Page 86 of Hello Handsome
But they weren’t so little anymore. All five of them were grown, over six feet tall, and built with the muscle that comes from growing up on a farm. And they all looked at me with matching curious gazes. Two of them were blue like mine, the other three dark brown to match their mother’s.
The woman who gave them life.
The woman who was taken away too soon.
Not that there was ever a good time to lose your mom or the love of your life.
Fletcher spoke first, using his doctor’s voice that was both kind but also demanding of answers. “What’s this about, Dad?”
I took a breath, mentally preparing myself for their responses. At some point, all of them had encouraged me topursue a relationship with Aggie, but this was different than a simple date.
“I asked Aggie to marry me, and she said yes.”
Pin-drop silence.
Then a child’s squeal cut through the quiet, muffled by the sliding door. We all turned to glance outside, seeing Aggie and Maya locked into a battle with squirt guns just past the patio. Maya got a few streams of water at Aggie’s face and then turned to run away. Aggie wiped the water from her face, an amused smile on her lips.
My gaze went back to my boys. Knox was grinning, the younger image of me with his short blond hair and blue eyes. Hayes wore his typical shit-eating grin, eyes crinkled at the corners, lip ring catching the overhead light.
Bryce, the mix of his mother and me, seemed surprised. And Fletcher mimicked the reaction.
Ford had an intensity to his gaze that came with playing professional sports. “Married? I didn’t even know you two were dating.”
“Yeah,” Fletcher echoed. “I just thought you got together at the wedding. It’s been a week.”
Hayes shot a confused look at his brothers. “What the hell are you talking about? They’ve been doing this will-they, won’t-they bullshit for over a decade, and Dad decided to shit and get off the pot.”
Fletcher rubbed his eyebrows. “That’s not the phrase.”
Knox said, “I think the phrase is ‘Congratulations, Dad. I’m happy for you.’” He pushed back from his chair and walked around the table, hugging me tight. My eyes squeezed shut to hold back tears as I hugged him. “Thank you,” I murmured.
“Congratulations,” he said, before patting my back and stepping aside to let his brothers have a chance to do the same.
Bryce, on my right, stood up next, giving me a hug. He was my baby, so it wasn’t fair that he was a good two inches taller than me. “Guess I know why you insisted I come home this weekend,” he said with a teasing smile.
I gave him a guilty look but said, “You’ll survive with a B on one assignment.”
Bryce looked doubtful, but Hayes stepped up next, clapping my back. “I expect to be the best man.”
I laughed. “Jack’s already accepted the job.”
“Ageist,” Hayes muttered, making his brothers laugh.
Ford approached me next with a guilty look. “Sorry, Dad, I was just surprised is all.”
“I know you like to take things slow,” I told him as we hugged. After all, it had taken him awhile to make things official with Mia, the woman who was outside now directing an epic water battle.
Then it was Fletcher.
I understood his surprise—being the oldest, he knew most what life was like when his mom was here. He’d nearly been a man when she passed. He stepped up when I was weak, even though he was in the throes of grief himself. Truth be told, I admired the hell out of Fletcher, and his opinion really mattered to me.
I could feel all his brothers watching us as he approached. “What do you think, really?” I asked him, needing to know his answer.
“A little warning might have been nice,” he muttered.
Hayes snorted.
“But,” Fletcher continued, holding up his hand to cut Hayes’s protest short. “But I’m happy for you. And I think...” His voice broke as his eyes grew red with emotion. “I think Mom would be happy for you, too.”
