The Imperfections

I smile and reach my free hand down to give her belly a rub and say hello to our son.

Bri couldn’t believe I knocked Alyssa up so soon after she had Mackenzie, especially since she was so young the first time, but Alyssa and I both grew up with siblings close in age—or, in my case, exactly the same age—and we wanted the same thing for Mackenzie.

This one’s already moving around in there, but he’s not as accommodating as Mackenzie was. Just about every time I put my hand on Alyssa’s belly, this little guy decides to take a nap.

Now is no different. I drop my hand after a minute and lean over to see what Alyssa’s cooking. “Anything in here I can eat? I’m hungry.”

Alyssa shakes her head. “This is a dessert dish. I’m about to make deviled eggs in a minute though—stick around and you can steal one.”

I do love Alyssa’s deviled eggs. Sounds like a plan.

The doorbell rings and Bri freezes, her eyes widening. “Oh, God. He’s early.”

Rianne comes running back in the room. “Can we watch Frozen?”

“Not right now, honey,” Bri says offhandedly, grabbing a hand towel and wringing the life out of it. Her worried gaze flits to mine, and she says, “Please go easy on him. Keep an open mind. I really think you’re gonna like him.”

It took her a long time to move on after Theo’s death. It wasn’t quite like when we were younger and I killed her ex-boyfriend, because this time Bri understood why I had to do it. That didn’t make coping any easier for her and the boys, though. A loss is still a loss, even if what you lost was an asshole.

She did move on, though, after a while. We all did.

Bri met a man named Carl, who she didn’t tell me about for quite some time. They took things slow, both of them having been hurt before, but she talked to Alyssa about him, so I got little scraps of information through her. I’ve been told he’s a wonderful man, the full-grown type, a man I’ll actually like and approve of, but that remains to be seen.

I follow Bri toward the door, but I hang back enough to give her a little privacy. I want to see his face when she opens the door, see if he looks at her the right way.

Then I want to see how he looks at the other women in the room. Alyssa’s pregnant, so he probably won’t look at her too long. I lean back to look around the kitchen, but I don’t see Amber.

Alyssa casts a questioning look at me.

“Where’s Amber?” I ask.

Alyssa shrugs and goes back to her dish. “Probably upstairs sucking face with Greg.”

“Get her down here so she can meet Carl.”

Alyssa knows exactly why I want her pretty sister down here when my sister’s new boyfriend comes in, and she shakes her head in disapproval. “Can’t you just be optimistic about this?”

“I’ll be optimistic as soon as I see there’s something to be optimistic about.”

Still eating a cookie on my hip, Mackenzie leans over and puts her face right in front of mine, lining our eyes up so I have to look at her. “Hi, Daddy.”

Gently leaning my forehead against hers, I say, “Hi, Mackenzie.” Then I turn my attention back to her mother. “Get your damn sister down here.”

Alyssa heaves a sigh and leaves the counter to fetch Amber, so I haul Mackenzie back to the hall leading to the foyer and the front door.

I get there right as Bri is pulling the door open, so I don’t miss the way he smiles at the sight of her. It’s a genuine smile that reaches his eyes. He’s happy to see her.

He gets a few extra points for holding out a fall-colored bouquet of flowers and causing Bri to light up with pleasure. I keep my guard up, though. Any bozo can buy flowers.

Bri takes a step back, fussing over the flowers and offering to take his coat. He does step inside, but not before making a little room next to him and looking down at the smaller dinner guest he brought with him.

Carl has a son, about eight years old, if I remember correctly. He has a mop of blonde hair on his head and he’s bundled up in a coat and scarf. Carl splits his attention between Bri and his son while they make their way in the house, and it all seems natural enough. Theo used to ignore the boys a lot of the time unless he wanted to use them to show off, so if I picked up any hollow interest like that, I’d be alarmed.

Bri turns to look at me, her brown eyes alive with nerves and excitement. I can see she’s anxious about introducing us, but there’s a gleam of hope in her gaze, too. I know from what Alyssa has told me, she thinks I’m really gonna like this one.