenty busy, but she didn’t want to be left out of the fun.

“They’re really excited. I was worried they’d feel left out or jealous or something, but the most they did was argue over who could come up with the best names. They’re both convinced we’re having a girl.”

“Rogue will really lose his shit then.” Royal snickered.

“I asked him what he wanted, and he said he didn’t care as long as they were healthy. Then I reminded him we could have a girl and she could be exactly like the twins. He might have paled a little bit before he got ahold of himself.”

“Are you going to leave your job?” Naomi asked.

Scarlett shook her head. “He seems to think I will, but I’ve already told him no. I’m perfectly fine to work, and I can spend a good amount of time sitting down.” Her smile turned rueful. “And I’m going to need a spot to go when he drives me out of my mind in the next few months. He already texts me every hour with things I’m supposed to be doing and making sure I’m not overtaxing myself.” On cue, her phone dinged.

A collective chuckle sounded around the room.

“Get used to it. All the men around here are protective as hell,” Royal warned Naomi. “Savage was a nightmare when he found out I was pregnant. And he was doubly worse when he found out it was twins.”

“Fury was alright, but only because I threatened to brain him when he tried.” Esme gave a happy sigh. “Some of the best sex of my life too as he tried to convince me.”

Naomi half listened as they all talked about their experiences with the men during pregnancy, and the nonpregnant ladies shared their views from the outside looking in. Part of her was happy they had easy pregnancies with all the support they needed, but another part of her was insanely jealous of it too.

But something told her that if Ink had been around while she was pregnant with Asher, he’d have been just as bad as the other men around here.

No, no, she wasn’t going there. That was not something she could allow herself to think about. That was putting ideas in her head she wasn’t ready for.

She had to be careful and take it one day at a time. Things could be different a few months down the road, so she had to stay in the moment.

Dreams were not for her. Not when the cartel could show up any day. She had to remember that.

The rest of the day, she forced herself to stay on top of the conversations and not let them get to her. Especially with how good her hair looked. Glitch might be a genius with computers, but she’d missed her calling on hairdressing too.

Now, it was late and she was getting tired, but she had to wait until the garage finished operations for the day so she could go and work on the books. Asher was fast asleep in her arms as she sat on the couch in the common room and watched the twins bicker over their homework.

She bit back a laugh as they tried to work through their math problems, and Wren was not having it. Win, however, seemed to have a good grasp.

“Look, it’s numbers, it’s not that hard,” Win huffed.

“We don’t all have brains wired for numbers, Win,” Wren snapped.

Win rolled her eyes. “This is basic math, Wren. You can do it and have been doing it for years.”

“Not the way they’re teaching it. It’s stupid. Who needs to know the figure of Y when you know X? I’m not going to be doing a math degree in college, that’s for damn sure.”

“You still have core courses. And you haven’t decided on your major yet, which means you might have to take math, and I might be too busy with my stuff to help you.” Wren’s expression tightened and Win winced. “Wren⁠—”

“No, it’s fine. You’ve made it clear that you’re planning on walking away when you’re in school and doing your own thing.” Wren got to her feet and stormed out, leaving Win, shoulders slumped and eyes full of guilt.

No one else seemed to be around or paying attention, and Naomi’s heart went out to the girl. She eased Asher onto the couch and wrapped a blanket around him. He was out cold, worn out from all the excitement today.

She took the seat Wren left, and Win’s eyes widened. “It’s hard when your identities are so wrapped up in each other, huh?” Naomi murmured.