Four Months Later
I never thought a day would come when a six-foot-five giant would be walking around my childhood home.
It was Christmas Eve, and Javier was currently reaching into one of the cabinets in my mother’s kitchen to retrieve a glass bowl for her.
“Look at that. He makes it look so easy.” She marveled over how effortlessly he could reach into a cabinet and grab things. Perks of being tall.
He handed the bowl to her with a smile.
“You have a good one, Tavia.”
“Mama, really?” I laughed as Javier snorted.
“Do you think this needs more seasoning?” Davina asked, in front of the stove.
Mama walked her way and grabbed a spoon, dipped it inside, and gave the soup a taste. “Nope. That’s perfect.”
“Just like you, baby!” Deke called out from the living room.
I looked over my shoulder to see him still sitting on the floor with Aleesa. She had been allowed to open one gift for Christmas, and it had been a nail polish set ... from me. Javier wasn’t pleased about it,but Aleesa loved it. And I had a feeling the only reason he didn’t like my gift to her was because he knew she’d beg to paint his nails. As a matter of fact, she was in the process of painting Deke’s nails a lovely shade of blue.
“Okay, Deke. All done.” Aleesa grinned, shoving the nail brush back into the bottle. I was still trying to accept that she was speaking more clearly by the day. My sweet girl was getting so big.
Deke raised a hand into the air to study his new manicure. “Dang, Aleesa. You’re gonna have all my friends jealous of this bomb-ass set.”
“Deke!” Javier and I called at the same time. We looked at each other, and I grinned. He wrapped an arm around me, giving his head a deliberate shake.
“You know we do not like using bad words around her,” Javier said, and you’d think he was scolding a child.
“What are you going to do when ours comes?” Davina asked, meeting Deke in the living room. He stood as she approached, a warm smile sweeping across his face as he placed a hand on her belly.
I still couldn’t believe my sister was pregnant. I mean, damn. They must’ve had one hell of a honeymoon. She was only four months along, so she wasn’t showing much yet, but she was glowing. That couldn’t be said in the very beginning, though. She had been vomiting left and right and had to reschedule so many meetings for work.
How did I know this? Because she’d call me to gripe about how she hated rescheduling things. Said it made her appear unprofessional. Like, hello. You have a whole baby growing inside you. Anyone who didn’t understand that didn’t deserve her time, in my opinion.
Twenty or so minutes later, I was helping Mama pour soup into bowls while Christmas jingles played from Abe’s speaker. He left his bedroom just in time to snag a seat right beside his favorite player, Bishop.
“King Abe.” Deke smiled at him. “Where you been hiding?”
“My room,” Abe answered. “I was watching some of your highlights earlier. The game yesterday was a close one.”
“Oh, yeah. It was. But we won, that’s all that matters.”
“It’s good you have Christmas off and get to be with Davina. I can’t believe she’s pregnant now.”
Deke huffed a laugh as Davina did. “Yep, she sure is. Ready to become an uncle?”
“Not really.” Abe reached for a hunk of sourdough bread.
“Well, all right.” Deke chortled just as Davina suppressed a laugh.
I took my seat beside Aleesa after getting her situated. It was really nice to have Javier and Deke home for Christmas. Both had joined us in Maple Cove for a quiet, cozy, mountainous holiday. Honestly, it was perfect.
The lights were dim and the kitchen illuminated with candlelight in each corner. String lights hung from the window above the sink and twinkled from the tree in the living room. I could still smell a hint of pine beneath the scent of turkey-meatball soup, because one thing my mother never skimped out on was a Christmas tree. She always had to have a real one, and that thing would live long enough to see Valentine’s Day.
After dinner, Mama broke out a bottle of wine and poured some for me. Davina made a face when I took a sip, and I said, “You wish that was you, huh?”
She playfully shoved me. “Shut up!”
