I snapped my head to him. “You will do no such thing, you ass!”
Jeff shook his head and got out of the truck. When I looked back toward the house, I noticed Luke was wearing a T-shirt that said, I’m a Big Brother. I smiled as Jeff opened the door for me before getting the back door to get Grace.
“Oh!” was all my mother said as she walked up to the truck.
My father picked up Luke, and they were coming toward Jeff and Grace. I stood there as everyone tried to get a peek of the baby.
Luke kept saying, “I want Macy…I want Macy!”
“Jeff, may I?” my mother asked as she held out her hands.
I looked down at Scarlet, who was just sitting there, like the good girl she was. I knew my mother would shove the baby right in the dog’s face, and Jeff would freak the hell out.
“Of course, Sue. ”
After Jeff handed Grace over to my mother, she walked up to the front porch and sat down with Grace. Sure enough, Scarlet came up, and my mom had her sniffing the hell out of the baby. It took everything out of me to not start laughing.
After Jeff got the baby bag out of the car, he turned around. “Oh no. Oh shit…no, no, no!” he said. “Um…Sue? I don’t really want dog slobber on the baby…you know, germs and all. Maybe Scarlet can sniff Grace’s butt or something…but not her face!”
My mother looked at Jeff and smiled as she stood up. She started to walk into the house but not before she turned around. “Like the great Katharine Hepburn said, ‘If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun. ’” She winked, and then she went inside.
Jeff looked at me with his jaw hanging open. “What in the hell did that have to do with dog slobber on my child?” He walked past me and up the porch steps.
My father walked up to me and gave me a hug. “Oh, ma belle fille!”
“Bonjour, Papa!”
“Quel beau nom Grâce est. ”
I smiled as I nodded. “Yes, Grace is a very beautiful name, Papa. ”
As we headed into the house, my father looked at Jeff.
“Jeff, avez-vous obtenu malade?”
I let out a laugh as Jeff spun around to my dad. “No! I didn’t get sick!”
My dad laughed and slapped Jeff on the back. “Way to keep going with the French, son. I’m impressed as hell. ”
Jeff smiled and wiggled his eyebrows up and down.
I bent down, scooped up Luke, and gave him a big kiss. “Hey, my big man! I missed you so much. What do you think about your baby sister?”
Luke smiled and pointed to Grace. “Macy!”
“Grace. Can you say Grace?”
“Shit!”
Wait. What?
I looked up at Jeff. “Did he just say…shit?”
Matt rounded the corner with his iPad as he yelled out, “Oh shit! I lost again. ”
Luke laughed. “Shit. ”
I almost fell over. My mother spun around and looked at me with that expression only a mother could give.