Knightly I clear my throat trying to mask the sound of my wolf trying to come out to greet his mate and maybe show her that it's not a good idea to tell another man she loves him in front of us . It's been a really long time since I've struggled with him . He went dormant eighteen months after I walked away from Phoebe and he's lashing out hard . " Mommy , you have to put three dollars in the swear jar , " Aizen speaks up after a while . She laughs and pulls the mirror down in front of her to clean herself up before turning to face them . " I do have to do that , " she nods . " Potty mouth , Mommy , " Ayrie giggles . " Where we going ? " he asks . " We are going to meet Knightly's Mom , she answers and then turns to me for confirmation . " Why ? " Ayrie asks . " Because she's very excited to meet you , I answer . " Me ? " she laughs . " Both of you , " " Me too ? " Aizen asks , " Yes , " " Why ? " he presses . Phoebe gives me a pointed look . " Because she's your grandma , ' I say . She looks back at them to see their reactions . " We have a grandma shark ? " Aizen shouts . " So , cool ! " Ayrie kicks out excitedly . " I never had one of those before , Mommy , " " Is there a grandpa shark ? " he asks . Oh , these little things are adorable . " Yes ," I try not to laugh but they are too cute . " Is he wrinkly with glasses ? " he asks . " I think so , but don't tell him that . He might get upset , " I shift gears . The two of them laugh . " It's the first thing that's coming out of their mouths , " Phoebe moves to sit in her seat properly * Did you get anything for yourself ? " I ask . " It's okay . I have my purse , " she says holding it up . " I'll figure out the rest in the morning , " When we arrive , she doesn't hesitate to go around for them . I help her and reach for one of the backpacks . She takes the other one . The other cars arrive when we go around to the front . My dad approaches giving me a sympathetic look . My mom runs out of the house looking as feral as ever , but she tries to play it off . When she gets close enough . I doubt Phoebe had a chance to wind down after getting home . She's still wearing the elegant outfit she had on earlier today . " Here we go , " Dad says when her eyes land on us . " Hello , " My mom waves at us excitedly . " Hello , " Phoebe sighs and glances back at me . She crouches and sets Aizen down . I take Ayrie to her. She looks up at my mom and smiles . " This is your Grandma Shark . She's really cool and really smart . If you think Mommy is smart , you're going to like her , " " Whoa ," the two of them say looking up at my mom . My dad goes over to them . " And that right there , is Grandpa Shark , I add . " D.A.D. he's not wrinkly , Ayrie bursts into a fit of giggles . " Ayrie , he said not to say that , " Aizen scolds her " D.A.D. huh ?" my mom approaches slowly . My chest warms when Ayrie backs into met and wraps her little arms around my neck " Scared ," she buries her face in my chest . I slowly wrap my arms around her not sure what to do . " You don't have to be scared of her . She's a Mommy , just like yours . Have you ever been scared of your Mommy ? " " No ," she shakes her little head . " Then there's no reason for you to be scared of my either , " I reassure her . She turns her head to look up at my mom but she doesn't move away from me . She's so tiny . So perfect . " Why don't you help her say hello ? " Phoebe tells our son . Aizen steps away from Phoebe and she lets him . He comes over to us and takes Ayrie s hand . She lets go of me and is quick to get closer to him . His eyes hold mine for a bit before he turns back to face my parents . He's well aware of his surroundings . " Hello , " he stops in front of my dad . My dad crouches down in front of them . " My name is Aizen , " " It's nice to meet you , Grandson ," he smiles at him . " My name is Fredrick . You can call me Freddy or Grandpa . Your choice ." " Grandpa " the two of them blurt out . My mom covers her mouth as she fights the tears in her eyes . " Vous êtes très grande , " Ayrie asks . I look over at Phoebe . " They speak French ? " I ask . " It's their first language ," she clears her throat . " Je veux être grand comme toi , grand - père , " Aizen adds . " I have no idea what he just said , my Dad laughs . " He said he wants to be as big as you are , " Phoebe tries to keep it together . Something tells me she lets them get away with whatever they want . " Tu es très jolie , grand - mère , Ayrie lets go of Aizen's hand and holds it up for my mom . My mom gets down on her knees and takes it . " Merci . Toi aussi , ma petite princesse ," she says gently . Ayrie laughs and rushes forward to hug her almost knocking her back . " Ayrie , be careful , " Phoebe gasps . " I am so sorry . She can be such a brute sometimes , " " It's a good thing Grandma is tough , huh ? " my mom hugs her . " Sorry ," Ayrie pets my Mom's hair . " You okay ? " " I've never been better ," she says . " Let's get you inside , huh ? It's chilly out here ," " Lots of chilly , " Ayrie nods and then pretends to shiver . " May 1 ? " my dad looks up at Phoebe asking if he can carry Aizen . She stiffens and glances at me before she reluctantly nods My parents pick them up and we make our way inside . I stop her when they take the two of them into the kitchen . She looks after them anxiously . " They're okay " I reassure her . " I'm not being crazy , " she says her voice thick with emotions . Her eyes are brimming with tears . " No , you're not , " I agree . " I just want to say how sorry I am that things got this way . I want to explain everything to you if you let me ," " Can it wait until I can get them cleaned up and in bed ? " she asks . " Of course . You can stay with them in my room ," " Thank you ," she nods and heads in the direction my parents took them . " That is a whole lot of woman , " Peter comes up behind me . My wolf growls at him . Doof . Settle down , alpha . Just making an observation . That is the sweetest thing I've ever seen . That little mini clone of hers is going to have all of us eating out of her cute little pudgy hands Im a D.A.D. , " is all I can say . The way she felt in my arms . Her instinct was to trust me without question " Yeah " he rubs my back . " And it looks like that alpha instinct didn't miss her , " " No " Lagree " No , it didn't " 16 Freaking out ? Me ? I think so . I don't know why I feel safe here . The circumstances of our arrival were not even a little bit okay . But the way Maria Blake addressed me back in my office and how she reacted to the kids , tells me she cares about them . That was the most terrifying thing I've ever gone through and I used to be a military brat . There were times when my dad would wake us up in the middle of the night. because we needed to get out of the house . I'm not sure why it surprises me when Knightly leads me to his room . It's almost as big as my living room and kitchen put together . This place looks like a huge lodge on a very wealthy ranch . The inside is decorated as such . There's a massive bed framed with beautiful dark . wood . The bedding is an assortment of blues , grays , and blacks . There's a lot of space and not a lot of furniture , yet the room doesn't feel empty . It's comfy if I have to put a word on it . I set their things down on the bed and take a moment to clear my head . " Are we sleeping over ? " Aizen asks . " Yes , " I nod . " Are we going bathtime here ? " Ayrie asks . She hasn't let go seem to mind . " Yes , " " Do we have bubbles ? " of Knightly and he doesn't " I brought bubbles , " I nod knowing that no matter where we ended up , this would calm them . Although , now that they're older they're a lot more restless . " Yes , " they both laugh . " You have a tub , right ? " I ask Knightly . " A very big tub . It wouldn't be safe to fill it all the way , " he confirms . The twins gasp . Knightly sets Ayrie down and he points at the door . The two of them run over to it . Aizen gets it open and runs inside to find the light switch . Ayrie could never . Like me , she's mildly afraid of the dark . My entire apartment is lined with neon lights that turn on when the ceiling lights are turned off . " Whoa ! " the two of them beam when the light comes on . I take their backpacks with me as I get up to see what's going on . " It's like a pool , " Aizen looks back at his sister excitedly . " The biggest - biggest cereal bowl ," Ayrie squeals and runs inside . Knightly's not wrong , it wouldn't be safe for them to fill the tub all the way . Especially not with bubbles . Near the giant glass sliding doors at the end of the room is a giant tub that in fact looks like the biggest - biggest cereal bowl to ever exist . On the rim is a 1/3 1