Page 5 of From the Embers
Eason passed her off with pure fatherly pride beaming from his eyes. For all of his struggles in the professional and financial departments, he did love his daughter something fierce.
“Well, you look pretty. Is this new?” I asked Luna, straightening the ruffle on the sleeve of her pink monogrammed outfit. I shuddered to think what maxed-out credit card Jessica had used to buy it.
Eason smoothed down the front of his gray Henley. “Aw, shucks, Bree. Thanks for noticing. You look good too. Is that Jessica’s dress?”
“Uh, no. It’s my dress that Jessica borrowed, and I had to do an entire Tom Cruise Mission Impossible thing to get it back last week. Your wife is a clothing thief, but I stole these wedges while I was there, so it evened out.”
Chuckling, Eason plucked a nugget off the tray and popped it into his mouth. I made no extraordinary efforts to warn him that they were still hot. Yeah, my sainthood was definitely on the way.
“Shit, shit, shit,” he panted, chewing with his mouth open.
Mildly amused, I bounced Luna on my hip and watched his struggle. “You want another?”
“Mmm. Thanks, but I think I’ll pass on the molten lava chicken nuggets.”
“They’re veggie nuggets.”
He curled his lip. “That explains the grassy aftertaste.”
I shook my head, because honestly, it was all I could do with him most of the time.
“Uncle Eason!” Asher jumped down the last three stairs, giving me my daily heart attack.
“What’s up, lil man?” Eason asked, dropping into a squat.
After the elaborate handshake they’d been crafting since my son was three days old, they finished with a behind-the-back high five.
“Guess what?” Asher asked.
Eason didn’t miss a beat. “You found a fossil in the backyard that unearthed a new species of dinosaurs. With no teeth, it appears this dino could have been friendly, so scientists have decided to use its DNA to bring them back to life with hopes of taming them and using them as a new form of transportation, thus saving our precious…well, fossil fuels.”
Asher’s freckled nose crinkled adorably. “What? No!”
“Dang,” Eason breathed, his face filled with wonder as he stared off into the distance. “I was really looking forward to riding an Asherosaurus.”
My son howled with laughter, a common reaction when his favorite and only “uncle” was around. Eason laughed right along with him, complete with the abridged version of their secret handshake.
“All right, you two,” I interrupted. “Go sit at the table, Ash.”
“Don’t do it,” Eason whispered from the corner of his mouth. “They’re veggie nuggets that may or may not be laced with grass clippings.”
“Yessss! I love veggie nuggets.”
Eason cut him a side-eye. “Boy, you aren’t right. That’s it. Tomorrow when I pick up Luna, I’m bringing you some good old-fashioned Mickey D’s Chicken McNuggets. You’ll never grow hair on your chest eating this veggie stuff.”
With his father’s nearly black hair and eyes, he argued, “Gross. I don’t want hair on my chest!”
“You will one day.”
“No, I won’t. Dad doesn’t have hair on his chest.”
“Well. That’s weird. Every man has hair on his body. Maybe check his butt next time he’s in the shower.”
“Ewwwwwww!” Asher shouted, causing Luna to startle in my arms.
“Ohhh-kay,” I drawled, passing Eason back his daughter. “That’s enough hair and butt talk for one day…and possibly ever.” I grabbed a plate from the cabinet and called out, “Rob! Please come save me!”
Eason, doing the universal step-step-sway baby-soothing dance, used his free hand to pull the neck of his shirt down, revealing his neatly trimmed chest hair before mouthing to Asher, “McNuggets.”
Right on cue, Rob walked into the kitchen and slapped his best friend on the back. “Quit harassing my wife.” He too snagged a nugget off the tray. It was still hot. So he also did the panting bit before curling his lip. “Oh God, what is this crap?”
“It’s a vegetable, honey. Be careful or your body will go into shock.” After prepping Asher’s plate with nuggets, a handful of baby carrots, and half a banana, I handed it off to Rob.
He carried it over to the table. “Okay, I got Luna’s Pack ’n Play all set up in the guest room. I feel bad. Maybe we should put her in with Madison so she doesn’t get lonely?”
“Not if you want them to sleep.” I propped my hip against the counter. “Two babies-slash-future-best-friends will never sleep if they can see each other.”
He stopped in front of Eason and gave Luna’s belly a tickle. “You sure Jessica’s okay with leaving her here tonight?”
Eason chuckled. “If she isn’t, the twenty-seven outfits, bibs, bottles, and a winter coat in the middle of May that she packed was a real waste.” He looked at his watch. “And on that note, I need to get out of here. I still have to stop at the store to get a few things.” After kissing Luna on the head a dozen or so times, he reluctantly passed her to Rob and then looked at me. “Jess told me to grab the good champagne from you.”
