Page 27

“Yeah.” He lets out a whoop and everyone looks at him.

“I’m going to be a dad!” he yells. He pulls me to him and kisses me.

“Yo, Cotton, did you notice that it says baby a and baby b in that picture?” Loki asks.

“What?! Really?! Twins?!” He is so excited.

“Damn, sis, you always have to go big on things when you do them don’t you?” Tires hugs me close, then does the man hug, back slap with Cotton.

Dad and Mom envelope us between them. “You two, making us grandparents two times over on the first try. I love you both.”

“I love you too, Daddy.” We get congratulations from everyone, and the guys go pull out the alcohol, turning this into a party.

Cotton makes a plate for us both and has me follow him to a table. He pulls me down beside him and kisses me. “You have made me so happy. I love you, Saige.” I look up at him, a tear sliding down my face. It’s the first time he has said the words, though I know he means them, he shows me every day. I can’t eat much, but I did get a Gatorade and drink it. Even with that medicine for nausea, I’m still feeling sick.

Thirty

Cotton

I was startingto get worried. Sloane had told me that Loki had taken Saige home a few hours ago, but they never showed up here. Neither of them were answering their phones. I was getting ready to go talk to Stone when they walked in the door, Loki carrying a couple of boxes from the bakery. Opening that box when Saige asked me to, and seeing the sonogram saying twins, has to be one of the greatest things to ever happen to me.

After we get congratulations from everyone, I fix Saige and I a plate, having her sit down. She looks exhausted. Her dad, Leilani, Tires, Loki, Sloane, Bex, Stella, and Cruz sit at the table with us.

“I can’t believe I’m going to be a great auntie,” Stella says, tears streaming.

“Yeah, and I’m going to be a papaw. Baby, you will be a mamaw,” Stone tells Leilani.

Leilani looks at him, “Umm no, I will be Tutu. That is grandma in Hawaiian. It can also be used as grandpa too.”

“Tutu. I really like that, it’s so cute,” Saige says. I look at her plate to see that she hasn’t eaten much, then I notice that she is looking even more pale. She is sipping on a Gatorade.

“You ready to head to the room, butterfly?” She nods and we say goodnight to everyone. I grab a few of the cupcakes, and a couple of slices of cake and wrap them up to take with us. I’ll put them in the fridge in the room.

As soon as I unlock the door, Saige takes off running to the bathroom. I shut the door and put the desserts in the fridge. That’s when I hear her getting sick. I go in with her, pull her hair up, rubbing her back. When she gets done being sick, I get her a cold wash cloth, and fix her toothbrush for her. Once she is ready, I walk her back into the room. “Baby, going to undress you, get you ready for bed,” I tell her. She kicks her sandals off, and I lift her shirt up, then reach around her to undo her bra. Ilet it all fall to the floor. I drop to my knees to kiss her stomach. It’s then that I notice some new ink on her side. I look at it. “Butterfly, is that what I think it is?”

She smiles at me, saying, “Yes. It’s a cotton blossom and a butterfly. I thought it would be better than the actual words written on me. This is my property tattoo for you.”

I run my fingers over it gently and kiss it too. I pull her pants and panties down and pick her up. I kiss her holding her close, then carry her over to the bed. I pull the blanket and sheet back, laying her down. I go to the bathroom, come back, strip down, and slide in beside her. I pull her into me, and she lays her head on my chest. I pull the blanket up. “Do you want to watch tv until you fall asleep?”

Saige yawns, “Yeah, that’s fine. You pick us something. I don’t care what we watch.” I laugh and kiss her. I grab the remote and look through the channels. I finally see something I know we both will like and put it on it. Saige giggles a little when she sees that I’ve put it on True Blood. She has all the books, and we both like the show. She snuggles in closer to me, and by the third episode she is out. I turn the volume down and watch it for a bit longer, not really paying attention. My mind is on the woman in my arms. The mother of my children. Twins. Wow. I want to talk to Stone again about that house Iwant to build up by the lake for us. I know Saige will love it. I have it all planned out, and I’m hoping now that we can get it done before we have the babies. I have her ring in my room. I’m going to propose tomorrow. I’d already planned everything out with Stone and Loki. They are helping me set it all up. I know Saige loves that big Japanese weeping cherry tree. I’m taking her there. I just hope she knows I’m not asking because of the babies. I lightly rub her belly. I can’t believe I didn’t notice the little roundness that is there before. I fall asleep with my hand on her stomach.

“Saige,dress comfortable. We are going to go up to the lake,” I tell her. She is just now getting out of the shower.

“Okay, babe. Be ready in a minute.”

“I have to run into my room to get my trunks, I’ll be right back.” I rush out and go get her ring. I hide it in my pocket and go back to see if she is ready. Loki just went up and set out a huge blanket with a picnic basket for me, along with a cooler and radio. Walking back into her room, I see her throwing a dress type thing over her bikini. “You ready, butterfly?”

“Yeah, I think I have everything I need in my bag here.”I take the bag from her and grab ahold of her hand, walking out to the ATV that we are going to take up there. I love these things. The seats with the seatbelts, the windshield, the top that can be taken off. When we pull up to the pavilion, I park, and help her out. I hold her hand as I walk her down the path to the tree and picnic. Loki even went ahead and set up a few pillows to lean back on. Or lay on. Saige gasps when she sees everything. “Finn, did you… you didn’t have to do this. It’s beautiful.” She smiles at me.

“Come on, baby. Let’s go sit down. Stella fixed some of your favorites for us for lunch.” I help her settle against one of the pillows under the tree. I set all the food out. Chicken tenders, potato salad, strawberries, grapes, cheese cubes, even little cups of ranch. I see her looking at everything smiling. Deciding I can’t wait, I get on my knee beside her. I grab her hand, “Saige, my beautiful butterfly. I had this planned before you surprised me last night with the second of the best things to ever happen to me. You are the first. I’m sorry that I’ve been hot and cold with you, but you’ve helped me with that. I do love you with all my heart and soul, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you please do me the honor of being my wife and old lady?” I hold my breath waiting for her answer. I look and see tears running down her face.

“Yes! Yes, Finnick! I love you so much!” I slip the ring on her finger and kiss her until we are both breathless.

We spend the day at the lake just the two of us, talking about anything and everything. Swimming, it’s in the nineties. I tell her about the house that I am going to build for us up here, on the other side of the lake, and point out the spot to her. I love the look of excitement she gets about that. We talk about how many rooms we want in it, and I tell her that I have Ryker and his crew ready to start on it. We talk about the babies and think of some names. Early I know, but I’m so damn excited about this. I feel like the luckiest man in the world. I’ve got everything I need in my arms right now. We eat our lunch, and when Saige gets to feeling bad, I take her back to the clubhouse to get some rest.

We barely get in the door, when Stone yells for us. We head to the common room where he is. He’s smiling as we walk in and he sees the ring on her hand. But he stops when he sees how pale she is. “Congratulations, baby girl. We have an engagement dinner and party planned for tonight for you two. Why don’t you take my grandbabies you are carrying, and go rest up a little?” He hugs her and kisses her forehead.

“I’ll walk you back to the room, then I need to come back out and talk to Ryker and your dad, okay, baby?” She looks up at me smiling. I walk her back to the roomand help her get comfortable. I kiss her as she lays down, saying, “Call or text if you need me.” She barely nods before she is out, so I walk quietly to the door and lock it on my way out. I find Ryker and Stone in the bar with Tech, and none of them look very happy. “Ah, hell. Let me grab a beer then tell me what’s going on.” Cruz chuckles a little, coming up beside me getting a beer.