Page 88 of While We Waited

The front door flies open while we’re walking up the sidewalk. “Oh.” Brooks frowns. “It’s you.”

Nova places a hand on her belly and smiles at him. “Nice to know my baby’s uncle is excited to meet her.”

His eyes light up. “Her? Are you having a girl?”

I grunt. “We don’t know.”

“The baby mooned us during our scan so we couldn’t see if Sprog is a he or a she,” she explains.

“The baby mooned you?” Brooks asks. “I blame the Clark genes.”

“So do I,” Nova whispers.

Three vehicles arrive and park behind my truck.

“They’re here!” Brooks shouts into the house.

“They’re here. They’re here,” Mom mutters as she rushes to the door.

Nova flashes her a smile. “Don’t worry. My family will love you the way I do.”

Mom sniffs before throwing her arms around Nova. “I love you, too.”

“What’s going on? Why is everyone crying and hugging on the porch?” Sophia asks as she arrives with her boyfriend, Flynn, and Nova’s friends, Maya and Paisley.

Jack and Lily, with their son Weston, are right behind them. Chloe, Lucas, and their daughter bring up the rear.

“Is everything okay?” Lily asks. “How can I help? I have whiskey, chocolate cake, and a husband who’s not afraid to knock sense into a son.”

Jack grunts. “I never knocked sense into Weston.”

Weston smirks. “Because I’ve got sense all on my own.”

“Not likely,” Sophia mutters.

Mom untangles herself from Nova and I claim my sunshine. “You, okay?” I whisper to her and she nods. “No more tears.” I wipe the liquid from her cheeks.

“Gross,” Brooks declares. “I’m going inside.”

Mom clears her throat. “Why don’t we all go inside?”

I herd everyone into the living room and close the door behind us.

“Shall I make the introductions?” Nova doesn’t wait for a response before beginning. “These are my friends, Paisley, Maya, Chloe, and Sophia. The man hanging onto Sophia is her boyfriend, Flynn. The man with Chloe is her husband, Lucas. The girl with them is their daughter, Natalia. The man standing on his own is Weston. Sophia’s brother and Flynn’s best friend.” She nods to Lily. “And this woman is Lily, my substitute mom, and Jack, my substitute dad.”

“I prefer the term bonus mom,” Lily says.

Nova immediately gives in. “Okay, bonus mom and bonus dad.” She sweeps her arm to the other side of the room where my brothers and parents are.

“And on the other side of the room, we have the Clark family. Jacob and Emma are the proud parents of five boys. You know Hudson. The others are Brooks, Sawyer, Owen, and Logan.”

“Your brothers are much younger than you,” Chloe remarks.

Sawyer smirks. “Dad knocked up Mom in high school with Hudson. The rest of us came later.”

Dad slaps him upside the head. “What? It’s not a secret.”

“We’re trying to make a good impression on Nova’s family.”

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