Author's note: Sorry for not updating lately! I've been super busy and in a writer's block. Keep commenting and voting because it always inspires me. I hope you enjoy!

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It felt good to have meat on the table again. The rich smell of a roast would fill the house and the boys always came into the house with a smile. Jimmy had stopped finding excuses to punish and instead started to handle me with care again, just like he did when I was first pregnant.

Taylor and Emme were coming tomorrow. Charles told me to have the house spotless by the time they get here. I was on my hands and knees scrubbing the floor in the living room. My back was already starting to ache and the heat was unbearable. My sweat had caused the lose strands of hair to stick to my forehead. Luckily, I had scrubbed that bloody mess out of the kitchen a week ago.

I heard the door open up in the kitchen. The boys left after breakfast a few hours ago. It was probably Charles with his sore knee again.

“Julie,” I heard Jimmy gasp.

I looked over my shoulder to see him running towards me. I dropped my rag into the bucket of water and I felt Jimmy quickly slip his hands under my arms. He quickly pulled me up onto my feet and he slid his hands down so that they could cradle my belly.

“You shouldn’t be on the floor like this,” he told me.

“I have to clean before Taylor comes,” I said.

Jimmy lowered his face and nestled himself into my neck.

“The house is clean enough,” he murmured. “I’ll talk to Dad if he says anything. He may be my father, but I have my own family I’m responsible for now.”

His hands continued to run over my belly and I could feel the heat rush up to my cheeks. Jimmy has protected me so much. This house was the safest place I have ever been and I knew that Jimmy would take good care of our sons. He would teach them how to protect girls like he has done for me.

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Jimmy woke up early in the morning. He was kissing my neck and cheek before the alarm went off. I yawned and rubbed my eyes with the heel of my hand as I rolled over onto my back. He propped himself up on one elbow and was staring down at me.

His hair was beginning to slip out from behind his ears. He was always really careful now to make sure that his hair didn’t get too long since that first night he cut it short. I was surprised that he let it get this long. I reached up and tucked it behind his ear.

He grabbed my hand before I finished and pressed his lips up against my fingers. My lips lifted up into a smile. He leaned down and lightly pressed his lips against mine.

“Taylor will be here in a couple hours,” he told me.

“Why so early?” I asked, hoping that he wouldn’t punish me for breaking a rule.

“He has always been a night-owl,” he said. “He’s the only one in the family who is like that. We used to joke that he never slept. They left hours ago.”

He gave me one last kiss before rolling out of bed. He clawed through the dresser drawer before pulling a red shirt over his head. He slipped on a pair of jeans before throwing a dress at the foot of the bed.

“You look really cute when you wear this,” he told me. “Especially with that bump.”

I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks, but I tried ignoring it. I shuffled down to the end of the bed and held up the dress. It was the awful dress Jimmy gave me every once in a while. It was a burgundy dress covered in large sunflowers. He had told me that his mother used to wear it all the time when she was pregnant.

Jimmy watched me as I stripped down and threw it over my head. He was smiling at me, so I reached out to hug him. His hand went to the back of my head and pulled out the bun I normally had it tied up in during the summer.

“Go brush your hair and then keep it down,” he told me as he kissed the top of my head. I nodded my head and went into the bathroom.

I hadn’t cut my hair since I became part of the family, and after a year it was almost down to my hips. I hate having my hair down in the summer, but Jimmy told me to keep it down so I had no other choice. I quickly ran the brush through the knots in my hair, and I could hear the bedroom door open and someone walking down the stairs.

When I went back into the bedroom, I couldn’t see Jimmy there. I went down the stairs into the kitchen to see Jimmy and Tommy at the dining room table. I went over to the stove and pulled out a frying pan before pulling some eggs out of the fridge.

I could barely hear them talking over the sound of the eggs frying in the pan. By the time I was almost finished, Charles came down the stairs and sat down in his spot. I toasted a couple pieces of bread and filled their plates before bringing them over. They began scarfing it down like they normally do, not needing to share any words.

I ate with them, and when they were done I cleared off the table. I washed the dishes as Tommy pulled out the deck of cards and they started playing a game. I was sweating and dunking my hands in the hot soapy water was making me feel sick. I had to keep wiping off the sweat that was building up on my forehead with the back of my arm.

When I finally finished, I put the dishes away before sitting down in the seat next to Jimmy. He had his hand on my knee and rubbed it back and forth as he played. I never asked to join in.

Hours passed and they continued to play without ever seeming to get bored. They joked back and forth and it was nice to have them in the house. I was always lonely during the day, so it was nice to be able to spend the day listening to them laugh.

The sound of stones crunching came from the driveway and all of their heads popped up and they dropped their cards on the table.

“They’re here,” Tommy announced.

We could hear the truck door slam shut and Tommy and Jimmy got up out of their seats and ran towards the front door. They ran out before Taylor knocked on the door. I got up out of my seat and stood in the doorway. I didn’t know if I was allowed to leave the house.

Taylor, Jimmy and Tommy were tackling each other like they normally did when they got together. Emme was standing beside the truck. Her dark curls were tied back and she had what looked like one of Taylor’s shirts on. I have only ever seen her when she was pregnant, so it was odd to see clothes hanging off of her. Her smile dropped when she saw me cradling my belly.

“Boys, break it up!” Charles yelled out as he passed me.

They pulled away from each other and Jimmy brushed his hair back with his fingers. Taylor reached out and shook Charles’s hand before turning his attention onto me. His eyes grew large and he walked towards me slowly.

“Whoa, look at you, Juliet,” he told me. “Last time I saw you it looked like no one had ever fed you and now you look like you’re going to have a baby any day now.”

“Thank you,” I said quietly.

Jimmy walked over beside me and snaked his arm around my waist. He pressed his lips against the side of my temple.

“Yeah, she’ll have our boy in a couple weeks,” he said.

“We’ll see about that,” Taylor told him.

I felt my stomach twist itself into a knot. He thought he was having a baby boy too, but he ended up having to kill his daughter. Was the same thing going to happen to Jimmy and me? Emme walked up beside him, her face managing to look even more somber. I would hate me if I were her.

“How about you and Emme go inside and talk, Julie?” Jimmy told me. I could sense that Taylor’s remark made him feel just as uneasy too.

“Okay,” I said shaking my head.

Emme’s lips lifted into a faint smile before completely disappearing. Taylor didn’t say anything, but just watched her intensely as she walked into the house. I walked in behind her. Jimmy closed the door and I listened to the lock as it clicked shut.

That’s when Emme broke out into tears.