“We can,” I say. “I want to… for Unc and Mom and Pop. But it’s going to take time.”
He gives a slow nod. “I can do that.”
We return our attention to the photo album, flipping to another page and admiring more photos of an old family barbecue we’d had in the backyard. Then Moses speaks again.
“I can’t live in this house anymore,” he admits. “There’s too much... shit that’s gone down here. Too many memories. Maybe it’s time to sell it. Split the profit. Get an apartment somewhere.”
My mind immediately goes to my bedroom down the hall, thoughts about what happened the night Kel attacked me a second time coming back.
I couldn’t agree more.
“Maybe it is time to let go,” I agree softly. “Too many memories, like you said.”
Moses puts his arm around me, pulling me into a hug. It’s awkward and a little stiff—we haven’t really hugged in years—but it’s genuine and real.
“We’ll figure it out,” he says.
I lean into him, closing my eyes and whispering, “Unc would want us to.”
The dining room is bursting with laughter as we sit around Cash and Kori’s massive table.
I’m between Silver and Zoe, surrounded by the people who’ve become my family over these past few months. Cash and Korine are at the head of the table, glowing with engagement bliss. Mason and Sydney are across from us, his arm draped over the back of her chair. Logan and Teysha sit beside them, looking tired but happy with a fussy baby Chloe in a highchair.
There’s Ozzie and Zoe to my left, constantly trading quips and playful jabs. Tito and his wife Juanita, both seated near the other end of the table. They’re next to Mick and Korine’s mom, Sunny, the two senior citizens having struck up a recent romance of their own.
Right now, Logan’s in the middle of a story that has the entire table in stitches.
“—and I’m telling you, I’ve never seen anything like it in my life,” he says, shaking his head in disbelief. “It was everywhere. Up her back, down her legs, somehow in her little curly hair. I didn’t even know a baby could produce that much shi?—”
“We get it!” Kori shrieks, laughing so hard she’s wiping tears from her eyes. “Oh my god, Logan, we’reeating!”
“I’m just saying,” Logan continues with a half grin. “Nobody warns you about the blowouts. They tell you about the sleepless nights and the crying, but nobody mentions the hazmat-level diaper situations.”
Teysha buries her face in her hands, shoulders shaking with laughter. “He called me while I was out at the grocery story. Actually called me. I thought something was seriously wrong, and then he just starts venting about poop.”
The table roars.
Sunny chuckles warmly, dabbing at her mouth with her napkin. “Welcome to parenthood, folks. Though I have to say, this reminds me of a time when Kori was a baby. Same situation—blow out that stunk up the whole house. Her father was watching her while I was out, and when I came back, that man was damn near in tears. Had the baby in the sink, the diaper in the trash outside, and he was just standing there looking shell-shocked.”
Kori groans, dropping her head onto Cash’s shoulder. “Thanks, Mom. Really appreciate you sharing that delightfully embarrassing anecdote with everyone.”
“That’s what mothers are for, baby.”
The laughter settles into warm chuckles as everyone returns to their food. Then Mick leans forward, his weathered face creased with a grin.
“So, Logan, Teysha,” he says casually, “when are you two blessing us with baby number two?”
The table goes quiet in anticipation of their answer.
Logan and Teysha exchange a look. One of those loaded, meaningful glances between a couple that says more than words ever could. The subtlest shade of flushed pink suffuses with Teysha’s brown complexion as she starts fiddling with her napkin.
“Um, well, we’re not—I mean, we haven’t really?—”
“Nothing’s, uh, nothing’s going on,” Logan finishes for her with a clear of his throat. “Just focused on Chloe right now.”
Zoe’s head snaps up like a dog catching a scent. She elbows Ozzie hard enough to make him grunt, her eyes going wide.
“Wait a second. I know that look. What are you two hiding?”
