17. Cody
Cody
Twins. I can’t believe Soph is having twins. She’s always wanted twins. She said everyone deserves to have a built-in best friend and that’s what twins are. She was always jealous of the relationship Jax and I have and wanted her kids to have that.
“She’s getting everything she ever wanted,” I say softly.
“Yeah, she is. I'm so happy for her,” Jax adds.
“So, Jax… You guys are playing the Bears next week. How do you think you’ll do?” Jude pushes. He’s been trying to dominate Jax’s night and my twin is about to lose it.
Jax is an extremely outgoing person and he’s always willing to talk to anyone. He loves getting to know new people and discussing hockey, but even he has his limits.
“Dude, my sister’s about to find out the gender of her babies. I don’t really care about the game next week.” Jax keeps his tone firm, letting Jude know he’s not messing around.
“Yeah, but you can watch while we chat.” Jude chuckles uncomfortably.
“No,” Jax growls. “I might be a hockey player, but my life doesn’t revolve around the sport.
Do you see all of the people in this room?
They’re the only things I actually care about in life.
Do I want to win every game? Sure, who doesn’t want to win?
But if we lose, I don’t give a crap. So shut your mouth and let me enjoy my sister and her announcement. ”
“Dang,” Creed mumbles under his breath. He knows, as well as everyone else at this table, Jax doesn’t put people in their place often, but he’s angry right now. He’s so fed up with Jude trying to act like they’re best friends, especially because he knows Jude’s ignoring his girlfriend.
We were all taught to treat women with respect and if we’re going to date someone, we put our all into the relationship. We only date if we can see a future with that person, otherwise it’s a waste of everyone’s time.
Dad taught us young that dating was only to happen if we thought we could get married and spend the rest of our lives with that person. Our friends thought we were insane when we didn’t date a lot in high school or college, but now I get it. I understand why he was so adamant about it.
Why waste years of your life on someone you don’t want to marry? It’s just dumb. The person of your dreams could come along and not show you a bit of attention because you’re already in a relationship. It’s better to be single until you find the woman you want.
“Guy can’t take a hint,” Holt chuckles. He’s just like his dad. Uncle Lincoln doesn’t know how to keep his mouth shut and neither does Holt. He loves to poke the bear.
Sophia cuts the first tier and the sponge is hot pink.
Silent tears stream down her cheeks as she stares up at Peck.
She’s never said what gender she was hoping for.
I think she’ll be truly happy with boys or girls.
I know they both want a lot of kids, so I'm sure they’ll have more after the twins anyway.
Peck cuts into the next tier and when the knife comes out blue, the room erupts in chaos. Sophia throws herself into Peck’s arms and he buries his face in the crook of her neck. I'm sure they’re thrilled to be having one boy and one girl. They’ll get to have the best of both worlds.
“She’s going to be so happy,” Jax whispers, meeting my gaze. “What are we buying for our new niece and nephew?”
“Whatever you want. They’ll definitely need little skates as soon as they can stand.” I grin.
“I'm buying them both baseball gloves, balls, and bats,” Leo and Wyatt say at the same time.
“You know Sophia will have an extensive baby registry by tomorrow and we can all buy something off of it.” Creed smirks.
“You aren’t wrong.” I point in his direction. “I guarantee she already had two set up and was just waiting to find out the gender before she told everyone about it.”
“You’re wrong. She had three set up. One if they were having two boys, one for two girls, and one for a boy and a girl. I just asked her.” Wes chuckles as he takes the seat Peck was sitting in and leans back. His attention is focused on Jude and nothing else.
“Jax, what do you think about-”
“Dude! Enough! You’ve been so far down my throat since the moment we met. I feel like I can’t breathe around you! Maybe instead of sucking up to me, you should pay attention to your girl and realize she isn’t happy with you.” Jax stands from the table, letting his chair scrape against the floor.
All eyes turn to us and I'm sure everyone heard Jax snap. He’s not a quiet person in general and his voice tends to stand out a little more.
I glance over at Sloan and find her cheeks red as tomatoes. She definitely heard what Jax said. She’s staring down at her lap and trying to avoid everyone. She hurries to her feet and rushes out of the pavilion.
I quickly transfer Carter’s sleeping body to Wyatt’s arms and rise from my own chair. Jude starts to follow, but Dad stops him.
“So, Jude… How did you and Sloan meet?”
I don’t wait to hear the answer because I really don’t care. Instead, I race after the girl I’ve loved for as long as I can remember.
Searching the backyard, I don’t see her anywhere. It’s a huge area, but there aren’t many places to hide as an adult. We learned that when we used to try to play hide and seek every summer. There’s only one place she could be without leaving the backyard.
I hurry over to the playground and climb the old wooden steps to the three-story castle. When I peek inside, Sloan’s sitting with her back against the wall and her knees pulled up to her chest.
“Are you ok?” I whisper.
Sloan jumps at my voice and shakes her head without lifting it. She looks so much like the teenage girl I remember from years ago.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“No,” she whispers.
“Ok… Is it ok if I sit with you then? We don’t have to talk.”
“Why are you being so nice to me Cody?” She lifts her head just enough for me to see her tear-stained cheeks and her red rimmed eyes.
“Because it kills me to see you hurting.” I slide across the floor until my back is resting on the wooden wall next to hers. “We can sit here in silence. After hearing Jude blabber on and on about hockey, I could use the silence.”
Sloan snorts with laughter before she sniffles again. “I'm sorry. He’s so awful.”
“He’s not awful, he just has no chill.”
“He was supposed to take me on a date tonight,” she whispers. “That’s why I'm so dressed up. When he showed up at my apartment, he said we were coming here. We fought about it and I finally gave in, but I told him after tonight, I wasn’t helping him hang out with you and Jax anymore.”
“Well, I'm pretty sure Jax isn’t going to tolerate him any longer. When I left to come after you, my dad might’ve made himself comfortable with Jude.” I wince, knowing there’s no way to guess what’s coming out of Dad’s mouth right now.
“Jeez, this is a disaster. I should just go. It was a mistake for me to even come.” She tries to scoot towards the little hole in the floor so she can climb down, but I stop her.
“Nah, you need a little breather right now. Take some time to gather your thoughts and figure out what you’re doing next.”
“You mean figure out how I'm breaking up with Jude?” She peeks up at me with a small grin, but there are still tears in her eyes.
“I'm not making any suggestions or remarks. You need to do whatever you feel is best. I'm not getting involved.”
We’re quiet for a few minutes, then I realize I could use her help with something.
“Can I show you something?”
“Of course.”
“Good. I’d love your opinion on this. C’mon.” After we escape from the castle, I place my hand on Sloan’s lower back and guide her out of the backyard and to a house across the street.
I twist the knob and step inside. The house is still mostly empty, but there are more samples in here than I can count.
“Whose house is this? I was shocked when I saw new houses being built. I never thought Mulberry Lane would have more than seven houses.” She takes in the interior of the home and smiles at the high ceilings.
“Well, there’s a second generation. We all need homes too.” I grin as I lift the samples I liked and hold them out to her. “This home is mine. Jax is to my right and Sophia to my left. Charlie’s on the other side of Sophia.”
“Really? That’s awesome! I know how much you always dreamed of living here for the rest of your life. What am I looking at?” She takes the samples and examines them. I love how she doesn’t give them a quick look before making a decision.
“These are my cabinets and countertops. Dad wants me to pick a color for the walls today. He said they need to paint before they can install the cabinets.” I grip the back of my neck and rub the tension away.
“I love the gray stained cabinets and the black and white granite counter tops.” She smiles up at me before turning to the book of paint samples.
She takes almost five minutes before she points to a blue.
“This would be my pick for the walls. It gives you an accent color and something to brighten up the room.”
“Thanks. I’ve been stressing out about this.”
“Wow, you stress about paint colors and not your performance on the ice?” She arches a brow.
“Zip it.” I chuckle. “Do you want to see the rest of the house?”
“Do you need help picking paint colors for the other rooms too?” She’s teasing me, but I don’t mind at all. As long as she’s talking to me and her mind is off of Jude, I'm happy.
“Nah, I'm making the rest of the house white.”
“No! You can’t do that! No one wants boring white walls in every room of the house, Cody!” She hooks her arm through mine and peers up at me. “Well, let’s go! I'm picking colors for each room.”