Page 270 of The Baby Twist
“On the count of three, Marley, slowly lift the lid to your box,” Penelope said.
“One, two, three!” They all shouted.
I glanced at Charlie and slowly lifted the lid, and several pink balloons rose up.
“It’s a girl!” I placed my hands over my mouth as I stared at Charlie.
He wrapped his arms around me and held me tight. “Remember, no boys allowed until she’s twenty-one,” he whispered in my ear and then kissed my lips.
“Okay, Charlie. Your turn.” Lila said.
“Boy! Boy! Boy!” Chase chanted.
“Shut up.” Lila playfully smacked him.
I stood next to Charlie and took in a deep breath. He slowly lifted the lid, and several blue balloons rose up.
“YES!” Chase shouted.
“One of each, babe.” Charlie grinned as he grabbed me and held me tight.
We continued our celebration with an exquisite cake. After talking for a while, it was time to head home. When we stepped inside our penthouse, I entered the living room and suddenly froze. My heart started rapidly beating, and I began hyperventilating.
“Marley!” Charlie ran over and gripped me. “What’s wrong.”
I stared at him with widened eyes as I couldn’t breathe.
“Relax, babe. Breathe with me. You can do it. It’s okay.”
The sound of his voice calmed and soothed me. My heart started to slow, and my breathing returned to normal. He led me to the couch and gripped my hand.
“What happened?” he asked with worry.
“Oh, I get like that sometimes.”
“You were having a panic attack. Why?”
“Because it just hit me that this,” I placed my hand on my belly, “is real now.”
“What are you talking about? It’s been real since the day you found out you were pregnant,” he said.
“But now we know the genders, Charlie. These little humans inside me have been gender assigned: a girl and a boy. That makes them more real, and I’m scared.” Tears began to fill my eyes.
He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into him. “I understand how you feel. I’m scared, too. I don’t know how to be a father.”
“And I don’t know how to be a mother. I mean, look at my role model. At least yours were perfect and in love. You have one up on me.”
He chuckled, breaking our embrace. “You are going to be a great mom. And you know what?”
“What?”
“We’ll figure it out together.” He wiped the tear that fell down my cheek. “I don’t think any first-time parents know what they’re doing. We’ll blend right in.” He smiled.
“Thank you.”
“For what?” His finger softly stroked my cheek.
“For calming me down and making me feel better.”
