"Have you heard of a spray tan and hair dye? I mean… this girl’s name was DORA?" Emily asked and he glared at her but she just glared back at him. "But she would remember me, wouldn't she? She would know I like her?" Emily snorted. "Pandora is very smart, but she's quite obtuse when it comes to certain things. There were at least six guys who made it painfully obvious they liked her back in high school, and she never picked up on it. They gave her flowers, candy, and cards, but she never got the hint." He chuckled as he looked at Emily. "Then why did she think they were giving the things to her?" "To say thank you because she was always helping everyone." "She still helps everyone." He smiled, shaking his head at Emily. "Just tell her your story about being married and she will then, in turn, tell you her story. Who knows; it may just match up?" He patted Emily's arm as she stood up. "Don't give my mind any false hope." He walked out of the room and headed back down to look af
The light from the window brought her out of her dream. She stretched and then rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "Morning, sweetheart," Benjamin mumbled. "Morning," she replied as she moved her head off of his arm. Benjamin started to run his hand through his hair. As she watched him, she could see his mind was going a mile a minute. "Has something happened?" she prompted, and his head snapped quickly around so that he was looking at her. "What? No," he responded quickly, but his eyes were filled with guilt. "Then what is it?" she questioned even softer. "You are going to be discharged today," Benjamin informed, closing his eyes at the same time. "But the boys are... They have to stay—" she stuttered, cutting herself off. She should have realized that she would be getting sent home before them. "Love, I don't want to leave without them either, but we need to." Benjamin stopped and swallowed. "My dad has a big office here, and we can sleep in that maybe one or two nights, but we c
"It was so hard to cope with everything on my own. I was keeping our home clean, building on it, working full-time, and cooking. I think if I'd been truthful with myself, I would have realized I felt stuck because I didn't want to admit I was wrong. I didn't want to admit that I deserved better." "You do know now that you deserve better—so much better?" Benjamin whispered to her, but she got so caught up in his eyes that she didn't answer."Breakfast for two," someone said and she looked at the door to see Peter standing there, with an 'oh shit face'. "Thanks, Dad," Benjamin commented as he cleared his throat. He moved out of the bed as Peter walked into the room. "Well, I am going to sit with your mother and spend some time with my grandsons before I need to start work." Peter moved his eyes to Pandora. Then he proceeded to tell her how every one of their friends and family members was going to take turns watching the boys. In the end, Peter raised an eyebrow almost as if he was a
"Hey, sweetheart," her dad said as he walked in with Nina."Hi, Daddy," she said hugging him. "I am going to express some milk." She turned, giving Nina a look to ask if she would like to come with her. Nina nodded, picking up on her unspoken question. "Would you stay with my dad?" she asked Benjamin. "I would love to, sweetheart." Nina linked her arm with Pandora’s, and they walked to Peter's office, where her things were for the time being. "How has my dad been?" she asked once they were settled. "Pandora?" she tutted and she roll her eyes. "Has he been okay?" she repeated. "He's been upset, and I have locked up all of his guns. Milton has talked to the other officers at the station; we are on it." Pandora let out a breath, feeling relieved that they seemed to have a plan in place to stop her father from killing Derrik. "But Derrik's due some bad Karma, and by God, do I want a front-row seat to see it." "Bad Karma… he needs more than that," Pandora snarled. "What's going o
"What?" Pandora gasped out. "It's fine and the show isn't for another five months," she said as if those simple words would wash away her worries. "Just go with it, if you don't want to do it, it will be fine, too. While she loves clothes, she's not overly pushy," Benjamin whispered in her ear. "Oh, and I now have the hairdresser sorted out as well as the makeup artists." She looked at Maisey who was smiling away. "Who did you get?" Benjamin asked. "Ron, Pandora's friend. He runs a line of spas and salons. Keira works elsewhere but I heard she helps with marketing, doesn’t she?""Yes," Pandora smiled broadly, happy for her friends. "That is really nice of you, they are great." Maisey laughed and gave her a thumbs up. "And, I am so into his macho men photo shoot," Maisey commented as she wiggled her eyebrows. "He said I could design the costumes, so that means I get to dress Milton up. And by goodness, I have wanted to get my hands on that man's wardrobe for years now." In the e
Pandora’s mouth opened and then closed several times as she tried to get a grip on her thoughts. "WHAT?" she asked a little louder than she intended. "I know that Mackenna was not pregnant the last time I saw her, surely she hasn't had a baby that early?" "Pandora, she's claiming our boys are Derrik's," Benjamin explained softly, but her head shook without her knowledge. "No way," she growled. "Why would she think our boys have anything to do with Derrik?" "I think—" Benjamin stopped and swallowed. "I know they are mine. From what your father, Ron, and Milton have said about Derrik, I know that you wouldn't take the prick back. Don't doubt I know they are mine, but I think we should have a DNA test performed just in case he tries to throw us a curveball." She pulled back the tears that badly wanted to come from her eyes. "They're in here; they need us and he's still doing this shit?" she gritted out in a slightly raised voice. Benjamin looked around and jumped up, pulling her out
As she walked away, she picked up her cell that was charging on the counter. She felt the need to call the hospital. "Hi, it's Pandora Leo... Parks, Jack and Micheal's mom. I'm just calling to see how they are doing. My password is…" she mumbled quickly once her call was connected. "Good morning, Pandora, it's Claire, and both boys are doing well," she said softly. "Jack's doing great. He's only had two blips so far tonight, and Micheal had five." She felt her heart beating faster than humanly possible. No matter how many times they told her this, she couldn't seem to be calm about them talking about her sons forgetting to breathe. "They're doing great, Pandora." She let out a long breath and nodded, though she couldn't see her. She felt reassured, and a little more relaxed. "Okay, thanks, I'll let you get back to work." Claire told her goodbye and she placed her cell back on the counter to continue charging. Not feeling tired, she decided to look around Benjamin's home. His kit
As the alarm stopped, both the nurses and Benjamin seemed to have a new, calmer sense about them, and she knew the baby was okay for the moment. "You just missed your daddy in action," she whispered to Jack as his eyes opened. She smiled down at him. "Sorry," Benjamin said as he sat back down. She turned to him. "Come here," she called with a tilt of her head. Benjamin pulled his brows together but leaned forward. As soon as he was close enough, she kissed him. "You were amazing," she whispered and he smiled shyly. She could see a hint of a blush on his face, too. She looked down at Jack when he stopped sucking. "Are you all done?" she asked but Jack yawned. "I think he's tired himself out by feeding," she said. "You want to burp him before he goes back down?" Benjamin grinned, his eyes sparkling. Pandora carefully passed Jack to him. "I have good news." She looked up at Claire, who was smiling happily at them. "You can hold Micheal. You can do it now while Jack is still outsi