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  “How much time do I have to do?” Patrick asked, getting serious about he had him come over. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, “well in talking to the D.A. they seem to think that you should do at least a year, minimum,” he explained to Patrick. Patrick didn’t like the sound of that but understood under the circumstances since he did in fact kill a man. He was dreading telling Kiplyn this. “When do I have to turn myself in?” Patrick asked him, not truly wanting to know the answer. “They want you to turn yourself in the day after tomorrow. You should have gotten a phone call about it already,” Officer O’Neall explained. Patrick hadn’t gotten any phone calls recently, but that didn’t mean anything, maybe his brother answered the phone. God, please let it have been his brother. Without a word of dismissal, Patrick turned and walked into the house.

  CHAPTER 17

  Turn in day was upon them. Kiplyn was a hot mess. Patrick was……well Patrick was a dick to anyone, but Kiplyn. He was stressed out and didn’t want to leave her. They stood outside the police station, along with Donovan and Declan, as well as Shauna. “I don’t want you to go!” she sobbed into his shoulder. Patrick had learned after speaking to Officer O’Neall that it was a year and a half that he would have to serve. Which meant that he would not be around in six months when his children were born. That thought pissed him off.

  “Baby, there is no place I would rather be than with you. I killed a man though and need to serve my time. It will fly by quick, and I will be back holding you before you know it,” he said placing a gentle kiss on her neck. Kiplyn just held on tighter, not wanting to let him go. Her sobbing had calmed down and was just hiccups now. Patrick gently handed Kiplyn over to Donovan when he saw Officer O’Neall heading toward them.

  “Please put your hands behind your back, so I can cuff you, Mr. McDonnell,” he said calmly. Patrick turned around and placed his hands behind his back, his eyes never leaving Kiplyn. His heart was breaking as he watched her break down and sob in his brother’s arms, and there was nothing he could about it. Her legs gave out, making Donovan have to pick her up, as Officer O’Neall walked Patrick away to a holding cell until he could be transferred to county jail, where he would serve his time.

  The drive home was silent, except for the crying that came from Kiplyn in the back seat. Donovan carried her into the house and gently placed her in the bed once they reached Patrick’s house. He didn’t think she would handle being anywhere else at this moment. He had promised Patrick, without her knowledge of course, that he would stay there with her until he was released from jail. There were enough rooms in the house, so that wouldn’t be a problem. The problem was how the little spitfire would react when she found out he was staying there. He would cross that bridge when he came to it though. For now, he just wanted her to relax.

  **********************

  It had been eight weeks since Patrick had turned himself in. Kiplyn stood in front of the bathroom mirror trying to decide what to do with her hair. It had gotten so long and was becoming difficult to manage. On top of that, her stomach had doubled in size, causing it to be difficult to move around easily. She was twenty-three weeks pregnant but looked as if she was going to deliver any day. Letting out a long breath, she decided that she would just braid her hair, so it wasn’t everywhere.

  “Are you ready, sweetheart?” Donovan asked, poking his head in. “Yeah, I am. Just let me go pee again before we go,” she said with a giggle. That is what her life had become, trips to the bathroom. She felt as if she was constantly in there.

  Several minutes later, they were pulling up to the county jail. The car was barely parked before Kiplyn was attempting to get out of the car. “Can we not get ourselves hurt. I don’t want to have to explain that to him when he is locked up,” Donovan snarled as he jumped out of the car and ran around to her side to help her get out. Kiplyn giggled at his protectiveness, but there was nothing and no one that was going to keep her from seeing him today. Hell would have to swallow her and tie her down to keep her away from him, and that wasn’t even a guarantee.

  Kiplyn walked up to the counter to check in and register for visitation. The officer on duty gave her a guest badge and told her where to go. Kiplyn entered a small room that had glass and was sectioned off by small wall portions. Then there were chairs. The room was very sparse and gloomy. She sat down in the first available seat and waited nervously. She didn’t have to wait long though, before she saw Patrick being escorted into the room by an officer. Her breath caught in her throat at the site of him handcuffed. Tears silently fell down her face, she quickly wiped them away in hopes that he hadn’t seen them. By the scowl on his face, she wasn’t quick enough.

  “Let me see my babies,” Patrick said as he sat down on the opposite side of glass. Kiplyn giggled and stood from her seat. Turning to the side so he could get the full effect of how big she actually was. She laughed even harder at the expression on his face. She knew he was trying to think of something nice to say but was failing miserably. She was very aware of the fact that she was huge, and no one would tell her differently. “You look beautiful,” he said to her. They spent the next thirty minutes, yes only thirty, talking about everything that was going on at home with her and the babies. He wanted to know everything. It was very difficult for her when it came time for him to go back.

  An officer came in an explained that she had to leave. “Baby, just go, please. If he puts his hands on you, I can’t guarantee I won’t flip out. Please, do as I say and walk back to Donovan,” Patrick all but begged. She knew in that moment that if she didn’t walk out on her own that Patrick would flip out and have extra time added to his sentence. She couldn’t handle that. Taking a deep steady breath, she held her head high and walked out into the waiting area where Donovan sat. It wasn’t until she reached, that she had her breakdown. He scooped her up and carried her to the car, where he gently put her in the seat, buckling her in.

  ******

  The day of her thirty-week check was here. Kiplyn had not been allowed to return to visit Patrick. When she asked the officer at the desk why she had been removed, he informed her that it was difficult for Patrick to see her upset. He handed her a note from Patrick in hopes that would explain a little more. Kiplyn read the note again, just to feel close to him. She had read it to many times since she had received it. Today was important though. She needed to know that her babies were still safe and growing the way they should.

  Shauna was the only one available to take her to her appointment, which was odd, but she would question that later. Over the last several weeks, she had at least one, most of the time two very overbearing, bossy, controlling, pig-headed men around her. Now all of a sudden, they are nowhere to be found. Strange! She wouldn’t complain though, because it gave her some special one on one time with Shauna.

  The girls sat down in the doctor’s office, waiting for her to come in. Kiplyn was nervous, she knew that being pregnant with twins at thirty weeks was close to the time when some twins were born. That is not news she wanted to hear today. Not for the first time, she wished that Patrick were here with her. She had gone to so many appointments without him. Hell! She had gone through most of this pregnancy without him. She needed to get her thoughts under control, she was starting to get angry, but mostly sad. She hated the fact that he wasn’t here with her to see their babies progress.

  Dr. Johnson entered the room, after what seemed to be forever, pushing the ultrasound machine. She smiled at Kiplyn sweetly, as she did at every appointment. “How are you feeling today, Kiplyn?” she asked, as she sat down next to her. “Fine,” was all Kiplyn was willing to say. She knew if she said anything else, she would burst into tears. Dr. Johnson’s eyes met Shauna’s for confirmation. Shauna gave her slight nod, letting her know that Kiplyn was barely hanging on without him being around. See what Kiplyn didn’t know, was Dr. Johnson knew the entire situation, she did shifts at the county jail and had seen Patrick there. He had told her what had had happened and asked her not to t
ell Kiplyn that she knew. Dr. Johnson agreed, not wanting to add more stress to Kiplyn.

  “You ready to see your babies?” she asked giving Kiplyn a wink. Kiplyn nodded, without a word. She couldn’t help but wish that Patrick was there with her again. Stop it! She scolded herself, she knew that if she kept thinking those thoughts, she wouldn’t make it through this appointment. Kiplyn lifted her shirt up, leaned back and closed her eyes, waiting for the feel of the cold gel on her stomach. After several minutes of waiting, she opened her eyes to ask what was taking so long. She was staring into the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen. She was staring into the eyes of the man she loved.

  “How did you get here?!” she asked, sitting up quickly and launching herself into his arms. Tears were streaming down her face, and that is when she noticed, that Donovan and Declan were also in the room. “I will explain later, let’s get this appointment over with,” he explained, leaning her back down. Dr. Johnson winked at Kiplyn when their eyes met. She was in on this, Kiplyn realized.

  Kiplyn lifted her shirt up again, and leaned back, closing her eyes waiting for the cold gel. Instantly she felt the cold gel, causing her to catch her breath. Within a few minutes they were watching the babies wiggle around on the screen. The doctor spent the next several minutes taking measurements and other information she could gather from the ultrasound. By the end of it, there wasn’t a face without a smile.

  They all stopped by the diner after the doctor’s office to get food. Everyone was hungry. As they were seated Patrick leaned in and whispered, “what do you want to eat, baby?” Feeling his breath skate across her face, she broke out with the shivers throughout her body. It was as if all her nerves had come alive. Patrick felt her shiver and couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped. “Did you miss me that much, baby?” Patrick asked her. All she could do was nod; her voice had been lost. Between his breath skating over her skin and his touch, she was having some major issues that she shouldn’t be having in public. She turned a deep red at that realization.

  Shauna noticed the interaction and the reaction, so she took it upon herself to save Kiplyn from further embarrassment. “She wants French fries, Patrick.” Patrick was happy to know what she wanted to eat, but sad that he was unaware that she had cravings. He had missed so much while he was locked up, it tore at his heart. He didn’t want to ever be away from her again. They all sat down at the table and waited to give the waitress their order.

  “Great, it’s the skank! Can’t they get any good help in this place?” Shauna asked while she glared daggers at the girl. “It’s not her fault, her mama didn’t teach her not to go after guys that were taken, Shauna. Maybe she learned it from her mama, or maybe she’s just a skank like you said,” Kiplyn chimed in. “Ladies put the claws away and tell her what you want to eat,” Declan chuckled at the two girls. He leaned over toward Shauna, “you know I have no interest in her babe, so stop being bitchy,” kissing her cheek to take the sting out of his comment. Shauna looked at Kiplyn who seemed to be getting scolded also. Their eyes met and they just burst into a fit of giggles.

  They spent the rest of the afternoon sitting in the diner, eating, and talking. Kiplyn and Shauna had become less snarky as the time went on. It helped that the waitress didn’t come over often. Kiplyn leaned back in the seat as far as she could, she needed a little space between the table and her stomach. The babies were bouncing around a lot since she had finished eating. She gently grabbed Patrick’s hand and placed it on her stomach. She heard him suck in a breath and look at her in amazement. “Do you know which one that is?” he asked her curiously. She nodded, “from the position of them, it is the girl.” Patrick just sat there for several minutes feeling them wiggle around.

  CHAPTER 18

  Over the next several days, Kiplyn and Patrick got used to living together again, and just enjoyed each other. Neither left the bedroom much, since they spent their time relaxing and talking about anything, and well everything. They didn’t even answer their phones when they rang. Neither of them wanted the outside world to interfere with them bonding again.

  Kiplyn had fallen asleep while relaxing and watching a movie with Patrick. He was used to her dozing off. She did it more often since she was so close to her delivery day. They had learned at their last appointment that she could go into labor as soon as the next week since she was having twins. Granted that was still early at thirty-two weeks, but she would be taken care of.

  Patrick took advantage of the fact that she was napping to get some things accomplished around the house. One of those things being the nursery. He had been discussing it with Donovan and Declan over the last few days when Kiplyn napped. He wanted it to be a surprise for her, so he kept all the conversations and planning on the down low. He had already ordered the two cribs and was just waiting for them to be delivered. He had painted the room a pale yellow over the last couple days. Donovan had installed new carpet; it was a charcoal grey color. He just hoped that she liked what he was doing. Patrick had found some very cute elephant art for the babies’ room and was hanging it up when he heard someone clear their throat.

  He whipped around and came face to face with a very tired looking Kiplyn. “So, this is what you have been trying to hide from me,” she said with a wink. He stepped off the ladder that he was using to hang the pictures and stood silently in front of her waiting. Patrick held his breath, unable to read her expression. He prayed she liked it; he and Donovan had put a lot of effort into making the room look nice. As if she could read his mind, Kiplyn reached out and touched his cheek in reassurance. “I love it, and I love you for doing it. Thank you!” Patrick leaned in and kissed her gently, then shooed her out of the room so he could finish what he was working on.

  When Patrick finally finished in the nursery, he followed the sound of the giggles that filled the house. That is one thing he would never get tired of hearing, was her laugh. It was music to his ears. He would do anything to hear that laugh. He knew in that moment that he wanted to hear it for the rest of his days. He made a detour to his bedroom, before joined her in the kitchen. He knew she was cooking, she loved to cook and feed those she cared about. And from the sounds, there was more than just Shauna in there. He grabbed what he needed from his room and headed in the direction of the love of his life.

  She was doing exactly as he suspected, cooking. She was cooking garlic chicken with asparagus. It was one of his favorite dishes she cooked. He walked up behind her, pulling her slightly into his chest, leaning down and kissing her neck. “Hi handsome,” she said looking up at him. “I don’t want to burn this, so just give me a minute,” she said, hoping to not hurt his feelings. She was aware that it was his favorite and she wanted him to be able to enjoy it without it being burned. He sighed and released her, heading to the fridge to grab a drink. He sat down in a seat, never taking his eyes from her. He could watch her work in a kitchen forever. It was mesmerizing to watch her work in the kitchen.

  As Kiplyn started setting the table, Patrick reached in his pocket to make sure what he grabbed was there. He looked around the room, making eye contact with each person. They were all very important to him and he knew they were important to her as well, so he knew tonight was perfect. As Kiplyn sat down in her seat once the table was set, Patrick stood up and walked toward her. She hadn’t noticed yet, so he kneeled beside her and placed his hand on her thigh to get her attention. Everyone sat in silence, waiting to see what he was going to do. Kiplyn stared at him, silently pleading with him to let her know what was going on.

  “Kiplyn, love. You are the only person I want to be with for the rest of my life. I want to go to bed with you every night and wake up everyday to your beautiful face. I want to raise our babies together, as a proper family. I want you to be my wife, but you knew that months ago,” he said with a chuckle. He realized that she had tears streaming down her cheeks. Reaching up and wiping them away, he looked deep into her eyes, “please don’t cry, baby. It breaks my heart. I need to know that those are h
appy tears.” Kiplyn nodded, “yes!” she said looking at him. Patrick sucked in a breath, “Is that a yes that those are happy tears, or yes that you will marry me?” he asked her. Kiplyn giggled, “both.” That was all she could say before he was kissing her fiercely. Once he finally removed his lips from hers, he placed the ring on her finger. “Now everyone will know you are mine,” he whispered in her ear, kissing her neck. Kiplyn giggled and shook her head at his dominating nature.

  The next morning, Kiplyn woke up to the smell of coffee. That told her that Patrick had been up for a while and was busy doing things around the house. Today she as going to be cleaning, so it was good that Patrick was keeping himself busy. She walked into the kitchen and poured herself a cup of coffee. She sat down at the dining room table and grabbed her phone to text Shauna. She sent the text telling her she should be there soon to help her clean, like that had already planned the night before.

  The next several hours Kiplyn cleaned the house from top to bottom. If she didn’t know when it had been cleaned last, she cleaned it. She was like a cleaning mad woman. There wasn’t a surface in the house that she hadn’t cleaned. She even cleaned the nursery. She was so crazy about cleaning; she cleaned the inside of the washing machine. When Patrick saw her doing that, he made her stop cleaning and rest. She was driving him crazy with all the anxious energy she was giving off.

  As soon as Kiplyn sat down on the couch, Shauna excused herself. She explained to Patrick that she had some things she needed to do but would come back later to check on the cleaning queen. Patrick turned back to Kiplyn after locking the door. He noticed that she had fallen asleep almost immediately. He leaned down kissed her forehead and covered her up with a blanket.

  Kiplyn wasn’t asleep long, before she woke up with a pain ripping through her. She didn’t know what was going on, but she knew it wasn’t good. She was in tears and gritting her teeth; she didn’t see Patrick anywhere. She slowly stood up from the couch to see if he was in the kitchen. After several excruciating minutes she had made it through the entire house. She concluded that Patrick was not home. She did however find her phone.