Page 89 of Love Is Ale You Need

“Princesses!” She shouts. A wide toothy grin covers her face as if she didn’t break her arm six hours ago.

Twenty minutes into the movie, Abby’s softly snoring as she’s cuddled into my side. But there is nowhere else I’d rather be right now.

THIRTY-TWO

BABY BOOM

Trey

“Look at this. You can have custom explosives made.” I stare at my phone screen while leaning against the headboard in her bedroom.

After our movie and mini sleepover night, I’ve made it a habit of staying over at Rylee’s apartment. Instead of the occasional once or twice a week, I’ve upped it to four or five nights. Going to sleep and waking up next to Rylee is my second favorite activity. Granted, my king size bed would give us more room, but her queen gives me an excuse to cuddle next to her. While I would love for her to move into my place, Rylee says it’s easier on Abby since all her toys are here. Instead of pushing the matter, I’ll take the breadcrumbs she’ll give me because I know eventually those breadcrumbs will get bigger and bigger until it’s an entire four course meal. It’s a lot for Rylee to give up and she’s not ready to do that. One thing at a time.

Rylee’s in the same position as me, leaning against the headboard, flipping through the pages of a baby magazine. Without sparing a glance my way, she asks, “What are you talking about?”

“For the gender reveal party. You can get custom explosives. When they detonate, a cloud of whatever colored powder shoots into the air.” I motion my hands like an explosive blowing up.

“Are you trying to start a wildfire?” She continues flipping through the pages.

“No, but it looks cool as shit. I wonder if they'll make one that spells out baby when it explodes? It would bring a new meaning to baby boom.”

Finally, she lifts her head. Her lips trimmed to a harsh line. “We’re not blowing anything up, and why are you looking up gender reveal parties?” Her tone is sharp.

“I thought it would be kind of fun to have one.” I point to my screen. “How about this? We could hire a sky writer to fly above the house to show everyone if it’s a boy or girl.”

“That’s a little excessive, don’t you think?”

“Nothing is ever excessive. Oh. Let’s do this.” I hold out my phone so she can see the black sports car. “We can rent a car and when you rev the engine, it shoots out colored smoke revealing the gender.”

“I don’t even know if I want to have a party.”

“Nonsense. We have to have a party. How about this? We can wrangle an alligator and have it chomp down on a melon to reveal the gender. Though I don’t know where I’ll find an alligator in Minnesota.” I rub my chin.

“Trey. Stop. You’re not listening to me.” She slaps my phone out of my hands. “I don’t need a party. I don’t want a party. I don’t need the pregnancy yoga, or the pregnancy walking group you signed us up for.” She points to the far side of her small bedroom where bags and boxes of baby things are stacked. “I don’t need any baby things. You got it covered for the next five years. Pretty soon, I’m going to be making tunnels out of baby things so I can navigate from one room to the other. Just. Please. Stop. I’m a fucking bartender with a depleting bank account with a baby on the way and you’re obsessed with gender reveal parties. I just want you to take this seriously.” She throws the blanket off and swings her legs over the side of the bed. She storms out of the room and down the hallway.

“Fuck.” I scrub my hands down my face. This isn’t what I wanted to happen. In fact, this is the opposite of what I wanted to happen. Quiet sniffles echo down the hallway from the living room. Double fuck.

Rolling out of bed, I follow her. In the living room, she’s sitting in the dark on the edge of the couch. Her shoulders shake with silent sobs. With cautious footsteps, I inch my way into the living room and lower myself onto the cushion next to her. She leans into me, and I wrap my arm around her shoulders. She buries her head into my chest as her tears roll down my bare stomach.

“I’m sorry, Rye. I only want what’s best for you and our acorn. I’m here. I’ll always be here. For anything you need.”

She sniffles before wiping away her tears. “I know. I’m sorry I blew up at you. Everything is just… a lot. It’s so much, so fast. I’ve had to do so much by myself, so it’s hard to accept the help and support. I never got that with Kyle. Even six years later.” She sniffles. “I’m stressing out and I took it out on you. I’m sorry. While I appreciate the enthusiasm, can we slow things down? Starting with no gender reveal party.”

I rest a finger under her chin, lifting her gaze to meet mine. “Of course. I’ll cool it with all the baby stuff. We have the sealed envelope with the gender, if you want to rip it open. Kind of like a band-aid.”

She presses her lips together. “Let’s wait.”

I nod. “I know it’s a boy anyway, so it’s cool.”

She glances up at me. “And how do you know that? Did you peek?”

“I wished for it. Threw a quarter into a wishing well too. Screw that penny crap. That gets you nothing.”

A small smile curls on her lips. “That’s not how it works.”

“I wished for you and that came true.” Her sweet laugh fills the dark room as she playfully shoves at my chest. I wrap my arms around her, holding her to me so she can’t move. “It’s true.” I continue to hold her close. “The offer to move in with me still stands. Then you wouldn’t need to build those tunnels.”

“Trey…”

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