Suddenly aware of her mamas settling in chairs, one on each side of hers, she shifted her attention away from Robin. And sex.
Del took her hand. “Are y’all comfortable, darlin’?”
Lily smiled and patted her large belly. “As comfortable as a beached whale can be, Mama.”
“Only six weeks to go.” Cordy took her other hand. “Will you stop after the twins are born?”
“If these two are mine, come as easily as Gabrielle did and have her temperament, who knows?” Her eyes went to Jess sailing through the air to the deep end of the pool. “But if either one or both are Robin’s and are like Jess, we’ll probably have to stop at four to manage them. Either way we’ll be happy. Why do you ask?”
Del smiled. “Listening to Jess and Cordy discussing math problems last evening made me think about how wonderful and difficult having two more like Jess could be for you two.”
“That’s for sure. When we agreed to put both our eggs in the petri dish and let the universe decide whether we’d have another one of mine or another one of Robin’s we failed to anticipate the fickleness of the universe.” Lily patted her stomach. “Thus, twins of unknown genetic makeup.”
“It’s already a full-time grandma job keeping up with your two and Bella’s Duncan, so even one more Jess will be difficult and wonderful.” Cordy squeezed Lily’s hand. “When I think about your twins and Bella and Mary’s twins all arriving around the same time, I go into grandma overwhelm mode.”
“I don’t know, you don’t look that upset to me, Cordy.”
Cordy grinned. “At least we’re two grandmas. It will be busy and tiring, but it’ll also be fun. Actually we’re both looking forward to it.”
Lily felt a surge of love for her mamas. “And speaking of Bella and Mary, I haven’t seen them around this morning. Everything okay?”
Cordy stood. “Bella is lying down. She’s not feeling well, so Nicole is with her, making sure she and her twins are okay. And Mary is on the beach with Duncan. The little guy loves the water and I believe his Aunt Robin is going to start teaching him to swim tomorrow.”
Del got to her feet. “Well, darlin’, if y’all are good we’re going to take a swim in the ocean, then play with Duncan so Mary can spend some quiet time with Bella. See you at lunch.”
The mamas left and she picked up her book. Sometime later, Katie plopped down next to her. “Morning.” She followed Lily’s eyes. “The kids all adore her.”
“Me too.”
“And I…I’m so glad we did this. Everyone is enjoying themselves. Robin has gone from no family to building herself a wonderful extended family.”
“She has, hasn’t she? We need to do this every year, Katie. I love that all our kids are growing up with each other, but I also love that our families are getting connected, your brother and sister and their spouses and children, my brother and sister and their spouses and children, Robin’s brothers and their families, and Nicole and Nora, Mei, Winnie, Emma and Annie and their families. It’s wonderful.”
“We’ve already blocked out the same two weeks next year. No guests here other than our friends and family and the college kids we hire as camp counselors to watch the children and plan programs for them. But speaking of extended families, how goes it with your two expected extensions?”
“Not many people get to have their obstetrician along on vacation, and Nicole says I’m fine and it’s likely I’ll carry them to term, which will be good for the twins.”
“Robin is hoping for one of yours and one of hers. What about you?”
“I’ll take two of anything as long as they’re healthy. Another Jess would be fun, but two might do us in.” She giggled. “Jess is fascinated by the twins. She talks to them and loves to feel them kicking. Now she’s after Nicole to teach her everything about babies. Nicole said Jess is like a baby vampire, but it’s not your blood she wants—it’s all your knowledge she wants to suck out of you.”
“It’s true. I’ve heard her talking to Emma about Egyptian history and her Uncle Ted about the brain and emotions, and, you name it with anyone she can corner.” Katie’s eyes wandered back to Robin. “It’s amazing how much alike they are. And just like her dad, Jess is more than willing to share what she knows. Earlier today, I went looking for Mikie and Janie and found them sitting under a tree on the beach with some of the other children. The camp counselors were nearby, but Jess was in charge, teaching them about the ocean and tides with pictures and charts. They were all mesmerized. Gaby was hanging on her big sister’s every word.”
“Jess is very good with Gaby and other children as long as she’s in charge. Robin is working to make sure that she’s aware of other children’s needs, that she understands that not everyone is as brilliant as she is and that sometimes she has to let the others be the leader. Gaby is more laidback than Jess. But then, most people are. And while she adores Jess, she’s no slouch in the brains department and when she has something to say she pushes back until Jess gives her space.”
“It’s eerie but watching Jess with Robin’s nieces Sara and Victoria is like looking at one of those charts showing our progression from apes, only it’s Robin in various stages of her life. I’ve talked to Ted and Paul and they said, despite how Robin’s mother treated her, she was as exuberant as Jess before she watched her mom murder her sister and commit suicide. Seeing Sara, a brilliant but normal fifteen-year-old, makes me remember how fragile and withdrawn and wounded Robin was when she came to Harvard.”
“You were only twenty-two. How did you have the…the strength, the will to take on a needy fourteen-year-old?”
Katie watched Robin frolicking in the pool. “In the Peace Corps in Africa, I worked in a refugee camp with children who had grown up in war-torn countries. They’d lost everything, including parents and siblings and had never known love. One of the first things I learned was I couldn’t make it better, that if I got too involved they would suffer another loss when I left. When I met Robin, I realized she was a lot like those children, but I knew I could be there for her as long as she wanted me, so I went for it.”
“You did a great job.” Lily shifted, trying to sit up. “The kids are being called out of the pool. I guess it’s lunchtime.”
“I’d better go see that my two actually eat.” Katie extended a hand, helped Lily sit, then kissed her cheek. “See you on the patio at the adults’ lunch.”
Lily watched as Robin lifted the younger children out of the pool, helped Gaby remove her water wings and headed over to her, a daughter holding each hand. As they got close, Gaby dropped Robin’s hand and ran to her. “Mommy lap.” She held her arms out. Lily laughed. “Mommy doesn’t have a lap, Gaby. You have to stand next to me.”
Lily helped the girl climb onto the chair with her and wrapped her arm around her, then covered her face with kisses. “Did you have a good time in the pool?”
Gaby giggled. “Dad fro me high.”
“Not as high as me, Mommy.” Jess stood next to the chair, wrapped her arms around Lily’s neck and kissed her cheek. “Say ‘throw’, not ‘fro’ Gaby.”
“Throw.” Gaby stuck her tongue out at Jess. “I like fro better.”
Jess frowned. “But—”
Lily put an arm around Jess. “I saw, Jess. Dad tossed you in the deep end of the pool. It’s a good thing you’re an excellent swimmer.” She squeezed her green-eyed girl. “I heard a rumor that you taught a class this morning.”
“Not a rumor, Mom.” Jess beamed. “It was about the ocean. Dad and Sara and Victoria and Teddie helped me draw pictures for the class and this afternoon we’re going to draw lightning and thunder and cloud pictures for tomorrow’s class about weather and the atmosphere. And Gaby is going to help. Right, Gaby?”
“I like to hear Jess tell about the fishies.”
“I’m glad you’re learning from your big sister.” Lily kissed Gaby, then looked at Jess. “You’re not forcing the children to come, are you, Jess?”
“No, Mommy.” Her r
aspy voice communicated extreme patience. “They like to learn.”
A camp counselor appeared. “Excuse me, I’m supposed to bring Gaby and Jess to lunch.”
Robin helped Gaby down. “Go to lunch with Amy, girls. We’ll be along shortly.” She sat next to Lily.
“You must be exhausted after all that playing in the sun and tossing children around in the water.”
“It is kind of tiring.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “Want to take a nap with me later?”
Lily laughed. “Yes. But no hanky panky.” She caressed Robin’s face. “Well, nothing too strenuous.”
“Have I told you lately that I love you?”
“You might have said something like that when you left me in bed this morning.” She took Robin’s hand and kissed it. “Are you having a good time?”
“I am. I never dreamed I could feel so…loved, so full of love. It’s a little overwhelming, having all the people I love in one place, a beautiful place like this, feeling the love in the air, watching connections being made and realizing that not only do I have you and the girls and the mamas but so much more. A loving community for our girls to grow up in.”
Lily patted her stomach. “How can you be so sure the twins are girls? You know the odds are against that. Has Nicole slipped?”
“Not to me. Now if it was Emma, the world would know, but Nicole knows how to play it close to her chest. Anyway, just a gut feeling. Jess thinks so too.”
“And have you and Jess discussed whether she’ll be okay without a brother?”
“Only in so far as I’ve told her we take whatever we get. Ah, there’s the gong for the adult lunch. Let me give you a hand.” She took Lily’s hands and pulled her up into a hug, nuzzling her neck. “I look forward to the day when we can be close together again.”
Lily laughed. “But then we’ll be too tired to do anything but sleep.”
“I think we should get a nurse this time, and not just because I want to make love to you all the time, but it will help to be able to get away for a few hours now and then.”
Lily kissed Robin’s nose. “We’ll see. Give me your arm and help me waddle to lunch.”
As they made their way to the patio, Robin stopped and faced Lily. “You know, when you told me you wanted to carry my babies the night we met, I thought you were mad. But I would have agreed to anything to have my way with you. And here we are, more than seven years and almost four children later, and all I can think about is having my way with you. I love our life, I love our girls, I love all of our family and friends, but most of all, I love you because you are the source of all that is good in my life. ”
Lily’s eyes misted. She held Robin’s face in her hands, stared into the green pools of love, then kissed her gently. “No one but you for me, ever.”
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