Page 166 of The Rule of Three

He lets it slip for a moment. Beaming, he nods. “I’m so excited.”

It’s wild to think that next time we come back here, we’ll havetwochildren. Two little boys. Archer wants to keep trying for a girl, but I have a feeling that once Evren is here, our family will feel complete.

His name means universe because that’s what he will be. Our whole world. He represents this perfect piece of heaven we’ve carved out for ourselves. And once he’s here, it’ll be complete.

Kiran means light, which he was. The light after the storm.

“Okay, got the bag,” Julian says as he opens the front door. Archer helps me slide my shoes on my swollen feet, and then I clutch his strong arm as we walk toward the elevator. The same one we met in.

Once we all climb on, I hang on to Archer’s arm as another contraction nearly sends me into a panic. Silently, I close my eyes and breathe through the pain. It’s a cruel and brutal ache that intensifies to the point of agony before eventually easing up.

When I open my eyes, I see the screen of Julian’s phone. He’s texting his mom, who has just sent a photo of her and Kiran, grinning together on the couch.

“I bet he’s so excited,” I say, seeing his cute, cheeky grin.

“She said he’s been asking all day,” Julian replies.

Staring at the photo of our three-year-old, I see so much of myself in his face. My brown eyes. My dark wavy hair. My golden-brown skin.

Julian’s straight nose and almond-shaped eyes.

And I swear…call me crazy, but his smile bears a striking resemblance to Archer’s.

Which I am aware…is impossible. Technically, we don’t know whose sperm it was that fertilized the egg, and unless the boys want to know when they’re grown, we have no plans of finding out. Even if I do see more of Julian in his features, it doesn’t make any difference to us.

This is our family. A home isn’t built by DNA—it’s built by love. Whether Evren comes out with Julian’s bright blue eyes or Archer’s curly brown hair, he’ll be our son no matter what.

When we walk off the elevator, the building staff is waiting, ushering me toward the car as if I’m precious cargo. I waddle out into the late afternoon light, and Lucien helps me into the back of the car.

My hand goes to my belly, feeling Evren kick. As Julian climbs in on my left, I lean my head on his shoulder. “You’ll call my mom too, right?”

He kisses the top of my head. “Of course.”

Archer climbs in the opposite side, his leg bouncing excitedly as Lucien takes off. I clutch his hand in mine because I know deep down Archer hides his fear and insecurities in humor and excitement.

“Let’s go have a baby,” I say sweetly as Lucien dodges traffic on his way to the hospital.

Archer and Julian each rest a hand on my stomach throughout the entire journey, and even through the agonizing drive where every bump in the road hurts like hell, I couldn’t be happier. To think I was once afraid this life was too radical.

But if being in love and building a family is a radical act, then I’ll happily break every rule in the book.