Rematch (The Reed Brothers Book 22)

22. Seth

For three weeks, Gabby and I have spent every free minute together, either at her apartment or mine. We run together in the morning, do our homework together in the evening, and eat every meal together. At night, we fall asleep together, and we wake up together in the morning.

To say the least, it has been an adventure. I’ve heard friends say that you never really know someone until you live with them. That’s true. You learn all the quirks. You pick up on the things that annoy you. And you appreciate all the things that make you smile.

Gabby is at the kitchen table finishing her homework when I walk over and kiss her on the top of her head. “I’ll be back in a couple of hours,” I tell her.

“Where are you going?”

“Aunt Sky wanted to see me about something,” I say. Actually, it was me who called Sky and asked her to meet me. I needed her advice—and Matt’s.

“Oh.” She looks up from her computer, and I get the feeling she’s not completely happy about not being asked to go with me.

“I won’t be gone long,” I remind her.

Gabby has gone to Matt and Sky’s apartment with me twice in the past few weeks, both times under the pretense of getting my hair braided before matches. In reality, my hair is just an excuse to show up there and spend time with everyone. I miss my sisters. I know their life is great, and I know they have the family I never had, but I still miss them. They were my responsibility almost as soon as they entered the world, and it feels strange if I don’t see them regularly, even now.

“Okay,” she replies. She smiles at me, but she’s wary. “Wake me up if I’m asleep when you get back.” She goes back to her laptop.

I let myself out of the apartment and take a bus to the tattoo shop, where Matt and Sky are supposed to meet me. The other guys will probably be there, too, but that’s okay because what I need to talk to them about is really something I need to ask them all about.

I stop by the jewelry store to pick up the item I ordered a week ago. I had to have it custom-made because I wanted it to be special. I slip the box into my pocket and walk over to the tattoo shop. The bell jingles over the door as I walk in, and I find Friday sitting at the front at a light table, drawing a tattoo for a client. She’s wearing a vintage dress in red and purple, and she has a skull necklace around her neck, and a string of black pearls is wrapped around her wrist. She has on her signature fishnet stockings and chunky high heels that make her legs look a mile long. Logan and Paul are both bent over clients doing tattoos. They look up, and Paul says, “Seth, it’s good to see you.”

Logan gives me a nod and keeps doing what he’s doing.

“Are Matt and Sky here yet?” I ask, looking around.

“Not yet,” Paul says absently. “He said he’d be coming by, though.” He finally looks up, and his brow furrows. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, it’s fine,” I reply. “I just wanted to get some advice.”

A commotion arises at the door as Sam and Pete try to walk through the opening at the same time. They’re carrying bags of food and elbowing and ribbing one another.

“Cut it out!” Paul barks without even looking up.

“Yes, sir,” Sam says with a salute. Pete mimics the action.

Paul glowers at them.

He finishes up the tattoo he’s working on and sets his machine to the side. He cleans up the guy’s arm, covers the tattoo with salve, and shakes hands with him.

Logan finishes up at the same time. He walks to the back, pulls the processor for his cochlear implant from where it’s stuck to the fridge door, and attaches it. He often takes his processor off when he’s working because he says he can concentrate better when the world is quiet.

“I’m starving,” he says after sending his client to the front so she can pay Friday. He reaches for one of the bags Sam and Pete sat on the counter and carries it to the big table in the back room. He starts to pull food from the bags and spread it out on the table. He hands me a burger.

“Do you have enough?” I ask.

He nods. “Matt texted and said you were coming.”

I hear the bell ring over the front door again, and Matt and Sky walk in as the two clients walk out.

It’s rare to find all five of the guys in one place. And yet, it feels so right.

After the food has all been passed out and Friday joins us in the back room, Matt says, “So, what did you want to talk about?” Sam steals Friday’s cup of cheese, and she slaps the back of his head. He pouts and hands it back to her.

“Vicious,” Sam complains.

Paul grins. “One of the many reasons I love her. I never have to worry about her taking any shit off any of you.” He slaps her ass as she walks by him, and she settles next to him, leaning on his arm. He leans over and kisses her soundly.

“Daddy’s kissing Mommy again,” Pete grumbles.

“Gross,” Matt replies. Then he leans over and kisses Sky.

“Gross,” I say this time, and everyone laughs.

“Speaking of gross,” I begin. I clear my throat. I pull the ring box out of my pocket. “Since all of you were instrumental in getting to this point, I wanted to get your approval,” I say. I look at Sky. “But you first.” I look at Matt. “And you.” Matt looks at Sky as if he is worried. She just shrugs and smiles.

“I got this for Gabby because I want to propose, and I want to be sure you think it’s good enough.”

It’s just a simple band that I had made. Her braided ring made of weeds fell apart. She kept the pieces, and they are in a small box in her jewelry box on her dresser. But I went to a jeweler, and I asked them to make a ring that looked like three braided pieces of grass, made in gold, with no other adornments.

Sky takes the box, opens it, and stares down at it. “It’s simple and elegant, and it’s absolutely perfect for her.” She blinks as her eyes well up with tears. “You’re really going to propose?”

“I love her,” I declare.

Sam grabs Pete and pretends to sniffle against his shoulder. “Our little boy is all grown up.”

Pete pretends to scrub at his eyes, sobers in an instant, and says baldly, “It’s about time he got his head out of his ass.” He dunks his finger into Sam’s cup of melted cheese and sticks it in his mouth.

“Get your own cheese,” Sam says.

“I did, but Friday took it,” Pete grouses.

“Anyway,” I say loudly. “Do you think the ring is enough?” I ask Sky. “Or should I get one that’s more extravagant?”

“I think it’s perfect, Seth,” she says as she wipes a tear from beneath her eye. “I am so happy for you!” She gets up and comes to hug me, lingering just a moment, just for a heartbeat. She lets me go and steps back. “Wait,” she says. “Did you already ask her parents?”

“Ask her parents what?” I ask.

“For permission to ask her to marry you, numbnuts,” Sam explains. “See, long ago, women were property, and their fathers gave them away or traded them, so there became this tradition of asking for permission to ask for the daughter’s hand in marriage.”

“Shut up,” Pete says. He looks at me. “I think it’s sweet to ask the parents. The ultimate sign of respect.”

“Call them now,” Friday says. “We can all be quiet.”

“No, you can’t,” I say, looking at Sam and Pete.

“We’ll be good,” they both say at once.

Paul rolls his eyes. “They will behave.” He points a finger at both of them in turn, and they wither in their chairs.

Matt, ever the peacemaker, says, “You can do it privately if you’d rather.”

“No, no,” I say. “May as well do it now.”

I got her mom’s number a few weeks ago so she could send me a picture of the cats for Mrs. Collins. I pull out my phone and look for her number, and then I dial.

She picks up in a minute or two. On the screen, I can see her and Jake sitting side by side on the sofa.

“Seth,” she says. She sits forward, holding the phone. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes, Mrs. J.,” I reply. “Everything is fine.” I take a deep breath. “I wanted to talk to you about something important.”

Jake and Mrs. J. look at one another, and Mrs. J. says, “Okay,” very slowly.

My pits are sweating, and I feel like my mouth is filled with cotton. I clear my throat. “So, I wanted to talk to you about something important,” I say again. I really should have rehearsed this.

“Keep going,” Matt says quietly. “Deep breath.”

“Who’s there with you?” Jake asks.

I pan the phone around the room. “My family,” I say.

Friday covers her heart and says, “Awww.”

“Hey, everybody,” Mrs. J. says warily. She gives a little wave.

“So, here’s the thing,” I say. I pull out the box. “I got a ring, and I want to ask Gabby to marry me, but when I told my family about it, they said I should ask you guys first.” I stop and breathe because I suddenly feel like I can’t.

Mrs. J. covers her mouth. “Shut up,” she says. She pedals her feet the same way Gabby does when she gets excited, and it makes me laugh.

“We don’t have to get married right away, but I want to ask her. I love her, Mrs. J., and while I don’t know you that well, I think she loves me too. I don’t want to live without her. Not ever. And if that’s not a reason to get married, I don’t know what is.” I lift the ring in front of the phone and put my hand behind it so they can see it.

Mrs. J. leans forward. I’m surprised that she can see it, for all the tears.

“I can’t promise I’ll never make her mad at me, but I do promise to love and respect her. So, what do you think?”

Jake bites his lips together, and he has a harsh look on his face. He says nothing. Mrs. J. looks at him like she’s waiting for him. “What do you think?”

“She’s my daughter,” he says, and his voice cracks.

“I know, and I will always respect that,” I rush to add.

“If you ever do anything to hurt her, I’ll have to kill you. And then I’ll get Freddy to keep me out of jail.”

Mr. Jacobson steps up behind them, where they’re on the couch. He has a cat on his shoulders, and I think the cat is wearing a tutu. I lean closer to the screen to check. Yep. It”s definitely a rainbow-colored tutu. “I have machinery. They’d never find your body,” he says, and then he walks out of the frame.

Sam snorts, and Pete slaps his hand on the table. “I love him so much,” he crows.

“Seth,” Jake says. He stops for a beat. Then he says, “Gabby is her own damn person, and she gets to make her own choices. I doubt she’ll even want me to walk her down the aisle since the idea of a father giving away something that was never his in that way will ring all her feminist bells. But I can tell you that if she says yes, we would be thrilled to have you join our family.”

“Did he say thrilled?” Sam whispers.

Jake rolls his eyes. “Really fucking happy,” he reiterates.

“Oh, okay,” Sam says.

“Thank you,” I reply. “I’m going to ask her soon.”

“We’ll start planning the festivities!” Mr. Jacobson calls from outside the view.

“Sounds good.” I chuckle.

I thank them and tell them goodbye. Mrs. J. is still wiping her eyes when we hang up.

“Congratulations,” Matt says.

“So, one more thing,” I say, wincing. “And you all can say no.”

“I get to be the best man!” Sam calls out right as Pete says, “Yes, we’ll be at the wedding party.”

“No, no, not that,” I reply. I take a calming breath. I look at Matt. “Matt, you know you’re the father I never had, right?”

He blinks and nods. “I do.”

I look at Sky. “And if I could pick any mom in the whole wide world now that mine is gone, it would always be you.”

She smiles softly at me. “I do know that.”

I wince again. “So I was thinking about Gabby changing her name to mine, and it’s not really a name I want to share with her. It’s my father’s name, and I don’t like it. I’ve felt like a Reed for a long time, but I was wondering if you guys would mind if I change my last name to yours.” I rush to add, “I know I’m too old to be adopted, but if I change my name, then Gabby can have the same last name as me, and it will be a name she can be proud of.” I wait for a beat. “What do you think?”

Matt gets up, wraps his big, beefy arms around me, and hugs me tightly. “I can’t think of anything I’d like more.”

“Are you sure, Seth?” Sky asks. “This is a big change.”

“She may not even want to take my last name, but if she does, I want it to be a name she can be proud of, and there’s nothing better than being a part of your great big family.” I look at Paul. “I guess it’s up to you.”

Paul sits and blinks. Friday slaps his chest, and he grabs her hand and holds it close to his heart. “There’s nothing we’d like more,” he says after a moment of silence.

I smile and sit back, finally able to breathe.

“Group hug,” Sam and Pete say at once. They jump up and sandwich me between them, jostling me from side to side.

Logan shoves them away. “Welcome to the family,” he says. At the last minute, he adds, “You’ve been family for years, but now we get to make it official.”

Friday shoves her cheese cup toward me.

“What about me?” Sam says, offended.

“No cheese for you,” I say. I dunk a fry in the cheese and eat it.

“Now give me my cheese back,” Friday says, taking the little cup away.

“This is what being a Reed is all about,” Logan warns.

“I’m in,” I say.

They all grin, and then they start arguing over something I’m not even listening to. Sky reaches over, squeezes my hand, and mouths, “Thank you.”

I lean over and kiss her forehead. She pulls my mom’s pendant, the one Sky gave me the year Mom died, from under my shirt, where it rests near my heart. “She would be so proud of you. And she’d love Gabby. I just know it.”

I nod, suddenly choked with emotion.

Then Sam farts, Paul slaps him, and Friday squeals and starts to gag, and the moment passes.