“Shhhhh unless you want Marlene squattin' one out.”
Josie went cold. Literally. I felt her hands go to ice. “My mom's older than Cathy, so I don't think that could happen.”
“Sorry. That was rude of me.” I pulled her aside. “You okay? I know you and Alex have been trying so hard, and then Mama gets a baby dumped on her out of nowhere.”
“Yeah, it's hard. And yeah, I'm okay. Or I will be. I couldn't not come, though.”
“Thanks.”
“You look overwhelmed.”
“Ya think?”
“After we visit, how about the five of us go somewhere?”
“Like Jerry's?”
She smirked. “Sure. Old time's sake. Probably the only way I'll see my mom while we're in town.”
“Just buy her a few rounds.”
“She'd appreciate that more than any trip to her house.”
Raucous male laughter burst out in the living room. I could hear the distinct voices of all four men.
It made me and Josie smile.
We turned to see Alex holding the baby, his broad shoulders curled protectively in. The look on Josie's face made me squeeze her hand and go silent.
I could feel her baby fever in her touch.
Baby Cal's eyes were open, and he stared back up at Alex like the man was God.
“Jerry's bar, for sure, Darla,” Josie whispered. “Because I'm not pregnant and I can drink right now. And I'll need a drink or twenty by the time we're done visiting.”
“Mama would understand if you left. We talked about it earlier.”
“You did?”
“Don't be mad.”
“I'm not. I'm just... sad.” Josie squared her little shoulders and lifted her chin. “Sad for me, though. Happy for Cathy. And you. And Calvin. You have a brother!”
“I'm almost thirty, Josie. This is unreal.”
“And Cathy had no idea?”
“None. Thought it was indigestion and her appendix or gall bladder.”
“Alex was talking about it on the drive here. Said if a woman's uterus is tipped in a certain way, and if they're overweight, and if the baby's small, it can happen.”
“Can't believe it happened to Mama!”
“How are she and Calvin handling it emotionally?”
“Mama's a hormonal mess. She keeps crying at everything.”
Josie screwed up her face like she was trying to remember something. Our coloring was really different for cousins, me all blonde and fair and curvy, and Josie dark and slim and bony. She had a face that was pinched when resting, smart-eyed and cunning, but when she smiled it was like the whole world lit up with her.
“That's how I get after my miscarriages.”
“Seven now, right?”
She sighed. “Yeah. Lucky number seven.”
“I'm sorry.”
“Thanks.”
“I really am.”
“I know.”
Joe said something to Alex, and suddenly, the baby was in Joe's arms, his face extraordinary as he cradled Cal, wincing a bit as the baby’s back brushed against his scraped forearms.
Josie gasped, seeing it, too.
“Joe looks like he is in love with that baby.”
“I think he is.”
“Oh, boy. You're in trouble, Darla.”
“Trouble?”
“That's the look of a man with Baby Fever. Alex gets that way all the time.”
“We're not ready for kids. Never talked about it. And we're a band – no way is this a life for small kids.”
“Logic doesn't matter when it comes to Baby Fever.”
I didn't know Joe had that many muscles in his face, all connected to happiness and awe, but he did. Watching him play with the baby was a new source of goodness, one I drank in like sunshine.
My little brother and my boyfriend. So much love in those two bodies.
“Let's get some food out there,” Josie said, grabbing a container of Cheese Balls bigger than her chest and pouring some into a bowl.
We were a well-oiled machine, putting out chips and dip and a plate of vegetables Calvin looked at like it might bite him. It was too early for beer, even for Peters, but we brewed a few pots of coffee and mostly played “Pass the Baby” for the next hour before Calvin and Mama yawned at the same time, and Jenna's toddler started screaming, “Go home!”
Josie peered at me. “I think we need to find another place for dinner.”
I looked at the time. A little after three.
“Where are you and Alex staying?”
She named the same motel where Trevor, Joe and I had sex for the first time together years ago.
Trevor cleared his throat. “We have a three bedroom house rental. Why not stay with us?”
“You're not stayin' with Marlene?” Calvin asked with a straight face, earning a shoulder slap from Mama. They both laughed until they nearly choked. Josie's mom's house was a run-down mess.
Joe came up to me, his arms around the baby, swaying little Cal to and fro. “We never even touched the third bedroom. It's open. Might be fun to hang out together. How long are you here?”
Josie glanced at Mama as if bracing herself. “Two nights.”
Mama's supersonic hearing for things she didn't like kicked in. “TWO NIGHTS?”
“Sorry, Cathy. Work schedules.”
“You didn't fly out?”
“With security, it's about three extra hours to drive each way, so driving was the fastest way to get here.”
Mama yawned.
“Fine. Just have to spend lots of time together while you're here. You seen Marlene yet?”
Josie shook her head. “I thought she'd be here.”
Calvin made an uncharacteristically rude sound. Some of the wheels were falling off the Shy Calvin bus.
“Naw,” he said slowly. “Saw her at the hospital yesterday and ain't seen her since, but John at the barber shop said she's been accepting all the congratulatory free drinks for being a new aunt.”
A pained look crossed Josie's face, Alex looking at her to make sure she was okay.
“We'll find her.”
“Just go to Jerry's,” Calvin said.
Alex put his hand on Trevor's shoulder, and with a quick nod from Josie, said, “We'll take you up on the offer. We didn't even have a reservation for the hotel, so this is easy. We'll pay our share of the rental house,” he added firmly.
Trevor nodded.
I smiled.
And then JJ started to gag.
And gag.
And –
“OH MY LORT JJ IS PROJECTILE VOMITING! HOW MANY MUNCHOS DID YOU EAT?” Jenna screamed from the kitchen.
“That's definitely our cue to leave,” Joe hissed in my ear.
“Not my kid, not my problem,” Mama said, standing gingerly, reaching out for Cal, Jr. Joe very reluctantly handed him over.
Kisses and hugs were passed around, and then we left, Alex going with Trevor and Joe as Josie silently guided me to her car.
We clearly had a lot to talk about.
Chapter 15
Trevor
I have no idea why Josie and Darla split off, but I was relieved. Too much estrogen over the last day was getting to me.