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“Cole!” Brooke called, waving at him from the family room. “Nicole left a diaper present, and it’s your turn.”
“I did the last one,” Cole said. “Remember? This morning? Right after her bath?”
“Yes, but I changed one on the plane.”
“I thought that one was just wet.”
“Nope. It was a three-wiper. I predict at least four for this one.” Brooke wrinkled her nose, holding the baby out as far as her arms would stretch.
“Sorry, Jarrett. Looks like duty calls.” Cole started toward the family room. “But maybe you should come with me for training.”
“No, thanks,” said Jarrett. “Gabe’s already potty trained. I’ll let you have this pleasure all to yourself.”
* * *
Due to weather delays,it was four thirty when Bran and Steph Knight and their three kids finally arrived from New York, along with Finn and Laurie Anderson and their baby. Anxious to talk to them before his neighbors arrived, Jarrett caught Bran and Steph in the kitchen making sandwiches for the kids, while Finn supervised their work and entertained them with an update on his audacious mother’s latest antics.
Jarrett explained all about Gabe while considering how to break the news about Carlie. To their credit, none of his friends even mentioned the possibility that Gabe might not survive. They had always had a positive attitude where Jarrett’s cancer was concerned and expressed the same sentiments toward Gabe.
“We’ll all pray you can make this work,” said Bran, practicing his uncanny skill of looking someone in the eye, despite his complete blindness.
“Laurie’s going to be so mad she missed this,” Finn said, with a slight English accent he’d acquired from his mother. He glanced over at his wife, who was asleep on the couch, the result of the sleeping pill she’d taken to combat her extreme fear of flying. Their newly adopted four-month-old daughter, Larkin, was currently sound asleep, strapped to Finn’s chest. She’d had retinoblastoma, the same cancer that had caused Bran to lose his eyesight as an infant. Cancer-free with the removal of her second affected eye, she was happy and healthy, though blind. Since she’d been almost completely deprived of human contact the first months of her life, Finn and Laurie were attempting to make up the deficit by “wearing” her as much as possible.
“I hope you can get Gabe over here and gain permanent custody,” said Steph, as she spread peanut butter on slices of bread and handed them to Finn for jelly, assembly line fashion. “Ford would love getting to play with him, since they’re both three years old. And I bet Ellie would try to mother him, like she always does.”
“Our Lily just turned four, but she acts like she’s the same age as Ellie,” said Bran, “so she’ll probably try to order Gabe around, like she does Ford.”
“I know it’s hard to navigate the adoption system,” Finn said, as he put the lid on the jelly. “It took us a year to go through the process for Larkin.”
“Since Gabe has this medical emergency, I thought I could get a special approval as his permanent guardian. Or at least be on track to adopt.” Jarrett glanced at his cell phone, noting the time. It was almost five o’clock. Hopefully his neighbors would come a little late and give him time to prepare his friends.
“Well, it’s ridiculous that they’re giving you a hard time.” Steph pursed her lips. “Did you tell them you can afford a full-time nanny?”
“Believe me, they know how much money I have. And I know they’re trying to do what’s best for Gabe. But I think it will tear him up to be with me while he’s getting treatment and then get placed with someone else as his parents. I know it will tear me up.” Jarrett cleared his throat. Carlie was due to show up any minute and he still hadn’t warned his friends. “By the way, I invited my new next-door neighbor, Rylie, to come for dinner. Turns out we knew each other in college.”
“I hope she likes babies,” said Finn, tilting his head toward the stairs where Nicole’s screams of protest wafted down. Evidently, she was letting Cole and Brooke know she wasn’t in the mood for a nap, despite the fact she’d been rubbing her eyes. “Larkin’s even louder than that when she’s mad.”
“She loves kids,” Jarrett said, remembering Rylie liked volunteering at the children’s hospital. “And she’s bringing her sister. They’re twins.”
“That sounds fun.” Steph said. “We just need to make sure they use the hand sanitizer, like the rest of us.”
Since both Finn and Ellie suffered from cystic fibrosis, which made them susceptible to infections, everyone was careful to avoid spreading germs.
“And about Rylie’s sister… I actually knew her in college, too.”
The doorbell rang, and Ellie raced for the door. “I’ll get it.”
“Wait!” said Steph, running after her with a bottle of hand sanitizer.
Jarrett called after her, “I didn’t finish telling you about—”
“Don’t worry, Jarrett,” said Finn, as he moved toward the door. “We won’t scare your new neighbors away.”
“That’s not what I’m worried about,” Jarrett mumbled.
Ellie flung the door open, and Jarrett’s stomach turned itself inside out. He stared at the open doorway, waiting to see the woman who’d single-handedly ended his life nine years ago. His chest clenched tight the moment she stepped foot into the room, her long, silky legs peaking from under a green sun dress. Eyes like pieces of sky sought his and sent his pulse racing, before aiming at the floor.
“Hi,” she said, her lips stretching in an awkward smile when Steph gasped.
