Ready For It (MacAteer Brothers #2) - M.L. Nystrom Page 0,27

vegan.”

“There’s a non-dairy kind.”

“Not at Arby’s.”

“Mom!”

Melanie groaned and leaned into Owen’s body, face planting in his wide chest. “Please tell me there’s an alternative to teenagers?”

His arms came up automatically to rest lightly around her back. “Send them to Bevvie.”

She laughed against his shirt, and a spark shot through his shoulders to his groin. What he wouldn’t give to hear that sound over and over again.

“Thank you for being such a good friend.”

Friend. A sharp needle pierced his chest at that single word, and his good mood deflated.

Beverly poked her head outside. “You two better get in here before the boys scarf all the mozzarella sticks.”

Melanie straightened herself. “Mattie will save some for his favorite Auntie M.”

“No, I won’t!” came a faint call through the screen door.

“Little booger!” She ran after the imp.

Owen stood a moment on the empty deck. Friends. She saw them as friends and nothing more. He moved to enter the house. It could be worse, he supposed. She could regard him as an acquaintance through the family or even worse, not regard him at all. From what he observed, her relationship with Beverly had lasted longer and was more solid than with any boyfriend she’d ever had. If her friendship meant he had a place in her life, he could be happy with it. At least he told himself that. Maybe someday he would believe it.

Chapter Nine

Who ever thought a teeny tiny little bundle of cells would become my entire focus? My life had changed. Weekend trips to the beach, wine tastings, parties, and clubbing held no appeal to me anymore. Instead, I stayed home, looked up recipes, and clicked through shows on streaming cable channels I never watched until now. I thought about how every bite I put in my mouth affected the life form inside me. I thought about the security of my finances and the future that I needed to plan. I thought about what labor would feel like. I thought about all the complicated issues of raising a child. What if my kids turned out to be special needs? Could I handle that? What if they got sick? What if they got cancer? What if I couldn’t raise them right? What if I failed as a mom and ruined their life? What if? What if? What if?

Fuck me sideways, it was enough to give me headaches. If Bevvie ever had any doubts about her ability to parent, I couldn’t tell. She was good at it. Her astounding patience for Abby’s quirks, support for Jacob’s science and inventing passions, understanding of Sarah’s penchant for debate and her more recent political obsession, the stamina to keep up with Mattie’s constant energy, keeping up with a household and cooking on a nightly basis, plus working full-time, all of these things made me think of her as super mom. The kids thrived in school, bringing home good grades and excellent behavior reports. They looked happy and secure in their family, knowing they were loved and would always be.

How the hell was I supposed to do all that when I couldn’t even bake a decent pan of brownies? Even from a premade mix?

The blackened bricks mocked me from the counter where I threw them after I burned my wrist on the edge of the oven.

“Son of a bitch!” The acrid smell of burnt chocolate filled the air as I ran my wrist under cold water. I could count the times on one hand that I’d turned on the oven since I bought my condo eight years ago. It had been perfectly clean and pristine until I got it in my head I needed to learn to cook. Now it resembled a war zone of crispy drippings from countless overspills. I could scramble a decent egg, but that about summed up my culinary skills.

I tried brownies for my Fourth of July contribution. The obligatory invitation came from my parents to the country club party, and I made my obligatory decline. My mother made her complaints about me not visiting enough, and how disappointing I was to my father. She made mention about their upcoming Labor Day gala and how much I needed to be there for appearances’ sake. I heard nothing from Martin nor Magnus. No surprise.

I’d opted for several years to join Bevvie and her family for the big all-day festival in Pack Square Park. There were kids’ games, crafts vendors, music from local bands, food trucks, the works. I would rather spend the day watching Mattie