Tess rubbed her temples in a clockwise motion for five seconds, then reversed direction. Her head was pounding. Why couldn't Zane just shut up? Why? She already yelled at him once. But, no. And what he was doing with the kids was dangerous.
Their Christmas tree was a huge Scotch Pine that nearly reached their twenty-foot high ceiling. Okay, it wasn't that tall. But tall enough to be dangerous. What if the damn thing fell? What was he thinking? Oh he was annoying her with the game he was playing with the children.
Zane, Cole, Lee, Alex and Mia were all running around and around the tree playing tag instead of hanging ornaments. She walked away once after he promised to settle down, but now she could clearly hear she had to warn him again. Untying her apron, she tossed it down onto the counter with a huff.
"What if mama sees?"
"Shh. She won't if we do this fast enough. Lee, daddy's gonna put you on Cole's shoulders and then Cole I'll...,"
Over. My. Dead. Body. Cole, please put your brother down."
"Told you, Daddy," Cole craned his neck up at his father.
Zane chuckled. "Relax. I knew you were listening. I wasn't going to do anything dangerous."
"And running around this thing isn't?"
"No? It's not gonna fall, Tess. I put it up."
"And?"
"Trust my work," he shrugged.
"No thanks. Come on kids. It's almost time for dinner."
"I could have done it, mama. I'm strong," Cole puffed his chest out, demonstrating his muscles. "And I'm eight," he shrugged to match his father.
"I'm twooo! Two, two, twooo!" Mia held up three fingers as she marched around the tree stopping to peer into the only ornament hanging on the tree.
"I'm eight!" Lee bellowed.
"I'm eight!" Alex punched Zane's leg.
Zane scooped Alex up and tickled him. "All of you are three," he corrected.
"Tomorrow is Christmas Eve, and we need to get everything done, guys," Tess complained.
"Well, I was trying and you stopped me."
"The star can wait for your brother," Tess waved Zane away.
Tomorrow was a big day. Aside from it being Christmas Eve, it was also the day they planned on revealing their baby's gender. It was one thing to have Cole, and another to have the triplets, but it was a complete mortification when she learned she was pregnant...again. Guess she never heard of birth control. Either way, she was the only one who knew the deets. With the exception of her mother-in-law, sister-in-law, Carrie and her father. So almost everyone knew while Zane was in the dark, along with her father-in-law and brother-in-law. So she was a bad secret keeper when it came to the women in her life. It was just too hard to keep her lips zipped! She was beyond excited now that the reality of her pregnancy finally settled in her brain.
Tess smirked as Zane helped her get dinner on the table and served their kids. None of this would be possible if it weren't for Zane's bravery as well as her own.
The memories from the day of her escape were clear in some areas and blurry in others. The most prominent was her reunion with her family.
Her father, Cole, Karrie, Zane's parents and siblings, seemed to have aged during the short time she was missing. The fear in their eyes, melting away to complete relief, brought her to her knees that day. She had never felt more loved in all of her life.
After that, she vowed to make the most of every minute with Zane and her new family. They made it official at Zane's parents' home two weeks later, with a little ceremony and intimate dinner. While Marlie and Evelyn assured her they could plan a large wedding, Tess didn't want any publicity. She did let them help her find a dress, and they seemed satisfied with that.
Shortly after, she found out she was pregnant with triplets no less. She shouldn't have been surprised with Zane himself being a triplet, but she was. Once they found out their family was going to expand, Zane built them a new home. The luxury was that the triplets would all shift into their own rooms once they were old enough to be on their own. Now, rooms were going to have to be shared. But that was a long way away, and she wasn't too worried. After this, however, she planned on getting her tubes tied. Her and Zane were too reckless.
Tess sat down and watched Zane interact with the kids. He changed so much over such a short amount of time. But had he really? Maybe not. Maybe now he was just being himself. Just as goofy as his siblings. He loved playing with the kids and had no troubles staying at their level for hours.
The kids loved climbing all over him and dragging him everywhere. He was a good dad. More than good. It was a safe bet to say, he was more their friend and she the parent. None of them listened too well to him compared to her. She wasn't sure if it was because he was the one to stay home with them and work from home while she ran her tattoo business, but it was a safe bet they would be seeing her around the house more as her belly grew.
At only five months, she looked like she was ready to pop. She was miserable but excited. She couldn't wait for the gender reveal.
"Mama, are you okay?" Cole's little eyebrows formed a concerned v.
Tess smiled. Cole was eight years old now. How did time fly so fast? He was still her little boy, but not by a height standard. It was probably a safe bet he would be as tall as his father. She also she loved that he still called her mama rather than mom.
"Yes, baby. Why?"
He reached over and rubbed her belly. "Does your belly hurt when all the babies move around in there?"
Zane choked on his water, spraying Alex in the face.
"Ah!" Appalled, Alex quickly grabbed his cup, hopped up onto his chair and dumped it over his father's head.
"Alex! No. That's not nice, sweetie," Tess pulled herself up and grabbed a towel.
"But daddy got me all wet!" he argued.
"What did you say?" Zane's ice blue eyes zeroed in on Cole, then flicked back to Tess. "What did he say?"
"Mama has babies in her? I was wondering if it hurts when they all move around at the same time."
"Cole, I never said that," Tess frowned.
"I know."
"Don't say shit like that, kid. Christ. I almost had a heart attack," Zane wiped his face.
"Sorry. But I did see them move at the same time," Cole pointed at his mother trying to impress the truth.
Tess' mouth dropped open.
Zane turned to his wife, "Cole, can you watch your brothers and sister for a second while I talk to your mother?"
"Yup. I'm eight, dad. Remember?"
"Yeah. Tess. In my office. Now."
Tess threw her towel down and stomped her way into the study. "What."
"What? Why am I always finding out from our son about my...fatherhood?" Zane frowned, unsure if he made sense. "Yeah. Explain."
"This is stupid. I'm having one baby," she bit her lip.
"Oh! You're lying! You always bite your lip when you're lying. I can't believe this? When were you going to tell me?"
"Tomorrow. You know, had you been with me to my appointments you would have known too."
"I was running the shop for you, dear. You said it was okay not to go." Zane groaned, dropping himself into his chair running a hand down his face. "How many? Is it twins? Please tell me it's just twins."
"It's just twins."
"Thank fuck," he sighed looking up at his wife. But his face melted. "Fuck! It's triplets again! How? How."
Tess shrugged. "I don't know. It's your fault. Besides, what are you so upset about? I'm the one who has to carry them all. You think it's easy? My body is gonna be wrecked! I have more stretch marks than a damn road has cracks! How do you think I feel? I can never wear a bikini again."
"Good. I don't want you wearing a bikini. Your body is mine. Not everyone else's." Zane eyes grew as he watched Tess' expression. "Buut, you can wear a bikini if you want to. It's your decision," he held his hands up in surrender.
"Are we done?"
"Yes."
"Good. Let's eat."
Leave it to Cole to be so perceptive. She was having triplets again. What were the odds? While she couldn't wait for the pregnancy to be over with, she wouldn't change a thing. She always longed for a large family. To think, a few short years ago it was just herself and Cole. Now, she had a full house soon to be even fuller. She would be mother to seven children.
The thought alone had her choked up. Everyone was going to be so thrilled. April babies. They would be arriving around Easter. They would be her little hatchlings. Tess giggled earning all eyes.
The corner of Zane's mouth twisted as he continued to help his children. "Let's finish up guys. We have to start getting you ready for bed."
"I'm not going to bed," Alex challenged.
"Yeah, ya are," Zane shot back.
"Nope," Alex wiggled his way off of the chair and started to run.
"Alex! Get back here right now!" Zane boomed.
It was the first time Tess ever heard Zane yell at the kids. Even Cole jumped. Mia's little face started to scrunch and Lee sniffed before both of them started to cry. Cole got off of his chair and found Alex hiding behind the sofa in tears.
"Found him!" Cole ratted, lightening the mood.
Tess busied herself with settling Lee and Mia while casting futile glances Zane's way. Yup. He was definitely stressed out about this triplet thing. What was he so afraid of?
"Cole and I will help Lee and Mia. You can help Alex," Tess patted Zane's shoulder, receiving a grunt in response.
"Come on, Alex," Zane's deep voice commanded.
"No!"
So Alex wasn't so affected after all. Tess worked to hide her amusement.