Love On Anchor Island: An Anchor Island Novel

so much. Honey, no one fell. You could have been standing right beside her, and she still would have plopped down on that floor.”
That couldn’t be right. “But there was blood.”
“I don’t know about that, but would she be asking for you if she blamed you?”
A glimmer of hope lit in Roxie’s chest. “She asked for me?”
“Yes! Now will you come on?” Beth pulled her off the bed. “We have babies to coo over.” The tears started again, and Beth laughed as she brushed them from her cousin’s cheeks. “No more talk about leaving, okay?”
Roxie nodded, unable to speak around the lump in her throat. If Callie didn’t fall, then maybe Beth was right. This wasn’t her fault. That didn’t mean Sam or anyone else would see it that way. Bracing for the worst, she followed Beth down the stairs.
“Be gentle, honey,” Callie said to Connor as he met his baby sisters for the first time. “That’s it. They’re soft, aren’t they?”
The little boy stared with wide eyes and pulled his hand away. “They stay here?” he asked.
Sam laughed. “They will for now, buddy, but we’ll take them home in a couple of days.”
To Alex’s great relief, the twins had both entered the world screaming and healthy at five and five and a half pounds respectively. He was keeping them through the weekend as a precaution, but he had no doubt they’d be ready to go home on Monday. Callie would be staying as well and would need extra help when she did go home, since her activities would be limited due to the C-section.
After the last month of bed rest, he doubted she’d appreciate that news.
“I’m back!” Beth said as she hurried into the room. Roxie entered less enthusiastically behind her. The puffy eyes and red nose told him something was wrong.
“Are you okay?” he asked as she lingered near the door. The only reply was a noncommittal shrug. Alex stepped closer and was surprised to see fear in her eyes. “They’re all okay,” he assured her.
Roxie crossed her arms and looked everywhere but at the happy family.
“There you are,” Callie said. “Roxie, come see them.”
She stood frozen in place, and Alex noticed a single tear slide down her cheek. She brushed it away as Sam approached her.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
Sam Edwards shocked everyone in the room when he wrapped his arms around her. “Thank you for saving my girls.”
As if the kindness was too much for her, Roxie curled into him and sobbed against his chest. Sam looked over to Alex, gesturing for him to take over. Seconds later, his shirt was damp with tears, and Roxie had the hiccups.
“I thought it was my fault,” she mumbled with a sniffle. “I thought she fell.”
“Oh, Roxie,” Callie said, joining the cry fest. “I’m sorry I scared you.”
“No.” She pushed off Alex’s chest and sniffled again. “I’m the one who owes you an apology. If I hadn’t put the headphones in, I would have heard you call me.”
Will Navarro walked in at that moment, stopping when she saw all the tears. Only then did Alex notice Beth dabbing at her eyes.
“Please tell me these are happy tears,” Will said.
Everyone laughed, breaking the tension. Sam distributed tissues to the women as Callie said, “Come and let me introduce you, Roxie.”
The petite brunette smiled as she dried her eyes. Approaching the bed, she said, “Beth was right. They’re beautiful.”
Nodding first to the infant on her right arm, the mom said, “This is Rachel.” And then nodding to the other, she said, “And this is Roxanne.”
The crying started again, this time mixed with laughter. The men exchanged a look before Sam said, “Come on, Connor. Let’s go check out the cafeteria.”
“Are they sad, Daddy?” the boy asked as his father picked him up.
“They’re happy, son.”
“But they’re crying.”
Sam cut his eyes to Alex. “Yeah. Women do that sometimes.”
Before following the pair out, he watched Roxie’s face light up as her namesake was lifted into her arms. He’d told her once that she had friends and family here. After today, he hoped she believed him.
“Hi,” Roxie said, finding Alex at the maternity ward nurses’ station. She’d been too busy holding the babies to notice he’d left the room.
“Hey, there.” He closed the chart and gave her his full attention. “How are you feeling?”
“Embarrassed,” she replied. “Relieved. A little hungry.”
As she’d expected, Alex said, “I can help with that last one.” He held out a hand, and she slipped hers into it, letting him lead her down the hall. “There’s nothing to be embarrassed about, you know.”
Easy for him to say. “I just cried like a baby in front of Beth’s friends.”
“They’re your friends, too. You know that, right?”
She hadn’t before today, but Roxie was starting to see that Alex might have been right about a few things. Time to fess up. “I really thought today was going to be my last on Anchor Island. I was packing to leave when Beth showed up.”
“What?” he said, stopping in midstride and turning to face her. “Why would you do that?”
“Because every time I’ve messed up in the past, everyone turned on me. Even when it wasn’t my fault.”
Closing the space between them, he pressed a hand against her cheek. “I told you that people aren’t like that here. And can we please agree that you did not mess up?”
Roxie wouldn’t go that far. “I shouldn’t have had those headphones in. What if I hadn’t heard a noise and gone up to check on her?” Alex opened his mouth to respond, and she pressed a finger against his lips. “I appreciate you wanting to make me feel better about this, but I’m a big girl. Living up to my mistakes has never been the problem. Getting forgiveness for them has been. I found that today, and that’s a good thing.”
He kissed the tip of her finger. “Were you really going to leave?”
“I didn’t want to leave.” Not a statement Roxie ever thought she’d make.