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CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Asher
“All packed?” I asked Mel.
“Yep.” She stood in front of her suitcase with a bright smile on her face. God, she was beautiful.
By the grace of God, her morning sickness had seemed to subside. Good thing, because we were leaving in the morning. It had been four days since Mel had gotten out of the hospital, and like her, I was ready to head home. We dreaded telling her mom about the unplanned pregnancy—despite how happy we were—but knew we needed to. We decided to wait until after we told her about that and the engagement to plan a small wedding.
“I think it would be a good idea to have a plan set before we tell your mom,” I suggested.
“You’re probably right. We have the entire car ride home to figure it all out. I don’t need a big fancy wedding or anything.”
“What?” I scoffed. “Of course, we do. I mean, I do. I want it all, Mel, all the bells and whistles. The music, the dancing, the flowers, the flower girl, the ring bearer, the cake, the people. Not everyone, but some.”
She laughed. “I don’t know any little girls that could be a flower girl or boys for a ring bearer.”
“Well, maybe we could rent them or something.”
Mel didn’t think that she needed a big fancy wedding with all the bells and whistles, but I put my foot down on that. We didn’t need a big wedding, but it could still have all the fancy-schmancy bells and whistles. No way was I going to marry her and have her regret anything. I supposed that went both ways. I was a guy, and guys didn’t usually care about elaborate weddings, but I must have been slapped by the frilly fairy because I wanted it all.
Brodie and Jackson decided to throw a party at the bar for our last night in Turtle Lake. Calling it an engagement party for Mel and me. She looked radiant, standing there in a pink dress. It had long sleeves and a rather low-cut bodice, which showed off her slightly larger than normal breasts. I guessed that was a baby thing. I liked it. They weren’t actually bigger, but they were plumper. I’d been reassured by my brothers that they would get even larger as the months went by.
“How the fuck do you know?” I asked Brodie.
“I read about it.”
“It’s true,” Jackson chimed in. “Lena has mentioned a few times that she can’t wait to get pregnant so her boobs get bigger.” He shrugged. “Though, I’m fine with the way the are.”
Mel and I didn’t know most of the people at the gathering, but everyone was full of congratulations and well wishes for us. Everyone oohed and ahhed over Mel’s ring. I’d picked it up in Redding the day I went with Brodie and Jackson. The day I’d almost lost the love of my life. They’d offered their vote of approval at the jewelry store.
After a couple of rounds of shots, all except Mel, we went up on the small stage with the rest of the band and performed a couple of numbers. It would be my last time playing my brothers, and it was a bittersweet feeling of joy and sorrow. It was amazing to me how much alike Jackson, Brodie and I were. Even with different mothers, it was clear that our father’s genes definitely dominated over our mothers’. We all had his green eyes, his dark, curly hair, even though Jackson’s was a bit straighter and his nose was straighter, too. We all loved spicy foods—the spicier, the better—and we all wore the same size shoes.
Though Brodie and Jackson told me that it wasn’t necessary to do the paternity test, I did it anyway. I figured they’d brought it up; I might as well do it. I didn’t have the results back yet. They said it would take about four weeks. I wasn’t worried about it. I knew.
Mel and I were sitting at a table with Brodie and Gabby, talking about nothing important. Brodie had told me about a faster way home through some back roads if I wanted to take them. Mel sipped on some sparkling cider and chit-chatted with Gabby. Jackson and Lena were sitting at the end of the bar, seeming very intense, as if they were talking about something very serious. Jackson smiled and kissed her then picked her up and swung her around before placing her back down.
He clinked his glass to get everyone’s attention. “Yo, everyone. I have some news. I’m going to be a dad!”
“What about me?” Lena giggled.
“Oh, yeah, my wife, she’s going to be keeping the little guy warm for eight more months.”
“Congratulations!” many shouted.
“So, it’s a boy?” I heard one lady ask. I couldn’t remember her name, but she’d been helpful when we were rescuing the women from the lake. She stood by Doc and grabbed his hand. I guessed they were a couple.
“Hell if I know. Do we know that, Lena?”
She giggled. “No. We don’t know yet.”
Jackson and Lena walked over to us. “Congratulations,” I said.
“Looks like my little brother won’t be the first to pass on the family name after all.”
“You were worried about that, were you?” I asked, sort of joking.
“Not really, well, maybe a little.”
