Remember Forever (Book 9 in Nemi Forever Series)

Chapter 15

Demi

When I got home from the hospital, it felt like I hadn't been there in years instead of just three weeks. Seeing all of my babies was the most amazing thing & I swear I hugged them all for ten minutes each, not wanting to let any of them go. The twins were so happy to see me, making me cry, of course. I spent most of that first evening at home with the kids cuddled around me on the couch.

"Mommy?" Reid asked, after we had all been cuddling for a bit, watching a Disney movie.

"Yes, baby?" I looked down at him.

"Do you know that Santa is real?" Reid had this adorable smile on his face that made me feel so happy I wanted to cry.

"I do know that he's real." I said, feeling a tiny bit guilty that I was lying to my son. "How do you know he's real?" I asked, poking his chest with my finger & making him giggle.

"Because Avery asked Santa for his mommy for Christmas & here you are." Reid, shrugged his shoulders & grinned at me before he looked back at the television. I glanced up & caught Nick's gaze as he sat on the other side of Reid. I felt Nick's fingers on my shoulder as he smiled at me. I could tell he was happy I was sitting here with him. He had Riley on his lap, leaning on his chest, Mercy on the other side of him tucked under his arm. Harper was on my lap & Jerry sat between mine & Nick's legs on the floor. Avery was asleep to my left, his head leaning on the arm of the couch. I was in my own personal Heaven right now, surrounded by my family. I kissed the top of Harper's head & at that very moment, a shiver took over my body as I felt a chill on my neck. At first I thought Nick had blown on my neck, but when I looked at him, he was murmuring something to Mercy, not even looking in my direction. I smiled, feeling emotional, knowing it was Delaney. She was here with us. I could feel her & when I closed my eyes, I saw her face & she had a soft smile on her mouth. It was weird that it felt so real being with Delaney, in my unconscious state & now I felt almost whole again. I had always felt a void since she died, but now I felt different. It was as if she jumped into my heart before I woke up & now I carried her around all the time.

Saturday, I woke up feeling amazing. I wasn't nearly as sore as I was the first day I woke up. Nick was doting on me, not letting me lift a finger to do anything. He had taken a break from anything career related until after the holidays. He would have done it anyway, because he usually did take time off around the holidays. We had a busy day today, so when I looked beside me in bed, I saw Nick was already gone, probably getting the kids fed & ready for the day. Today was our community holiday party.& I looked forward to it every year. The kids did, too. I loved the neighborhood we lived in, because everyone was so nice & so many had become good friends to us.

I took a shower, then headed downstairs once I was dressed. I smelled breakfast, which surprised me. Nick didn't love to cook unless it was something he could microwave or toast. When I got to the kitchen I saw why it smelled so incredible. Nick's mom was dishing out eggs to all the kids as they sat at the table. They are yelled their hellos when they saw me & I immediately went to hug & kiss each one. Denise gave me a hug when I thanked her for helping out.

"Where's Nick?" I asked her as she headed back into the kitchen to grab me a plate.

"He got a phone call. He's on the back porch." Denise nodded in that direction, so I headed out there.

When I opened the sliding glass door, I heard Nick, so I knew he was close. "Yea, that's fine. Bring it over, hon. I'll see you soon." Nick said as I saw him at one end of the porch. He turned around & smiled when he saw me, then put his phone in his back pocket. "Good morning, Beautiful. How'd you sleep?" He asked as he came to me & kissed my cheek.