41. Dirty Thirty
forty-one
Dirty Thirty
Leah
T wo weeks later.
26 weeks pregnant.
I stare out the window as the world zooms by. Maybe zoom isn’t the right word. We’re in a small town where you rarely ever get above twenty miles an hour.
“Are you okay?” Dylan asks.
“I’m good,” I reply. “Just tired.”
“Sorry we have to go to this thing with my family. Ronnie just got some kind of promotion, and my mom loves to celebrate everything.”
I reach over to set my hand on top of his. “I’m not upset. I like your family, and I think it’s sweet that your mom wants to celebrate everything.”
“You just seem a little out of it.”
I look over at him. “You want the truth?”
“Of course. ”
“I’m getting to the point where things are starting to hurt pretty regularly. My back aches all the time. I get these weird stretching pains right at the bottom of my belly. My boobs have tripled in size—which was great at first. But now, they’re literally always in the way. How do people with huge boobs live like this?” I let out a loud sigh. “I’m moving into the stage where I’m very uncomfortable all the time.”
“I’m sorry, gorgeous. Why didn’t you say something?”
I shrug my shoulders. “I didn’t want to seem like a whiner.”
“You’re not a whiner. Just pregnant. That’s not easy. How about we get through this, and we can relax on the couch tonight? I’ll try to make you feel better.”
“Can I do it naked? My clothes feel like a prison.”
He looks at me and smiles. “If I ever say no to that question, I want you to take me out back and shoot me.”
We pull into the parking lot of Andre’s Tavern. It’s the bar and grill that Dylan’s parents own. This is my first time here, but Dyl has told me a million stories about this place.
He parks the truck and quickly jumps out to come over and open my door for me. He has to be fast, or I will get out on my own. I’m not used to the whole chivalry thing quite yet.
We walk toward the front door where there’s a big sign that says they’re closed for a private event.
Dylan holds the door open for me, and I walk inside. The lights are out, causing me to wonder what the hell is going on.
Before I can turn to ask Dylan, though, the lights flip on and I hear a loud, “Surprise! ”
I gasp as I look around and see Dylan’s family all smiling and staring at us. Trying to take it all in, I see a large banner above the bar that reads:
HAPPY DIRTY THIRTY, LEAH!
Dylan leans over and kisses my cheek. “Happy Birthday, gorgeous.”
Still looking around, I say, “So, this was never a party for Ronnie?”
“Nope.”
“You did all this?” I ask while looking at him.
“I figured it was about time that you had a proper birthday party.”
He leads me over to the bar where everyone stands, ready to give me a hug and tell me happy birthday. I can’t believe they all came.
Even Jo made an appearance. When Dylan introduces us, she says, “Sorry it’s taken so long. Sometimes, when a guy asks you to jump on the back of his bike, you just have to go for it.”
I laugh. “No worries. I get it. Been there myself a few times.”
Dylan looks at me with his brow furrowed.
I say, “Don’t ask.”
Taking a moment to walk around, I see all the stuff that’s set up. Everything is themed like a kid’s birthday party. There’s Pin the Tail on the Donkey, a pinata, and there’s even someone at one of the tables who is a face painter. I can’t believe they did all of this.
I set my hands on my belly and try to keep my emotions at bay. This is the sweetest thing that anyone has ever done for me.
Suzanne walks up next to me. “You doing okay, Leah? ”
“This is just…” my voice trails off.
“Overwhelming?”
“Maybe a little. But in a really great way. I just can’t believe that Dylan did all of this.”
“I can.” She smiles. “And you better get used to it.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean Dylan will always do stuff like this. He would move heaven and hell just to make you smile. He’s just like his dad in that way.” She gets lost in her memories for a second before continuing. “Come on. Let’s have some fun.”
We spend the next couple of hours playing games. We start with Pin the Tail on the Donkey where Ronnie smokes the rest of us.
She jokes. “Give me a chance, and I’ll find the ass every time.”
Then, we move onto the pinata. I’m the one to bust it open, but I’m pretty sure they all let me win that one. The inside is stuffed with expensive chocolates that I can’t wait to dig into when we get home.
Dylan comes over and wraps me up in a hug. “Are you having fun?’
“Definitely. I can’t believe you did all of this.”
“I figured you never had a real birthday party as a kid, and it was about time you did.”
I stand on my tiptoes to give him a soft kiss. “This is, by far, the sweetest thing ever.”
“I just wish somebody had done this for you before now. You deserved so much more.”
In this moment, I’m glad I didn’t have it until now. This moment may be one of the best of my entire life, and my trauma has led up to it.
Not only is Dylan making this whole day special, but it’s his entire family. They don’t just treat me like I’m Dylan’s date. They treat me like I’m one of their own. We joke and laugh. The first time I was around them, I felt awkward because not only had I not been around boyfriends’ families before, but I didn’t have one of my own to mimic either.
Now, things are different. I don’t feel weird or awkward—even when this party causes all eyes to be on me.
For once in my life, I’m not on the outside looking in. It feels like I’m finally a part of something, and that says a lot considering we aren’t even an official couple.
I have to admit that his huge selfless gestures are making me consider the relationship more and more.
When we go home tonight, I plan on giving him some selfless gestures of my own, but mine will be while we are naked.
After we finish the games, Andre and Suzanne bring out multiple giant platters of food. There’s every party food you can imagine. Chicken wings. Mini tacos. Pigs in a blanket. Nachos. And tons more.
No one sits down to eat and instead just grazes over all the finger foods. We all talk and laugh and coo over Liz and Jack’s baby.
It’s perfect.
But it’s about to get even better when Andre comes walking out holding a giant birthday cake. A birthday cake with hot pink frosting with bright blue lettering. On top, there’s a mini Barbie Dream House.
It’s just like the one from when I was a kid—the cake I never got because it got destroyed before my dad walked out.
Here come the tears.
I manage to hold it in long enough to get through them singing and me blowing out the candles. I’m trying so hard to stay composed that I don’t even make a wish like they tell me to.
As the cake is being cut, and everyone is distracted, I step outside for a moment to pull myself together. It doesn’t take long for Dylan to follow to make sure I’m okay.
“Was this all too much?” He asks.
“Are you kidding? This has been perfect. All of it. How the hell did you manage to pull all of this together?”
“I didn’t do it by myself. I had the epic party planning skills of Suzanne Lawson.”
“Ah. Makes sense. I’ll have to remember to thank her too.”
“Where did you find that mini Barbie Dream House, Sparky? That thing is super old now.”
He grins. “You can find everything on eBay. Are you sure nothing is wrong?”
“I’m good. All of this has been great.”
He raises his eyebrows. “But?”
How can he always tell?
“All of this is amazing, and I’m feeling more comfortable. But every time I just try to be really happy, there’s this nagging little voice in my head that tells me it’s short-lived. I’m scared it’ll all be ripped away. ”
“Leah, this right here.” He points between the two of us. “This isn’t going anywhere. I’m not your dad. I will never walk out. And if you’re stuck with me, you’re stuck with my family.”
Hearing him say the words put my mind at ease—just for now. As he gives me a hug, I find myself considering giving this thing between us a real shot. What if I said let’s have a serious relationship? Would saying the words really change much between us?
Against every instinct I have, I find myself wondering how much longer will he actually stick around if I keep holding him at a distance—especially when I know I’m falling in love with him.