“Shit’s getting real …” Wade huffs out, not looking upfrom his work.
“Fuck yeah it is,” I retort. “Time is flying.”
“I’m still trying to figure out where the last fourteen months have gone since Billi was born.”
I measure again for my chalk line. “And you just knew, when she got here, what to do?”
I turn to face him. I’m on one side of the deck and Wade is on the other, both of us on our knees as we screw boards.
“Fuck no.” Wade laughs. “But you figure it out. Youhaveto. I can’t explain it, but when that baby girl gripped my finger for the first time, I knew my life would never be the same. She had me hook, line, and fucking sinker. There are very few occasions in a person’s life that can bring that much joy.”
“Fuck, that’s deep.” I chuckle, yanking his chain, but the truth is, hearing that settles me a lot.
“You’ll see what I mean, prick.” Wade nods at me then gets back to work.
These last screws mark a new chapter for me. Having worked my last shift at the Horse and Barrel weeks ago, once these cabins are done, I’ll be able to spend all my free time helping Olivia get ready for the baby’s arrival. Every day flies by in a mix of work, food, fucking, and talking. Not always in that order but it’s like a heaven I never want to give up. Today Olivia’s house gets the final inspection, and I’m nervous as all hell. Not because I don’t think she’ll like the custom white oak cabinets I’ve made and installed for her, but because, with the restoration complete, when we walk in that door and her keys are handed over, it will be a glaring reminder that she can leave my house whenever she wants and return to her own.
It’s been almost two months since my father’s death, and although I’ve heard nothing from my uncle since trashing my old phone, l still never really feel settled. Like Nash said, I have thisneedto always feel on edge; it’s what keeps me alive. But with Olivia around, it’s easier to work through it.
“Billi! Slow down!” Ivy calls out to Wade’s little daughter toddling at speed down the path to the cabin we’re working on. She’s carrying a bag in her tiny hand, and Ivy and Ginger trail right behind her.
Wade’s smile is instantaneous as Billi looks up at him on the deck.
“What’d you bring for Daddy then, bean?” He scoops her up, and the idea that my own child will look up at me in the very near future the way Billi looks at her dad blows my mind.
“Coo-kie,” she says.
“Cookies!” Wade exclaims, animated as he pulls one out of the bag and shoves almost the whole thing into his mouth. Billi starts to laugh.
“No wonder she eats as messy as she does,” Ginger calls out to Wade. “Just look at her daddy!”
She’s already looking more pregnant, only a couple months behind Olivia.
“Have you seen your husband eat?” Wade asks around a mouthful of cookie. “Your baby will be worse.”
“Nope,” Ginger says, matter-of-fact, running a hand over her small baby bump. “Just found out yesterday we’re having a girl. She’ll be a lady like me and Mabel.”
“Since y’all aren’t finding out what you’re having,” she continues, turning to me, “I get first dibs on Ivy’s baby clothes. Though I promised Liv I’d share whatever she wantswhenshe has her girl.”
I raise my eyebrows. “So you’re on my side?”
“No.” She shakes her head. “You’re not getting me into shit. I’m only saying you’re having a girl because I think it’s our destiny to produce another generation of Not Angels.”
I lift my chalk line and let it snap, giving me a nice blue trail to follow with my screws. I shake my head.
“We brought you some hot cocoa too,” Ivy says with a soft smile. “Since you’re working so hard out here on this fine fallday.”
Wade trades Billi to Ivy for a thermos.
“You want?” he asks me.
I pull my phone out to text Liv back—telling her I’ll be on my way in the next couple of minutes—as I stand and carry the box of screws to the back of Wade’s truck parked in the driveway. I pat him on the shoulder.
“I’ll take mine to go,” I say. “I’ll be late otherwise. And, in case you don’t remember, it’s never a good thing to piss off a pregnant woman.”
Wade grins as he extends a hand. “Well, I can’t thank you enough.”
I accept his firm grip and look around. “Some damn nice cabins, aren’t they?”
