Page 84 of Bits and Pieces

“I get it,” she says and then nods at Rosemary. “It seemed like a bit much, you know? With the stalking and her being so pregnant and having so many kids, I thought Nomad had gone full-blown bonkers. But, yeah, I get it.”

Smiling like a big dope in reaction to her compliment, I’ve quickly returned to middle school nerd self.

I introduce my kids to hers. Brooklyn looks at Rosemary and then at Wynonna before deciding too many women are in the room. She begs me to pick her up. Beckett takes that opportunity to babble in his two-year-old way to the new kids.

“What’s he saying?” Ralph Junior asks me.

“He wants to play with you in the back room.”

Rosemary notices no one is moving and starts clapping her hands and walking backward. “All aboard the party train. Who’s coming to play with the toys?”

Ralph Junior tries to take Esther’s hand. She looks at him like he’s nuts and walks after Rosemary. Blair isn’t sure what she should do. I know the kids are too little to be her friends, but she likes to play. However, she thinks she needs to protect Beau, who is perfectly happy with his blocks.

I gesture for her to go with them. “Make sure Beckett shares.”

With a task to accomplish, Blair smiles and hurries after Rosemary. Brooklyn watches them leaving and obviously wants to play. Yet, she frowns at Wynonna and decides to stick with me.

“You look ready to drop,” Wynonna says and walks over to the couch. “Let’s sit and talk shit about people. Who do you hate?”

Grinning at her, I sit down and get Brooklyn comfortable next to me. My daughter frowns harder at Wynonna.

“My mommy.”

“Kid, I’ve already got my own mother. She’s a flighty dipshit in Mexico, slinging overpriced drinks to tourists.”

Brooklyn doesn’t understand anything Wynonna says, but she senses maybe this new woman isn’t a threat. Relaxing, she rests her head on my belly and smiles when Brigitte kicks.

“Baby,” Brooklyn tells me.

“Sister will be born soon.”

“No.”

“She’s going to play with you.”

“No.”

“She’s going to cry and poop and steal all my attention.”

Brooklyn shakes her head and rests her ear on my belly again. “Baby stay here.”

I grin at Wynonna. “I hate my ex’s family. I also don’t like the parent of one of Blair’s classmates. She handed me a brochure on birth control during a school event.”

“Have you considered retaliation? I’m very good at slashing tires.”

Smiling wider, I admit, “I was worried you’d be the wrong kind of bitch.”

“Yeah, I heard you met Kourtney.”

“She’s helping with Brooklyn’s legal situation.”

Wynonna looks at the little girl and frowns. “Oh, yeah, I think I heard something about that. You should be aware Nomad gossips to Hoyt who tells me everything. They’re like the most obnoxious teen girls, always texting each other with random shit.”

“Silas seems private.”

“You’d think that, right? He’s an off-putting asshole. No offense, but you must know he’s a big bully. But that’s just his mask. Underneath, he texts the other men constantly. I’ve seen Hoyt’s phone. They love insulting people. Lots of ‘Saw Ricky Peel at the store. His ass got huge.’”

Giggling, I can actually imagine Silas as a gossip. He told me out of the blue the other day how his club sister Goose once secretly juggled three relationships at the same time.

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