The Sweetest Gift

by Scarlett Cole

  Elliott nodded. “I spoke to Ryan about it yesterday. I think Kendalee and the kids are going to stay home for the international legs, and for North America, I want dates to be scheduled, such that after four gigs, we can fly home for a couple of days.”

  Dred’s gut curdled at the thought. “I’ve been thinking the same thing. I can’t keep taking Petal out of kindergarten. But I don’t like the thought of leaving them all home, either.”

  He looked over to where Pixie stood chatting with Kendalee. He and Pixie had barely been apart in their time together.

  “Jesus fucking Christ. It looks like a fucking bomb went off in here.” Lennon finally joined them.

  “It’s fifteen minutes until departure,” Dred said.

  “Yeah, well. Gia and I had shit to do. You know, the kinky kinda shit that you Dad bods only dream about.”

  Elliott patted his flat stomach. “Dad bod my ass.”

  Lennon batted the comment away with his prosthetic arm. “You know what I mean. The only person I had to bathe was Gia in the—”

  “Shut up,” Gia exclaimed, placing her hand over his mouth. “Remember that filter we talked about.”

  Lennon winked at his fiancée salaciously. “Remember what I did to you against the tile?”

  “He’s all yours. You can have him back,” Gia said, pushing Lennon toward Dred, who laughed as he caught him.

  “We could have told you he was like this,” Dred said.

  “Like what? I’m just a man who loves grabbing his wife-to-be by the ass and pinning her against the wall of the shower, and I don’t care who knows it.”

  “But you said you’d wear bloooo.” The wail came across the private lounge they were all assembled in.

  Dred shook his head. “She’s tired and didn’t take the news of, in her words, Uncle Jordan not needing her because he’s getting his own baby, very well.”

  “I got it,” Pixie said. She looked over at Jordan, then unzipped Petal’s suitcase.

  “And that is why I love you,” Dred said.

  Jordan wore a grey hoodie and Dred watched as Pixie switched Petal’s blue dress for a grey one. Sobs turned into snivels as Petal finally climbed on Uncle Jordan’s lap.

  Once everyone and everything was boarded on the plane, Nik did a headcount. Eighteen, including himself. “It feels like that scene in Home Alone,” Nik said. “Halfway through this flight, someone’s going to stand up and shout KEVIN.”

  Four hours later, they were all settled in Miami. Dred wandered out onto the balcony of the condo a handful of floors below Lia’s. Lia was busy at the Second Circle Tattoo studio until later that afternoon, and Pixie was busy unpacking, a chore he’d been willing to help with until she’d told his assistance wasn’t…helpful. The sea was turbulent and murky gray. He stood in a T-shirt, the weather nearly twenty degrees warmer than it was at home, as the view encouraged the kind of inner peace he struggled to find anywhere else.

  They’d debated moving out of their home that had originally been a rental after the incident that had left Nik shot, Pixie terrified, and himself traumatized that he’d just nearly lost the single most important thing to him. But somehow, they’d healed each other within its walls. Instead of moving out, Dred had bought the condo for Pixie’s birthday. He looked over at the couch where nearly three-year-old Arwen now slept under a blanket, recalling how he’d seen Pixie on the floor right next to it. All these years and the image still scarred him. But the condo had become a happy home with lots of great memories attached to it.

  “You look lost in thought,” Jordan said, stepping out to join him. Lexi and Jordan were staying with them, the rest of the band had gone to their hotel.

  “Just thinking about how far we’ve all come. Look at you, Dad.”

  Jordan ran his fingers through his beard. “I’m fucking terrified.”

  Dred turned to face his oldest friend. “Why?”

  Jordan looked out over the water, avoiding Dred’s gaze. “I worry that if I lose her, I’ll lose myself again.”

  “The risk of miscarriage is low now, right… and the doctors—”

  “Not the baby. Fuck, why does everyone assume I mean the baby. I mean Lexi. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want anything to happen to the baby, either, but fuck... Lexi is…Lexi…is…” His words petered out, and Dred immediately understood. The fear of losing Lexi wouldn’t be over for another six months.

  “Jordan,” he said softly, placing his hand on Jordan’s back.

  “It’s just bringing things to the surface. Things I thought I’d dealt with a long time ago.”

  They stood together, hands resting on the balcony, as the breeze ruffled their hair.

  “We’ll get you through this. No matter what happens. And there are things we can do, things you can buy. Like, you can get a machine at home to listen to the heartbeat. If the baby is okay, Lexi is okay.”

  Jordan nodded and swallowed. “I can’t talk to Lex about this shit. I don’t want my worry to cause her any stress. Pregnancies should be stress-free, right? I mean, she’s so tired, she’s napping right now.”

  While his initial thought was that they should just keep it between them, Pixie had taught him to know better. Secrets were never the best option. “I think she’d want to know what you are going through. You don’t need to panic her. Just tell her what you told me. And you should consider speaking to someone again. Someone who can help you patch all these fears and emotions together so that they make a pattern you can understand.”

  Jordan turned to look at Dred. “I hope there is a point in my life when the decisions my parents made don’t continue to hurt so much.”

  Dred put his arms around Jordan and squeezed him tightly. “When you look into the eyes of the child you and Lexi made, and you realize you have every opportunity to love them the way your parents should have loved you, the world rights itself. It’s so healing, Jordan. You just have to be brave enough to embrace it fearlessly. Don’t allow them to ruin the most fucking precious thing that will happen to you in this lifetime. The baby is yours and yours alone, Jordan, to love and protect and be there for until you fucking die, man. Don’t ever let them pollute that.”

  “Hey, are you ready to head to the… oh, sorry… I’ll just…” Pixie’s voice faded back into the living room as Jordan stepped out of Dred’s arms.

  “Thanks,” Jordan said gruffly. “For… for all of that.”

  Dred nodded. “You sure you guys don’t mind looking out for Petal and Arwen when they wake up from their naps? We can take them with us.”

  Jordan shook his head. “Nah. I’ll take them down to the beach for a walk. Get some fresh air. Probably buy a shit ton of ice cream.”

  Dred grinned. “Don’t let Petal talk you into buying anything more than a single-scoop.”

  He stepped back into the living room where Pixie was waiting. “Ready, Snowflake?”

  She ran her fingers through his windswept and knotted curls. “Are you okay?” she asked, quietly.

  “Yeah,” he answered honestly. “I’m really fucking good.”

  On the way down in the elevator, he called a cab, and within minutes, they stood outside the tattoo studio that had brought them together.

  “Do you remember how many times you turned me down before you agreed to go on a date with me?” he asked, taking Pixie’s hand as they walked to the entrance of Second Circle Tattoos. It now occupied both floors of the building with more tattoo artists, piercers, and body modification experts.

  “I felt sorry for your sick ass when I finally agreed. I couldn’t stand one more sniveled beg.”

  Dred huffed. “It was my tenacity and wit that got you to say yes.”

  Pixie shook her head. “No, but I’ve never regretted a moment since then, if that helps your ego along.”

  “Nice save, Babe.”

  “You’re here!” Lia squealed. “Oh my god, you’re finally here.”

  Lia and Pixie hugged the shit out of each other on the sidewalk, quickly
followed by rapid conversation involving how great Pixie’s hair was, something to do with a dragon blood facial, and how Harper had bought four pairs of shoes for the day. He followed the two of them inside as the frantic back and forth continued.

  “Have they drawn breath yet?” Trent said, slapping him on the back.

  “Not that I can tell. It appears to be some kind of circular breathing where they just don’t stop.” Dred noticed Pixie pat the wall of the entryway as she walked into the tattoo studio.

  “Break it up,” Cujo said playfully, nudging Lia and Pixie apart. “You’re hogging her, bridezilla.”

  Pixie was engulfed in Cujo’s arms, and the pure happiness on Pixie’s face told Dred that they didn’t come back to Miami anywhere near as often as they probably should, or Pixie would like.

  He thought back to her comments that morning when she’d bounced out of bed.

  We’re going home today… I’m so freaking excited.

  She still viewed Miami as home. Even though, he hoped, she thought of Toronto as home, too. Somewhere between her building her children’s clothing company, and him being with his brothers recording and touring, oh, and being parents to two… hopefully, at some point, three… kids, they’d not made coming back enough of a priority.

  Watching Trent slap Cujo over the back of his head and pull Pixie into a hug confirmed it. This was her family, and as much as he needed the band, she needed… this.

  “I’m so glad you could make it,” Lia said.

  Dred hugged the statuesque redhead. “There is nowhere else she’d rather be. And though I’ve not yet seen your dress, I know she’s poured her heart into it.”

  Lia grinned. “It’s one of a kind. When I came up last month for the fitting, it was already the most impressive thing I’d ever seen. It’s going to be perfect.”

  The roar of a motorcycle grew louder as it came down the street. “He’s here,” she squealed, and then with a pace that shouldn’t have been possible in such painfully high-heeled platform shoes, she dashed outside. A souped-up motorbike pulled up alongside the curb. Reid put his arm around Lia’s waist before he’d switched off the engine or removed his helmet, which he did rather impressively with one hand.

  “How’s the missus dealing with her brother getting married?” he asked Trent, who had finally put Pixie down.

  “She’s having the time of her life. She loves weddings. She’s over at the church today making sure the flowers are what they agreed to.”

  Dred grinned. “Do you ever just look around and wonder what the hell you did to deserve all this?”

  Trent nodded. “Every day. Every. Fucking. Day. Even in the chaos of it.”

  “Trent,” a new assistant behind the desk called out. “Your last appointment is seated.” She nodded in the direction of Trent’s chair, one Dred had sat in many times before.

  Trent removed his baseball hat, ran his fingers through his hair, and flipped it around with the brim at the back. “For some reason, Lia was quite adamant we weren’t to close today. Wanted to work right up until the day itself. Catch you later for the rehearsal dinner, right?”

  “Sure thing.”

  Pixie walked up to him and reached for his hand. “I’d forgotten how noisy it could be in here,” she said, over the music.

  Lia and Reid walked into the studio, his hand a fraction of an inch from indecent on her ass. “Get a room,” Dred shouted.

  Reid laughed. “I’m about to get my permanently-taken tattoo. Then, we’ll be getting a room.”

  “What are you going to do to him?” Pixie asked Lia.

  “I’m putting our wedding date over his heart, so he’ll be reminded of it every day of his life.”

  Reid looked at Dred. “Personally, waking up next to her every day will be reminder enough, but I’m all about the grand gesture.”

  Dred laughed. “Same.”

  As Reid took the chair, Dred tilted his head toward Pixie’s ear. “But just wait three years and she won’t want the goods. She’ll just want you to get up, feed the kids, and make coffee.”

  Pixie’s eyes went wide and she smacked his arm. “I can’t believe you just said that… we made love yesterday. Twice.”

  “I know, Snowflake. I’m just teasing.” He put his arms around her and kissed the tip of her nose. “I know you’re only with me for my goods.”

  Pixie smiled. The one she saved just for him. The one that brought sunlight into his heart and a sprinkling of excitement to his dick. “You wouldn’t want it any other way, would you? Our life? The craziness? The kids? Making out when we get a moment?”

  He shook his head. “No, my love. Our life is more than I could have imagined the first day I walked in here and saw you.”

  “Should we go home and see if Jordan and Lexi took the kids out?” she asked, a glint in her eye.

  Reid was busy in Lia’s chair. Trent was talking through a design with a client, and Cujo had gone back to his customer. And his wife wanted him. A miracle he would never understand.

  “Let’s go,” he said, as they hurried onto the street.

  5

  Petal Xander swung the perfect, little white basket that would be filled with flower petals tomorrow. Auntie Lia had told her that they would be white to match the sash on her dress, but she still didn’t know the color of the dress itself. Auntie Lia had told her she wanted it to be a surprise, but she’d overheard her daddy tell Uncle Jordan it was because she struggled to keep a secret. It wasn’t her fault that secrets bubbled up inside her, like when she drank too much soda. They fell out of her mouth like a burp that was impossible to keep in.

  Auntie Lia was the fanciest dresser on the planet, even better than her momma, and so, despite not knowing the color, she was certain it would be the bestest dress in the world.

  “Remember, slowly,” Momma said. “You are going to be the very first person down the aisle, so remember what Daddy taught you.”

  Her daddy had been practicing something he called timing with her. The timing was important because when Daddy talked about it, he used his serious voice. It meant she had to move one foot on the beat of the music. They’d practiced it every night after dinner, which was very boring. Plus, she intended to walk slowly so that everyone could see the sparkly shoes that Auntie Harper had sent her to wear with the dress. When she moved her toes just a little, you could see the shoes twinkle. It was better if there was lots of light, but as she looked around the dark church, she realized that she’d probably have to show everybody later at the… oh, what had Momma called it? It was food that came after tonight’s practice wedding at the church. It began with an ‘r’, but she couldn’t remember it.

  Auntie Lia came to crouch by her. “You remember what we talked about?” she asked.

  Petal felt butterflies when she was near Auntie Lia. She always looked so beautiful, and Petal couldn’t help but reach out and touch her red hair. One day, she was going to dye her hair just like Auntie Lia. “You said that I just have to be my super-special self and smile.”

  “That’s right. Are you ready?”

  Petal nodded her head firmly in the knowledge that she had practiced long and hard for this moment. “I am so ready, Auntie Lia.”

  The music started and Auntie Harper told everyone to shush. She looked a little bit stressed and Petal didn’t know why because, from what she’d seen, weddings were just really big parties where everyone laughed and sometimes her momma cried, but Daddy had told her it was because her momma was a big softie.

  “Go, Petal,” Auntie Harper whispered.

  She stood up straight like her daddy had told her. He was seated down near the front with Uncle Jordan. She loved both of them with her whole heart, even more than her favorite squashy horse called Dewdrop. Petal hoped that Santa had got the message that she wanted a real horse, and she was going to call it Dewdrop, too.

  Her daddy was bobbing his head at her, reminding her about timing.

  Step and throw.

  Step and throw.r />
  Uncle Jordan winked at her and she beamed back. Everybody was watching her. There was shuffling behind her, but that must be the grown-ups following her.

  Surely, she had the most important job in the whole wedding, to make sure that they all got down the long corridor-thing of the church. She’d told her friend, Dexter, about her important job and he’d just laughed and told her that the most important job was the priest who would marry them. But Petal had punched him and told him that without her, nobody would get to the front of the church to be married. Miss Rutherford, her Senior Kindergarten teacher, had told her off for punching Dexter, but it was only because none of them understood just how important her job was.

  Once she got to the front, she was scooped up by strong arms that always made her feel so safe. “You did the best job, precious girl,” her daddy said.

  He was smiling so proudly at her.

  She watched her momma go by. She was Auntie Lia’s Matron of something-or-other. It was a fancy title, but not as important as being the flower girl.

  “You did perfect,” a voice whispered from the bench behind her. Uncle Nik passed her a handful of orange Skittles, her very favorite. He was one of the people who was going to make sure everybody sat in the right place tomorrow. So were her daddy and other uncles.

  The priest began speaking about boring grown-up things that would happen tomorrow at the real wedding, his voice so calming and soothing that Petal’s eyes began to flutter close. Uncle Jordan slipped his arm around her and she cuddled up against his side. He was the comfiest pillow and always smelled so nice. The roar of music woke her suddenly.

  “It’s alright,” Uncle Jordan said soothingly. “It’s just the music for everyone to walk up the aisle. Go stand next to your mom and hold her hand. You can have a power nap in the cab to the rehearsal dinner.” Sleepily, she made her way to the line-up of people leaving the church.

  The power nap worked. Uncle Jordan always had the best ideas, like having ice-cream floats for breakfast and tying a rope to the swing he’d had built in his garden for her so that he could swing her when he was sitting on the deck having a beer.