TWO updates in one night? I hate making the end of the book go by so fast, but I'm also so eager to see it finished. I really hope you guys enjoy this chapter, even though it isn't my favorite writing.
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Francesca felt like she was losing her mind slowly and painfully.
Gabriella was two months old now, but lately she wasn't sleeping through the night at all. She was awake all day and she was awake all night. There wasn't a single thing that would make her stop crying, Francesca had tried everything except sitting on the couch and crying about it.
Scratch that, she was trying that now.
Gabriella was wailing in her little rolling cot next to the couch Fran was sitting on. Maran quietly walked into the room and stood behind the couch.
"Are you sure you don't want me to—"
"No, Maran. If you can't take the screaming, wait outside. I'll figure it out," Fran shouted over her baby's cries. She felt so guilty she really felt like the worst mother in the world because she couldn't help her child.
Fran picked Gabriella up and started bouncing her around the room like she'd been doing for the past three hours. It was two o'clock in the morning and this at least quieted her cries a little.
"Mrs.Romano? Boss is on the phone for you," Maran said. He winced at Francesca's glare and walked away as soon as she took the phone from his hands.
"Fran? What's wrong? Why is Gabriella crying?"
"I don't know," she sobbed into the phone, holding it between her head and her shoulder.
"Hey, hey, it's alright," he soothed, "Have you tried feeding her? Changing her?"
"I've tried everything, Tony, I don't know what else to do."
"What about Maran or Nathan trying to hold her? It could give you a break."
"I can't," she sniffled, "I don't want her to think they're you."
"What? That doesn't make any sense," he said. She laid Gabriella back in her cot but picked her back up quickly when her shrieks got louder. More guilt filled her when Nathan came tiredly stumbling down the stairs.
"I don't want her to think they're her father," she whispered, not wanting the two unbelievably nice men in the kitchen to hear her admission.
"Fran, babe, I promise you that won't happen. I promise you. Let one of them hold her, alright? Stay on the phone," he suggested. She sniffled and slowly walked into the kitchen and gave both men an embarrassed smile.
All she had to do was hold Gabriella out a bit and Maran was there in a second to scoop her daughter out of her hands. Her cries slowly quieted down to little whimpers as he shushed her and bounced her around.
Francesca's mouth dropped open and Nathan gave Maran a small smile.
"Will—will you sit in her nursery with her?" The bags under Francesca's eyes were speaking more than her words were. Maran didn't even hesitate before nodding his head quickly.
"Of course I wouldn't mind, Mrs. Romano," he answered.
"Go to bed, Fran, and call me in the morning. Alright?" Tony's voice filtered through the air and Fran found herself nodding automatically.
She curled into the warmth of her bed as her husband said goodnight before hanging up. It wasn't hard to fall asleep at all.
It felt like she'd only slept for two hours, but when she woke up it was past lunchtime. The entire house smelled like food and she was greeted by the sight of Nathan cooking grilled cheese when she went downstairs.
"Good morning," she muttered hoarsely. Fran's eyes were unbelievably swollen from crying the night before and her hair was sticking out from her head. Nathan chuckled and slid a plate with two grilled cheese sandwiches on it.
"Maran is asleep with Gabriella in the nursery. As soon as his shift was over and I came in he passed out," Nathan laughed.
"I feel bad," she admitted. He sighed.
"You shouldn't feel bad at all. This is what we're here for."
"You're not here to take care of my child," she snapped. Fran hung her head. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."
"Helping you is a part of our job, Mrs. Romano. We don't mind at all. If you ever need anything at all, just let us know."
Francesca nodded and groaned as she took a bite of the first grilled cheese. It was insanely delicious and she couldn't remember the last time she ate. They talked a bit more before Fran left to wake Gabriella up and cuddled with her for most of the day.
This routine carried on the for three more weeks uninterrupted. Francesca would try and tire Gabriella out as much as she could before Maran woke up and took her for his shift. He promised her every night when she apologized for the inconvenience that it was absolutely no problem.
It never eased the guilt she felt.
Three weeks later and both Nathan and Maran were acting strange. They were both up during the day, which was extremely odd because she knew that Maran could pass out on command after his shifts.
Nathan also kept his promise. Fran was introduced to the three when they arrived, and she hasn't seen them since. They haven't stepped a foot inside, and she didn't even ask what they had to do to go to the bathroom. It was just another thing that made her feel guilty, but she couldn't have strangers in her house.
Maran had already woken up Gabriella up by the time Fran was downstairs. He was cooing at her and bouncing across the kitchen while Nathan heated up her bottle.
"Maran? You're still up?"
"This little girl woke up early," he said, tickling the baby's stomach, "I hope you don't mind that I got her up."
"Not at all, I just feel more guilty than usual," she half-joked. She made her way to the pantry to get her favorite cereal, which was stocked only for when Nathan wasn't cooking breakfast. She thought he just might feel tired today and didn't want to cook.
Just before she could open the pantry door a hand struck out and grabbed her. She screamed in shock and when arms twisted around her she looked to Nathan and Maran for help. They were simply smirking at her. As much as she tried to get out of the person's hold, it was impossible.
"Happy birthday, Francesca," came a voice behind her head. Her knees gave out and she fell limply into the man's—Tony's arms. She let out a loud sob.
"No, no, don't cry, Fran," he begged. She didn't listen to him and continued to sob in his arms. She was back in her husband's arms...this was all she'd wanted for the past few months and now it was happening. She tried not to let herself panic.
"I'm here, baby, it's alright—" Francesca cut her husband off but spinning around quickly and kissing him so hard he fell backwards onto the kitchen floor. They only stopped when they heard Gabriella whine lightly at the attention she wasn't getting. Their hands and mouths froze before ripping apart.
"You've met her?" Fran joked as the both stood and dusted off their clothes.
"I did," Tony smiled and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, "but I wanted to wait until you were here to hold her for the first time."
"Well then what are we waiting for?" Francesca shrieked and snatched her baby from a smirking Maran's hands. She led Tony into the bedroom and set up her phone to record them before turning to her husband.
"Tony," she smiled with tears in her eyes, "meet our daughter, Gabriella Priscilla Romano." Before she was even able to hand him the baby there were tears coming out of his eyes.
"You gave her my mother's name as her—"
"Middle name, yes," Fran interrupted, "now hold your daughter."
Tony took his daughter into his arms with the most caution and stared at her wide, dark brown eyes. She had little wisps of black hair on her head and the little outfit she was wearing said, "Daddy's Little Girl,".
Fran noticed the shirt and scowled.
"Maran," she scolded under her breath and Tony looked up at her and laughed.
"My family," he said, looking into Francesca's eyes, "this is my family." He stared at his daughter and could see her entire future...he was going to have a hard time letting her out of his arms, but he wanted to spend the rest of his life with his family no matter what the cost.
"I love you," he whispered to the little baby girl in a white shirt and some extremely small jeans, "and I will do everything in my power to give you the life you deserve."
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Thank you so much for reading! I hope you loved it as much as I love Frony...really not the best ship name, but if anyone could come up with a better one that would probably be better.
Let me know what you think!