Page 165 of Bastian

My twins are opposites in every way.

One reminds me of a warm summer day, like my sister, Mila, while the other reminds me of a stormy autumn night.

But I love them the same.

Twenty minutes later, with two kids covered in pink frosting from head to toe, is when the rest of my family walks through the kitchen door. “Mom! Roman called! Say hello.” My daughter screams, joy written all over her stunning face. My baby is no longer a tiny kid and almost comes to my chest at fourteen years old. I try to muster a smile for the Nicolasi kid when she turns her phone towards me. “Hey there, Mrs. K.” The young man that looks just like his father greets me with a boyish grin on his face. See, I could never get on board with this friendship, and not because of who his parents are but because the kid loves to shorten my name and piss me off with half the shit he says. My girl can do better, but I am hoping this is nothing more than a friendship. Though Ellaiza treats him like a friend, who knows with kids these days. She needed a friend after her bodyguard slash friend left to take a job overseas, or so Benjamin says.

Shaw Banning, the asshole, broke my baby’s heart, and for that, he better stay where he’s at, on the other side of the world. Getting out of my head, I say hello to the Nicolasi kid and then take my girl in my arms, peppering her face with kisses. She never minds, not like my two oldest boys.

Ellaiza is still, even at this age, a mommy’s girl.

“Happy birthday, my darling.” I whisper.

Looking up at me, she gives me a big smile. “Thank you, mom.”

“Dad!” Kyrin says loudly before climbing down the stool and running to his father, who I now notice has entered the room. As usual, the man steals all the air when he enters a room with his over-the-top and larger-than-life presence. Even in his early forties, the man doesn’t look a day over thirty-five, apart from the small amount of pepper on his temples. He is still as handsome as the day I met him. The bastard is aging like fine wine.

A fact he doesn’t let me forget.

The cocky bastard.

I can’t help but smile when I see my Royal standing by his father’s side, dressed in a suit, looking like the miniature version of the devil. I know that is a weird thing for a mother to say about her child, but I am not oblivious to the fact that my eldest son is his father’s child in every way. My boy looks at me, quietly leaves Sebastian’s side, and gives me a quick hug before he turns to his brothers. He is a man of few words, my Royal, and that, aside from his green eyes, is the only trait he got from me. He is not a charmer, nor a social butterfly, and he is still perfect in my eyes.

All of them are.

“Was the globe spun?” Sebastian moves towards me, takes me in his arms, and gives me a long kiss in front of all our kids, and yet none of them say a word. In this house, love is celebrated so they know their parents love each other after all these years, and we love them more than life as well.

Pulling back, my husband looks into my eyes, and I can’t help but think that, even after all these years, he still makes me shiver when he touches me. The same spark is there when he is near me. The fire still burns, and I do not doubt that it always will, even when our kids grow and leave the house… our love will still remain.

Because it is us.

And Sebastian and I are solid.

Our hearts are forever intertwined.

“Not yet. We were waiting for you.” I whisper to him.

“Did the twin tyrants argue for whose turn it is?”

Grinning. “They did.”

Chuckling, he looks down at my barely there belly. “And how is my baby?”

Rolling my eyes, I say. “Our baby, Sebastian.” I growl playfully.

“Our baby,” he agrees, pure joy pouring out of him in waves.

“Come on. Dad! Our adventure awaits!” Kyrin yells, and I do my best to fight the urge to remind him that we don’t yell in small spaces. What’s the point? My kid will just argue back that there’s nothing little about this kitchen. My sweet little smartass.

“Go ahead, son. Spin it.” My husband smiles at our youngest child.

Kyrin spins the globe, and when he believes it’s time, he stops it with a huge grin on his face. His twin, Kael, leans over to see where Kyrin’s finger landed, and he, too, grins.

“Where are we going!?” Ella moves toward her brothers and then gasps excitedly. “Yes!”

Looking up at my husband, I find him already looking down at me with love in his gaze. “I love our life.” I breathe out, meaning it with my entire heart. This is the life I never dared to dream about because it always felt so out of reach for someone like me.

I was cold, jaded, and downright mean when I wanted, and good things don’t happen to people like me, but they did.

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