Chapter 492

Olivia

“Olivia, what are you doing?”

The sound of Nathan’s voice suddenly coming from behind me startled me out of my reverie. I quickly turned with Elliot still in my arms to see Nathan standing in the doorway, still in his jacket. He looked worried.

“Elliot woke up during his nap and started crying,” I said. “So I came in here to check on him.”

Nathan sighed… “Olivia…” he muttered with exasperation as he rushed over to me. He quickly took Elliot out of my arms without warning, causing even Elliot to startle and begin to whine from being pulled away from his mother so suddenly.

“What’s the issue?” I asked. “I was fine.”

Nathan simply shook his head, bouncing Elliot to soothe him back to sleep. “Olivia, you’re on bed rest, he said.” He placed Elliot back down in his crib once his cries had subsided again and then took my hand and began leading me back to the bedroom. “You can’t be up.”

“What was I supposed to do?” I asked as I followed him. “I couldn’t just let him keep crying until you got back.”

“You could have called me.” His voice was firm. Once we were back in the bedroom, he lowered me onto the bed and then pulled the blankets back up over my lap. “You should have called me.”

I frowned. “I was hardly even up for five minutes,” I said. “I wasn’t going to call you over something that could be resolved that quickly.”

“Would you rather harm the baby, then?” His eyes flashed a bit as he spoke, his voice dropping to a low, commanding tone.

I fell silent at his sudden tone, and swallowed, blinking up at him. “I—” I stammered out, my voice catching at his words. “I didn’t mean to…”

Nathan let out a heavy sigh and shook his head. “I know you didn’t. But Liv, you have to listen to the doctor. You can’t… You can’t be taking these sorts of risks.”

I felt tears begin to prick at the backs of my eyes. No matter how much it hurt, Nathan was right; it was too much of a risk. I had thought, in the moment, that it would be okay to get up for a few minutes, just to check on my son.

But I guess I was wrong.

“I’m sorry,” I finally said, my voice barely more than a whisper. “I just… I fucking hate this.”

“I know. So do I.” Nathan sat on the edge of the bed again and scrubbed a hand through his dirty blond hair. “I’m sorry for snapping at you. I wish you didn’t have to go through this, either. And the baby…”

His eyes flickered over to my belly. Without a word, he pressed his palm against it, warm and reassuring despite everything.

“Our little one,” he whispered. “I just want him to be healthy.”

“So do I.” I placed my hand over his and blinked my tears back. “So do I.”

…

The sun had already dipped below the horizon, casting the living room in a dim blue glow. Nathan and I had just finished dinner, and he was beginning the arduous process of cleaning up and getting the twins ready for bed all by himself.

I didn’t know how he managed to do it. He had hardly stopped running around all day, and here I was, watching a show on the TV.

Suddenly, the sound of something shattering in the kitchen came to my attention. “Dammit!” I heard Nathan curse a moment later.

I paused what I was watching and sat up straight. “You alright?” I called out.

“Yeah, yeah, I just… I broke a glass, that’s all,” he called out. “Don’t get up.”

I bit my lip and leaned back on the sofa. After what had happened earlier, I wasn’t going to disobey my orders again. But when Nathan passed through the living room a few minutes later, looking more drawn and tired than he had before, I couldn’t just ignore him.

“Nathan, sit down.”

“I can’t. I have to get the twins down now otherwise they’ll be cranky.”

I watched him for a moment, still chewing my lip, before I had an idea. “At least let me help,” I said.

“Olivia, no—”

“I’ll just sit in the rocking chair. I can rock at least one of them to sleep.”

Nathan paused, blinking at me for a few moments as he racked his tired brain. I thought he might decline for a moment, but finally, he nodded. “Alright. But just the rocking chair, okay?”

“Sir, yes, sir,” I said with a mock salute, eliciting a smirk and a shake of Nathan’s head.

A few minutes later, Nathan and I were in the nursery together. I held Elliot in my arms, rocking him gently in the rocking chair, while Nathan was pacing and bouncing Aurora to sleep. The sound of soft lullaby music filled the air, and the window was cracked open just enough to let a sliver of the cool spring breeze in.

I sat in silence for a while, just relishing the feeling of my son against my chest, before I spoke up.

“Thank you for this,” I whispered.

Nathan met my gaze and offered me a brief, stiff smile. He paused, clenching and unclenching his jaw for a moment before answering. “I think I was a little too harsh earlier,” he said. “And maybe I’ve been too strict with you this week. It’s just…”

“I know. You don’t have to say it,” I replied. We were both in the same boat, surrounded by a sea of fear and uncertainty. There was also a part of both of us, too, that knew that we could very well do everything that the doctor ordered and the baby could still be in danger.

But neither of us would say that; because if we said it out loud, then it would become all too real.

Finally, Nathan turned and lowered Aurora gently into her crib. He leaned over her for a moment, watching her face as she drifted off to sleep, before he turned to me. Elliot was already fast asleep in my arms, and although I wanted to hold him for longer, I let Nathan take him from my arms and put him in his crib as well.

“Well, I guess I should—”

“Hang on. Wait there.” Before I could finish, Nathan walked abruptly out of the room. I furrowed my brow as I heard his footsteps retreat down the stairs, then return just a few moments later. This time, when he walked back into the room, he was holding something behind his back.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

Nathan’s cheeks flushed a slight shade of red. Without a word, he pulled out what he was hiding: a soft wolf plushie. I gasped as I took it from his hands, feeling its softness between my fingers.

“What’s this?” I whispered.

“I, uh… I was waiting until the baby was born,” he said, “but I wanted to give it to you now. It’s for Alvin. I thought it looked like… like his wolf.”

At his words, I felt my heart clench. It did look like Alvin’s wolf; such a dark shade of brown it was almost black. The face was soft and innocent, and reminded me of a younger Alvin—back before everything went to hell.

I lifted my teary gaze from the plushie to look at Nathan.

“Do you like it?” he asked.

“Yes,” I breathed. “I love it.”