“Fine. I told Dad we had a past, but it was short-lived and we parted ways amicably.”
Jack chuckled. “That’s the wordiest description of a one-night stand I’ve ever heard.”
“Shut the fuck up.”
“We’re worried about you.”
“Why?” I put the now-clean bottle in the drying rack. “I told you there’s nothing to worry about. I was a sober, consenting adult. Matt did nothing wrong.”
Jack looked over at Natalie, and his expression softened. Then it hardened again.
“I can’t help thinking about some asshole guy taking advantage of Natalie.”
Why isn’t he listening to me?
“He didn’t.” I cut myself off, not expecting him to suddenly listen to me. I tried a different tactic. “I’m not a child, Jack. In case you’ve forgotten, I’m your older sister.” I poked his chest.
“How could I forget?” He rubbed his chest. “We’ll make sure he leaves you alone.”
“Unnecessary.”
“It’d make us feel better.”
I held my ground. “It’s not about you. And it’d make things worse.”
“Madi, what are we supposed to do? We’ll see him every day.”
“Pretend it didn’t happen. Focus on your daughter. By the time you return to the office, it’ll be old news. No one will care.”
Jack had six weeks of his paternity leave left, though I’d bet my left lung he’d work from home a few hours every day.
Sometimes I envied the closeness my brothers shared. Jamie and I had always had the twin thing going for us, but I’d left for the Navy right after our high school graduation. While we talked regularly, we’d still grown apart.
But Jamie and Jack were tight. Even when they disagreed, they respected one another.
Something they didn’t give me, simply because I was a female.
It was like they’d forgotten I’d earned a Master’s of Science in Nursing while serving twelve years in the Navy. I might not be a combat veteran, but I’d served in places where I had to wear a bullet-proof vest while I treated patients.
I wasn’t weak, timid, or stupid.
And now their firstborn kids will be born a month apart, bringing them closer still.
Just one more way they’ll see me as different. Less than.
When I moved from Jack’s to Jamie’s, to help with the twins, I’d deal with the same bullshit all over again.
“I’ll let it go, for now.”
“Thank you.”
“But I can’t speak for Jamie or Jay.”
“I can handle them.”
“Jamie, maybe, but Jay isn’t a little boy seeking your approval anymore.”
Jamie and Jack had teased Jay when we were kids, making him feel like he was a mistake and didn’t belong in the family. As an adult it was easy to laugh and shrug off the teasing, but as a kid who struggled with school, while his three older siblings excelled, he’d accepted the role of the family mistake and done his best to live up to it.
