Page 91 of Born into Darkness

“Well, we don’t need to make it any worse, do we?” he asks.

Mia shrugs. “True enough.”

We turn the corner and see the large nursery window up ahead. Talia grabs my arm in her excitement, and I smile down at her. She looks up, giving me a wide-eyed, breathless look. “Don’t know why I’m so excited,” she admits with a laugh. “I barely know your cousin.”

Stopping near the window, I grin when I find Enzo, all bundled up in a blue blanket and knit cap and sucking on a pacifier. “It’s your first nephew,” I tell her. “That’s why you’re excited.”

I pull her in front of me so I can wrap my arm around her from behind and kiss the top of her head.

“He’s so beautiful,” she whispers, pressing her fingers against the glass as she leans in.

“He is,” I agree, hearing my Aunt Jolene start crying even harder as Lev takes a million photos.

Leaning down so I can press my lips against her ear, I whisper, “I can’t wait until it’s our turn.”

She turns her head and kisses my cheek. “You’re skipping steps. I’m still waiting for the world’s smallest diamond and a proper proposal.”

I grin and kiss the tip of her nose. “I’m working on it. Minuscule diamonds are surprisingly hard to find.”

The truth is I’ve hired someone to help me design the perfect ring for her. She’s my light, the woman who chases away all the darkness, and a teeny-tiny diamond isn’t going to cut it. She needs a mini sun on her finger, and I won’t settle for anything less.

We watch as one of the nurses smiles at Dominic and then points at the door. When Dominic nods, she starts to wheel his son out so we can meet them in Natalya’s room. Talia and I hang back with the others while Dominic brings Isabella and Nat’s parents in so they can have a few minutes alone to meet their very first grandson.

“He’s such a baby,” Vitaly whispers when Lev walks out with glassy eyes, waving at us to come in and meet Enzo. “Everyone thinks he’s the tough guy because of his piercings and underground fighting, but the man is a giant baby.”

“Didn’t you drop a tear or two the other night when Samantha took her first wobbly step with you?” my Aunt Katya asks.

The look my uncle gives her has her laughing. “She didn’t just take a step. She also said Grandpa while she did it.”

“If you say so, honey,” she tells him.

“She did,” he insists. He looks over at all of us. “It wasn’t the most articulate thing I’ve ever heard, but she said Gahn-pah clear as day, and that’s good enough for me. It was adorable.”

“It was really cute,” my Aunt Katya says.

My Uncle Vitaly squeezes her ass and kisses her smiling face. “Be nice and maybe I’ll teach her how to say Gahm-ma.”

My aunt laughs as we all squeeze into Natalya’s room. It’s a private room, but it’s still a tight fit. When Talia and I finally get to her, I give her a hug and say, “Sorry, Nat. I know how exhausted you must be.”

She hugs us both and smiles, even though I’m sure she’d like nothing more than to sleep for a few hours. “Are you kidding? I knew they’d all be storming in here as soon as I pushed him out.” She reaches out to squeeze my left hand. “We’re really glad you’re here to meet him, Max.”

“Me too,” I tell her, giving her hand a squeeze as Dominic walks over with his son in his arms and a huge smile on his face.

“Want to meet your nephew?” he asks.

“He’s so beautiful,” Talia says, stepping closer and running her finger over his tiny hand. He’s sucking on a pacifier, calm for the moment, his big brown eyes looking around and taking everything in.

“Hey, Enzo,” I say, running my fingers over the silky dark hair on his head. I look at Dominic and Nat. “He’s gorgeous. You did good, Nat.”

Dominic beams at her. “Myprincipessadid amazing.”

She smiles up at him, and he gives her a wink before looking at Talia. “Do you want to hold him?”

She turns her dark eyes to mine, and I give her an encouraging smile. My desire to see her holding a baby is surprisingly strong, and when Enzo is safely tucked against her, I feel something loosen in my chest, a tightness that I hadn’t even realized was there. Whatever it is, it softens when I see Talia holding our nephew, and all I can think about is how badly I want to see her holding our baby instead.

Talia looks over at me and smiles. “Want to hold him?”

When I say yes, Dominic scoots a chair over so I can sit. With my right arm still useless, there’s no way I’d feel comfortable holding someone else’s newborn with just one good arm. As soon as I’m sitting, Talia leans over and very carefully puts him into my left arm, making sure his head is supported and he’s perfectly secure before standing up.

---