reached past me and poked him in the chest again. “No, that’s your department. Besides, you started it. Pretty sure it’s your first name.”
“Stop it, you two. We’re not in junior high.” I glowered at both of them. “Stuart, you should’ve called before stopping by. Impromptu visits aren’t my thing, especially with curious you-know-who around.”
“Who?” Stacey asked. I did an eye-roll, thinking that those cosmos were a huge mistake as I was now dealing with a buffoon.
“Besides, now I have to rethink my position,” I added.
“Wait. I apologize for the visit, but I thought it would kill two birds with one stone.”
“Sorry, it only made it worse.”
He held up his hands. “Fine. I’ll leave. But know this. I’m not going to give up. I want to see my daughter.” He stomped away in anger. It left a rotten feeling in the pit of my stomach.
After the door was closed, I turned to see three sets of curious eyes on me.
“That went well,” Stacey said.
“Not really. He’s got something up his sleeve.”
Easton ran to me. “Mommy, is that man coming back? Can we get pizza with him again? When I’m not sick?”
Great. Now she was asking about him too. “Maybe later.”
“Aunt Stacey Bear, why were you so mean to him?”
“Er, he’s not very ni—”
I elbowed her. If we ended up having a relationship with him, I didn’t want Easton to think he wasn’t nice. “Aunt Stacey Bear was angry because he didn’t call first.”
Stacey wasn’t getting it. “No, I wasn’t.”
I elbowed her again, this time harder.
“Ow. That hurt.”
“Good.” I offered her a sweet smile.
“You owe me another cosmo for that.”
“Mommy, can I have a cosmo too?” Easton asked.
“Sure. Come on.” I always made her virgin ones.
Mom said, “You sure Stacey needs another?”
“No, and I’m barely putting any vodka in hers.” Leaning in, I told Mom about the broken engagement.
“Ahh, that makes sense now. Her getting wasted this early.”
“Yep. Don’t say anything.”
Her fingers went to her lips and made a zipping motion. Mom was completely trustworthy.
“Easton, you need to eat your spaghetti too.” With all the commotion of Stuart popping in, I’d never given her lunch. It was almost four, so this was like an early dinner.
“Okay. Can I still have my cosmo?”
Mom said, “Why don’t you have it for dessert?”
Easton frowned and stuck her lower lip out. “I don’t think so. I’d rather have a chocolate chip cookie.”
“That’s fine, but let’s eat.” I fixed her bowl and she gobbled it down. “Someone was very hungry.” I tickled her belly. “Is your tummy under the rainbow?”
She patted it, saying, “Yep. See?” She pulled up her shirt to show us. The two tiny incisions where they’d done the laparoscopy to remove her appendix were barely noticeable. They hadn’t even used stitches, but covered them with liquid skin glue. I grabbed her and blew raspberries on her belly. Giggles filled the room.
Stacey tottered over and said, “Will you do me?” She pulled up her shirt and Easton did her best. It was really funny. They usually did this to each other.
Grateful the subject had been changed, Dad said, “We came by to see if you wanted us to bring you dinner, but looks like all is handled.”
My parents were the best. “Aww, thank you so much. I think we’re good. Early dinner here. And I’ll just grab something.”
“Then I’ll plan to see you on Monday. Did I tell you that Tristian’s father died? It was a car accident.”
It reminded me of Mom. Her dad had died in an accident when she was in high school, leaving her penniless. “Dad! That’s terrible. Is he okay?”
“Seems to be. Said he’d be at work on Monday.”
“Wow.”
“I got the feeling they weren’t too close.”
“How sad. I wonder why.”
“One can’t ever know unless he tells us.”
I made a mental note to be kind to him next week.
After I hugged both parents, they left while Stacey called out for another cosmo. I hoped she fell asleep early as I wasn’t sure I wanted to entertain my inebriated friend all night.
Chapter Eleven
Tristian
As I drove to work, thoughts of my family circled through my brain. I’d stopped to visit my brother this morning at the hospital. He was sitting up in his bed, sipping water.
“You’re looking much better.”
He groaned as he shifted positions. “I don’t feel that way. If only—”
“Stop it, Stanton. The past is over. It’s time to focus on getting well. You’re lucky to be alive.”
Eyes that held a world’s worth of pain stared back at me. For once I