Page 46 of Healing Bonds

With every passing week, my stomach grew, my cravings doubled, and my bladder became more and more nonexistent.

“You just went ten minutes ago, Ames,” Ryan sighed. “Can’t you wait a bit?” I snapped my head in his direction and slapped his arm. He jerked the steering wheel and glared at me before returning his attention to the road.

“I’m carrying your babies, too, and I need the fucking toilet, so pull over!” I yelled at him.

“Jeez, Amber! You can’t hit me while I’m driving!” he reprimanded. “I’m just trying to point out that at this rate, we won’t be home until late, and we have the doctor’s appointment in the morning.”

In the morning, we would find out the gender of our little beans. Celine had been begging to have a gender reveal party. The girl was itching to have a reason to throw another pool party, but this time, just with our families—mine and hers.

“Do you think we should let Celine have the party?” I wondered out loud, glancing over at him, my temper dying away just that fast. Ryan swore my mood swings were going to give him whiplash one day.

“You really are going crazy. Pregnancy brain is a thing. Who knew?” He shot me a teasing wink, making me scowl at him.

“Shut the fuck up,” I snapped at him. “My brain is just fine. At the next rest stop, pull over or you can clean up the mess.” He laughed, shaking his head as I scrolled through my phone, looking at gender reveal videos.

“If you want a party, then tell Celine. If you don’t want one, then we can find out tomorrow in the room. Whatever makes you happy, Ames,” Ryan told me, warming my heart. He was always so concerned for my happiness, and I loved that about him. He was so damn selfless.

The next morning, I still hadn’t decided what I wanted to do. I was confused whether a gender reveal party was really important, or if it was just so twenty-first century. I didn’t like the idea of having a party, but the thought of seeing my parents and sisters after so long was tempting. And sharing in a big moment with them would be amazing.

Ryan, my love, didn’t have much to say on the matter, letting me know this was all on me. Whatever I decided was okay. He was just worried about keeping us safe. He was determined to make sure nothing ever happened to our babies.

Sometimes, I still found it hard to believe that there were two babies growing inside of me—twohealthybabies. So, I decided… today, I wanted to find out the genders with the love of my life—not in front of our families but just the two of us. These babies were infinitely precious to us, and I wanted to keep it that way.

“I don’t want to have the party,” I announced once we got in the truck. Ryan watched me fasten my seatbelt, which had become a ritual over the past few months, and then, he looked at me, waiting on me to finish speaking. “This moment—we’llremember it for the rest of our lives, and I just want to share it with you.”

My charming husband smiled, a huge grin on his face as he reached over to cup my cheeks. “I love you, Amber.” He closed the small distance between us and kissed me with his soft, warm, comforting lips.

I had never loved someone as much as I loved him.

“I love you more,” I whispered against his lips, grateful for this small, private moment with him. We had been through so much in the last few years, our happiness always short-lived, but that was going to change.

Soon, we would be parents.

We waited in the same doctor’s office, and like last time, we were the only ones in the waiting room. Ryan paced the small room, his hands pulling at his hair. “What do you want?” he finally asked, pausing in front of me and squatting down to my level, his hands on my shaking knees. I was so damn nervous.

I really didn’t care. I just wanted to give birth at the end of this to two live, healthy babies. “Healthy babies,” I immediately answered. He nodded, staring at my stomach in deep thought. Absentmindedly, he reached out to caress my swollen bump, a small smile tilting his lips.

“I want two little girls who look just like you.” His blue eyes found mine, and instantly, my eyes welled with tears. I had no control over my emotions, finding myself in tears at least once a day. This man knew just the right words to say to turn me into a blubbering mess.

“And if we have two little boys who look like you?” I asked. He smirked, and I ran my fingers through his growing hair. This man would always be my weakness.

“Regardless of what we have and who they look like, I’m going to love them with my whole heart, and you, my spitfire,will be a perfect mother.” My bottom lip trembled as tears welled in my eyes.

He was so perfect. And I loved him so damn much.

“Amber Wilson,” the same nurse from before called my name and led us back to the room, asking me all sorts of questions. “That smile on your face, dear, is quite contagious.” The woman laughed as she checked my vitals again. “Such an exciting day to find out the gender of the babies!” I glanced at Ryan, unable to contain my smile.

Within a few minutes, I was on the exam table, my growing tummy on display. The doctor spoke with excitement, talking to Ryan and me about a patient he had who was also expecting twins. This was her second set. The idea horrified me, but to be graced with four perfect children didn’t sound like such a terrible problem.

“Any guesses on the genders?” the doctor probed, circling my stomach with the wand as he watched the screen intently.

“Girls.”

“Boys.”

Ryan and I answered at the same time. Our eyes met, and my love for him just about poured from my heart. I loved how involved he was. He hadn’t missed a single appointment yet, and every morning, we had breakfast together, where he watched me take my vitamins, and then every evening after his long day at work, I got a foot massage, and we took a hot bath together.

I had to thank his mother for raising such a beautiful, considerate, caring man.

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