Chapter 54: Jealousy
Santana's POV
Friday 14th April 2023
I'm currently at work right now and I've just finished on a phone call with Brittany who was on her lunch break at work as well as me. We didn't necessarily need to call each other and talk but I just wanted to check in with her and see how work was for her. We did make some plans for tonight though where we'll give the kids their dinner and once they're settled in bed then Brittany is going to cook us a nice meal and we can have a bit of a romantic night together. I'm really looking forward to spending some time with Brittany tonight since we've been so busy with work recently. Even though the kids are there, I think we'll still be able to have some quality time together because both Aiden and Ella have good sleeping patterns so they usually sleep right through until the morning. However, before I can even think about tonight, I need to finish with work first. I've got a new client arriving any minute now so I've got a busy afternoon ahead of me.
I'm just sending out a few emails when one of my receptionists' buzzes through to my phone. When I answer, she tells me that my new client is here so I tell her to send the woman straight through. I go over to the door and open it so the woman can walk into the office.
"Santana Lopez, nice to meet you" I say while holding out my hand to shake the woman's hand when she walks into the room.
"Alexandra Green…well technically still Chapman" the woman replies while shaking my hand. She's actually here because she is looking to divorce her husband so she obviously hasn't officially changed her name back yet to her maiden name.
"Ok, well take a seat" I smile while pointing to the chair across from mine at the desk.
"Thank you" the woman smiles back.
"So, what brought you here to Lopez and Abrams?" I ask curiously as I sit across from her at the desk.
"The problem is that my ex and I used to have the same lawyer so my ex is using that lawyer to represent him in the divorce so I don't have anyone" the woman states.
"That's no problem, I'm happy to help" I smile. "So, what is it I can help you with?" I ask. I know she's here for a divorce but I don't know what else she wants to sort out.
"Well I obviously want to divorce my ex and we need to distribute all our assets out properly. We did try and do things amicably but he's not that great of a person so if I don't have someone like you to legally sort everything out for me then he's going to take more than his share" she replies.
"Ok" I nod.
"I earn more money than he does so he doesn't deserve half of everything because he didn't contribute to fully half of what we have" Ms Green tells me.
"Ok well before we can proceed Ms Green, I need to get all the details of everything that you both own and whose name the things are in" I say.
"Call me Alex, Ms Green makes me feel old" she smiles at me.
"Ok Alex, let's just start with a list of everything you both have together and we'll take it from there" I say. She nods and then starts to list everything that she owns with her husband.
XXX
I'm so busy helping Alex that I completely lost track of time. There was just so much to get through that it never occurred to me to check the time and now it's a lot later than I thought it was. I was meant to be home way before now because the children will wonder where I am.
"We should probably leave it there for today and I've got enough information to proceed with at the moment anyway" I tell Alex while trying to gather all the paperwork together.
"I haven't even told you about half of the stuff yet" Alex states.
"I know we're not done but I really need to get home now but like I say, I've got everything I need at the moment and I'll keep in touch" I say. I was supposed to be home ages ago, Brittany will likely be pissed.
"My home is an empty apartment these days" she sighs.
"I'm sure you've got lots of friends and family to get support from and some company" I say. I know friends aren't the same as significant others but there's not much else I can say here. I really just want to get home right now so I don't want to invite a discussion that holds me back even more.
"Everyone I know has their own life with their own husbands or wives" she points out.
"I'm sure everything will sort itself out eventually" I say while signing off my computer before grabbing my purse and my keys.
"When do we have another meeting?" Alex asks, making no attempt whatsoever to get up from her chair to leave. I don't know how many more ways I can tell her I need to leave therefore she needs to leave too so I can lock up my office.
"I'll call you on Monday and we'll arrange something" I say. This way I can look over her case over the weekend and then take it from there.
"Ok" Alex smiles.
"Anyway, we really need to leave now" I say as I walk towards the door. "I don't want to rush you but I need to lock up now" I tell her.
"Ok, I'll speak to you soon then" Alex says before finally leaving the building. Once she's left, I close up everything and get the office all locked up before hurriedly heading home. I park up my car haphazardly in front of the house before rushing inside. The downstairs is all quiet so I make my way upstairs to see where Brittany and the children are. After checking a few rooms, I find the three of them in Aiden's room.
"I am so sorry I'm late, I got held up at work" I apologise to Brittany as I walk over to her.
"You almost missed bedtime with the kids" Brittany sighs.
"I know and I am so sorry" I say while kissing her. "Have they both eaten?" I ask.
"Yeah and they're picking out a book for us to read to them tonight" she tells me. "They've also both took a bath" she adds.
"I really am sorry" I say. I feel even worse now that Brittany's had to do the kids' whole night time routine herself and now she's got to make dinner for us. "Hey why don't I make dinner for us tonight" I suggest.
"No, I said I would do it so I will" she smiles.
"I know but you must be exhausted having to do all of this yourself tonight" I say. Not only can the kids be a lot of work at night especially when they're resisting going to bed but it can't be easy after a hard day at work as well as being pregnant.
"Honestly I'll cook for us tonight" Brittany tells me.
"Ok well, I'm still going to make it up to you tonight" I tell her.
"And how might you do that?" Brittany asks me curiously.
"You'll have to wait and see" I smirk at her.
"Mom!" Aiden yells delightedly as he turns around from the bookcase and sees me.
"Hi buddy" I say while bending down and opening up my arms for him to run into.
"Mom" Ella says happily while running over to me behind Aiden. They both then hug me at the same time as I wrap my arms around them.
"Ok so what are we reading tonight?" I ask as we walk over to Aiden's bed. Usually we start the story in Aiden's room and once they're both asleep, we gently carry Ella to her room and put her down to go to sleep.
"Ella picked a princess book" Aiden shrugs.
"Ok, let's read it then" I say as I sit on the bed next to them as Brittany sits next to us on the chair. I begin reading the book and about half way through, I look down and notice Aiden and Ella both fast asleep. I quietly put the book to the side and gently lift Ella out of bed while Brittany makes sure Aiden is all tucked into bed. We both then kiss Aiden goodnight and quietly leave the room with Ella before taking her to her room and putting her into bed where we kiss her goodnight before leaving.
"Just us now Lopez" Brittany smiles at me as we walk to our bedroom.
"Yep" I smile back with a nod. "I'm going to quickly change before we have dinner" I tell her as I get out of my work clothes and into something more comfortable.
"That's fine, I'll just go downstairs and make a start on dinner" Brittany replies.
"Ok" I smile. Brittany then heads downstairs and I finish getting changed. I then make my way downstairs to the kitchen. "Is there anything you want me to do to help?" I ask.
"No, I've got most of it under control" Brittany tells me. "You could set the table for me right enough and get some drinks for us" she adds. I nod and then do what I need to do. Brittany really doesn't take long cooking dinner so we're sat down and eating before we know it.
"The food is great babe" I say as I smile over at Brittany.
"Thank you" she smiles back.
"I really am sorry that I was so late tonight. I was taking on a new case and we completely lost track of time. There was just so much to get through but it won't happen again" I say honestly. "I didn't mean to delay our romantic night."
"I'm not hugely bothered by it babe, I was just concerned you would miss the kids going to bed and they would get upset. I know it's not easy to just walk away from work sometimes" she smiles.
"I was worried too but I'm glad I got to read to them and settle them into bed" I say. "Seriously though, I will make sure it won't happen again."
"What was the case about?" Brittany asks curiously.
"A relatively easy one, just time consuming really. The woman wants to divorce her husband but she can't go through her usual lawyer because she and her husband had the same one and he's representing the husband" I say.
"I see" Brittany nods. "I would probably need to find another lawyer too if I was to get divorced because you're my current lawyer" she smirks.
"Surely you don't need to worry about that though because you won't be getting a divorce" I smile.
"We'll see" she smirks back at me.
"I won't make it up to you tonight if you're contemplating divorce because I don't want my good talents to be wasted on someone that doesn't appreciate it" I tease.
"I'm obviously just messing" she says while placing her hand on top of mine and squeezing it.
"Good" I smile. Once we finish dinner, I clear up all the dishes since Brittany cooked so I let her rest for a bit. We're now about to head upstairs to take a relaxing bath together which should be nice.
"Ok I'll sit in first and then you can sit in front of me" Brittany says as we undress in the bathroom.
"No, I should sit in first and you can sit in front of me" I say as I shut off the water as the tub finally fills up.
"I'm taller so I should sit behind you" Brittany shrugs.
"You're also pregnant so I don't want to squish the baby by leaning on you so you should sit in front of me" I tell her.
"Why are we making having a bath together so hard?" Brittany asks laughing.
"I have no idea" I laugh. My way probably does make more sense though because I don't want any pressure put on the babies. "I'll sit in first" I say while stepping into the tub and sitting down.
"Ok" Brittany nods before getting into the tub and settling in front of me. I then put my arms around her so they're rested on her stomach.
"I am so glad it's Friday and we can have some time together this weekend" I say. I don't just mean as a couple, I mean with the kids as well because with us working then we don't get as much time during the week with them as we'd like.
"Me too" Brittany replies.
"Was work ok for you this week or have you been getting tired?" I ask.
"No, I'm doing ok at work. The pregnancy doesn't even affect me really" Brittany shrugs. I know she's still relatively early on in the pregnancy but with twins, I thought it might get more exhausting quicker since there are 2 babies in there.
"That's good" I say. "So, you're managing ok with work at the moment?" I ask.
"I am" Brittany says while turning her head slightly to look at me. "Let's not talk about work though" she says before leaning in to kiss me.
"This is definitely better than work" I smile before leaning in again to kiss her back.
00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Thursday 20th April 2023
I'm hard at work on Alex's divorce at the moment. It's been taking up a lot of my time recently and it seems to be the only case I'm working on at the moment. I thought it would be relatively straight forward to process a divorce because they don't have kids or anything so it's literally just ending the marriage and splitting the assets, however that's not the case. There seems to be a lot of loopholes in things especially when Alex and her husband won't agree on what they want. Alex wants to keep things that her husband wants to and neither will budge on the matter. They seemed to have bought a lot of their assets with their joint accounts so it's in both their names so they're both fighting over the same thing.
"So, do you have a boyfriend or husband Santana?" Alex asks as a short silence filled the room as I was looking for a legal document on my computer.
"Wow…uh…no I don't" I say taken aback by the personal question. This is only my second face to face meeting with the woman so I don't know her that well yet so the question caught me off guard.
"So that's not a wedding ring on your finger then?" she asks hopefully while pointing to my left hand.
"Yes, it is actually but that's not really relevant at the moment" I tell her, trying to get back to business.
"So, you are gay then?" she asks. "I did wonder actually" she shrugs.
"Really, that's not important right now. Let's just focus on getting this all sorted out" I say. I'm getting a little annoyed now that she's not taking things seriously. If I wanted to talk about my personal life then I'd have said before now but I don't, I just want to get on with my work. I'm sure she's a nice person and everything but this is business, I don't need to make a friend.
"Ok" she nods.
"I think what I'm looking for might be with my receptionist so give me two seconds until I go and check with her" I say while getting up from my desk. I then leave my office to check with my receptionist. A few minutes later when I walk back into the room, I see Alex on her feet, looking at something.
"Is that your wife?" she asks while holding up a photo of Brittany.
"Yes it is but let's put that back" I say while walking over to her and taking the photo before putting it back down. I can't believe she actually thought it would be ok to look around my office when I'm not there. I only stepped out for a second to grab a file from my receptionist.
"She's cute" the woman shrugs.
"Yeah, I know" I say seriously. I don't need anyone to tell me how cute my wife is. I'm very aware of her cuteness and how amazing she is.
"Oh wow, do you have kids too?" she asks as she notices a picture of Aiden and Ella next to the one of Brittany that I just took from her. She picks up the photo and looks at it for a second "I mean I'm just assuming they're yours by how much they look like you."
"Yes, those are my children" I nod while taking the photo from her and putting it back down before sitting back down at the desk and motioning for her to sit down too. "Anyway, you were telling me about the house you own in Paris. Whose name is on the documentation for that?" I ask, trying to get back on track to what we're doing.
"Howard and I never really wanted kids" Alexandra states, changing the topic back again. "Neither of us particularly wanted the whole pregnancy thing to ruin my body plus we didn't really want our alone time to be shortened which would likely happen when you're running behind kids all day."
"I wouldn't say that's completely accurate" I state.
"Maybe you're right, I mean it hasn't affected your figure at all. You look amazing" she tells me.
"I didn't actually give birth to any of my kids but that's not the point" I say. Pregnancy doesn't ruin your body at all. Perhaps it changes it a little but it doesn't ruin it at all.
"So, your wife gave birth to them?" she asks and I nod. "So, they're not actually your kids biologically then?" she queries.
"They're my kids in every way, let's leave it at that" I state. This is not the time or place, or even her business to know how they are my kids. My situation is private so I'm not about to divulge all the details to her when I barely know her.
We're hard at work again for the next while which is exhausting but on a positive note I think we are actually making progress. Alex and her husband both want the divorce so that's obviously a good step to start off on and I've spoken with her husbands' lawyer and I think we've all agreed that if Alex gets to keep the equestrian business then she's willing to give up her share of the house in Paris. I'm just getting Alex to sign a few things when there is a knock on my door.
"Come in" I say and my receptionist walks in. "Everything ok?" I ask.
"Your wife is here right now" my receptionist states. I quickly look at my watch and realise once again, things have run over and taken up more time than I meant them to.
"We're probably done for the moment so just send her through" I say and my receptionist nods before exiting the room. "We'll keep in touch Alex and get another meeting sorted soon but we've made some progress so things are looking good" I tell her.
"That's good" Alex smiles before signing the last document and getting her stuff together.
"Oh, I'm sorry" Brittany says as she walks into the room. "I didn't realise you were still working, I thought your receptionist said I could go in."
"No, we're all done for the day" I say while going over to greet Brittany. "Alex is just leaving now. We did lose track of time again so I'm sorry" I add.
"So, you're Santana's wife" Alex says as she walks over to us since we're standing by the door and she's about to leave.
"I am" Brittany smiles.
"Your wife is one amazing lawyer" Alexandra says while smiling at Brittany.
"She is" Brittany nods.
"You're one lucky woman Brittany" Alexandra states. "Anyway, I better go now but I'll speak to you soon Santana" she says.
"Yes, you will" I smile and show her out before walking back over to Brittany once Alex leaves. "So how was work babe?" I ask.
"She likes you" Brittany replies.
"What?" I ask confused.
"I only met her for like two seconds but I can tell Alex has a thing for you" she tells me unamused.
"I wouldn't say she has a thing for me but she is exceptionally nosy" I say honestly. "She's just come out of a marriage with a man so I can't see her really liking me like that. I mean she saw a picture of you and said you were cute so she's probably just that kind of person that invades personal boundaries etc."
"I also don't need some bitch like that telling me how lucky I am. I know how damn lucky I am to have you" Brittany states.
"Yeah I didn't really care for her calling you cute. I mean it's obviously true but it's the way she said it more than what she said that unsettled me" I mention.
"You can't work with that bitch again" Brittany says shaking her head in annoyance.
"I don't like her or her attitude either but she's paying me some serious bucks here for help" I point out.
"And what money is more important than me?" she asks.
"Absolutely not babe" I sigh. Ok this conversation has took a drastic turn.
"I don't like this woman or the way she handles herself around you. It makes me really quite uncomfortable so I don't really want you working with her" she tells me.
"I get that babe, I really do" I say honestly. "It really is quite a substantial amount of money she's paying me and I don't think I need to work with her for much longer" I tell her. Like I say all the time, we're not short of money but I wouldn't not take this kind of sum because we're about to be mothers of 4. I really do appreciate Brittany doesn't like her because I don't either but I think it might be beneficial for the company, especially when I've got the ball rolling now for her divorce.
"These pregnancy hormones are not making it any easier for me either" she tells me.
"If you really don't want me to do this then I won't but the money would be useful. I mean what is an extra couple of days to us?" I say. "You know nothing is going to happen because I won't let it."
"Yeah I do trust you obviously but I just don't trust her. I don't like the thought of her spending all that time with you when she probably does have a crush on you" she says.
"This is my job babe and sometimes I do work with people I don't like but I only do it for the money. I don't do it because I like it and I liked being asked personal questions and people quizzing me on my life" I state.
"I really can't tell if this is my problem or not. There is always someone that wants to make a move on you and I don't know if I'm just super insecure so it looks worse to me or if these people get vibes from you that you're interested" she replies.
"I hope you're not implying I'm sending out signals or something" I say. I most certainly do not do that.
"If it's not exes or people from your past then it's new clients that want to take my place. I just don't understand why this keeps happening. I mean yes, you're a very beautiful woman Santana but there can't be that many bitches on this planet so it must be the company you keep. Most woman would be able to restrain themselves around other hot women so why do all the ones you talk to want to fuck you all the time?" she asks.
"You're blowing this out of proportion" I sigh.
"I used to date men as well as women but you don't see me throwing myself at attractive people so why are other women doing that to you?" she asks.
"Alex didn't throw herself at me. There is a difference between coming on to me and saying a few complimentary things. I mean she said you were cute so it's obviously not all about me plus she's into men" I point out.
"Wake up honey, the woman wants to fuck you" Brittany says rolling her eyes at me.
"I'm not that dense Brittany so don't make me out to be some naïve person or something because I know when someone is interested in me and she's not. I mean yes I don't like the way she talks and I don't care for the remarks she made about you and me but she doesn't want to fuck me" I say. I can't believe we're having an argument about this right now. It's all been blown out of proportion.
"I'm not trying to…" Brittany cuts herself off mid-sentence by grabbing my wrist and pulling me towards her.
"What are you doing and ouch" I say with a slight glare as I try to massage my wrist with my other hand which is almost impossible since she's still gripping my wrist.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you" she says apologetically while placing my hand on her stomach.
"What is going on?" I ask after a few seconds as neither of us speak.
"Just wait" she tells me so I do that. After a minute or so, I feel it. One or both of the babies, I can't quite tell which, is kicking and it's the most magical thing in the world. It never gets old feeling your baby kick for the first time. Aiden and Ella kicking was so special and so is this even though I can't tell who is kicking.
"I don't want to fight right now" I say honestly.
"Me neither" Brittany sighs while putting her hand on top of mine. "We shouldn't leave this like this though, we should talk it through."
"I just won't work with her, I'll pass her information to a different lawyer then and they can sort out the divorce for her" I say. I won't get back the money I've made so far for the amount of time I've been working on her case but I don't care about that, I care about Brittany.
"Ok" Brittany nods. "No…wait" she says after a moment while shaking her head. "You don't have to do everything for me so don't transfer her case. You've worked hard so far so I don't want you to lose out on money because of me."
"Honestly Brittany, you mean more to me than money" I assure her.
"I'm just tired and my hormones are driving me crazy. I didn't mean what I said a second ago because I know you always put me first" she sighs. "I just had this vision of me turning up here and then we get the kids from your parents and all just head home together. I didn't expect to see someone lusting after my wife so it pissed me off a bit" she admits.
"Let's just leave and get the kids and head home. We can still have a quiet night together, just maybe not as long as we want since I've ran over again with my client" I say. I feel bad that we're later now because the kids will be itching to get home and Brittany obviously had a hard day at work so just wants to relax tonight and have some family time.
"Yeah let's go home" Brittany nods.
"I think the important thing to remember here is that you're all that I want so nothing is every going to happen and I'm all that you want, right?" I say.
"Yes, you are all that I want" she smiles before leaning in to kiss me. The conversation does feel a bit unfinished but I'm happy to leave it there for the moment and just go home with my wife and get my kids.
00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Friday 21st April 2023
We've got the 20-week scan today and we're really excited about it. I'm hoping we can find out the gender of the babies today so we can start making arrangements for them. It is nice having a surprise on the day of the birth but I think with the stress of having two babies at the one time then it would be better to be more organised beforehand and do everything we can to prepare for them. At least if we know their gender then we can buy clothes for them and get their nurseries ready so that as soon as we're home from the hospital then everything is set up.
We've got an early morning appointment again like the last time so we're taking the kids with us and then dropping them off at day-care when we finish so we can then head to work.
"So how are we all this morning?" the doctor asks.
"We're all good" I smile.
"Just hoping everything is ok" Brittany adds.
"Let's get you onto the table then and do another ultrasound scan" the doctor smiles. Brittany then gets onto the table and the doctor starts the scan. "Everything looks good" the doctor says while turning the monitor around so we can see the image.
"Is there any way to tell the gender yet?" I ask.
"The babies are lying appropriately so I can tell you what you're having if you wish to know" the doctor smiles.
"Yes, we would like to know this time so we can be prepared" Brittany replies.
"Well I am pleased to tell you both that you're having a boy and a girl" the doctor tells us.
"That's fantastic" I say before hugging Brittany excitedly.
"It's really great" Brittany nods. We didn't actually mind what gender they would be but I quite like that we're having one of each because Aiden and Ella will have another boy and girl to play with so neither will feel left out. It's not that they don't like each other but I have mentioned before that they're into different things so perhaps Ella having a sister and Aiden a brother then they'll like their own sort of things.
"Did you hear that, we're having a boy baby and a girl baby" I turn to Aiden and Ella.
"Yess, cars" Aiden screams excitedly. Ella doesn't like playing with the cars so much so we're hoping one of the twins will and Aiden will have someone to play them with.
After we finish up with the appointment, we take the kids up to day-care and get them settled in. I'm only doing a half day at work today so I let the staff know I'll be along to pick the kids up a little earlier than usual. I then walk Brittany to her department before heading to work myself.
Once the clock hits 1pm, I wrap everything up that I was doing and call it a day. Now that I'm here and working then I could have probably stayed a bit longer and kept working but I promised the kids we'd spend some time together so that's what we're going to do. Plus, to be quite honest, I did just want to have a fun day with them instead of working. I'm just leaving the day-care with Aiden and Ella when I bump into someone I know. It's Gillian who used to look after Aiden for us before we decided to put him into the day-care here at the hospital.
"So, how are you?" I ask her.
"Yeah I'm doing really good. I was just here for a routine appointment so nothing to worry about" she replies.
"That's good" I smile. "Hey if you're not busy, you could come back to mine and have a coffee and we can catch up. I feel like we haven't seen one another in ages" I say.
"Sounds good" she smiles.
"I'll head home just now and just come over whenever you're ready" I tell her.
"Ok, see you soon" she smiles and then I leave with the kids.
Gillian and I used to be good friends and it's not like we had a falling out or anything, we just lost touch. I mean she used to look after Aiden because that's her profession, she works in childcare but once Ella came along I stayed at home with the kids for a while so we didn't really need Aiden in childcare for a while. Then when I was going back to work, we thought the day-care at the hospital would be ideal because Brittany would be 2 minutes away from them at all times so we felt better about that because we wanted one of us to be as close to them as we could be.
As soon as I get home, I get the kids settled and then fire up the coffee machine. By that time, Gillian arrives and I tell her to take a seat while I make us some coffees.
"There you go, black and one sugar, right?" I say while handing her some coffee.
"That's right, thank you" she smiles while taking the cup. "So, Aiden tells me you are having two more babies. That's exciting" she says.
"Yes, Brittany is pregnant with twins so we're all looking forward to it" I smile.
"I'm happy for you both, honestly" she tells me.
"Thank you…oh wow, that is some rock on your finger there" I say as she lifts her hand to take a drink of her coffee.
"Jordan and I are engaged now" she smiles.
"That's great, congratulations" I say sincerely. "I always knew you two would get married but Jordan has really kept you waiting though" I tease.
"That's probably my fault. I kinda ruined a few proposals so he wanted it to be a complete surprise when he did it so he left it for a while so he could propose when I least expected it" Gillian admits.
"Well at least you're both engaged now" I smile. "So what else is going on with you?" I ask curiously.
"Well actually, me and some people I know and are friendly with that work in childcare are actually opening our own day-care facility soon. We haven't officially opened yet but most of all the legal work is done and we've found the perfect place for it. We just need a few things tied up with the lawyers and secure some deposits from families and we're ready to go" she tells me.
"That's brilliant. You're great at what you do so I'm really glad you have a more permanent place of work" I say honestly. She used to just look after the kids at her house so I'm glad she's expanded her business because she was so great with Aiden and he loved going there.
"Thank you" she smiles. "I just hope this legal stuff doesn't take too much longer because a lot of the parents don't know what to do because they want to come to our new facility but with us not open yet then they need to pay for extra childcare until we are available so I just hope I'm not losing their trust or their business.
"I can take a look at some of the legal stuff for you if you want" I offer.
"You don't have to do that" she shakes her head.
"Honestly, I'm happy to" I reply.
"Ok" she nods gratefully. "I'll send the information to you on Monday or something because I don't want you to waste your weekend off working."
"No seriously, send me the stuff and I'll look into it. I don't want you waiting any longer to open if you don't need to" I state. I'm more than happy to help a friend and it won't put me out because Brittany is taking Aiden to dance class tomorrow so I'll have some time to myself to do a little bit of work.
"Ok thank you" she smiles.
"I really hope you know it wasn't anything about you as to why we put Aiden into the day-care at the hospital and didn't come to you again" I say honestly.
"You did what you needed to do for your family so don't worry, I completely understood. I mean you had two kids to think about and Brittany works at the hospital so it made sense" she assures me.
"Aiden really liked going to your house and stuff" I say.
"I know and I liked having him there along with Harry" she smiles. "I really wish I didn't have to increase my rate but I had to do something to keep myself afloat because I couldn't look after too many kids when my workplace was my home so the only way to make more money was to increase my rate since I couldn't take on any more kids."
"Honestly, you don't need to apologise. None of us work to not make a living you know" I smile. It was going to cost us a small fortune for her to have Ella and Aiden so being close to them wasn't the only reason to switch their day-care.
"I'm glad we understand each other because I was worried things were a bit off between us especially since we haven't talked in some time" she says.
"Honestly it's all good, I promise" I smile.
"Good" Gillian smiles back.
"So where are you setting up the facility then?" I ask nosily and she tells me. "Wow, that's like two minutes from here" I point out.
"Yeah I mean it's close to where Jordan and I live too so it's worked out really well because most of the kids I looked after all stay around here too so they're all coming to the day-care" she tells me.
"So how do things work, do the families pay each time they go or do they pay in advance and how much does it cost?" I ask. "Actually, I'm being too nosy, just ignore me" I say after I realise I'm maybe invading someone else's private business. I mean she doesn't ask me how much I make at work.
"You're not nosy, just interested" she smiles. "As far as payment though, I'm a little more flexible with that but still appropriate at the same time. Most families have a sort of contract with us if you will so either they will pay yearly or monthly. It really depends on their finances because some people can't afford a large sum like that at the one time" she replies.
"Ok" I nod. After chatting for a long time, Gillian heads home and I spend the rest of the afternoon with the kids before Brittany gets home again.
Brittany's POV
Sunday 23rd April 2023
Aiden, Ella and I are making Santana breakfast in bed. She was fast asleep when I got up this morning to use the bathroom so I thought I would let her have a lie in. I mean I knew as soon as I got up the likelihood of me falling back asleep was slim so I checked on the kids and just stayed awake. Once they did wake up then I took them downstairs and we played for a little while before we decided to make some breakfast. Since Santana still wasn't up then Aiden suggested we take breakfast upstairs to her and we can all eat together. We've just finished making some French toast so we're heading upstairs with it just now.
"I'll carry mom's coffee because it's too warm for you to touch" I tell Aiden as he tries to help me carry everything. "Why don't you and Ella carry the syrup for me and the napkins" I suggest.
"Ok mommy" Aiden smiles at me. He then holds Ella's hand and gives her the napkins in her other hand while he takes the syrup in his free hand.
"Is that us all ready to go then?" I say and Aiden nods. We all then head upstairs. I'm carrying a tray with the plates and cutlery on it with the French toast stacked up on one plate so I can put the coffee and the juice on the tray next to it.
"I'll get the door Ella" Aiden says while reaching up and opening my bedroom door before leading Ella inside. It really is quite cute how caring he is towards his sister.
"Babe are you awake?" I say as I follow my children into the bedroom and place the tray down at the side.
"I am now" she smiles at me as Aiden helps Ella onto the bed where she crawls over to Santana and kisses her. "What are you all up to?" she asks as she rubs her eyes to make herself more awake.
"We're making you breakfast in bed" I smile.
"That's some amount of food babe" Santana says as she sits up a bit more so we can all sit down on the bed.
"It's not all for you greedy, the kids and I need to eat too" I tell her.
"I know but it's still a lot of French toast" she points out.
"French toast is favourite of yours plus mommy eating for babies so she needs more" Aiden shrugs while climbing over the bed to kiss Santana good morning.
"Fair point" Santana nods. I then sit down on the bed next to her and we all begin eating. Ella sits in between Santana and me but once Aiden has his slice, he moves to sit at the end of the bed at the other side of me so he can grab the maple syrup.
"Are you ok honey?" I ask concerned as Santana pulls an uncomfortable face. "Is the food really that bad?" I ask slightly offendedly.
"No, the food is great" she replies, giving me a small smile.
"So, what's wrong, you look in pain or something" I point out.
"When Aiden jumped over me a second ago, he kicked me right where it hurts" Santana tells me.
"Where?" I ask confused. It could hurt anywhere if you've been kicked by an energetic Aiden Lopez.
"Between the legs" Santana whispers to me and I don't mean it but I can't help laughing. "It's not funny. You don't understand how painful that can be" she whines childishly.
"I'm not laughing at you as such, I'm just laughing because I didn't get what you meant in the beginning" I say. I'm not going to lie though, it is slightly amusing that Aiden would do something like that unknowingly.
"The last time this happened was when you kneed me in bed a few months ago" she tells me.
"Would you like me to kiss it better?" I ask with a smirk.
"Brittany, no" Santana shakes her head at me. "It really hurts so this isn't the time for joking."
"Of course, I didn't mean right now when we have the mini Lopez's present" I say, clarifying what I mean. "I mean later when we're in bed. Unless it's not going to hurt later then we can just forget I even offered" I shrug.
"It will hurt later so please do" she smiles at me.
"Ok" I nod before leaning over to steal a quick kiss since I haven't kissed her good morning yet. After we finished breakfast, we all had a nice relaxing morning together just playing with some of Aiden and Ella's toys. We're now just tidying up Aiden's room a little bit before the kids take a nap and Santana and I go through some baby stuff for the nurseries.
"For babies" Aiden says while handing me his 2 small stuffed toy pandas.
"Honey they're your pandas" Santana tells him.
"I want babies to have them" he smiles brightly.
"Are you sure sweetheart?" I ask him. He picked them out of the toy store himself a few months ago so I don't want him to give up a toy that he really loves. He picked two of them because one would just be lonely without the other.
"Yes, toy from big brother" Aiden says, continuing to smile.
"You're a very kind big brother, the babies will love this" I tell him.
"One each mommy" Aiden adds.
"Yes, one for the girl baby and one for the boy baby" I nod with a smile. "The babies say thank you by the way" I smile.
"Your welcome babies" Aiden shouts into my stomach which is really cute but also a little bit deafening.
"I think the babies would really love it if you gave the pandas a name for them" Santana says.
"Ok, I think about it" Aiden says seriously. Naming your toy pandas is very serious business so I get why he needs some time.
After we're finished tidying up, we get Aiden and Ella down for their nap. I thought they would be a little more upset about having to nap but they were pretty good about it. Sometimes they don't want to nap if they know Santana and I are still awake but they were actually ok today. Santana and I are now going through some of the baby things we have bought already for the babies.
"Hey I actually wanted to talk to you about something" Santana says while walking over to me.
"Yes, I do still want to have sex with you but no I don't want to do it right now" I say.
"Funny but no, that's not what I want to talk about" she smiles at me. "We are however still having sex tonight because you suggested it earlier so you can't take it back."
"I know and I'm good with that" I assure her. "So, what do you want to talk about babe?" I ask curiously.
"You remember Gillian who used to look after Aiden, right?" she asks and I nod. I do remember her because she and Santana were good friends. "Well I ran into her the other day and she's opening up her own day-care centre for kids so I thought we could maybe take Aiden and Ella there when the babies come along" she suggests.
"I really do like the woman babe but it was starting to get a little above our price range" I point out. "Plus, I like the kids close to one of us if possible so the hospital makes sense" I add.
"Yes, but when you're on maternity leave, you won't be in the hospital will you plus her premises for the day-care are literally like down the street from here" Santana states.
"Oh yeah" I say as the realisation hits. The kids will actually be further away from me and Santana if we did that. "That is a valid point but the cost babe" I say.
"It won't actually cost as much anymore because I asked and now that she can afford to look after more kids then she doesn't need to charge as much" she replies. She then goes on to tell me more about Gillian's new day-care facility and I'm actually wondering now if maybe we should do that. I mean the kids wouldn't be as close to our work when I finish on maternity leave but I really trust Gillian with my kids plus we'll have another 2 to put into day-care so maybe it will be less expensive than having them at the hospital.
"You Santana Lopez are a genius" I say while putting my arms around her.
"I didn't exactly tell her to open the day-care and she might not want us so it might not work out" Santana laughs.
"Well if it does work out then you're a genius…actually you're a genius anyways" I shrug before kissing her.
"Thank you" she smiles.
"Do you know what?" I say.
"What?" she smiles before pecking my lips.
"I actually do want you right now" I tell her.
"Oh really?" she questions. "How badly?" she asks.
"Probably just as badly as you baby" I say while pointing down at her crotch.
"You know I get instantly hard every time you come near me. You're just too hot sometimes that it's like a reflex. I see you and it happens" she shrugs.
"Does that mean we can go to our room just now or not because we're not doing it here in one of the babies' rooms" I point out.
"It means we're going there right now" Santana says while hurriedly pulling me towards our bedroom. I quickly climb onto the bed and pull Santana towards me. She hovers above me making sure not to put any pressure on me before leaning down to kiss me.
"Babe" I say after a second, stopping her from kissing me.
"Yeah honey?" she smiles at me.
"My back has been a little sore recently due to the pregnancy so can we…"
"I'll do whatever you want" she says, knowing what I was going to ask. "We can take it slow and I'll be really gentle with you" she adds.
"Thank you" I say with a smile before leaning in to kiss her again.
So, it's a girl and a boy, has anyone got any good baby names?