by K E Osborn
I let out a staggered sigh as I hear someone call out my name. Trax lets me go, so I drop the magazine I was holding on the table as we both stand up and walk toward the room.
A bed sits in the middle as I stride in. Trax moves to the chair next to it.
A woman walks in wearing a bright smile and a white lab coat. “I’m Kaylah, your technician for today. I’ve read up on your case, and I’m glad to be working with you. How about we get started and have a look at your baby?”
I’m so nervous, I can’t say anything in response, so I simply nod.
She gestures for me to lie down. “Okay, Mylee, unbutton your jeans and lift up your top,” she instructs.
Trax reaches out grabbing my hand for support.
Kaylah picks up a bottle of gel giving it a shake. “This might be a little cold.” She squeezes some onto my stomach. Instantly, I flinch from the harsh coldness even with the warning.
Kaylah grabs the probe positioning it on my tummy as my hand tightens on Trax’s so firmly I worry I might break his fingers. But he doesn’t say a word.
I glance at him, but he’s watching the screen. It momentarily makes me smile that he’s so happy about us being pregnant. His demeanor soothes me as I turn to look at the screen seeing nothing but black and white blobs.
“Umm, not to sound like an idiot, but can you point out squirt for me?” Trax asks.
Kaylah looks back to the screen focusing on the black parts, clicking on a few things. “Yes, sorry, of course, but first I just want to check something with the OB/GYN. I’ll be right back.” She places the probe down and abruptly walks out of the room.
“What the hell? Is something wrong?” I ask, my stomach churning.
Trax studies the screen intensely. “No. It’s fine. She’s just checking something. It’s fine. It’s fine... it has to be,” he murmurs the last part.
“Trax…” I whimper.
He holds my hand tighter and stands, leaning down kissing me, but it doesn’t help.
He’s scared too.
Something’s wrong.
There’s something wrong with our baby.
I just know it.
The door opens, Kaylah and our OB/GYN walk in both sporting smiles in stark contrast to how I’m feeling right now.
“I’m Dr. Branson. You’ve been referred to me by Rebecca Kline. I’m happy to meet you finally. How are we today?” he asks in an upbeat manner.
What the fuck! I want to punch him in his fucking face. Maybe I have anger issues too. I cock my brow as I glance to Trax, the king of anger issues.
“Is something wrong?” I whisper.
He slides onto the stool looking over the machine picking up the probe and pressing it to my stomach. “Kaylah picked up something. She just wanted to confirm it with me before she said anything.”
My heart leaps into my throat. “We can’t make out anything on the screen, please tell me the baby is okay.”
Dr. Branson’s warm smile does nothing to soothe me as he presses onto my stomach a little firmer then points to the screen. “See how there are two black spots?” he asks, and I squint. He then points to a scan on the wall of an ultrasound picture. “When there’s a baby in the womb, there’s usually one black spot like in that picture up there... You, however, have two.”
Trax gasps like he’s understanding. I, however, still don’t have a clue. “So what does that mean? Is the baby in trouble? What’s going on?” I blurt out in quick succession as Trax’s hand tightens in mine.
“You want to see? Here’s one…” He points to the little pebble inside the first black dot.
My heart squeezes. “And it’s okay?”
“I think you’re missing what I’m saying, Mylee.”
“What do you mean?” I grunt out in frustration.
He points to the second black spot, to another pebble. “And here’s baby number two.”
“Two babies? Twins?” I stutter out.
“Yes, two healthy, little babies. Measuring at eight weeks.”
I gasp for air. “Whoa two? I don’t—”
Trax tightens his grip on my hand making me turn to look at him. The soft look in his eyes eases my tension straight away. He looks into my eyes, bringing his hand up to my face gently stroking my cheek as he breathes in and out slowly, making me mirror his breaths. I didn’t even realize he was doing it or that I was in a place where I needed it. He knows me better than I know my damn self.
“You’re okay, baby, just breathe. In and out. Breathe with me.”
I take in a deep breath and let it out slowly as he keeps his eyes focused on mine. “Sparx, this isn’t a big deal. This is cool, having two means twice the fun.”
I let out a stifled laugh, my shaking hand coming up to wipe a falling tear from my eye. “Trax, this is huge for us.”
He smiles, his eyes glistening as they sparkle. “We will raise our twins tough, their mother is one of the strongest women I know, and look at their father. I mean… he’s pretty fucking epic.”
I can’t help but laugh as he wipes the single tear away that’s escaped my eye. “We got this. You, me, and the twins. This is going to be amazing, babe. Right now just enjoy the moment. Look at the screen… take it in because Sparx, we’re having twins. That’s fucking amazing. You need to remember this moment for how utterly fantastic it is.” He beams looking into my eyes.
His encouraging words are making this all seem so emotional. I have to remember this is all new territory, but if I spend this entire pregnancy being nervous, I’m going to miss out on the journey and the exciting parts.
I need to enjoy it.
I need to remember it.
So, I turn back to the screen while Kaylah and Dr. Branson smile kindly as if they have seen this all before.
He clicks on some more buttons. “You want to hear their heartbeats?”
“Oh gosh, we can do that?”
He smiles as I look to Trax feeling suddenly overjoyed as a small excited giggle escapes me. “Yeah… yes, please.”
A whooshing sound filters through the room, and after a short time, Dr. Branson starts taking some snapshots for us to take home.
I can’t believe this. We came in here this morning thinking we had one baby, but we’re going to be leaving here with two. How the hell did that happen? All I know is I’m so glad I have Trax here with me. I’d be lost without him.
“Okay, I think we have all we need. I’ll book you in for another scan in a few weeks, but you can check in with me at any time if you need to.”
“Thank you. Thank you so much. Sorry about the tears,” I murmur.
“Don’t be. Finding out about twins is daunting. Seeing one baby’s a shock, add in another unexpected one, and most people are terrified. Your reaction was quite normal.”
It’s weird because I generally put my reactions down to bipolar disorder, but I know my psych has often said I have normal reactions and nothing to do with my illness. I guess this was a normal reaction.
All I know is this changes things. Lucky we hadn’t started decorating the room, now we’ll need to plan for two basinets instead of one. The room is big, but it’s not massive. We’re going to be crowded, but it will be worth it just to have my family all together.
TRAX
Sparx was a trooper at the appointment, and for the entire car ride home she’s been trying to hide her smile. I know she’s equal parts anxious as she is excited, but I know her excitement will win over.
I grab her hand as we walk inside the clubhouse. Surge and Mom are sitting at the bar as we walk in.
Mom glances up at us. “Boyo, how’d your appointment go?” she calls out, so I lead Sparx over to my mother, and the man who’s like a father to my brother and me.
Sparx beams as I wrap my arm around her shoulders pulling her to my side and raise my brow with a cocky grin. “Seems I have super sperm,” I mock.
Surge chuckles as Mom grimaces. “What on God’s green earth does that mean?” Mom asks as Mylee pushes
my shoulder.
I place my hand on Sparx’s stomach. “It’s twins!”
Mom lets out an ear-piercing scream as she stands from her stool throwing her hands in the air. Everyone turns to look at us.
“Geez, woman, calm it down,” Surge berates.
Mom quickly slaps Surge on the chest. His arm now out of the damn sling as he winces from the sting as Mom races forward grabbing Sparx, hugging her in a swaying motion from side to side. I chuckle as Sparx hugs Mom back.
“Oh, lordy, lordy, Lord, we need a celebration. A lunch. Yes, we need a feast—”
“Mom, stop. We don’t need a celebration every time we get news. We’ve had a big morning. Let’s let Sparx have some rest,” I state.
She lets Sparx go pulling back at an arm’s distance and looking over her as Sparx smiles.
“Oh gosh, of course. You must be tired. Go, have a nap. Then later I’ll make you some soothin’ tea.”
“Thanks. I’m exhausted.”
“Of course, you go, girlie. Lay down and rest. We can celebrate later.”
“C’mon,” I tell her.
I glance to Surge, and he subtly nods as I wrap my arm around her, then we head off down the hall. We step into my room, and I walk her to my bed as she sits on the edge. I bend down pulling off her shoes and glance up at her. “I was proud of you today. You can handle any shit that’s thrown at you.”
She exhales flopping down on the bed. I stand up moving to the bed sitting next to her and look into her eyes. “Will it be a challenge? Fuck yes, but we can do it!”
Sparx looks at me. “Fuck yeah, we can!” She leans in giving me a swift kiss on my lips. The spark, the sizzle that ignites when she kisses me is there like it always is, but now is not the time to take this further. Right now I need to let her rest. “Trax, these babies… they’re going to have the best chance at life. You know why?”
I raise my brow. “Why?”
“Because you’re their dad.”
I lean in kissing her again, a little longer this time. But eventually, I move back and place the covers over her. “Now you sleep. I’m going to go and work on some club stuff, but I have my cell if you need me.”
Her eyes blink like she’s already drifting off. “Don’t let me sleep too long.”
I chuckle. “Yes, ma’am.” I turn, heading for the door leaving her to rest while I go in search of my blood brother. While Sparx’s taking in the news of having twins, I am over the fucking moon about it, and I need to tell Torque before Mom gets to him.
TRAX
Walking into the chapel, Torque and Ace are busy at Ace’s desk. I can see they’re looking at the detection on Cindi’s tracker. From what I can see, she’s somewhere in Miami. They both look up bobbing their heads in greeting as I approach.
“Fucker, you’ve been MIA this morning, where you been?” Torque asks.
I can’t help the rush of adrenaline that courses through me. “At a doctor’s appointment with Sparx. Got the first scan of the baby today,” I reply. They both look at me seemingly now more interested.
Torque drops the folder he has in his hand to the desk, and he exhales with a shrug. “And? Is it a boy or a girl?” he asks.
I let out a laugh as I walk up to him and Ace. “Too early for that yet, but…” I pause for effect, they both frown as I beam with pride. “It’s twins,” I blurt out.
They both open their mouths wide as Torque punches me in my bicep. “No fuckin’ way?” he asks as I chuckle.
“Yep, two mini-mes.”
Ace shakes his head as he continues to type on his computer. “Jesus Christ, two more Trax’s in the world… fuck me!”
I snort. “Shut up, asshole. What are you fuckers talking about anyway?”
Ace chuckles as he looks up. “We’re tracking Cindi. She’s stalled in Miami which is good. We’ve put in our bid on their site. Hopefully, it’s accepted before she’s shipped off to Cuba. If it is, we’ll send in our buyer. If it’s not, we’re off to Cuba for extraction.”
I smirk. “Have you convinced someone to play the part yet?”
Torque chuckles. “Working on it. I have the man, just getting him prepped.”
“Should I ask who?”
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
Raising my brow, I smirk. “Hmmm… intriguing, I like it. What else is happening?”
“We’re also working on the latest shipment to Linn, everything seems to be running smoothly. Which is nice for a damn change,” Ace chimes.
Torque grunts. “Yeah, things are a little too calm around here. We go into meetings without a shootout or double cross. Fuck, I don’t know,” he mocks, and I raise my brow.
“Now why would you go saying shit like that for?”
Torque laughs throwing his hands in the air. “Maybe I need to go have an argument with Enzo. Keep things interesting?” he teases as my brows knit together.
“You sound like I used to. Have we traded places or something?”
Torque snorts. “Since Sparx came along and your sessions with Sensei, you’ve changed. I like it. Don’t go back to that chaos and carnage shit,” Torque adds slapping my back as he starts to walk out of the chapel. “You’re gonna be a father now, stay on the straight and narrow, brother. The straight and narrow,” he yells as he walks out leaving me with Ace.
I look to him tilting my head. “Was that his version of a pep talk?”
Ace chuckles. “I have no idea. I think you having kids has thrown him. He’s in a good place with Foxy, but maybe it’s making him think about where they should be going. They have their house down the road, they’re settled, but maybe he’s starting to think of more… I dunno?”
I raise my brow. I wonder if he wants to go the kids or marriage route with Foxy first? I guess only time will tell. But right now I’m alone in the chapel with Ace. The guy who I’ve treated like shit since Mylee showed up. Their ‘friendship’ has always been a sour point for me, and maybe now I have him alone, I can bury the hatchet. I figure a good way to do this is to talk to him about Mylee. So I round his desk. He looks up at me with a questioning brow.
“Did Mylee ever get you to look into anything? I was wondering if she ever asked you to do some digging.”
“Yeah, brother. On the guy she’s here hiding from… Everett Scott.”
I take a breath. “Did you ever find anything?”
He slowly slides out the spare chair, so I take the seat next to him. He types something into his computer, and a file pops up. A picture of a guy with red hair and too many freckles to count shows up on the screen, but his build is large like maybe he used to play football.
“I couldn’t find anything on him other than what we already know… psych patient, mentally unstable, son of Malcolm Scott, the senator. Nothing on Malcolm either. Absolutely crystal clean. It paints a picture that the Senator is actually a good guy… but what I can see is Everett’s making waves back in Grand Rapids. He’s doing everything in his power to try and find Sparx, but no one’s budging or telling him where she is. The only problem is, it will only be a matter of time before he finds her. Maybe we need to take out the threat before the threat gets to us?” Ace asks.
I grimace. “That would normally be my go-to plan, but with him being the son of a senator, it makes it all a little harder.”
Ace rubs his chin. “Maybe we can hire someone to take the hit for us?”
Shaking my head, I flare my nostrils. “No, we can’t have anything linking back to us. If it gets out, that could bring not only us but the Notorious Knights down as well. We need to think wisely about this. I have no goddamn idea how to go about it. All I know is I need to protect my woman and our unborn babies from this psycho. She has enough to worry about than thinking about this asshole coming after her.”
“Leave it with me. I’ll keep digging to try and find something. I’ll keep putting out false leads for Everett to track, to lead him away from here. So he thinks she’s anywhere but at Defiance.”
Ace sighs. “I really like Sparx, she’s a great girl. I know she’ll do well at this club, Trax. She’s good for you. I know she’s going to be a great asset for us to have here, so I want to be clear she’s a friend and that’s all.”
I pat his back. “You’re damn straight because if you make any moves on my woman, I will have your foot so far up your own ass you’ll be spitting out your toenails.”
Ace chuckles. “Noted. But it won’t be a problem. You have my word.”
I stand up moving to walk from the chapel feeling not only a sense of relief from talking it out with Ace but also a sense of dread from the unknown of Everett.
“Trax,” Ace calls out. I turn back to look at him.
“Congratulations on the twins.”
Smiling, I walk out of the chapel.
Two Weeks Later
It’s been three weeks since the trade of Cindi for Enzo’s daughter, Zia. We’ve been tracking Cindi’s movements, but that’s the only thing we can track. We can’t check her vitals. We can’t see if she’s healthy, her mental state, nothing. So we’re all on fucking edge. But finally Scarsi has approved the sale, and the money transfer has gone through.
Apparently, there was a bidding war for her online, and that was the hold-up in getting her back. Some Russian gangster wanted her too. So no matter the cost, we had to outbid. Torque had to put one of the gyms up for sale to top up the money, and Enzo equaled it, but we finally got the money together. Then, all we had to do was send in the buyer. He had to fly to Miami to collect the ‘package’ and then he will deliver her back here for us. If all things go smoothly, they should be arriving soon.
We all sit around the chapel table watching Cindi’s tracker with bated breath, and it moves closer and closer to the clubhouse. Anxiety fills through me. I have no idea what state Cindi will be in when she arrives. All I know is that everyone is anxious to see her.