As they closed in on me, I shifted in my seat and reached down, gripping the edges of the pan.
Considering they'd already faced my mother's wrath, you would think they'd think twice, but they didn't.
They got within two feet of me and I said, "You all look hot. Maybe you need to cool off."
That's when it registered with them what I was about to do, and they scattered like roaches in the light.
D.J. practically ran toward his wife, Letitia, and ended up hugging her in close and rubbing his damp face on her cheek, causing her to smack him and tell him to quit being an asshole.
Clayton was about to do the same to his wife, Danielle, but she stiffened up as soon as his hand touched her and jerked away.
Uh-oh. Something was going on there. As I watched, she turned her back on him, which put her face to me, and I saw the stricken expression she wore.
Oh, God. They'd been trying to get pregnant for a while now and were having no luck. And here I was, pregnant and newly married.
She didn't look directly at me, but I wanted to get up and go give her a hug.
Clayton stared at her back for a moment, his expression just as hurt as hers. He started to reach toward her, but eventually dropped his hand.
I wanted to yell at him to talk to her, but now wasn't the time. It was also such a touchy subject. I hadn't realized that she was so upset about it because she always seemed fine when I saw her around town, smiling and laughing.
Danielle hurried to the hall that led to the bathroom, her head down, and Clayton watched her the entire way.
My heart ached for my brother and his wife. I also felt bad for giving him a hard time last Sunday night. It was obvious he loved Danielle and wanted her to be happy. And it was just as obvious that she was hurting and utterly unhappy.
What a mess.
I knew I couldn't fix it. I could talk to Clay until I was blue in the face, but if he didn't want to listen to me, it wouldn't do any good.
I only hoped he pulled his head out of his rear end before things got too much worse between them.
"Here you go," J.J. said, coming back up to my chair with two white bar mop towels in his hands. "I figure you could put your feet on one and dry them with the other. I know Cam likes to mop in here daily, but it's nearly impossible to keep a restaurant floor perfectly clean."
"Thank you," I said to him, laying the towels in my lap.
I wasn't sure what to do with the pan of water, but J.J. saved me from that issue too because he picked it up and carried it back into the kitchen. He returned in moments and made his way to the buffet. My brothers saw him coming and quickly moved away from the food, empty plates in hand, and gestured for him to get what he needed.
Huh. Maybe my mother's punishment had gotten through to them after all.
"Hey, darlin'."
I looked up and saw my dad standing next to me, his sandy brown hair combed but nowhere near neat. His bright blue eyes were sparkling and he was dressed in his best dark wash Wranglers and a button-down white shirt with a string tie. His belly wasn't quite as big as it had been last year, but he was still round and cuddly, if a bit smaller.
"Hi, Daddy. Come sit with me until J.J. gets back."
I placed my feet on the towel J.J. had left for me and started rubbing them with the other.
"How are you feelin' today, baby girl?" he asked. Then, he paused. "You're not gonna get mad at me for callin' you that now that you're married, are you?"
God, I loved my father so much. He wasn't perfect, but he never made a secret of how much he loved all of his children. He never withheld his affection, even when he was mad enough to spit nails at all of us.
"No, Dad." I sat up and leaned into his side, giving him a hug. "I may not be a baby anymore, but I'm always your girl."
He hugged me back, just tight enough to steal my breath. "I can't believe you're married and havin' a baby," he murmured into my hair. "Seems like just yesterday I was teaching you to ride your bike or how to plant seeds for the garden."
I squeezed him back harder. "Robert said something similar about Corey on Sunday night. I hate to break it to you, but we do grow up, Daddy."
"I know, I know. But I don't always have to like it."
