Page 89 of Keep Me Never
When she gets to me, she squeezes. “Kind of annoyed you’re not staying with me this weekend, especially since Nate has a game and won’t be home until Sunday, but I hope you’re at least getting laid sleeping in Chase’s bed.”
“Lolli, what the hell?” Chase nearly laughs, but mine spills into her ear instantly.
I pull back, smiling as I look down at her “costume” pajamas. “Mrs. Claus for Halloween. Nice.”
She grins. “Meh, it was the only thing that made sense.”
“Can I?” I ask.
She nods, watching as I place my hand on her little belly, feeling how hard it already is.
“Not too much longer now,” I say as we start walking again, this time a little faster to catch up to the others a couple houses down.
“Four more months. I can’t wait to get her out of me. She’s so fucking heavy that I swear to god I feel like I’m gonna be the first person to give birth to a mammoth of a baby. I don’t know how Payton survived this. It’s terrible and not cute.”
“I think you’re adorable.”
“Yeah, well, you can still see your vagina, so…” She huffs, taking a sip of the drink Cam made and makes an appreciative face. “Not bad.”
“Thanks.” Cam grins, but it turns into a smirk when she faces forward and says, louder than necessary. “If anyone else needs a mocktail over a cocktail, it’s right there, ready for the pouring…”
A small frown forms between my brows, but I forget all about the comment when Deaton runs over with Skittles in his hand.
“Uncle Brady, look!” Brady promptly scoops him up. “I got a big candy! It’s the kind you like. You want to share some?”
“Oh, heck yeah, I do. But let’s put it in the bucket for right now, and see what else you can snag tonight, hmm?”
“K!” He kicks his feet, and the second they touch the ground, he runs back to the little group of kids we’ve been trailing.
“I can’t believe how big he is already.” Lolli smiles at Deaton, her eyes moving back to Payton. “Parker misses him like crazy, you know?”
Payton smiles at her son, nodding. “I miss my brother, too, but I’m so glad we got a permanent place on campus for the year. Being away from Mason…” She shakes her head. “Besides, my brother’s best friend is about to have a baby that he can spend all his free time playing with.”
“Please. What free time? The boy stays busy.” She smirks. “But, yeah. He might be more excited than I am,” she jokes.
The night carries on like this for the next few hours—easy, teasing conversations and honest interest between friends. Mason and Payton walk with Deaton along the row of houses, swapping places with Ari and Noah every few blocks, while the rest of us trail them from the street, the sidewalks too busy with trick-or-treaters to tug the wagon along—and it seems the entire neighborhood had the same idea.
Families and friends pass us in both directions, offering quick hellos as they follow their kids around for the night. It’s nice, the normalcy of it all. I guess I never really realized how empty it felt, not having this.
It’s not even the excitement or the crowd, but the way everyone just belongs. No second-guessing, no standing on the outside looking in. It’s natural. Easy. And it makes something inside me tighten with this quiet ache, this low hum under my ribs that feels a lot like longing. For this. For what it would be like to have this. To keep this.
My eyes slide to the man a few steps away, laughing and smiling along with his friends in his Red Power Ranger pajamas.
Sensing my gaze, those hazel eyes meet mine and that smile of his curves higher.
He winks, going back to his conversation, and one single thought draws to the front of my mind.
To keephim?
Deaton only made it to seven thirty before he climbed into the wagon and fell asleep.
Everyone headed back to the beach house, exhaustion setting in after the long drive and the last couple hours of walking around, but after Noah whips up some Philly cheesesteaks, everyone seems to get their second wind, with the exception of our favorite toddler, who is tucked away in bed.
A fresh round of drinks are poured, and then Mason turns the patio sound system on low as Brady lights the bonfire down in the sand.
Noah brings out some finger food, and I help Chase grab a pile of throw blankets from the hall closet, setting them on the outdoor furniture, just in case.
Ari and Brady play a game of songs, throwing out random words and trying to see who is the first to sing the line of a song after. Ari dominates, as expected. The night continues on like that, easy, fun, and random as ever.
