Page 43 of By the Letter

When I sat back without taking any chicken, Ben raised a brow. “Not hungry?”

“Not really.” I crossed my arms over my chest. “I went to Shira’s appointment today. Got to see the baby.”

Ben paused, chicken poised beside his mouth. “Oh yeah? Did you get any new pics?”

I slipped the images from my shirt pocket and passed them to my brothers. They both studied the images, though I wasn’t sure they knew what they were seeing in most of them.

“Huh.” Nate studied the image that looked like a little baby being cradled, his brow puckered in concentration. “This is cool as hell. Our niece or nephew is just kicked back and relaxed in there.”

Ben took it from Nate, giving it equal attention. “I doubt any relative of ours is chilling. Kid’s probably taking a rest after bouncing off the walls.”

I stole the ultrasound picture from Ben and carefully tucked it away. “He has Shira as a mother. As far as I can tell, she’s as low-key as they come, so there’s a chance.”

“You said ‘he,’” Nate pointed out. “Something you want to tell us?”

“We found out it’s a boy.”

Ben shot to his feet, his hands on his hips. “Holy shit. Are you kidding me? We’re having a boy?” He threw his hands up. “We’re having aboy! How fucking cool is that?”

I laughed, warmth swelling inside me. There hadn’t been a moment for me to really soak in this news. I’d gone from Shira’s whirlwind announcement back to the office, which was a battlefield these days. But with my brothers grinning like crazy, I felt it click into place. I was having a son. Another Wells boy to add to our pack. That thought filled me with anticipation for the future and a moment of pure, unadulterated joy.

“It’s really fucking cool,” I said.

Nate leaned over, giving my shoulder a squeeze. “Congrats, Ro. That’s awesome. We actually know how to deal with boys, so we’ve got you covered.”

Ben’s head tipped back as he laughed. “Of course you’re having a boy. The Wells only make boys.”

“That’s what I said.” The knot in my gut unfurled. No matter what else had happened, this had been a good day. “The doc says the baby is measuring big. Said it’s my fault.”

Ben slammed down beside me, slinging his arm around my shoulders. “Again, that’s no surprise.”

“You’re a behemoth. How could you not have behemoth children?” Nate poked.

“He’s half Shira’s, and she’s tiny. I’d be surprised if she was even five feet tall.” I scrubbed at my jaw, suddenly worried. “Shit, what if this kid’s too big for her?”

“I wouldn’t worry about it.” Ben gave me a shake. “Our mother managed to carry the two of us, and she wasn’t exactly made of hardy stock.”

“Mom is almost six feet,” Nate reminded him.

“I don’t mean physically,” Ben replied. “Our mom doesn’t like challenges. When the going got tough in our family, sheskedaddled. Makes me think her pregnancies couldn’t have been too much of a hardship since she kept doing it.”

“Shira isn’t anything like our mom.” That woman got bored of parenting when our cuteness began to fade. From the time the first of us hit puberty, she became a dragonfly in our lives, fluttering around over us and occasionally landing, but never for long. I didn’t know Shira well, but I was certain she would never be that kind of mother. Or friend. Or person in general.

“Exactly.” Ben got up again, grabbing a piece of chicken. “That’s what I’m saying. She’ll be fine.”

“This is a happy occasion. Why are we talking about our mother?” Nate groused. “If I never think about her again, it’ll be too soon.”

“Thank you. I’d like to think of anything but her.” I leaned forward, my fingers steepled between my knees. “Shira told me she’s moving across town and doesn’t need me to do the litter box thing anymore.”

“Did you tell her you didn’t mind doing it?” Ben asked.

I turned to him. “What makes you think I don’t mind?”

Nate chuffed. “Please. You’re constantly looking up food to bring to her and buying toys for her psycho cat.”

“Mary isn’t psycho.” From the shocked looks on my brothers’ faces, I’d defended her a little too effusively. “Okay, she’s sort of crazy, but we were developing an understanding. I don’t mind not being the one to clean up her shit, though.”

Ben lowered his chin and raised his brows. “Really? Do you even believe what you just said?”

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