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Although it may be too soon to pass judgement, something about Kennedy makes me feel relaxed. She doesn’t seem like the kind of woman who would have only married Ben for his success.
“I don’t want to impose on you guys,” I say. “I’ve been here long enough to overstay my welcome anyways.”
Kennedy waves a dismissive hand and shifts the baby to her other hip. “This is Annika.”
“She’s adorable. How old is she?”
“Ten months.” Kennedy smiles and holds her out to me. “Here. She isn’t going to stop squirming until she sees you.”
I take a step back and shake my head. “She’s adorable, but I don’t think that handing me a baby is the best idea. I don’t have much experience with them.”
Kennedy rolls her eyes and continues to hand Annika to me. “As long as you don’t drop her, you’ll be fine. Now, come on. We’re having our weekly dinner and you’re part of the band again. That means that you’re expected to come to the dinner too.”
“I don’t want to impose…”
“Cassie, you’re staying for dinner. Come inside and get comfortable. You’re going to be here a lot which means you’re going to see a lot of me. The way to make this entire situation less awkward is to force the boys to get over their issues.”
“Matt and Ben aren’t the problem.” I look down at Annika as she pulls on my hair gently. “Hey kiddo, if you pull any of that out, we’re going to have a problem.”
Annika squeals and says something that I’m not sure is a word before letting go of my hair. She leans her head on my shoulder, her soft blond hair tickling my chin. Kennedy looks over her shoulder at us with a smile.
“I know they’re not. Believe me, after the last seven years, I know who the problem is.” Kennedy leads the way through the colorful house and into the kitchen.
The scent of garlic and basil wafts through the kitchen. My stomach growls as I round the kitchen island with her. Kennedy makes a face at Annika before leaning over the pot on the stove and looking inside.
“I hope you like meatballs.” Kennedy grabs a silicon spoon and sticks it into the pot, stirring around the meatballs. “There’s going to be some noodles and cheesy garlic bread too. Although, if you want a slice of that, you’re going to have to be faster than the boys.”
“Is there anything I can do to help?” I look around the kitchen, taking in the dark green cabinets and the butcher block countertop. “Your kitchen is my dream.”
“It was the first part of the house we renovated when we moved in.” Kennedy opens one of the cabinets and takes down a container of cocoa. She pops it open and sprinkles some into the sauce before giving it a stir. “I know the chocolate might seem weird with meatballs, but it adds this really good flavor to everything.”
“I never would have thought to add that.”
“Me neither. Happened when I was pregnant. The cravings with Annika were wild. I swear, when Ben was home I had him running out at every hour of the night to get me something. As for what you can do to help, just keep Annika entertained please. If you don’t, she’ll be crawling around and trying to eat dirt from the plant in the dining room.”
Laughing, I bounce the baby on my hip. “I think I can do that.”
Annika pulls back to put her chubby little hands on either side of my face before blowing a spit bubble. I lift the collar of her pink dinosaur onesie and wipe away the drool that dribbles down her chin. She shrieks with laughter as Kennedy turns on some music.
Humming along with the song, I start to dance us around the kitchen. Kennedy sings along as she pours pasta into a pot of boiling water before sliding garlic bread into the oven.
The door opens and the rest of the band walk in as I’m dipping Annika low. She squeals as I stand up straight and bring her back to me. I stop in my tracks as Ben stands there and stares at me.
“I should have reached out to you,” Ben says, his voice chocked. “I can’t believe that I let our friendship go like that.”
I shrug and start dancing with Annika again. “I wouldn’t have answered you even if you’d called. Not in that first year at least. I needed some time to get over my anger and move on with my life.”
Ben nods, but there is still a sadness lingering in his blue eyes as he watches me with his daughter. “I wish that we could have grown up together. We were too young to be making the decisions that we did, and we believed that Tony had our best intentions at heart. He still does. Most of the time, at least. When he suggested bringing you back for the show, Matt and I jumped on the idea right away. We’ve missed you, Cassie.”
“Speak for yourself,” Tyler says, glaring at me as he walks over to the dining table. He sits down in one of the wooden chairs and crosses his arms. “I didn’t want you to come back. We don’t need you here. You should have stayed away.”
I keep the smile on my face until I turn my back to him. Annika wriggles around before leaning back into my shoulder. I smile and hold her a little closer.
With this hometown show, I’m going to be able to afford my dream house. I won’t have the family to fill it yet — not like Ben does — but one day I’m going to have it all. Even if it means that all I do is teach guitar for the rest of my life.
Matt grins as he tosses his arm around my shoulder and pulls me in for a hug. “I really have missed you, Cassie. I’ve kept up with you on social media for a couple years now, but I couldn’t bring myself to send a message after all that we did to you.”
I lean into his side, emotions crashing through me like waves in the middle of a hurricane. At the same time as I want to scream at them, I also want to forgive them fully and move on. I thought that I got rid of the anger a long time ago, but I didn’t. There is still some hurt lingering when I look around and see all that the band has accomplished.
