Page 9 of Tattoo My Heart
“We want you to be the baby’s godmother,” Carrie informs me softly.
“Really?” My voice comes out in a loud squeak. I press a hand to my mouth and try not to get all teary eyed about it. “Even though I’m weird?”
“Especially because you’re weird,” Carrie assures me.
“Aww, you guys are the best! I’ll come over so we can celebrate with the little guy,” I promise her.
“Okay, now tell me about this app situation.” She brings us both in line, giving me the opening I need to tell her all about it.
I tell her everything I filled out on the online form, all that I am looking in a man, from the way he looks, to the way he dresses, to his sense of wicked humor.
“Evie,” she stops me at some point when I pause to take a breath.
“Yeah?”
“I’m not sure how to tell you this,” she starts, talking to me like she’s talking to a small child. “But does any of what you just told me remind you of anyone?”
“What? Who?” I grab my laptop to scroll up and down, trying to figure out what she means.
“Everything you just described,” she informs me calmly, “is Cal Prentice.”
FOUR
“And then,she said to me that after we get married and have kids, we won’t be able to do any of this anymore.”
I am listening to my friend, Alex, as his voice sounds downright distraught when he recalls a recent conversation with the girl he’s been dating on and off for close to a year now.
“That sounds reasonable to me,” I say, and the rest of our group agrees. “Why would you want to travel through the Amazonian rain forest when you have a wife and kids at home?”
Alex just stares at me, even more distraught than before.
“Did you even hear a word of what I just said?”
I watch him carefully and slowly bring the bottle of beer to my lips, trying to buy myself some time while I also try to understand what exactly he is upset about.
“Were you planning on taking the babies with?” Our other friend, Kyle, finally gets the courage to ask, for which I am grateful.
“No, you fuckers,” Alex explodes at us both. “She is sayingafter we get married,” he enunciates the words.
“Okay…” I still don’t get it.
“I never asked her to marry me!” he throws his arms toward us in distress. “Or to have kids with me! I never even hinted at any of that!”
“Oh, I get it now,” I nod and take another sip of beer.
“About time,” he snaps at me. It’s taking me a lot of effort not to bust out laughing.
Commotion from inside the house brings all our attention to the sliding door that leads to my backyard.
“Jimmy!” Kyle hollers as soon as our friend steps out on the patio. “You’re late, dude! What took you so long?”
“I watched the baby while Carrie took a nap,” he tells us with the goofiest smile on his face.
James joined our group of friends about three years ago. It was around that time that he was getting serious with his girlfriend. They decided that marriage was not for them, but they loved each other and wanted to be together forever. So she moved into his house, took over his life, and two months ago gave birth to their son. James is obsessed with her and everything about her, the baby just the best bonus in their world.
“See what I mean?” Alex points at James. “You can’t even have a life when you have kids, man. I refuse to do it.”
“I didn’t know you had any fatherhood prospects, Alex,” James teases him as he’s looking through the cooler for his favorite choice of drink.
