CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Website where all photos of all outfits mentioned is on my profile. The inspiration for Doj's carrot stealing came from my own dog Kaos. He goes through 1.5kgs (about 3 pounds) of carrots a fortnight. He also once distributed 5 kgs (about 10 pounds) of potatoes in various places around our backyard.

The only adult in the kitchen when I come back into the house is Gemma. The twins are sitting at the table, colouring in books in front of them and crayons piled in the middle. Abel's lying in his bouncer on the table and Doj is under the table with what appears to be the remains of a carrot between his paws.

Looking over and Gemma I frown a little. "Where'd Doj get the carrot?"

"So that's where it went?" Gemma says with a laugh after glancing over. "He stole it off the bench."

I crouch down and look under the table at him, shaking my head "Are you starving?"

Doj crunches through the end bit, his tail wagging happily.

"That's okay Gem, it's not that strange for him to steal carrots, he prefers them to bones most of the time if you'd believe it. Where'd everyone go?" I ask, getting back up.

"Donna and Ope went to get some more beer and one of the grills from TM. Ope decided that there wasn't enough here. They took Al and Cam with them to shower and get changed. Hap was outside with you and Jax is in the living room looking at some catalogue of TV related stuff that Ope left. If you're done with Happy though could you ask him if he'd go pick up the cake for me? It's at home."

I lift my eyebrows and wait; sure enough she turns around after almost a minute of silence from me "What?" She asks setting down the spoon she'd been using to stir the giant pot of chilli Bobby had made.

"You want me to send Happy to get a cake. The one member of the club that will eat cupcakes till they are coming out his ears then asks for more? You expect it to come back in one piece?" I shake my head slightly, filling a coffee cup "You're better off asking Doj to go pick it up."

Gemma chuckles "Good point. Will you stir this then, I'll take Jax and do it."

Taking the spoon out of her hand I laugh again, shaking my head "Gem, are you trying to heat this up?"

Gemma nods "Yeah, it's taking forever."

I'm still laughing when I pick up the pot and move it across one element "You had the wrong element on. But why is it on now. It's only 6; no one is due till 8."

"Yeah but it can sit and keep warm, the longer it sits the better it gets. Bobby made cornbread; Donna's bringing that back as well. All the meat is already in your fridge and I cheated and brought bagged salads but got the girls to add some stuff to them. They're all made and in the fridge as well. All that we're waiting for is everyone to arrive and someone to cook." I nod as Gemma reaches past me turning the element off "We may as well leave that, as long as you remember to put it on at about 730 it'll be well and truly hot enough to eat at 830."

I nod again, letting her push me towards the living room, picking up my coffee cup as I go past. Sitting down on the armchair Jax looks up "Hey babe. Hey Ma. What's up?"

Gemma picks her keys up off the table by the door "You and I have to go pick up the cake. It's at home. Someone tried to send Happy."

I spit out something that's a cross between a snort and a laugh, shaking my head as Jax gets up, tossing the book at me "I folded a few corners over, see what you think?"

I pick up the magazine and flick it open "Sure but it's your choice."

The sound of car doors out the front heralds someone's arrival, Ope coming through the door a few minutes later, his arms loaded up with boxes of beer. Donna's behind him shaking her head and carrying a single box, the different caps poking out the top evident that it contains spirits "I think if they go through all of that, and what's still left in the car then everyone will be comaed on her back lawn baby."

Jax and Gemma slide out the open door as Opie carries the beer through to the laundry, dropping it in the empty space for a washing machine. "I'm sure everyone agrees with me in rather too much then not enough Don. Now be quiet."

Donna snaps her mouth shut, glaring up at her husband "Fine. But don't ask me to make you breakfast in bed tomorrow when you feel like shit."

"We make beak-fast Daddy." Kenny pipes up from the table, Donna's mouth falling open as she looks over her shoulders at her kids.

"If Daddy is hung over what do we do?"

Ellie giggles "We make lots of noise and laugh at him."

Donna nods happily "Neeta's coming over after dinner to take you two to Grandmas, there's movies there for you."

The pair of them bounce happily in their seats, Kenny looking up at his mother "Did she remember Cars?"

"Of course." Donna says with a chuckle.

The huge sigh that rips from Ellie's mouth makes me laugh from the lounge but Donna's next words make it even funnier "She also got Barbie and the Swan Princess. You can decide later who's watching their movie first. But right now we're going to hijack Uncle Jax's bathroom and clean you both. You look like you've been rolling in dirt."

I giggle, leaning forward slightly "If they've been playing with Doj it's very possible that they have been."

Donna aims a glare at me as she walks down the short hall towards the bathroom "I take back what I said before then about your well behaved dog."

I shrug, flicking to the first page that Jax had dog-eared for me, the first thing I see is a cabinet to hold a hidden TV. The scribble beside it tells me he already wants it, he's circled the wood that's the closest to the bed that we picked. Flicking through the pages it doesn't take me more than three to realise he's picked the biggest TV he can find to go into the games room, the cabinet for the living room will hold a TV only to a certain size and that's noted beside a couple of them, both flat screen monsters.

Dropping the book back down I give up trying to make any sense of it at all, while I know that the house is wired for sounds and cable that's as far as I went with it. Having 2 businesses to get off the ground won't leave me much time for TV, not that I ever watched a lot of it anyway.

Hearing a whole lot of splashing and giggles from the bathroom I slowly get up and walk down there, tentatively poking my head through the door I groan "D, you are cleaning that up!" There's water almost from one side of the bathroom to the other, two small naked and wet children bouncing around the room while the shower runs.

Donna looks up and shrugs "Can you please go get their father. I need another set of hands."

Backing out of the room I almost walk into Opie's chest a few steps away "Your wife needs help with your kids."

Opie chuckles, throwing the door open "What's up monsters?"