CeCe rested her head on his shoulder. “We did good.”
“We did great.”
They lay like that for an hour, staring into space and listening to the faint tune of Christmas carols piped through the hospital’s hallway speakers. One of the nurses interrupted their quiet time as she rolled in the twins.
Charlie’s blue hat was already loose, showing a puff of blond hair like his father’s. Eva’s cheeks were as rosy as the bow in her blonde curls, her cheeks plumped in a smile. “She’s already smiling, look, babe.” Evan held Eva up to CeCe.
The nurse muttered, “That might be gas,” but no one heard her.
“Mrs. Lawson, did you want to try breastfeeding?” the other nurse asked.
CeCe sat up, adjusting her pillows. “No better time than the present.”
Evan stepped back with Eva while Charlie got settled with CeCe. His lip trembled at the sight: the woman he loved more than life with the two people he would die for. These little wonders had already captured his heart, and he couldn’t stand the level of happiness surging through him.
Once the nurses left and the babies were fed, Evan sat next to CeCe with Charlie, his tiny head resting on Evan’s shoulder. “You doing okay?” he asked as CeCe’s eyes drooped with fatigue.
“I’m perfect,” she hummed, patting Eva’s back until she let out the cutest belch either had ever heard. “Thank you,” CeCe said, eyes fluttering closed.
“For what?”
“For asking me out ten years ago, for marrying me, for starting a bakery together, for staying by my side during all the IVF treatments, and for all the bottles you’re going to be making in the very near future.” Her lips quirked.
Evan adjusted Charlie so he could reach out for CeCe’s hand. Being mindful of the wires, he held her hand and hoped she could sense how happy he was; how much joy radiated out of every pore.
“I would say anytime, but I think two children will be plenty.”
“Agreed.”
As she dozed, CeCe hummed along with the tune ofSilent Night. Evan closed his own eyes, falling into the moment and reveling that his family—his life—was complete. He’d gotten everything and more for Christmas this year, and he knew he was the luckiest man in Buckeye Falls.
CHAPTER 14
Same time next year?
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