Chapter 40 #2
“Not too bad, we’ve hired a part-time general surgeon, so my hours haven’t been as hectic lately, hence the reason I get to hang out with your ugly mug tonight.”
I slap the back of his head while going to grab my pool cue. “You’re welcome for the night out with your Best BIL Ever.”
“Nope, that’s my title, and you don’t actually say BIL like it’s a word,” he guffaws. “You still say Best Brother-In-Law Ever.”
“Whatever, it’s hard to take you seriously after the honking sounds you just made.”
Beck gives a real hardy laugh this time, paired with the genuine smile I’ve come to love, before he ruins it with the word “dick,” followed by more laughter.
We shoot a few rounds of pool, Beck and his precise surgeon hands winning all of them, before we gather our things to leave.
When I pick up my phone, I click to open the latest messages and am greeted by a sight that makes my heart swell in my chest. There, framed perfectly on the screen, is a picture of Rosalie, Paige, and Addison, my girls, in matching polka-dot pajamas.
I don’t care if I look remotely whipped right now. I immediately save the photo and set it as my new lock screen.
Beck lets out a low whistle next to me.
“Damn, man, you’ve got it so bad.”
I smile. I most certainly do, and I’m not embarrassed by it in the least.
I click back into the message, noticing there are a few more pictures behind the one of the girls in their pajamas, and Beck leans back over my shoulder to check them out, too.
The next picture shows three massive ice cream sundaes piled high with various syrups, candy, and whipped cream, though one is significantly smaller than the others. Rosalie’s, I assume.
“I think we came to the wrong place tonight,” Beck says almost wistfully.
I turn to him with an incredulous look. “Are you kidding me right now? You’ve seen Addison hyped up on sugar. Now, multiply it by two because Paige is the same way. If anything, we picked the right place, or we should have called Rosalie to see if she needed to be rescued.”
I swipe again and find a set of three hands, all with neon nails. It does something funny to my insides seeing Addison’s little hand next to Rosalie and Paige’s and I briefly rub a hand over my sternum before swiping to the next picture.
I bobble the phone in my hands in shock, or fright, I’m not sure which, while Beck yells, “Oh shit,” before backing up so rapidly he bumps into a patron behind him.
He apologizes, moving closer to me again, and we both tentatively lean forward to look down at the phone.
Staring back at us are very distorted versions of a panda, a puppy, and a pig.
“What the fuck am I looking at?”
I stare a bit longer, the photo still making me a bit uneasy. But finally, it clicks.
“Rosalie said they were doing a spa night. My best guess is those are face masks,” I say with uncertainty.
“Well, they’re fucking terrifying and should never be used again.”
I laugh because he’s not wrong.
There is one more picture, and now I’m hesitant to look. Could it get worse than the unrecognizable animals staring back at me right now? Probably not. So, I brave it and swipe.
It’s a video, and when I hit play, my heart explodes with an intensity of love I haven’t felt in years, or maybe ever. I didn’t lie to Beck when I spoke about my love for Julianne earlier. But this something, this intense love with Rosalie, feels different, and just as right.
I refocus on the screen.
Rosalie must have propped the phone up somewhere in her living room because she’s also in the video.
She’s singing “You’re the One” at the top of her lungs into a hairbrush with Paige and Addie, taking turns twirling them in circles.
They all have crowns on top of their heads and boas around their necks, and they look so incredibly happy.
I close out of the text and check the time, it’s just about ten o’clock. With any luck, the girls have crashed and Rosalie’s still awake.
I look up, and Beck has a goofy grin plastered on his face. It’s his turn to put a hand on my shoulder, this time in understanding instead of comfort.
“Come on, man, let’s get out of here.”
Once outside, Beck wraps me in a big hug.
There’s no pretense or guise it’s a bro hug.
It’s not paired with back slaps and weird handshakes.
This is the hug of two men who will always be best friends and family.
It’s a hug that says he’s happy for me and this next step in my life, and it feels damn good.
When we start to walk our separate ways, I turn around and shout, “Hey, Beck!”
He stops, turning to face me.
“Don’t think we’re done discussing your life on those dating apps. I’m ready for you to find your someone, too!” I say with a wink, although I mean it with my whole heart. Beck deserves happiness and someone to share his life with; he’s too good a man to go at it alone, not if he doesn’t want to.
He drops his head and shakes it, turning around and walking off without a word, lifting his middle finger in the air.