Page 85 of Hard Count
“Yeah, thank you, baby,” I say low enough only she can hear me.
“I probably would have seen you, too, if I wasn't so busy trying to get this guy’s attention.” Sydney throws a thumb in Koa’s direction.
“You had it,” he replies and kisses her cheek.
Seeing them happy stirs up all the guilt I felt for keeping them apart so long. Drew’s palm touches my cheek and invites me to lean toward her face. “They’re together now. It’slike me and my dad. We can’t change the past but we can build a future. They’re building their future.”
I swallow the lump in my throat. Not only from her words but from how well she reads me. Her thumb swipes over my lip leaving a trail of icing. “Oops.” Her shoulders scrunch as she starts giggling.
I make a show of licking the icing off my lip for Drew. “Almost as sweet as you, little fox.” I cuff the back of her neck and pull her in for a kiss. Koa pretends to gag and I punch his arm. “Imagine how I feel. You’re doing that to my sister.” I shudder.
“The feeling is mutual. He used to eat worms,” Sydney says, popping a gum drop in her mouth. “I feel like this is information you need to know.”
“I was four and you said they tasted just like gummy ones.” I glare at my sister.
“That’s disgusting. You’re both so wrong for that,” Drew says. She already has her whole house together and has started using tiny colored candies to create string lights on the roof.
“I was four,” I remind her.
“We should all go around the room and tell funny stories about Nash growing up,” Sydney suggests, eating more candy.
“I think that’s a great idea,” Koa says with a shit eating grin on his face.
“I’ll go first.” My mom wipes her hand on a towel and joins us at the table.
“We didn’t do this when Syd and Koa started dating,” I grumble.
“That’s because I already knew all of her embarrassing stories. We lived through most of them together. You two just met.” Koa waves a finger in our direction.
“Whatever. Have your fun,” I grumble. “I’m taking these.” I snatch the bowl of gum drops that are in front of Sydney. “You’ve already eaten your share.”
Ignoring Sydney’s pouting, my mom turns to Drew. “Do you want to hear about the magician or the astronaut era first?”
Drew’s eyes widen as she grins. “That’s a tough decision. I’m intrigued by the magician era though.”
“I learned some card tricks and would show them to everyone at night. That’s it. We should open presents.” I begin to stand but Koa pushes my shoulder down forcing me to sit.
“I feel like I’m missing a lot of context and several details. Was a top hat and cape involved?” she asks.
The doorbell rings—thank fuck—and there's a bit of commotion near the front door. “Yes. He had a bowtie and magic wand too,” my mom says, standing from her chair to see who’s at the door.
“This isn’t over,” Drew says to me. “I always thought you knew magic. I want a full show later tonight. I want to see all your tricks and your magic wand.”
“You better be talking about card tricks,” Koa grumbles.
“That was your dad, Drew. I sent him in with Davis. You should finish your houses so they can judge everything before we eat and open presents,” my mom says.
“These are going to be perfect. Thank you, honey.” My mom spins her new suitcase around.
“I guess we’re going to pretend like you didn’t pick them out, Ev,” my dad says, opening up his matching set. She levels him with a look, making him laugh.
“Where have you traveled?” Drew asks. She’s sitting behind me on the couch while her hand lazily scratches the back of my neck and head. She might lull me to sleep if she keeps at it.
“Lots of places. We’ve only been out of the country a few times. We went to Sydney, Australia for our honeymoon. Then we went to Nashville for our first anniversary,” my mom replies. Drew’s hand grips the back of my neck.
“Cute right?” Syd asks. “Being named after the city you were created in. I love that for me. Every time someone calls my name I’m reminded of where my parents had s-e-x.”
“Hate to break this to you but you’re a walking reminder that your mother and I had sex. We also did it in the Bahamas, Greece, Jamaica, and all the other places we traveled,” my dad says, giving Sydney a smirk.
