Double Exposure: Book 7 (Completed)

Chapter Six

I woke up the next morning feeling refreshed. The bed was so comfortable and cozy. It had been a while since I had slept so well. I dressed and got myself ready then quickly checked in the nursery. The twins weren't in there so I headed downstairs. I saw Brittany and the twins in the kitchen. Zac was buzzing around preparing breakfast while Brittany feeding the boys their cereal. I felt like an intruder entering into this special scene. Zac walked by Brittany and kissed her lightly on the lips and subtly placed his hand on her belly. It was plain as day the intense love they had for each other. I thought I had this love once. Turns out I had no idea what love was.

"Izzy! Don't be shy. Come and give me and hand feeding the boys. I'm sure they'll love getting fed from you." I quickly entered and took my seat next to Brittany.

"Breakfast will be ready in a minute Izzy. The boys get theirs first and when they have their milk then we have ours." I took one of the bowls of cereal and began feeding Joshua. Thank goodness they were wearing their monogrammed outfits again. I knew I'd get it one day but for now I felt confident. Joshua greedily took the cereal into his mouth and kicked his legs in enjoyment. I was glad he was warming to me after that initial meeting.

When the boys were happily sucking on their bottles, Zac came over with a platter of crepes. "Hope you like crepes. They're one of Britt's favourites. She's been wanting my famous crepes all week. If you don't, then there's cereal and toast as well."

"Zac spoils me so much." Brittany helped herself to two crepes and proceeded to put lemon and sugar on them. "By the way Izzy, I'm so sorry for yesterday. I only meant to shut my eyes for five minutes. I didn't realise I'd end up sleeping for hours. I should have been giving you a hand to get you settled in. I'm so sorry." I looked at Brittany. She looked a lot happier and well rested. A lot better than when I first met her. This was the real Brittany I thought. I was glad she was feeling good. "Please Brittany. Don't worry about it. You obviously needed the rest and I had Brandon and Jordan helping me out."

"Call me Britt. All my close friends do. Oh and you had both Brandon and Jordan here huh. Hmm. I smell a story."

"You'll have to forgive my wife. She's a journalist by trade and stories are her life although in this case I think she's just on the lookout for some juicy gossip." Zac laughed and playful tweaked Brittany on her nose. The boys kicked their legs in excitement. My heart burst watching this scene. The boys were obviously enjoying the show. "Sorry Izzy. You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to. Jordan and Brandon are two of the most eligible guys in town. To have the attentions of both. Well honestly that's a juicy story in itself."

"Well..." I wanted to tell Brittany. I had felt an instant connection with her. I wanted to tell her how she and her little family had given me life. How their love towards each other made me believe that I could love again. That this dull ache that squeezed my heart was slowly losing its strength. I was still hurting. No doubt about that but I had hope that I'd come out of this stronger and better.

"Well Brandon offered to take me out for pizza on Saturday night and show me the sights. Of course after I've settled the boys for the night."

"Sounds lovely Izzy. Both Brandon and Jordan are good guys. Pretty much like their brother Kai." The thought of Kai and Brittany suddenly appeared in my head and I let out an involuntary laugh.

"Hmm. Did I say something funny?" Brittany was looking at me with amusement.

"Oh no. Just thinking something funny." I continued eating my delicious crepe and enjoyed just sitting there being part of the family.

Saturday night came soon enough and I felt myself getting giddy with excitement. It had been a long week and while the boys were absolutely adorable, they were also a lot of work. I heard the doorbell ring and quickly answered the door. I didn't want Brandon to keep ringing in case it woke the boys. I opened the door and to my surprise I saw both Brandon and Jordan standing there.

"Hey Izzy. You look gorgeous. Sorry change of plans. Jord insisted on coming too. I hope you don't mind." I didn't mind. This wasn't a date. It certainly appeared that Brandon did though by the way he was giving annoyed sideway glances at his brother.

"Hey. It's the best pizza in town. I couldn't resist. Besides, I wouldn't mind getting a tour of the town myself." Jordan looked directly at me and gave me that wink. I noticed that faint scar again. Yup I was definitely getting better at this.

"Well show me the way. I love pizza." I went to hop into the back seat of the car and to my surprise Jordan did too. "Hey I ain't a taxi driver. Izzy. How about you come and sit up front with me." I quickly unbuckled my seat belt and jumped into the front. Brandon gave me a cheeky smile while Jordan sighed with annoyance. Hey what was going on here. Why did I feel like I was on a date with these two guys. We had made it clear from the start that this was a friendship thing. I wasn't ready to date and the last thing I wanted to do was to come between two brothers. I had to make the situation clear. "Hey we are all mates here. Let's go out and get that pizza. I'm starving." They both laughed and the awkward tension was gone.

Brandon had been true to his word. The pizza was delicious. I learned more about Brandon's love of photography. Jordan had told me about his love of surfing. It turns out that Kai and Jordan had a mutual interest in hitting the waves while Brandon said he preferred watching from the sidelines.

"Hey Izzy. How about you and I go out surfing one day. I think you'd look awesome out there on a board." I laughed and accepted. I had never been surfing before and it sounded like a lot of fun. I was sure that Jordan would be an excellent surfer.

"Hey Izzy. How about we go out to the lake and take pictures. I can pack a picnic. I can show you this little duck family that live down there." I accepted Brandon's invite too. I didn't want to seem rude. The evening had been a lot of fun but despite me trying to make this a friends only outing I couldn't help but feel the tension between the two. When they dropped me off they both insisted on walking me to the door.

"I had a great night. Thanks for the laughs." They both kind of leaned into me at the same time. Awkward! I kind of hopped backwards. "Umm I better go. Busy day tomorrow. Thank you. Till next time."

I really didn't. Sunday was my day off but I just wanted to go inside and put some distance between us. Things were confusing enough without adding romance to the mix. I watched as they walked back to the car, playfully punching each other. I couldn't come between them, even if my heart was free. Friendship was all I could offer right now. I hoped it would be enough.