Chapter 150 This Is The Elephant

Chapter 150 This Is The Elephant
Amelia remained quiet for another moment after Maya returned to her seat, her gaze moving over the gifts that had already accumulated around her. Samantha’s handmade blanket rested carefully across the arm of the sofa, Bruce’s scrapbook sat beside Bryson, and Maya’s portrait had been propped safely against the coffee table where no one could accidentally damage it.

She wiped beneath her eyes and drew a steadying breath before looking into the white chest again.

“Okay,” she said, a watery laugh slipping into her voice. “I have cried enough. Whoever is left, please tell me you brought something that won’t emotionally destroy me.”

“That would be us,” Cole announced.

Ethan looked at him. “Why do you keep volunteering us like we discussed who was going to speak?”

“Because I'm better at it.”

“You're really not.”

Their exchange pulled another laugh from Amelia, which seemed to be exactly what they had intended. She leaned forward and sifted through the remaining crinkle paper until she found a thick envelope buried near the bottom.

“Ethan and Cole,” she read from the front. “Both of you?”

“Joint effort,” Ethan confirmed. "Cole helped me with my mugs and I helped him with—"

Amelia settled back against Bryson and opened the envelope. The first thing she pulled out was a restaurant gift card.

She smiled. “Oh, nice. I've heard this place is really good.”

“Keep going,” Cole said.

Amelia reached inside again and found another.

Then another.

And another.

Her smile turned into confusion.

She looked inside the envelope.

“What did you two do?”

“Nothing,” Ethan said.

Cole corrected him. “We solved a problem.”

“What problem?”

“The baby doesn't know what it likes to eat yet.”

Amelia stared at him.

Beside her, Bryson slowly lowered his coffee.

Cole continued with complete seriousness. “We thought about it, and the kid has been stuck eating whatever you decide to eat. Doesn't get a vote. Doesn't get options. Honestly, the whole setup seems unfair.”

Amelia's mouth dropped open before laughter escaped her.

“Cole!”

“What? I'm advocating for your child.”

Ethan leaned forward. “Don't listen to him. There was more logic involved than that.”

“Thank God.”

“We figured your cravings are probably going to change as the pregnancy goes along.”

Amelia nodded. “Okay. That actually makes sense.”

“So,” Ethan continued, “we started buying gift cards to different restaurants around the city so whenever you get a craving, you and Mr. Hearst can go try something.”

“That is so sweet.”

Cole pointed toward the envelope. “Now keep going.”

Amelia did.

Italian.

Thai.

French.

Greek.

Korean.

Caribbean.

Mexican.

Indian.

Steakhouses, bakeries, brunch restaurants, little neighborhood spots and several places so exclusive that Amelia recognized the names immediately.

She kept pulling cards out.

And kept pulling.

Eventually, she stopped and stared at the two men.

“How many restaurants are in here?”

Ethan rubbed his jaw.

Cole suddenly became fascinated by the ceiling.

Bryson reached over and took the envelope from Amelia. He looked inside, then looked at them.

“How many?”

“We may have gotten carried away,” Ethan admitted.

“Define carried away,” Bryson said.

Cole shrugged. “We started with Manhattan.”

Amelia blinked. “Started?”

“Then we found some places in Brooklyn.”

Ethan nodded. “And Queens.”

“There was this one place in the Bronx—”

Bryson held up a hand, but there was already a smile spreading across his face. “Wait. You two planned us an entire food tour of New York?”

Amelia's face lit up. “They gave us a food adventure.”

Cole pointed at her. “See? She gets it.”

Bryson laughed, looking down at the enormous stack covering his wife's lap before glancing back at the two men. “You actually went through all these places and picked them out for us?”

“Every single one,” Ethan said. “Some fancy, some not. A couple places you probably wouldn't find unless somebody told you about them.”

Cole nodded. “That's the point. You pick a card, go wherever it sends you, eat something good. No meetings, no work, no security briefing disguised as dinner.”

“Technically, we didn't find enough in Staten Island that fit the criteria,” Cole added.

Ethan frowned. “We found two.”

“Right. Two.”

Amelia folded forward, laughing.

Bryson looked at Ethan and Cole, his expression warm. “This is a damn good gift. Thank you.”

“You're welcome,” Ethan said.

Cole glanced at Amelia clutching the stack. “Although judging by her reaction, we're pretty sure it's mostly her gift.”

Bryson slipped an arm around Amelia. “I'm okay with that. I get to go with her.”

Amelia turned to him with a grin. “To all of them.”

“Every one you want.”

“Even Staten Island.”

Bryson glanced toward Ethan and Cole. “Apparently even Staten Island.”

Amelia began sorting through the cards excitedly. “Baby and I are absolutely doing this.”

She gathered the cards together and tucked them carefully back into the envelope. “I love this. We're going to pick one every week.”

“One?” Cole asked. “Mrs. Hearst, please. We didn't invest this kind of time for one restaurant a week.”

Bryson stared at him. “You aren't feeding my pregnant wife seven dinners a day.”

“No one said seven.”

Ethan glanced at Cole. “We were thinking three.”

Amelia leaned against Bryson, laughing again. “Thank you. Both of you. This was really thoughtful.”

“You're welcome,” Ethan said.

Cole nodded toward her stomach. “Baby Hearst, we're expecting reviews.”

Bryson shook his head. “Next gift.”

Amelia reached back into the chest and found a black box tied with a gold ribbon. The moment she saw Evan's name on the tag, she looked across the room.

Evan smiled.

Something about that smile made her suspicious.

“Why do you look like that?”

“Like what?”

“Like you've done something.”

“I gave you a Christmas present.”

Bryson glanced toward Evan. “That doesn't answer the question.”

Amelia shook the box gently.

Evan's eyes widened. “Don't do that.”

Her hands immediately stopped.

The room went silent.

Amelia slowly looked at him.

“Why can't I shake it?”

“You can. I'd just prefer you didn't.”

She stared at the box.

Then at Evan.

“What's in here?”

“A gift.”

“Evan.”

He leaned back and crossed one ankle over his knee. “There are instructions.”

“Oh, Lord,” Samantha murmured.

Amelia was already smiling. “What instructions?”

“First, don't open it now.”

That immediately got everyone's attention.

“Why not?” Amelia asked.

“Because we're all here.”

Her eyes narrowed.

Bryson reached for the box.

Evan pointed at him. “And definitely don't let him open it right now.”

Bryson stopped.

“What the hell did you buy us?”

Evan's composure finally cracked, a grin spreading across his face.

“Put it in your bedroom. Preferably somewhere private. Then, after this baby is born, whenever the two of you decide you're ready to start working on number two…” He gestured toward the box. “You're welcome.”

Silence held for approximately two seconds.

Then Cole started laughing.

Amelia's eyes widened.

“Evan!”

“I said don't open it!”

Bryson stared at the box in his hands before slowly looking at Evan. “Did you give us a sex box?”

Evan looked offended. “That sounds incredibly cheap.”

Ethan choked on his coffee.

Amelia covered her mouth.

Bryson's brows rose. “Is that a no?”

“It's a carefully curated marital experience.”

That finished Amelia.

She collapsed against Bryson, laughing helplessly while Samantha covered her face and Bruce muttered something about regretting coming to sit.

Maya looked around the room.

“Wait. What's in it?”

Martina immediately touched her sister's arm. “Nothing you need to worry about.”

Maya gave her a flat sixteen-year-old stare. “I'm not stupid.”

“No one said you were.”

“I have the internet.”

“Maya.”

“What? I do.”

Amelia buried her face against Bryson's shoulder, laughing harder.

Bryson set the box firmly beside himself.

“This conversation is over.”

Evan nodded. “Absolutely. You'll thank me later.”

“I highly doubt that.”

“You haven't opened it.”

“And apparently I won't be opening it until sometime after this child is born.”

Evan grinned. “Exactly.”

Amelia finally composed herself enough to sit upright. “I'm almost afraid to say thank you.”

“You should be.”

“Evan!”

The room erupted again.

By the time the laughter finally settled, Amelia's cheeks hurt. She rested one hand over her stomach and took a breath before leaning toward the chest once more.

There was only one package left.

She pulled it from beneath the remaining crinkle paper and read the small card attached to it.

Her expression softened.

“Marcus.”

He had been quieter than everyone else throughout the exchange. His coffee rested between his hands, and he gave her a simple nod.

“That's me.”

Amelia smiled and began removing the paper. Something soft appeared beneath it, followed by one large gray ear.

She stopped.

Her eyes widened.

“No way.”

Bryson looked down.

Amelia tore the rest of the paper away and lifted out a plush gray elephant with enormous floppy ears, a rounded little belly and a sweet plush face.

“Oh my God.”

She immediately looked at Marcus.

“This is the elephant.”

Marcus smiled.

“The elephant,” he confirmed.

Bryson looked between them. “What elephant?”

“The one from the baby store,” Amelia said, already running her fingers over its ears. “Remember? We passed it when we were shopping.”

Bryson's expression cleared. “The one you stood there playing with.”

Amelia looked at him. “I didn't stand there playing with it.”

Marcus and Bryson answered simultaneously.

“Yes, you did.”

Amelia stared between them.

Marcus laughed.

Bryson smirked.

“You both are annoying.”

“You were there for at least five minutes,” Marcus said.

“I was looking at it.”

“You pressed the button four times.”

Amelia narrowed her eyes. “Why do you know how many times I pressed the button?”

Marcus's smile remained, but something subtle passed through his expression.

“Because I was standing there.”

The answer was perfectly reasonable.

Still, Amelia paused.

Then she looked down at the elephant again.

“I almost bought it.”

“I know.”

Her eyes returned to him.

“How?”

“You picked it up, checked the price, carried it halfway to the register, then put it back because you said you were buying things too early.”

Amelia's mouth slowly curved.

“You remembered all of that?”

Marcus shrugged lightly. “You liked it.”

There was something so simple about his answer that it touched her.

Amelia looked down at the elephant and found the small button on its foot.

“The song is so cute.”

“Press it.”

She did.

A soft children's song began playing as both enormous ears lifted and folded across the elephant's face.

Amelia gasped.

The second ear followed, covering its eyes completely before both flapped outward again.

“Oh!”

Maya laughed. “It plays peekaboo!”

The elephant covered its eyes again while the song continued.

Amelia's entire face lit up.

“Bryson, look at him!”

Bryson laughed. “I'm looking.”

“He covers his little eyes!”

“I see that, sweetheart.”

Amelia pressed the button again.

The ears started over.

Bryson looked toward Marcus. “You've created a problem.”

Marcus chuckled. “She likes it.”

“She is going to press that button five hundred times before we go upstairs.”

Amelia hugged the elephant protectively against her chest.

“Don't listen to him. Daddy is grumpy.”

Bryson stared at her.

Everyone laughed.

“Daddy is sitting right here.”

“I know.”

“You're defending a stuffed animal from me.”

“He didn't do anything to you.”

“He's been in my home for ninety seconds and I've already heard the song twice.”

Amelia looked down at the elephant. “Ignore him.”

Bryson shook his head, but his smile betrayed him.

Amelia ran her fingers over one of the soft ears again before looking at Marcus.

“Thank you. Seriously.”

“You're welcome.”

“This was really sweet.”

Marcus nodded.

Amelia continued stroking the elephant's ear. “You pay attention to everything, don't you?”

The question was casual.

Marcus's reaction wasn't.

It was subtle enough that perhaps no one else noticed, but Amelia did.

His smile changed.

Not disappeared.

Changed.

“I try to.”

Amelia studied him.

Over the course of the evening, she'd caught his eyes moving repeatedly through the room. The elevator whenever it chimed. The windows. The hallway. Even when everyone had been laughing and opening gifts, some part of Marcus never seemed to completely relax.