Page 51 of Dibs
I bite my lip because it sounds so foreign to my ears, and then I nod. “Thanks. Um, I’m pregnant, so I’ll be having one of these adorable things before too long. We’re over the moon about starting our family.”
“Congratulations.” Sean seems to mean it. “You always did want a big family.”
I sigh. “Yeah. I guess you let me believe you did, too, huh? Anyway…Sean, I have forgiven you, you know. It took some time, but it’s in the past. And, uh, if you want the blender or PlayStation back, I guess you could have them.”
Sean shrugs. “It’s just stuff, Asp. I replaced them. Was I mad at the time? Yep. You were smart to block my cell phone number.” He gives a small smile. “I deserved it.”
Quinn steps out of the shadows with a pleased look on her face, and I jump up to hug her tightly. “Hey, mama!”
“I should say the same to you,” Quinn replies with an ear-to-ear grin. “I can’t believe you haven’t told me about your pregnancy yet! How’s it going?”
“Nauseatingly?” I wince, and Quinn pulls me into the kitchen. She hands me a big package of candied ginger, and she tells me they’re the best thing she’d found aside from cherry ginger ale to help with nausea.
“Thank you. It’s so good to see you. I’ve been knocked on my ass since early January, and now I finally feel like I’m in the land of the living again. Just had a chance to meet your little bundle of joy, and he’s so perfect!” I hug her again and whisper, “You’re doing such a good job. He’s a spitting image of you.”
She fills a teakettle with water. “Thank you, my friend. Vincent is the best thing I have ever done, hands down. Hey, I’ll make you some peppermint tea. I swear by that too. How’s Deacon? The most excited father-to-be on the planet?"
I giggle. “You could say that. He’s already planning a gender-neutral nursery with tons of yellow and purple. I told him purple is for girls, but he reminds me it’s my favorite color, so that’s what the theme will be. He painted the walls a pale yellow and bought this huge sunset sticker-thing for the top corner of one of the walls. He knows how much I love sunsets. He pays attention.”
Quinn gives me a little smile. “That guy loves the hell out of you. Smart man. You’re the best, you know. Sorry to surprise you with Sean’s presence.”
I shrug my shoulders and smile. “It’s okay. I’m not upset. We exchanged some words that needed to be said.”
Quinn squeezes my shoulders. “Do you think I did the right thing letting Sean come here?”
I glance through the doorway in the kitchen and spot Sean changing Vincent’s diaper on the far wall of the guest house.
“I hope so. He wants to be better. I wouldn’t allow him to be your boyfriend because that’s not what he’s good at, but I’d consider letting him be a father to Vincent if he keeps up with therapy,” I tell her honestly.
It takes everything in me to give him credit where it’s due—he’d resisted therapy for a decade when he was with me, and now he has a beautiful son, and he’s taken the initiative to get into counseling on his own.
Wonders never cease, and sometimes, people surprise you.
When the tea is ready, Quinn pours me a mug and hands me organic honey to sweeten it. We sit in the kitchen, warmed by the afternoon sunlight through her large windows, with a great view of Pike’s Peak through the window above her sink.
“We’re so lucky to live near such beauty,” I smile as I glance out the window in awe. “I never tire of it.”
“Neither do I. Honestly, I feel luckier every day now that I’m Vincent’s mama. It’s incredible how motherhood changesyour life, redefines your definition of love, and everything you thought you knew about it. There’s nothing quite like it.”
“Speaking of love, did you hear that both Emmett and Stefanie, and Wendy and Jett got engaged? And I hear Bear found a ring. It’s officially the wedding season!” My friends had reluctantly let Quinn into our friend group, and she’d become especially close with Tara.
“That’s amazing! No, I had no idea. I’ve been in my own little world here, enjoying my three months off. The fact that I have to go back to work seems cruel and unusual. In Canada, they get an entire year of maternity leave, and even have paternity leave.”
“We’re the only developed nation that doesn’t have federally mandated maternity leave,” I tell her, remembering reading that in the newspaper recently. “It tells you what society values, and that’s not the unpaid labor of motherhood.”
“It’s the most fulfilling labor you’ll ever do. Yeah, I’m exhausted, but even at 2 a.m., I’m happy to see Vincent’s sweet face and hear his little cry.” Quinn smiles serenely, and I hope I have a similar experience. “And Aspyn? Thank you again for chasing me out to the Range Rover on Christmas. I don’t think I ever thanked you properly for changing the course of my life for the better. You’re selfless, you know that? That’s going to make you an amazing mom.”
I sniffle, holding back tears, and nod. “Thanks, girl. And thank you for listening and not assuming I was a vindictive ex-girlfriend blowing smoke up your ass. I’m so glad we’re friends. Even if it’s a trauma bond.” I chuckle. “And I’m so glad you can walk me through my pregnancy and all the unknowns about delivery and postpartum.”
“There’s so much they don’t tell you. But hey, let’s not worry about that just now. Why don’t we get lunch? I have Sean here on baby duty, so I can leave the house for the first time in whatfeels like…forever.” Quinn sends me a bright smile as she stands and shoulders her purse.
I follow her through the living room as she tells Sean, “If you think this might be a test, that’s because it is. Have any questions before we go?”
Sean shrugs. “I don’t think so. I know where the refrigerated bottles are and how to warm them up. I do listen when you talk, you know.”
“That’s new,” I retort, but I lighten it up with a grin. “And welcome.”
“I’m trying,” Sean says, and I know he is. I can tell.
