Page 67 of Big Balls
My brother beams at the very thought. Because hooray, I’m going to be an aunt again!
I’ve heard Ethan say that he felt like everything in his life came together the night of the charity poker fundraiser that the Sinners’ WAGs helped put on.
But for me, it’s this moment right here when everything feels like it fits just right. It’s a special day, but we have a lot of special days together now.
Katy and Ethan and I go on adventures every weekend. We take turns choosing what new thing we want to go try together. So far this year, we’ve been ziplining, caving, we visited an alpaca farm and got to try spinning some yarn from their hair, and we’ve added a second story to the treehouse.
I have the job I’ve always dreamed of, and I get to share my life with a really good man who loves me almost as much as I love him.
And the way he’s fit in with my family is amazing. My brothers, my father, and Ethan all heckle each other like they’ve been waiting their entire lives to do it. Occasionally, one of my brothers or my dad will show up to poker nights with the regular guys, but since the last winner made them all go get their backs waxed, they’ve been a little loath to return.
Personally, I think it’s hysterical that they were walking around like their cotton T-shirts were attacking them. Welcome to the big game, boys. Women have been doing unpleasant hair removal for years, and it’s time you found out how it feels.
Even Katy’s little dig up there at the two of us is perfect. If she’d given some sort of heartfelt speech about her dad and me, it would have felt really fake and not like her at all.
But this is classic Super Spy Katy, and I wouldn’t want her any other way.
When the ceremony winds down, I slip out of the office to come to celebratory ice cream with Katy and Ethan.
I believe in the power of ice cream as a perfect dessert. Great for eating your feelings, equally great as a public celebration of Katy’s spectacular year in school.
The ice cream place has a little toppings bar at the end of the counter, and Katy is currently trying to make a whipped cream mountain that is the same size as her scoop of ice cream. I give it 50/50 odds of making it safely to our table without plopping on either her or the floor itself.
“You want sprinkles and a cherry, right?” asks Ethan. “Do you think you can help oversee Katy and the leaning tower of Treatsa over there?”
I make a gagging sound. “That was possibly the worst dad joke I’ve ever heard you make.”
Ethan waggles his eyebrows at me. “You haven’t seen anything yet. If you think that’s bad, the next one’s not even punny.”
“Just stop,” I beg him and then sidle up next to Katy to help transport her whipped cream sculpture to the closest empty table.
Ethan puts a little glass bowl of mint chip in front of me and hands me a spoon. I dip the spoon into the ice cream and put a huge bite in my mouth then return my attention to Katy, who is now talking about the wild Mustang horse population and how they’ve changed over the years.
Ethan makes a weird, unsettling sound of distress, so I look over at him to see if he’s okay. His face is really pale, and he looks either nervous or ill.
“Hey, what’s wrong, Big Balls? Are you okay?”
Ethan coughs, then drops his eyes to the ice cream dish in front of me then looks back at me again, the color gradually returning to his face.
“I’m fine, Zoe. Really. But how’s the ice cream?”
“Great. Cold. Minty and chippy. Why?”
He shakes his head. “Finish up and then we need to make a stop somewhere really quickly.”
“Okay, but you’re acting really odd. Just so you know.”
He pushes his own ice cream dish away from himself and puts his head in his hands. “I know. I know I’m acting weird. Can we go, though?”
What a mood killer this man is turning out to be. Katy and I finish our ice cream and split his, and we head out toward his car.
He stares at me closely as we get closer to the vehicle. “Are you feeling okay?” He presses a hand to my forehead, like he’s taking my temperature.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Why?”
And without any sort of reasonable explanation, he proceeds to drive us to the nearest urgent care center.
Katy’s eyes flash from me to Ethan. “Is everyone okay?” she asks in her most serious voice.
