Champagne Romance (Romance Novel) (22 page)

One evening as the birthing was growing near,
Slater watched Swan cover her tummy and long limbs with baby oil.
He was fascinated with her growing pregnancy. She just kept getting
sexier and sexier with each month. He just kept getting hornier and
hornier as the time approached. Swan was in the last month of her
trimester. It was strongly suggested by the doctor that all
relations cease at this time. Just the thought was enough to make
Slater have a “hard on”. After observing Swan’s ritual for the past
five minutes, it looked like just too much fun not to join the oil
bath. He would make her happy and he would take care of his
happiness later.

Swan woke several times in the middle of the
night as her due date approached. This time she knew it was
different. The babies were having a party and wanted her to wake up
and attend. After lying very still for a few minutes, she got the
first cramp that indicated the birthing was near and they wanted
out! The next cramp came five minutes later. By the time she woke
Slater, they had dressed, alerted Maria, and were in the car, her
water had broken and the cramping was one minute a part.

When they were almost to the hospital, Swan
gently put her hand on Slater and suggested that they pull over to
the side of the road as the babies were coming. Slater crossed
three lanes of traffic, dodged two SUVs, and one patrol car before
he came to a screeching halt in a nearby parking lot. Swan was
trying not to get hysterical and so was Slater as Jade’s head
popped out followed by Jasmine. By that time, the patrol car had
called an ambulance, which was very little help as it arrived ten
minutes later with flashing lights. The entire family was loaded
into the ambulance where they zoomed off to the nearby hospital and
were soon checked out by the emergency room physician.

Finally, after his girls were settled into
the maternity ward of the hospital, Slater headed for the men’s
bathroom. When he looked in the mirror and saw all the blood from
Swan and the babies that covered his arms and shirt, his stomach
did a flip-flop. Combining the blood with the compromising position
of birth outside of a hospital that could have ended in a tragic
nightmare, it was Slater’s turn to hurl in the nearest available
toilet.

CHAPTER 51

Slater looked down at his baby girls. They
each had a little tuff of red hair and fine delicate features. He
knew they were going to take after the great beauty of their
mother. They would be heart breakers. He smiled and then frowned at
the idea of another man in their lives. He was already jealous.
But, until that time came, they would be his special princesses and
he knew that he would spoil them rotten.

Two days later, they brought the twins home
from the hospital. Quinn was excited about the new baby dolls. He
knew that it was a special and sobering event. He reached out and
touched Jade with awe. She immediately waved her little hand as if
to say “hi” in greeting. Jasmine, not to be “out done” began to
hiccup. That brought laughter from all of them.

Quinn celebrated the newest members of the
family with two special fish given to him by Mommy and Daddy for
his aquarium. It was not by chance that they were both angel
fish--one green, the color of jade, and the other yellow, the color
of jasmine. Before Quinn went to bed that night, he made sure that
Caesar knew it was his job to protect his baby sisters from all
harm. They were the same instructions that he heard his daddy give
to Caesar every night as he lay down beside Quinn’s bed.

By this time, Slater had sold his high-rise
condo and they had found a high-income gated community with lots of
young children. It was located in Newport Beach not far from
Slater’s business building. It was three stories high with their
favorite view of Catalina. It looked down on a kidney shaped heated
pool and spa. The sandy beach was beyond that. A sauna was nearby
with an outside kitchen and swim up bar.

There were two nurseries equipped with every
mobile that was available hanging from the dome ceiling. Each baby
room ceiling was painted a light blue with white fluffy clouds.
Jade had a painted mural of Little Bo Peep and Jasmine had one of
Cinderella. Jade’s room was a pale green and Jasmine’s was a pale
yellow. Both had lots of accents of pink plaid and roses.

Quinn’s room was between the girls giving him
the status of the protector of his little sisters. His room had a
mural of “Under the Sea”. A life size portrait of a deep-sea diver
walked along the ocean floor. The face inside the mask was a
replica of Quinn’s. (Bo Peep and Cinderella would have the portrait
faces of Jade and Jasmine as they grew older.) A treasure chest
accompanied the diver on the ocean floor. A little Nemo peeked out
behind the lid. His ceiling glowed with stars in the dark when the
light was out; also, flying in the sky off to the plant of Krypton
was a beloved Superman. All the rooms had their own private bath.
Mom and Dad were just across the hall.

Outside the bedrooms was a common area. There
was a flat screen TV, two computers, facing couches, and a marble
fireplace. There were French doors on each side of the fireplace
that led out to a wrap-around balcony. This is where they had
family time, read books, and played games.

The third floor of the house had been
converted into a playroom for adults and children. There was a
stage at one end for plays and creative performances. Fireplaces
were at each end of the room with a 70-inch flat screen TVs above
each one. One end was filled with preschool toys that were fun and
educational. The other end had a pool table, ping pong table,
hockey table, and every electronic game/video that was available
for adults. Another corner had a red telephone booth. In it was a
life-size model of guess who---Superman. It was sort of like an
adult playground. It also contained an intercom that reached all
areas of the house. It had a couple of back stairways to the
bedrooms and kitchen hearth room. However, the quickest route to
the first floor was a tunnel slide that was frequently used by both
Quinn and Slater.

This evening, a “Sip and See” party was being
held tonight to show off the new darlings of the Slater household
after their christening at an old small chapel. Two cribs with pink
netting, bonnets, ruffles, and ribbons were set up in the great
room of the elegant small mansion. Above the cribs were small
rhinestone diamond tiaras held in place with ribbons and bows.
Unbeknown to practical Swan, Slater had a real full carat imbedded
in each crown. He wanted to make sure that he was the first man in
their lives to buy them diamonds.

Each twin had on a long fine cotton gown that
had been smocked and hand embroidered with tiny rose buds that
somehow seemed to match the babies tiny pink rose bud lips. Little
capped sleeves were surrounded with lace and pink ribbons. Slater,
surprisingly found himself right at home in all that ribbon and
lace.

Swan appeared in a black velvet strapless
long evening gown with a fishtail flounce at the bottom--her figure
back to the exquisite shape of B.C. (Before Children). Around her
neck was a necklace of diamonds that would have put the Queen Mum’s
jewels to shame. It was Slater’s biggest joy to pamper and indulge
Swan in every way possible that she had never experienced before he
came into her life. He loved her with all his heart and he intended
to devote a lifetime of treating her like a queen.

The party was small and eminent with only
their closest friends who substituted for the family that neither
Swan nor Slater had ever had. Kat came with musical kitty “kats”
for the twins and a howling “kat” for Quinn. She doled out hugs and
kisses and soon was on the prowl with a martini in her hand.

Kat liked to test the waters at all parties
by catching the attention of any handsome male that caught her
fancy. It was what she enjoyed and did best. She sauntered over to
Bear who soon found himself engaged in an entertaining monologue
with Kat. His wife, Mahogany, caught the not too subtle flirtation
that Kat was sending to Bear. Her eyes narrowed as she watched the
female cougar and was just about to jaunt over to defend her
territory.

Bear was quite enjoying the attention that he
was receiving from Kat until he caught the vibes of a seething
glare of a not too happy wife. He decided that it would be best to
excuse himself and meander back to his steaming wife before a “kat”
fight broke out between the two women. The female prowler was aptly
named he thought as he found his way next to the side of his lovely
wife where he belonged.

Meanwhile, Kat indulged herself until she
found a tomcat, named Dog. He was always happy to oblige a lovely
woman whenever he had the opportunity and this evening was not any
different. Since Dog was happily unattached, in spite of his
commitment to his mistresses, he often indulged in brief affairs.
He was a cheerful James Bond who continued to enjoy danger,
intrigue, and available women.

Dog had brought double dollies for each twin
from all over the world where his families lived. They represented
the countries of China, France, Morocco, Italy, and Japan.

Lillet brought two magnum Lillet red and
white wines with sterling rattles encircling the neck of each
bottle. Lillet’s lovely great grandmother had been chosen to be the
poster model for Lillet wine. She had originally been in the Foleys
as a showgirl. From there, the great magnate and connoisseur of
French wine whom she eventually married picked her from the
line-up. Her gorgeous great grandmother became the toast of Lillet
appearing on wine labels and huge posters that can still be found
today in liquor and vintage poster shops.

When Lillet’s grandmother had her first baby
girl, she was baptized, Lillet. The tradition continued as each
generation produced a female child. The most recent Lillet was
number four, the second child of Lillet, Swan’s friend.

Madeline brought 36 inch Madeline dolls from
London. This was her namesake and was always given by anyone having
a girl baby. Of course, each large doll also received a complete
Madeline wardrobe and a dozen Madeline books for their library.

Uncle Teddy came with talking/walking teddy
bears for the children that he would never have and a dozen white
roses for Swan. He hovered over the twins until they awoke. Uncle
Teddy immediately had them in each arm and was showing them off to
all the guests. As Jade and then Jasmine began a fussy little howl,
Slater and Swan scooped them from Ted’s arms and retired to a
private den to nurse.

Slater rarely missed a feeding. He was
fascinated with the way each twin latched on to Swan’s nipple and
began nursing with such serious attachment. He was also happy to
stimulate Swan’s breast if milk were not coming fast enough for his
baby princesses. After all, it was the least he could do to
help.

Swan and Slater retired early with the twins
and Quinn, but the christening party continued until dawn. The
mansion remained open for any guest that chose to spend the night.
It was a playground for adults. The guys, especially, were
intrigued. Rooms were available for whomever chose to spend the
night, which included most of the guests. Brunch with champagne was
served late the next morning. Some guests made it and others did
not appear until late afternoon. It was a great celebration and a
very happy time for the Slater household.

CHAPTER 52

The three lovely friends of Swan--Kat,
Lillet, and Madeline--were jetted to Chicago for a ladies day of
shopping and celebration. The four beautiful women were gathered
for Swan’s birthday around an elegant table in the middle of the
Ralph Lauren restaurant in the windy city. Fresh flowers on white
tablecloths graced each table. A large stain glass dome ceiling
enveloped the main dining room. The walls were painted a dark green
with reflecting beveled mirrors giving it a cozy warm atmosphere.
Each man in the restaurant engaged in a fantasy about the woman of
their choice as they watched them through pillars and palms, bring
their glasses together in a happy celebration. They couldn’t quite
catch the toast of “chocolate studs”, but the classy ladies made
them happy just by their laughter and beauty.

A year had passed and the tradition of lunch
and birthdays continued. This year, however, was much different for
Swan. She knew that she was finally the woman that she had always
dreamed to be--a loved wife and mother with devoted friends. She
was secure in the love around her. She no longer had nightmares of
the past. They were not even significant enough to remember.

Swan and Slater established a foundation for
the blind. They are committed to pouring several millions of
dollars yearly into research to genetically create eyesight for
those that cannot see. Scientists from all over the world were
eager to be part of the team that was provided with unlimited funds
for research. It was a dream world for the sightless that
eventually would come from all over the world to restore their
sight. Rich or poor, no one was turned away.

Swan and the champagne ladies are actively
involved in fund raising and national awareness for research for
the blind. Their energy has been well rewarded.

CHAPTER 53

Swan and Slater had just crawled into bed
when Swan asked, “When did you know you loved me?”

“
Babe, you had my heart the first night
we made love.”

After all the difficult beginnings in Swan’s
growing-up years, she finally felt wanted and at peace with the
love that encompassed her. She went to sleep with a smile in her
heart. She was confident that she would always be adored and
cherished as Slater pulled her close into his arms showing her how
much he needed and wanted her.