by J. G. Sumner
“Mi amore, how can I help you?” I take Kate’s hand in mine.
She looks at me with an element of surprise. “When did you start speaking Italian again? You have spoken very little since living in the States.”
She’s right. When I was in the witness protection program, I was told not to speak any Italian. After a year, I completely adopted English as my language and haven’t really taken a second thought. I guess when I get emotional, I resort to the native tongue.
I shrug. “This isn’t about me. What can I do for you?”
“You being here is great. I want the babies to be able to have both of their parents around when they’re born.” Kate squeezes my hand and then closes her eyes and grimaces. Another contraction is coming.
“Here we go. Three…two…one…push!” The doctor prepares for the delivery.
Kate bears down and pushes. A feral scream pushes through her, consuming her entire body. The death grip she has on my hand is overshadowed by the cry of a little human. My first instinct is to let go of Kate and rush to find out which baby was born first, but instead I hold back and give Kate a reassuring smile.
“It looks like the little sister now has an older brother,” the doctor announces as she hands Anthony off to a team of nurses who quickly rush to the warmer to clean him off and tend to the little guy.
“Now, Kate, you may feel a little pressure. I’m going to reach inside of you and try to determine the position of your daughter. It shouldn’t be too painful because of the epidural, but you let me know if it becomes too much.” Without further ado, the doctor reaches in and navigates Kate’s insides.
Kate squeezes my hand and I know instantly there’s some discomfort. I rub her head in an attempt to calm her. We both watch the nurses caring for Anthony as a pleasant distraction.
“Have you thought about a middle name for them?” I haven’t been around during the pregnancy, but I have a couple of middle names picked out already.
“No. I thought about it, but nothing came to mind.” Kate offers a hesitant smile.
“I have a couple of suggestions if you want to hear them.” I glance around the room and all eyes are on me. Kendall’s eyes are full of rage while Elizabeth looks on curiously.
“Don’t you think we should focus on delivering your daughter before we start discussing names?” Kendall is seething and the hate practically drips from her mouth like venom.
I don’t have a chance to retort before the doctor announces that Abigail is in position and ready to be delivered.
“With the next contraction, you’re going to push as hard as you can again. I know it’s been a lot of work up until now, but we’re almost there. You’ve got this.” The doctor redirects her attention to the nurses. “How’s that little one doing?”
“He’s just about ready to be held,” one of the nurses calls out.
I glance at Kate and we have a silent conversation.
“You go ahead and hold him. I still have work to do.” Kate gives a lopsided smile that’s adorably cute, but I can’t help but worry about how tired she is.
The nurse brings Anthony over and puts him in my arms. He’s so small. His eyes are closed but his lips are pursed. Tears of joy form in my eyes and I lean over so Kate can get a glimpse of him. We are parents bonding with our son. It’s as if there’s no one in the world but the three of us. It’s amazing the instant connection I have with this little one; especially when I wasn’t the person who carried him for almost nine months. My heart warms and is overcome with love. This is by far one of the happiest moments of my life.
“All right, Kate, there’s another one coming. Get ready to push,” the doctor calls.
I pull Anthony away and dote on him a few seconds longer before handing him off to grandma. Of course everyone wants to focus on the baby, but Kate is still working to bring our daughter into the world and I’m compelled to help her anyway I can. It’s the least I can do for being absent the past few months.
Kate goes through a couple of rounds of contractions before Abigail’s head appears. I continue to help Kate focus on breathing and hold her hand in support, while Kendall alternates between ice chips and doting on Anthony.
“Here we go. Push!”
Kate bears down with all her might. Her face turns red and sweat drips from her forehead. Not a moment later, the doctor is holding our daughter, but she’s not crying or moving. In fact, she’s kind of bluish in color.
Panic surges through my body. My heart skips a couple of beats and then takes off like a racehorse running down the track toward the finish line. “What’s wrong?”
The doctor doesn’t respond, but instead carries the baby to the warmer and begins pressing her fingers into Abigail’s tiny chest. “Start bagging her. There’s no pulse or respirations!” The doctor cries out. The nurses rush over to Dr. Landon’s side, preventing any view of my precious daughter.
“Tony, what’s going on?”
The fear in Kate’s voice very much mimics what I’m feeling. I squeeze her hand in an attempt to provide reassurance. “It’s going to be okay.” I don’t know how I can say that because I know nothing about what’s going on. All I can do is try to make things a little easier for her.
All of a sudden Abigail’s cry fills the room. At first, I thought it was Anthony’s but when I looked at him, he was sleeping peacefully. The breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding evacuates my chest in the form of a loud sigh. Kate and I connect eyes and immediately begin to cry. I reach down and embrace her. “You did it, Mama. You gave us two beautiful angels. She’s going to be okay.” I plant what seems like a hundred kisses on her face before letting up.
Dr. Landon barks orders at the nurses before tending to Kate and delivering the placenta that was already torn causing the early delivery. “Your daughter wasn’t breathing when she came out. This isn’t uncommon, but we’re going to have to monitor her in the NICU for a day or two, just to make sure she’s okay. In the meantime, you can spend all the time you want with your son. In fact, how about we let mom hold her baby now.”
Elizabeth steps forward and places Anthony in Kate’s arms. A smile forms on Kate’s face as she bends over and kisses his forehead. “He’s so perfect.”
I happily look on, enjoying every precious moment of the joyous occasion, and for one brief moment, I forget what an ass I’ve been. All the troubles in the world don’t matter right now—just the two new members of my family.
“You never said what middle names you came up with.” Kate looks at me while biting her bottom lip.
God, she’s so sexy when she does that. I pause before answering and just take her in. She’s more beautiful today than the day I fell in love with her. I don’t know how I got lucky enough to have her as mine, but I’m sure not going to ruin that again if I ever get the chance. “I’d like Abigail’s to be Katherine after you for bringing life to our children. For Anthony, I’d like him to have the middle name Jasper after the man who saved both of our lives.”
Kate sits motionless while gazing down at Anthony. “I like them. We can call this little guy AJ.”
I lean down next to Kate and embrace her and AJ. For the first time in as long as I can remember, all is right with the world. I can only hope to hold onto it forever.
Chapter Nine
Tony
I spend the night in the room with Kate and AJ. The rest of the family finally left hours ago, and we have been able to spend some quiet time with just the three of us before we finally pass out in a deep slumber. I was tired from the jet lag, and well, Kate worked her ass off bringing two new humans into the world.
As soon as Kendall arrives in the morning, I take the opportunity to hightail it out of there and meet up with Jasper. I told Kate that I needed to shower and take care of a few things so it didn’t appear as though I was abandoning her all over again. Kendall was aware of the plan so she didn’t make much of a stink about things and surprisingly, she was even a little pleasant. Damn, she can be suc
h a bitch sometimes.
I meet up with Jasper at Kate’s apartment. The babies came sooner than expected, leaving us very little time to ready the apartment for them. I called Kate’s mom and asked her to meet us there to help set everything up, and make sure we had everything needed to bring the babies home and adequately care for them. As I suspected, she was over the moon with the opportunity to help.
I arrive before Elizabeth, which gave Jasper and I some time to talk. There’s some details that I’m a little fuzzy with and I’m hoping to get some clarification.
“Hey man, there are some things I need to ask you.” There’s no easy way to start this conversation.
“Oh no, it sounds serious.” Jasper laughs and tries to make light of a situation we both know is going to be heavy in about five seconds.
“I know when I found Kate, she thought she had killed Matteo. When you found him, was he already dead?”
Jasper pauses and stares at me before answering. “Part of me wants to tell you the past is the past. However, you probably need to have answers in order to move forward. After today, we don’t talk about this anymore. Deal?”
I agree hesitantly. I can already tell I’m not going to like what he has to say.
“Matteo was alive. He was barely hanging on, but he was very much kicking. The asshole said some very vile things about Kate before I helped him take his last breath.”
I stand in the center of my old living room overlooking SoHo through the floor-to-ceiling windows. I pull my hand down my face contemplating what Jasper just shared with me. It’s not a surprise, yet I have very mixed emotions. I’m glad Matteo is dead. He may have been related by blood, but he wasn’t family. No family does what he did. The other half of me is overwhelmed by Jasper and everything he’s done for me and Kate. He truly is like a brother. I couldn’t ask for a better friend. They say you can’t pick your family, but you can pick your friends. Jasper is my best friend and my family.
“Does Kate know?”
“Yeah. She was having a hard time knowing that she killed a man. We talked about it for a while after you took off. I explained to her that I was the one that dealt the final blow, not her. We agreed that she would tell the police it was her and she did it in self-defense. If I had been the one to pull the trigger, I might have ended up in jail.” Jasper stares at me, clearly waiting for my reaction.
I take a few slow breaths and mull over the information provided. What can I say other than I’m forever in his debt. This man saved Kate’s life in more ways than one. He is, in every sense of the word, a hero. I don’t know what to say to thank him. Instead, I nod.
“What about his son? What ever happened to him?” He was our biggest lead and it seems as though Demetrio fell off the face of the earth.
“He’s serving six months in jail for aiding and abetting.”
I’m infuriated. Six months isn’t enough time for this asshole. He’s probably already out of jail. “Is there any indication as to why he helped Matteo keep her captive? What was his motive?”
Jasper lets out a loud sigh. “You probably need to sit down for this one.” He takes a chair.
I reluctantly follow suit. The hairs on my neck have erected themselves. Excitement from becoming a father and planning a surprise for Kate is replaced by fear and concern.
“As you know, he was estranged from Matteo his entire life. Your uncle paid Demetrio’s mother to leave and never come back. Matteo never went after them, nor did he have any interest. A few months before the mom was found dead, she sought Matteo out asking for money. Obviously, that didn’t go well because she turned up dead.
“Demetrio’s mom happened to tell him before her death about Matteo, and if she went missing that he was responsible. When he learned of his mom’s death, he started to track down your cousin. There was no evidence putting Matteo to the scene of the crime, so he went searching for the truth and a way to get Matteo to admit what he had done. Demetrio read about what happened to you and Kate in Italy and thought the best possible way to find his dad was to follow Kate. You have to give it to the kid, it was a smart move.
“When he finally found Matteo, he was put through some tests to show his loyalty. One of those happened to be what you saw in the picture of him and Kate. Demetrio claimed that he insisted she be untied and tried to make it as easy as possible on her. Kate confirmed this. In fact, when the feds arrested Demetrio, Kate pleaded for leniency.”
I want to vomit at the thought of Kate being forced into sexual favors. Yet, I can’t believe how forgiving and kind Kate is despite all that she’s been through. It would’ve destroyed most people, and they wouldn’t be as forgiving of the people who abused them.
My body is numb and I don’t know what to feel. “Did he ever get Matteo to admit it?”
Jasper smiles. “No, but Kate did. Matteo admitted it to her which gave Demetrio the closure he needed.”
“That’s incredible.” I pull my hands through my hair and stare down at the wood grains crossing the table. “Where is he now?”
“He was extradited to Italy. Because of his crime, he’s not allowed to return to the States. For what it’s worth, he did apologize to Kate. He was very remorseful for his actions and realizes he should’ve reported Matteo to the authorities the moment he had the opportunity. Not to make excuses for him, but he is young. I think he got swept up in the anger of his mother’s death and finding his father for the first time.”
“I don’t care what his excuse is. The little shit should rot for what he did to Kate.” I pull my hands through my hair and try to control the temper that’s coming to a boil.
“Kate’s going to forgive you. She’s an amazing person. I don’t know how an asshole like you ended up with her, but you made the right choice. Don’t fuck it up again.” Jasper stands up and goes to the door just as someone knocks on it.
“How did you know someone was there?”
Jasper laughs. “It’s kind of like your Spidey senses when you found Kate.” He opens the door and Kate’s mom stands before us with a smile on her face.
“What’s going on here, boys?”
I stand from the chair and greet Elizabeth, offer a warm smile, and attempt to embrace her, but she backs away.
“I appreciate that you’re the father of my grandkids, but let me make this very clear: I will never forgive you for leaving Kate when she needed you the most. Your actions were deplorable. I don’t have any say in whether or not she goes back to you, but you best believe if you try a stunt like that again, I will hunt you down and make your life a living hell. Do you understand?”
I pull back and suddenly I’m afraid of this petite woman. She’s the matriarch of the family and isn’t going to take any of my shit. She kind of reminds me of my mom and how she used to drag me and my brothers around by our ears if we had done anything wrong.
“I spoke with your husband, but haven’t had a chance to apologize to you. I know I can’t erase what happened, but I can be a better husband, father, and son to your family. I hope in time you’ll forgive me.” I wait for a response, but when there isn’t one, I continue. “Kate didn’t have time to decorate the nursery before AJ and Abigail came into this world, so I decided to surprise her with a finished one. I know nothing about babies and was hoping you could help to ensure we had everything we need.”
Elizabeth stands expressionless for what seems like forever and then a smile claims her face and I know I’ve done well. “Show me the room.”
I lead her to the kids’ room. It’s the first time I’ve been in here since the painter finished putting together the castle and transportation infrastructure.
“Oh wow! Did you do this?” Elizabeth looks around the room with her mouth wide open. “This is absolutely amazing!”
“I came up with the idea, but a painter did all the work.” I’m hoping to score some bonus points here. Maybe even an ‘atta boy.’
“Nice job. I see you have the cribs set up.” Elizabeth walks around the room
and assesses what’s inside. “Clothes are in the dresser. Did you wash them in the special baby detergent?” Elizabeth pulls a finger across the furniture as she assess the room.
My eyes grow wide. I had no idea there was such a thing.
“Okay, we’re going to have to get some and then all these clothes need to be washed again. How are we doing on diapers and wipes?”
I motion toward the closet. “We have tons of diapers in there and wipes are in the warmer on top of the changing table.”
Elizabeth searches through the storage space. “Fortunately, you have enough diapers for a few days. The other ones are too big. What about bassinets? You can’t have them sleeping in the cribs yet. They’re too small.”
I look to Jasper who shakes his head and shrugs his shoulders. “We haven’t seen any.”
“Okay, you guys need to go pick up a couple right away. I also don’t see any baby blankets. You’re going to need several of those along with bassinet sheets. Other than that, it looks like you have everything you need for a few days. Kate will take care of the feeding. Good job, but you have a lot of things to get done before she gets home. You had better hop to it.”
I nod, but honestly, I’m a little overwhelmed. I want to spend time with my kids, but I need to make sure they have all the necessary stuff when they arrive home.
“We can go get bassinets right now. I’ll set them up, rewash their clothes, and get the bedding taken care of. Once we’re done shopping you can go back to the hospital,” Jasper says, clearly making a checklist in his head.
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely, those kids and Kate need you. I can do this.” Jasper pulls out his phone and types away.
“Are you sure you’re ready to be put on my payroll as personal assistant?” I smile, grateful I have such a loyal friend.