Page 65 of Johnathan

“God, I know. We agreed because Mom wouldn’t stop hounding Grace to let her take Jack, too.”

“How does Grace feel about that?”

Jackson laughed. “She’s thrilled. Told me to not sign up for any overtime. Something about how she was planning on us spending all day in bed.”

“Well, sounds like you’re going to have a good weekend, too.”

“Yeah, you’d think. The only thing is this whole second kid stuff has her all in her head. It’s killing her that we’ve been trying for months and she’s still not pregnant.”

“Shit, man. I bet. I mean, what the hell do I know about any of that stuff? Katy was the best surprise ever. I can’t imagine loving someone so much you’d choose to make a whole human with them.”

Lies.He’d pictured more times than he would ever tell anyone, including his brother, just how amazing it would be to give Katy a little brother or a sister, with an amazing mom. Shit, it was his dream.

“You sure you haven’t felt anything like that for Abby? It feels like you’re pretty hung up on her.”

John crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in the chair. The flames from the fire were starting to burn out, but the warmth was still there on his face.

“You remember telling me that kissing Grace was like finally being home?”

“Of course. I still feel that way. Home isn’t a building. It’s wherever Grace and Jack are.”

“I felt the same thing the first time I kissed Abby. Like finally, something that had always been feeling a little off in my chest was now righted. Like the weight of everything was a little bit lighter.” He took a sip of his beer. “I don’t know. That probably sounds sappy and like a bunch of bullshit.”

“No. It doesn’t. It sounds like you found your girl. I’m happy for you.”

John tipped his bottle towards his brother and nodded. There had been a part of him that ached when he watched Jackson settle into his family. Grace had Jack, and then they got married, and a part of John wondered if he and Katy would ever find the missing piece to their family.

“Just make sure you tell her all that flowery stuff up at the love shack. She’ll be swooning all over the place.”

“Maybe don’t call it the love shack.”

“Well, that’s certainly what Grace and I refer to it as since we were up there a few months ago.”

“Never needed to know that.”

Jackson stood up and laughed as he placed his hand on John’s shoulder. “Yeah, probably not. But I saved you from knowing what we nicknamed the couch.”

“Small blessings,” John mumbled as his brother walked back inside.

John: I think I’m going to have the whole cabin sanitized before we get there.

Abby: We? I don’t remember saying yes yet.

John: You can just agree. I know you want to. This game you’re playing is silly.

Abby: I’m a goofy girl, what can I say?

John: You’re something, that’s for sure. Now, say you’ll come spend the weekend with me in my secluded cabin so I can get excited about making out with my girlfriend without worrying about my kid walking in on us.

Abby: …

Abby: …

Hell. Why was it taking her so long to respond? Seeing those three dots appear and disappear was making his heart do all sorts of stupid things.

Abby: Your girlfriend definitely likes the sound of that. Guess you’ve finally won me over.

“I think my legs are asleep. We definitely aren’t in Texas anymore.”

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