Sweet Love 2x: Miss Ruthless CEO for our Superstar Uncle

Chapter 401: Another Heartbreaker

Gilbert and Audrey arrived together, Sam a few steps behind them. They were all carrying gifts: Audrey had a soft blue blanket, Sam had a small outfit printed with dinosaurs, and Gilbert was holding a large stuffed animal wrapped in clear cellophane.

"Where’s the baby?" Sam asked, looking around the room. "I was promised a baby."

"He’s upstairs with Franz," Arianne said. "They’ll be down soon."

"Franz fed him? Franz is doing feedings now?"

"He’s very committed."

Sam shook her head. "Noah Hart, feeding a baby. The fans would lose their minds."

"The fans are not going to know," Arianne said.

"Obviously. Even so. Very domestic. I’m impressed."

The twins and Kyle came thundering back down the stairs just as Franz appeared at the top of the landing. Lily had changed into a clean dress. Leo was in a soft sweater. Kyle was wearing Leo’s spare shirt, the sleeves rolled up twice, the hem hanging past his waist. All three had damp hands from the bathroom sink.

Franz was holding Lexx against his chest, one hand supporting the baby’s head with a confidence he’d built over the past week. The awkwardness of the first few days was gone. He moved through the room naturally, as if he’d been doing this for years. Lexx was awake, his dark eyes open and blinking, dressed in a soft blue onesie Amanda had brought to the hospital.

"There he is!" Lily rushed to the bottom of the stairs. "Lexx! You’re awake! We changed our clothes and washed our hands and everything. Leo, tell him we did all the things."

"Washed," Leo said. "Changed. Ready."

Kyle crowded in beside them, stretching up on his toes. "He’s so small. He looks like a doll."

"He’s a real baby," Lily said, with the authority of someone who had been a big sister for several days now. "He’s just new."

Franz carried Lexx into the sitting room, and the children followed like a small parade. Lily positioned herself near the center of the room and gestured at the assembled guests.

"This is Alexis Rochefort," she announced. "But everyone should call him Lexx. With an extra X. L-E-X-X. Because Lily has four letters and Lexx has four letters, so we match."

"How about Leo?" Nate asked, looking amused. "He only has three letters."

Lily blinked. "That’s all right. His full name is quite a mouthful, and Daddy named him while Mommy chose mine. His three-letter name is special."

"Thank you, Lily," Leo said.

"You’re welcome."

Gilbert looked at Arianne, his eyebrows raised. "Alexis?"

"We named him after Alex. Franz and I both agreed." She paused. "I hope you don’t mind that we used the name. In case you were planning to do the same when you and Audrey have your own."

Gilbert shook his head. "I hadn’t thought that far ahead. But I don’t mind. It’s a good name." His voice went rough. "He would have been insufferable about it."

"He would have told everyone he met."

"He would have made business cards. ’Alex Rochefort, namesake of the future heir.’"

"With a photo of the baby on them."

"Absolutely." Gilbert looked at Lexx. "Can I hold him?"

Franz crossed to him and positioned his arms. "Support the head. Like this. Keep him close to your chest — he likes the warmth."

Gilbert took the baby with careful hands. Lexx yawned, his tiny mouth opening wide, then blinked up at his uncle with dark, curious eyes.

"He has Arianne’s eyes," Audrey said, leaning in. "And her hair."

"The rest is all Rochefort," Sam said, peering over Gilbert’s shoulder. "That chin is Franz’s. And the nose. That’s Leo’s nose. This kid is going to be a heartbreaker."

"Another one," Nate said. "As if this family needed more of those."

Gilbert was looking down at Lexx with an expression that had gone softer than usual. "He’s going to be trouble. I can tell."

"You can’t tell anything," Audrey said. "He’s a week old."

"I can tell. It’s in the eyes."

"The eyes that are closed?"

Lexx had, in fact, closed his eyes, apparently bored with the conversation. Gilbert didn’t seem to mind. He held the baby a little closer and rocked him, the motion automatic.

Then he reached for the gift he’d brought — the large stuffed animal in cellophane — and pulled it free. It was a penguin. Soft and round, grey and white, with a small black bow tied around its neck. About the same size as Leo’s Lion and Lily’s Petal.

"I heard you needed a companion," Gilbert said, addressing the baby. "Meet Mr. Penguin, Lexx."

Lily gasped. "He has his own doll now! Finally!" She turned to Franz with an accusatory look. "Uncle Franz forgot to get him one before he was born."

"I didn’t forget," Franz said. "I was still deciding."

"You could have asked us."

"Would you have said a penguin?"

Lily considered this. "Probably not. Uncle Gilbert made a good choice." She looked at Gilbert. "Why a penguin?"

"I thought it was cute."

"That’s a good reason. Cute is important for baby dolls."

Julian and Nate added their gifts to the pile: baby books from Julian, a mobile shaped like stars from Nate. The children crowded around to assess each one with great seriousness.

Franz crossed to the couch and sat beside Arianne, his shoulder finding hers. She leaned into him, tired but present.

"Look at them," she said, her voice low.

Gilbert was holding Lexx, Mr. Penguin tucked into the crook of his arm. The twins were showing Kyle the proper way to hold a baby doll. Nate and Julian had their heads together over something. Sam and Audrey were laughing, bent close.

"It’s chaos," Franz said.

"It’s family."

They sat with that. Then Arianne said, "If Alex were alive, he would have bragged to everyone. He would have told every single person he met that his nephew was named after him."

"And Layla would shake her head at his childishness."

"While secretly being just as proud."

Franz smiled. "Yes. That sounds exactly like them."

The noise of the room washed around them — the twins explaining something to Kyle with great authority, Nate asking Julian about Conway Capital, Sam gesturing animatedly through some story. Lexx slept in his uncle’s arms, Mr. Penguin tucked beside him, unbothered by any of it.

And Franz and Arianne sat on the couch, watching their family fill the room, their son home at last.