Chapter 11
Chapter 11
Sebastian
“T hat’s icing!” Nora shouted at the TV, little fist in the air.
Ford snorted and rubbed his hand over his face. “A little bit. I think. I’m not good at figuring out icing.”
Noah groaned. “You’re my best friend. My roommate. How can you not figure that out? You should know it. We discuss it every time.”
“Just like it takes forever for you to figure out what offsides is in football.”
“Soccer. We’re in America. You call it soccer.” Kane, my cousin from the Colorado Springs branch of Montgomerys shook his head. His last name might be Carr, since his mom was the Montgomery, but he was still one of us. We didn’t let go easily.
Noah sighed. “Both are legitimate terms for the sport. It’s a geographical preference. One is not better than the other, but in a country where you use football interchangeably with two sports, you have to be careful. It’s not like you go out and call it American football when you’re talking about the Broncos.”
“Please stop. For the love of God, please stop,” Kingston, my cousin from Boulder said, rubbing his temples. “I joined this business with all of you so I could have a steady job and do what I like, but if we have to discuss sports terminology one more time I will scream.”
“Don’t scream, Uncle Kingston,” Nora said, her eyes wide. “It’s okay. I’ll explain it to you.” Nora climbed into his lap, her little Avalanche jersey looking adorable on her. My cousin just beamed.
“There we go. That’s my best girl.”
Leif just laughed, his body shaking as he looked at me. “I love the fact that she has been part of your guys’ night since the beginning.”
I shrugged, looking at my daughter as she explained hockey rules to Kingston as if Kingston hadn’t played his entire life.
“Well, she was just an infant when we started. Teenagers watching hockey as my parents tried to not freak the fuck out that they were grandparents at a young age. It was fun.”
“Well, I’m grateful you invite me.”
“We’re business partners, cousins, and best friends. Fuck off.”
“Language,” Nora called out, not looking at me but at the TV screen.
Leif snorted and handed me my beer. “Drink. You’re fine.”
“Why didn’t you bring the boys?” Noah asked, digging into the pico de gallo with a tortilla chip.
“Put the pico de gallo on your plate with the spoon. Stop spreading your germs,” Ford said with a grumble as he did it for Noah.
“They’re like an old married couple,” Leif mumbled, too low so that the others couldn’t hear. Which was good, because Noah and Ford could kick our asses. While Leif and I were in the tattoo branch of the family business, Noah, Ford, Kane, and Kingston were all part of the security business. They were bodyguards trained in ass kicking, in tech and installing actual security systems, as well as setting security paths for high-tech companies. I wanted nothing to do with that. I might be big and inked, but I was frail in comparison.
“Anyway, the boys are with their mom tonight. Lake wanted to try the new recipe, so they’re all hanging out.”
“I guess Nora could’ve gone over with them, or even with Aria and everyone, but I like having her here for guys’ night.”
“It wouldn’t be guys’ night without her,” Noah said, this time tossing my daughter in the air towards Ford who caught her.
I rubbed my temple, my pulse slightly elevated. “Please stop doing that.”
“What?” Ford asked, tossing a giggling Nora to Kane.
“We’re having fun,” Kane added with a tease.
He flipped Nora upside down, as she giggled, and then all of them were on the floor, play wrestling as Nora slid in between them, pretending to pin them down.
“You said that she was too small to toss her like a football before,” Noah said very sagely. “She’s bigger now.”
“And you guys are still too rough,” I said with a laugh.
“You say that as if you don’t toss that girl in the pool at your mom and dad’s house.”
“But she can land easier,” I said softly. “How the hell did I end up a girl dad, allowing this type of brutality in front of me?”
Nora giggled again before she threw her body on Kingston’s back, and Kingston pretended to fall, until he was crawling around like a horse of some sort, and Nora proclaimed herself the victor.
“Okay, now I want a little girl. You think Brooke would want a third?” Leif asked, and Ford snorted.
“Please can I be there when you ask her? I’d like to be there.”
“You’re just asking for somebody to slap you upside the head, aren’t you?” Noah asked, shaking his head.
“That’s true,” my cousin answered, smiling.
“I thought Tristan was coming?” Leif asked after a few moments, all of us focusing back on the game.
I shook my head. “Him and Taryn have a thing to do.”
“They sure like fighting,” Leif answered, understanding what code words I had just used.
“I think they like making up more,” Noah said wisely. Nora frowned, her little lip poking out.
“What do you mean? When I make up with Molly and Shane, we all have to hug and say something that we like about each other. Is that what they do?”
I glared at my cousins, before I held out my hand and my daughter jumped on my lap. I held back a groan, since she hit a very important part of me, and was getting taller every day and would one day actually hurt me. “Yes. Just like that. Now, are you all fed? Do we have enough junk food in you?”
“Just a little junk food. You made me eat my vegetables before we came.”
I laughed. “Because you’re a big girl, and you need vegetables to stay healthy.”
“Fine, I’ll eat my cauliflower,” Ford grumbled, and Nora clapped her hands. “Good. Daddy makes it the best.”
“Does he now?” Noah asked, teasing, and Leif threw a pillow at them, which got them all wrestling again, this time a little harder. I pulled Nora back and kissed the top of her head. “Let’s watch the game. Their wrestling’s a little too violent for you right now.”
“It’s okay. I won before so I’m the queen.”
“Yeah, you are.”
Nora bounced from cousin to cousin, explaining her day, and then watching the game with such interest that I knew that I’d have to get her in another pair of skates soon. She was a natural on the ice, even in her little baby outfit, and I didn’t know if she wanted to add hockey to her sports regimen. There were a couple good peewee teams that she could grow into. But she was already doing soccer, dance, and art, and I didn’t think I had it in me to do anything else.
“So, you and Raven?” Ford asked, and I glared at my cousin’s best friend.
“No. Not doing it.”
“You’re not doing her?” Ford asked, his voice low.
I elbowed him in the gut. “Stop it.”
“I’m just saying. You guys are hot together. I mean, if you hadn’t seen her first and all…”
“Don’t even go there, Ford.”
“I won’t. I don’t stand in the way of a Montgomery and their prize. I know the rules.” He sent a dark look towards Noah, and I wondered what that was about, but I didn’t want to pry.
Because if I did, then they would want to pry into what was between me and Raven, and I didn’t have answers for them.
Nobody thought it weird that I was dating my friend from school, Marley’s best friend. Nobody commented on it. The fact that they hadn’t told me they were all thinking about it, and didn’t want to rock the boat.
I didn’t think they were judging, but they were worried I was going to feel something weird about it. And I might, but I didn’t want to. So I was just going to suppress that feeling and not think about it at all.
The Avs scored and we cheered, Nora dancing in front of us. She and Kingston decided to do the dance they learned together when she was around two, which had way too much wiggling in it for their own good. I just laughed and sank back into the chair as Nora went to Ford, and they talked about who they thought was the MVP of the game.
I loved my kid. She was the best thing that had ever happened to me, coming out of the worst possible moment of my life.
Raven wasn’t even sure she wanted kids. I got that. We lived in an age where society didn’t force us to feel like we had to have kids to have a complete family. I had my Nora and I didn’t know if I wanted more than that. But then again, we were still starting out. We weren’t serious, Raven and I. The fact that Raven wasn’t sure she would ever be able to carry a child? That hurt in the same way that I knew it hurt Raven. But it wasn’t my place.
We weren’t serious.
She had said she liked Nora. She loved Nora. So that was something.
I pulled out my phone.
Me: You watching the game?
Raven: Go Avs! There’s a lot of icing in this game.
I laughed, and as everybody looked at me, I shrugged. They all knew who I was texting, and since Nora would be over to look over my shoulder at any minute, I made sure I kept it PG. Mostly because she was learning to read a little too well now. I’d have to be careful.
I’d have to be careful for many reasons.
Me: What do you say to going to a game? The family has season tickets because there’s so many of us, and we pitched in. I can get us a couple of seats this month, I think.
Raven : I’ve always wanted to go. I mean, I went I think once when your parents brought me and Marley. But I haven’t been as an adult. So I can have beer while watching. Let’s do it. Would Nora be coming?
She asked about Nora right away, and that did things to me.
Me: If it’s not a school night. If it is, she’ll stay with my sister or my parents. I don’t want her to be out too late.
Raven: Okay, that works. And you’re sure, Sebastian?
I knew what that meant. Because she had opened up a huge step for us. A huge moment that I could walk away from, but I wasn’t going to. I wasn’t that much of an asshole. I hadn’t been that asshole when I was nineteen, and I sure as fuck wasn’t now.
I didn’t know what Raven and I had, or what we could have. But I wasn’t going to walk away because there was a possibility she would never want or be able to have a kid. I wasn’t that selfish.
Me: Damn right. See you soon?
Raven: Of course. Give my love to Nora. And the guys.
I smiled, set down my phone, and glared at Leif as I realized he had been reading over my shoulder. There really was no privacy in this family.
But the Avs scored again, and Nora threw herself in my arms.
I held my kid and felt that maybe this was okay.
Maybe we had something to look forward to.