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“We make beautiful, smart, and powerful babies, Dial Birch.”

“I think she gets it all from me,” she teased.

“Shit, I’ve been told on more than one occasion how handsome I am.”

“I’m not gonna refute that.”

“Are you flirting with me? ’Cause I flirt back.”

“Ozzie…” I suspected her cheeks were flushed with warmth.

“When do I get to kiss you again? Because I need that badly, like air.”

“This is a children’s party.”

“And every last one of these babies are here because of a little kissing.”

“More than kissing.”

“If that’s on the menu, I’ll take some of that too.”

“You’re not gonna behave, are you?”

“No, ma’am. I’m all kinds of unruly when it comes to you.” My hand landed on her waist and I caressed the sliver of flesh peeking through. I’d missed the feeling of her underneath me. Against her velvet skin, my calloused hand felt out of place as it came to rest on the base of her spine, just above her ass. I indulged in the nearness of her before she thought better of our being this close and inched away. My eyes danced across her face, and I relished the slight hint of excitement that flashed in hers.

I should create a list of all the spots on her body my lips needed to kiss. The catalog would be exhaustive because I missed every part of her, from the underside of her perfect breasts to the backs of her knees. When I kissed her there, she’d get to giggling. Dial Birch didn’t giggle often, but when she did, it was the sweetest melody to my ears.

“What are you two doing?” Edison seemed to appear from nowhere, followed by my sister.

I dropped my arm while Dial created space between us. “Nothing,” we said in unison.

“Love the equestrian-themed party and the touches of pink,” Fancy gushed.

“Thanks for coming, and for the showstopping performance. I felt like I was at the Grammys,” Dial said.

Dial Birch had paid my sister a genuine compliment. Someone go check to see if hell has frozen over.

“My pleasure,” Fancy replied.

“Shit, growing up, I would’ve killed for a party like this, pink decorations and all,” Edison said.

“I always wondered why we couldn’t have a party at the roller rink or the knock-off Chuck E. Cheese,” Dial said.

“According to Dad, we had Chuck E. Cheese at home.” Edison laughed.

“Yeah, and it was just him with whiskers painted on his face,” Dial added. We all shared in a chuckle, and my hand came to rest on the back of Dial’s neck. This moment reminded me of the past, with Dial and I showing up hand in hand to a party or cookout. It was crazy how easy it was for us to fall into our old routine.

Fancy’s eyes bugged out, and Edison jerked his head back.

“What’s happening?” Fancy asked.

Dial brushed my hand away. “Nothing. It’s nothing.”

“Bullshit.” Cyrus approached with a rainbow painted on his left cheek. “You two haven’t been a foot apart all afternoon. Spill.”

“There is nothing to spill.” Dial was a hell of a liar.

“Are you two back together?” Edison’s tone was timid, as if his words could detonate a land mine.