I gave my brother a hug, and he grinned before going inside. I felt a million times better just being there, but after that talk with Mason, I was practically on the moon. He was right. Either her folks were going to get it, or they wouldn’t, and even though he seemed to believe they would get there eventually, even if they didn’t, we had a support system. We had family that would love us and care for us and give us advice when we needed it.
I headed back inside myself and wrapped Becca up in my arm. As she chatted with Ava and Matt, Jordan and I got into a heated baseball conversation. It was just like the arguments we had every time Seattle made a move one of us didn’t like, and it raged for a while before I noticed Mom, at the head of the table, wiping a tear away from the corner of her eye. When she saw me looking at her, she reached out a hand and clasped it on mine and shook it.
“I’m just so happy for you,” she said. “For both of you.”
“Thanks, Mom,” I said.
“Now, finish your dinner,” she said. “You too, Becca. You’re eating for two now.”
36
Becca
“Right this way, ladies,” the host said as he walked away from us, and we followed him.
It was so weird to be in such a nice restaurant, especially during the day, and especially since it was just a lunch date with Melissa. But she insisted that since we never actually celebrated the news of the baby, that she needed, as my best friend, to take me out to lunch. Somewhere fancy, as she put it. County Seat was the fanciest place within city limits, and thus, County Seat it was.
“I love this place,” Melissa said as we swept into a booth that was less of a booth and more just a gorgeous wooden table with hanging white wicker seats that looked like pears. It felt weird to sit at a table, ostensibly to eat, in a chair that didn’t have legs. I swung a little and bumped the table, getting a wide-eyed glare from the host.
“Sorry,” I muttered as he walked away. “Why did you bring me here?” I whisper-shouted at Melissa.
“Because it’s amazing,” she whisper-shouted back, enunciating every syllable.
“Why? Why is this so amazing?”
“First off, it used to be the actual county seat, and second, they make this homemade pecan pie that I swear to God is the greatest thing I have ever eaten in my entire life,” she said.
“Well, then you owe me a pecan pie slice,” I said.
“Why do you think we’re here?” she asked, and we both broke into laughter.
The waiter arrived and was much more personable, lively, and exuberant than the host. He laughed with us as I stumbled through the menu wanting just about every other item and helped narrow down the choices. After I settled on what to eat and we made our order, Melissa leaned forward on the table and smiled wide.
“So,” she said, twirling her straw in the tall glass of iced tea she had in front of her, “how did it go telling everyone. You wouldn’t tell me anything other than it was insane, and then you ran away to a beach house with your hunk.”
“Well, insane was an accurate descriptor,” I said. “Mom guessed what was going on when I didn’t drink anything and blurted it out to Nick. Nick then ran into the dining room and punched Tyler right in the face.”
“Oh no!” Melissa said, nearly spilling her drink. “Did Tyler murder him right then and there?”
“No,” I said, the voice fading away as the waiter returned with our appetizers. He laid them down and went off without a word, seeming to understand we were deep in a private conversation. “No, he jumped up and went to me immediately. I don’t doubt if I weren’t there, he would have torn him limb from limb.”
“That is insane. How did your dad take it?”
“He was confused at first, but then he jumped up like he wanted to fight Tyler, too. All of his buddies held both of them back, and Tyler and I got out of there,” I said. “We went home, and when we got up the next morning, Tyler had already booked the house and we left.”
“Oh, honey, I am so sorry they acted that way,” Melissa said, reaching out and patting my hand.
“What makes it worse,” I said, “is how his family reacted.”
“Did they go crazy, too?” Melissa said, shock rippling through her voice.
“No, no, they were great. Absolutely fantastic. It just made me feel worse,” I said. “My family, my own flesh and blood, treated me like I was property that Tyler somehow ruined. Then his family just added me in, like I was always part of them, and everyone was hugging on me and giving me advice and offering to babysit. The difference between the two reactions couldn’t have been starker, and it hurt so bad.”