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ou?”
“I’m Vaughn Merrill.”
My pulse zinged when I heard his familiar voice, but that was probably just because my system was preparing for my blood pressure to skyrocket with anger as it always did in Vaughn’s company.
“Merrill?” Beau repeated. “You the dead guy’s brother, then?”
“Beau!” I hissed. But, oh my God, how had I been related to this inconsiderate buffoon my entire life? Though, you know, his influence on me was probably the reason I accidentally had my own inconsiderate moments more often than I wanted to.
He glanced at me with a shrug. “Want me to let him in?”
Did I? I kind of dreaded going another round with Vaughn; I was still worn out from giving birth less than twenty-four hours before. But he was Ava’s uncle. It’d feel rude to turn him away. Besides, I was curious to know why he was here to begin with. I hadn’t seen hide nor hair of him since I’d asked for a picture of Duke. And oddly, I was sort of eager for the strange dopamine hit of enraged vitality that rushed through me whenever I was in his presence.
Huh? Was I that addicted to arguing with people? I was such a weirdo.
Lifting a hand, I waved my assent to Beau. “I mean, yeah. Whatever. He’s her family.”
The nurse, then Beau, stepped aside, and I got my first full view of Vaughn in months. The gift bag he held had a pastel rainbow on the side with a teddy bear sliding down it into a pile of clouds. It looked really strange in his terse, grumpy possession.
I blinked at him as he uneasily stepped into the room.
“How did you know…?” I started, shaking my head in wonder.
“I called the hospital to see if you were here,” he answered before gulping and wincing guiltily when he added, “Every day for the past three weeks.”
I’m not sure why hearing that hit me the way it did, but this wave of emotion rippled through me. I just couldn’t imagine someone caring that much and going through—
Though yeah, you’re right; it was probably Ava he’d cared about getting information on, not me.
So I think I hid my feelings rather well when I rolled my eyes and muttered, “Oh, geez. You could’ve just called me, you know, if you wanted baby updates. Or did you lose my contact card?”
“No.” He shook his head and heaved out a heavy sigh. “I still have it. I just—I wasn’t sure if you’d want to see me again after last time since I was kind of a…”
When words failed him and he shamefully lowered his face, I helpfully supplied, “A jerk? You were a jerk.”
He glanced up, and his voice cracked when he said, “Yeah. Sorry about that.”
I shrugged, realizing I actually wasn’t mad about his past behavior anymore, or even if I really ever had been. “It’s okay,” I told him, not wanting him to feel bad about any of it either. It was all water under the bridge. “You were still in the middle of mourning. And I could’ve been a lot more empathetic and patient with you.”
I squinted at his face, wondering how he was doing these days, grieving-wise. It was hard to tell, though; he was such a closed-off kind of guy. So very different from how his brother had been.
“What happened last time?” nosy Beau asked, making air quotes when he spoke.
“None of your business,” I snapped at him, before returning my attention to Vaughn. “This is my brother, Beau, by the way. And his wife, Bentley.”
Vaughn hitched up his chin silently to Beau, then dragged his gaze across the room to the rocking chair where Bentley still sat. He started to give her a respectful nod, but then the baby in her arms made a noise, and he jolted, instantly dropping his attention to the bundle.
The air hissed from his lungs, and I held my breath, anxious for his reaction. I’d been in this strange, dazed sense of awe since the moment the nurse had placed my daughter into my arms. She was just so—
I couldn’t even come up with the proper words to describe the humbling sense of honor I experienced, knowing she was mine to raise and nurture and spend the rest of my life loving. It didn’t feel as if I should deserve such a prize.
I wanted everyone else to experience that same overwhelming sense of peace and joy in her presence as well. And it seemed like Vaughn was the perfect tough and judgmental candidate to really test her power of influence on. I mean, if he was impressed by her, then my own assessment would be validated.
Lips parting, Vaughn set the gift bag down next to where he was standing in the middle of the room, and he drifted toward the rocking chair as if a rope were towing him in against his free will.
“And that’s Ava Grace,” I said softly.
“Ava?” He glanced my way. “It’s a girl?”
