“Take five before dinner,” Sam said to her stepmother. “You’ve earned it.”

“I’ll be right there.”

Sam emerged into the hallway to find Nick coming up the stairs. “We need to get some help for Celia. Today was rough.”

“Why don’t you ask your mom to come over? She and Celia are cool with each other, right?”

“Yes, I suppose so. That’s a good idea. I’ll text her after dinner.”

“Would Miss Ella like to see Uncle Nick?” he asked, making a face that drew a reluctant chuckle from the little girl.

Sam handed her over to him and was struck by a pang of longing for a baby of their own for the first time in ages. Cripes, where in the hell had that come from? As if she didn’t have enough to contend with. That ship had sailed, and she’d made her peace with it. She had Ella and would soon have Angela’s new baby to love, as well as Shelby’s babies. That was more than enough. But watching Nick rub Ella’s back as he whispered sweet nothings to her gave Sam an ache that had nothing to do with grief.

Shit, fuck, damn, hell with that, she thought. I don’t have time to breathe, let alone have a baby. Go away, baby longings, and leave me alone. I’m done with you.

If only Nick wasn’t so adorable as he tried to charm Ella out of her funk. It was his fault she was having those pangs.

Nick raised a brow in her direction as if to ask what was wrong. Figures he’d see it. He saw everything where she was concerned.

Scotty and the twins appeared in the hallway and rushed to hug Sam. As she loved on each of them, she was so grateful to have them in her life. They had filled the gaping void that had once existed inside her after years of fertility struggles and miscarriages. They had also filled her life with love and laughter and were far more than enough for her.

“What’s wrong?” Nick asked after he’d turned Ella over to Angela, who’d gotten a tight hug from Jack when she stepped into the hallway.

“Nothing.”

“Don’t lie to me.”

“I’m not.”

“Yes, you are, and we’ll take this up again later.” To the others, he said, “Let’s eat.”

Thanks to Scotty and the twins, dinner was a lively affair. Sam even saw Angela smile once when Scotty teased Jack about whether Spider-Man or Iron Man had better powers. Scotty was on Team Iron Man, while Jack was all for Spider-Man.

“Spider-Man can cast webs,” Jack said. “There’s nothing cooler than that.”

“Iron Man can shoot rays, and his suit can do everything,” Scotty said.

“The suit is cooler,” Jack said. “I’ll give you that, but Spider-Man is still the coolest.”

“If you say so,” Scotty said.

“What about Batman?” Alden asked. “His suit is the coolest, and he doesn’t need any gimmicks to get things done. My dad told me that. He said a superhero is someone like Batman, who relies on his own smarts and body to take care of business.”