One Month Later …
The following week, I’d hired movers to pack and move our apartment. Saying good-bye to not only the view, but the city and our friends, was extremely hard. I knew we’d keep in touch, but the reality was that it wasn’t the same once you didn’t get to see one another whenever you wanted.
Plus, I had fallen in love with New York City. It was harder to leave than I anticipated. I mourned the loss of my second home, a city that was so opposite from where I was from, but filled my heart in much the same way. Tears were shed, and not because I was pregnant.
Well, maybe a little.
The movers drove all of our belongings to a storage unit near Gran and Gramps’ place, where we all took turns stacking boxes into the rented space. Except Jack had everyone on strict orders that I wasn’t to move or carry much of anything, unless it was super light. So I ended up spending the majority of the day watching them do all the work. I felt like an ass.
Since Jack was already staying in his old bedroom at Gran’s, I joined him there until I could find us a house to live in. It was hard looking for a place while I traveled with Jack and attended all his home games at a new stadium.
I had to learn new faces, meet new wives and girlfriends, remember what it was like to drive in LA traffic again, all while battling morning sickness that usually turned into afternoon sickness, followed by night sickness. Aside from that, everything was great. When I told Jack that I needed to stay back from the team’s last road trip to look at houses, he begrudgingly agreed.
Jack claimed to understand, but said he didn’t like it. The only way he’d accept my staying away from him was if I finally found us a home to live in. As much as we loved Gran and Gramps, we desperately needed our own space. And with the baseball season coming to a close, I wanted to find one soon. We had such a limited amount of time before the season started back up again, that I longed to be as comfortable as possible as soon as I could. Plus with the baby coming, I needed to be settled.
What could I say? I’d always been a planner.
Jack hated not being near me while I was pregnant and had insisted I come with him on every road trip. He made sure I was catered to constantly, with whatever I was craving at the moment waiting for me when I checked into our hotel room, along with extra pillows, crackers, and a mini fridge chock-full of ginger ale.
Truth be told, I loved the way Jack doted over me and protected me. I felt safe with him; I always had. My thoughts drifted back to the night of the mugging when we were still in college. I remembered how scared I was, my body filled with shock, confusion, and sadness at everything that had transpired that evening. The emotion that impressed itself on me the most was the feeling that took over my entire being the moment I saw Jack. When he pulled me into his arms, I knew everything was going to be okay because he was there. I had relaxed instantly, allowing Jack to do what Jack does best: protect what’s his.
I loved traveling with him, but I was exhausted. And begging off that last road trip was worth it. So worth it. Because … I found this house.
Oh God, this house.
Swoon.
I felt lucky enough being able to move back home knowing that all our family would be here when the baby was born, but the house we just bought was another blessing altogether. The one thing we had missed the most while we lived in New York was the SoCal beaches. There were plenty of beaches in New York, but it wasn’t the same.
Hanging out with friends, surfing, and bonfires were part of growing up in Southern California. Not to mention the fact that the Pacific Ocean was one of my earliest photography obsessions. Looking for a place close to the baseball stadium, our families, and with a good school district for the baby, the Newport Beach area seemed like the best answer. Not to mention the fact I’d have daily photographic inspiration to keep my soul satisfied.
The price tag deterred me initially. I made great money in my job at the magazine, and Jack’s baseball contract was more than most people would ever make in a lifetime, but I still liked to be smart when it came to our finances. And dropping millions of dollars on a house scared the ever-living shit out of me. Plus, Jack could get traded again at any time and then what? We’d have a crazy-expensive house that we never lived in?
But then Jack reminded me that we’d always want our home base to be in Southern California. Even if he did get traded again, we should still have a house where we wanted to end up in the long run. And he was right. So after weeks of home shopping without Jack, I found the perfect one in a gated community, which I knew Jack would love.
The house was two stories with four bedrooms, an office, and a gorgeous backyard with a swimming pool and a lush lawn. The master bedroom had a wraparound balcony and the moment I saw it, I instantly longed for a telescope. I’d asked my dad for one as a kid, but like many others, that promise never materialized. The tipping point was the house had a view to die for—you could see the ocean from every room in the house. When I walked through the front door for the first time and saw the ocean view from the windows, I was stunned. And sold.
Jack’s eyes lit up when I brought him to the property. Luckily, the previous owners had modernized the home, so there was nothing I wanted to change, not a single thing. And the best part was that the owners desperately wanted to get rid of it, so we got it for a “steal.”
On moving day, I watched as Jack wiped his brow, sweat dripping from him in beads. He and Dean stacked boxes from the moving truck we’d rented into various rooms in the new house while I worked on unpacking and setting things up. I wanted our house to look like home as soon as possible, so while they unloaded, I unpacked.
I was amazed at everything we accomplished this way. The truck that just hours prior had been filled to the gills, was now almost empty. And the walls of our home that were bare a few hours before, were now filled with artwork and framed photographs. It was as if we’d lived here for years.
“Kitten, you don’t have to do that. I can hire someone,” Jack shouted from the garage.
“Stop being crazy. I’m perfectly capable of hanging artwork and unpacking our stuff.”
Jack sauntered into the house and grabbed me by the backside, then spun me around. “I worry about you,” he said before leaning over to plant a kiss on my barely-there tummy. “Don’t we?” he told my belly in a high-pitched silly voice. “We worry about Mommy. She needs to just sit down and look pretty while we do all the work.”
I burst out laughing and ruffled his hair. “You’re an idiot.”
He looked up with a grin. “Yeah. But I’m your idiot.” Jack kissed my stomach again before walking into the kitchen. He opened the fridge, reached in, and tossed Dean a beer. “Heads up,” he shouted as Dean jumped and moved to catch it.
“Dick.” Dean popped open the can and took a long gulp. And then almost spit it right back out at the sound of my best friend’s voice.
“Ah, I can’t believe you guys are back here! I’m so happy.” Melissa bounced into the house and straight into my arms. She glanced at Dean and Jack, giving them a curt smile before pressing her ear against my stomach. “How’s my little baby?” she cooed, then rubbed my belly like it was a fucking good luck charm.
Why does everyone do this?
Jack and Dean scuttled out the sliding glass door to the backyard. The cowards.
When they’d left, I folded my arms over my chest and said flatly, “Still not talking to Dean, I see?”
She tilted her head to one side. “He’s not talking to me, not the other way around.”
I frowned. “You broke his heart. What do you expect?”
“I expect you, of all people, not to take sides.”
“How can I take sides?” I said with a huff. “You never even tried.”
Melissa’s face fell as tears filled her eyes. “That was harsh.”
“I don’t understand you. At all. You’re the one who told me to fight for Jack, to not give up on him. You pushed me to love him and give him a chance,” I pointed out, then took a deep breath in and out to fight the nausea I felt growing. “More than once.”
“So?” she snapped.
“Soooo,” I said pointedly. “You never follow your own advice.”
“How do you even know I want to?”
“Because I can see it in your eyes. You miss him. And there’s something you’re not telling me. Come on.” I grabbed her hand and yanked her toward the garage.
“Where are we going?” She tried to tug her hand away, and I only pulled her harder.
“Get in the car.” I opened the passenger door and shoved her inside. “I’m sick of this and we’re going to the only place where you’ll listen to reason.”
“Oh my God. No.” She pressed the button to unlock the door and I hit it again, just as fast, using the child safety locks to trap her in the car. “You cannot Gran-ify me!” she screamed out, pounding on the side window.
“Stop beating up my car! And seriously? Gran-ify you?”
“Yeah!” she cried out. “Where you bring me to Gran and Gramps and they say the most perfect things and I leave there in tears because you were right all along and I was an idiot.”
I wanted to laugh, oh so badly, but stopped myself. “Let’s just see what they have to say. Maybe they won’t be on my side?” I offered, silently knowing that they would.
I mean, I hoped they would. They’d better.
“So you’re saying they’re actually neutral? Ha! I’ll believe that when I hear it.”
A few minutes later I pulled into their driveway, hoping they wouldn’t be upset at our unannounced arrival. Giving a quick knock, I didn’t wait for a response before opening the front door and shouting, “Gran? Gramps?”
“Cassie? Is that you, dear?” Gran shouted from the kitchen.
Of course. They’re always in the kitchen.
“Is that our Kitten?” Gramps called out and I stifled a laugh.
We walked through the entryway, Melissa’s hand firmly in mine as I pulled her through. “Sit,” I demanded and she did as I asked, but folded her arms over her chest and put on that stubborn face I know so well.
“Oh! Hi, Melissa.” Gran smiled. “Are you two okay? What’s going on? Is the baby all right?” She eyed my belly and I nodded.
“Everything’s good, Gran. I just needed to bring Melissa here.”
Gran’s brow furrowed, but I knew it was part of her act. “Whatever for, dear?”
“Because for some reason she won’t date Dean. And I know it isn’t because she doesn’t like him, or miss him, or any normal reason. I figured that only you and Gramps could get to the bottom of this. So, go on. Work your magic. Use your granny voodoo on her.”
Gran and Gramps laughed, full-out belly laughs. “Granny voodoo. That’s great, Kitten,” Gramps said between fits of laughter.
“I’m not kidding! She’s broken,” I shouted, pointing at my now terrified best friend. “Fix her!”
“Well, I will admit that I’m not sure why it’s taken this long for the two of you kids to get together,” Gran began. “Why don’t you tell me what the problem is, Melissa?”
Melissa inhaled deeply, her gaze shifting between the three of us all staring at her. “There is no problem. Maybe that’s the problem?”
“What?” Gramps scratched his head, completely taken aback by her answer.
“Go on,” Gran prompted, her tone sympathetic. It’s how she always sucks them in.
“That’s it. There’s no problem,” Melissa said, obviously trying to sound confident.
“Do you like Dean?” I asked the most obvious question of them all and watched as her face softened the way it had when she first mentioned him back in the student union when we were in college.
All eyes fixed on Melissa, waiting for her answer. She looked down and wiped at her eyes. “Of course I like him. I’ve never liked anyone so much before.”
I stood there, shocked. This made absolutely no sense at all to me. I shook my head and said, “Seriously? Then what the hell are we doing here? Why aren’t you with him?”
Gran huffed out a breath before pulling a bottle of wine from the cupboard. Opening the bottle, she poured three glasses, then filled a fourth with cold water. “Sorry to drink in front of you, dear,” she said in apology, handing me the glass filled with water.
“It’s okay. Wine doesn’t sound good anyway.” I patted my stomach.
She placed one of the glasses in front of Melissa. “Drink. Let’s discuss this.”
“You girls make everything so complicated. Don’t you know us men are simple folk?” Gramps asked as he sipped his wine.
Gran held a hand in the air to stop him, then asked Melissa, “You’re scared, aren’t you, dear?”
Gramps nodded. “It’s so obvious.”
My head swiveled back and forth as Melissa’s tears fell. “What is? What’s obvious?” I asked, completely confused.
“She’s afraid it won’t work. That they won’t last,” Gran said softly as she watched Melissa.
Gramps smacked the kitchen counter with his hand. “Kitten, what’s wrong with your girl?”
“She’s just scared. That’s all this is. Pure fear,” Gran said.
“Seriously?” I asked Melissa. “But you’re like the most fearless person I know. You’re always telling people what they should be doing. Always encouraging and always telling them to take risks.”
“It’s easy to tell other people what to do,” she admitted. “It’s a lot harder to apply your advice to your own life, especially when you don’t see it as clearly.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” I asked.
Melissa sighed. “I knew that you and Jack were meant to be together. I could see it, you know? I always told you that. So it’s easy for me to push you to go for something that’s so obvious to me and everyone else around you. But I don’t see myself or my situation with the same kind of clarity.”
“Really?” I said with a snort. “Why don’t I believe you?”
She nodded. “It’s true. I can tell you what I think you should do, but I never know what I should.”
“Well, we all know what you should do! You should do Dean! Um …” I stopped, feeling the heat on my cheeks rise. “I mean, we all know you and Dean belong together, so what aren’t you telling me? Spit it out,” I insisted.
Melissa sucked in a deep breath and blurted out, “Fine! I like Dean. I really do. But if something happens between us and we don’t work out, I’m the one who loses, not him. You’re my best friend,” she reminded me, glancing in my direction. “But he’s your husband’s brother. If we hook up and it ends badly, one of us loses you guys.”
Her eyes pleaded with me for understanding. “And it sure as shit isn’t going to be Dean. I’m pretty sure he can’t stop being Jack’s brother. But I can stop being your best friend.” Tears spilled freely down her face, and she reached up to swipe them away. “I don’t want to stop being your best friend. I don’t want to be the one who loses everything.”
My heart aching for her, I stood up and walked over to Melissa, then wrapped my arms around her and squeezed. “I’ll never stop being your best friend. No matter what happens between you and Dean.”
She shook her head. “You say that now, but you don’t know that. You can’t be sure, if you had to choose. I mean, if you were forced to choose. There’s no way you could choose me over Dean. He’s family now.”
“But you’ve always been my family, too.” I caught Melissa’s gaze, trying to show her how sincere I was, but she shook her head.
Gramps added, “I can guarantee you that Dean isn’t thinking about everything he’s going to lose if you guys break up. He probably isn’t thinking that you guys will break up at all. Why are you?”
“Yes, hon, why are you so convinced that you two won’t last?” Gran added.
“Seriously, Melissa, you’re the one person in the world who pushed for me to not give up on Jack. Even after everything we went through, you still said he was the one for me.”
“Well, he was. I was right,” she snapped.
“And so am I. You and Dean are meant to be together too. You’re the only one who doesn’t see it.”
Her head lowered as she whispered, “I feel it.”
“Listen, Melissa.” Gran reached over and took my friend’s hand in hers. “Love is the one thing in this world worth taking a risk for. When you’re older and you look back on the life you lived, you won’t regret the fact that you took the chance to love someone. But you will regret the chances on love you didn’t take. Especially the ones rooted in fear. They’re only scary because you have the most to lose. You feel the most for them. Don’t let the fear of losing love stop you from having the experience altogether.”
“She’s right, you know.” Gramps smiled warmly. “She usually is, though, so that’s not surprising. But if you walk away, you will regret this, darlin’. Maybe not right now or not a few years down the road. But eventually you will regret this moment. And every other moment you had with our grandson that could have led to more. Life is filled with many things. You don’t want regrets to be one of them.”
Gran stood up and planted a sloppy kiss on Gramps’ cheek, and he slipped his arm around her. “He has a point, dear. Live without regrets. It’s very easy to, really. You just listen to your heart, follow it, and take chances. Always take chances. And take risks, especially when it comes to love. Because love is the one thing in this world that’s worth risking everything for.”
Melissa nodded, her expression more relaxed and open, her stubborn face a thing of the past. The conversation had been simple, but effective.
After thanking Gran and Gramps and promising to bring them to the new house soon, I practically sprinted to the car. I wanted to fly back to the house. Getting Melissa there so she could work this bullshit out with Dean was my number one priority. I couldn’t wait for them to finally be together. We made it home in record time while I kept conversation to a minimum, not daring to mess up the magic that Gran and Gramps had worked on Melissa.
I pulled the car into the driveway a little too fast, and pulled the emergency brake before hopping out.
Jack walked into the garage as Melissa got out of the car. “Where’d you two run off to?”
“We had some business to take care of. Where’s Dean?” I asked.
“He left. He has a date tonight or some such shit,” he said, looking at Melissa as he said the damning words.
Melissa caved in on herself then; she almost crumbled. If a person could break into little pieces and fall to the ground like glass, I knew I was about to witness it.
“He has a date?” I shouted. “With who? Call him! Stop him!”
“What’s going on? Where have you guys been?” Jack narrowed his eyes.
I placed a hand on my hip, and said pointedly, “I took her to see Gran and Gramps. We needed to talk it out.”
“So, did you? Talk it out, I mean?” Jack’s gaze drifted to Melissa, and his eyes widened a little as he noticed her bloodshot eyes and reddened nose.
“She did,” I answered for her. “But we need Dean here. Right now. He can’t go on a date without hearing this first. He has to know!”
I was losing it. My control, my patience, all of it. If Dean went on this date and we allowed Melissa to sleep on everything she’d learned today, she might wake up tomorrow and decide not to ever tell him. And all this progress would be for nothing. I needed these two to finally get together. Not only because she was my best friend and he was my brother-in-law, but because they were well suited for each other and we all knew it. I wanted more than anything for them to at least try.
“So you want me to call my brother?” Jack asked, his voice filled with confusion. “And tell him to cancel his date and come back over here? Am I getting this right?”
“Forget it!” I said with frustration. “I’ll call him myself.” I reached for my phone, pressed Dean’s name, and hit the CALL button.
Nerves shot through me as I pushed Melissa into the house and pointed at the vodka. Jack shrugged his shoulders and I rolled my eyes. I grabbed a shot glass from the cabinet as Dean picked up. Slamming the glass on the granite countertop, I glared at Jack as I pointed at the vodka and then at my trembling best friend.
“Dean, hey! Thank you so much for all your help today, but you left something here. Can you come back and get it?” I had no idea why I lied, but it seemed right at the time.
“What did I leave there? I didn’t bring anything.”
I scrambled, waving my hands in the air silently begging for help, but no one moved or made a sound. “I, uh, had a gift for you. But it will go bad if you don’t come get it.” My face twisted with each lie that spilled from my mouth.
“Sis, I’m getting ready to pick up a date. I’ll be late if I come by there.”
“Listen to me right now, Dean. I’m pregnant, emotional, and out of control. If you do not get over here in the next ten minutes,” I paused for half a second to think it through before clarifying, “without your date, I will hang you by your balls the next time I see you. Understood?”
“Fine. I’m on my way.”
I ended the call without saying another word. Glancing at Melissa, I noticed the empty shot glass and smiled. “Good girl. A little liquid courage never hurts.”
“Shit, Cass,” Melissa breathed out on a moan. “What am I gonna say to him?”
Jack cleared his throat. “Is anyone going to tell me what the hell is going on?”
“You’ll see,” I said with a smirk toward Jack before looking into Melissa’s bright blue eyes. “And as for you. You will tell him everything we talked about at Gran and Gramps’. Just be honest.”
Pouring myself a glass of water, I sat on one of our new barstools and waited for the sound of Dean’s Mustang to pull into the driveway. If it felt like forever to me, I could only imagine how Melissa must have felt.
The rumble of his engine alerted us to his arrival. I opened the large garage door as Dean rushed through it and into the house through another connecting door. I closed the large garage door behind him and stepped back into the kitchen where we had all gathered. His eyes scanned quickly over the three of us, all but skipping Melissa’s face.
“Okay, I’m here,” he huffed out, the smell of his cologne filling the kitchen area as I silently thanked the pregnancy gods for not making it nauseate me. Dean looked hot in his dark blue jeans. He had on a fitted black T-shirt underneath a dark blue and black button-down shirt that wasn’t buttoned. “Is anyone going to tell me what’s going on?”
I waited for Melissa to speak up, move, or do something. Her fingers tapped out a noiseless tune on the rim of her glass as she stared at the floor and refused to look up.
Tired of waiting, I snapped my fingers in front of her face, forcing her to acknowledge me. When her broken eyes met mine, I wanted to take her into my arms and comfort her. She opened and closed her mouth a couple of times, as if she wanted to say something, but no words came out.
You’ve got to be kidding me.
Never in all the years I’d known Melissa had I ever seen her like this before, and I wondered if it were a side of her she’d always kept to herself. She’d obviously clammed up, so I guessed it was up to me to poke her with a sharp stick.
“I called you back here, Dean, because I thought Melissa had something to tell you. But I guess I was wrong.” It was a little harsh and I knew it, but game time was over and I only wanted to help.
Dean’s gaze snapped to Melissa and I saw what looked like hope flash in his eyes. He raised his eyebrows in her direction, but neither spoke a word.
I glanced at Jack, who had leaned against the wall, his arms folded and his feet crossed at the ankle. He kept his mouth shut and pinged his gaze between Dean and Melissa, clearly fascinated by what was unfolding. I had to laugh a little to myself, thinking that he was probably partially thankful that the drama had nothing to do with us for once.
Dean nodded slowly, and said to Melissa, “So, is that true? Do you have something to tell me, or are we just going to stand here all night? Because if it’s the latter, then I have a date to go apologize to.”
Melissa’s face paled and tightened as her stubborn defensive nature took over. She narrowed her reddened eyes and snapped, “Go then. You shouldn’t keep her waiting.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Dean shouted. “Is this a joke? Goddammit, woman, if you have something to say to me, just say it already!”
She stomped across the kitchen to stop in front of Dean and glare up at him, her tiny frame dwarfed by his. Then Melissa grabbed his shirtsleeve and dragged him out of the kitchen and into the garage without shutting the door.
Knowing I should grab Jack and walk away to give the couple their privacy, I planted my feet on the kitchen floor and leaned toward the open door instead. Eavesdropping might have been a crappy thing to do, but I had a lot invested in this conversation and was dying to hear it.
My husband obviously felt the same, because he wrapped his arm around me and pulled me against his body as he leaned toward the garage as well. “I’m not moving, so don’t even ask. I want to hear this shit,” he whispered against my ear.
I turned my head and planted a kiss on his soft lips. That single peck fanned the embers of lust inside me, causing them to erupt. Instantly, I wanted to drag him to the bedroom and christen it right the fuck now, but I shook my head to douse the flames, and concentrated on what was happening in the garage.
“So, what is this big news you have to tell me?” Dean attempted to sound tough, but I knew he had to be dying inside.
“I need you to stop being so mean right now,” Melissa begged. “Please? This is really hard for me.”
I wished I could see Dean’s face. Or at least his hazel eyes. I imagined them instantly softening with her words.
“I’ll stop,” he replied.
“Thanks.” She sucked in a long breath before letting it out slowly. “First, I just want you to know that I do like you, Dean. I always have.”
“You like me, like me?” he interrupted, his tone surprised, and I had to stop myself from giggling at his word choice.
“So much,” she said, then paused as it sounded like she was pacing across our garage floor.
Jack poked me in the shoulder, his eyes wide with excited shock. I nodded with a tight-lipped grin as Melissa continued, “And I’m so sorry for everything. The way I acted and pretending like I didn’t care.”
“Why? Why did you pretend? You fucking crushed me in New York. Why would you do that?” Dean’s voice was pained as he referred to their trip to visit us several months before.
“I just got scared,” she said in a small voice.
“Of what?”
Silence.
I squeezed Jack’s arm as I waited for her response. Pressing my lips against his face, I whispered into Jack’s ear, “This is killing me.”
“Me too,” he admitted.
Minutes of continued silence passed, deafening us all with the possibilities not yet spoken.
“Melissa,” Dean said, his voice finally breaking through the quiet. “Scared of what? You have to tell me. Please. Don’t close off now.”
Footsteps shuffled outside our line of vision and I held my breath.
“Please. I want to know,” Dean pleaded.
“You’re Jack’s brother and I’m Cassie’s best friend. We’re going to be in each other’s lives forever. I was afraid that if we tried to be together and it didn’t work out, it would ruin everything. That everything would be awkward and uncomfortable. And one of us would eventually have to leave, and well, it’s not going to be you, because you’re freaking related to Jack. So it would be me. I’d get kicked out of the group because you and I tried to love each other and it didn’t work out. So then I wouldn’t have only lost you, but my best friend and her baby too.”
Jack caught my eye and whispered angrily, “What am I, chopped liver? She’d lose me too!”
Shaking my head at his narcissistic view of the world, I shot an elbow into his ribs to shut him up.
Back in the garage, Dean laughed. “Is that it?” he said to tease Melissa, and I couldn’t stop the small laugh that escaped my lips.
“What do you mean, is that it? That’s everything, Dean. Cassie’s my best friend. Do you know how important that is to a girl? I can’t lose her. I can’t lose you both.”
The sound of my best friend crying pained me. Jack knew I wanted to go in there and comfort her, so he tightened his grip on my body. “Let them work this out,” he reminded me with a soft kiss to the back of my head.
Dean’s voice was soothing as he said, “I know how important your friendship is to both of you. I’d never come between you. You know I’d never want that.” When he finished, more shuffling sounds filtered through the open door.
“Of course you wouldn’t want it, but that doesn’t mean it won’t happen. Even by just talking about this, we’re opening up something we can’t take back.”
“I don’t want to take it back,” he said in a low voice.
“You say that now.” Melissa sniffed, sounding so pitiful my heart broke a little more for her.
“I’ll say that always. I want to be with you. I’ve always wanted to be with you. Why are you so convinced we won’t last?”
“I’m not convinced,” she replied. “I’m just worried. I’m a planner. Us not working out can’t be part of the plan because it ruins the rest of my plans.”
Jack gave me a questioning look and I shrugged. I honestly had no idea what plans she referred to.
Dean laughed and Melissa sobbed a little louder, then whined, “Don’t laugh at me.”
“I’m not laughing at you. I’m in love with you.”
“You’re,” she paused, her voice catching, “in love with me? Even after everything?”
“I knew you’d eventually come around,” he said confidently. “I just got really tired of waiting and getting shot down.”
“You knew?”
“Well, I hoped. I hoped a lot,” he admitted and I smiled at the sound of it. “So, can we do this now? You and me? Can we make this happen?”
“Are you sure you want to?”
“How many times do I have to tell you the same thing? I want this. I want this now. I’ll want this tomorrow. I’ll want this forever.”
“You don’t know that,” she said softly. “You can’t be sure.”
Dean sighed. “Melissa, I’m so convinced we’ll last until we die, that I’d bet money on it.”
“Oh yeah? What kind of money?” she asked in such a normal voice that I couldn’t stop my laughter from bursting free. “Hey!” she called out to us. “I hear you in there. Eavesdroppers.”
“Takes one to know one!” I shouted in response before hearing the familiar sounds of kissing.
I smacked Jack’s shoulder again and pulled from his grip to creep toward the door that separated the kitchen from the garage. Peeking around the door, the sight I saw made me cover my face with my hands. The sight of them actually kissing in public, well, at least in front of other people, was bizarre after the history they’ve had.
I resisted the temptation to light off fireworks, or hire a band. We’d all waited so long for this to happen, I wanted the whole world to know it finally had. When I turned to walk back to Jack, neither one of us could stop grinning. He opened his arms and I fell into them, kissing each dimple once before finding his mouth.
“I am so happy for them! My God, can you believe it?”
His tongue teased my bottom lip before begging for entry into my mouth. I complied, letting the beer-flavored taste of him consume me.
“Jeez, you two, get a room,” Melissa teased, and I pulled away from my husband to see her wrapped in Dean’s arms.
I gave a little huff. “You’re one to talk. You two need the room. You have a lot of make-up sex to have,” I teased as Dean perked up.
“I like that idea. I think she’s right.” Dean looked down at my fun-sized best friend and kissed her.
“Don’t you have a date to get to?” Jack asked pointedly, like a smartass.
Dean winced. “I think I’m late.”
“Tell me you at least canceled and the poor girl isn’t sitting at home wondering where you are?” I pinned him with the “mom” look I’ve been practicing lately in the mirror, and he chuckled.
“Who do you think I am? Jack?”
Melissa shook her head, then sucked in a breath before admitting, “I hope you’re done dating other people.”
“I hope you’re done dating anyone. Ever. ‘Cause it’s never happening for you again.”
“Is that so?” she fired back, my little spitfire reemerging, which made me very happy. A meek and broken Melissa was so not the girl I knew and loved.
“Deny it all you want,” Dean told her. “Be scared all you want. I’ll be here to remind you. This is the real deal right here. Me and you?” he said, drawing a finger between the two of them. “This is gonna last.”
“So this is really happening? The two of you are finally a flipping couple! Am I dreaming?” I walked over to Melissa and hugged her before doing the same to Dean.
“You’re not, but I think I am,” Melissa said dryly.
Jack opened the fridge and pulled out two beers. “Time to man up. Drink,” he said, tossing a can at Dean. “Fun-Size, you need another shot of liquid courage? Not that it helped.”
Dean looked down at her, a playful smile on his face. “You did shots before I got here?”
“Correction, I did a shot. One. And yeah. I thought I was going to throw up on your shoes if I didn’t.”
He wiggled his right foot. “I like these shoes.”
I hopped up on the counter, my legs and feet dangling over the side. “Hey, I have a question.”
Melissa’s perfect little eyebrows drew together as she asked, “What is it?”
“While Jack was eavesdropping on you guys, and I couldn’t help but overhear because I refuse to leave his side,” I said innocently as Jack poked me in the ribs. “What did you mean about all your plans? Or the rest of your plans or something?”
She pressed her lips together before blurting out, “It’s all wrapped up in the same thing. The breakup. I lose him first,” she said, pointing at Dean before continuing. “Then I lose my best friend. And then I lose her kids. And so that means that I don’t get to have kids with you and our kids won’t be best friends and we won’t move next door to each other or raise our babies together or do any of the things that I completely plan on doing with you. Because that’s what best friends do. We have kids together and shop together and our families grow up together.”
I tried to kick her, but my foot wouldn’t reach that far and I refused to hop down from the counter. “You’re a dork. Just marry Dean and then we can do all those things, ‘kay?”
Dean looked down at Melissa and squeezed her shoulders. “Yeah, just marry me. Problem solved.”
“I’m serious!” she practically screamed.
“So am I!” Dean yelled back.
“Enough!” Jack pressed his hands around each side of my stomach as if the baby’s ears were there. “You’re going to stress out my baby. And I’ll fucking kill both of you if you do that. Don’t shout around my kid,” he said forcefully, and I rolled my eyes. “If our baby comes out rolling his eyes, Kitten, so help me God—”
“Yeah? So help you God, what? What are you going to do?” I shot back playfully.
Jack slammed his fist against the granite. “I don’t know, but I’ll think of something to torture you with!”
“You two are ridiculous,” Melissa said as she snuggled closer into Dean’s arms.
I stuck my tongue out at her and she did the same. “You,” I pointed at her, “are not ever allowed to say that to anyone. Ever. You’re the most ridiculous couple I’ve ever met.”
“You gonna let her talk to us like that, Melis?” Dean taunted.
Melissa narrowed her eyes playfully. “You want me to hit a pregnant chick?” She made a fist and punched her other hand with it.
Jack stepped into the space separating us. “I will hurt you, Fun-Size. No one messes with my baby mama.”
“Oh my gosh, how long have you been waiting to use that line?” I doubled over laughing, along with everyone else.
“Weeks,” he admitted with a dimpled smile before stepping between my legs.
I love those dimples.
I hope our baby has those dimples.
“I almost forgot, I have something for you.” Jack perked up and disappeared into the garage. I heard one of the car doors open and close, then Jack walked back into the kitchen.
He tossed a small package at me and I caught it with both hands. “What in the world?”
“Just open it.”
I peeled back the wrapping paper to reveal a small cardboard box. When I opened the top and looked inside, I gasped with surprise, then pulled out a miniature mason jar filled with quarters.
Jack beamed at me. “Those are for all the belly touches. I’m going to be touching your belly a lot. I figured I oughta pay up.”
Shaking my head in amazement, I glanced around the room at some of the various jars proudly displayed, each jar filled to be brim with quarters, and representing different times in our lives. The original jar he gave me in college sat in our bedroom, untouched.
I’d taken the jars of quarters from when he asked to be traded to the Mets and placed them in my new home office. They reminded me of everything he sacrificed to win me back, and looking at them made me happy. There were other various-sized jars from throughout our years in New York, when we refused to spend them. We collected every quarter that came into our possession. And now we’d be starting our California collection. I knew right where this miniature mason jar would be displayed: our baby’s room.
“I think you still have a few touches left from the other quarters,” I reminded him, waving my arm in the direction of one of the jars in the living room.
“You can never be too safe. Can you, baby?” He pressed his lips against my stomach and I rubbed the top of his head, feeling more content than ever.