Part 11 (1/2)
”Where are we going? Mommy says it's a surprise.” Emily was looking at him with great expectation. He loved her little girl voice. It was sweet.
Ethan chuckled. ”I can't tell you. That would ruin the surprise.” She pouted and gave him puppy dog eyes. Laughing, he tipped his head forward so he could rub noses with her. ”It's a good surprise, but it's a secret.”
”I won't tell. Promise.” She held up her little hand, as if swearing an oath, and nodded her head.
”You won't, huh?” Emily shook her head, her bright red curls bouncing around her head. ”Sorry, I still can't tell you. I don't want to ruin the surprise.”
Emily frowned. ”But it will still be a surprise.” Smart girl.
She was good. Ethan could see a lot of this adorable cajoling in his future. He turned to look at Maggie, who was grinning. She could probably see the word sucker stamped on his forehead.
”Come on, kiddo. Let's get going, so you and your brothers can find out what the surprise is.”
”I hope it's a really, really, really good one,” Samuel said as Max put him down on the ground.
”Me, too. I love surprises. I hope it's a snake,” Brant said, horrifying every adult there. His siblings seemed to think it was a great idea.
Emily clapped her small hands together. ”A snake would be fun.”
No one over the age of four commented on that. They simply exchanged glances. Ethan just hoped their surprise was enough to sidetrack the idea of a pet snake.
Knowing they would want to ride in the truck, Ethan carried Emily to the truck and set her down beside it. She bounced in place, along with her brothers, until they had the car seats transferred. Then tiny people were trying to scramble up into a truck that was set high off the ground.
A sing-a-long seemed to be required, so he and Max did their best to sing the children's songs as they headed for the ranch. Sean was riding with Maggie. The bed of the truck was filled with the last of the boxes that wouldn't be stored. Ethan was looking forward to the kids' expressions when they saw that their bedroom furniture and toys were already set up in their new, if temporary, rooms.
Ethan's excitement grew as he drove along the long lane, toward the large white farm house perched on a small rise, where Max's parents lived with his younger brothers and sisters. There were large trees flanking it and flower beds in front. He continued along the lane until he reached their house, which was one of four built on the property. It wasn't large, only having three bedrooms, but there was a sprawling yard where the kids could play. Since there were plenty of kids always around, there were swings, a slide, and other things for them to ride. Ethan saw it all as a way of keeping Brant, Samuel, and Emily from becoming bored, which was a good thing. There were also several new board games in the house, as well as books appropriate for their age. Since building blocks were one of his personal favorites, he had purchased several containers of them. The way he figured it, he had enough to build a castle, a s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p, or a really cool race car.
”Are we going to a picnic?” Brant asked, craning his neck so he could look through the window.
”No. No picnic today,” Max told him, regret in his deep voice. ”But maybe we could make our own little picnic later. How would that be? We'll have to talk to your mom first.”
”Mommy likes to have picnics. Can we see our snake now?” Emily asked, with excitement in her sweet voice.
”I wanna name him Mr. Jelly Bean.”
Ethan jumped out of the truck without answering. He needed a moment. Maybe he would just tell Maggie the problem and hoped that their real surprise wouldn't be a total let down for the kids.
Maggie dealt with the snake issue like a pro, telling them they couldn't have a pet snake until they were older. There was disappointment, and a little pouting, but in the end it was all good. They s.h.i.+fted gears quickly as they walked along the paved path to the front door, the triplets hopping up each step until they reached the porch.
”Is our surprise in the house?”
Maggie squatted down until she was on their level. ”Well, yes and no. How would you like to live here until our house is ready to move back into?”
Ethan winced as the squealing and yelling began.
”Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!” they chanted enthusiastically.
He shook his head and grinned at Sean and Max. By the sounds the kids were making, they approved of moving in.
Max stepped forward to open the front door. ”Come on in.” Maggie had helped them childproof the place. Things they shouldn't touch were put away or out of reach.
Samuel, Brant, and Emily ran into the house, eager to explore. Once their curiosity about the downstairs had been satisfied, Maggie led the way upstairs. ”Brant, Samuel, you'll have to share a room.” The boys ran into the room and bounced onto the twin beds, obviously happy to see familiar things. ”Emily, your room is right here.” Ethan opened the door and pushed it back to the wall.
After they had looked around their rooms, they came back out into the hallway with the adults. Emily looked at the two other doors. ”This is the bathroom,” Sean said, opening the door.
Small heads nodded as they looked inside. ”Mama, where are you sleeping?”
Maggie walked to the last door and opened it. ”Right in here.” Of course the triplets had to look inside.
”Where are they sleeping?” Brant asked, pointing at Ethan, Sean, and Max.
”They'll be sharing the bedroom with me.”
Brant peered inside the room again. ”That's a big bed.”
”Are you going to make a baby?”
Ethan stifled the laugh. Max made a choking sound. Sean looked like a deer caught in the headlights. Maggie didn't even blink. ”Do you want to go downstairs? We have another surprise for you.”
There was more cheering and more bouncing. The triplets ran to the stairs, their feet thumping loudly on the hardwood floor and steps, questions about babies temporarily forgotten.
”That was smooth,” Sean told Maggie, pulling her close to kiss her softly on the lips. ”I couldn't think of one answer that would have been suitable.”
Maggie laughed. ”You'll get the hang of it. Just remember to pause before you answer. But, on the other hand, don't wait too long. They can twist just about anything to suit them.”
The announcement of their impending marriage was a huge surprise for the triplets. They stared, they giggled, and then there was more of the whooping and hollering. Maggie let it go on for a minute or two, before quieting them down. Ethan's favorite reactions were the way Emily's green eyes widened and she covered her open mouth with her hands. Brant and Samuel kept with the basic, manly fist pumps.
”Yay!” Brant yelled. ”We get to go to a party.”
Maggie laughed and shook her head. She loved her kids. Like most small children, they were very simple in their wants and needs. Though they hadn't yet gone to a wedding, they had attended a lot of receptions. It was a common occurrence in Silver, since so many people were being married or taking part in commitment ceremonies. It seemed as if they attended a reception a week, which wasn't true. It just felt that way, at times.
Leaving her fiances to entertain their children-to-be, Maggie went into the kitchen. She had given the guys a list of groceries they would need. Opening the cupboards and the refrigerator, she was pleased to see that everything seemed to be there. As she began getting things down and setting them on the counter, Sean walked in.
”I thought I'd help,” he told her, giving Maggie a warm smile. ”What pans do you need?”
The next twenty minutes were very enjoyable. Maggie had always liked having someone to prepare a meal with. Sean was great at chopping up the vegetables to be steamed. She laughed and asked him if he had OCD because every piece was nearly the same size. When he put the fish she had stuffed with herbs and wrapped with foil on the pan according to size, largest to smallest, her teasing began all over again. She finished the salad once the fish was in the oven, putting it in the refrigerator to chill.
The next wave into the kitchen was Ethan, followed by Emily and Brant. She and Sean watched as they set the table, chuckling when Emily would carefully straighten the silverware after Max placed it beside the plates.
”It'll be okay, Em,” she told her daughter. ”They don't have to be perfect.”
Emily giggled and went to get the plastic tumblers from Max. Brant was carrying a jug of juice, groaning when he lifted it to the tabletop.
”Oh, we need napkins!” Emily all but shouted in her excitement. She began looking around the kitchen, smiling and running across the room when Max opened a drawer. ”Thank you, Daddy.”