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  She shook her head. “Franco will make my life more miserable than it is if I stay here. But, we’ll talk about that later. Go to your wife and let me start cooking.”

  Nick left the kitchen to his mother. She was an excellent cook and did all the cooking for the restaurant before it folded. The customers raved about the food. It was Franco’s fudging of the numbers in the books that killed the business. He wanted to be successful from day one and went all out when it came to the restaurant. When the bills started rolling in, there wasn’t enough money to pay them. Franco relied on Nana Barona’s money and when she died he tried to cover his debt and get back in business. He was an only child and no other heirs stood in line to collect. However, when Nana Barona died, she’d left the bulk of her estate to her family living in Italy and bequeathed Franco a lump sum of five-hundred dollars. Franco was his mother’s child in every way—Nana Barona was as much of a monster as Franco.

  He cleared his mind before entering the bedroom. “You look gorgeous lying on my bed,” he said crawling on the bed to lie next to Lincoln.

  She curled her arm around his and rested her head on his shoulder. “I could have stayed home, you know. How is your mother accepting me being here?”

  “She tried to have something to say but I put my foot on the brakes to squash that crap. You are my wife and you rule both apartments as woman of the house. She can deal with it or go back to Pop. She chooses to deal with it.”

  “You should give her the money to go to Italy. So what we’ll have to wait a while to buy a house. I can give up my apartment and move in here. We can decorate the spare bedroom as a nursery.”

  “Baby, are you sure? I mean we would have to use the same laundry room as everyone else to wash the baby’s clothes and cart strollers and stuff up and down the stairs when the elevator isn’t working.”

  Lincoln shrugged her shoulder. “We’ll have to deal with that or I could ask to borrow the money from Regan or Carter for a down payment on a house.”

  “No,” he said sternly. “I don’t want you borrowing money from your family. I don’t want them to think I can’t provide for you.”

  She looked at him. “Nick, I know you will provide for us. Why are you getting so upset?”

  Nick frowned for a moment and said, “Baby, I don’t talk about my first marriage to Dana at all. She was older than me and granted I had no fucking clue what I was supposed to do. I only knew the way Franco Barona handled his family.”

  “Nick…you didn’t…”

  He saw the look in her eyes and quickly corrected himself. “No, I didn’t hit on her or my son. Dana wasn’t having that. Instead, I gave control to her. She called the shots and made all the decisions. Again, I was left following rules that were set for me. I retaliated by acting an ass. I’d hang out with my friends or find any reason not to be in the house with her.”

  “In other words, you were acting like Anthony.”

  He nodded. “Yeah, I did, but without cheating on her. After three years, Dana filed for divorce and I didn’t fight it. When I got hired on at the fire department, I wanted my freedom and so did she. From that day, I decided I would never put myself in that position again.”

  Lincoln played with the buttons on the remote control. “But, here you are in that position again.”

  Nick put his arm around her shoulder and drew her close to him. “Baby, it is not the same. I love you. I can’t imagine my life without you or the baby you’re carrying. I’m just asking that you let me be the man. I want you to contribute too and to keep me in line when I get out of place, but let me take care of you.”

  “Do you think about your son? Have you tried to find him?”

  He shook his head. “I couldn’t do anything once I turned over my parental rights as his adopted father. He was better off without me back then. Dana remarried and hopefully her husband became the good father her son needed.”

  Their talk seemed to heighten her fears further. She, said, “Maybe we jumped too fast. My mother was a single parent. It was hard for her to raise the three of us on her own.”

  “I’m not leaving you, sweetheart. This is a whole new start for us. I will do everything in my power to make you believe I will be there for you and our child. I don’t know what it is about us being together, but I know we’re going to make it. We’ll have that beautiful house in the suburbs with three or four children. And I won’t be embarrassed to drive the neon green minivan we’ll have to get to cart the kids to all their afterschool activities.”

  He had accomplished his mission. He made her laugh. “Whoa,” she laughed. “Three or four kids…are you serious? And this diva will not be seen driving a minivan of any color. We’ll get a big SUV.”

  “We’ll compromise on the vehicle,” he said kissing her on the forehead. “Damn, I wish we were alone right now. I want to make love to you.” His pressed soft kisses to her eyes and the tip of her nose.

  Just as his mouth closed over hers they were interrupted by Isadora. Nick caught her uneasy look as he broke the kiss with Lincoln. “What is it, Mom?” he asked.

  “I don’t mean to interrupt. I though the young lady would like some fruit to snack on,” she said holding a tray with a bowl of fresh green grapes and a glass of apple juice.

  Nick slid off the bed and took the tray from Isadora and set it on the end of the dresser. “Thanks, Mom. I haven’t formally introduced you to Lincoln.” He took her hand and went over to Lincoln. “Mom, meet your new daughter-in-law, Lincoln Hathaway Barona.”

  Isadora folded her hands together and smiled weakly. “It is so nice to meet you. Please forgive me if I seem surprised by Nicky’s news. I had no idea my son was serious with anyone.”

  Lincoln got off the bed and smoothed down her clothes. “I guess we did surprise people with our news.”

  “How are you doing? Nicky told me you aren’t feeling well.”

  Lincoln cut her eyes to Nick. “I’m feeling better. Nick tends to worry and think I can’t look after myself. I didn’t want to barge in on your visit with him.”

  “Nicky is a good boy. He is my baby and now he is having a baby of his own. So I understand why he doesn’t want you alone. I will get out of your hair and back to the kitchen. I have to finish dinner. I need to feed that precious baby you’re carrying in there,” she said rubbing Lincoln’s stomach.

  Nick closed the bedroom door and whispered. “How soon can we send her to Italy?”

  “Stop it, Nick. She seems sweet or else she is doing a good job of hiding her dislike for me.”

  “I love my mother; I really do,” he said taking Lincoln in his arms. “But her being here will interrupt me from showing you how much I love you.”

  She put her arms around his neck. “We can pretend we’re teenagers sneaking in your parent’s house at night to engage in acts of unforbidden love.”

  She kissed Nick and he lost himself in the kiss. “Mm, I love the way you taste,” he said, running the tip of his tongue over the corner of her lips.

  “Are you hungry?” she asked with his mouth an inch away from hers.

  He smiled into her eyes, “I’m starving.” He kissed her neck as he unbuttoned her blouse.

  Her head went back to give him access, but she protested. “What are you doing? Your mother is in the next room.”

  “I’ll take care of that.” He left her long enough to lock the bedroom door and click on the CD player to fill the room with soft jazz. He stripped off his shirt before he gathered Lincoln in his arms again.

  He kissed the spot between her breasts as he pulled open her blouse. “Did the doctor restrict you from anything?”

  She shook her head. “No restrictions.”

  “Good.” He eased her on the bed resting the bulk of his weight on his forearms. “Am I hurting you?”

  Lincoln kissed his eyes, nose, and chin. She looked up at him and said, “The baby is the size of a pea. Stop worrying and make love to me before I’m too big to move around on this bed.”

/>   He kissed her shoulder gently. “I can’t wait to feel our baby moving around. I love you so damn much, Lincoln.”

  Chapter Thirty Three

  Three Months Later

  Lincoln sat at the kitchen table with Isadora eating breakfast before getting ready for her doctor’s appointment. Isadora had delayed her trip to Italy but refused to return to Queens or to Franco, who was still recovering from the surgery he’d had.

  The first month had been a struggle between her and Isadora. Lincoln could tell the woman was trying to get used to her being Nick’s wife. As long as Nick was around, Isadora felt more at ease. However, when he was at work, the woman was quiet and withdrawn. Lincoln would force her to talk or take walks with her. Slowly, Isadora began to warm up to her. Now they were able to talk freely, and Lincoln’s race didn’t seem to matter to Isadora anymore.

  Lincoln drank a sip of orange juice. “It was kind of you to fix breakfast for me, Isadora, but you don’t have to wait on me. You should relax or sleep in late. Take it easy while you’re here.”

  “Oh, I love feeding people. I am up at dawn and ready to work. Franco wouldn’t allow me to laze around the house doing nothing. Besides, look at you now. You’ve gained some weight, and your cheeks have filled out. You look more beautiful than ever.”

  Lincoln smiled. “I admit your cooking is fantastic, but I have to cut back on how much I eat, or I’ll need a wheelbarrow to get around. The doctor will fuss at me when I see her today.”

  Isadora chuckled. “You tell that doctor to call me if she has a problem with your weight. In my day, pregnant women ate whatever they wanted to make sure the baby was healthy.”

  “I’ll be sure to tell her,” Lincoln said with a grin. “My sister should be here shortly to take me to my appointment. Let me help you clear the table.”

  “I’ll take care of the dishes; you sit down until your sister gets here.”

  “Isadora, may I ask you a question?”

  “What is it?” Isadora asked with a concerned look on her face.

  “It’s been a couple of months since you’ve gotten to know me. Are you okay with the marriage and our having a baby? I really want to know how you feel about us being together.”

  Isadora put the plates in the sink before answering her. “I will be honest, Lincoln. I was upset with Nicky for marrying you. He hasn’t always made good choices when it came to women being a part of his life. I blame myself for that. Had I been a strong woman like your mother, I would have had more say in my children’s upbringing. With that said, now that I have spent time with you and see how happy you make my son, I am for your marriage, and I can’t wait to meet my new grandchild.”

  Lincoln smiled and ran her hands over the bump under her blouse. Her baby bump was now visible. She was three and a half months pregnant. Today she would find out the sex if the baby were in a position to make that possible. Since Nick referred to the baby as “he” all the time, she was sure it was a boy.

  Nick also was going to try to get away from the firehouse for an hour to meet her at the doctor’s office. He wanted to be at every appointment, and he signed them up for Lamaze classes. He was going to be her coach in the delivery room.

  A knock on the door took her away from Isadora. She opened the door, and Regan was standing there, smiling. “

  Regan, why are you smiling?”

  Regan gleamed. “You look so radiant. I’m jealous. I want a baby. I have to get Orlando in daddy mode.”

  “I’m scared, Regan. I don’t know anything about babies. Carter wasn’t in Cleveland when she had her kids, so I wasn’t around them when they were tiny little bundles of joy. I never got a chance to babysit them even.”

  Regan flipped her hand. “You’ll be fine. Nick will be a big help, and I’ll be around to take care of the baby when you all need a break. But you aren’t even prepared to have this baby, Lincoln. You’re going to need more room. This apartment is not going to work once the baby arrives.”

  Lincoln nodded. “I know but funds are tight. Nick is working extra shifts, and I’m teaching a course in tax preparation at the local college. But it will be a bit before we can buy a house and not sink financially from it.”

  “Let me help you, please?” Regan begged.

  “No. We aren’t taking any money from relatives. We want to do this on our own.”

  “Lincoln, it’s my money and not Orlando’s. I have the money stashed in a separate account, just sitting there.”

  “I have to let Nick do this, Regan. It’s important to him, and I respect him for wanting to do it on his own. I love you, sister, but we’ll be okay here until the baby is ready to crawl or walk. By then, we should have enough money saved for a house.”

  Regan shrugged her shoulders in defeat. “Okay, I’ll keep my money to myself. Are you ready to go?”

  “Let me get my purse.”

  Lincoln asked the doctor to wait a few more minutes for Nick to arrive before starting the sonogram. She wanted him by her side to view their baby for the first time.

  The door opened, and Nick rushed in. “Baby, I’m sorry I’m late. We got a call just as I was about to leave. Has the doctor run the test already?”

  She reached out her hand to him, the paper gown crunching with every move she made. “Not yet. I asked her to wait until you got here. I’m so excited. You aren’t going to be upset if it’s a girl, are you?”

  He held her hand and kissed the back of it. “Hell, no. I will be more protective of her than I will a boy. But, all I want is a healthy baby. We have time to try for a boy if this one is a girl.”

  “Let’s have this one first and see how we do before committing to having another one,” she giggled.

  Dr. Brown entered the room. “Well, we’re all here. Let’s see what we have going on in the oven. Mrs. Barona, are you comfortable?”

  Lincoln nodded. “Yes, I’m ready.” The doctor lubed Lincoln’s stomach with gel and moved the wand around.

  Nick smiled as he heard the baby’s heartbeat for the first time. “Wow, he has a strong heartbeat,” he said, leaning down to see the monitor better.

  The doctor nodded. “Yes, it is strong…a little too strong in fact.”

  Lincoln’s heart rate increased, and she squeezed Nick’s hand harder. “What does that mean, Dr. Brown? Is there a problem with the baby?”

  Dr. Brown replied with her face focused on the fetus on the monitor. “Breathe normally and let me take a look at something.”

  Lincoln started to shake, and Nick rubbed her shoulder. “Baby, it will be okay. Don’t panic.”

  “Nick, what if something is wrong with the baby? I’ve been taking it easy, and your mom is stuffing me with plenty of food. Oh my God, not my baby, please.”

  Dr. Brown spoke up. “Mrs. Barona, there is nothing wrong with your baby. What I suspected with the loud heartbeat is you’re carrying twins. You have two babies in there, but, unfortunately, I can’t make out the sex of either one. The other baby is hiding behind this baby. I can hear the extra heartbeat, and if you listen carefully, you’ll be able to hear too,” she said, turning up the volume.

  They both smiled.

  “I hear it!” Lincoln said excitedly.

  Nick was all smiles. “I hear it too.”

  “I should be able to do another sonogram in a month and let you know the sex of the babies.” Dr. Brown handed Lincoln a towel to clean the lubricant off her belly. “You can get dressed, and we’ll talk in my office.”

  Dr. Brown left them alone, and Nick rolled back on his heels from the shocking news. “Twins? Geez,” he groaned.

  Lincoln got off the table to put on her clothes. “Baby, are you okay?”

  “Yeah, I just have to let it sink in and marinate. Twins. Two babies at once.”

  Lincoln slipped her dress over her head. The weather had turned warm, and lightweight cotton dresses were more comfortable to wear than pants that were tight around her stomach. “Yes, this changes everything. We have to double what we
have purchased already and make room for everything to fit in the apartment.”

  “That’s fine,” he said with a worried voice. “I’ll get a second job to work on my days off. I’m going to figure it out, Lincoln. I don’t want you to stress about this.”

  She placed her hand on his shoulder. “Baby, sit down for a minute and catch your breath. You’re pale and obviously in shock because I know I am.

  Wow…twins. Do twins run in your family?”

  She shook her head. “Not that I’m aware. Nick, I have a good job. The burden is not going to fall only on you.”

  Nick asked. “What if I want you to be a stay-at-home mom?”

  “We’d have to discuss that in detail, Nick. With twins, that might have to be the case until they start preschool or kindergarten. Daycare will be expensive.”

  He sighed and stood up. “I’m okay now. Let’s talk to the doctor. I have to get back to the firehouse.”

  After the doctor’s appointment, Nick returned to work, and Lincoln and Regan decided to spend the day shopping. Lincoln window-shopped while Regan actually spent money at Neiman Marcus.

  Regan purchased some suits for work and then dragged Lincoln to the baby department.

  “Regan, their baby clothes are too expensive. Babies don’t wear them long enough to justify spending this kind of money,” Lincoln said, hesitant on purchasing the clothes.

  Regan raised her brow. “Hey, shut off the IRS in you. I’m buying for my nieces or nephews, and you can’t stop me. Now what do you need, clothes, furniture, or both?”

  Lincoln looked over the items in the baby department. “Well, I guess I’ll need more receiving blankets and onesies. Nick and I have purchased some already.”

  “Oh, yeah, you’re going to need a ton of those things. Pick out what you like. I’ll be back; something in that corner over there has caught my eye,” she said, pointing to the baby furniture.

  “Regan, please don’t go overboard buying me stuff. Plus we don’t have that much room in the apartment, remember.”

  “If you would let me buy you a house, that would be one big worry crossed off the list.”