Chapter 23
Gifts That Keep on Giving…
Ben
It’s Sunday afternoon, and Dominic and his fiancée are coming home today. That’s what I’m calling her now, instead of Vivian, so I can keep the situation straight in my mind. Vivian is my brother’s fiancée. My brother and Vivian are getting married. She will be my sister-in-law. And nothing more.
I haven’t quite figured out how to completely shut off my emotions, but I have been watching a lot of short videos about stoicism, which has been giving me ideas.
(Honestly, I can’t decide if the stoics of the world are insane or the only ones who have life figured out. It’s difficult to tell sometimes.)
Anyway, I’ve spent most of the weekend in my shop, working away on the pirate ship (which is coming along pretty nicely, if I do say so myself).
Yesterday, I let Henry go on his first playdate at Jax’s house, which allowed me a couple of hours to get groceries and run some errands.
Before I agreed to it, I asked Lacey what her trampoline rules are.
Turns out they’re pretty reasonable—one child at a time, no one on without an adult supervising.
So I relented and it turned out not to be a life-changing mistake, which was nice.
Today, he’s been having the time of his life with my mum.
He’s so excited about Dominic and his fiancée (see?
did it!) coming back that he wants to throw a little party.
They’ve been busy decorating the kitchen with balloons, a big sign, and streamers, and they baked a cake.
You’d think they’ve been gone for a year instead of a week, but time moves slowly for children, so for Henry, this has felt like an eternity without his Uncle Dom and ‘Auntie’ Viv (and of course, her delightful pancakes).
They iced the cake, then immediately left for the airport to pick up the guests of honor, while I continue building the bow of the ship. I’m just refilling the cartridge in my nail gun when I hear Dominic’s car pull up.
Okay, Ben, show time. Be stoic. Polite. Detached yet friendly.
And above all, do not fantasize about getting her naked and exploring every inch of her body.
Crap, I’m thinking about that again, which is causing my temperature to rise, which is something I cannot afford right now.
I need to make sure my future sister-in-law gets the idea that the ‘shop incident’ isn’t happening again (no matter how badly I want it to) without giving any indication to my mother and brother that anything untoward happened.
I stroll out of the shop in time to see them all pile out of the car, laughing and talking at once.
Dominic opens the trunk and pulls out his suitcase and an enormous gift bag with a cartoon picture of the Manhattan skyline on it.
He thrusts the bag at Henry, who accepts it gleefully, even though it’s so heavy, it practically takes him down.
“For you, my good sir,” Dominic says. “I couldn’t decide what to get you, so I got you everything I saw!”
Henry grins and pushes his glasses up a little. “Wow! Thanks, Uncle Dom! You should go away more often.”
Vivian, meanwhile, is struggling with her massive suitcase. I hurry over and lift it out of the trunk for her. “Hey, how was the trip?” Nuts, I used my low voice. I shouldn’t use that one on her anymore.
She looks up at me, and just the sight of her this close is making me forget all that stuff about not using her name and being stoic and whatever the hell else I’ve been telling myself.
“It was great. Dominic was in his glory and we made some excellent progress with everything,” she says, her eyes locking on mine.
Nope. No locking of the eyes. “Good stuff.” I quickly turn away and take her luggage up the front steps.
The next few minutes are spent with my mom and Henry showing off the decorations and the cake, and Vivian making a big fuss about how wonderful everything looks and how talented Henry and my mum are and thanking them for making her feel so welcome.
Then we all watch my son unload the giant haul of gifts—a Yankees rubber duck for the bath (apparently it’s an official rubber duck), two toy yellow cabs that light up and make noises, an extra cuddly I Love NY teddy bear, a 3D puzzle, a Brooklyn Bridge Lego set, and a snow globe with the Statue of Liberty and some skyscrapers.
I watch, trying to look relaxed and happy, even though I’m anything but either of those things right now.
Dominic sidles up to me while Vivian and mum are helping Henry separate the puzzle pieces.
In a low voice, he says, “I bet you thought we forgot about you, but don’t worry, Viv has a very special gift for you. ”
“Oh, she didn’t have to do that.”
“That’s what I said, but she insisted.” He elbows me in the ribs and gives me a wide grin. “And trust me, you are going to love it.”
Love what? A ball cap or something? “I’m sure I will.”
He gives me a serious look. “No, you don’t get it. You are going to love it.”
“Okay, great,” I answer, feeling totally confused.
Still speaking in a near-whisper, he says, “But you can’t open it now.”
“No? Why not?”
“You’ll need your privacy. Also, you won’t want our mother to know. At least not before you’ve made a decision.” He looks over at her, then whispers, “But trust me. Say yes.”
Is he talking about sex? I think he’s talking about sex. I narrow my eyes at him, but don’t say anything.
“I’m whisking Mum and Henry off to the resort in a bit to play in the pool for a couple of hours so you two can be alone.”
I look over at Vivian and she gives me a shy, knowing smile.
Oh my God. Did she tell Dominic about what happened and he gave us the green light to start sleeping together? No, that can’t be right. Letting out an awkward chuckle, I say, “Alone? Pfft. Why would we need that?”
“Because what she’s going to give you will take a lot of time and needs your full, uninterrupted attention. And you’ll need to decide if you can accept it,” he says. “It’s also a pretty big deal and will change the dynamic between the two of you.”
Is it, like, boiling hot in here? I think it is. “Oh, I don’t know if I want to change the dynamic. We’re getting along so well. Best not to rock the boat.”
“Trust me, you’ll want to rock this boat.”
“And you’re okay with me rocking the boat?”
He wrinkles up his nose. “Of course I’m okay with it. In fact, I insist you do. I even helped her prepare for it.”
He helped her what? Okay, so this is the weirdest conversation I think we’ve ever had.
I’m pretty sure he’s talking about sex, which seems wrong on so many levels, not the least of which is that this really should be a private conversation between Vivian and me, not between two brothers.
It’s like he’s giving permission for me to sleep with his future wife, and I know they’re not going to be married ‘that way,’ but still.
Awkward. “Umm, well, I … maybe. It sounds great—like seriously so great. But you know, I definitely wouldn’t want to complicate things because we’re going to be family soon, in a strange way, and I’d hate for anything to get in the way of us all having a comfortable relationship going forward. ”
“It’s only complicated if you make it complicated.” He leans a little closer and gives me a sniff. “You know what? You might want to go have a quick shower. You smell like sawdust.”
It’s definitely sex. I nod vigorously, my entire body waking up to the idea.
I shake Dominic’s hand, for reasons unknown.
I guess it’s because I can’t remember a time when I’ve been this happy.
I have no idea how this happened, but for once in my life, I’m not going to second guess anything.
I’m going to let myself have the thing I’ve been desperate to have for weeks.
I clap him on the back. “Okay, I will go shower. That’s a very good idea. Thanks, man!”
Dominic gives me a strange look. “No problem.”
“Dad, come help us make this puzzle,” Henry says.
“No can do, little man. I need a quick shower.” I tone down the goofy grin on my face, and add, “Uncle Dominic says I smell like sawdust.”
“Okay, but you’re missing out on the best time ever,” my mum says.
No, Mum. I do not believe that 3D puzzle is the best time ever. In fact, I have something much more fun to do as soon as Dominic gets you out of the house.