“After you made love?” my Uncle Vitaly asks, already digging into a fresh bag of gummies.
I’m not the only one who laughs, and it’s one of the most infuriating things about my uncle. It’s too hard to stay pissed at him when he’s constantly making you laugh.
“I really wish you wouldn’t say that.” I shake my head and open the door to one of the SUVs. “But to answer your question, yes.”
He smiles even bigger at that and gets in after me. My dad drives while Luka takes the passenger seat. Ev and Sasha get in the backseat while the others head for the other SUVs. Before we’re even back on the main road, my Uncle Vitaly says, “Sasha has some news.”
I turn back to look at my cousin. “Oh yeah? What’s going on?”
Sasha looks at our uncle but doesn’t waste his breath with a comment about how nosy he is. Instead, he tells Ev and me, “Cyn and I found out we’re having a girl.”
The smile I give him is genuine as I reach back to nudge his leg. “That’s awesome, man. Congratulations.”
“I’m happy for you both,” Ev says, “and she’ll have a lot of little girl cousins to play with. I’m sure she’ll love that. How’s Cindy?”
Sasha gives an easygoing smile at the mention of his wife. It’s the one topic that completely changes him, making you forgetwhat he’s capable of. “She’s great. Happy and excited and buying every pink thing she can get her hands on.”
“She’s got a 50-50 shot of being normal,” our Uncle Vitaly says. “I mean, she could end up being a little Mia on steroids. God, wouldn’t that be crazy?” He muses aloud. “We’ll have to teach that little girl the rules early or she’ll end up being like the nutty Medvedev boys.” He laughs and says, “We could string up her baby dolls and give her a little plastic knife.” His face lights up at the image. “Can you imagine? She’ll be unstoppable, especially with a killer dog at her beck and call.”
“I’m right here,” Sasha reminds him. “I can hear everything you’re saying, and my daughter is going to be perfect, no matter what her inclinations turn out to be. If she’s like me, I’ll handle it.”
“You’re the only one who could,” Uncle Vitaly says. “Just make sure you put me number one on the do-not-kill list you make her memorize.”
The corner of Sasha’s mouth lifts. “Wouldn’t it be funny if I forgot to add your name?”
We laugh while my uncle looks horrified.
“That’s not funny, Sasha,” he says. “Don’t even joke about that. I’ll be her favorite. You know I’m not above bribing her with sugar.”
“I’m aware,” Sasha says.
I listen to my family’s playful bickering for the rest of the drive, wishing I could send a voice message to Sitka. I know her dad’s on his way to her and that he deserves a chance to talk to her in private, but I can’t resist sending her a quick heart emoji and a thumbs up. Her response is immediate, and I know she’s been waiting by her phone worrying. She sends me a string of hearts and ends it with the kissing emoji.
Relieved that she at least knows I’m okay, I put my phone away as we turn onto Max’s driveway. I’m not sure who’s moreexcited to see everyone, Wallace or Lyra. Both of them soak up the attention that’s showered on them while my dad hands me his phone.
“Your mom,” he says, and I hear the reprimand in his tone.
I grab it and quickly say, “I’m sorry, Mom,” before walking downstairs so I can talk to her in private.
“Are you okay?”
Her worried voice makes me feel like shit for not keeping her in the loop.
“I am,” I say and then quickly apologize again.
Instead of making me feel lousy and yelling at me for not handling this better, she says, “Tell me about her.”
There’s no judgment in her voice, just curiosity and a real desire to know more about the woman I’ve fallen in love with. So that’s exactly what I do. I sit in the chair by the French doors and tell my mom all about Sitka, how amazing she is, how fearless she is on a dirt bike, how she loves nature, and how I’ve never felt anything even close to what I feel for her before. When I tell her what she said after I told her about my dyslexia, I swear I hear my mom sniffle.
“She sounds perfect for you, Damien,” she says, and there’s definitely a tremor to her voice. “I’m really happy for you, and I can’t wait to welcome her into the family.”
“Thanks, Mom,” I say, and then I tell her about my idea to move her back home with me but then visit as much as we can.
“That sounds like a good compromise,” she says. “Her parents can visit, too, as much as they want. Vasya and Nina visit when Max and Talia are here for their six months. We’ll make it work. Nothing a short plane ride can’t fix.”
My mom and I talk for a few more minutes before I tell her I love her and then hand the phone back to my dad. Exhausted, I take a seat next to Ev on the couch and rest my head back with a sigh.
“I should probably tell you that you have dirt on your face,” he says.
