Courage (Heroes of Big Sky 1)

“I have no problem with that.”

He crosses his arms over his chest and closes his eyes again.

“You’re tired.”

“A little.”

“You can go to bed. I’ll just order these things here in a few minutes and be right behind you.”

He shakes his head, his eyes still closed. “I like being here with you. I can just chill here until you’re done.”

I smile. I love hanging out with him like this, too. More evenings than not, we end up here on the couch, on different electronics, doing our own things. But we’re together. And it’s so nice.

I didn’t realize I was so alone before Sam and the kids came into my life full time. I didn’t feel lonely, but I was certainly alone when I look back on that time.

And now, I’m never by myself.

I can’t even go to the bathroom without one of the kids asking a question or waiting on the other side of the door.

I finish the last of my wine and just as the clock clicks over to midnight, I go through and check out of the retailers, snagging some fun gifts for the kids.

When I’m finished, I close the computer and set it on the floor, then watch Sam. He’s asleep. Snoring softly.

He should have gone to bed.

God, I love him. Everything about him. He’s handsome and funny. His smile can totally disarm me.

We were thrust into this situation, this family. A year ago, I would have thought it would be awkward.

But it’s not. It’s comforting. Comfortable. And surprisingly easy.

Not that raising twins is easy, not at all. But with Sam here, working with me, it’s not just doable, it’s also fun.

He sniffs and shifts his head, cracking one eye open.

“Are you watching me sleep like a creeper?”

I grin. “Yeah. Kind of.”

“Come on, creeper.” He yawns and stands, holding his hand out for mine. “Let’s go to bed.”

* * *

“You’re in such good shape for having a baby just a month ago,” I inform Fallon as we drive from the bigger city not far away back to her house.

The storm had cleared by this morning, and by the time I drove out to the bird sanctuary to pick my friend up, the plows had been out to do their jobs.

I didn’t have to miss Black Friday, after all.

“Yoga,” she says simply. “It does wonders for lots of things. You should come to a class.”

“I’ve actually thought about it. After the kids go back to school from Christmas break, I’ll do it. Are you feeling well?”

“I’m great. I had some clotting issues after the baby was born, but it’s all been resolved.”

I frown and glance over at her. “What kind of clotting issues?”

“After I delivered the placenta, my body didn’t want to clot, and I bled a bit. Had to have a transfusion. It was kind of a mess.”

“You could have died.”

She nods. “If it had happened years ago, I likely would have. Thank God for modern medicine. Gave Noah a scare, but it all worked out. And now we have little baby Ezio.”

“What does his name mean? It’s so different.”

“Eagle.” I glance over as she grins at me. “It’s appropriate for our family.”

“I should say so. I love it.” I turn down the road that leads to Noah and Fallon’s home. “Where are you going to hide all of these bags?”

“In the garage,” she says and taps a button on her phone. The garage door opens automatically. “We’ll stash the goods in there.”

“I’ll back up to it.”

I maneuver the car around so I can open the hatchback of my SUV, and we can easily transfer Fallon’s things to the garage.

When we’re finished, I toss the sheet I brought with me over my bags so the kids can’t peek in the back and see everything.

We walk into the house, to utter quiet.

“Where are the kids?” Fallon asks Noah quietly.

“They’re all zonked out,” he says with a grin. “I ran them all ragged this morning. They just passed out about twenty minutes ago.”

I bite my lip. “I hate to wake them up, but I really should head home.”

“They can stay,” Fallon says with a shrug. “It’s the holiday weekend. They can go home tomorrow.”

I frown. “Are you sure?”

“They’re honestly no trouble,” Noah says.

“This way, you can go hide your things without them lurking,” Fallon adds.

“That’s definitely a plus.” I nod and then hug my friend. “Thanks. I appreciate it. We’ll come grab them tomorrow morning after breakfast.”

“No hurry,” Fallon says. “Have a good evening.”

She waggles her eyebrows, making me laugh.

I drive home and take my time unloading the vehicle. When I have everything in the living room, I close and lock the car, and my phone rings.

“Hey there.” I grin and close the front door behind me.

“Hello yourself,” Sam says. “Still shopping?”

“No, I just got home. I did some major damage today, but it was a lot of fun.”