I Never Expected You (I Never 2)

“Where’s the fun in that?”

Zach gets up slowly, still with a tight hold on Emme, making sure not to drop her. I’ve never seen him walk so slowly or carefully in his life. He finally makes it to the side of the bed and gently places Emme in my arms before taking a seat in front of me on the bed. We sit there, a family of three, soaking in the moment. I lean down and press a kiss to the top of her head, and she squirms but doesn’t wake up.

“She’s perfect,” I whisper and fight back the tears.

“Just like her mama.” I lean forward, and Zach meets me halfway till our lips are touching.

This kiss is sweet and simple yet still full of so much love. Our kiss ends when there is a knock on the door. Yep, I knew that wouldn’t last long.

Zach announces, “Come in.”

The door opens, and in strides our family for the second time today. A familiar scent fills the air, and my smile widens and my stomach growls. I realize I haven’t eaten in hours.

“Okay, whoever has that bag of french fries, I’ll trade you this precious baby for them.”

Dani grabs the bag from her fiancé’s hand and rushes to the side of the bed, reaching fo

r her goddaughter. A few weeks back, Zach and I asked Dani and Kyler to be godparents, and of course, they accepted.

My dad sets a chocolate shake on the table next to the bed, and I am seriously in heaven.

Zach gets up from his seat and presses a kiss to the top of my head before joining the rest of our family over on the other side of the room. Our moms have settled in on the couch by the window that Zach had slept on last night.

I slide over on the bed, allowing room for Dani next to me, and I pass this little bundle of joy over to her aunt. Dani is a natural holding her, not that I would expect anything less. One day, my best friend will make a great mom.

“You know, you look pretty good holding one of those.”

Never taking her eyes off of Emme, fully captivated by her, she responds, “Yeah, Kyler said the same thing when we left here earlier. I think if he had his way, he’d be putting one of these in me tonight.” She pauses and looks up, locking eyes with me and smiles. “You’re a mom.”

I laugh, shoving the salty-sweet goodness of french fries dipped in a chocolate shake in my mouth—the ultimate comfort food when funnel cakes aren’t available. They also make me think of mine and Zach’s first date.

“I know, right? It’s crazy.”

Dani shakes her head. “Nah, it’s not crazy. It’s amazing. You and Zach made this perfect little angel.” She leans down, inhaling the sweet baby scent. “Oh, the stories I’m going to tell you one day, sweetheart, of the trouble your mom and dad used to get into all the time.”

Zach perks up from his current conversation with his dad and Ky. “Hey, don’t act like you were all innocent. We’ve got plenty of stories.”

Dani rolls her eyes, but a few stories come to mind.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Let’s hope this little one isn’t like her parents and can refuse a dare.”

“Ha, like the time Zach ate a five-gallon bucket of Cheese Balls at seven in the morning.” Kyler laughs, and I cringe at the thought.

“Or the time you tried to explain to me as to why you had to drive with a leopard-print bra hanging from the rearview mirror in your car.” My mom raises her eyebrow at me.

Zach and Kyler high-five. “That was a good one. Totally forgot about that one.”

“There’s always my personal favorite,” Dani begins, but I hold my hand up, knowing exactly what she is about to share.

“Oh no you don’t. We get it. Ha. Ha. We’ve done some crazy things.” I change the subject by directing my attention back to the precious little angel in my best friend’s arms.

Ky steps up the bed. “So are you going to give that baby up or what?” Dani turns away from him, cradling the baby closer to her, but eventually allows him to take her from her arms. I look around at the smiling, happy faces around the entire room and feel overwhelmed with joy and love. All of the people we love are here right now celebrating at this moment. It’s in that moment a heavy cloud fills my mind that this is yet another moment my brother is missing.

Zach’s eyes focus on me when he steals a french fry from the tray and mouths, “You okay?”

I nod, afraid that if I speak, I might get too emotional.

It’s been a week since we brought Emme home from the hospital. A week of little sleep, nonstop feeding, diaper changes, and visitors. If I had my way, I would have done this sooner, but Zach had a point that it wasn’t worth arguing and I shouldn’t push myself.