Page 40 of Brother to Brother

“Out back to let Noah run wild for a minute,” Dani told her, smiling.

“Good luck keeping up, Mamma,” she said to me with a smile.

I smiled back, “It’ll be your turn soon enough,” I said, and Shelly smiled.

“Two months and counting, I just hope it’s a boy so Ghost can be a happy camper.”

“You don’t know?”

“Keeping it a surprise,” she said with a smile, “but Ghost really wants to start with a boy.”

“Plan on having many?” I asked.

“As many as my body will give me before it’s had enough,” she said smiling.

“Careful what you wish for,” Everett called out. “You could end up like that broad on TV with like nineteen kids.”

Shelly rolled her eyes, “I’ll stop at six, I promise.”

“Any luck and there will be twins or a set of triplets in there to speed things along,” I told her.

“Rough birth with this guy?” she asked tickling Noah and my look must have said it all. She sobered, and cocked her head to the side.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she said.

“It’s okay, just really scary is all. He’s perfect, that’s really all I can ask for. Everything turned out okay.”

She nodded, smiling and I smiled bravely back. Noah’s birth had been a nightmare from the moment I’d shown up at the hospital in labor. I didn’t have the heart to scare her or Mandy, although, by all appearances, Mandy seemed to have had a good birthing experience with Eden. She showed no traces of fear about being pregnant and about to do it again.

I was scared to death about becoming pregnant again but I kept resolutely silent about it, shoving that fear down and to the background. I had so much to do, so much to get through before it became an eventuality, that I wouldn’t let that fear rule me; not just yet.

A little more small talk and I followed Dani out to the bright grassy back yard of the club house. To the left, was a big, sheet metal shop building with three bays. The first bay was Dani’s shop, the second appeared to be random storage, and the third? Well that appeared to be Rush’s woodshop. He had the huge bay door rolled up and was running a sander over whatever his latest project was, Nox sitting on a stool nearby, arms crossed over his chest as he talked with his twin. He spied me and Noah first and smiled, though he kept speaking to Rush, giving me a nod.

Rush looked up and turned off his sander, calling out, “Hey Mel! Hey Noah! Whatcha guys up to?”

It struck me in that moment that I knew more about the twins, even, than I did about Archer and the misgivings about readily agreeing to marry their brother began to set in. I marched across the grass with my son in my arms, parting with Dani at the oval tract of road as she headed for her shop.

“Noah wanted to come outside and play,” I said and Rush grinned.

“Pretty soon he’ll have all sorts of fun times out here,” he said patting the plank of wood he was working on. Noah was looking at the rich, red grain, fascinated.

“Oh? What are you building?” I asked.

“With Noah and Eden and so many kids on the way, I figured it was time this club had a swing set for the kids to play on. Figured we could all chip in and go buy one, but what’s the fun in that?”

“You’re building a swing set?” I asked incredulously.

“Eh,” he gave a shrug, “Among other things.” He gave me a smile that I couldn’t help but match with one of my own.

“I see your handiwork isn’t limited to the kids,” I gave a nod in the direction of some wooden lounge chairs around a brick constructed firepit out in the grass.

“Aw, yeah, I been keepin’ myself busy.”

“Seriously Rush, I told you in Arizona and I’m telling you now, you should make a website and sell some of this stuff. It’s incredible.”

Rush smiled and Nox smiled with him, “Maybe someday,” he agreed which was more than I’d ever gotten from him before.

An awkward and uncomfortable silence ensued, no one wanting to really address the elephant in the room. Finally, it was Nox who drew a breath to ask but I stopped him, exhaling sharply and hitching Noah up higher on my hip.

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