Just a note to my readers, this is again another family-orientated story with a bit more Calleigh/Eric, Eric is probably a much larger role in this story I'd say. I'd say give it a go - I've thought up quite a bizarre plot line (not a very long story, should be around 5 chapters).
Second Best
Chapter 1
"Hello sweetheart." Zoë grinned as she sat up from bed and saw Isobel wide awake and looking around as her arms waved around in the air. Zoë got up with a tired, natural smile and pulled her top down as it had ridden up. She stood at the foot of both Moses baskets and looked down at Isobel as she looked up at Zoë with wide, dark blue eyes. Zoë reached down and ran her fingers up from Isobel's stomach to her chest as she studied the light pink baby-grow with rabbits all over.
"What are you doing awake you little monkey? Are you looking for Mummy and Daddy?" She asked quietly as she stroked Isobel's cheek softly as she bent down closer to her with a wide smile. Isobel waved her hands around a little more frantically as she began to kick, wanting to be picked up.
"Mummy wants a cuddle too." She smiled as she gently lifted her out and sat back down after checking up on Ella who was sleeping very peacefully. She held the warm baby to her chest and then nuzzled her lightly with a smile. Zoë stifled a yawn as she began to lightly rock Isobel in hope that it would calm her down a little.
"Your sister is still fast asleep." Zoë said as she sat back on the bed and soothed Isobel as she gently ran her index finger over her forehead. Isobel looked up at Zoë as Zoë smiled down at her and she began to calm down a little. Zoë felt Isobel take a hold of her necklace, even after a couple of weeks of that happening, she still worried that one of the babies would accidentally pull it from her neck, but she was surprised at how close their hands could get to her throat without her panicking.
"You are just so gorgeous, I can't believe you're mine and 3 weeks old today." Zoë said as she gently nuzzled Isobel and lightly kissed her cheeks. She then glanced over to Horatio who seemed to be sleeping peacefully. She turned Isobel so she could see Horatio and sat her on one of her thighs and supported her.
"Look at Daddy sleeping, isn't he cute? He's just as cute as you two are." Zoë smiled and then saw the smile appear on Horatio's face, causing her smile to grow as she realised he wasn't sleeping.
"Morning beautiful" Horatio said softly as he opened his eyes having heard Zoë talking. He looked up at her with tired eyes himself and took a deep breath and stifled a yawn.
"Morning handsome, Isobel was wide awake looking around when I woke." Zoë smiled softly and Horatio smiled as he sat up. He delicately ran his fingers over Isobel's forehead before he lightly kissed Zoë with a gentle smile. She smiled at him and then watched him kiss Isobel's forehead too.
"Morning sweetheart" Horatio said softly as he kissed Isobel again as she began to squirm a little more as she looked up at Horatio with wide dark blue eyes. Her arms began to flail about again which caused Horatio to smile widely and place his hand over her head and lightly stroke her thin, short hair.
"Where's my second kiss?" Zoë smiled and Horatio looked up at her with a smile and moved closer.
"Right here." Horatio said softly as he leant over and gave her an affectionate kiss as he placed his hand on Isobel's warm stomach while they kissed amorously. They then placed their foreheads together as they held their eyes closed and moved their noses together. Both took a deep breath and exhaled a tired, steady breath when they felt the tiredness really hit them again.
"How'd you sleep?" Zoë asked softly as she pulled her head from his and gazed into his bright blue eyes as she lightly rocked Isobel.
"Okay, I'm glad that they're now only waking every 3 hours though." Horatio smiled softly and Zoë nodded with a chuckle as they both looked down to Isobel with smiles.
"So am I." She smiled and Horatio nodded as he moved closer to her and placed a hand on her thigh as well as lightly rubbing Isobel's cheek. "Ella is still fast asleep and looking very content." Zoë smiled and Horatio peeped over the Moses basket and saw her sleeping with her arms raised above her head. He smiled widely and exhaled a small chuckle before he looked back to Zoë and placed his forehead against hers again.
"She's sleeping just how you sleep." Horatio smiled and Zoë giggled as she bit her lip and then looked back down to Isobel. Zoë kissed Isobel many times lightly and then just looked down at her with a radiant smile. Horatio did the same.
"Isn't she just so beautiful?" Zoë asked and Horatio nodded as he ran his fingers over Isobel's head again.
"She really is, so is Ella, they're both so beautiful and they get it all from you." Horatio smiled softly and Zoë chuckled as she looked up at him and then shook her head.
"You contributed half to them as well, so you get half of the beauty points." Zoë smiled softly as she bit her lip and lightly rocked Isobel more as she had begun to squirm more. Horatio chuckled lightly as his eyes remained on Isobel's as she looked up at Zoë.
"I guess I did." Horatio said softly with a shy smile as he continued to look at Isobel. 'She's mine, they're both mine, I finally have two daughters and a beautiful wife to share them with. My 3 girls.' Horatio thought to himself as he watched Isobel stick her tongue out as she continued to fidget.
"Therefore you can't argue that you're not beautiful in a manly way, you're so handsome. If you were a woman you'd be beautiful." She smiled sweetly and then giggled when she saw Isobel sticking her tongue out at her. She stuck her tongue back out at Isobel and began to coo at her. "Isobel definitely has my eyes while Ella has your eyes. But both of their hair seems to be turning a little ginger, so they might actually both be red-heads in the end. Isobel's eyebrows seem to have a bit of a ginger tinge to them." Zoë said softly and Horatio smiled and looked back up at Zoë to thread a hand into her hair.
"But if I remember correctly, you had very light brown hair as a child and almost had blonde hair when you were a baby." Horatio said softly as he raised his eyebrows at her and looked deeply into her coffee coloured eyes.
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Zoë said softly as she smiled at him before looking back down to Horatio. "I think they'd be really cute with red-hair though. But I would love it if they had my hair too, I'm not entirely fussed about hair. I'm just so glad that at least Ella has your eyes." Zoë said softly.
"I'd love it if they had your hair." Horatio said softly and Zoë smiled down at Ella while Horatio continued to play with her hair and admired it as it flowed freely and easily through his fingers.
"The ginge twins with a ginge Daddy." Zoë giggled as she looked back up at Horatio.
"Ginge twins?" Horatio asked as he raised his eyebrows and she giggled again as she bit her lip. "A ginge Daddy, too, huh?"
"I'm joking." Zoë smiled as she giggled once more and leant over to place a kiss on Horatio's cheek as he continued to look at her with a smile. He turned his head and placed a quick kiss on her lips and smiled at her sweetly. "I could just watch them all day long." Zoë said softly and Horatio nodded.
"I could too." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded.
"Okay, are you on breakfast duty this morning or are you on changing nappy and clothes duty?" Zoë asked with a smile.
"Whatever you'd like sweetheart." Horatio said softly and Zoë smiled and kissed Isobel's forehead again.
"Can I change them?" Zoë asked and Horatio nodded.
"What would you like for breakfast?" Horatio asked softly as he stroked Isobel's cheek as she looked up at him when he got a little closer to her.
"Can I please have scrambled egg on toast?" Zoë asked and Horatio nodded.
"Coming right up." Horatio smiled softly as he got up and pulled a t-shirt on before he kissed Isobel's head again.
"Make it slowly though please so I have time to feed them too?" Zoë asked just as Ella woke up and Horatio nodded. He walked over to Ella and lifted her up and lightly kissed her.
"Are you looking for Mummy?" Horatio asked softly as he wrapped her in the blanket and then kissed her cheek. She automatically turned her head towards Horatio's lips and he looked towards Zoë and nodded at her to let her know that she was hungry. He then placed a load of kisses around Ella's face as she looked up at him. He couldn't help but smile as he stood back up straight and held her. "Are you sure you don't want me to stay and help?" Horatio asked softly just as Ella began to cry with Isobel starting a few seconds later.
"I'll call you when they need winding as I've not yet mastered the art of doing them both at the same time, it's quite nerve-wracking." Zoë said softly and Horatio nodded and then very gently gave Ella to Zoë. Zoë quickly breastfed them and then called Horatio up. He helped wind them and then took Isobel through to the nursery so Zoë could change them as he carried on with breakfast downstairs.
"Aren't you two gorgeous girls." She smiled as she placed her hands on their tummy's as they squirmed a little and looked at each other and then to Zoë a few times. She admired them in their almost identical tops, the only difference was that one was all pink, the other all white and their leggings and socks that were a little too big for them but she couldn't find smaller ones.
"Shall we go and see Daddy now?" Zoë asked with a smile and then carefully lifted them into her arms and slowly & carefully walked down the stairs. She walked into the kitchen and smiled at Horatio brightly as he turned around and smiled back at her.
"Breakfast is nearly done." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded and looked over to the cooker to see what Horatio was cooking.
"I'm going to put them in the living room in their Moses basket together." Zoë said softly and Horatio nodded. He then brought her breakfast into her and sat by her to eat his on the sofa while Zoë lightly rocked the basket on its stand to try and get them to sleep.
"I'm glad we got that 3rd Moses basket, we would have to use their pram for down here otherwise." Zoë said softly and Horatio nodded as he took a bite of the scrambled egg and toast.
"Thank you handsome, this is lovely." She said softly and he smiled again and then watched Isobel fall to sleep very quickly as Ella laid awake a little more, looking up at Zoë and fidgeting a lot.
"Go to sleep sweetheart." Zoë said softly as she gently ran her fingertips over Ella's head, she persisted for a few minutes before she put her plate down when she saw that it wasn't working.
"Do you want a cuddle?" She asked softly and then stood up and gently picked her up and swaddled her and then sat back down by Horatio.
"Could you cut my food up please so I don't have to?" Zoë asked softly and Horatio nodded and did as she had asked while she lightly rocked Ella and spoke to her lightly.
"Your sister was wide awake this morning, now you are. You both need to sleep you little munchkins!" Zoë said softly with a smile as Horatio placed her plate back on her lap with the fork.
"Thank you kitten." She said softly as she picked the fork up with her right hand as she gently soothed Ella by rocking her to sleep and holding her with her left arm. She looked over to Horatio with a tired smile and took a deep breath before looking back to Ella as she began to close her eyes.
"You're falling straight to sleep now, just needed cuddles with Mummy. You can't get into the habit of that you monkey." Zoë said softly before she had a mouthful of toast and scrambled egg and looked back to Horatio
"What's happening today?" Zoë asked softly after she finished her mouthful.
"Joe will be over around lunch time, Alexx said she'd be over in the evening and Eric said he'd be over after work, so we've got a pretty full day." Horatio said softly once he'd finished his mouthful.
"Is the cleaner coming today?" Zoë asked softly as she put her fork down again and placed her plate on Horatio's thigh as she began to rock Ella a little more as she was beginning to wake again.
"No sweetheart, that's Tuesdays and Fridays, today is Wednesday." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded as she looked at him.
"I'm so glad we got a cleaner, I couldn't imagine what we'd do if we had these two to keep us on our toes as well as keep the house clean." Zoë said softly and Horatio nodded with a smile.
"We've also got to see Sophie again tomorrow." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded.
"Is it bad that I'm still terrified of taking them out?" Zoë asked as she looked at Horatio.
"Nothing will happen to them or you; I'm beside you all the way. I know it can be a little worrying at times, but we can't let the past affect our present and future." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded as she looked down to Ella and lightly bit her lip. Horatio could see her hesitance.
"I know, but I am scared Horatio, I mean, all those criminals out there that hate us, we're the most vulnerable now than we ever have been and we have the most precious things in our lives on show, it's scary." Zoë said softly.
"I know sweetheart, but we can't keep them in forever, as much as I'd love to, we just can't. If we just carry on with our walks you might get used to it and feel better." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded.
"I know you're right." Zoë said softly and Horatio placed one of his hands on her back and began to lightly rub her back as she stopped rocking Ella again. "She's gone now." Zoë smiled sweetly as she stood up and put Ella down in the Moses basket and sat back with Horatio to finish her breakfast. Joe came over that afternoon just after they'd finished lunch and hugged Zoë.
"How are you all doing?" He asked as he broke from the hug and shook Horatio's hand.
"We're all great thanks, they're little angels and they're so good I can't believe it." Zoë smiled as they walked into the living room with him following.
"Would you like a drink, Joe?" Horatio asked softly as he stood at the living room entrance.
"No thank you Horatio; just had a coffee." He said softly and Horatio nodded with a gentle smile but walked out to get himself and Zoë a drink anyway.
"Would you like to hold them both at the same time? I'd like a picture of you and the both of them, so I can send it to Kaitlin and for myself." Zoë said softly and Joe nodded with a shy and nearly hesitant smile as he sat down on the sofa. "It's easy to hold them together, don't worry." Zoë said softly and Joe nodded as she got them out of the Moses basket gently. Isobel woke briefly and looked up at Joe as he held her in his right arm as Zoë placed Ella in his left. She stood back and smiled radiantly at Joe as he looked up at her before looking back down to both babies. "You 3 are adorable!" Zoë grinned as she got her phone out and got a few pictures. She then sat down and showed him and he smiled while he continued to hold both babies.
"Could you also send that to me please?" He asked and Zoë nodded and then sent it to him and Kaitlin.
"You watch, you'll get Kaitlin screaming at you down the phone because she wants to hold them." Zoë grinned and Joe chuckled as he looked down at Isobel. He looked into her deep dark blue eyes and couldn't help but smile. 'I can't get over how much like Zoë they look. They look identical, I swear Zoë said they were non-identical twin?' Joe thought to himself.
"She's coming down this weekend so she'll get her fair share of cuddles then." Joe smiled and Zoë nodded with a smile as she leant over and gave Isobel a few kisses.
"She has to lie to her bitch boss again though." Zoë said softly as she gently stroked Isobel's cheek and forehead with a bright smile.
"It's just because she doesn't like Kaitlin very much, which I don't understand." Joe said softly and Zoë nodded and then glanced over to Horatio as he walked in with two mugs and an easy smile.
"Thank you, Kitten." She said as Horatio placed their mugs on the coffee table in front of them and then sat down next to Zoë after looking at both girls in Joe's arms with a smile.
"Ella should be waking up soon too, don't worry if she has a little cry." Zoë said softly and Joe looked up at her a little panicky when he heard the word cry. "It's been about 3 hours since their last feed and Isobel always wakes up a little beforehand and silently looks up at the world until she gets bored and hungry that's when she'll let us know." Zoë smiled softly as she sat forwards and picked up her mug and leant over to Horatio to give him a gentle kiss on the lips and thanked him again.
"Which one cries the most?" Joe asked as he looked up at Horatio and Zoë while Zoë placed her free hand on Horatio's thigh as she took a sip from the mug.
"Neither really, they each have a bit of a squeal and scream here and there, but it's nothing bad. Rarely they will actually go for it and properly scream… I hate it when they scream or cry bad though, even though it sounds quite cute every now and then. Isobel's cry is a little more piercing than Ella's." Zoë said softly as she put her tea back down again and saw Ella beginning to wake.
"Do you want to feed Ella?" Zoë asked as she got up and gently took Isobel from Joe and smiled down at her before she nuzzled at Isobel a little.
"I don't have milk… or breasts for that matter." Joe said softly as he looked at her and she began to laugh while she stood in front of them and rocked Isobel a little while Horatio got up and walked out.
"No, we're trying to bottle feed one during the day, they take it in turns. I've already expressed. During the day they can both be quite difficult with feeding, so we bottle feed one while the other gets my breast, during the night I tend to feed both using my boobs as they prefer that at night strangely. They probably get their weird habits from me…" Zoë said softly as Horatio walked in with the bottle in a bowl of hot water to warm the milk up.
"Ah I see, sure, I'll give it a go." Joe smiled softly but she could still see his hesitance, she knew it was his first time feeding a baby.
"Horatio will show you how to do it, don't worry." Zoë smiled softly as Ella began to look up at Joe. Joe smiled down at her as she began to fidget while Zoë put a bib on Isobel. Horatio quickly put a bib on Ella and then checked the temperature of the milk.
"Wow, her eyes are really light blue, I swear they've got bluer since I saw them last." Joe said softly and Zoë smiled widely as she got up and smiled down at them while Horatio moved to sit beside Joe.
"She's got her Daddy's eyes." Zoë smiled as she picked up one of the muslins. "I'll be right back." She said warmly before she walked out to feed Isobel in the privacy of the nursery upstairs. She didn't have a problem with feeding the babies in front of others, as to her it was a natural thing, but she knew Horatio wasn't entirely comfortable with it so respected that. She knew it was just him though, he was naturally protective of her and the babies.
"How do I do this?" Joe asked Horatio softly as he looked back down to Ella with a smile. Joe gently stroked Ella's cheek and she turned her head towards his finger and opened her mouth.
"She's definitely hungry, don't worry it's very easy." Horatio smiled as he placed a muslin on Ella too. Horatio then handed Joe the bottle of warm milk after making sure it was warm enough and not too hot.
"She likes to look at you Horatio." Joe said softly as Ella kept turning her head to look up at Horatio with wide eyes.
"It might be because she's used to me or Zoë feeding her." Horatio replied before he briefly told Joe what to do. Joe tried what Horatio had directed him to do but she kept putting her hands in the way as she began to cry.
"Don't worry, she's just getting hungry," Horatio assured him as he gently pulled Ella's hands away from her mouth so Joe could give her the bottle. She was quickly silenced once the bottle was in her mouth and she began to drink contentedly. He smiled down at her as her eyes fixed on his face while she drank the milk.
"She'll probably stop half way through the bottle where she'll want winding, then she'll want the rest of the bottle." Horatio explained, he then winded her and handed her back to Joe once that was done as Joe couldn't get the hang of winding them. Zoë then came down just as Ella finished with Isobel changed and very happy.
"She was very hungry." Zoë told Horatio with a smile as she sat back down and looked at Joe with Ella. "How's it going?" she asked, naturally curious.
"Very well," Horatio replied to which she nodded as he took Ella back from Joe to wind her once more.
"They have a check-up tomorrow, don't they?" Joe asked the both of them.
"Yes, and don't worry, I'll update you after the appointment." Zoë smiled and Joe nodded contentedly.
"Thank you." He said softly and Zoë nodded with a smile before he looked back down to Ella.
"Do you want to change her?" Zoë asked warmly Horatio sat her on his lap, facing him as he began to make faces at her. Joe looked at Horatio and Ella with a smile, he was more amused with Horatio than Ella was.
"Sure, that would be good." Joe replied to Zoë as Horatio then moved and laid Ella down on the sofa on a changing mat before he collected everything from the bad on the arm-chair. He handed Joe everything he needed and then sat back down by Ella and entertained her while Joe changed her successfully.
"You're becoming a pro at this now." Zoë smiled and Joe nodded as he looked back up to Zoë.
"It's quite easy once you're confident." He said softly and Zoë nodded as she looked back down to Isobel and began to babble at her.
"Anyway, I must be off as I have another meeting in 30 minutes." He said softly and Zoë nodded as Horatio gently picked Ella back up.
"It's been lovely to see you, Joe, see you soon." Zoë smiled as she got up as he and Horatio did. They all walked out to the hall where he gently hugged Zoë and then shook one of Horatio's free hands as they also said bye to each other.
Zoë and Horatio then put both girls down in the pram and got their bags ready for a walk along the beach. Both girls were asleep by the time they had finished the bags and then headed out back and walked along the pavement at the back of the beach.
"You're right, this is lovely actually. I don't seem to be worrying." Zoë smiled at him and he nodded as he smiled, he loved it when she put her hair up and put her sunglasses on; it seemed to complete her smile in the sun. He pulled his sunglasses on and placed his hand on her lower back as he moved closer to her while he also helped push the pram along.
"Would you like to go and get a coffee from the café up the beach a little more?" Horatio asked and Zoë nodded with a natural smile as she looked over to him.
"That would be wonderful." She said softly as she took hold of Horatio's hand as they both had hold of the pram as they also walked hand in hand. "I will end up walking into something one day, I can't keep my eyes off them." Zoë smiled softly and Horatio chuckled lightly and then adjusted the light blanket over Ella and checked both of their temperatures to make sure that they weren't too warm. "I think Ella is looking more like you every day." Zoë said softly as she looked up to Horatio.
"You think?" He asked and Zoë nodded, she could tell that he was really quite happy with her comment.
"I think she's got your eyebrow shape and your nose perhaps." Zoë smiled softly and Horatio smiled as he looked back down to both girls and could see the difference between them. Once they had their coffee they walked back and fed and changed them when it was time. Eric then came over after work.
"How's work going?" Horatio asked softly as he and Eric stood in the kitchen as Horatio made some drinks while Zoë finished changing both babies. She came downstairs with them both and quickly kissed Eric on the cheek with a bright smile.
"Did you want some iced tea, Zoë?" Horatio asked softly and she nodded.
"Please." She said softly and Horatio nodded and then poured her a glass.
"Work is going great but it just isn't the same without you both though." Eric said softly and Zoë nodded with a smile.
"Well, Horatio might be back next week." Zoë said softly and Eric looked to Horatio as she did.
"We're still discussing it. I might go back half-time." Horatio said softly and Eric nodded, he could see that Horatio was a little more hesitant than Zoë was though, he thought it would be the other way around.
"Well let me know please, H?" Eric asked softly as Horatio stirred the mugs.
"Of course I will, I hope that I'll find the lab in working order too? Nothing disastrous has happened to it since I've been gone, has it?" Horatio asked softly as he handed Eric the cup of coffee.
"Nope, it's all fine and in working order H, it's all ready for you to come back and take over again." Eric smiled and he nodded with a smile. Horatio picked up his mug as well as Zoë's glass and then walked into the living room after Eric and Zoë.
"Would you like to hold Isobel?" Zoë asked softly as Eric sat comfortably in the sofa while Zoë perched on the edge.
"Sure, she's not the one that's awake, is she? I don't want her to scream if she's taken away from you." Eric said softly and Zoë lightly giggled.
"No, that's Ella, Bel is fast asleep." Zoë smiled and Eric nodded with a smile. Both Zoë and Horatio felt a feeling of warmth enter their hearts again when they saw Eric as enthusiastic as he was about holding one of the babies, they were extremely happy to know that one of their best friends had such an interest in their lives and their children. "Can you seriously not tell them apart?" Zoë asked.
"It is incredibly difficult, but I think if I had enough time to look at them, I could." Eric said softly and Zoë nodded.
"I guess that's fair enough, I mean we spend 24 hours a day with them. I think Ella looks like Horatio more now." Zoë said softly and Eric nodded as Zoë handed him Isobel.
"I think I can see a bit of Horatio in her, but I think that's because of her eyes, I think everything else is you though. Maybe Horatio's nose and eye area?" Eric asked as he studied Ella a little more while Zoë sat back with Horatio. Horatio looked from Eric to Ella and smiled. He could see his eyes in hers but could still only see Zoë in the rest of her face, which he was secretly glad about. 'Isobel will be the spitting image of Zoë, Ella will be very close I think. Although, I think I can see what they're talking about with her nose.' Horatio thought to himself as Ella turned her head and looked up at Horatio. "Does it feel weird to think that 3 weeks ago they were still in your stomach?" Eric asked and Zoë nodded as she moved closer to Horatio to allow Ella to look up at him properly as he bent down and lightly kissed her forehead and cheeks.
"It really does, I can't explain it, but it does feel really weird and it also feels incredible, I mean my body gave them life, they were actually inside me. It feels weird not to be pregnant anymore, even though the last few weeks seemed to drag forever and felt horrendous, I'd love to do it again, I miss being pregnant… well, I miss the feeling of being pregnant. I miss the feeling of knowing that our daughters were in me." Zoë said softly and Eric nodded with a smile. "I've still got all this fat though, it's slowly going down, and I am reminded of the pregnancy because I've still got a massive period." Zoë said softly as she reached forwards and picked up her glass.
"Sweetheart, Eric probably doesn't want to know that part." Horatio reminded softly as he placed his hand on her back while she sat back. She looked to Horatio and realised what she had said and then looked back to Eric with a shy and apologetic smile.
"Oh, sorry Eric, didn't even think." Zoë said softly and Eric nodded with a gentle smile.
"Not to worry, Zoë." Eric smiled and she smiled back.
"How's it going with Tyler and Calleigh?" Zoë asked softly as she sipped her drink and sat right back. He gently leant forwards and sipped his coffee well away from Isobel.
"It's going well thank you, I can definitely feel a bond forming between Tyler and me, Calleigh seems to be feeling a little distant though, but that's because she has Tom in California." Eric said softly and Zoë nodded with a sweet smile as Eric put his coffee back down.
"That bond will get stronger, I don't know about Horatio but I felt an instantaneous bond from the point they were put on my stomach after being born, it's just getting stronger and stronger each minute I'm with them. The more time you spend with him, the stronger that bond will get." Zoë said softly and Eric nodded.
"Pretty much the same for me too." Horatio said softly and Zoë smiled at him as she put her glass back down and placed her hand on his thigh while she continued to rock Ella.
"I wish I was there from when he was born, but Calleigh was right, I wasn't ready for a child back then. I think would have been if I was given the chance to prepare though, I do wish I was a part of his life from day 1." Eric said softly.
"It's only natural to feel like that though. There were points in my pregnancy where we both questioned whether we were ready or not, purely because we didn't know what to expect at all, you've got to throw yourself in at the deep end though and you'll find that it works out. I mean, you're absolutely brilliant with the girls, so I know you're brilliant with Tyler. I know he's older then these two, but it just shows that you do have that nurturing instinct. I still can't get over how much he looks like you in that picture though." Zoë smiled.
"Thank you, I know, I can't believe it either, he seems to look more like me every time I see him." Eric said softly and Zoë nodded with a smile. She could see that Eric was very happy that Tyler looked like him.
"I think it's generally like that though, the boys will look like their fathers, whereas the girls will look more like their mothers, not all the time though, I mean I've seen girl babies around that look just like their fathers and my brother was the male version of my mother and me. Ella is also looking like Horatio a lot more." Zoë smiled and Eric nodded. He quickly looked down when Isobel let out a loud squeal. His eyes widened as he took a deep breath and looked up at Horatio and Zoë when he began to panic. "Don't worry, she's still sleeping, they do that sometimes." Zoë assured him, he nodded and then looked back down at Isobel who had completely calmed again and fell back into a deep sleep.
"I think she does look a lot like you still though." Eric said softly and Zoë nodded.
"Yeah, but I mean the small differences, like the eyebrows, the eyes, that sort of thing." Zoë said softly and Eric nodded with a sweet smile. "How's it going with Calleigh though?" Zoë asked warmly as she picked up her glass again and had a few sips.
"It is good, she's so understanding and caring, much like she used to be I guess. You should give her a chance H, but I completely understand why you'd be a little uneasy. But I can assure you that she's fine, she's safe. You know Calleigh, she doesn't have a bad bone in her body." Eric said softly.
"I don't know what she's been doing these past two years Eric, she's lost my trust even though I understand why she did it. My priority is to make sure Zoë and the girls are safe, not to re-live the past. You know that people can be deceiving, take Gabi for example, she fooled the entire team and then nearly killed Zoë. I know Calleigh would never do something like that, but people change a lot in 2 years." Horatio said softly and Eric nodded.
"She only did what you did when you faked your death." Eric said softly, trying to defend her but he also didn't want to upset Horatio.
"Yes, but I did it to stop Zoë from getting harmed or even killed. Calleigh ran, granted she wanted to protect your baby, but the best way to do that was to come straight to us, not hide for 2 years, leading us to believe that she was dead whilst she lived a cosy life in California. You can't compare us, we had different reasoning's and outcomes." Horatio said softly and Eric nodded as he exhaled.
"I know H, I just don't want her to feel like she's been forgotten and hated for what she's done. I want you both to be a part of Tyler's life as much as you want me to be a part of the twins lives." Eric said softly and Horatio nodded.
"I understand, with time I'll trust her again, but at this moment in time, she's not coming anywhere near Zoë or the girls, not until I'm happy that she hasn't got into the wrong crowd. Think about it Eric, she turns up out of the blue when Zoë was attacked and heavily pregnant. What better way to get close to me and to her than using a previous colleague. You never know these days, she might be being forced to do something." Horatio said softly and Eric steadily exhaled and looked down before he pulled his phone out just as it started to ring.
"Talking of Calleigh, she's ringing, sorry, I'm going to take this." Eric said softly and they nodded and then gave their concentration to Ella as she lay awake looking up at Horatio and Zoë.
"Give him a break, please." Zoë said quietly to Horatio and Horatio exhaled himself and then nodded, he knew he was being too defensive.
"Hey Cal." Eric said softly as he looked down at Isobel sleeping in his arms with a warm smile forming on his face again.
"Eric, I'm sorry I didn't know who else to call." Calleigh said as she sobbed into the phone.
"Woah, Calleigh, what's wrong?" Eric questioned as he looked up and heard her quietly sobbing into the phone on her end.