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“Good morning,” I greeted the three men.
“Hello,” they responded, eyeing me. Cole put his arm around me. “Joe, Jim, this is Bailey Peterson, your niece. Bailey, these men are your uncles. They were your dad’s brothers. Joe, and Jim Peterson.”
“Hello,” I said, smiling.
“Damn, Levi, you’re absolutely right. She is a beauty. Why do you have your arm around my niece?” Joe asked Cole, “Come here, girl, and let me look at you. Levi told us you haven’t seen your daddy since you were three. We know Jonah was very proud of his girls. So, we all assumed he must be deceased.”
“I wondered if your mother knew what happened to him and decided not to inform you girls. About twenty years ago, we received a letter from your mother saying that Jonah had passed away. We got the letter because we were planning to visit him, and we wrote to let him know about our visit. Jonah would never have ignored our family or his daughters.”
“I don’t know if she knew what happened to him. She used to tell us he left us. I’m sorry; I don’t know anything else.”
“Levi, can the Delta Force do anything?”
“I’ll see what we can do. Now, how about we start cleaning.”
I was cleaning the kitchen when I heard a baby giggling, and I turned around. A woman with two babies stood laughing as she made faces at them. “Jackie,” I must have said it out loud because she turned and looked at me. “Jackie,” I could feel something was about to happen, and I fainted, hitting my head on the buffet I had just polished.
I thought I heard Cole shouting, but then I would drift in and out of consciousness. “What the hell happened to her? Damn it, someone get me something to clean this blood away so I can see what the hell happened.”
“She called me Jackie, and then she fainted. I couldn’t catch her because I had both of my babies in my arms. Is she going to be okay? Uncle Joe said you claimed her before any other man in the area could meet her. Is that true? You better not break my cousin's heart.”
“She’s my fiancée. I won’t break her heart. She fainted because you look exactly like her sister.
I opened my eyes, and Cole had a frown on his face.
“Why are you frowning at me?”
“I’m not frowning at you.”
“Yes, you are,” I heard the young woman say. I turned my head, and there she was with a baby on each hip. I couldn’t take my eyes away from her face. I knew I was crying. There was nothing I could do about it. “Are you okay?” she asked.
I wiped my face off and nodded. I’m sorry, you must think I’m crazy. First, I faint for no other reason than you look like my sister, and then I cry like a baby. Jackie was murdered when she was seventeen.”
The young lady walked over and handed both babies to Cole, who looked like he was holding two poisonous snakes. Then she turned to me and hugged me. “I’m so sorry about your sister. I hope we can be best friends and cousins. My name is Jaz, well, it’s Jazmine, but everyone calls me Jaz. Has my brother had you working all morning? So, you and Viper are engaged to be married?”
“I volunteered to work. I don’t mind. I like to stay busy. We aren’t really engaged; Cole made that up so the family wouldn’t think badly of me with him staying at my cabin. You look so much like Jackie; she would have loved to meet you.”
“My name is Bailey. I’m going to help Levi on Saturday. I showed him a photo of Jackie, and he and Cole said you looked just like her, but I was surprised by how much you really do look like her,” I touched her hair, and the tears began to fall again.
“If it’s hard for you to see me, I can leave.”
“No, please stay. I’ve been just an emotional wreck lately. Let me meet your babies.”
“Okay, you are going to love them. They are the best babies in the world. Where did Viper go with them?” We started walking, and we found them on the sofa. Cole was singing to them, but they didn’t seem to enjoy his singing.
“I’m going to the restroom while I have the chance,” Jaz said. I smiled when one of the babies farted on Cole, and he threw back his head in laughter.
“Here, take this one. He’s the gassy one,” Cole said, handing me the baby.
I held him, and he stared at me. I didn’t know if he liked me or not, but this was the first time I had ever held a baby. I didn’t realize they smelled so good. “Hey,” I said, smiling. The baby planted a wet kiss on my mouth, leaving slobbers on my lips, but I didn’t mind. A thought struck me, and I realized what I needed. My decision was made, and a smile crept across my face. My grin grew as I made my decision.
I turned to Cole, noticing the puzzled look in his eyes. “I want one of these,” I said, smiling. “I want a baby. I need a baby. Having a baby will fill the void in my heart left by Jackie dying. I can be happy again. I can pour all the love I have into my baby. Surprisingly, I never considered this before. Of course, I’ve never held a baby before.”
Cole shook his head, a concerned expression on his face. “Bailey, I hope you’re not suggesting that you and I should have a baby together. That’s not happening.”
“No, I wasn’t thinking that at all. I’ll have my own baby,” I replied.
“And who will be the father?” Cole demanded.
