GETAWAY CAR

64. Silent Night

December 25th 2017

Karlie's POV

It's not excited kids or the smell of breakfast wafting through the house that wakes me up at 6am, only three hours after we finally made it to bed. "Taylor, the baby." I mumble as I rub my fiancé's back, trying to wake her. "I've got it." She sighs as she reaches for her glasses and then sits up, lifting the crying baby from the bassinet. "What is it, jellybean?" She's trying to comfort the little one as she rubs the baby's back. "I think her diaper needs changed." I sigh, talking quietly so we don't wake the other sleeping child, and move from the bed to grab a diaper and wipes from the changer. "Here." I throw them down on the bed and I try and force myself awake as I yawn. Taylor changes Tilly's diaper which makes the baby cry and in turn wakes up Maisie who was asleep in the travel crib beside the bed.

"Okay, grumpy guts. I've got you." I swoop her up and bring Maisie back into bed with us too, laying her down beside me as Taylor feeds Matilda. "Merry Christmas." She laughs as we lie facing each other in bed and I smile as I cuddle the toddler close to me. "Merry Christmas." Taylor reaches out and takes my hand and I smile at her through the dark. "Does this remind you of something?" I smirk and she rubs her thumb over my fingers, "last Christmas Eve. But the one waking us up early was Miss Maisie." I stroke the side of the toddlers face as she stares at me through the dark and Taylor sighs contently.

"I never imagined I'd be here with you." She shakes her head as she sits up a bit and I have to agree, "I know, and now we have two kids, we're engaged and we've almost been together for a year." It seems so surreal to think about where we were this time last year compared to now. "And of course we can't forget about the cats. Come on, Dibbles." Tay laughs as the cat skulks up onto the bed and Meredith isn't far behind her.

"I'm so excited to see her open gifts properly this year. She's getting so big, it's so scary." Taylor strokes Maisie's little curls as the toddler starts to fall asleep again, cuddled into my side and I nod, "I can't believe they came from you. I've never loved anything more than you and these little ones." I stare down at Maisie's soft features as her eyes flutter closed and she sucks on her pacifier. "You're next, remember. We need a little Karlie running around with their sisters." I smile at the thought, "I can't wait for our forever." I hum as my eyes drift up from Maisie to Taylor. "Me either." She smiles and in the peaceful silence of the morning, we know that there's absolutely nowhere we would rather be right now.

---

We must manage to sleep a little longer, because the next thing I know the bedroom door is flying open and we're being startled awake by a child jumping on the bed. "Hey, you little monkey, what do you think you're doing?" I grab Mia and pull her down beside us on the bed. Taylor has Tilly safely tucked in the crook of her arm and Maisie is still lying on my front, her head on my chest.

"Auntie Karlie, Auntie Tay, its Christmas! Santa Claus came last night." Taylor and I smile at each other as Mia settles on the bed between us. "Are you two getting out of bed or is everyone gathering in here?" The twins don't look particularly pleased as they stumble into our room, bypassing any niceties and lying down on the bed too. That leaves me thinking that Mia made a pit stop before coming in here. "Mom and Dad are downstairs with Andrea and Scott." Kristine is next to appear and I laugh as she lies along the very bottom of the bed. "I guess we're getting up." I laugh as I look over to Taylor who's already sitting up. "It appears so."

We throw the covers back, hitting the twins as we grab the kids and get out of bed. "Duck!" Maisie makes grabby hands towards the stuffy sitting on the bed and I smile as I grab it, "here you go, sweetheart." I give it to her and kiss the side of her head as she cuddles it. Nothing is ever going to replace that stuffy in her life.