Page 18 of Wreckage of Us
“Hey,” he grins at me when he sees us approaching. “I understand congratulations are in order?”
I roll my eyes at him but can’t help the smirk forming in the corner of my mouth.
“The results are in. Youarethe father,” he mimics in a deep voice.
“Wy, quit it,” Alison slaps his shoulder, then looks at me. “Can I finally meet Becca now?”
“What?”
“I’ve been dying to meet this girl,” Alison explains. “I need to see what kind of a person was able to tame the asshole that is, well, you.” She gives me a wide smile. I deserve her giving me shit after all I said to her when I stayed with her and Wyatt last year after I got hurt.
“You’ll get to meet her if she’ll ever talk to me again,” I finally concede.
“Hey,” she lifts a leg to give me a light tap with her foot. “I was kidding. Payback, you know?”
“I know,Ali,” I make sure to call her that knowing how much my brother hates it.
“Hey,” Wyatt starts, but Ethan ends up stealing his thunder.
“Dad,” he lifts his head off Alison’s shoulder, “only me and Unka Wyatt can call her Ali,” he gives me a little smirk, much like the one I am currently wearing.
“That’s right, dude,” Wyatt puts his fist up for Ethan to bump, and he does it with a little more fervor than necessary. “Damn,” Wyatt shakes his hand and looks at his knuckles.
“Wyatt,” Ma says with a shaky voice. “I was hoping to talk to you for a few minutes.”
“Yeah?” he sounds like his usually happy self, but I notice the quick side eye he and Alison give to each other. “With or without Alison?”
“I,” Ma starts, but is unable to continue. I am about to come to her rescue, when Devereaux beats me to it.
“Mrs. Knight,” he interjects in his self important tone of voice, “we need to borrow your husband. It won’t be long.”
“Oh, of course,” Alison blushes when Devereaux makes eye contact. “I’ll take the baby. Ethan, will you help me with Parker?” She puts him down, then turns to her husband to take their baby from the weird contraption he has her in.
Wyatt takes his sweet time going through the motions, almost like he can sense what’s coming and is trying to delay it a bit.
“Maybe Uncle Dylan wants to hold her,” he teases me, pretending like he’s going to give me the baby. I raise an eyebrow at him, my face completely impassive. “What?” he starts laughing. “You need practice now, big brother. Especially with changing diapers. Al, we need to have him change a couple of hundred diapers before we go back home.”
“For sure,” she cracks up, but saves me by taking the baby out of Wyatt’s arms.
“Let’s go in,” I move and point with my head toward the back of the house.
I lead the way there, the only noise behind me coming from the footsteps of everyone following me. It’s almost as if the rest of the people in the yard know something big is about to happen. Even Ethan and the little baby are being quiet.
We walk to the living room where I just drop in the big chair in the corner. I got nothing to participate with in the conversation. I only came because Ma asked me to.
“Wyatt,” she starts, way too close to tears for this to be comfortable. Wyatt’s face doesn’t look worried in the least in spite of witnessing our mother ready to lose her shit.
“You dyin’, Ma?” he finally asks in a teasing tone when she seems to be at a loss for words.
“N-no, Wyatt. I…”
Devereaux lets out a sigh as he steps closer to Ma. He puts a hand on her shoulder and squeezes in support, then looks my little brother straight in the eyes.
“Wyatt, I am your father.”
The grin taking over Wyatt’s face at hearing the news confuses all of us.
“About fuckin’ time you told me.”
