“Congratulations; both babies are girls.” He smiled.
I gasped. I’d always dreamed of having a daughter and now I was going to have two. I looked over at Ian as he kissed me softly.
“Girls, Rory. We’re going to have two little girls running around the house.” He smiled as his eyes began to water and he hugged me.
“I’m so happy, Ian.”
Once the doctor finished up the ultrasound and gave us the pictures, Ian helped me up from the table and kissed me. “Our daughters are going to be absolutely beautiful, Rory.”
“I hope they look like you.” I smiled.
“No, sweetheart, they’re going to look just like their mommy. Let’s stop by Prim and tell Adalynn the great news.”
Ian was so thrilled. You could see the happiness all over his face, but his eyes were where you could really see it. While we drove to Prim, Ian kept his hand on my stomach the whole ride.
“Why are you doing that?” I laughed.
“I’m touching my daughters. I want them to know that I’ll always be there for them. We need to think of names for them, Rory.”
“I think we have some time to think some up.” I smiled.
We pulled into Ian’s parking spot at Prim and rode the elevator up to Adalynn’s office. Her door was already open and she was on the phone when we walked in.
“You tell that ass**le that I said it’s to be corrected before print and, if he doesn’t do it, then I’m coming after him and his job! Got it?” she said as she slammed down the phone.
“Whoa, Adalynn in action. I like that!” Ian winked.
She got up from the chair, walked over, and gave us both a hug and a kiss. “This is a wonderful surprise. What brings the two of you here?”
Ian looked at me. “Can I tell her, Rory?” he asked in excitement.
“Yes, go ahead.”
“Tell me what? What happened?”
“The babies are girls. We’re going to have two daughters.”
“AH! That’s so awesome. I’m so happy for both of you!” Adalynn exclaimed as she hugged us again. “Rory, do you know what this means? Shop, shop, shop! I can’t wait to shop for baby girls!”
I smiled at her enthusiasm. She was just as excited as Ian and I were and there was something I wanted to talk to Ian about later.
“Come on, sweetheart. We need to get you home and off your feet.”
Adalynn looked at me and winked. “I’ll call you later, Rory. Oh, and Ian, about that meeting, the day you set it up for is perfect.”
Chapter 38
Ian
“Are you comfortable, sweetheart?” I asked her as we were in the air headed to New York.
“I’m very comfortable. Thank you.” She smiled.
I had a business meeting in New York that I had to attend with Connor regarding the property sale for his art gallery. We were only going to be there a couple of days because Paris was waiting for us. Rory was so excited to see Ellery. I had overheard them talking on the phone last night about the pregnancy and babies. I grabbed us both a bottle of water and sat down next to her on the couch. I leaned over, lifted up her shirt, and kissed her bare stomach.
“Let’s talk names.” I smiled as I sat up.
“Okay. You first,” she said.
“I was thinking we could make a game out of it. I’ll say a name and you say another that starts with the same letter.”
“Gretchen,” I said.
“Gabby.”
“Beth.”
“Brianna.” She smiled.
“Lucy.”
“Lexi.”
“Madeline.”
“Margaret.”
“Really, Rory?” I asked.
“Sorry, I couldn’t think of anything else.” She laughed. Okay, let me say a name first.”
“Go ahead, sweetheart.”
“Ashley.”
“Ariel. Like the princess.” I smiled.
Rory’s face lit up. “I love Ariel.”
“And I love Ashley.”
“Ian, I think we just named our little girls.”
I leaned over and gave her tummy a light kiss. “Hello, Ashley and Ariel Braxton.”
****
Our time was well spent in New York with Connor and Ellery. After Connor and I finished up our final meeting, the four of us spent the day at Central Park with Julia. She was an adorable little girl and she loved to screech. My ears hurt every time she let one out. She was a very happy baby and I hoped to be the kind of father Connor was to her. Ellery and Rory took a walk to the hot dog stand and left Julia with us.
“She’s a beautiful little girl, Connor.”
“That she is, my friend. She’s my little princess and the joy of my life. You’ll see what I’m talking about when your daughters are born. Wow, Ian, two babies at the same time.”
I chuckled. “I know. It’s going to be quite an adjustment.”
While I held Julia’s hands up as she tried to walk, Ellery and Rory came back with the hot dogs and chips. Ellery put Julia in her stroller and we all sat on the blanket, ate our hot dogs, and had a good time.
****
Up in the air, again. This time, we were on our way to Paris. Rory was so excited to see Andre. I told him we were coming, but to act like he didn’t know when he saw us. Instead of staying at Adalynn’s, I rented us a suite at the Le Burgundy Hotel. I wanted this trip to be perfect for her.
“Where are we staying? Are we staying at Adalynn’s place?” she asked.
“No, sweetheart, we’re staying somewhere else. It’s a surprise.” Little did she know that I had a few surprises up my sleeve for her.
Rory began to shift in her seat. It was almost as if she was uncomfortable.
“Are you okay, sweetheart?” I asked.
“My back is hurting a little bit. It’s hard to get comfortable in this chair.”
I got up from my chair and took her hand. “Come sit over on the couch and let me give you a massage.”
She smiled as I led her to the couch where she sat down with her back to me. I began to massage her lower back and she started to moan. She sounded so sexy and she was turning me on. Suddenly, she let out a scream and placed her hands on her stomach.
“Sweetheart, what’s wrong? Did I hurt you? Did I hurt the babies?” I was scared shitless at that moment.
“Oh my God, Ian. I think I felt one of the babies kick!”
“No way! Are you sure?”
She took my hand and placed it on the side of her stomach. I held it there for a few moments and then I felt it. I gasped as she looked at me and smiled.