Chapter 39 Nisha #2
Patton smirks, looking directly at me. “One of us is not a Pierce yet.”
“Just a matter of time though, right, brother?” Dean asks as if I’m not standing right here.
Patton’s eyes stay on me. “Oh yeah. She doesn’t really have a say in the matter.”
I tilt my head. “Oh really?”
He leans down to press his lips to mine, making my heart skip a beat. “Really.”
“Those are way better than the pajamas you made us all wear with Troy’s face on the crotch,” Dev says, breaking our spell.
Dean shakes his head. “You have no appreciation for the finer things in life, my friend. Those pajamas were epic.”
“I’d like to make it clear that I didn’t want my face on any of your dicks,” Troy says.
“Damn, you should have said something before I got all my boxer-briefs with your face printed on them,” Dean counters, making everyone cringe.
It’s then that I notice both my sister and Piper reach for drinks from a server’s tray. They give each other surprised looks before something like realization dawns over them.
“What’s going on?” I ask, pointing a finger between my besties. “Why did you both pick up the mocktails when we all know no one could pay you to drink them?”
Sarina bites her bottom lip, flicking Troy a glance, to which he simply nods. She takes a breath, smiling. “I’m pregnant.”
Piper gasps, a hand rising to cover her lips. “Me, too!”
Gasps and squeals ring out around us as we all start to gather Sarina and Piper in a hug before a voice resounds from near the side door.
“Did I just hear that my daughter is pregnant? And Piper as well?”
My dad, wearing one of his usual Hawaiian shirts and a beige Panama hat, walks into the yard with his enormous boyfriend-slash-bodyguard in tow. Emanuel pushes their sassy Pomeranian’s stroller ahead of him as if he’s escorting royalty.
“Dad!” Sarina yells, launching herself into his arms while still clutching her mocktail.
He places a kiss on her forehead. “You know, I had a feeling when you came over last week . . . You were positively glowing.”
Her brows furrow. “What do you mean? I just found out yesterday.”
“Oh, please, darling. You should know by now that I was blessed with the highest paternal intuition.” Dad opens his arm toward Piper, who falls into a hug right beside my sister.
“And you, my honorary daughter, congratulations on another upcoming bundle. Lord knows you and that delicious husband of yours make gorgeous babies.”
“Dad,” I wince, walking over for my own hug. “What have we talked about with you checking out our husbands? You’re lucky Emanuel isn’t the jealous type.”
Emanuel, the equivalent of a human teddy bear in a pink polo shirt, just shrugs. “Actually, we check them out together. We talk about how hot and muscular they are, and who we’d like to—”
“Yeah, nope,” Sarina interrupts. “Don’t need either of you expanding on that.”
“Now, where is my newest granddaughter?” Dad claps his hands, his rings catching the sunlight as he heads toward the group of women holding Gia.
Despite all the commotion, the girl has slept through everything. But given it’s been almost two hours since she ate, she’ll be waking up soon, hankering for my boob.
New voices come through the side entrance, and we all look over to see Abby emerge, hands fidgeting in front of her. Hector walks in behind her, wearing the sweater I knitted for him last year, beaming at me when our eyes meet.
Abby has come over to the house several times over the past two weeks to play with Gia, and each time I see both Patton and her make a little more headway into mending their relationship.
And while I know Abby is ready to embrace her son, both physically and emotionally, he’s still slightly guarded, more comfortable with side hugs than full embraces.
But if I know Patton’s immense heart and capability to forgive, he’ll get there.
And given he just bought her a fully furnished apartment a block away from us, I’d say that forgiveness is well on its way.
The last time Abby visited us, she brought Hector along. And while their relationship is fairly new, it was adorable to see how happy they both looked together. Also adorable? The way Patton questioned him, more like a parent than her son, asking Hector what his intentions were with his mother.
I rush toward them both, pulling them into a hug. “I’m so happy you could be here.” I look at Abby. “Want to head over to the group and get a snuggle in with your granddaughter? She’s going to wake any minute now for her human milk machine.”
Abby giggles softly, but before she can make her way over, Patton saunters to us, placing a hand on my lower back.
“Hey, Mom. Good to see you.” He gives her a side hug before shaking Hector’s hand.
“Thank you for having us,” Abby says softly before handing him a gift bag. “I knitted her more clothes.”
I can’t help but embrace her again. “Thank you, Abby.”
“Patton!”
We all turn toward the side door just as an older couple steps inside.
There’s a woman with gray curls and a portly man in a Boston Bolts hockey T-shirt who looks like he hasn’t met a stranger in his life.
The woman is practically bouncing with excitement, her arms outstretched in Patton’s direction.
Bob, never one to let a potential security breach go unchecked, gives a warning bark before trotting over to do a full-body search. Sniffing the couple thoroughly, he seems to determine they’re not carrying weapons, contraband, or treats before giving everyone an approving huff.
I immediately recognize them as Patton’s foster parents, who I met first as a teenager, and then again at our wedding years ago.
We’ve spoken on the phone here and there since, and more recently last week after Gia was born.
I even had Abby attend that call, where tears gathered inside her eyes as she thanked them profusely for fostering Patton and helping him become the incredible man he is.
“Molly? Joe?” Patton’s voice shakes slightly. “What are you—”
“Nisha sent us flight tickets to come see you,” Molly says, her voice warm as she wraps Patton in a motherly hug. “We had to come see your little girl properly. Getting a glimpse of her through photos and videos just wasn’t enough.”
Patton glances at me over his shoulder, his eyes warm and grateful. While he and his foster parents may not see each other often, they hold a very special place in his heart, so I know how much it means to him that they’re here.
“We brought gifts.” Joe grins, giving Patton a back-slapping hug.
I’m just about to step forward to greet them as well when I see it.
Rising behind Joe like a ghoul from my nightmares is an enormous, helium-filled teddy bear bobbing in the breeze. Its shiny, vacant eyes catch the sun, and I swear—swear!—they gleam red for a second.
Okay, so perhaps it’s not as large as I’ve described, and maybe it doesn’t have dead eyes. But it’s helium-filled.
And fucking scary.
The effect on me is immediate and catastrophic.
“No,” I whisper, backing up so fast I nearly trip over Hudson’s feet. “No, no, no.”
“What’s wrong with—” Joe starts, but I’m already in full panic mode, ducking behind Emanuel like I’m hiding from armed assailants.
Emanuel, bless his heart, has no idea what’s going on but goes right into protective mode, positioning himself between me and the balloon like he’s ready to take bullets for me.
“Should I tackle it?” he asks gravely.
“Yes!” I whisper-hiss. “Or burn it!”
“What’s happening right now?” Hector asks, a tiny caprese hors d’oeuvre on a toothpick halfway to his mouth.
“I feel like I’m missing context,” Hudson says, brows pinched and eyes taking in the spectacle before him.
“Nisha has a thing about balloons,” Sarina explains, doing a shitty job of keeping the laugh out of her voice.
I peer around Emanuel’s massive frame, watching my boyfriend move to retrieve the balloon from a very confused Joe.
“They’re unpredictable!” I insist. “Float around all willy-nilly and hang out in dark hallways to catch you off guard in the middle of the night. They’re freaking demons!”
By now my friends are openly laughing, Piper nearly snorting her mocktail.
Patton, my hero and savior, retrieves the string of Lucifer’s floating plushy from Joe’s hand with so much gusto, you’d think he was filming a stunt for an action movie. He starts to run it toward the side gate when the string slips from his fingers at the last second.
The balloon floats toward me in slow motion, menacing and mocking. Its eyes are locked on me, its frightening smile curving up to reveal blood-coated fangs.
Yes. I know this is all in my head!
And yet, I still scream.
My shriek rips from my lungs before I can stop it, startling Gia awake. She peers up at Dean holding her, and then lets out a wail that could shatter glass.
Dean’s eyes widen. “Yeah, the banshee lungs are definitely from her mom’s side.”