Chapter 32
thirty-two
Tristyn
This is something I’ve always dreamed of but thought I could never have.
But here they are lying in front of me. After Henry fell asleep on the couch last night, Jeremy crashed not long after, and I woke up to the three of us lying together on this couch. It was almost like we were a family. The family I’ve always wanted for Henry.
“Good morning.” Jeremy blinks his eyes open but freezes on the couch when he realizes Henry is still asleep in his arms. He brushes his hand over his head. “I think that was the best sleep I’ve gotten in ages.”
“Oh yeah?” I sit on the edge of the couch, tucking my leg underneath my butt. “Well, you’re always welcome here.”
“I might take you up on that.”
“Good.” I pat my lap before standing up. “Are you hungry?”
“I could eat.”
I head into the kitchen and open the fridge. I bend down, investigating its contents.
“So,” I stand up and close the fridge, “I didn’t go grocery shopping yesterday after work. So, breakfast is umm, some bread and butter?”
Jeremy chuckles.
“That’s on me. If I didn’t come over right after work last night, you would’ve remembered to go to the store. We could get breakfast?” Jeremy recommends.
“Breakfast?” Henry sits up. “Greystone has really yummy pancakes.”
“Greystone it is.” Jeremy squeezes Henry.
“Go clean up, baby.” I point to Henry’s room down the hall. He hops off the couch and runs down the hall to his room.
“I love that kid.”
“Ditto.” I grin.
“What are you up to today?” Jeremy asks, grabbing his crutches and pulling himself to his feet.
“Well, grocery shopping for starters.” I jump up onto the kitchen counter. “And that’s probably it.”
“Do you think you’d want to come over for dinner?” he begins. “If it’s too soon, you can totally say no. It’ll just be my friends. I think you’ve met a couple of them anyway at the concert.”
“I’d love to. As long as I’m not imposing.”
“No, of course not. Henry is also invited. The guys are great with kids. Zeke will tell you he’s the best, but that’s only because he’s basically still a kid.”
“If you promise we won’t be imposing on some best friend time, then we would love to.”
“I’m ready!” Henry runs into the kitchen.
“Alright, baby.” I jump off the counter. “Let’s go get some pancakes.”
If it isn’t my favorite customer.” Maia pulls out her notepad as she reaches our booth.
“I didn’t know you were working today.” Jeremy flips through the menu. “Do you ever take a day off?”
“I basically get paid to be off and hang out with my friends on a daily basis,” Maia replies. “I’d work every day if they asked me to.”
“That’s fair. Speaking of, are the girls stopping in today?”
“They were supposed to, but Alex and Brinley are making up for lost time.”
“Alex is Brinley’s boyfriend. He was home for some of the summer.” Jeremy turns to me.
“Got it.” I look up at Maia. “Will you be at dinner tonight?”
“No.” Maia shakes her head. “Cam will be there, so I can’t be there.
And you can’t tell Cam that you know me because it’s a really complicated situation, one I don’t need to get into right now.
” Maia forces a laugh. “Right now, I’m going to get this sweet angel some extra-large chocolate chip pancakes and some chocolate milk. What can I get for you guys?”
“I will be having a talk with Vince when we leave.”
“I’ll have a black coffee, please, and a Denver Omelet with home fries.” Jeremy hands Maia his menu.
“Could I have a hot tea and the French toast special, please. Scrambled eggs and home fries, please.”
“I’ll put that right in.” Maia reaches out and squeezes Jeremy’s shoulder and whispers, “I like her.”
“Me too.” Jeremy squeezes her hand back, and then she walks through the double doors.
“You have some great friends.”
“Yeah, I don’t know where I’d be without them.”
“I feel the same way about Vince. Quite literally, I have no idea where Henry and I would be if his family didn’t take us in all those years ago.”
I wrap an arm around Henry, who is coloring his kid’s menu.
The bell above the door rings, and three girls walk in, but the second they see me, they stop.
“Jeremy Moore, are you stealing our spot?” The one with the platinum blonde hair crosses her arms, leaning against the wall behind our booth.
“Didn’t realize you guys had soul dibs on Greystone.”
“Without my best friend working here, you probably wouldn’t even know it exists.” The other blonde says. Her hair is a little darker, but not quite brown.
“I have a feeling I would’ve learned of this place eventually.” Jeremy winks at me.
I guess Henry, Vince, and I have been coming here quite a bit since we discovered it a little while back.
“You’re coming to dinner tonight, right?” The platinum blonde girl asks.
“We are.”
“We?” She takes this as an invitation to scoot into the booth next to Jeremy.
“Brin.” He huffs.
“I’m Brinley, but I take it you’ve heard a lot about me.”
“Um, a little?”
“Weren’t you busy with Alex? I thought you weren’t stopping in today?” Jeremy tries to change the conversation, but she persists.
“Well, I’m like another sister.” She holds a hand up to Jeremy’s face, her way of telling him to keep quiet. “And he’s the best, which I’m sure you’re already aware of.”
“I am.” My smile widens.
“He played hockey with my brother for, well, most of their lives. That’s how our little family started. And since it was just my brother and me, his friends kind of got stuck with accepting me into the group.”
“We didn’t get stuck; we love having you around.” He turns to the girls behind them. “All of you.”
“And now, we can’t wait to welcome you to our family.” Brinley reaches for my hand. “Both of you.”
Jeremy has told me about his friends a few times in passing conversation, and I’ve gotten to meet Cam, and he’s always spoken so highly of them, but I just assumed it was because they were like his family.
Not that all families are perfect… or good, my family is proof of that, but I didn’t expect them to be so welcoming. Especially since they barely know me. Us.
“And she means it.” The shortest girl of the three chimes in. She brushes her golden-brown hair behind her ear. “I’ve only known them for a few months, but when they pull you into their crazy family, you won’t remember what it was like not being a part of it.”
“I thought you guys weren’t coming.” Maia sets our drinks down on the table.
Henry grabs his chocolate milk without looking up from his coloring.
“We changed our mind.”
“Well, let’s not bother my customers. Get over to your booth before I have to kick you out.”
“You wouldn’t.”
“Try me, Em.” Maia tucks the tray under her arm.
Em… I’m assuming that’s Ember, and since I know what Tate looks like, that would leave Avalon.
“We’ll see you guys tonight.” Ember waves and then tugs on Brinley’s arm and pulls her to the booth a few feet away.
“Your food will be right out,” Maya taps on our table and then joins the girls at the booth.
“Are you sure about tonight?” Jeremy studies my face. “I know they can be a lot.”
“I’m sure. Plus, Henry would be devastated if he learned that he could’ve hung out with the best Rockford hockey players and I said no.”
Jeremy grabs my hand and lifts it up to his lips, and places a kiss on the top of my hand.
My phone buzzes, and I pull my hand out of Jeremy’s and grab my phone.
Andrew: Still ignoring me then?
“Everything okay?” Jeremy leans forward, and I turn off my phone.
“Perfect.” I lie. “Everything is perfect.”