Nothing like pulling out a full name card to make you realize you’re up to your knees in shit.
She points her finger at me. “I knew there was something going on between you two that first day when you got back, but you said it was nothing.”
“Itwasnothing. We went to school together.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes, seriously. It’s not a big deal. We got a chance to talk at Jax’s birthday and later on at the gym.” I shrug, trying to play it off. “She’s fun. I asked her out.”
“She’s my friend,” Becky mutters. “A friend who’s a very nice person who’s going through a lot.”
So she knows about her ex.
And she doesn’t like him.
What the hell did the guy do? Besides not taking a hint, that is.
“I know.”
She grinds her teeth together, still giving me the stink eye.
“It was just a date between friends. Hell, Nico and Mae were with us. We went bowling, had some fun. You know that thingyoungpeople do.”
“Oh, trust me, I know all about what young people do.”
I chuckle softly. “You sure? You have a kid and a husband…”
“I’d stop while I was ahead if I were you,” she warns, poking me in the chest.
I lift my hands in the air, surrendering. “Fine, just stop this.”
Becky’s face softens slightly. “I’m worried. And not just about her. I don’t want to see some of my favorite people get hurt.”
A knot forms in my throat, making it hard to breathe.
“Nobody will get hurt, Becky. We’re just…” I shrug, trying to play it off. “Having fun.”
Becky gives me a warning look. “Try not to havetoomuch fun.”
“You seriously want to talk about my sex life?” I joke, needing to disperse some of this tension.
Her nose scrunches at my words. “Hell to the no.”
Laughing, I watch her as she shoots me one last warning look before she turns around and returns inside. I follow her, the smile still plastered on my face, but I can’t help but feel the weight of her words—her warning—on my shoulders.
Dinner is… lively. Everybody is chatting animatedly, and I listen with half an ear to all the conversations, taking it all in.
Miguel and Chase talk about some horses my brother got recently. Although Miguel is playing professional football, he makes it a point to come home any chance he can, even if it’s for a day. Jax is sitting on his lap, his eyes wide open as he observes his surroundings. Kyle left after dinner to take a shower and get ready for bed since it’s a school night, while Becky and Rose are discussing whatever book they’re reading.
The house isn’t the only thing that’s changed around here.
My siblings have created families of their own.
They have their own lives now.
Hope, laughter, and love now fill the rooms that always felt silent and empty.
I don’t remember the last time our house was this full of people.If it had ever beenthis full of people. Maybe it was. Before. I was so young when our lives changed that I barely remember how it used to be before everything went to shit.
