Maya Banks - Softly at Sunrise

“I understand,” Shea said.

“But then we went to the doctor and I’m further along than I thought. And…” She glanced over at Shea and bit her lip to keep from shouting it out. “We’re having twins.”

“Oh my God, Rachel!” Shea screeched. “Holy shit. Twins? Are you serious?”

Rachel nodded, beaming the entire time. “But you can’t tell anyone yet. We want to wait for just the right time. And honestly I need a few days to adjust to it myself before I hit the family with something like this.”

“Oh Rachel, I’m so happy for you and Ethan,” Shea said with a dreamy sigh. “I know how much this has to mean to you. Oh my God, I’m so excited! I’m going to be an aunt!”

“You’re already an aunt, dork,” Rachel said, laughing.

“Yes, but Charlotte was already here by the time I came along. This will be the first time I was here from the very beginning.”

Rachel reached over to squeeze her hand. “I’m glad you’re here with us, Shea. I wish Grace could be here more often.”

Shea’s expression didn’t fade a bit at the mention of her sister. Grace was married to Rio, one of the team leaders of KGI, and they lived in Belize when Rio wasn’t off on a mission.

What made the sisters so unique is that they both had telepathic abilities and could communicate from great distances.

“I talk to her daily,” Shea said cheerfully. “It’s almost like having her here. And Rio brings her when he goes out on a mission. He hates the idea of Grace and Elizabeth being alone.”

Elizabeth was the pre-teen girl that Rio and Grace had adopted after her father had been killed in the mission that brought Rio and Grace together. Rio was insanely protective of them both. But then all the men of KGI had protective streaks a mile wide.

As they began the drive over the bridge where Rachel had once nearly plummeted over, her palms grew sweaty on the steering wheel, and it was instinctive to accelerate while staying to the far inside lane.

By the time they got across, the steering wheel was damp under her palms.

It was her hope that one day she could conquer her fear of that bridge, but the mere sight of it still sent a wave of panic down her spine.

When they pulled up to the gates of the compound, for a moment Rachel went blank on the security code. She sat there staring at the keypad, feeling like the biggest moron.

“39561*425,” Shea supplied.

“Thank you,” Rachel said as she punched it in. “I’m still not used to having to access my house through a security net.”

“It makes the guys feel better,” Shea said with a shrug. “I guess by the time the children come along, we’ll feel the same.”

“You’re right there,” Rachel acknowledged.

And it was true. She wanted her children safe above all else. With the things that had already happened to the family over the past years, it wasn’t a stretch to believe that their children would be at risk.

It was a sobering reality of the profession the Kellys had taken on and the missions they were involved with.

She drove toward her house in the distance. The idea of living on a compound with other members of the family sounded a bit hokey and even a little creepy on the surface. But each house was set up so that it maintained its privacy from the other houses. They could see as little or as much of the rest of the family as they wanted. It was no different than living in any other planned subdivision. At least this way they got to choose their neighbors.

The houses were spread out and backed up to the lake so that each one had a magnificent view of the water. The training facilities and the war room where most of the planning and staging went on were well away from the houses so that there was at least a semblance of normalcy to the residences.

So far the only holdouts were Donovan and Joe and then, of course, Frank and Marlene. Sam was working steadily on his parents, but they’d refused to consider moving from the house they’d live in for forty-some odd years.

Rachel couldn’t really blame them, but she, like Sam, worried for their safety. Marlene had already been kidnapped once. It had been a sharp reminder to them all how close danger lurked at all times.

Ethan was waiting for them, leaning against his truck, as Rachel pulled up. He offered Shea a smile and called out a hello just as Sophie pulled in behind Rachel in her SUV.

“Girls night out, huh,” he said as he dropped a kiss on Rachel’s lips.

“Yep. Sam and Nathan are holding down the fort over at Sam and Sophie’s. You should go offer them moral support.”

Ethan laughed. “More likely I’ll watch while Charlotte paints their fingernails, and then I’ll get to call them pussies.”

Sophie glared at Ethan. “Just wait, Ethan. Your day is coming. Miss Charlotte will corner you, and I guarantee that you won’t tell that child no, and you’ll be sporting pink, glittery fingernails and toenails.”

“God help me,” Ethan muttered.

The rest of the women laughed.

“You ready, Rachel?” Sophie asked.

“Have fun and be careful,” Ethan said as the women turned to go.

Rachel and the others waved and then climbed back into Sophie’s SUV.

Thirty minutes later, they were seated at one of the back round tables at the Big Sandy Feed and Grain Mill sipping iced tea and waiting for their food to arrive.

Sarah cleared her throat. “I propose a toast.”

Sophie grabbed up her mason jar mug. “Oh do tell. I’m up for a good toast.”

“To a truly eventful couple of years and coming out on top just like the Kellys always do,” Sarah said solemnly. “And!” she broke in when the others would have toasted. “To Rachel and Ethan’s new beginning.”

Shea sent Rachel a secret smile and then raised her glass. Rachel grinned at her sisters-in-law and said, “I’ll certainly drink to that.”

The rest of the evening was spent laughing and poking fun at the Kelly men, but it was obvious the women adored their husbands beyond reason. It was also evident that the Kelly brothers loved their wives just as fiercely.

Rachel gazed wistfully at her sisters by marriage and imagined them all with children. Holidays and birthdays. All gathered under one roof with Frank and Marlene looking on at their brood of children, both blood and honorary. Marlene did tend to lay claim to people whether they wanted to be claimed or not.

At that particular random thought, Rachel’s brow puckered, and she frowned.

“Has anyone seen Sean lately? With how crazy the move has been and going back to teaching, I haven’t seen him in weeks. And he didn’t come over to help move, which is not like him. He’s always so willing to jump in and lend a hand.”

Sean had been there more than once for Rachel when she was still finding her way in the aftermath of her return home. The sheriff’s deputy was younger than all the Kelly brothers, but he was as solid and dependable as someone well above his age.

“I heard Sam talking to him the other day on the phone,” Sophie piped up. “Sean’s been working a case in cooperation with Henry County and the state police. Sounded like a big drug ring. They’ve pulled in city and county guys for this. He’s been working a lot of long hours. Sam sounded worried about him.”

Rachel sighed. “There are times when I wish he’d go to work for KGI, but he doesn’t have the experience yet, and then I think how silly it is to think he’d be any safer going off on the kinds of missions our husbands do.”

Sarah nodded. “I understand what you mean though. It’s reassuring to think of him having that kind of back-up system, you know? We know nothing about the kind of men Sean works with currently, but we certainly know our guys would look out for him.”