ARIA POV
“Mommy!”
My two little volcanoes shouted in unison.
And I barely had time to push myself fully up before they were on me.
Ella first.
Owen right behind her.
Both of them launching onto the bed like restraint had never existed, like the second they knew I was awake nothing else mattered, their small bodies colliding with mine hard enough to knock the breath out of me—
And I caught them.
Instinct.
Arms wrapping around both of them at once, pulling them in, holding them tight without even thinking about it.
“Hey—hey—” I laughed, breathless now, one hand tangling in Owen’s hair, the other pulling Ella closer as she buried her face into my shoulder.
“You were gone too long,” Owen blurted into my chest, his voice muffled and a little too tight.
Ella didn’t say anything at fi
