Chapter 234 Family Fullness - meters
Veronica
Now I understand what they say about not being able to sleep if you have a child. I have four, and I've learned that staying up late doesn't go hand in hand with taking care of kids. After handing Lupe her nightgown, my husband and I devoured each other. That's what happens when you marry the king of sex, and I couldn't complain.
I loved feeling his hands on my body, his lips on my sensitive spots, and his delicious penis wherever I wanted it. I was addicted to him. But that didn't mean we could be irresponsible, and we learned that once we finished, we wanted to go to sleep. Only it was just past five when we fell into bed naked, and at six, one of the kids' cries woke us up.
It was my husband's little princess. Hearing Roland grumble about them filled my heart with joy. He prepared the bottle, I gave it to Victoria, and he went back to bed to sleep, doing everything half-asleep. I burped my little princess and didn't have the strength to put her back in the crib, so I left her between the two of us. Five minutes later, the concert began.
"The tenth symphony has started."
I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Roland grumbled again. He argued with the three boys but not his princess. He prepared the three bottles, and I sat there more asleep than awake. He handed Dante to me, and my eldest son devoured his four-ounce bottle. No wonder he was so chubby. I burped him and laid him next to his sister, who was sleeping in our bed.
Roland put Liam in the bed, already full. He was another chubby one, and he picked up Enrique, who was sighing from crying so much. It broke my heart. One of them always ended up crying last, and we took turns, but he never let Victoria cry. I was the one who let her cry; her father couldn't. He always said his heart broke when he heard her cry. I fell more in love watching him shower his son with kisses while giving him the bottle.
"Love, sleep. I'll stay with my morning troublemaker."
I laughed at his comment. The good thing was that they drank their bottles quickly. He burped him and laid him next to his princess. With all four of them between us, they fell asleep, letting us sleep for two hours straight.
"Vero." It was Ines. "It's already eight. The father will hold the mass at ten since everyone went to bed around five in the morning."
"Thanks, Ines. We'll bathe the kids and come down for breakfast."
The synchronized marathon began, as Roland and I called it when getting our kids ready. They were already awake, babbling. I showered them all with kisses. My husband and I looked at each other. I felt dead tired, but seeing them made it all worth it.
"Thank you for our kids."
"Let's get started, beautiful. We need to make them presentable for their baptism."
He picked up Enrique, showering him with kisses while undressing him. I prepared the water for his bath. The room was a mess, but our kids looked adorable. We called the grandparents, who picked them up and showered them with kisses. My dad went down with two, my mother-in-law with Victoria, and Ines with Liam.
Everyone was ready, and we were running late. The door closed, and Roland went into the bathroom. I started tidying up the room, packing each of their bags since we'd be away from the house in case they needed a change. I left the general bag with everything we needed to go out with them. My husband came out of the bathroom, and I went in to bathe, get ready, and put on some perfume.
"You look beautiful, gorgeous."
I wore a loose white dress and sandals and put on the gift he gave me on our honeymoon. We had a quick breakfast and headed to the mass. Each godparent held their godchild. Gustavo and Gladis carried Dante. Guadalupe and Arnold had Enrique. Liam was in the arms of Miguel and Diana, and my princess Victoria was with Simon and her aunt Luisa.
My dad and mother-in-law carried the twins, and Ines had Isaac. The mass was lovely, with the four couples holding my kids. Four pillars were set, and the priest went from one to another, blessing my kids' heads with holy water. We were all godparents now. The celebration began again, and it felt like being in Colombia for a few hours.
The music took us back to our homeland, and we had a barbecue for lunch. We danced vallenatos and sang rancheras. Lupe sang beautifully; that girl had an amazing voice. My kids moved from one person to another. Arnold handed Enrique to me for a diaper change.
"Boss, Enrique is kicking and I don't want baby poop on my white shirt."
I smacked him for his comment. He waited for me to clean my baby's bottom, making funny faces at him. I saw Lupe looking at him sadly; we had talked about what she felt this morning.
"Arnold, how did it go? Can we announce a new relationship?"
"No, ma'am, I don't want to hurt Lupe. I don't want to change right now."
"I'm glad. A relationship should always be based on truth, Arnold. That way, she won't expect anything from you and can pay attention to other men." He frowned and looked around for her; she was talking on her cellphone.
"I suppose so," he said reluctantly.
"Don't scare them off. Let her decide if they're good for her. If you don't approach her, don't be so selfish as to keep them away, like with Lobo."
"Did she tell you?"
"Yes, Lupe is an open book. By the way, he asked for her number, and Simon and I gave it to him. I hope they develop something. He's like you guys; he'll take care of Lupe like Roland does with me." I handed him my son, and Arnold seemed lost in thought. "Are you okay? Be careful not to drop the baby."
"Why did you give Lobo her number?"
"Because I'm sure that if she falls in love with one of you, whoever it is will take care of her. I want her to have that kind of protection. A gallant fallen angel by her side, so she can tell her children a beautiful story of unconditional love."
He kissed my baby on the head and walked towards Lupe. I couldn't help but smile, thinking about my role in this plan.
"Did everything go well?"
Shirly and Clari arrived. They had talked to Lupe, who was on the verge of tears. Luisa told her that if she wanted our help, she agreed. That's why we planned to make the youngest of all of them jealous. We talked to Simon, and I spoke with Lobo. The idea was to ask him to call her, especially from Wednesday to Sunday. We were very clear with him, and he agreed, knowing it was to make Arnold react.
"I hope so. I hope you've managed to sow some discord."
"Men almost never understand these things," said Shirly.
By seven in the evening, everything had returned to normal. Father Gabriel would stay for a couple of days. My friends Raul and Manolo were leaving tomorrow. I loved seeing them; finally, my friend seemed settled. As he said, he preferred being active, and Manolo was perfect for him.
Seeing him in love was what mattered to me, regardless of whether I agreed with his preferences. He was my friend, no matter what. The company we founded was thriving; exports were growing every month. Gustavo, Gladis, Anibal, Shirly, and Arnold were returning to Colombia tomorrow.
Everything turned out perfectly. Due to the Italian leader, Simon and Miguel would travel next Friday. Santi would stay at Las Alondras ranch for a few days, and by Wednesday, they would return. Gradually, we would be alone. We had put the children to bed, and Roland sat on the bed with his back against the headboard.
"Beautiful, come here, I want to talk to you."
"That scares me."
"It's not that bad, but you ground me or guide me in almost everything."
"I love you." I moved closer to him, resting my head on his chest. Tonight, we would fall into a deep sleep. "What's going on?"
"Yesterday, I found out that Arnold is the son of the Russian mafia leader." I searched his eyes. "I told him; he knows, and that's why he was so upset."
"Of all of you, he's the most attached to that brotherhood. I don't think that bloody empire will seduce him." Roland smiled.
"That's exactly what he implied. My God! I married a psychic."
"Don't be silly." I lay back on my husband's chest. "I'm more afraid of what the supposed father might do to get his son back."
"Arnold is not alone. No one messes with my people."
"That's what I'm afraid of, Roland. I'm afraid of your reaction."
"I won't break my word. There's only one thing that would make me kill again, and that's you, my intruders, and my princess." I raised an eyebrow. "And... my friends, my family."
"Arnold is the beloved member of your family. You all adore him like a little brother."
"You're always right. I guess I'll have to pray a lot to the Lord to guide us, Vida."
"That sounds nicer. Let's not get ahead of ourselves with what might come. I love you, Roland."
"I love you more, Beautiful. Let's sleep. I'm exhausted."