“Well,” I began. “Mia’s house is great. It is. But I…”
“Might want something a bit more permanent?” she suggested gently.
“Yeah. Maybe.” I shrugged. “It’s dumb. I all but moved into the place by myself because Slash has been out of town. So it’s not like we’ve even had a trial run of living together. And here I am already thinking about something more permanent.”
“In or out, Brooklyn. In or out.”
“What’s that mean?”
“It means you can’t be half-in with the club. And, unfortunately, you’re in a position where you have to decide what you want, and quickly. You’re having Slash’s baby. If you weren’t, then you could take some time, figure shit out, because it would just be the two of you. But it’s not. You get that, right? This is happening, Brooklyn.”
“So basically, what you’re saying is,ready or not here we come!”
“Red rover, red rover, send Johnny right over,” she quipped. “Yeah. That’s what I’m saying. Slash will give you the moon—if you’re brave enough to ask for it.”
“I don’t want the moon.”
“What do you want?”
“I didn’t really have time to process that I was having a baby. I mean, I’djustfound out about it when Slash rolled back into town.” I walked over to the mobile and touched one of the bees. “My mom ran out on me when I was young. It was just me and my dad. I grew up with one parent, and I think I turned out okay.” I shrugged. “I was prepared to do this without Slash. But he came back and I…I don’twantto do it without him. I want him involved. But more than that, I want…”
“You want him to love you for you. Not just because you’re having his baby.”
I nodded. “Yes. I want that. But how will I ever know if he can love me one day? He stayed in town because he found out he was going to be a father. I can’tunknowthat.”
“But he came back to town before he knew you were pregnant, and he did that because ofyou,” she pointed out. “Didn’t he?”
“Because he wanted seconds,” I said dryly.
“I think you underestimate him.”
“I think I’m hormonal.”
The sound of the front door opening pulled my attention away from our conversation.
“Joni!” Mia called. “We’re here!”
“We’ll be right down!” Joni called back.
Joni stood, and we left the nursery. When we entered the kitchen, she asked, “Where’s Silas and Cam?”
Darcy opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of sparkling water. “Gray and Colt took them to the park to play soccer. Lily Burger, you hungry?”
“Can I have grilled cheese?” she asked.
“As it so happens,” Joni said as she walked over to the cabinet. “I just went to the store, because I had a feeling you were going to want a grilled cheese.”
“You’re the best, Aunt Joni!” Lily exclaimed, bouncing around the kitchen with sheer excitement.
“Hey, I thought I was the best the other day when I made you meatloaf,” Mia announced.
Lily made a face. “It was leftovers. And you made me eat a salad.”
“You’ll thank me when you’re a six-foot-tall ballerina,” Mia said in amusement. To me she said, “Kids. No gratitude.”
Tank belched a milky burp. Allison made a face. “No gratitude. And then they spit up on you.”
“I got you,” Joni said. She took the dishrag off the fridge handle and came toward Allison.