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Ethan Jesse and Elijah Shane.
Instead of a gender reveal, we were going to have a name-reveal party after the game was over. I was excited to pass out all the little gifts I’d gotten the grandparents, especially the two proud grandfathers.
“Violet’s here. We can go now,” Lyric announced to everyone as he began wrangling his horde. “If you don’t have a coat, hat, and gloves on, I’m leaving you here.”
“But the van is just right there, Dad,” Ian pointed out.
“You can take everything off again inside so your seat belts fit right. But you are not stepping one toe outside in this weather, boy.”
“You’re so annoying,” Ian huffed. “It’s only going to take like two seconds to get in the van.”
“And it’s only going to take me half a second to hang you upside down in a trash can. Get your coat on.”
“Fine.”
“Fine,” Lyric mimicked, and I couldn’t help but snicker.
“You don’t know how glad I am that my kid isn’t the only one giving me grief today.”
“It’s the weather,” Mila said as she helped Isaac with his zipper after he grew frustrated with it. “The boys tried to sneak out of the room this morning to go build a snowman. Drake caught them before they could make it past the front door. They were in their pajamas, scarves, and each only had one glove on. They weren’t even wearing shoes, just socks.”
I sucked my bottom lip between my teeth, remembering Luca and Lyric when they were younger. Glancing at my nephews, I realized I was about to bring two more monsters just like them into the world.
Oh God, what had I gotten myself into?
Girls weren’t nearly as bad as those two, as their twin little sisters were proving by listening to Layla and my mom assisting them with their own coats and ski hats.
I paused for a moment, enjoying the sight of my very soon-to-be mother-in-law looking so vital and full of life as she assisted her granddaughters. Her recovery after surgery had taken a little over six weeks, but once she’d been put on thyroid medication and then the adrenal therapy meds, she’d been back to the same warm, lovable woman I fondly remembered from my childhood.
There was no use in regretting my wish for boys now, however. They were already cooking away in my womb, and even if I did have a few sudden misgivings about the little terrors Ethan and Elijah would become one day, it did nothing to hinder the excitement I felt to meet them when it was time.
It took an entire convoy of vans to get us all to the stadium. The team owners each had their own boxes with invited guests, but I’d rented a private box of my own just for our family. Caterers were already waiting for us with both adult and child-friendly snacks, as well as plenty of soft drinks on tap. Two different televisions were already playing pre-game interviews and commentary, while through the wall of windows, we had a bird’s-eyes view of the field and the staff getting everything in order. Fans were already filling up the seats, but the private box was both soundproof and bulletproof.
The stadium didn’t have a dome, but that didn’t seem to bother the fans. All week, there had been tips for anyone going to the game who was unused to the harsh Wisconsin temperatures. Thankfully, it wasn’t snowing, but the temperature was still negative. That wasn’t going to work in Tennessee’s favor, but they had portable heaters on the sidelines and thermal blankets, along with other things to keep the players warm when they weren’t on the field.
The moment we were inside, Love Bug tossed her jacket and other gear off and went over to the windows to watch. For the moment, she wasn’t worried about her hair, which I was immensely thankful for because I was already exhausted. Layla gave her a set of little pom-poms that she started shaking around and began to practice her cheers.
Several minutes later, Trinity arrived with her husband, Banks, Madalyn, and Avalyn. The moment Love Bug spotted Banks, she rushed over to him.
“Will you fix my pigtails? That dumb ski hat messed up my hair, and it needs to be perfect for my daddy.”
Banks tugged at one of her lopsided pigtails. “You’re in luck. I’ve gotten pretty good at doing Avalyn’s hair.” Taking her hand, he led her over to one of the chairs and sat down so that he was able to remove the hair tie and perfect her pigtails.
Briefly, I caught Trin’s gaze, and we both sighed before she became distracted by something her mom and Aunt Emmie needed help with.
“I want you to sit down and take it easy,” Dad said as he put a hand on the small of my back and urged me over to a chair closest to the windows. “Luca isn’t going to be able to focus if he’s worried about you. And from the way you’ve been walking, I can tell your feet are already starting to swell.”
“I’m okay,” I assured him, but I still took the seat he helped me sit in.
“What do you want to drink?”
“Just water.”
“Did you eat today?”
I bit the inside of my cheek to hide my grin. “Yes, Daddy. I ate breakfast, then lunch, and even a snack earlier. I always seem to be hungry these days.”
“I’ll bring you a plate of snacks,” he promised and walked over to where the caterers had set up some of the food buffet-style.
