“I am.” I rub my hand along my belly, realizing it’s not a lie.
He observes me before nodding.
“Do you think my mom would be proud of me?”
The question parts from my mouth before I think better of it, but I don’t want to take it back.
“Proud?” His voice pitches higher a couple of octaves. “Your mom would’ve been all over that school office telling everyone she was about to be a grandmother.”
I chuckle.
“Not only is my baby having a baby, but she done moved to Europe and is working her way up to become the head of the Jacqueline Reed Foundation,” he says in a mock feminine voice.
We both crack up.
“She wouldn’t have done all of that.”
“She would, too,” he counters. “That’s exactly how Owen and I both reacted when we found out you were pregnant. Those people on that ship could not wait for us to get off because we couldn’t stop bragging about our beautiful niece who’s about to be a mother.”
The pride in his voice brings tears to my eyes.
I turn away, blinking so that he doesn’t see the moisture in them. But when I turn back to face him, he’s holding out a handkerchief.
“Uncle Owen?—”
“Knew I had one on hand. I think he pricked himself on purpose to give us a couple of minutes alone.”
I grin as I take the handkerchief and dab at my eyes.
“I will say, you’re glowing. And it’s not just because of the moisturizer you put on.”
I look at my arms. “Is it that obvious?”
He waves me off. “If it is, he doesn’t mind.”
“He?”
Uncle Theo rolls his eyes. “Don’t play dumb, Alyssia. You’re much too smart for that. I see the way Travis can’t take his eyes off of you.”
I nod.
“I’ve never seen you smile like you have today, either. Not even when you lived with us for almost a year.”
My stomach drops.
“Lord knows that boy you dated in high school never had you smiling like this. What was his name?”
“Grant.”
Uncle Theo rolls his eyes. “Ol’ pretty boy Grant.”
I snicker at the nickname he’d given Grant back in high school.
“Grant is nothing compared to Travis,” I say, staring ahead at the plush scenery around us.
“I’m starting to notice. Probably why my jealousy started to kick up.”
My brows wrinkle.
