Page 99 of Back for Seconds

“Holy shit.”

She nodded, appraising her own reflection wearily. “I know. I’m really smart. It’s kinda scary.”

After that, I listened to all of Mimi’s advice about cream blush placement. Then we slid into black dresses. Hers was a complicated series of leather straps and mesh panels; mine was the type of sweater-material wrap dress that was both extremely flattering on my hour-glass figure and wholly comfortable. Very easy to pee in.

Uncomplicated. That was how I liked things.

Joey picked us up, calling me baby when I slid into the passenger seat next to him. His fingers curled around my thigh and desire pulsed deep in my abdomen, sending a line of goose bumps flaring up and down my arms.

“You two can kiss hello,” Mimi teased. “I won’t start screaming. Not yet.”

The Billiards was closed tonight, technically, but the old shore house was lit up with life. String lights were draped across the wood-shingle portico, around the windows, over the railing that led down to the deep, grassy lawn. Eddie and Del had rented a tent and heat lamps; outside of the tent’s warmth, there was a fire pit roaring.

It was a free party, Joey explained, for the community. “Their way of giving back.”

I couldn’t stop grinning. This was everything I loved about Christmas—about Evergreen.

Inside the tent, Angel was DJing and facilitating karaoke. Louis jumped up from his chair when he saw Mimi break through the plastic tent flaps, and Joey and I immediately traded a look of deep amusement.

“Pagano brothers are down bad,” I whispered, leaning into his chest.

Joey squeezed my shoulder, a smirk teasing at his edge of his lips. “Family tradition.”

Louis had saved a table for us in the corner, away from all the shrieking and stomping happening on the dance floor.

Angel’s girls were running around, pigtails flapping, chased by another little girl with curly hair and pink wraparound eyeglasses. The little girl broke away from Bri and Mina and made a beeline for Del, who was sitting next to the DJ booth in a rolly computer chair. Her stomach had, improbably, grown over the last few days, but she still looked elegant and chic in an oversized Eagles sweatshirt. The little girl snuggled between her legs, clearly wanting to climb into her lap, a place she no longer fit. Eddie brought over a flannel blanket and wrapped it around Del’s shoulders, his stern features relaxing as he watched them together. Del wrapped the little girl up and covered her face in kisses.

“You want anything to drink?” Joey’s voice broke me out of my trance. He was leaning close to me, a curl falling out from behind his ears. I reached out and tucked it back.

“I can’t stop looking at them,” I said, tilting my head toward Del. “There’s just so much love. You can feel it—even this far away.”

Joey nodded. “They’re everything to each other.”

I inhaled slowly, letting the firewood smoke smell fill my lungs. “I want that. What they have.”

He reached for my hand, threaded his fingers through mine, then brought the back of my hand to his lips. Everyone had a story—it wasn’t fair for me to assume anything about Eddie and Del. But for a moment, my chest was both tight with jealousy and soft envy.

“We’ll get there,” Joey murmured against my hand. And I cut my eyes to his. He watched me, gaze wide with hope. “Just need to take our time.”

***

The night passed quickly in sips of lite beer and the perfect blend of pop-punk aughties hits and nineties R&B. Mimi sang “La Vie en Rose” and blew everyone’s mind, nearly melting Louis into a pile of pink and red goo at our feet. When no one made a move for the mic, Eddie began pushing the computer chair around the DJ booth, moving Del to the center of the dance floor, in front of the karaoke screen.

“What is she doing?”

Then Angel handed her a cordless microphone.

I pointed at the karaoke screen. “I think she’s about to sing ‘Virtual Insanity’ while thirty-five weeks pregnant.”

“Common sense is not so common,” Louis remarked. Then, with a sheepish smile, he turned to Mimi. “Voltaire said that.”

“Dude.” Joey rolled his eyes, looking physically pained, while Mimi simply frowned at him.

“What planet did you come from?” she asked.

With the jazzy, synth-y intro to Jamiroquai’s song starting, I grabbed Joey’s hand and pulled him out into the cold night. He settled into one of the wooden Adirondack chairs by the fire pit, pulling me into his lap. The fire smoke had already caught in his hair, mixed with the smell of his cologne—heady and musky. Intoxicating.

I couldn’t keep my hands off him. I couldn’t stop tracing the angles of his features. His head lulled back in the chair, lips curving in that lopsided way I loved so much.