Chapter 22
Brody
‘What are you doing here?’ I say when Nick shows up at my door. It’s Sunday morning and he woke me up.
‘Callie had the baby. We’re driving down there.’
I go back to the couch, which is where I slept last night. I couldn’t sleep in the bed without Kate.
‘Did you hear me?’ Nick comes over to the couch where I was just about to lay down.
‘Yeah, Callie had the baby. Why are you telling me this now? I thought she had it Friday night.’
‘She went to the hospital Friday, but she didn’t have the baby until last night. Now get up. We’re leaving. Go change clothes and do something with your hair. You’re a mess.’
‘I didn’t sleep well last night. And I’m not going to see the baby. Send me pictures.’
‘Mom wants all of us down there. Didn’t you see my text?’
‘No. I haven’t checked my phone.’
‘Lyndsay and I are going in my truck and Sawyer’s taking you and Jason in his car. Unless you want to drive yourself to Chicago.’ He pauses. ‘Maybe stop and see someone while you’re there?’
‘It’s over with her,’ I say, gazing at the rug in front of the couch. Kate picked it out, along with the wooden bowl on the coffee table, the candles, the frame she got for the picture of my family that I used to have taped to the wall. She made this place look like an actual home.
‘You can still go and see her,’ Nick says.
‘We talked about it and decided to cut off all contact. No texts. No calls. We thought it’d be easier than staying in touch.’
Nick sits down beside me. ‘And how’s that working out?’
‘It sucks, but it’ll get better with time. I just need to stay busy. Work on my business. Sell the house.’
‘Do you love her?’
‘No,’ I say with a laugh. ‘I’ve only known her a few weeks.’
‘Sometimes that’s all it takes, especially after all the time you two spent together. Living together, you get to know someone a lot better than if you just went on a few dates.’
‘It doesn’t matter how I feel about her. We’re not good together.’
‘And why is that?’
‘She’s smart. She went to college. I barely made it through high school. She’s got some fancy job in Chicago and I plow snow and mow grass for a living. It would never work.’
‘Do you hear yourself?’ Nick leans back on the couch, smiling at me.
‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘You just described Lyndsay and me. Lyndsay felt the same way you did, like we’d never work because I have a law degree and she struggled to get through high school. She and I are just as much opposites as you and Kate.’
‘I guess I hadn’t thought about that. But it doesn’t matter. We still live in different states.’
‘Lyndsay and I lived on different coasts.’ Nick turns to me.
‘I almost lost Lyndsay because I kept coming up with reasons why we couldn’t be together instead of trying to find ways that we could.
Don’t be stupid like me. If you think you might love this girl, don’t be giving her up without at least trying to make it work.
’ His phone rings. ‘It’s Mom.’ Nick answers it.
‘Hey, Mom.’ He gets up. ‘Yeah, we’re heading down in a few minutes.
’ Nick glances at me. ‘He says he’s not going. ’ Nick hands me his phone.
‘What are you doing?’
‘Mom wants to talk to you.’
I take the phone. ‘Mom, I can’t drive down there. I’ve got a lot to do.’
‘What do you have to do that’s more important than being with family?’ she says in her guilt-inducing mom tone. ‘This little baby is your uncle’s first grandchild and we’re all going to be here to celebrate.’
‘Mom, I—’
‘We’re doing this for Callie, too. You know how difficult this has been on her with her family gone. We’re going to show her we love her and that we’re here to support her. Now get yourself ready and start driving.’
I sigh. ‘Yeah, fine, I’ll be there.’ I give the phone back to Nick.
‘See you soon, Mom.’ Nick ends the call and looks at me. ‘You want me to tell Sawyer to stop by and get you? ’
‘No, I’ll drive myself.’
Nick smiles a little, like he thinks that means I’ll be going to see Kate. ‘I’ll see you down there.’ He walks to the door. ‘I’ll text you the address for the hospital.’
When he’s gone, I take a quick shower and get ready.
As I’m driving to Chicago, I go back and forth about seeing Kate.
Do I want to see her? Hell yeah, but I agreed to leave her alone.
Seeing her will just make it harder to get over her, if that’s even possible.
The way I’m feeling now, I can’t see myself ever getting over Kate.
There was something about her that had me hooked from the moment I met her.
Maybe it’s because she’s so different than any other girl I’ve ever gone out with, or maybe it’s us being opposites that drew me to her.
Whatever it was, I’ll never forget how it felt to be with her and I’m not sure I’ll ever feel that way again with someone else.
I didn’t want to admit this to Nick, but I really do love her.
‘There you are,’ Mom says when I arrive at the hospital. I was walking down the hall when I saw her coming out of a room. ‘Come see the baby before they take her back to the nursery.’
‘Her? They had a girl?’
‘Yes, and she’s absolutely beautiful!’ Mom gushes. ‘I’m heading over to Mitch’s house to make Sunday dinner. You’ll be there, right? We’re eating at noon.’
‘Yeah, I’ll be there.’
‘Your cousins just left, but you’ll see them at the house.’
‘Martha, you coming?’ my dad says from down the hall.
‘I’m on my way.’ She gives me a quick hug, then whispers to me, ‘Go in there and see how happy Nash looks. That could be you someday. ’
Is she crazy? I’m not even close to having a kid.
Out of all my brothers, Nick will be the first to have a kid, then maybe Sawyer, although he’s never talked about having kids.
But I know Gina wants them so I’m sure it’ll happen.
Jason will be next. He loves kids, which is why he’s a teacher.
As for me? I’ll probably be a bachelor forever.
The only girl I ever saw myself having a future with was never mine, and never will be.
‘Hey, Brody,’ Nash says, a huge grin on his face as I go into the room. ‘Thanks for coming down.’
My brothers are already there, along with Lyndsay and Gina.
‘Congratulations,’ I tell him, walking over to him and Callie.
‘Her name is Addison Rose,’ Callie says, smiling as she looks at the baby in Nash’s arms.
‘Nice name,’ I say, immediately thinking of Kate. Her middle name is Rose. I swear, every time I turn around I’m reminded of her.
‘You want to hold her?’ Nash asks.
‘No.’ I put my hands up. ‘I’m not good with babies.’
‘How would you know?’ Jason asks. ‘You’ve never been around them.’
‘Yeah, so I don’t know how to hold one. I’m not going to try and risk dropping her.’
‘I’ll take her,’ Lyndsay says, going up to Nash. He hands her the baby and Lyndsay’s face lights up. ‘Look at her tiny little nose. She’s so adorable.’ She smiles at Nick. ‘I can’t wait to hold ours.’
‘You guys are pregnant?’ Sawyer says to Nick.
‘No.’ Nick laughs. ‘But we’re hoping it happens soon. ’
‘Did you pick a date?’ Jason asks.
Nick walks over to Lyndsay. ‘You want to wait or tell them now?’
‘Go ahead,’ she says, rocking the baby in her arms.
‘We were going to announce this at dinner so act surprised so Mom doesn’t get upset we told you before her.’
‘Yeah?’ I say. ‘So what’s the date?’
‘May 15th.’ Nick smiles at Lyndsay. ‘We’re going to get married at the orchard. Lyndsay loves the apple blossoms in the spring and that time of year is usually when they’re at their best.’
‘It’ll be gorgeous,’ Lyndsay says, smiling up at Nick. ‘I can’t wait!’
‘I think it’s time we let Mom got some rest,’ a nurse says, coming into the room.
Lyndsay hands Callie the baby. ‘She’s beautiful.’
Callie smiles, but looks exhausted. She’s probably had visitors all morning.
We all head out and go to Uncle Mitch’s house. I smell mom’s ham cooking in the oven the moment I walk in the door. My cousins—Jake, Bryce, and Austin—are all in the living room watching a basketball game on the giant TV.
Jake gets up when he sees us. ‘I’m on drink duty. You guys want anything?’
‘We can get it,’ Nick says, heading to the kitchen. Jason and I follow him there while Sawyer stays behind to watch the game.
Ivy, Jen, and Kira, my cousins’ girlfriends, are in the kitchen helping my mom .
‘Can we do anything?’ Lyndsay asks, going past me with Gina right behind her.
Mom asks them to set the table and they get to work gathering the plates and silverware.
I can’t believe how much my family has grown.
Nash is married and has a new baby. His brothers all have serious girlfriends.
Nick is getting married soon and I’m sure Sawyer will be next.
I never saw myself being like them. I had no desire to get married, or even be in a serious relationship.
Until I met Kate. I can imagine her here, hanging out with my family, talking to the other girls.
She got along great with Gina and Lyndsay, and my mom loved her.
I’m doing it again, imagining a future with Kate that will never happen.
Why do I keep doing this? Kate and I aren’t a couple.
We never were. She’s going to go on with her life, find some guy who’s smart with a college degree who will give her the kind of life she wants.
I should be happy about that, and the old Brody would be, but the person I am now doesn’t want to give up that easily.
Being with Kate made me want more for myself, not just for my business, but for my personal life.
If there’s even a small chance Kate would be with me, then what the hell am I doing standing in my uncle’s kitchen when I could be trying to get her back?
I walk up to my mom as she peels potatoes. ‘Any chance I could miss dinner? I need to go do something.’
‘And what could possibly be more important than having dinner with your family?’ she says, sounding annoyed with me.
‘Mom.’ Nick gives her a look to go along with it.