Page 79 of Brand
“You too, brother,” I said as we shook hands and he surprised me by pulling me in for a quick hug and clap on the back.
“She’s excited to see you,” he said taking me by surprise.
We hadn’t talked about what went down all those years ago. Loch wasn’t much of a talker, to begin with. I’d tried to keep my distance the best I could and I could tell he was more standoffish around me. I wasn’t sure if it was because he didn’t trust me after everything that had happened, but he had no reason not to.
Simply put, Reagan was, and always will be, his.
Not that I wished it any differently.
“Let’s go. Ethel’s cookin’ dinner and she’s expectin’ you now,” he said when he picked up on the fact that I was at a loss for words. “Meet you over there.”
And so, I headed to Ethel’s without another thought. The front door opened the moment my bike turned into the driveway.
There was Reagan, looking beautiful as ever, carrying little Maddy on her hip. Both girls greeted me with huge smiles as I stepped off my bike.
“Hi,” Reagan breathed out, pulling me in for a one-armed hug because her other one was full of baby and all. It didn’t mean that it felt any less warm.
“Hey,” I said and it felt like all the tension and questions I’d held onto about her escaped with a breath.
While her touch was warm and comforting, it was just that. Like eating grandma’s cookies fresh out of the oven.
There was nothing beyond that. No electricity shooting through my veins at her touch. No flutter in my belly as I met her eyes. No unexplained extra beats of my heart.
All the things that I got when I was around Cami.
“You alright?” Reagan asked a half smile on her face. I imagined my face must have been stuck in some weird half-dazed expression.
“Yeah,” I said, pulling a full smile. “Perfect.”
“You mether, didn’t you?”
She didn’t know anything about Cami, well not unless Chris had talked to her, but by the way she phrased the question, I would have guessed not.
“Yep. I definitely have.” I said without a second of hesitation.
“Good. It’s about fucking time.” There was no lingering sadness in her answer and I knew it was genuine. “Now, give your little niece some love.”
As she said those words, I was lifting Maddy out of Reagan’s arms and rubbing my nose back and forth against her cute, tiny, button one. She was so squishy and cute. Her big eyes a burst of colors just like her mother. Her barely-there hair was the color of Loch’s. She was so adorable I almost couldn’t stand it.
“Brand, get your ass in here so I can pinch it,” Ethel called out from the front door. “It’s been far too long. Got to make sure you haven’t gone soft on me.”
I laughed.
And it felt wonderful.
“It’s good to see you,” Ethel said as she wrapped me up in her arms, then slid one hand down to pinch my ass. I knew it was coming. That woman never did play around with her threats.
We sat and ate. Ethel’s pot roast was on point. I had missed her meals, that was for sure. I definitely didn’t eat as well down on the coast. Unless Gwen was cooking us something, it was usually take-out or cereal for me.
“Ethel, you in there?” a strange voice called through the front screen door.
“Rosemarie, come in, dear. We were just finishing up,” Ethel replied, wiping her face, placing her cloth napkin on the table, and rising to her feet. “Did you eat? Would you like some roast?”
“Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
She was tall and thin, from what I could tell under her scrubs. Her long, dark brown hair was straight and pulled back away from her face in a low ponytail. I would have guessed she had some Italian in her by her features and tan skin. And by her prominent cheekbones and almond shaped eyes, I would have said that she had some Asian in her, too. She was pretty and it was clear by her fresh face that she didn’t need any makeup.
“Hi.” Her brow furrowed as her head cocked to the side slightly. “I don’t know you.”
