“No more than you are, Augustus.” I loop my arm through his, resting my head on his shoulder. “You…um…you know I don’t want kids, right? Like, ever?”
“Yeah, Elena.” He glances down at me, lips tilting upward. “You’ve been pretty clear about that for most of your adult life.”
“I just wanted to make sure you knew it hadn’t changed. In case…”
“Little Vice, we’re both standing in the darkest corner of the room to avoid being asked if we want to hold your brother’s newborn baby. I think it’s pretty clear that children aren’t in our future, and I am completely okay with that.”
I burst with laughter again, and August’s eyes ignite as he matches it. We grow loud enough that our cover is blown, drawing the attention of everyone else in the room.
“I know what y’all are doing, but you are going to meet your niece,” Leo chimes.
“No, yeah. Totally. We planned on it,” I say, stepping closer to the rest of them. My mom holds Willow now as Lou stands beside her, studying the baby girl. “But it looks like Lou is really excited to hold her next, so we should probably let her do that.”
“Using my eleven-year-old as a human shield, Lele?” Everett asks.
“I’d never do such a heinous thing.” I smile, hoping to will some lightness into the tension between us, but my twin only rolls his eyes and scoffs before helping Lou sit down on the couch beside Darby’s bed as my mother places the baby in her arms.
“What’s going on there?” Leo asks, eyeing us curiously.
I force another smile in his direction, not missing the way my mother frowns at the interaction. “Nothing you need to worry about right now.”
Leo humphs, and I lean against August’s shoulder as he sighs into the top of my head. We watch Lou hold her tiny cousin in her arms, brushing her thumb over the baby’s cheek.
“Hi, Willow.” She smiles before lifting her to head to Dahlia. “Mom, when you have your baby, can you name them after a Taylor Swift song too?”
Shocked gasps echo through the room as every single one of us turns our attention to Everett and Dahlia. Everett winces, biting his lip as he runs a hand through his hair. Dahlia’s eyes fall closed, a deep, rough sigh escaping her lips.
“I’m sorry, what?” my mother exclaims.
I glance at Lou again, her eyes wide and cheeks flushed as she whispers, “Oops.”
39
VIOLET
“MESS IS MINE” - VANCE JOY
“I’ll be down in justa moment!” Darby’s melodic voice chimes from the upper level of her home as I shut the front door behind me.
Elena drops her purse onto the entryway table, glancing through the dining room and kitchen before heading toward the living room. “Are we the first ones here? We’re normally late.”
“Not sure,” I say, but by the looks of it, nobody else is around, and only Darby and Leo’s cars are parked out front.
We didn’t have dinner together last Sunday, since it was just a couple of days after Willow was born. Monica and Dahlia have been around often, helping Darby and Leo ease into parenthood while ensuring they’re both fed, showered, and somewhat rested. The rest of us have given them a bit more space and privacy to adjust to their new life.
Everett has been working more to cover Leo at Heathen’s, and Elena has picked up extra shifts at The Wicked Wildflower so Dahlia can be here to help her sister. Outside of a few brief run-ins with Everett around the boardwalk, neither of us has spoken to him much, each interaction we do have fraught with tension.
Tonight’s dinner will be met with inevitable confrontation, and maybe that’s why Elena and I arrived so early. It felt as if we were both sitting around the house all afternoon, just waiting to face the family, and grew antsy. Or at least, I was feeling that way.
Elena ended up obtaining representation from the top agent she reached out to, and she recently received her manuscript back from the freelance editor she hired. She finalized it today before sending it off to her agent to be pitched to publishers. On top of that, Leo asked her to create an official proposal for a boardwalk bookstore, and we’ve been working on that together.
We’ve all been incredibly busy, which is how the past two weeks flew by without any of us seeing each other for more than a few passing minutes. But Darby and Leo mentioned to Monica that they felt comfortable having the family over for dinner tonight, and she demanded everyone attend.
Dahlia reluctantly confirmed she was, in fact, pregnant after Lou’s slip-up in the birthing center the day Willow was born, but they quickly stated that they weren’t ready to announce it yet and needed time before sharing any additional details. I think Monica has been itching for more information from them and hopes they’ll finally spill the beans tonight.
I check the clock on my phone and realize that while we are a little early, I’m pretty sure Monica told us all to come over at five o’clock, and it’s four forty right now, so I’m still surprised we’re the first ones here.
“I don’t know where your parents are,” Darby calls as her footsteps creak against the stairs. “But Dahlia and Everett are going to be late because they had to pick up Lulu from a birthday party.”
