cases he’d had with Pack Dynamics when there’d been no one to come home to, no one to share his life with—not the good times or the bad times.
Now Ric had Millie. He had Tia and Luc and two little girls on the way…girls with Camille’s sass and brass if her spirit had anything at all to do with this. Anton hugged Ric around the neck and pulled him close. Ric sniffed and took a deep breath.
Luc patted his father-in-law on the back, and grinned.
Ric shook his head and punched Luc in the shoulder. “Luc, you bastard…I can’t believe what you did to my little girl.”
Luc grinned, shrugged and picked up Ric’s bag without saying a word. Laughing quietly, Ric and Anton grabbed the rest of the luggage and the totes filled with baby gifts, and followed the women up the stairs.
Keisha, Eve, and Lisa spent most of the following day preparing a welcome feast, now that everyone had arrived and all were moderately adjusted to the same time zone. When Tia first saw the two huge rib roasts and all the side dishes waiting on the buffet, she’d thought they’d have leftovers for a month. Now, as the twenty-three adults and two children cleaned their plates, she realized how badly she’d underestimated the appetites of a houseful of Chanku.
She’d also underestimated the depth of her own emotions, how it would actually feel to sit in a room filled with family and friends, packmates all, who had come from all across the country just to be with her when she gave birth to her babies.
She flashed a grin at Luc. The look he gave her in return took her breath. Goddess how she loved him!
Tia pushed her plate away, stood up and clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention.
“Is it time?”
Tinker’s big laugh had everyone going. He’d been asking that same question for at least a month now.
Tia glared at him. “No, Tinker. For the gazillionth time…not yet.” Grinning broadly, she glanced at everyone along the long table, but when she finally paused, she focused on her father and her heart pounded in her chest. “Dad, Millie…I am so glad you’re here. All of you. I’m not exactly sure when this big event is going to happen, but I want to thank everyone for coming, and Anton, Keisha, Stefan, and Xandi for once again graciously opening their home to all of us.”
She glanced at Anton. He sat with his fingers steepled in front and his chin resting at their peak, but he quietly nodded his response. Still looking at him, she added, “Anton always says we’re strongest when we’re together. Having all of you here when I’m delivering just…” Her voice cracked and she took a minute to regain control. “Well, you have given me a wonderful gift, and I wanted to thank every one of you.”
She touched Luc’s shoulder. His big hand covered hers. “And,” she said, feeling a little foolish, “I imagine a lot of you have already guessed it since I look like a beached whale, but yesterday Logan confirmed what Luc and I have suspected all along—Mom got her way on this one. I was almost sure I popped out one egg, but it looks like we’re having twin girls.”
She laughed at all the raised eyebrows and the applause. “Okay, so I guess not everyone figured it out. I’m surprised, as humongous as I am. I feel as if I’m carrying an entire soccer team, but thanks to Anton’s brand-new, state-of-the-art clinic, I got to see both our little girls yesterday when Logan did a sonogram. And yes, there are only two in there.” She cupped her hands over her huge belly. “Thank goodness!”
Luc rolled his eyes. “I’m actually relieved. I was thinking litter…I figured she had at least four in the oven.”
Tia thumped him on the head with her fingers before she sat down. Her dad smiled at her and she caught his thoughts.
Your mom must be so proud of you, sweetie. I just know she had a hand in this.
Thanks, Dad. I think she did. I was afraid it was me, but there’s no way I’d do this to myself!
Tia helped Mei and Jazzy clear the table and then wandered out to the great room where everyone had gathered. There were a couple of chess games going, and Anton and Stefan were chasing the babies around on the floor, much to Lily and Alex’s delight.
Oliver was trying to do a magic trick Stefan had taught him, and the laughter from his corner of the room told Tia he wasn’t having much success. Millie, Manda, and Adam had gathered in another corner to talk. The three of them held hands, as if they needed even more of a connection than most. Watching Millie and the two children she’d not known until they were adults, had Tia fighting tears.
To have babies taken away…she covered her belly in a protective gesture. The pain for Millie must have been indescribable. Now that she carried her own babies under her heart, Tia felt as if she understood her stepmother better than ever. Thank goodness Ulrich and Millie had found each other.
Tinker glanced up from his chess game with Logan, caught her eye and grinned. “Is it time yet?”
Before Tia could answer, half a dozen voices shouted, “No!” and Jake threw a pillow that Tinker deftly caught.
Then he ducked his head and went back to the game. Laughter ebbed and flowed around her. There was a subtle, subliminal buzz that let Tia know a few in the room were mindtalking to carry on private conversations. Oliver gave a triumphant shout and Mei clapped her hands. Luc turned from his spot on the couch beside Baylor and Shannon and smiled at her.
I love you, he said. His thoughts drifted over her mind with the strength of a caress.
I love you, too. Then she felt it, a painful tightening that radiated from her back and across the lower part of her belly. The sense of pressure more than pain took her breath. It lasted close to half a minute, and when it was over, everyone in the room was staring at her.
“Is it time?” Tinker’s question didn’t make anyone laugh this time.
“I don’t know. But that was definitely different. Not quite like a Braxton-Hicks contraction.” She shook her head. They were still almost a week early. “Logan? How do I know when I’m really in labor?”
Logan stood up. “Let’s go take a look. I can tell if your cervix is beginning to thin out. You were dilated at two centimeters last time I checked.” He crooked his arm, held out an elbow. Tia slipped her hand around his arm and exited the room like a queen with her escort.
Luc was right there with them.
Jazzy Blue glanced up as her mate walked back into the great room with Tia and Luc. They’d all been anxiously waiting for news. Logan smiled at her and shook his head.
“It’s going to be a long night, folks. Tia’s only had one very light contraction, so her labor’s hardly even started.”
Shannon stood up and hugged Tia. “Poor baby. Aren’t there drugs you can take to get things going?”
Logan sat next to Jazzy and draped his arm around her shoulders. “There are, but it’s always better to let things happen naturally. Luc and Tia are going to do a few slow laps around the house, see if that gets things going, but she definitely appears to be in the early stages of labor. This is the easy part.”
Tia stuck out her tongue at Logan. “Easy for you to say, Doc.”
Luc
