Page 94 of Tight Ends & Tiaras
I love my aunt and uncle, but they never filled the holes my parents and sister left behind. Not that it was Gabby’s fault she wasn’t around, but I still felt her absence acutely.
Swallowing past the thick knot in my throat, I kiss the peanut. This situation makes me realize how good it’s been to talk to Dr. Patricia. In the past, the very sight of my sister would trigger me because of the trauma we experienced as kids, but today my only focus is getting Lily used to Gabriela. In fact, now that I think about it, I didn’t feel any panic when I saw her. Aside from the obvious awkwardness of her catching me with her old roommate.
Lily asks for her mom again. “I know, honey,” I whisper. “We’ll figure out what’s going on. But you got me, and you got Sienna.”
I hug her, and her little arms wrap around my neck. I pat her butt, grateful that Sienna adores my kid. Not to mention the fact that she must’ve changed her diaper before Gabby got here.
When we make it out to the living room, I smile at Sienna, who also threw on some clothes.
My sister’s eyes widen when she sees me holding the kid.
“Apparently, I’ve spawned. This is Lily. Lily...” I wait for my daughter to turn around. “This is your aunt Gabby.”
“Holy shit.” My sister’s uncharacteristic swear makes me laugh. “Are you serious?”
“As a heart attack.”
She leaps off the couch and beelines it to me. Her eyes shine as she looks over Lily. She gently tucks an errant curl behind her ear. Touches her pudgy cheek.
“Hi, darling. How are you?” She folds her hands before her face like she’s praying. “Ben, she’s gorgeous. How did this happen?”
I lift an eyebrow, and my sister turns bright red. “I don’t mean the logistics. I understand the logistics. I mean, who’s the mother?” She looks at Sienna and chokes on a cough. “It wasn’t you. I mean... right? Hello! When did this happen?”
“You might want to sit down. But first...” I reach over and hug her, something I never do, unfortunately. My baggage always kept me from opening myself too much to her, but I’m determined to get over it. “I’ve missed you,” I mumble.
When she pulls away, tears stream down her face. “Missed you too, you big lug.”
Sniffles from the other side of the room have me looking to Sienna, who swipes an arm across her face. “Don’t look at me like that. I can’t help it. I get emotional sometimes.”
I hide my smile. It says so much that my girlfriend is crying because she knows how hard Gabby and I have had to fight to get to this point where we can talk openly and be around each other.
Not bothering to try to play it cool, I drop down next to her and tug her into the arm not occupied by my daughter. Sienna laughs. “I feel dumb for crying.”
“It’s not dumb. Thank you for caring.” I kiss the top of her head and smile at my sister, who looks like she wants to say about ten things. Desperately.
But she waits patiently until Sienna is composed, and then she launches the inquisition. It comes from a good place, though, so it doesn’t bother me.
“First of all, when did this”—she waves between me and Sienna—“happen? When did you two become an item?” She turns toward my girlfriend. “Oh, my God. This means you finally dumped Cal Winston, right? He’s such an idiot.”
Sienna groans. “Don’t remind me.” She holds up a hand. “I know you tried to warn me. I’m sorry I didn’t listen.” Turning to me, she gives me a sweet smile. “But in some weird way, we have him to thank for making this happen.”
I love how this woman looks on the bright side. I’m the guy who’s always been fixated on the worst-case scenarios. I need her optimism and outlook in my life.
Gabby hops up and down in her seat. “Please explain! And don’t leave out even one detail. I need to know everything. Spill.”
“How long do you have?” I ask as I park Lily on my lap.
Gabby looks at her watch. “A couple hours before I need to get to Austin where I’m meeting Rider.”
At the mention of her boyfriend, her whole face lights up. Love looks good on her. I’m relieved things are going well for them. My sister might not know this, but she means the world to me. And I mean to rectify the fact that she hasn’t a clue how much I love her.
I clear my throat. “I’ll tell you everything, but there’s one thing my therapist has been encouraging me to share with you.”
Gabby nods, but tension radiates through her. I can tell she thinks it’s going to be something horrible.
As I consider what I need to say, sweat breaks out on my body. I breathe through the anxiety the way Dr. Patricia has taught me.
Sienna laces her fingers through mine and nods. “Go ahead, Ben. It’ll make her happy to know.”
