Page 23 of Ever After Between the Lines (Montgomery Ink Legacy)

brISTOL

I put my feet up and groaned. “Why am I one hundred and seven weeks pregnant. Why does someone think that this is okay to do to me?” I asked, and narrowed my eyes at my loving and handsome and evil husband.

Marcus just shook his head. “I realize that you didn’t get pregnant all by yourself, and I had some help in that, but you look gorgeous, so don’t growl at me.”

“Ixnay on the growlingay,” Ethan whispered as he held Kingston to him, trying to get the little tyke to calm down.

He was screaming, the colic a little too much for my nephew.

And then my brother-in-law Lincoln took Kingston from his husband’s arms, and the baby quieted down.

My brother narrowed his eyes at his husband, and Lincoln just grinned before leaving the living room.

“I’m pretty sure he did that on purpose,” Holland said, staring at her husbands and baby. “This week is all about Lincoln, but I think if we’re true to form, next week Kingston will stop screaming while he’s in my arms.”

I blinked and looked over at my sister-in-law. “That’s a thing? They take their turns?”

“Kingston seems to. And we’re going to pretend that that’s normal,” Holland said, before she yawned so wide I swore I could see her tonsils. “Sorry,” she mumbled and leaned against the soft cushion. “I think I’ve had around eight minutes of sleep this week.”

“That bad?” I asked, anxiety filling me. I put my hands on my stomach, felt a kick, and patted the little baby’s foot. “I really like sleep.”

“And you do a lot of it,” Marcus teased, rubbing my ankles.

“You’re lucky I love you, and you’re lucky that you’re rubbing my feet right now, or I would kick you. I just really want you to keep rubbing.”

“Anything you say, wife of mine.”

“That’s the way,” Aaron said, laughing as he handed his wife Madison a glass of water. “See? We need to follow Marcus’s advice. He knows what he needs to do as a husband.”

“Do whatever she says,” I agreed, and Marcus just rolled his eyes at me. “Sure, honey, whatever you say.”

“See,” I said, raising a hand, and then I groaned, with the baby kicking at my bladder. “I’ll have to get up soon to pee. This baby keeps kicking and rolling in certain places.”

“Are you dilated at all?” Holland asked, and Ethan shuddered.

“Please stop talking about my sister and dilation. There were a lot of things I learned during the childbirth process, things that will never leave my mind again, but I don’t need to associate them with my sister.”

“Amen,” Aaron said, and I flipped them both off, grateful that Lake, the only one of my nieces and nephews who were old enough to understand the gesture, wasn’t in the room at the moment.

“Grace and elegance, that is Bristol,” Liam muttered, and I growled.

“I am past due on this baby, the size of a beached whale, and still retaining so much water at this point, I feel like I could float. Or maybe I’ll sink like a stone because I’m so heavy. Don’t make fun of me.”

“Ah, the joys of pregnancy,” Holland said, laughing. “Just wait, Madison, this will be you.”

My newly pregnant sister-in-law turned impossibly green. “I think I’m going to be sick.” She scrambled off the couch and ran towards the bathroom, Aaron, on her tail.

“I’m trying not to take that as an insult, but it’s pretty difficult not to,” I said dryly, and everyone laughed.

“You know, the one good thing about adopting is that I don’t have to deal with whatever pregnancy brain you have. However, a new baby brain, even if the child you adopt is ten years old, is something.”

“Oh, I know,” I said, shaking my head at Arden. “Plus, I hear you’re getting a new puppy. There’s got to be puppy brain.”

“Oh yes, I had a lot more energy when Jasper was a puppy, but thankfully I have Liam to push around. And Lake will be there to help with training and picking up poop. See, that’s why you have kids. To help you with chores,” Arden said.

And my mom came into the room, laughing. “This is why I had the four of you. It helped me keep the house clean.” She paused, looked at all of us, and burst out laughing.

“I think she’s making fun of us,” I said, looking at my husband. “But, I’m too tired to piece together how.”

“I’ll explain it later.”

“I know you guys are talking about the next baby coming,” Holland began, looking at Arden. “Do you have a preference for an infant? Are you going with an older child again like Lake?” she asked, and I leaned forward as much as I could over the bump that was my stomach and looked at Arden.

“No preference,” Arden said. “Older children are usually harder to place, so we made sure that they knew that we were happy with either. As much as I had always thought about having children and being pregnant when I was little, and losing that part of that plan when I got sick might’ve hurt, I’m okay.

Honestly. You don’t need to step on eggshells when it comes to being pregnant and everything, okay? ”

I swallowed hard and met Arden’s gaze. “Are you sure?” I asked.

“I’m sure. I get to experience the joys and not joys of pregnancy between the three of you and between all of our friends because you guys never hesitate to share everything,” she said with a wink, and I laughed.

“Sorry, we do get into detail.”

“It doesn’t help that we’re all at some stage of pregnancy and baby-making at the same time,” Holland added.

“And so I get the joys of that with you guys, I get to feel little feet and elbows against my hands when I put my palms over your stomachs. But then, even though there is that sense of loss and wonder, I get something else out of Lake. I’m a mom.

It’s our first Christmas with our baby, and though I didn’t carry her to term, she’s everything.

She’s my child. And I know deep down in my heart that it’s no different than it would’ve been if I would’ve been the one that carried her.

” Arden sniffed, wiped her face, and then Liam was there, handing her a tissue.

“I love you,” he whispered, and kissed her softly. Tears were freely flowing down mine and Holland’s faces.

I hiccupped, and the baby elbowed me in the ribs prudently. “I think the baby is excited and wants to meet you soon. At least I hope so,” I mumbled.

Marcus wiped my face, kissed my cheek. “We’ll meet our baby soon. Don’t you worry.”

I was filled of worry, but I didn’t say that.

“You still don’t know if it’s a boy or girl?” my dad asked, leaning against the doorframe.

I looked up at him and shook my head. “We wanted to be surprised. We went with neutral colors anyway, and my favorite color was blue growing up, so it’s not like I need to conform to gender stereotypes.”

Dad just grinned. “You’re right. I know that you usually have lists of lists and would want things monogrammed with your baby’s name.”

“I know, that would have been nice. We have ideas for boys and girls and gender-neutral names. We’ll see what happens when they show up.”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” Marcus mumbled, before he sat with his back against the couch, his hand on my calf as he slowly massaged it.

“I could get used to this,” I said.

“Once the baby comes, he’ll be holding that infant and trying to get some sleep, and there goes the massage,” Mom said, and my dad rolled his eyes.

“I was always very attentive, Francine.” He nearly leered it, and I shuddered.

“I don’t want to know any of this,” Ethan said as he walked back into the room, Lincoln behind him with Kingston in his arms.

“Hey look, Aunt Madison said it was time to open the gifts,” Lake said, bouncing with Jasper behind her. He was like a big brother, constantly watching her, and I love the way the two interacted.

“Are you sure you’re up for it, dear?” Mom asked as Madison nodded.

“Yes, since I’m still standing, and feeling okay, let’s do this quickly.”

My brother Aaron had his gaze on her, watching her like a hawk, and I didn’t blame him.

I hadn’t known she had been hospitalized for a night because of a lack of fluids, in so much pain, and she could be hospitalized again, and it worried me.

With all of us going through our own issues, they’d wanted to keep it personal in the family, but now we all knew, and we’d be watching her.

Even when I reached week two hundred of pregnancy.

“Okay, it’s all the same gift, so only one of you needs to open it, so that way we don’t stress out everyone.”

“Well, here’s mine,” my mom said before handing it to Lake. “What do you say? Will you open it for Grandma?”

“I’ll help,” Lake said, and my mom sat down on the chair, Lake on her lap, and the two of them went to open the gifts.

Kincaid had his camera out and took pictures of everybody, and I knew I was going to hate the way I looked, how bloated I felt, and how horrible I felt later, but I wanted this memory.

And I knew that no matter what I felt about myself, it wouldn’t matter.

Because we had our family. And I was blessed.

I started crying again, even before they finished opening the gift, and Marcus looked at me.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Nothing. Everything’s fine.”

He gave me a look that said I was insane, but he still loved me. He’d been giving me that look often.

Zia and Meredith came into the room then.

Their hands clasped as they stood in the corner.

The room was packed to the gills with people that I loved, and I just grinned at my ex-girlfriend and best friend, and she gave me a little wave.

I knew the two were discussing babies and what would come next, and I wasn’t sure what direction they were going for.

I had a feeling, though, that a certain brother of mine would become a sperm donor if they had their way.

For some reason, the small group of us had already discussed it, mostly because I was nosy, and I wanted to make sure my family was happy.

Since Aaron was close friends with Meredith, and Zia was practically a Montgomery, it would only make sense that that was the way they would go. They had already talked about it with he and Madison as a possibility, and soon there’d be more to our family.

And I couldn’t help but cry at the love, the aching aspects of it surrounding us.

My mom let out a gasp, and Lake started clapping. “Oh, it’s so pretty, thank you,” Lake said, and I tried to move to look at it.

“Keep sitting, Bristol, before you topple over.”

I blushed under my mom’s happy chiding, and she turned the picture frame at us.

It was all of us, the Montgomerys, by birth, by happenstance, and by family.

Somehow the photographer, and I had a feeling it was Kincaid, had taken a photo of us all smiling or laughing and looking at one another or at the camera itself, but it was completely candid.

Everybody looked wonderful, happy, and we’re standing in front of Liam’s cabin, the one we went to as a family as often as we could, with the mountains and blue sky behind us, and love on all of our faces.

“Kincaid took this photo while he was there, and I asked him if I could find the perfect frames for everybody and give it to you. I realize that technically it should be a gift from Kincaid, so think about it as from all of us.” Madison began, leaning against Aaron.

Kincaid blushed and ducked a little bit behind his husband and wife. “It was no worries. I just happened to find a good photo, and Madison knew what she wanted to do with it.”

“Each of you guys will have one for your homes. You can hide it and only bring it out when we’re over, but it seems that we’re going to need lots of babysitters,” she said, patting her still flat stomach. “Meaning I expect you guys to have it out all the time.”

I laughed as Marcus took out our picture and unwrapped it so I could look at it closer. I couldn’t help but cry, looking at everybody. At our family. The one we’d made, loved, and cherished.

“This is perfect. There’s so many of us.”

“And only a snapshot in time,” Marcus began, squeezing my hand. “That’s not even all of our family, but so many.”

“I don’t know how I got so blessed,” I whispered. “But I’m so happy.”

We had been through so much heartache, pain, attacks. And somehow we had found our family, and it kept growing.

My father brought in a cheese board, and Julia followed him, another cheese board in her hand.

People started making up their little plates, snacking on the eight different kinds of cheeses they had in front of them. My mouth watered, but since most of it was soft cheese, I couldn’t partake.

A Montgomery without cheese for an entire pregnancy was not a happy, bubbly Montgomery.

I needed to have that crocheted somewhere. We could hand out the pillow to every pregnant family member.

I looked down at Marcus, and he rubbed my knee.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I’m honestly happy. This is the best Christmas ever. I wish we’d be able to share it with our little one.”

Marcus kissed my knee. “We will. Maybe next Christmas will be their first Christmas. They’ll come out when they’re in the mood.”

“It’s a Montgomery and Stearn. They’re going to take their sweet time no matter what.”

Marcus shrugged. “I took my time finding you. They should take as much as they want.”

“Look at you being so romantic.”

I nearly leaned down to kiss him, but I knew the angle wouldn’t work. Although at that exact moment, the baby decided to twist, and I groaned, clutching my stomach.

Marcus’s eyes widened and he scrambled to his feet. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m pretty sure Mom’s going to need a new couch,” I said, and everybody shot up from where they were sitting, and I looked down to where my water had broken.

“Well, it looks like a Christmas baby it is.”

And I promptly burst into tears.