“Thank you.”
“Wow, I’m gonna be an uncle.” He leaned back into the couch and interlocked his fingers behind his head. “That’s crazy. I never thought I would be an uncle.”
“Just don’t be one of those annoying uncles that disobeys me the second I turn my back.”
“Oh, you know it’s gonna happen. Let’s just be honest.”
I rolled my eyes.
“Do you think it’s a boy or a girl?”
“I just found out she was pregnant three hours ago.”
“So?”
“I don’t have a guess.”
“Are you hoping for a son?”
“I couldn’t care less what they are. Boy or girl, I’ll love them the same.”
“I just hope they don’t have your mean stubbornness. If you’re lucky, they’ll take after her.”
Since Button was the better version of me, I didn’t disagree with that. “If I’m lucky.”
Cane stood up and straightened his jacket. “Well, I’ll let you get back to…whatever you were doing. I’ll let you know how it goes.” He stood on the other side of the coffee table, his hands in his pockets.
I stood up. “Thanks. Good luck.”
He nodded. “I’m optimistic.”
“He might suspect you’re coming.”
“I know.” He continued to stare at me, out of words to share.
I stared back, wishing I could say something good. This could be the last time I ever saw my brother. We had our differences and he pissed me off, but he meant the world to me. I came around the table and hugged him. I hadn’t hugged him in years.
He hugged me back.
“Love you, man.” I stepped back when the affection lingered a little too long. I had to throw the word man in there to make it less intimate, less emotional. Cane and I didn’t do this sort of thing.
“Love you too, brother.” He stepped away and cleared his throat. “I’ll be seeing you.”
“Yeah…I’ll be seeing you.”
* * *
When I woke up the next morning, I felt like a different person. My life had changed overnight. My responsibilities had shifted. Button had been my number one priority, but now she shifted down to number two.
And I didn’t even know my baby.
But their existence changed everything. I wasn’t the same man anymore.
Pearl woke up shortly after I did and turned over to look at me. She was exactly the same, the same size, the same shape…but now she was different. She was glowing when there was no evidence of a light. She was somehow more beautiful when nothing had changed. “Morning.”
“Morning.” I kissed her on the lips then tucked my head under the sheets. I found her bare stomach and kissed her above her belly button. She was petite and slender with no evidence of pregnancy, but I knew my son or daughter was in there. They hadn’t even begun to form yet, but they were a part of my life.
I lay beside her again and looked into her eyes. Today was an important day. My brother was about to go head-to-head with a formidable enemy. I felt like a coward for staying behind. It was a betrayal. He was my brother. I should lay down my life for him. I should do whatever he needed me to do.
But I couldn’t now.
Not when I had someone to protect.
I somehow loved my baby more than my own wife.
How was that possible?
Button hugged me close to her and released a painful sigh. “How much time do we have?”
“A few hours.”
“Okay…”
“But I’m coming with you, Button.”
She shifted her eyes back to mine. “What?”
“I’m coming with you to Santorini. We’ll wait it out until the dust settles.”
“What about Cane?”
“He knows I’m not coming. He’s okay with it.”
“I don’t understand…”
My hand moved to her stomach. “My job is to protect you—both of you. If I die…my child won’t have a father. I can’t let that happen. Cane knows that.”
“I…” Her hand moved over mine. “I want you to stay with me too, Crow. But you know you can’t.”
“What do you mean?”
“You can’t turn your back on Cane. He needs you.”
“I know. But my duty is to our child. They’re the most important thing to me now.”
“I know…but he’s your brother.”
“He understands, Button.”
“Look, I don’t want you to go either. I don’t want to lose my husband. I don’t want our baby to lose his father. But I understand you’re all he has. He’s your brother, your family—”
“You are my family too, Button.”
“I know…but it’s different. You already said you would help him, and you can’t turn back now. He needs you, Crow. Adelina needs you.”
“I’m surprised you feel this way.”
“I hate it,” she whispered. “It would be so easy for us to run off and forget about it. But I know you, Crow. I know it’ll haunt you forever. If the situation were reversed, what do you think Cane would do?”
He would have my back—always.
Button knew my answer just by looking me in the eye. “You have to go.”