The Draven family started a celebration that night after the news came through that the children were delivered safely. It was a huge celebration considering the kids were the first quadruplets birth in the family, hence it was momentous. If only their parents were alive to see this.
Of course, invitations were sent to their in-laws aka the Luciano family. As expected, not everyone turned up, especially Benjamin and his wife who gave a measly excuse. At first, they had mocked Adele for getting pregnant, knowing that she would lose her underboss position and then, their precious son, Gabriel can take over her place.
However, none of that happened with Camille being insistent that the underboss position was already covered and she needed no assistance. If anything, Adele had only grown powerful, especially now she was married to a Draven. All of their plans didn't work and they couldn't face the girl without hiding their face in embarrassment.
The only member of the family who shamelessly attended the party was Cindy. The young girl lived the life of the party and as a celebrity, couldn't turn down the chance of flaunting and posting the photos on her social media pages.
Moreover, she did not really have anything against her half-sister - that one was on their parents and she merely came here to show her support. Perhaps, it was not a bad idea to get on her sister's grace - and to confirm it was a good thing giving up Elijah so she could have him. Adele better made sure her sacrifice was worth it. Elijah was her first love, you know. Cindy was pretty conceited.
Arianna and Marcel did not fail to attend the party even though they were pretty tired from dealing with Mimi's birth. Natalie eventually sent a doctor to check up on Mimi and it was confirmed that both mother and son were fine; there were no complications with the home birth. Victor eventually snapped out of the shock after a few talks with Marcel and they eventually left them when Hannah arrived to take care of her daughter and grandchild, while Mimi had her rest.
"What is wrong?" Marcel eased into the seat next to his wife.
He had been engaged in conversations with Eric and members of the commission who came to congratulate him. And finally turned, only to see his wife all by herself and it worried him. He could sense Arianna was not happy, or perhaps it was the stress finally taking a toll on her. Sigh, he knew they shouldn't have come to this party; she needed her rest.
Arianna covered it up with a weary smile, "Trust me, I'm fine. It's just that…."
He took her hand and placed it on his larger palm before squeezing it affectionately, "You know you can tell me anything."
"I know," Arianna let out a deep breath, "It just sounds stupid."
"I don't care. I'm always here to listen."
She groaned out but Marcel squeezed her hand tighter, encouraging her to speak up.
"Fine, I feel left out," Arianna confessed.
"What?"
She sighed and explained to him, "We were together before the both of them and yet Adele and Mimi got married before I did. And now, they have given birth and I still have three months to go. Why am I the last?"
Marcel burst into laughter.
"See, I told you it's stupid." Arianna groaned, covering her face with her palm, and wished the ground would open up and swallow her at this time. Why would she think such nonsense?
"Hey," Marcel faced her, began to pry her fingers off her face and when he was done, cupped her cheeks instead and kept her gaze on him.
"I didn't realize that this was a competition,"
Arianna shut her eyes in embarrassment, her cheeks growing hot as well.
"Listen, love, I don't care if the baby takes one or two years to come or if the others are first in line in starting a family, what matters is that you are here. We are together. And when our baby finally comes into this world, I'm going to love and protect her in the same manner I have done to you. "
He then leaned closer to whisper in her ears, "And if you're so desperate to be the first next time, perhaps we can start fucking the instant our baby girl is born." He nippled her earlobe to make his point.
"You…." Arianna was so red in the face that her mouth opened without a word. She then cleared her throat and corrected him, "We are not even sure it's a girl yet. I told you, we would have a boy."
"Until then…." Marcel didn't exactly care as he tilted his head and took her lips in a kiss. It was just the both of them at that moment as everyone else faded into the background and her pulse quickened.
As the passion heightened, her heart hummed in appreciation and Arianna knew inwardly that she would never give what she had with Marcel for anything in the world. Their love was special even though they started on the wrong feet. But then, some blessings aren't served on a platter of gold, but wrapped in a rough package and hiding the goodness inside.
The both of them eventually left for home at the peak of the celebration. If there was anyone who partied hard, it had to be Ezra. Unlike the others, he had two reasons to celebrate – one, Elijah had his kids safely, and secondly, he was officially a godfather.
Hence he drank and drank to the point he couldn't even recognize his own brothers, not to mention strangers. He knew he would eventually suffer the consequences the next morning and didn't exactly care. Live in the moment!
Sure enough, when the morning came, his head felt like it was going to explode.
He stirred from his sleep with a groan, finally regretting why he drank so much. But that was the least of his problem because he opened his eyes and discovered that he was not alone. Someone was in bed with him. He was not alone.
Ezra screamed and jumped from the bed, what has he done now? It has been a while since he had one-night stands.
His shout woke the woman on his bed because she lifted her head groggily and when Ezra saw her face, the blood drained from his face.
Oh no.
He was doomed.
"Hello handsome," Cindy grinned at him and his life was over.
Why her?!
Meanwhile…..
"How do you feel?" Elijah must have been by her side all this while because he was the first thing Adele saw when her eyes opened.
Adele did not answer, rather she looked around the hospital room and panic nearly gripped her when she didn't see her children beside her, "Where is -"
"In the incubator, they are being taken care of by the nurses. The children are safe, we have three boys and a girl, Adele. You did it."
That was a huge relief.
For a moment there, Adele thought he had taken away the children and abandoned her now that he's gotten what he wanted. Although she couldn't help but notice the pronoun he used in his statement, "We". It almost sounded like they were a team and for some reason it made her feel good.
Well, they had been a team anyway for the past months before her delivery. After their marriage, they lived together as husband and wife even though they shared different beds. Elijah took good care of her and respected her boundary, there was mutual respect and acceptance between the both of them.
But then, how long would that last? Now that the babies were born, he owed her nothing except to take care of the kids. Was there a chance… no, she would not think of it?
To Adele's surprise, Elijah drew closer and before she could ask what he was doing, he kissed her on the forehead, his lips lingering there and it felt like he branded her, her heart skipping a beat.
When he pulled back, Elijah looked into her eyes and said, "Thank you, Adele."
Adele blinked at him. She was left confused and conflicted by the gesture. She couldn't help but wonder, was there a chance their relationship could develop into something more?
