“That’s not how you ask, Peanut,” he says.
“PULLEEEEAAAASSSEEE!” she yells.
“All right, one second,” he tells her, then he brings me along for the walk to the fridge. “Anyway, it’s all good. We’ll be ready to arrive without embarrassing you.”
“You guys could never embarrass me. Well, maybe if Rosy brought Starsky and Hutch…” Those are her humpy Jack Russell terriers.
Harrison offers me a hint of a smile, instead of a laugh like he normally would, then hands the juice box to Clara. Damn, he is upset. “Listen, I’m glad you called because I have some news that Libby and I have been wanting to share with you, but we never seem to get a chance.”
“Oh yeah?”They’re having another baby.
“We’re having another baby,” he says with a grin.
Act super-surprised. “Really? That’s wonderful, man! When?”
“Middle of July.”
“Whoa! That’s coming right up. How’s Libby feeling?”
“Pukey, starving, emotional, exhausted…the usual at this stage of the game.”
“That’s great. Well, not how she’s feeling—that sounds awful—but about the baby,” I say. Feeling slightly put out, I add, “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”
“We were going to tell you last month when you were supposed to be here, but you never made it.”
“Right,” I tell him. “Of course. Well, never mind that. Congratulations to you both! I’m thrilled for you.”
“Thanks,” he says. “We’re pretty thrilled ourselves.”
He stares at me for a second, then says, “Can I ask you something?”
Can I say no? “Sure.”
“Did you pick out that big bear yourself or did someone do it for you?” he asks.
I briefly wish the connection would fail so I wouldn’t have to answer that question. “I…um…well, they have people who do that sort of thing. People who are much better at it than me. Why? Does she not like the bear?”
Harrison’s eyes harden at the truth and my heart sinks to my stomach. “She loves the bear. It’s a little…over the top though. Takes up half her bedroom.”
Shit. “Sorry about that. I’ll do my own shopping from now on. I just asked my assistant to take care of it because I was in Borneo longer than I expected and I wanted to make sure it got to her on time.”
Shrugging, Harrison says, “No, it’s no big deal. I just wanted to know.”
“Are we okay?” I ask him.
“Sure, yeah. Relationships change, right?” Harrison says. “Your life has taken you in a new direction and that’s a good thing. As long as you’re happy, I’m happy.”
“You don’t seem happy,” I tell him.
“I’ll be fine. I just need to know what to expect going forward. Things are going to be different. And that’s okay. Anyway, I gotta go. I have a birthday party to run here, then I should probably memorize the new rules of being your brother.” He smiles to soften the blow of his words, but it really doesn’t work.
I swallow hard, feeling like I’m not much above stagnant pond scum in the order of things. “Harrison, I’m really sorry about all of this. I know I promised to make you guys a priority and I haven’t lived up to my word.”
“Yeah, you’re kind of doing a shit job of it, to be honest.”
“You’re right, I am,” I tell him. “Listen, I’m going to get out of the contract with ANN as soon as the wedding is over. We gave them exclusive rights to everything in exchange for ripping up my contract. I promise that once that’s done, I’ll be around more.”
Harrison stares at me, then says, “I hope so.”
