by Marie Force
“Just what this world needs,” Maddie said with a tired smile. “Another McCarthy man.”
Mac returned her smile and kissed her again. “Is he okay, David?”
“He’s perfect. What’s his name?”
Mac looked to Maddie, giving her the floor. After all, she’d done the hard work. She sighed. “Don’t blame me for this, but meet Malcom John McCarthy the third. We’ve got another Mac McCarthy on our hands.”
“Oh, dear God,” Victoria said with a teasing grin for Mac. She was still tending to Maddie in the aftermath of the baby’s arrival.
“Hey!” Mac said as he took the tiny bundle from David and gazed down at the gorgeous little face. “Don’t worry, buddy. I’ll show you how to be the best Mac McCarthy of the bunch of us.”
“No, you won’t,” Maddie said, reaching for her son. “You’ll be allowed contact with him once a week so you don’t ruin him.”
Mac laughed as he settled the baby in her arms. “Look at him,” he said, amazed by the little eyes that moved around, checking things out. He’d learned when they had Hailey that babies couldn’t see much of anything at first, but his son seemed to be looking right at him and liking what he saw.
It was hard to believe that Mac had once thought fatherhood wasn’t in the cards for him. It made him sick now to think about what he might’ve missed if he hadn’t crashed into a gorgeous woman on a bike.
“What’re you thinking about?” Maddie asked him.
“The bike.”
She smiled up at him. “Best thing to ever happen to me.”
He kissed her again. “Me, too.”
* * *
The ringing phone dragged Kevin out of a sound sleep. He and Chelsea had crashed early, and he had no idea what time it was when he took the call from his brother Mac.
“What’s up?”
“Sorry to wake you, but I had to tell you that Malcolm John McCarthy the third arrived two weeks early tonight! Two grandbabies in one week. Can you stand it?”
“Congrats,” Kevin said, sitting up in bed. “How’s Maddie?”
“Just fine, thank goodness. Mac’s a mess. Can’t stop crying, but everyone is fine, and this old man is relieved to have our new little ones safely here with hardly any drama this time around.”
“I’m happy for all of you,” Kevin said. “I know how concerned you were about both of them.”
“You have no idea, my friend. Lost a lotta sleep worrying about something going wrong. Huge relief to have it over and done with.”
“I can only imagine. Can’t wait to meet them.”
“Go back to sleep. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“Tell Linda I said congrats.”
“Will do. Night.”
“Night, Mac.” Kevin ended the call, put the phone on the bedside table and lay back down, wide awake after the big news.
“Everything okay?” Chelsea asked, snuggling up to him.
He drew her warm, naked body in closer to him and ran his hand over her silky skin. “Mac and Maddie had their baby, a boy named Malcom John the third. Another Mac McCarthy.”
“Oh jeez. Just what we need!”
Kevin laughed. He had his own doubts about whether the world was ready for another Mac McCarthy. “My brother is weak with relief that both babies have safely arrived and their mothers are doing great.”
“I’m sure. That’s the downside to island life. No hospitals.”
“We’ve got a damned good clinic here.”
“Yes, we do, but still… It’s not a hospital.”
“One thing we haven’t talked about in all these plans we’ve been making is whether you want to continue to live here. You want to have a baby, but there’s no hospital here.”
“I’d love to stay here, but only if that’s what you want, too.”
“I do. I love it here and feel totally at home after a year. If there’s a baby, I guess we’ll figure out the medical stuff the same way everyone else does.”
“I still can’t believe we’re actually going to do this.”
“I was thinking that we should probably get married at some point.”
She gasped. “Really? I thought you never wanted to get married again.”
“When did I say that?”
“In the bar one night, around the time we first met.”
“Was I drunk?”
“It was the night I called Mac to come get you.”
Kevin winced and ran his fingers through his hair, trying to find the words he needed, the words she deserved. “I was hurt and drunk and rejected and spouting off. I’m sorry you heard me say that and all this time you thought I meant it.”
“I can understand why you felt that way. After what my dad did, I said I’d never get married, either.”
“And now?” he asked, hanging breathlessly while waiting for her reply.
“Things change,” she said softly. “The right guy comes along and suddenly it doesn’t matter what my dad did, because he’s nothing like my dad. He’s loyal and honorable and family-oriented and the best friend I’ve ever had.”
Kevin turned toward her, rested his hand on her face and kissed her. “You’ve changed everything for me, you know that, don’t you? My life was in ruins, but then you came along and showed me a whole new beautiful way forward.” He kissed her for a long time, pouring all the love he felt for her into the kiss.
“Are you sure you want to get married again?” she asked when they finally came up for air. “You’re not even officially divorced yet. I’d understand if you need some time to—”
Kevin kissed her again. “I don’t need time to know that I want to spend whatever is left of my life with you and my boys and the family we’ll make together.”
“If you’re sure… I don’t want you to feel pressured to do anything that doesn’t work for you.”
“I don’t feel pressured. Although, it is kind of funny that my brothers are having grandchildren while I’m considering the possibility of another child.”
“Our baby will keep you young at heart.” After a pause, she said, “Did we just get engaged?”
“Not quite yet, but when we do, you won’t have to ask.”
* * *
They spent most of the next day with Andrew’s family and waved them off on the four o’clock boat on Sunday afternoon.
“That was fun,” Kevin said as they walked back to Chelsea’s place to shower and change before heading to their babysitting gig with Laura and Owen’s kids.
“It was nice to see them. And I’m glad you finally got to meet them. Andrew liked you.”
“You think so?”
“I know he did. He told me so. He said he was skeptical of the fact that you’re older than me at first, but after spending time with us, he can see how happy I am, and that’s all that matters to him.”
“I’m glad he approves.”
When they were showered and dressed, they walked the short distance to the Sand & Surf Hotel, where Laura and Owen lived and worked. His grandparents had given them the hotel as a wedding gift last year, after the two of them had completely renovated the old hotel.
“I love this place,” Chelsea said when they stepped into the lobby where Owen’s mom, Sarah, was working at the front desk.
“Hi there,” Sarah said. “Laura told me you were coming to babysit the hooligans. You can go on up to the third floor. Charlie and I will be around tonight if you need help.”
“I’m sure we can handle it,” Kevin said as a twinge of unease crept in. “How hard can it be?”
Sarah laughed. “You’re about to find out.”
“I’m scared,” Chelsea said.
With his hand on her back, Kevin guided her toward the stairs. “Too late to turn back now.”
On the third floor, they were greeted by the pervasive sound of crying babies.
Chelsea stopped walking. “Umm.”
Kevin nudged her along. “We got this, babe. No worries.”
“Easy for you to
say. You’re an experienced baby wrangler. I have limited experience.”
“Just think—after this, you’ll be an expert.”
Her grimace made him laugh as he knocked on the door to Laura and Owen’s apartment.
Owen came to the door, a wild look in his eyes and a massive stain in the middle of his pressed light blue dress shirt.
“Looks like you took a direct hit,” Kevin said.
“You don’t know the half of it.” Owen stepped aside. “Enter at your own risk.”
Kevin gave Chelsea another nudge to get her into the apartment, which looked like it’d been hit by a bomb made of toys and baby paraphernalia.
“Sorry about the mess,” Owen said. “It’s been a day and a half around here. Joey has been colicky, Holden has an ear infection, and Jon has diaper rash. Good times all around. Laura was going to call you to say this might not be the best night for you to watch them.”
Disappointment radiated from Owen. This was a man who clearly needed some time alone with his wife, and Kevin was determined to make that happen. “No worries,” Kevin said, rolling up his sleeves. “We can handle this, right, Chels?”
She gave him a deer-in-the-headlights look. “Umm…”
“The good news is Holden is down for the count, so we’re back to a man-to-man defense,” Owen said. “It’s when they outnumber us that we get into trouble.”
Laura emerged from the bedroom with a baby in each arm, both of them crying.
Owen took one of them from her and began patting the baby’s back with practiced expertise.
“I meant to call you to reschedule,” Laura said. Her blonde hair hung in shiny waves around her shoulders, and she wore a black dress that showed off a trim figure, despite having had three children in two years. She’d bounced right back from having the twins six months ago.
“If you guys still want to go, we don’t mind watching them,” Kevin said, wondering if he would regret his own generosity. But he felt for his niece and her husband, who’d obviously had a rough day.
Laura glanced at Owen. “What do you want to do?” She spoke loudly to be heard over the roar of crying babies.
“It’s up to you. Will you be able to relax if we leave them in this state?”
“It’s time for their bottles, so maybe that will settle them.”
“We’ll give them their bottles,” Kevin said, taking one of the babies from Owen while Chelsea took the other from Laura. “You guys get out of here, and if we need you, we’ll call.”
“Let me change my shirt,” Owen said, making for the bedroom, as if afraid Kevin might change his mind.
“You’re sure about this, Uncle Kev?” Laura asked as she heated bottles in the apartment’s galley kitchen while Kevin and Chelsea sat on the sofa with the babies, who were screaming even harder now that they’d been turned over to strangers.
“I’m sure, sweetheart. Take a break.”
“Right at this moment, I love you more than anyone in this world.”
Kevin laughed. “I remember what it’s like to have little ones. It’s intense.”
“That’s a good word to describe it.” She handed him a bottle and gave the other to Chelsea. “They’re both bathed, their diapers changed, and they’re ready for bed. Miss Joanna almost always falls asleep having her bottle, so the goal is to transfer her into the crib if you can.”
Chelsea nodded as she took the baby, knitted her brows in concentration and offered the bottle to Joanna while Kevin fed Jonathan.
The sudden silence made his ears ring after the loud crying.
Owen came out of the bedroom wearing a different shirt that hadn’t been ironed, but he didn’t seem to care. “Let’s go while we can,” he said, taking Laura’s hand to tug her toward the door. “Call if you need us.”
“Go have a nice time,” Kevin said, transfixed by the sight of the little lips sucking on the nipple. “We’ll be okay.”
Owen tugged her through the door and closed it behind them.
“Holy crap,” Chelsea whispered. “How do they do it?”
“Just think,” Kevin said, in a teasing tone, “there’s another one, too.”
Chapter 14
The babies put them through their paces—crying, diaper changes, more crying, waking each other up and eventually, waking Holden, too, which was when things really got interesting, because he wanted his mommy and daddy, not his uncle Kevin.
Hours later, the three of them had finally exhausted themselves—and their caregivers—and were blessedly asleep at the same time.
“Holy. Shit.” Chelsea dropped to the sofa, put her feet up on the coffee table and her head back, closing her eyes.
Kevin sat next to her, whimpering like a little girl. “I’d forgotten what that was like.”
“I’ve never seen anything like that in my life!”
“Owen and Laura could run a class for teenagers that would reduce teen pregnancy to zero.”
“That’s for sure.”
“Still want one of your own?”
“Absolutely not,” she said, laughing as she glanced over at him.
“Aw, come on. You’re not going to be that easily scared off, are you? It wouldn’t be like this for us.”
“And you know that how?”
“First of all, we’d be having one, not three, and second of all, you’re hardly ever going to see colic, ear infections and diaper rash in the same kid on the same day. This was what’s commonly known as a perfect storm.”
“True.” She looked at him, her expression uncertain. “You really think I could do this? That I’d be a good mother?”
He took her hand and brought it to his lips. “You’d be a wonderful mother.” He brushed at something on her face.
“What?”
“Um, I think you have baby poop on your face.”
She busted up laughing. “I do not!”
He took a whiff of his finger and groaned. “I’m afraid you do.”
“Get it off me!”
Laughing, Kevin got up to wash his hands and get a paper towel for her and stubbed his toe on one of Holden’s trucks. “Fuck,” he muttered.
“Language, Doctor McCarthy. If you’re going to be a daddy again, you gotta clean it up.”
“Christ, I just got to the point where I can swear again.” He sat next to her and washed the smudge of baby poop off her face. “You look kind of cute with poop on your face.”
“There is nothing cute about poop on my face.”
Nodding, he leaned in to kiss her. “Everything about you is cute.”
“So what time were we expecting Laura and Owen back? It’s after midnight.”
“Is it?” Kevin asked, surprised they were out so late. “Time flies when you’re having fun.”
“Maybe you should call them.”
“I’ll send a text.” He pulled out his phone and sent a text to Laura asking if they were planning an all-nighter. The text was delivered but went unread. “Hmm.” He waited a few minutes without a reply and then called her.
“Oh my God!” Laura shrieked as she answered the phone. “Owen! Wake up! The alarm didn’t go off!”
Chuckling, Kevin held the phone so Chelsea could hear. “Where are you guys?”
“We checked into a room downstairs so we could sleep for a couple of hours.”
“Seriously?”
“Dead seriously. Be up in a minute.” She ended the call.
“They checked into their own hotel to get away from their kids?” Chelsea asked, incredulous as she laughed.
“Welcome to parenthood, sweetheart. Enjoy the ride.”
* * *
On Tuesday evening, Kevin and Chelsea arrived at his place after an early dinner before her shift to find his ex-wife sitting at his kitchen table with their sons. Even though he’d known she was coming, seeing Deb in this place that had nothing to do with her still came as a shock to him, and apparently to Chelsea, too.
She dropped his hand and took a step back.
&n
bsp; Kevin refused to allow her to feel out of place in his home, so he put his arm around her to keep her by his side, but her posture was rigid and her discomfort obvious.
Deb stood and came over to kiss Kevin’s cheek.
He wished she hadn’t done that.
“You’re looking well, Kev.”
“You, too.” Deb had always been gorgeous, with shiny dark hair and brown eyes that looked at him now with longing. “Deb, this is Chelsea. Chelsea, Deb.”
“Nice to meet you,” Chelsea said, shaking her hand.
“You, too.”
“Mom wanted to see our place,” Riley said, a note of apology in his tone.
“Of course.” Kevin felt nothing as he looked at his ex-wife—not anger or regret or sorrow. Just nothing other than gratitude for their sons. “Don’t let us interrupt your visit,” he said, glancing at the boys, who watched them warily.
“Kevin… I was wondering if we might be able to talk.”
Fuming that she’d put him on the spot in front of their sons and Chelsea, he shook his head. “I’m sorry, Deb. I’ve said everything I’ve got to say to you. You take care.” Ushering Chelsea out ahead of him, he left the room, hoping Riley and Finn would understand that he wasn’t being rude to their mother, but he’d moved on from their relationship and wasn’t interested in going backward.
“I’m really sorry about that,” Kevin said to Chelsea after he’d closed the door to his bedroom. “I didn’t know she’d be here, or I wouldn’t have brought you here.”
“It’s okay. It was fine.” As she spoke, she crossed her arms, rubbing them as if she were chilled.
Kevin went to her, put his arms around her and felt a tremble go through her. “She’s no threat to you or us, babe. I hope you know that.”
“I do.”
“But?”
“You’re still married to her. That part scares me.”
“I’m not going to be married to her for much longer, and there is nothing she could say or do that would make me want to go back to her. I hope you believe me.”
“I do…”
“You don’t sound convinced.”
“This has been a slippery slope for me from the beginning. You know that.”