Page 127 of Good For Me

“Hey, man,” River says, shaking it. “It’s nice to finally meet you. Jas talks about you all the time.”

“Good to meet you,” my cousin says gruffly. River winces slightly and I wonder just how hard Chris is gripping his hand. But River doesn’t pull away, and he holds my cousin’s gaze steadily.

“You guys ready to go in?” River asks. “I have to warn you—my family is pretty big. It can get loud in there.”

“I own a bar, kid. I know all about crowds,” Dave says, and River chuckles.

“Good point. Not a lot of crazy kids running around your bar though.” He takes my hand and leads us to the front door—we’ve only just walked through when we hear a shriek.

“River!” Violet calls from the staircase, jumping down the last three steps to throw herself at her brother. He catches her mid-air, swinging her legs up off the ground.

“Hey, shrimpy,” he says.

“You haven’t been home in ages,” she complains and I feel a stab of guilt. Has he been spending too much time with me to come visit his siblings?

“I’ve been busy working, Vi,” he says, tugging the end of her braid as he sets her down. “Hey, say hi to Jas and her family.”

“Hi,” she says brightly, waving at the strangers. Then she grins up at me. “I made something for the baby! Want to see?”

“Um, sure.” It always takes me a few minutes to acclimate to the Ransomes. But Violet already has my hand in hers and is pulling me into the house.

“Give her a minute, Vi,” River calls to her. “Let her at least take her jacket off.”

“Fine,” she sighs dramatically, and I have to laugh. River’s sister is seriously cute.

Reed’s house has a big, fancy entryway with a curving staircase leading to the upstairs. It’s crazy how quickly the space fills with people when Violet shouts out, “River and Jas are here!” at the top of her lungs.

I’m hugged by a dozen people—including Everly who I saw less than an hour ago when she helped me do my hair back at the house—my belly is patted, my dress and hair are complimented. I should be overwhelmed but I realize that I’m starting to get used to this—to their noise and exuberance and sheer number of people.

I glance over my shoulder to see how the others are faring. River is introducing my uncle to his parents while Chris and Brie are kind of gaping around—either at the crowd or the splendor of the house.

Rose slides up next to me. “Don’t worry,” she says in my ear. “We’ll make sure they’re comfortable.”

“Thank you,” I tell her gratefully.

River’s big sister looks down at my belly and grins. “You’re freaking adorable.”

I roll my eyes. “I’m huge.”

“Adorable,” she insists. The baby gives a kick and, without thinking about it much, I take her hand and place it over my stomach. Her eyes widen. “Holy crap!”

I laugh. “It’s weird, right?”

“Weird butcool.”

I happen to look up and see River watching us. The expression on his face makes my cheeks flush and I turn away, seeing Brie sandwiched in between Paige and Everly, looking very freaked out. “Oh, no,” Rose murmurs, seeing the direction of my glance. “We should save her. Paige and Everly are a lot to take in at the same time.”

This whole thing is a lot to take in. But I’m surprised by how much I don’t hate it. When I see this big crazy family, all I can think about is how my kid is going to fit in here someday, and then I get a warm gooey feeling in my chest that Brie would most definitely make fun of me for.

“Brie,” I call, gesturing her over. “Come meet River’s sister.”

I introduce them and Rose makes a big deal out of how cool Brie’s tattoos are, even calling Will over so he can offer commentary. River shoots me atold you solook over their heads. I give him just as pointed a look before jerking my chin toward my uncle, who looks pretty tense and out of place. River winces and I’m about to head over to pull Dave into the group when River’s grandma slips past me.

“Dave Weaver,” she says, clapping her hands. “I thought that was you.”

My uncle’s face lights up as she approaches. “Ruby! What on earth are you doing here?”

“River is my grandson,” she says. They do a half hug, half-handshake thing as River and I join them.