Chapter Forty Four

Chapter Forty-Four

The next month was chaos.

Wonderful chaos.

But chaos all the same.

Because suddenly both families were moving.

Not across the city.

Not across the country.

Across the street.

And somehow that made everything feel even more exciting.

The townhouses quickly became construction zones.

Not major construction.

Just family construction.

Paint samples.

Furniture deliveries.

Decorating.

Nursery planning.

And approximately one million opinions.

Most of them from Harper.

Naturally.

"This colour is wrong."

Noah looked up from unpacking boxes.

"It's white."

"It's the wrong white."

Noah blinked.

Slowly.

"There are different whites?"

Harper stared at him.

"Are you serious?"

Noah immediately looked at Daisy.

"Daisy?"

"She's right."

Noah looked horrified.

Roman wisely stayed out of it.

Meanwhile across the street, Roman's townhouse was slowly becoming home.

A real home.

The penthouse wasn't being sold.

Roman refused.

Apparently.

But this house?

This was where they planned to raise their family.

The huge garden had already become Roman's favourite feature.

Every time he stepped outside he pictured Lillie running through it.

Then another little child.

Then birthday parties.

Then football goals.

Then chaos.

Lots of chaos.

The thought made him smile every single time.

Daisy stood in what would become the new nursery.

Watching workers assemble furniture.

The room was beautiful already.

Soft colours.

Natural light.

Space.

So much space.

A far cry from her old apartment.

The thought made her smile.

Because her apartment was no longer sitting empty.

After a little thought she'd followed Roman's advice.

The apartment had been rented fully furnished.

The tenants loved it.

Everything was sorted.

One less thing to worry about.

Across the street, Noah had done exactly the same.

Their old house was now being rented fully furnished too.

The decision had surprised Harper.

Mostly because Noah had handled everything himself.

Contracts.

Agents.

Viewings.

Everything.

One less thing for Harper to think about while carrying twins.

Noah considered that a victory.

What Harper didn't know was Noah had another surprise planned.

A nanny.

Not full-time.

Not forever.

Just for the first few months after the twins arrived.

Because Noah wasn't stupid.

He remembered newborn life.

He remembered sleep deprivation.

He remembered chaos.

Now they were adding two babies at once.

The man was preparing for battle.

Harper would probably cry when he told her.

Happy tears.

Hopefully.

Meanwhile Roman and Daisy's nanny had become a permanent part of their lives.

Monday through Friday.

Daytimes only.

Helping with Lillie.

Helping with routines.

Helping make sure Daisy actually rested occasionally.

The arrangement worked perfectly.

Evenings belonged to family.

Weekends belonged to family.

Roman had been very clear about that.

No meetings.

No work.

No interruptions.

Just them.

One evening both couples found themselves sitting in Roman and Daisy's almost-finished kitchen.

Takeaway boxes scattered across the island.

Children asleep.

The houses finally starting to look lived in.

For a while nobody spoke.

Simply enjoying the moment.

Then Harper looked around.

"We actually did it."

Noah smiled.

"We did."

Roman nodded.

Daisy smiled softly.

Because she understood exactly what Harper meant.

A year ago none of this existed.

Not the babies.

Not the houses.

Not the family they'd built.

None of it.

Through the large kitchen windows they could see the house across the street.

Lights glowing warmly.

Waiting.

Ready.

Home.

Roman slipped his arm around Daisy.

Automatically.

His hand resting lightly against her growing bump.

Daisy leaned into him.

Comfortable.

Happy.

Safe.

Noah noticed.

Then looked toward Harper.

Toward the twins growing inside her.

Toward the future waiting for all of them.

And suddenly the move didn't feel stressful anymore.

It felt exciting.

Because by the time the babies arrived, they'd be settled.

The rooms would be painted.

The furniture assembled.

The gardens ready.

And the cousins would grow up together.

Just like they'd imagined.

Across the street from one another.

Close enough to borrow sugar.

Close enough to help.

Close enough to become one big, messy, beautiful family.

And as the sun set over Manhattan and both future homes glowed beneath the evening sky, everyone felt the same thing. ❤️📖