Chapter 115

Over the next two weeks, the shock of their big baby news wore off and they both were at least able to believe it was really happening. Denise was absolutely thrilled for them. So thrilled, in fact, that she was speechless for what AJ said had to be the first time in her life. Emily still had morning sickness and had in fact had a few bouts of evening sickness as well.

As reality sunk in, Emily had her moments of panic, usually when she was tired. Over all, she began to feel thrilled at the prospect of having twins but sometimes, the scary thoughts would enter her head. She'd worry they'd be born too early and be sick, she worried that they'd both have severe colic, that she really wanted to breastfeed and wouldn't be able to nurse two babies at once. One time she even worried after she had a dream that she forgot one of the babies at the grocery store.

Whenever she panicked, AJ was always right there to reassure her and talk her down. He'd rub her back and promise her things would be fine. AJ had his own moments of panic but he never let her see them. He talked to his mom a few times about his concerns and she was very supportive and did for AJ what he had to do for Emily. AJ was more worried about Emily than being able to take care of two babies. He was worried that there were increased health risks to both her and the babies and he didn't know if she could handle it if something terrible were to happen this time.

As those two weeks progressed, Emily began to get more and more tired, to the point where she always looked exhausted and was having a lot of trouble getting out of bed in the mornings. Normally, AJ would have forced her to go home a week earlier but he knew that since finding out they were having twins, she needed a little more emotional support. It wasn't until she actually took a nap after lunch and managed to sleep through his concert that he decided it was time to send her home.

“Emily,” he began carefully, “I think it's probably time for you to go home. Obviously you're exhausted and all this traveling isn't helping any. I'm starting to get concerned about you!”

Emily sighed. “I know. To be honest, I've been too tired to feel like bothering going home.” she chuckled. “And I didn't really want to go without you.”

“Will you be ok?”

She nodded. “Yeah. I think you're right, I probably will feel better lounging around at home and taking it easy. As long as you promise to call me lots!”

“I promise.” he said, kissing her cheek. “I'll go call Mark and have him make arrangements for you, ok?”

“Alright. I think I'm going to take a shower and try to wake up.”

When Emily came out of the bathroom AJ was already getting her stuff together for her.

“A car will be here in two hours to take you to the airport, is that ok?”

Emily nodded. AJ noticed her bottom lip trembling. He stopped packing her bag and wrapped her tightly in his arms. “What's the matter?”

“Lots.” she admitted.

“Can you tell me about it?”

Emily took a deep breath. “I don't want to leave you! I don't want to go home by myself, I haven't stayed alone since Tiny....and I just...I'll miss you!”

He gave her a gentle kiss. “I'll miss you too. But you need to take care of yourself right now. It's only for two weeks, right? And you know you're perfectly safe at home now. Tiny can't get to you anymore. Maybe you can have a few girls' nights at the house with Leighanne and Amanda!”

“I can't.” Emily sniffed. “Leighanne's still busy making up with Brian that she doesn't even go out with Amanda anymore and Amanda has Randy and plus, we drink a lot whenever we get together. How would I explain it when I can't drink?”

“Tell them you're doing it for me! They'd leave you alone for that.” he grinned.

“I'll be fine. I guess I just don't want to leave. Things will be better once I'm home.”

“They will. You can go home and start planning that nursery! Just don't buy anything without me!”

Emily smiled. “Relax...we get to buy 2 of everything!” she joked.

When the car arrived to pick her up, AJ gave her a deep kiss goodbye. “Take care of yourself, ok? And call me whenever you need me.”

Emily nodded. “I promise.”

AJ bent down and lifted up her shirt a little and talked at her tummy. “And you two in there...you be nice to your mother! Daddy will miss you too!” Emily realized she was really going to miss lying in bed and having AJ talk to the babies as he rubbed her belly. He walked her down to the car and helped her in. Emily slept on the flight home and was even more relieved than she thought she'd be when she walked in her house and received her friendly greeting from the dogs. She flopped down on the couch and called AJ to let him know she was home safe and sound. She could tell he was in the middle of something kind of important but he didn't even let on as he talked to her.

All in all, he'd been right to send her home. She felt much better without all the chaos. She tried to get out of bed by nine every morning but she allowed herself a few naps throughout the day. She and AJ would have web video chats every day and he called her whenever he could to check on her. Every day she'd walk into the spare bedroom across the hall from theirs and sit on the bed and dream about when they finally got it all turned into a nursery. Eventually, she began to write down all her baby ideas in a notebook so she didn't forget anything.

She had been home about two weeks and was going to fly out to LA to see his last show. She was packing the night before when she got a text message. It was Kevin.

“Kris and I are at the hospital, the baby is on the way! We'll keep you all updated!”

Emily let out a little squeal and got teary eyed. Kristin was finally having her baby! She'd been three days overdue and was starting to get very cranky the last time she'd talked to her.

Leighanne called immediately. “Did you get the message?”

“I did! I'm so excited!! And it's perfect timing, I'll be in LA tomorrow! Maybe I'll convince AJ to stay an extra day or two so I can meet the baby!”

“Well that's backwards...you trying to convince AJ to stay in LA.” Leighanne teased.

“Why don't you come with me?” Emily suggested. “You can catch the concert with me and then we can see the baby together!”

“You know, I can't think of any reason why not! Let me talk to Brian and I'll call you back.”

By the time Emily went to bed, it had all been arranged. Brian, Leighanne and Baylee had all managed to get tickets on her flight in the morning and they planned to stay for four days. She was so excited that she was still awake when she figured AJ would be done with his show and decided to call him.

“You're up late, is everything alright?” he asked.

“Everything is great! Did you get that text message from Kevin?”

“I sure did!”

“Isn't it exciting? So Leighanne and I were talking and we made a few plans.”

“Oh Lord...it's never good when you two make plans.” AJ groaned.

“No, you'll like this one. How would you feel about staying in LA for a few extra days?”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah! Brian, Leighanne and Baylee are all flying out with me tomorrow. We're going to see your show and then when Kevin and Kristin get settled at home we'll drop by and visit the baby as long as they don't mind!”

“You really want to stay in LA?”

“Well it's worth it for a baby, isn't it?”

“I suppose it is.” she could tell he was smiling over the phone. “And I'm glad you don't have to travel alone!”

Emily slept with the phone next to her pillow in case there were any updates from Kevin. Poor Kristin must have had a long labor because she didn't get an update until 7:30 the next morning.

“It's a boy! Mason Richardson born at 4:41 am. Mom and baby are doing just fine! Pics to come later!”

Emily smiled. She knew Kristin would have a boy! She only wished she knew what she was having herself!

Emily ate breakfast before she got sick from not eating and then got dressed. Brian and Leighanne were kind enough to go out of their way to drive her to the airport.

“I bet AJ's excited to come home!” Leighanne said.

“I think he has mixed feelings. Coming home is always great but he loves being on stage so much that I think he's sad it's ending, especially this being his first solo tour.” Emily said. “But I'm pretty glad to have him home!”

“I was surprised you came home early!” Leighanne said. “Was everything ok? I know things were rough at the baby shower...” she fished for details.

Emily shrugged. “We worked it out. I think I just got bored. Brian did I hear a rumor about you guys going back to the studio this fall?”

“The rumors are true! Looks like plans are lining up although we might start back as early as next month, maybe after the Fourth of July. For some reason AJ didn't want to wait until fall to get started. I think he's all hyped up right now he doesn't want to lose momentum!”

She grinned. She knew why he didn't want to wait until late fall...it would be too close to baby time! They'd talked over the phone last night and decided to make their announcement while they were visiting Kevin and Kristin. Emily was 14 weeks now and was having a hard time concealing her stomach. She'd had her second appointment with her OB a few days ago and everything was looking great and she was now officially in her second trimester! She told AJ that if they didn't tell them now they'd figure it out in another week or two.

Baylee was very excited to be going on a trip that he kept her awake on the plane. She was so excited to see AJ that she didn't even mind. She smiled to herself as she saw Brian and Leighanne being very loving toward one another and wondered if everything was finally starting to look up for a change. No more crazy stalker, although every now and then he still managed to haunt her dreams, she and AJ were getting along, Brian and Leighanne were finally getting along, she was having not one but TWO babies....it almost seemed too good to be true! But she wasn't about to question it, she didn't want to jinx anything.

She listened to Baylee's chatter about school and his new friends and about a birthday party he'd gotten invited to and the acting class that his parents had signed him up for. They colored together and played Go Fish until they landed in LA.

The car service took them to the hotel and they were quickly checked in and taken upstairs. AJ had already gone for the day but Emily was going to meet him at the venue around dinner time and then Brian and Leighanne and Baylee were going to come just before the show started. They all ate a quick lunch in the hotel cafe and then Emily went to take a nap before getting dressed for the concert.

She was escorted back to his dressing room and waited patiently for him to come back from wherever he was at the moment. She was there about twenty minutes before he finally came in.

Emily jumped up from the couch and gave him a big hug. “Did you miss me?” she asked.

AJ hugged her tightly. “I couldn't stop thinking about you and those babies of ours! How are you?” he asked, stepping back to look at her. “You're right...it's time to start telling people! I can't believe how fast your belly is growing, it's only been two weeks since I've seen you!”

Emily's hand instinctively patted her stomach. “I know! The doctor said it's faster not only because there are two in there but also because this isn't my first pregnancy so my body knows how to stretch I guess.”

“You look incredible.” he said, softly.

“Well, you know you're only saying that because you're obligated to tell your preggo wife that!” she teased.

“I might be obligated to, but it's still true!” he winked. “Come sit down!” he said, leading her over to the couch.

They talked, catching each other up on the events of the day. Eventually Brian, Leighanne, and Baylee arrived with a surprise guest...Kevin!

“What are you doing here, don't you have a baby to take care of?” AJ asked, giving Kevin a hug.

“Kristin made me come. She was ready to go to sleep early tonight and said I should go see the show and then come back to help her through the night shift.”

“Congratulations, Kevin!” Emily said. “He is so gorgeous! How is Kristin getting along?”

“She's doing amazing!” Kevin glowed with pride. “She's been so patient getting him to nurse and when he gets fussy she always seems to know just what to do. We're coming home from the hospital tomorrow, she wanted me to ask you if you wanted to come visit.”

Emily beamed. “I was hoping she would ask that! Of course!! How about the day after tomorrow, give you guys a chance to get home and settled. And I'm sure you'll have both grandmothers over there wanting their time.”

Kevin rolled his eyes. “Both of our moms haven't left us alone all day.”

Emily felt a pang in her heart as she realized that her mother could care less about her first grandchildren. AJ met her eyes and knew exactly what she was thinking and he hurt for her as he thought of how excited his own mother was for them and how much he imagined it would hurt if she weren't.

They hung out awhile longer until it was about time for the concert to start. AJ went off to get changed and warm up, Baylee was playing his Nintendo DS, Brian and Kevin were talking leaving Emily and Leighanne to plot. They decided they wanted to see the show from the front of the stage so they talked with security to arrange for them to be led down front just before he took the stage. The crowd was absolutely wild that night as they were already screaming and chanting loudly.

The ladies ditched Brian and Kevin about ten minutes before show time and were escorted to their places. They were recognized by a few fans but for the most part, everyone was so focused on watching the stage for any signs of AJ that they went unnoticed, especially in the dark venue. They realized there must have been some kind of technical malfunction when the show didn't start right away and the stage hands were running around like chickens with their heads cut off.

“AJ's going to be pissed, he hates starting late!” Emily yelled into Leighanne's ear as the crowd began chanting for AJ.

“They all do. It makes everyone frazzled and takes away the focus. Hell even I get tense when this happens!” Leighanne laughed.

Eventually, they heard a voice come over the sound system promising that AJ would take the stage in about fifteen more minutes once they had the issue fixed. The energy of the crowd was about to blow the lid off the place as the fans could not seem to contain their excitement any longer. People began to push and shove to get closer to the stage, the yelling got louder. Emily and Leighanne turned around just in time to see a bit of a scuffle starting behind them as the fans began fighting to get closer to the front and knew that was their cue to get the hell out of there. It would be bad enough being there if they were just anyone, but if the fans found out that Brian and AJ's wives were there, things could get a lot worse.

“Time to go!” Leighanne said as she turned to lead the way back to the gate where the security guards had let them in.

Emily had tried to follow but just as Leighanne started making her way out, the group of angry fans seemed to swallow Emily and every time she tried to get out, she was shoved back in as everyone thought she was fighting to get up front just like everyone else.

Before she knew what was happening, several girls began pushing and shoving and even throwing a few smacks and punches as an all out fan riot began to break out with Emily caught right in the middle of it.

Chapter 116

When Leighanne was safely backstage, she turned around to say something to Emily and only then realized that Emily was not behind her. She walked back over to the guard and asked him where Emily went only to be informed that Emily had not come back through security.

“You mean she's still out there?” Leighanne shrieked. “Get her out of there right now!”

“Not a whole lot I can do right now.” the guard grumbled.

“What the hell do you mean? Can't you do your damn job and get this under control?”

“I'm not allowed to leave me post. Floor security will get them under control.”

Leighanne practically growled at the guy and went in search of Brian.

AJ was stressed enough when he learned part of the sound system had fried just moments before the show was supposed to start and when he saw Chris, his stage manager, coming over to him, he knew he was about to get even more bad news.

“We have a problem.” Chris said.

“What now?” AJ grumbled.

“There seems to be a bit of a riot on the floor.”

“What?”

“The fans. There's a big group of them pushing and shoving and getting into fights to try and get in the front. God I hate General Admission venues.”

“Well, can't you do something about it?” AJ asked, not sure what the problem was.

“Security is out there trying to break it up but they're having a bit of a hard time with so many rabid women. I think you could get on the microphone and charm them into calming down. We can't let you take the stage until they are, anyway.”

“Jesus.” AJ mumbled as Chris handed him the microphone. He waited for Chris to signal him that he was good to talk.

“Ladies......” AJ said, trying his best to sound sexy and charming. He heard the noise die down only slightly. “Ladies!” he called again. “It's me, AJ!” the crowd responded with cheers.

When they quieted, he continued. “I know you're all so excited, and I am too, but I've got some people back here telling me I'm not allowed to come out there and sing for you until you settle down so I'm going to need all you pretty ladies in the front to be calm and not crowd the stage or there won't be any show!”

The crowd in the back began booing.

“As soon as I get the all clear, the show will start so just remember to be nice to each other and enjoy the concert!”

He waited five more minutes and went to ask Chris how things were looking.

“Most of them have settled, there's still a wild group by the security gate but security says they should have it under control in a few more minutes, they're ejecting a bunch of people.”

He sighed and waited patiently as he paced around backstage. When he walked back around, he saw Leighanne talking to Chris. She looked upset.

“What's going on?” he asked.

Leighanne took a deep breath. “Emily's out there.” she said.

“Out where?”

“In the crazy pit of fans.”

“WHAT?” AJ's voice raised.

“Relax, I'm sure she's fine!” Chris said.

“What the hell is she doing out there?” he asked Leighanne.

“We were going to watch part of the show from down front. As soon as the pushing started we knew we had to leave but I guess she got caught up in it. I turned around and she wasn't behind me anymore.”

AJ turned to Chris, who immediately knew that not only was he going to have to sit on AJ to keep him from going out there, he needed to find a way to get Emily out of there safely if there was going to be a show that night.

Chris turned to Byron, AJ's security guard for the tour. “Go get her.”

Byron nodded and took off.

Emily had never been in a mosh pit or a fight of any kind before so she was totally unprepared for how disorienting it was to keep getting shoved back and forth in a crowd. She knew she had to keep her footing or she might get trampled it she didn't. Her hair had been pulled, her necklace had been ripped off of her neck and she had actually been elbowed in the back of the head. Instinctively, she kept her arms wrapped around her stomach to protect it as best she could from any blows as she tried to fight her way out.

She decided the best way to escape would be to try and go back instead of forwards but it was like swimming upstream so she tried instead to go to the side of the crowd. She finally made her way to the edge when someone grabbed her by the elbow, trying to pull her back into the crowd. She was starting to panic when she saw Byron working his way towards her, using his broad shoulders to shove the fans off of him.

When he reached her, he wrapped one arm around her and made sure she stayed as close to him as possible as he began to shove his way back through the crowd, angry women practically bouncing off of him as they tried to get around. He didn't let go of her until she was safely back stage.

“Take her back to the dressing room.” Chris said.

Byron nodded and led Emily back. Everyone was standing outside the door as Byron opened it and Emily walked in.

“Are you alright?” AJ asked, panic written all over his face.

Emily nodded, shakily. “I think so.”

“Are you sure? What about...”

“The babies are fine. I only got hit in the head, I swear.”

AJ breathed a sigh of relief and then turned back to her. “Then what in the hell were you doing out there?” he practically shouted.

Emily froze. She really hadn't thought it was that big of a deal. “I'm sorry...I couldn't have known that was going to happen!”

“Well you should have thought better. Do you have any idea how worried I was when I found out you were out there?”

“I'm sorry.” she said, fighting her instinct to get defensive. She realized he probably had been going crazy with worry, especially knowing that she was carrying his babies. “I really am. But the important thing is that I'm alright.” she assured him. “Ok? You still have a show to give!”

AJ sighed and pulled her into a hug. “I'm sorry, you're right. You sure you're ok?”

“I promise.” she assured him. “Now get your butt on stage already!”

AJ took off and Emily quickly fixed her hair and straightened her clothes before joining the others.

“Are you alright?” Kevin asked, looking her up and down.

“I'm fine, I promise. I'm tough, remember?” she smiled.

Kevin wasn't amused. “That could have been very bad, Emily.”

“I know, Kevin.” Emily said, partly annoyed and partly touched by his concern. “I suppose you already lectured Leighanne?”

“Of course. She knows better.”

“Well what can I say? She and I like a little adventure every now and then.”

Kevin chuckled. “From the things my wife has told me, I'd say that's very true.”

Emily could tell that AJ wasn't really connecting with his audience that night but she couldn't really blame him. He was probably furious with them for harming his wife and didn't really feel like being his normal, sexy self. After intermission when he was reassured again that she was fine, he loosened up a bit and began to enjoy himself a little more as it kicked in that this was the last show of his first solo tour.

“He has not changed a bit on stage!” Brian said. “Still the sexiest goof-ball there is.”

“I'm totally going to have to tell him that you called him sexy.” Emily teased.

Brian winked in response.

There were three encores that night and by the time AJ came back to the dressing room he looked sweaty and exhausted.

“What a night, huh?” he said.

“It was great! How do you feel?”

“Mixed emotions, really. This last week has been a killer so I'm pretty fucking exhausted but not quite ready for it to end.”

“Well, you and I can sleep all day tomorrow if you like!” she smiled.

“Me and you, in bed all day? I could live with that.”

He quickly changed and cleaned up before going out to do some autographs on his way to the waiting limo. Emily waited for him in the car feeling a bit safer in there.

“Do you want to come with me to the party tonight?” he asked.

Emily thought for a moment. She thought it might be fun but she also really wanted to go to sleep. With the time change and everything, she was exhausted. “I don't think so.” she answered. “You go and have a good time though!”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded. “'I'm just going to go to sleep, you deserve a chance to unwind and have some fun!”

He leaned over and gave her a kiss. “I love you.”

Emily had long since been asleep when AJ came back. He took a quick shower and climbed into bed, falling asleep almost immediately. He was woken a few hours later when he heard Emily making noises in her sleep. He assumed she was having some kind of nightmare as he gently woke her but when she immediately turned and kissed him deeply, he realized she must have been having an entirely different type of dream.

He kissed her back and she rolled on top of him, gently nibbling on his ears. He groaned, slipping his hands underneath her shirt and gently caressing her breasts, letting his thumbs delicately brush over her nipples. He loved feeling them harden as he teased them. Emily sat up and removed her shirt, tossing it over the side of the bed. She leaned down so that her left breast was right at his mouth, encouraging him to suckle her. She gasped as she felt his hot mouth on her, his tongue swirling around her hardened bud. He slid his hands down and grabbed her ass, kneading her flesh. He realized it had been far too long since he'd been with his wife and he didn't really feel like waiting around for it. Releasing her from his mouth, he sat up, slid off her panties, and freed himself of his boxers.

Emily was so incredibly turned on that she came almost as soon as she sunk onto him. She massaged her own nipples as she swirled her hips. AJ was fighting hard not to lose it right then and he tightly held on to her hips and pushed himself deeper inside of her. Emily came with a gasp and had to grab onto his shoulders to keep herself upright. Feeling her nails digging into his skin, AJ finally lost control and came violently as he continued to thrust himself up inside of her over and over until the pleasure subsided.

She collapsed on top of him and kissed his neck.

“I love you.” he said, breathlessly.

“I love you too.” she murmured.

He gently rolled her off of him and held her tightly against him.

“Em?” he asked, after a few minutes,

“Yeah?”

“What were you dreaming about?”

He couldn't be sure because the room was dimly light but he could have swore she blushed.

“Nothing.” she answered.

“Liar! I heard you moaning in your sleep.”

“I was just having an....erotic dream. That's all.”

“Really?” AJ was definitely interested now. “About you and me?”

“Yeah...” she sounded hesitant.

“Oh come on, Em. You can tell me! Just please tell me it wasn't about you and Nick again.”

Emily swatted at him. “You swore you'd never mention that again! Believe me, I didn't want to dream about that either!”

AJ laughed. “I'm just kidding. Come on...it can't be worse than that!”

Emily sat up. “Fine. I was dreaming about you and me...and someone else.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Really? Who was it?”

“I don't really know who it was....it was just some woman I've never seen before.”

It was AJ's turn to sit up. “You had a dream you were with another woman?”

“Well, you were there too!”

“Do tell!”

“Well it was kind of like...you were the coach or something. You were watching and telling us what you wanted us to do to each other. And sometimes you'd join in.”

“Damn!” AJ was getting hard just thinking about it. “So...did you like being with another woman?”

“Well...in my dream I suppose I really did like it. I'm not really sure how I'd feel about doing something like that in real life though.”

“Do you think you'd ever want to try it?”

Emily shook her head. “I don't think so.”

“Well how about if we pretend then?”

She raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“Lie back down and close your eyes.” he said.

Emily did as he said and felt his hands gently begin to stroke her skin as he began whispering in her ear. He had her imagine she was back in her dream as he talked her through it, using his hands to simulate what was happening. Emily was almost embarrassed to admit how much it aroused her but there was no hiding it from him and hell, he was just as aroused!

The next morning, they both slept in late. It was Emily's hungry stomach that finally insisted she wake up. She sat up and immediately ordered breakfast from room service. She flipped on the tv and heard AJ begin to stir.

“Morning, sleepy head.” she said. “I just ordered some breakfast.”

AJ yawned and rubbed his eyes before turning and giving her a quick kiss. “Good morning, baby. How are you this morning?”

“Aside from starving, I feel great!”

“That's a first...you're hungry in the morning instead of barfing!”

Emily laughed. “I know. The morning sickness is finally starting to go away. Now I'm just plain hungry all the time. These babies consume a lot of calories!”

“Speaking of babies....are you sure it's ok to...you know...make love so much? It won't hurt them or anything, will it?”

Emily shook her head. “The doctor said it was perfectly fine as long as I felt comfortable. I figure we should enjoy it while we can, before I'm too huge to feel like doing it or the babies get here and we won't have a moments peace for a few months!”

AJ laughed. “Sounds like a good plan to me!”

Emily was on the phone with Leighanne when their breakfast arrived. Leighanne had called to see if they wanted to go out to dinner together that night. AJ was a little surprised at the amount of food she had ordered but he didn't say anything, especially as he watched her devour it faster than he ate his own. Usually Emily was the slowest one at the table!

“Hungry?” he said, with a grin as she finished her last bite of French toast.

“Oh my God, you have no idea what I'm dealing with here!” she said, putting her fork down and sitting back, feeling totally satisfied. “When the doctor told me how many calories I needed to eat I freaked out a bit but once the hunger set in I realized that the problem was not going to be eating enough, it was going to be eating too much!”

“Well then I suppose it's a good thing I have that new album, apparently our food bill is about to go way up!” he said, with a twinkle in his eye.

Emily threw her napkin at him. “Very funny!”

Chapter 117

After spending a day relaxing, AJ and Emily had met up with Brian, Leighanne and Baylee to have a nice dinner. AJ chuckled to himself as he realized Emily was trying very hard to restrain herself from devouring her food in front of everyone. He was kind enough to slip her some of his pasta, pretending he just wanted her to try some. They parted ways after dinner and AJ took her for a walk and treated her to some frozen yogurt followed by some more rest and relaxation together in bed.

Emily woke up very excited the following morning. Not only were they finally going to meet Baby Mason, but they were going to tell everyone their good news! She couldn't wait to see the looks on their faces when they told them that not only were they having a baby but they were having twins! They were going to tell Kevin, Kristin, Brian and Leighanne together and then later that day make some phone calls to the rest of their close friends.

They'd had a long discussion about when to go public with the news. Under normal circumstances Emily would have been ok if the info got out soon, but because they were having identical twins, there were a lot of risks and she didn't want the public to know until they were more sure things were probably going to be ok. Their plan was that if something did happen to leak, they would admit to being pregnant but they would not let on about the twins until much later. They figured eventually Emily's growing belly would be spotted by a fan or a reporter and the cat would be out of the bag but until then, it was their little secret.

They all piled into the rental car after breakfast and first swung by the grocery store. Emily and Leighanne had insisted on making lunch to which Kevin sounded very relieved of. Apparently their first night at home had been a little rougher than they'd expected but insisted they were looking forward to the company.

They were let in by a tired looking Kevin who said Kristin was upstairs nursing and would be down in a few minutes. Emily ushered everyone to the sink to wash their hands so as not to pass any germs to the baby. The whole time, Emily and AJ couldn't seem to stop grinning at each other as their excitement began to bubble. Emily was going to let AJ tell them and he said he was just going to wait for the right moment and to follow his lead but she was about ready to just blurt it out.

They visited with Kevin as he described every cute thing Mason had already done and admitted that they'd gotten very little sleep at night.

“Mommy why did Mason stay up all night crying?” Baylee asked. “Was he sad?”

“No Sweetie. When babies are very little, sometimes it just takes them awhile to adjust. They have to learn that when it's night that's when they're supposed to sleep, and sometimes they just want cuddled by their mommy or daddy.” Leighanne explained.

“Oh. Did you have to teach me when to sleep?”

“We spent a lot of time trying to teach you when to sleep!” Brian said.

“I didn't want to sleep?” Baylee sounded surprised.

“Not for a few weeks.” Leighanne said.

“Did I just want cuddled?”

“Sometimes. Other times you wanted to eat and sometimes you just seemed to want to cry.”

“Oh. Well I'm really sorry that I kept you up all night, Mommy.” Baylee said, sweetly.

“It's ok.” Leighanne laughed. “You didn't know, you were just a baby!”

“Yeah.” Baylee agreed.

Finally Kristin came downstairs holding Mason in her arms.

“Did he nurse ok?” Kevin asked.

“Yeah, he's starting to get the hang of it.” she said as she gave the baby to Kevin, who Emily had to admit, looked sexier than ever holding that tiny baby in his strong arms. Even sexier was when AJ had the baby in his arms.

AJ was a little surprised that he was the first one to hold Mason. He figured it was because he was sitting next to Kevin but he still figured one of the girls would have claimed him. To be honest, he was a little anxious holding such a tiny thing. As he cradled Mason in his arms, he looked down at the perfect porcelain face and smiled. Such a fragile thing and yet holding him started to feel so natural.

“Hey little Mason!” he said softly. “I'm your Uncle AJ. Your dad probably thinks I'm going to teach you all kinds of bad things, and I might teach you a few, but I promise, I'm going to look out for you! And when you're ready to get your first tattoo, you give me a call!” he said, knowing his last statement would get a reaction from the new parents.

Emily was the last to have her turn. She waited patiently, talking to Kristin about how her start to motherhood had been. She cringed as Kristin told her and Leighanne the story of Mason's birth and silently thanked modern science for the epidural as she fully planned to get one when she went into labor.

She got a bit teary eyed as she held Mason. He was so tiny and perfect and holding him in her arms made the fact that she was going to have two of her very own even more real. Eventually, she had to pass him along to help Leighanne make lunch.

“Who wants him next?” she asked.

Surprisingly to everyone but Emily, AJ jumped at the chance. “Me, my turn!” he said getting up and carefully taking the baby from Emily.

Emily and Leighanne went into the kitchen to get lunch out. They'd bought some pasta salad and chicken salad from the deli and they were going to serve it with fresh fruit and the deli's fresh, homemade potato chips. When Kristin tried to help, they instructed her she could sit on the bar stool and watch as they put the food into bowls and got out the bread, plates, forks and napkins.

“Thanks for lunch, you guys. Gosh, we've been getting spoiled. Kevin and I haven't cooked food for ourselves since before Mason was born!”

“Enjoy it while you can.” Leighanne said. “It won't last forever!”

“Yeah...I even bought you dessert!” Emily said. “Caramel fudge brownies!”

“So Leighanne, how is Amanda doing?”

“Oh...I'm glad you mentioned her because actually, I have some gossip!”

“What?” Emily asked, curious.

“She and Randy have been talking about moving in together. I don't really know what there is to talk about, she pretty much sleeps at his house every night anyway so I'd imagine she keeps clothes and things there. But you know how she is.”

“Actually I don't think it's just her.” Emily said. “Randy's big on his own personal space too. I think he's been living alone for so long that the idea of a woman moving in frightens him a bit.”

“Did you two ever talk about it?” Kristin asked.

Emily shrugged and lowered her voice, not really wanting AJ to overhear their conversation. “We only dated a few months really so we never talked about it, but he got kind of weird when I asked if he had a place I could leave a few things. You know, just like, a toothbrush, some underwear, some clothes.”

“What did he say?”

“Not much, he just asked why I wanted to do that and I said that sometimes it'd be nice to have things there than to have to worry about packing for a sleepover every night and then I gave him a look and I think he got it pretty quickly that I wasn't really impressed with a guy who was going to freak out over something like that. AJ, on the other hand, couldn't wait to move in together!”

“Either could Kevin.” Kristin agreed. “I think they spent so much time cut off from people on the road that they were eager to have a person there all the time. So Leighanne, how are things going with Brian?”

Leighanne smiled. “Really well. Things are really starting to feel normal again. I mean at first, when he moved back home, it was kind of awkward to just jump back into things like intimacy and every day living as husband and wife. I think we both had to come to terms with our insecurities and just deal with things head on.”

“I for one think it's so nice finally having those two on the same page again.” Emily said. “More dinner parties for AJ and I!”

Kristin laughed. “I wish you guys lived out here!”

“Yeah right.” Leighanne said. “Good luck getting Emily to move here. I think she'd rather live in Alaska!”

“Actually...I have always wanted to go to Alaska...” Emily said. Leighanne and Kristin rolled their eyes.

“Alright, lunch is ready.” Emily said. “Kristin, you can start the line. Eat up!”

Emily went and called the boys in. AJ looked a little sad when Kevin took Mason and gently laid him in the baby swing while they all ate. He'd fallen asleep in AJ's arms and looked so peaceful.

“AJ I had no idea you were such a baby guy!” Kevin said as they all sat around the table.

“Truthfully, either did I! I mean I knew they were cute and I liked them but I haven't had very many chances to hold one so little before!”

“Well maybe someday soon you and and Emily will have a little one of your own!” Leighanne said.

AJ grinned at Emily. “Yeah, maybe someday.”

“Are you guys still talking about having one soon?” Kristin asked.

“We've actually been talking a lot about it lately.” Emily answered, trying her best to keep a straight face.

“Awww!” Kristin squealed. “You have to promise to tell us as soon as it happens!”

AJ looked at Emily and she nodded at him.

“Well, now that you mention it...” AJ said, with a huge smile on his face.

“No!” Kevin said, in disbelief. “Get outta here!”

Leighanne, Kristin and Brian all turned to look at Emily.

“Really?” Leighanne asked.

Emily beamed and nodded. “Really!”

The table erupted in cries of delight and congratulations as everyone got up to hug AJ and Emily. Baylee was thrilled and told Emily he hoped it was a boy so they could play together. Once they were all seated and Emily had stopped crying her tears of joy yet again, the questions began.

“So when are you due?” Brian asked.

“December 10.”

“So that's why you didn't want to wait until fall to hit the studio again!” he said to Brian. “You could have just told us instead of making us wonder what the hell was wrong with you!”

AJ laughed. “Well, Emily and I didn't really want to tell anyone for awhile. You know, just in case.” he said.

“But everything is fine now, right?” Leighanne asked, thinking of all that Emily had already been through in her past experiences.

Emily nodded. “Everything is fine but we are a higher risk than most women are.” she said, with a grin.

“Why? What's the matter?” Kristin asked.

She took a deep breath. “Because apparently, it's a lot harder to grow two at once than it is to grow just one.”

It took a moment for the others to realize what she'd just said.

“Wait a minute...” Kevin said. “Are you saying that you're having twins?”

Emily and AJ nodded.

“Seriously?” Leighanne was shocked.

They nodded again.

“Damn! AJ always did have to one-up us all the time but I had no idea he'd take it this far!” Brian laughed.

“Twins?” Kristin said. “I...wow!! You guys! This is so amazing!”

After a repeat round of congratulations, they faced more questions. Emily decided it would just be easier to tell them everything she knew.

“They're identical twins. Twins don't run in my family but they apparently do in AJ's which some people think might make a difference when you're talking about identical twins, because there was only one egg, it just split into two. We don't really expect to make it to our due date. 36 weeks would be the goal. Right now they are both growing very well and on schedule.”

“This is so amazing!” Leighanne said. “How are you feeling?”

“Hungry!” Emily replied.

AJ laughed. “She's not kidding.”

“For awhile I had some nasty morning sickness but that pretty much has passed. Other than that, just routine pregnancy stuff. Maybe just a little exaggerated because there's two of them.”

Kevin put his hand on AJ's shoulder. “Twice the hormones? Man, I'm sorry buddy! I hope you come out of this alive!”

Kristin glared at Kevin. Everyone else chuckled.

“I'll admit, I've been a little suspicious. Your stomach looked a little bigger than it did the last time I'd seen you!” Leighanne said.

Emily grimaced. “Yeah...it's growing pretty quickly. I hate to think of how huge I'm going to be by the end.”

“You'll still be beautiful!” AJ said.

Emily rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, our husbands are required to say that to us but really, it doesn't help much, does it Leighanne?”

Leighanne shook her head. “No, we'll still feel fat and ugly.”

That evening, AJ and Emily sat down in their hotel room and made some phone calls to spread the news. They called Howie and Leigh first and then Nick followed by a handful of other friends AJ insisted needed to know. Everyone was thrilled for them and Emily started feeling quite special after all the attention she had gotten. After a late-night snack, they went to bed still grinning from ear to ear. It felt nice to have such a strong support system around them and AJ could tell that Emily felt a little better about the whole twin thing as he listened to her talking about it that day.

As Kristin got up for the fifth time that night to Mason's screaming, she thought to herself that Emily had no idea what she was getting herself into with twins!

"Realize" is a work of fiction.
The characters and events portrayed are fictitious.
Any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental.

Copyright ©2008
All Rights Reserved
No part of this text may be copied or reprinted
without the author's permission.

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