Page 5 of Tinsel & Chrome
Chaos
Friday morning, his girl was up before the sun. He’d been tempted to tease her but he knew she was just anxious to bring Darby and Lorcan home. Truthfully, so was he. He grew up in a large family-he had three brothers and two sisters-and always knew he wanted to have a family of his own. It had been a bit of a blow finding out the woman he loved couldn’t have kids but he’d put that dream away and moved on.
Now, here they were getting ready to welcome a son and daughter into their home and their lives.
“Good morning, Kitten,”
he said as he entered the kitchen.
“Whatcha making?”
“Peanut butter cookies and chocolate chip cookies,”
she replied.
He chuckled.
“You’re planning on spoiling them rotten, aren’t you?”
he teased.
“Maybe, but after what they’ve been through they deserve it,”
she countered.
“Yeah, they do,”
he agreed.
“What can I do to help?”
“You can mix this batter while I get the current batch out of the oven,”
she replied, handing him a bowl.
“You got it.”
He stirred the batter until she got the pan out of the oven and set the cookies on the cooling rack. Then he handed it back to her.
An hour and a half and six dozen cookies later and she was done. They had a quick breakfast and then they were off to meet Lilian at the hospital.
Chaos held Indi’s hand as he drove. They had booster seats installed in the backseat for the kids, and a bag with some clothes for them to change into.
“This is a big step, Kitten. You ready?” he asked.
“I’ve been ready,”
she replied.
“I’m sorry they lost their mama, but I’m so glad they’re going to be ours.”
“That makes two of us.”
He squeezed her hand lightly.
“I know you wanted a big family, like the one you grew up in. Maybe after Darby and Lorcan are settled in, we can discuss adding at least one more.”
“Only if that’s what you want too, Kitten. I’m not going to pressure you.”
“I know, Hotstuff.”
She brought their hands to her lips and kissed the back of his hand.
He parked as close to the main doors as he could, got out, and helped Indi out. He placed his hand at the small of her back and escorted her inside.
“Good morning,”
Lilian said when they entered the lobby.
“Ready to take the little ones home?”
“Good morning, Lilian. Yeah, we are,”
Indi responded.
“This one has been up since five making sure everything was ready for them... and making a ton of cookies,”
Chaos interjected. “Oof,”
he joked when Indi smacked his stomach.
“I’m sure Darby and Lorcan will enjoy the fruits of your labor,”
Lilian said with a laugh. “Come on,”
she added and they took the elevator up to the pediatric ward.
“Good morning,”
Lilian said cheerily to the nurses.
“Has the doctor been around to discharge the kids yet?”
“He was just here. He said to let him know when you arrived,”
the nurse replied.
“I’ll alert him.”
“Thank you.”
They made their way down the hall and stepped into the room.
Indi
“Indi! Chaos!”
the kids squealed when they entered the room.
“Hello sweet ones. Are you ready to get out of here and see your new rooms?”
Indi asked.
“Yes!”
Lorcan said with exuberance.
“Uh huh,”
Darby added, a little quieter.
“Well, while we wait for the doctor, why don’t we get you dressed?”
Indi questioned. She held up the bag that had several options for them to choose from.
“We didn’t know what you would like, so we brought more than one outfit,”
she added as she took items out of the bag to set on the beds.
She watched as both kids picked at the clothes until they had what they wanted. Darby had chosen a cute brown, white, and pink plaid skirt, white tights, white sweater, and little brown boots. Indi took her into the bathroom and helped her dress before she returned to see what Lorcan had chosen.
Their little prince had chosen jeans with a long sleeve graphic tee in dark green and sneakers. She helped him get dressed too, and by the time they were back in the room the doctor was there.
He went through discharge instructions, including how to take care of the burns both children had, and then they were packing the games up and leaving.
Chaos carried Darby while Lorcan clung Indi’s hand as they stepped onto the elevator.
“It’s okay, little one. You’re safe,”
Indi assured him and the death grip he had seemed to lessen.
Once at the SUV, the got the kids buckled in.
“What do you say we get pizza to take home for lunch?”
Chaos offered.
“Cheese?”
Lorcan asked.
“Of course little man,”
he replied.
Indi called it in so they only had a short wait once they got to the pizzeria. It smelled so good, she knew they were all anxious to get home and eat.
After Chaos parked the SUV in the garage, they helped the kids out, she grabbed the bags while he got the food, and they led the kids inside.
“Welcome home. Let’s eat and then we’ll show you your rooms,”
Chaos said.
Indi grabbed plates and soon they each had a slice of cheese pizza in front of them.
“I hope you like your rooms. They’re next to each other and close to ours in case you need us,”
Indi told them.
When the kids were full, the leftovers were put in the fridge, and they took the kids upstairs to check things out.
“First, we have a bed fit for a princess,”
Indi said, opening the door for Darby.
The little girl squealed and Indi watched as she ran to the bed and flopped down on it. She rolled around before she climbed the stairs up to the bed in the loft where the castle turrets were.
Then it was Lorcan’s turn.
“And now for our little prince,”
Chaos said, opening the door for him.
“This is mine?”
Lorcan asked.
“Yep. All yours little man,”
Chaos assured him.
They watched as he checked everything out and then stood on the loft platform grinning at them.
“It’s cool!”
“We hoped you’d like it. Tomorrow we’re going to go shopping,”
Chaos told him.
“We want to make sure you two have things you like.”
After that, they curled up in the living room to watch Disney movies until it was time for bed.
“Remember, we’re right next door if you get scared,”
Indi reminded both of them before they tucked the kids into bed.
After a quick shower, Indi and Chaos stretched out in bed together.
“Are you happy, Kitten?”
“Yeah. You?”
“Absolutely,”
he assured her. He caressed her side as they relaxed together.
Indi was just drifting off when a scream jolted her awake.
“I got it,”
Chaos said and was out of bed in an instant. He soon returned with both children clinging to him.
“C’mere, sweetpea,”
Indi said, holding her arms out for Darby. She cuddled the little girl close and rocked her until she was asleep again. Indi tucked Darby under the covers while Chaos settled a sleeping Lorcan next to his sister.
“Looks like they’ll be sleeping with us for the forseeable future,”
Chaos whispered.
“Yeah, it does, and I’m okay with that,”
Indi replied.
“Me, too.”
She watched her husband settle down on the other side of Lorcan and closed her eyes. She listened to the children breathing, and listened as her husband’s breathing changed indicating he was asleep as well, before she finally let sleep claim her.