Izzy belts out another cry and Remy heads into her nursery, and I don’t think twice before going into the kitchen to get her bottle ready.
It’s almost surreal how easily we fall into a routine.
And by the time Izzy has a fresh diaper and her bottle is in her mouth, I plop down on the couch beside Remy while he feeds her because he refused to have it any other way.
She sucks at the nipple like she’s starving, like she hasn’t been fed in days, and it urges a soft laugh to leave my lips. “My oh my, you were a hungry girl.”
Remy flashes a wink at me. “Kind of like you when it comes to pickles and chicken sandwiches.”
“Whatever, smartass.” I roll my eyes on another laugh, but I also yawn.
“Tired?”
“I am, but that’s probably par for the course when you have a baby, right? Tired all the time.”
“My sister would agree. And definitely Flynn and Daisy. Twin boys are no joke.”
“Yeah, I don’t even want to think about having two Izzys right now. I can barely handle one as it is.” I grimace through a giggle, but when my eyes grow heavy, I find myself resting my head on Remy’s shoulder while he finishes feeding Izzy the bottle.
I’m just going to rest my eyes for a little bit, I mentally remind myself. Once Izzy is all fed, I’ll let Rem off the baby-caring hook.
Just a little catnap. That’s all…
Remy
My eyes pop open when the muscles in my leg jerk, and I jam my foot into something really fucking hard.
Ah, shit. That hurt.
I blink the remnants of sleep from my vision, looking around at surroundings that aren’t my apartment. When I note the fancy marble coffee table and practically all-white décor, I realize I’m still at Maria’s. One look to my left and I see Izzy sitting in her favorite vibrating chair. One look to my right and I find Maria sleeping beside me, still sitting up and her head resting on my shoulder.
Somewhere along the way, after I fed Izzy her bottle and put her in her swing, I decided it was a good idea to just…rest for a hot minute on Maria’s couch. She was already asleep, so I sat down beside her, but what I didn’t plan on doing was passing the fuck out.
What time is it?
As careful as I possibly can, I grab my phone off the coffee table, but when a soft groan leaves Maria’s lips, I freeze into a statue and silently pray I didn’t just wake up a sleep-deprived new mother for the mere purpose of checking the clock.
Once I’m certain she’s managed to stay asleep, I peek at the time and see it’s a little after eleven and I have a shit-ton of missed texts from my brothers.
I open our group chat and scan the messages that started a few hours ago.
Jude: What do you guys think about meeting up for a drink tonight? Say, in about an hour?
Ty: I think that’s a grand idea.
Flynn: We just saw one another at Winnie’s.
Jude: Yeah, but we didn’t get to bro-out, you know?
Ty: Exactly. We should definitely bro-out tonight. And I vote that Remy has to join us.
Jude: For sure. Rem, you HAVE to come.
These fuckers. I know exactly what they’re trying to achieve.
Flynn: Remy is going to see right through your bullshit.
Obviously, Flynn knows too.
Jude: What bullshit? How is wanting to spend time with my brothers bullshit?
Ty: Yeah, Flynn. What’s the deal? You sound like an asshole right now.
Flynn: If I’m an asshole, then you two are pussies who won’t just come out and ask Remy what is going on with him.
Bingo bango.
Jude: You know, I wasn’t even thinking about that, but now that you bring it up, Flynn, I am curious. What’s going on, Rem? You left the barbecue today in a rush.
Ty: You did leave in a rush, man. Right after you were on the phone with your old high school flame Maria. It’s all pretty strange if you ask me…
Jude: Very strange. Not to mention, it usually only takes Flynn this long to respond.
Flynn: You guys are fucking idiots.
My thoughts exactly, Flynn.
Jude: Remy, are you really just going to leave us hanging, man?
Ty: Talk about a real dick move.
There’re still another twenty or so messages in the chat, all of them revolving around Jude and Ty trying to con me into telling them what’s going on, but in the periphery of my left eye, I see Izzy’s little body is just barely starting to stir from the kind of deep sleep only a baby can achieve.
She pouts her lips and squirms her tiny legs, and I know I’m going to have to move my ass if I want to get to her before she starts crying and wakes up Maria.