Pregnant With Alpha’s Genius Twins

#Chapter 21 – Bath Time’

Tires screech as Victor swerves into his driveway, throwing the car into park and jumping out the door almost before it stops.

“Victo-“ Amelia says, just starting to unbuckle her seatbelt. But he’s already moving around the house, heading for Evelyn’s cottage out back. Amelia slumps back in the seat, watching him go. He didn’t say a word to her the entire ride back. Instead, he made a thousand calls, shouted at Betas, ordered more security for the house. He didn’t even look at her.

f**k.

Amelia crosses her arms over her chest and stares silently out the windshield, planning her next move.

Victor bursts into my house through the back door, coming into the living room where I’m working to wrangle two sobbing boys into their pajamas. They cried the whole way home and, while I don’t blame them, my head is pounding.

“Are they okay?” Victor asks as he approaches, looking over the boys.

“They’re fine,” I say softly.

“Boys, what happened,” Victor asks, staring at the twins who lay on the carpet sobbing their little hearts out.

“Victor, I think we should –“

Ian crawls over to Victor and raises his arms, asking to be picked up, still screaming with tears. Victor complies, cradling the boy in his arms. Alvin sees this and works his way over too.

“Ian, tell me what happened, who took you?!” Victor insists, turning Ian’s head to face him while Alvin screeches, demanding without words to be picked up like his brother.

Ian doesn’t reply, just cries harder. “Boys,” Victor says, his voice deepening with command. “You must tell me what happened.”

“Victor –“ I start, but he shoots me a glare. This sends me over my tipping point. I lose my temper, raising my voice to say “Victor, they can’t right now –“

“Don’t tell me how to talk to my sons,” he growls.

my feet and gesturing towards the two red-faced boys from whom an endless wail sounds. “They’re

at me. I shove forward my hands, which are

trying to get them in pajamas, and wrapped up, and into bed. But,” I admit, lowering my arms. “I don’t think

Then he turns and, holding Ian close to his chest,

water. We put the boys on the floor and let them cry it out as we silently go through the calming routines of bath

clothes while I run some soap into the bath to make bubbles, adding a little lavender to soothe them. I check the water temperature – a little too hot, I turn up

that I remember from my childhood, and haven’t heard since then. An old song, about wolves running

fill.

out my hands to Alvin. “Up and in,” I say softly, lifting him and sitting him gently in the water. Victor gives Ian the

and Alvin sink into the water. Ian dunks his own head, but Alvin asking me quietly to use a cup to wet his hair. I

liked your song, daddy,” Ian says quietly, looking

– I’m not sure he even knew he was humming. He laughs softly and says, “thank you. My grandmother used to sing it to me when I was little, and when I was scared. Do you know?” He

laughing, unbelieving. Victor

eyes with his fingers like spectacles. “You can see in the dark! And bite whatever is

nodding sagely. “But it doesn’t mean I wasn’t afraid. Sometimes we are afraid

starting to leech from me. I think

think there was something to be scared of.” Ian nods in agreement,

you could…tell us what happened?” Victor says, organizing the soap and shampoo bottles so that the boys don’t see how intensely he is focused on their answer. I can see it in him, though – fear and rage and horror still showing in the tenseness of his shoulders, his

went with Beta Frank to get cotton candy,

of Frank because we were hungry,” Alvin continues. The two tell the story together, each picking up seamlessly

we heard Frank shout, and we turned around, and someone had hit him,

at us. “And they smelled like

his eyes narrow. “We could smell

hands over our mouths so