DOUBLE POSTING!

ROMANO

I stepped into the hospital room, the sight before me chipping into my chest and had my jaw clench shut.

All my life I have seen Maximus brave everything that came his way. He never broke when mom died, when dad took his life and everything else we have come towards us that would break a normal person.

Since I can remember, he has been a warm fire in a cold night.

But right now, looking at him sitting beside an unconscious Stella with her hand in his while he reads to her from her kindle... he looked as if a breeze would break him.

"When was the last time you had fresh air?" I asked walking into the room.

Maximus stopped reading and put the kindle down, his head turning towards me. "Too long ago. Your turn to babysit me?"

We have a rotation schedule going around, one to check in on Stella and Maximus. Sometimes Anthony was here to check in, other times Cody, Lorenzo, Tate and now myself.

I rolled my eyes. "Actually, I am here to check on my future sister-in-law and my niece and nephew. I have seen your face my entire life, I don't miss it when I get break from it."

He shook his head and looked back at Stella's still face.

Stella has been in and out of surgery the past couple days. The doctors had to break up the surgeries since her body has been put through so much stress and trauma that they didn't want to risk pushing her.

Looking at her now, she looked better, healthier than yesterday. She had color back in her face and her chest rose and fell with solid breaths. I couldn't remember all the different surgeries she had. I think Maximus mentioned she had to get her appendix removed, a few broken ribs fixed, and I think he even said something about severe damage to her uterus. Yesterday she should have had the last surgery, now she is being pumped with antibiotics to fight any infection and heal.

A knock sounded at the door, a few nurses standing outside pushing in two cribs. "Hello Mr. Sorrentino. The babies are healthy to leave the NCU and we think that it would be best for the family to be together."

I got off from the wall, the nurses setting the babies up in the room. "Thank you nurses."

They nodded and told us they will be checking in periodically and then left. Walking to the babies I looked at them, they were healthy despite being early and the trauma. My eyes glanced over the signs and I looked to Maximus disapprovingly.

"You haven't named them yet?' I tisked.

Maximus leaned back in his chair. "I am waiting for Stella, I will officially name them when she wakes up."

I raised a brow. "You think Stella wants to risk Anthony coming in to name her son after him."

Maximus scowled and stood up, placing Stella's hand carefully on the bed. "Good point."

He walked over to me, stopping in front of his children. The worry and tenseness left his face the moment he looked at the babies, now he showed unconditional love.

"This one." He moved to pick up his son, careful of how small he was. "This is Alaric, Alaric Sorrentino."

I smiled at the boy, for once not feeling the pressure and coldness I usually do. "Good strong name, and the girl?"

Maximus looked to me, a pained but soft look in his eyes. "Sophia, Sophia Sorrentino."

"Sophia?" I asked, my chest painfully tight. "After mom?"

My brother nodded and looked down at his daughter, his hand caressing his son. "It was Stella's idea."

I looked to the small little bundle, the little girl who has been gifted the name of my mother. A woman I miss dearly.

Slowly, I reached into the crib and picked her up with extreme carefulness. With more caution then I have shown anything in my entire life, I cradled her on my chest forgetting to breath in the process.

Maximus chuckled. "You are not going to drop her, relax your hold and she will fit naturally in your arms."

I scowled at him chuckling at my expense, trying to do what he said about relaxing. "Since when did you become a pro at holding a baby?"

He reached over and helped adjust my hold, moving Sophia into the perfect position in my arms. "I had a fussy younger brother growing up."

Rolling my eyes, I slowly felt more comfortable holding her, looking back at Maximus I could see the spark of joy in his eyes from his kids. "Look at you, already being a Dad."

A beaming smile appeared on his face, not lasting long after he must have remembered Stella's condition but a smile still remained along with the joy in his eyes. "I am so excited to be their dad, scared shitless but Romano, one look at them and I was a goner."

"And I will be the best uncle they have. By the way, you look awful." I finally said to my brother whose dress shirt was wrinkled, his beard looking untamed, his hair a mess and eyes with deep bags underneath them.

Maximus looked down at Alaric, not even denying it. "Yeah well, it's been a long couple of days here what do you expect."

I nodded to that. "Well go home and shower, make yourself look human again."

He shook his head with stubbornness and looked back to Stella. "I'm not leaving her, I don't care what I look like."

"Your dramatic." I grumbled. "We both know that if Stella wakes up and sees you like this, she will scold you and you will wish you look like her Italian super model."

Maximus didn't respond, instead he looked back at his son, his fingers trailing over Alaric's tiny mop of hair. "Is the rat still alive?"

Knowing he was thinking of Carnellio I nodded. "It is. If you want me to call the exterminator just say the word. Right now, Vinzo is keeping it company."

His fingers kept moving Alaric's hair around, his face passive. "Why would I want to deny Vinzo a little bit of fun?"

I didn't reply to him, there was no need to. There is no way of knowing how much pain Vinzo is putting Carnellio through, pain that is deserved.

A knock sounded on the door. Turning to see who was there, a breath was taken from my lungs seeing Anastasia at the door wearing leggings and a baggy light blue sweater. Her beautiful raven black hair up in a braided crown.

"Hey." She softly said coming into the room with a large bag she placed in a chair. "I thought I would drop off some food and a few games."

Maximus smiled at her. "Thank you, I appreciate it. Meet Alaric and Sophia Sorrentino."

Anastasia looked at Sophia who was still in my arms. "Congratulations Maximus. I am sorry how it came about but I am glad everyone is becoming healthy again."

She stood next to me, her hand lightly touching Sophia's face.

"Anastasia?" I asked softly, her big eyes looking into mine. "Would you please convince Maximus to go home and shower?"

She smiled at me and looked to Maximus. "Romano's right, you need a break so when she wakes up you don't look like your about to fall over. Now give me one of these babies."

"I am not leaving her." Maximus said, passing Alaric to Anastasia's awaiting arms, her arms wrapping themselves carefully around the baby boy.

I snorted at Maximus, bouncing Sofia. "You aren't leaving her. You are taking a break so that when she wakes you are alert and she can notice her children, not your BO."

Maximus growled. "I do not smell bad."

Anastasia put her finger inside Alaric's little fist. "Actually, you do smell."

"I never thought you would betray me." Maximus said, fake horror on his face.

Anastasia shrugged. "What can I say, my loyalty is now to Stella who deserves her fiancé to look and smell good."

Catching his nervous glance to Stella, I knew he needed another push to get out of the room and take some fresh air. "I'll stay with Stella and the twins. She would want you to take care of yourself brother."

Maximus sighed and relented. He walked back over to Stella, bent down to kiss her forehead and began whispering to her. The moment was intimate, one between them that had me looking away back to Sophia whose tiny eyes were barely open and now looking at me.

Hearing soft Russian, I looked up to Anastasia who was talking softly to Alaric.

Anastasia turned to me, her eyes alight from holding Alaric. "Will you be okay here by yourself?"

I smiled and nodded. "Yeah. I'll spend time with my niece and nephew before it becomes a fight for their attention. Maybe even start to teach them chess."

She let out a few giggles, the sound lifting my heart. "They are a few days old, I think it's a little early for chess."

My face went into a deadpan. "It is never too early for chess."

Anastasia rolled her eyes, to me it was always admirable that she has been through hell but is still full of life. "I wonder which baby would take after which parent."

"God help us if they both take after Maximus." I chuckled.

She smiled and then winced. "I think god help us, think of the number of uncles and aunts these kids will have who will teach them an unimaginable number of skills."

I gave broad smile. "They will be terrors who will be able to bend us to their will."

"Alright." Maximus said standing beside us again, his suit jacket over his shoulder. "I will only be gone for a few hours to shower and get new clothing. If anything happens with Stella or the babes, call me straight away. If you don't I will fuck you up, got it?"

"First language." I said motioning to Sophia and Alaric. "Second, you will take however long you need to take. Third, if anything does happen I will call you if you are needed."

His eyes narrowed. "Call. Me. Right. Away."

Anastasia moved to put Alaric back in his crib, her movements careful and loving. When Alaric was safely back in his crib, she came to Maximus and wrapped her arm around his. She gave him a warm smile. "Come on Maximus. Let's get you home and that way you will be back here before you know it."

Maximus gave her a tired smile, one that didn't reach his eyes. "You will need to drive."

She chuckled. "You got it."

My brother gave me one more look then turned to Stella, Anastasia taking that time to begin to walk him out of the room before he could change his mind.

When they left, the room fell into silence. A quiet peacefulness in one corner and in the other a place of unease to await Stella's return.

"Alright." I said to the two babies. "Who wants to learn chess?"