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She punched my shoulder. “I mean in general. Do you see kids in your future?”
“I don’t know. Not any time soon.” Then I remembered the day the previous weekend when Sara had brought Connor and Cassidy over, and Connor had proceeded to empty every cabinet in my kitchen. “I don’t suppose there’s any way to control what sort of personality they’ll end up with, is there?”
“We’ve already got one Connor in the family. No idea if that means we’re likely to end up with another just like him, or if the opposite is true.”
“We?” I said. “In the family? You realize you’re the one saying these things, right?” Not that I minded. I kind of liked the thought that she wanted me to be part of the family. That she was thinking about kids with me in the picture was a definite bonus.
“Hmm,” was all she said, and she cut me off from making any other points by kissing me. Her tongue glided along the seam of my lips, not that I needed much prodding to open for her.
When we broke apart a bit later, she asked, “What about Jamie and Katie? Do you think they want kids?”
“Want them? Yeah. Very much so. They’ve been trying to get pregnant, but I kind of doubt if it’ll happen.”
“Because of the chemo and all?”
“The doctors tell her it isn’t likely,” I said.
“So will they adopt if they can’t do it on their own?”
“No idea.” We’d talked about them trying to get pregnant, but this wasn’t a subject I felt comfortable broaching with him. Maybe he would bring it up with me, when he was ready to talk about it again.
Cadence fell silent for a minute. She leaned back against me and we watched some of the pranks the guys were pulling on each other on the newest episode of Impractical Jokers. In no time, we were both laughing so hard she could barely breathe, and I definitely snorted a time or two.
“How’d you find this show?” she asked me when it went to commercial break.
“Koz. He thinks it’s the best thing ever. He even tried to convince me to start up our own version of it—not for TV, just for fun.”
“But you didn’t want to?”
I shook my head. “Koz’s idea of fun things to do to me would equal torture. No doubt about it. He doesn’t recognize when he takes things too far. Social cues don’t click for him.”
“Yet you’re still friends with him…”
I shrugged. “I understand him. I mean, he’s not good in social situations. He doesn’t realize how he comes across. But he’s a good guy underneath it all. A jackass, sure. But he’s a good guy.”
“Seems to be a common thread between you two.”
“What do you mean?”
She tipped her chin up to look at me. “You don’t see yourself the way the rest of the world sees you. He doesn’t understand how he presents himself. I get it. That’s all.”
“You don’t mind that I’m friends with him, do you? I swear, I won’t let him pull something with you.” Not that it was easy. I was constantly reminding the guy that he was behaving like a jerk, and that he couldn’t say certain things to people because it was rude. He just had no clue.
Cadence shook her head. “I think I love you more because of it. The same as I love you more because of how you are with Sophie. You see the good in people, even when no one else can. I only wish you could see it in yourself more often.”
“I do, though.”
“Do you?” She looked skeptical.
“I’m starting to, at least. You’ve helped with that. And Hammer. He’s constantly reminding me that I’m doing exactly what I should be, but I need to believe in myself more. It’s sinking in, a bit at a time.”
She kissed me again. This time, we both lingered over it, not wanting to separate at all.
After a few minutes, we settled back against the couch and returned our attention to the show on TV. At the next commercial break, though, I knew it was time.
I picked up the remote and muted it.
“What?” she asked.
