Page 41 of It's Always Sonny

Amber comes over to join me.

“I’m sorry in advance for how your schedule will be tossed out.” Am I imagining it, or does Amber sound weary?

A moment later, Gabe’s wife, Lauren, joins us. Lauren puts her hands on her barely pregnant belly and sighs. “Here we go,” she says to Amber.

“Don’t I know it?” Amber says.

Curiosity grips me. I keep my voice as light as I can. “I’m guessing this isn’t the first time there’s been a change of plans at a family function?”

Amber’s look is flatter than a pancake. “Come on, Parker. You dated Sonny for long enough to know the ropes.”

I blink in surprise. I met Anthony and Amber a few times while Sonny and I were dating. They flew out to Chicago for his games sometimes, and by our sophomore year, Sonny arranged for me to sit with them. And I made sure the rest of the Janes sat with us, too, because I didn’t want anyone to think we were so serious that I was sitting with his brother and sister-in-law.

I don’t know why I figured Amber had forgotten, but her remembering makes my insides both warm and wiggly at the same time.

Lauren nods in agreement. She and Gabe started dating after we’d already broken up, but it appears the collective memory is strong. I don’t know whether to be flattered or worried.

“I guess I didn’t realize that it was a Luciano quirk so much as a Sonny quirk,” I say.

“The rest of them do a better job of keeping a lid on it, but when they get together,” Amber says, miming an explosion. “Boom.”

“What’s funny, though, is that Sonny isn’t like this all the time,” Lauren says.

I give Lauren a look, and she laughs.

“No, I’m serious. He’s mellowed a lot since you knew him. But there are so many rules in the NFL and so many things he can’t do that it seems like when he’s with everybody, he’s making up for lost time.”

“Yeah, and it doesn’t help that Sienna’s last egg retrieval yielded a big fat nothing,” Amber says.

“What?” I ask, and then I throw a hand over my mouth. “Sorry, none of my business.”

Amber winces. “I probably shouldn’t have said anything. But you know how Sonny is. When it comes to Sienna, there’s nothing he won’t do to cheer her up.”

A split-second after she says this, Sonny jumps up, beats his chest, and yells, “Go team!”

The three of us snort in unison.

Sonny, Sienna, and their team all shout together, and Sienna’s smile is so radiant, so complete, it’s impossible not to feel a surge of affection for the brother who made that possible. I never knew about this protective streak Sonny has for his older sister—we weren’t around Sienna enough for me to ever notice it—but this entire scheme makes a lot more sense now.

And now I feel even worse for making my itinerary so important. I was worried about an hour of fun for everyone. He was worried about his sister’s entire well-being.

As the teams spring up, Amber sighs while Lauren wears an affectionate smile. “Have fun, Gaby!” she says, rhyming the nickname with baby.

Gabe’s handsome face lifts from the plans. “You’re not playing?”

“I’m four months pregnant and Layla already missed her nap today,” she says of her toddler on her father-in-law’s lap. “Besides, your last game of capture the flag lasted longer than a quidditch match. No, I’m not playing.”

Gabe looks like he’s being split in half, as his head drops back down to the game plans but his eyes stay on his wife. “Do you need help with Layla?”

A few of the cousins snort. “That was convincing,” one of them says.

Lauren blows him a kiss. “No, I got this. But have fun. Oh, and if you wake us when you come in, I’ll put icy hot in your boxers. Love you!”

Lauren winks at me as she collects her toddler.

“Anyone else needing their beauty rest?” Sienna yells.

“Suck rocks, See-See!” Lauren calls back.

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