“No,” Nick announced, and then he—
Kissed me again.
It was a nice kiss.
His lips were warm and strong against mine.“Thank you, Francesca,” he said against my lips.“For the help—and the kiss.Then he smirked and stood.
He and Stefan talked for a while.Dani eventually came over to me and played with the babies for ten minutes or so.Then she wandered off to see her mother outside again.
Everything was going well.
Until it wasn't.
“Fuck,” Stefan said, and ran through the kitchen like he was on fire.
Before I knew it—he jumped into the pool.“What the heck?”I muttered right before I heard Giselle scream.
I stood, following Nick out onto the patio.
There in the pool was Stefan.
And a very wet, very surprised—Dani.
Giselle was in hysterics.“I didn't see, I didn't see!”
Stefan kissed Dani's cheek and held her close.Then he swam over to the side of the pool and sat Dani on the edge.“She's fine,” he said, then kissed her cheek again.
Oh, boy.
Giselle—
Lost it.
Completely.
And I couldn't blame her.My stomach felt absolutely sick.Thank goodness Stefan saw Dani slip under the water.Otherwise—
I shuddered to think of what might have happened.
Everyone seemed okay, so I went back to the babies while the others sorted Giselle and Dani out.There wasn't anything I could do, anyway.
Carlo and Eve eventually took a very distraught Giselle and a very wet Dani upstairs.
Stefan went up to shower and change.And I let him be.
That left just Nick and me with the babies.And it was a lot for us.Maybe if more of them could walk reliably on their own.Some were in the lying/sitting stage.And some in the pushing up and taking a few steps stage.Only Theo was able to get around on his own most of the time.But that also meant he could escape quicker than the others.
Somehow, Nick and I got them all fed, changed, and down for their naps.By then, I really was exhausted.
Once the last baby was down, I wandered off to our bedroom.I assumed Stefan had fallen asleep after his shower, so I walked in quietly and shut the door behind me.
I was surprised to see Stefan sitting in a chair beside the bed.He was hunched over, elbows on his thighs.Head in his hands.
I frowned and slowly walked over to him.“Stefan?Are you okay?”I asked quietly.
But he didn't answer.
“Stefan?”I touched his back—and then I felt—and saw it.
