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I had two options. Put my stuff down, find my phone (I had no idea which bag I’d stuffed it in) and try her that way. Bud was here, so chances were high that Nikki was babysitting, but her phone always seemed off so the probability of that working was nil.
My other choice: “Nikki!Nikki!NIKKI!”
She came out from the back hallway, her shirt hanging down one arm, doing up her pants, and her hair was all frayed everywhere.
I—
I couldn’t.
Not at all.
Her eyes went wide seeing me, and she cringed.
Her face was all red and splotchy.
Her lips swollen.
She came over, cursing under her breath, and unlocked the door. She opened the door, stepping back. I stepped in, and hissed under my own breath, “You just got laid! While you’re babysitting!”
More cringing from her, but she shut both doors and swung around to me. “I—” She took in my bags, and surmised the contents in my bag, and her eyes got round all over again. “Oh no, Cale.”
I wrinkled my nose at her. “Don’t ‘Cale’ me in that tone. Babysitting. You! Bud locked the door on me.”
“Bud?!” She whirled around.
And Bud decided to come running back down the hall, yelling at the top of his lungs, arms in the air. Still naked.
“Bud!” she gasped, rushing to him. “What are you doing here?”
She lunged right.
He jumped left.
She jumped left.
He dodged, then climbed up on a chair.
“BUD!”
Still giggling, he got up on the kitchen counter, and ran the length of it. He was fast approaching the point where he’d be caught or have to jump because across from him was the refrigerator.
I heard Nikki draw in a swift breath of air, at the exact same time as I held mine.
He launched—
“BU—”
He was caught mid-air by two muscular arms.
He was curled up to a very manly and shirtless chest, and he was carried the rest of the way into the living area where I was still standing, still holding all my bags, still clutching that whiskey because I was still hoping to crack this sucker open tonight and drown every last sorrow.
“Uncle Cream!” We werestillon the high-pitched theme here. That was coming from Bud, and he was pulling with all his might at his Uncle Brad’s hair.
There was a story behind why Brad was nicknamed Cream, but I never heard it—actually, I never wanted to hear it. I was hoping to go through my entire life not knowing…and now onto the weird family awkwardness here.
Brad and Nikki were not boyfriend/girlfriend, or at least I hadn’t been updated on an official relationship status.
What they were, though, were siblings to Bud’s parents. Nikki’s sister married Brad’s brother, and their first shindig that resulted in my best friend having to do up her pants happened the night their siblings were married.
