My heart constricted at the sudden memory of my parents embracing after the champagne toast, surrounded by the three of us.
I missed her so damn much.
“Do I need to talk to him?” I asked.
As the oldest, the deep conversations often fell to me, despite the fact that Drew and my father had a closer bond. I envied it, sure, but I chalked it up to Drew taking over resorts. I’d never been drawn to that side of the business, opting to blaze my own trail in private aviation. My dad appreciated what I’d built and grown, but he was partial to the business that was the core of the Ashford brand.
And with that, partial to my younger brother as well.
“I don’t think we’re at that point yet, but you can start dropping hints about heading out there. We have time to plant seeds. I just wanted to make you aware.”
“Thanks for keeping me in the loop,” I said. “I’ll do what I can. You okay?”
“Other than having to deal with this damn party? Yeah, I’m fine.”
Brotherly instinct told me that now was my opening to tease him about something. Maybe his love life? But I actually had no idea if he was seeing someone. I missed the way our family used to be. We were never the “call every day” kind of brothers, but we used to do a better job of keeping up with each other. Maybe the party would help us get back on the right track.
“It’ll be worth it,” I said. “And hey, you’ve got Brian to help with the details,” I said, referring to his top event planner. “We pay him enough, let him do his job.”
“I just want everything to be perfect,” Drew said softly, and I knew what he meant.
We all wanted to honor our father as beautifully as our mother had.
My phone buzzed with another call. “Hey, Drew, I need to run. Thanks for letting me know.”
“Yup, talk soon. Take care.”
I disconnected Drew and picked up the next non-business call. At this rate, I was never getting out of the office.
“This better be good,” I said as a greeting.
“Bro,” my friend Kevin said. “What is goingon, my man?”
“Everything,” I said, twitchy about the time getting away from me. “What’s up?”
“Damn, you’re grumpier than usual,” he laughed at me. “Do you have two minutes to focus on something other than work?”
Kevin was my oldest friend, which he took to mean he could call me on my BS at any time. Admittedly, he was right about that. There was no one I trusted more, and a big part of that was because I knew I could always trust him to be straight with me.
The rest of it was because he’d literally given me my freedom when I was eighteen, taking me under his wing and teaching me how to be a pilot. He was only a couple years older than me, but in some ways, he was a lifetime ahead of me. He was happier than anyone I knew.
“Yeah, sure,” I sighed. “What’s the latest?”
“Guess who’s got some strong swimmers?”
“Huh?”
“I know you’re all about planning, and doing the right thing at the right time, but life has a way of giving us exactly what we need when we need it.”
It was like I’d missed five minutes of the conversation. Nothing he was saying was making any sense. “Kev, what are you talking about?”
“Sydney’s pregnant!”
Was that…good news? Yeah, he sounded happy about it, but he and his wife Sydney had been married for only two years, and he’d mentioned to me before that they were nowhere nearstarting a family. Kevin’s small flight school brought in enough money for them to get by, but dropping a whole additional human into the equation seemed risky.
“Wow, that’s…that’s amazing.” Of course, my analytical brain immediately went to the logistics of the news. If they weren’t planning, were they actuallyready?
“I’m still in shock. We have a stack of positive tests. But holy hell, I’m so pumped to be a dad! Can’t you just picture it? Me with my very own baby Maverick.”
