“I really do need to get going, though,” I said, motioning at the small child still clinging to me. “I’d take her with me, but I’m afraid it’s not the safest place for a three-year-old.”
“Oh, my gosh, right. I’m so sorry,” Saryn said, reaching for her daughter and peeling her off of me.
“I see even the young ones attach themselves to you still, Carter,” Ryan shouted.
“Ha ha, I’ll see you tomorrow night?” I asked as I put the swatch back on the passenger seat of my truck and made my way to the driver’s side.
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Ryan stated.
“Tomorrow night?” Saryn asked, glancing between the two of us.
“Bachelor party for one of our friends,” Ryan said, taking Liliana out of Saryn’s arms, then flying her around like an airplane.
One quick look at Saryn and I nodded, smiled, then slipped into my truck. “I’ll give you an update on the playhouse in the next few weeks.”
“Okay. Thank you, Truitt. And again, I’m sorry you had to come over here to track me down. I didn’t mean to avoid your calls. Most of the time my phone is on silent.”
“No worries.”
“Well, I really am sorry you had to come over.”
With a wink, I replied, “I’m not.”
Before she could reply or I could see the look on her face, I started my truck and slowly turned around and headed down the driveway. I gripped the steering wheel as I attempted to slow my racing heart.
Paul sat down next to me and handed me a beer as Rus, my ten-month-old silver lab, looked up and then promptly laid back down when no signs of a ball could be found. “Thanks for coming, Truitt. I know how busy you are.”
I took the beer from him and pulled a long drink from it. “Dude, it’s not very often I get to take a day off, and no better reason to do it than a bachelor party.”
He grinned like a fool, then looked out over the deck. Paul’s family owned a house out on Lake Cannon, and he had asked a group of us to come celebrate the last few days of his freedom.
“You look happy,” I said.
Turning to face me, he nodded. “I am happy. She makes me happy. I tell ya, Truitt, I never thought it would be me going down this path, you know? I figured I’d be like Roger, carefree and hooking up with women when and where I pleased.”
At that moment I looked over and found my brother deep in conversation with Pete. They had hit it off when I first introduced them, back when Pete was new in town. The doctor and the lawyer. Perfect pair.
“Roger puts on a good show, but I think it’s starting to weigh on him. That, or my mother’s nagging for him to settle and give her grandbabies.”
Paul looked out over the balcony, some intense expression on his face. Worry?
“You’re not having second thoughts, are you, about getting married?” I asked.
He snapped his head and looked at me. “Hell no. I want to marry Lisa more than I want my next breath. It’s just, we’ve had something unexpected come up.”
“Something good or bad?” I asked.
Paul lifted the beer to his lips and took a long drink. Then he let out a breath and faced me. “Lisa’s pregnant.”
“What? Holy shit, dude, congratulations,” I said, reaching my hand out to shake his, then pulling him in for a quick bro hug and slap on the back. “This is a good thing, right?”
He rubbed at the back of his neck. “Yeah, I mean, it’s just faster than I had wanted. I want kids, don’t get me wrong, but I was hoping to spend some time with Lisa first. You know, travel, go on last-minute trips, stay out as late as we wanted. All the things couples do when they don’t have kids yet.”
My eyes searched our group of friends and it hit me. Not one of us had kids yet. How had that possibly happened? Some friends of ours who did have kids had left our group not long after, stating that hanging out with a bunch of single guys wasn’t going to go down well with their wives. Or they simply never got the time to get away.
“Paul, you and Lisa have dated what, three years now?”
“Yeah, almost four.”
“And in those four years, you’ve traveled, stayed out and partied till all hours of the night, and did all those things that couples without kids do. Just because you’re now going to have a piece of paper tying you together doesn’t mean your life is any different.”
He looked at me and a slow grin moved across his face. “Shit, man, you’re right, we have been able to do all of that.”
“Do you think y’all will miss the late nights?”