“Then we move it to tomorrow or just you and your girls come,” she shrugged, giving Katy a hug and leaning in to give Elodie a kiss on the top of her curly head.
I was beginning to think she was going to leave without doing it, but just as she started to walk past, she pounced. Grabbing my cheeks, she used them to pull my face closer to hers, gave them a shake, and then furiously kissed back and forth between them. When that was done, she patted my left cheek loudly twice, and then walked out, leaving Katy staring at me and trying not to laugh. Elodie didn’t have that control because she kept giggling even after the door shut behind twister Gloria.
Peace… apparently even distance wasn’t going to give me that.
Looking back at Katy who was watching Ma go out to her car, she whispered, “I guess I need to call my family.”
Lifting my hand to the back of Elodie’s head – who was now rubbing her face in my chest – I managed to get out the words that almost choked me. “Don’t forget Maude.”
The scared look she gave me would have been funny if it wasn’t for a good reason. In my mind I heard an explosion and realized that it had come from the hopes and dreams of peace and quiet I’d had.
But strangely enough, holding Elodie and watching Katy, realizing how special she was and how much I wanted this to happen… I didn’t mind the explosion.NineKatyAs I’d picked up my cell to call my family, Elodie had started whining and wouldn’t stop rubbing her face on Jarrod’s chest – lucky duck – so he’d taken her upstairs to put her down for a nap.
Now I was done, the calls had been made and my family were now free. My parents would meet us there and still take the baby for the night so that I could have a break. Seeing as how she had a room at their house so that they could help out whichever one of Leo and I had her, and also loved being with them, this was a relief. I’m also not gonna lie – I was freaking looking forward to the lie in tomorrow.
Seeing that Jarrod wasn’t down yet and that I’d left the monitor in my bedroom, I climbed the stairs, stopping when I heard his deep voice singing softly. Describing it was one of the hardest things ever, which was frustrating because its beauty was unreal. Then again, there weren’t many things in life that were so beautiful they were indescribable, and Jarrod had quite a few of those.
Straining to hear the song, I almost melted when I figured it out. Was it a song written for kids? Hell no, but his deep baritone voice and the way he was singing it could have made and song sound like it was.
But Metallica’s Nothing Else Matters? When I listened to it normally, it struck me as an almost angrily, aggressive, sad song. But how he was singing it, those words turned into something that was almost touching and heart wrenching.
Tip toeing closer to the door, I peeked around the frame and saw him sitting on the huge bean bag I’d put next to her bed. He was leaning back with her on his chest, his big hand holding her in place on her back, while she looked up at him and listened.
How wrong was it to be jealous of a baby?
Beside him on the floor was Duke, lying face down with his legs spread out like a star. He was also watching him and periodically wagged his tail whenever Jarrod got to the chorus.
Going with the idea that hit me, I reached into my pocket, pulled out my phone and took a photo. That was totally going to be my wallpaper.
As the song came to an end, he softened his voice until it was a whisper. Elodie’s eyes fluttered a couple of times, and then they stayed shut. She was out.
I was so engrossed in them that I didn’t realize he was talking to me until he said my name.
“Katy?”
Raising my eyes off my niece, I watched as his face split into a huge grin. “Sorry, what?”
“I said, I think she’s got another tooth coming through. I noticed her chewing on her fist when Ma was holding her, but she’s been rubbing her face on me since I got her and her cheeks are warm.”
Shit, I’d noticed it, but it hadn’t occurred to me that she might be in pain. I was seriously such a bad aunt.
Closing the distance between us, I leaned over and put the back of my hand against her cheek like Mom used to do to us when we were little. Sure enough, she was warmer than usual. “Does she need some Tylenol?”