Lost

Chapter 44

December arrived and everyone was excited for the upcoming holidays, especially with the darkness having vanished.  Charlene felt light and happy not worrying over her children and having her husband with her at night and the same could be said of the other girls.  They couldn’t believe it had been over a year since they had found the chateau-something that had changed their lives forever.  Sometimes they missed their families and France but with the guys no longer having to guard they planned on taking trips with their families as often as possible.  Jared loved Paris and was eager to go back as much as possible.  They also hired a new housekeeper named Stella and two nannies; Elodie and Hanna to help.  With three babies, things got crazy sometimes.  The nannies were a welcome relief when the mom’s needed a break or just wanted to spend time with their men.  Taylor was a very nurturing and doting mother who felt guilty leaving little Jude for even a few minutes but Martine encouraged her to take some time for herself too.  Taylor would sing while Tomo played acoustic guitar to put Jude to sleep at night.  Her dark little eyes would perk up when they started to sing; she would hold onto Taylor’s finger as she sang. Charlene was a great story teller and would not only read to Jack but also come up with stories to tell while Shannon cuddled with them.  Meanwhile Jared and Martine both liked to sing so they would create original duets, harmonizing as they sent Jules off to dreamland. Her sparkling blue eyes stared at the stars on her ceiling as she was no longer sleeping in their room but in her own crib.  At that point Jude also had her own room with clouds painted on her ceiling and light blue walls.  Jack remained in Charlene and Shannon’s room but they were almost ready to transition him as they missed their alone time.  Jack looked more and more like Shannon as each day passed-melting Charlene’s heart.  She had a mini-Shannon.  Shannon dressed him like a little rock star.  He had soft hair and sweet eyes that looked at the world in wonder.  He was an easy baby that slept through the night and gave his parents little trouble.  Jared and Martine continued to dress Jules in vivid colors as well as black and white stripes and anything that wasn’t normal; hardly anything matched.  She wore a little t-shirt that said “Creeps” with a scary ghost face, a character they had made up and black and purple leggings with black ballet slippers.  Everyone teased them but they just teased back.  Taylor and Tomo preferred haute couture baby girl dresses in golds and creams with intricate embroidery and stitching to offset her beautiful almost-black curls and chocolate eyes.  She liked to suck her thumb, a habit they tried to break by giving her blankets to comfort her but she had a bit of a stubborn side and continued sucking her thumb despite.  Jules and Jude loved to squawk at each other and coo.  Jules had huge dimples; neither parent had them so it was a random trait that they absolutely loved but Jules had a cheeky side and would cry to get their attention; Martine held strong but Jared caved every time.  He couldn’t handle seeing her cry so he’d sneak and pick her up singing to her and playing with her.  Tomo was a softie too and gave in to Jude; Taylor would raise her eyebrow at Tomo and he’d just put his hands up and say “baby I can’t help it, she’s adorable.” Taylor would reply, “you’re creating a monster”. Life had settled into a pattern; the only change being the guys helped run the country during the day in Bern with Constance-since they didn’t have to be up all night they could contribute to the leadership responsibilities.  In early December Martine suggested they throw a huge Christmas Eve party to celebrate their freedom from Emma as well as their kids and their overall happiness.  Everyone agreed that it would be fun and they would pay the nannies extra to watch the babies overnight so the adults could have some grown up time after.  The night of the party was upon them and the chateau glowed on the outside and in.  All the windows were lit with big candy cane colored candles.  A huge Christmas tree graced the main hall with its branches dressed to impress in twinkling lights and a variety of ornaments.  They had spent some evenings making some together.  Each couple created an ornament with their child’s name and birthdate on it.  The snow was lightly falling as guests arrived and Christmas music played in the background.  Egg nog, cookies (Jared made sure they had all kinds given he loved them), chocolate nougat, hot apple cider, mulled wine, cheesecake, candy canes, licorice, minced pie and an edible gingerbread house, that Charlene had made, were just some of the appetizers and desserts-they had a whole feast as well.  The babies made their appearance early on so that guests could see them and congratulate the couples. Soon Jack became a bit fussy and the girls started crying so the nannies took over. Many guests decided to leave after dessert because they were afraid the snow would thicken but some stayed and danced with their hosts.  Shannon played dj or the guys would perform.  Martine and Charlene started feeling really good after a few alcoholic drinks and started dancing together, throwing their heads back in laughter.  Taylor joined in and it felt like their single days when they’d go out dancing at the clubs in Paris.  Shannon whispered in Charlene’s ear “you are getting naughty.” and gave her a stealthy pat on the butt. “You ain’t seen nothing yet.” She slurred and giggled winking at him.  They all toasted with the leftover guests and had a great time partying.