Page 5 of Simply You & Me

"Bug, I miss when you used to scold your daddies for their bad words."

"Sorry, Mom!" Layla gives Jude a fist bump behind his back while his other hand drags through his shaggy blonde hair, looking sheepishly at his wife. Wyatt comes forward and gives the birthday girl a first bump too, much to Rylee's dismay.

Clapping Jude on the back, I greet Ry with a kiss on her cheek. "How's the little man doing? Is he growling like Daddy yet?"

"NO! Absolutely not!"

I snicker, hiding my face while whispering to their six-month-old, "You must get your good looks from your momma, Ollie."

Baby Oliver. I’ll never forget the day Tate found out they named the baby after him. Rylee gave her baby boy Tate’s middle name, and it was one of the most beautiful moments I have ever witnessed.

Pink hair enters my vision. "Careful. Daddy JJ might rip you a new one if he hears you flirting with their woman." Dishes clatter in the kitchen at Gabby's tease, deep laughter echoing throughout the house.

A flurry of purple skitters from the living room to the kitchen, catching my attention. I find Zach sitting at the dining room table, holding a beer and watching the chaos around him. Tate sips on his own beer, leaning against the wall, eyes focused on the ridiculous amount of people in the kitchen.

"Addie, go sit down. We got this." Marcus, Ry's third husband, tries shooing away the woman that has us all a little flustered.

Addie… I wonder what that's short for.

Her head whips from side to side before dashing around Marc. "That's okay! I can help." Before I know it, she's offering me a beer in one hand and a bottle of water in the other. I grab the beer, confused, but before I can thank her, she's gone again.

Locking eyes with Zach, I arch a brow. He shakes his head and kicks out a chair beside him. I sit, feeling like I'm in the way of all the little rug rats running around with streamers and balloons.

Gabby ducks into the kitchen, popping out not a second later with a reluctant Addie. The pink-haired friend basically shoves the woman into a chair of her own on the other side of the table. "Stay."

Gabby is gone in a flash and back just as quick with a beer for the pretty girl. Gone again, Tate, Zach, and I are left alone with the girl.

Woman? Fuck, I don't know. She's normal height, sure, but she's like… super teeny.

I lean forward, eager to actually talk to her. "Hi, I'm Julian." Hopefully, my smile is enough to coax her into a conversation. Gingerly sipping on her beer, she fidgets, her eyes hardly staying in one spot for more than a second.

Zach clears his throat, finally gaining her wide-eyed attention. "I'm Zachary. And you are?" I internally cringe at how gruff he's being with her, but I swear her body relaxes a fraction when he demands her focus.

Taking a gulp of her beer, she rushes out, "Adelyn. Nice to meet you." Tate steps forward, readying to introduce himself. She waves him away, low key seemingly impatient. "You're Rylee's brother. Tate. I know."

I cannot figure this girl out for the life of me. Addie's not rude, necessarily. It just seems like she's got better things to do than sit here with us.

"Hi, Adelyn. It's nice to meet you." Tate dips his chin with a small smile on his face. I don't know if Adelyn catches it, but his head cocks much like his sister and niece when they are thinking hard about something. It seems I'm not the only one confused.

The silence is awkward. I can literally feel her buzzing. "So how do you know?—"

"Mom, look! I made a new friend!" I almost brush off the child's voice, assuming Layla is yelling for Rylee until I see Addie react. Now I'm even more confused by the young woman sliding her drink away from her.

Beer fizzles out of my nose, seeing Wyatt being dragged by his wrist. A little girl yanks him forward and shoves him towards Addie with a big smile.

Wait... mom?! Looking at the little brunette, she looks like a mini version of Addie. But she's Layla's age. And Adelyn looks, well, I don't know.

"Mom, watch what Wyatt can do!"

Wyatt eyes the kid with a look of intrigue and plucks the clove from between his lips. We all watch, transfixed, as he twirls the dark cigarette thing between his fingers faster than the eye can follow.

Addie's mini-me bounces on the balls of her feet, making Wyatt smirk before shoving the stick back between his teeth. I've watched him perfect that trick since fucking high school. It's cool, but we just don't notice it much anymore. It looks like he's eating up the attention, though.

"That's cool." Addie nods, looking between them.

"Yeah! He's my friend now. Can I keep him? He has the coolest tattoo on his neck, too! The tree branches are sooo pretty."

Oh, my fuck. That was the cutest fucking thing I have ever heard. Can we keep her?!

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