With one hand on the doorknob and the other flushed across her forehead she looks completely worn out. “Hey! Oh my gosh. So glad to see you!” she huffs, looking past me. “Where’s Sloane?”
I gather Flynn up in a tight hug as tears sting the back of my eyes. “Walking your dog.” I don’t cry. I never do. I have to be strong for Flynn. I have to get her through the next few days. It’s what I do.
“Oli, you’re squeezing me.” She pats my back, sounding like I’m crushing her insides.
“Oh, sorry.” I release her, not realizing I was hanging on so tight.
She looks into my eyes, and I see her sadness and I know she sees mine. “It isn’t easy, but we can do this,” she whispers as she takes hold of my hand.
I’m so choked up I barely answer.
I hear one of the babies crying.
I clear my throat. “Go. I’m fine.”
Chance runs into the house, followed by Sloane.
“It’s just me and the babies. Come on in. My lovely mother in law is at the hospital.” Flynn shouts.
Phew. Gives me some time to compose myself.
“Myles is at the hospital too,” Flynn explains with Patty on her shoulder. I know it’s Patty because she’s wrapped in a pink blanket. She looks to Sloane and explains, “Myles’s parents are divorced, but his mom seems to be on top of the medical stuff with his dad.”
My sister looks exhausted.
“Here.” I motion for her to pass me the baby. She gently places Patty in my arms. I’ve learned a thing or too these past few months about holding a baby. I follow her into the family room.
My sister lets out a breath and falls back on the couch. Chance lies on the floor by her feet. As wild as he is, it’s as if he knows to keep calm around the babies.
“We got in yesterday. Slept here last night.” She frowns. “Myles’s mom is, well, Myles’s mom. She doesn’t offer any help, and there’s no damn food in the house. We ate Pizza Pizza for dinner.” She looks to me with a smirk. It’s a Canadian company that sells pizza. We used to eat it once a week minimum as kids. “She and Myles have been going to the hospital to see his dad. The surgery was this morning. I wanted to be there for Myles, but there was no way I could take the babies to the hospital. I don’t want them getting sick, and as you can see, I only have their car seats here and two playpens. We didn’t even unpack the car because we figured you guys would show, and then we’d have to pack everything twice,” she rambles quickly. I sense her nerves by how fast she’s talking. She’s overwhelmed.
“Tell me what I can do?” Sloane asks, removing her jacket.
“Honestly, I’d like to get out of here. Staying here gives me the creeps and Myles’s mom isn’t very friendly, not even to her own grandbabies.” Flynn rolls her eyes. I’m not surprised by anything she’s said.
“Let me move everything over to the house. You two can hang here. Everything should be set up over there. I even had the fridge stocked with food. I should’ve given you a key to get in before you left. Sorry. I didn’t think we would get stuck along the way.” I explain as I place Patty back in her carrier. Her eyes are closed now. Hopefully she’ll sleep for a bit.
“No worries we managed.” She answers and then bursts out laughing, holding her stomach.
“What?” I furrow my brows, a little confused. I look to Sloane to see if maybe she understands my sister’s outburst, which I think is coming from a lack of sleep.
“You always make sure wherever you go, you have a fridge stocked with food,” Flynn snickers lovingly.
“Yeah, and? I’m a growing boy.” I smirk, then I leave to take care of business.
It isn’t going to be easy walking into my childhood home for the first time since my parents died. My mind is reeling, and the tragedy of losing them hits me full force, like I’ve just been knocked into the boards when I didn’t see the hit coming. I give myself a good shake like I do when I’m hit in a game, and I walk into my past.
Only, I’m not bombarded with complete sadness. Instead I remember my parents and how in love they were. I remember the best childhood a kid could ask for. I walk deeper and deeper into the house, and my chest warms as I remember the life I had and lost.
Eleven
Sloane
“Why don’t you close your eyes and get some rest? Babies are sleeping. I’ll sit here and keep an eye,” I offer, because Flynn looks completely worn out.
“Nah, once we move our things next door I’d like to go to the hospital and check on Myles, if that’s okay? It’s literally down the street. His text messages have been one-word answers. I’m worried,” she says, still curled in a ball on the couch.
Seated on the love seat, I stiffen for a second when I realize she plans to leave the babies with me. I’ve never stayed alone with them before, and the thought freaks me out. Shit! I inwardly convince myself that it can’t be rocket science to take care of twins. I mean, lots of people have babies. “Yeah, sure.” I fake nonchalance, because Flynn has enough on her plate right now. I don’t want her to worry more than she has to.
She places both hands behind her head and looks to me expectantly. “So?”
I raise my eyebrows. “What?” I don’t understand why she has a knowing grin.
“What do you mean what?” she says playfully. “My brother couldn’t get out of here fast enough, and he was acting weird. What the hell is going on?” she asks, no doubt tuning into that twin voodoo they have going on between them. Damn! Busted.
“Huh?” My brows crease together as I try to pretend that I have no idea what she’s talking about. As I buy myself a little time, I contemplate. Do I tell Flynn what happened last night? This is her twin brother. It’ll be very awkward, to say the least.
“Don’t play me, bitch.” She laughs, shaking her head. There’s no way out of this now.
I point my finger at her. “Hey, there are two impressionable babies sleeping over there.”
“Yeah, and when they are old enough to understand what a cuss word is, then I’ll stop cussing. Now spill it,” she orders.
I know better than to get a tired Flynn angry. I let out an exasperated breath and concede, “Last night was one big royal fuck-up.”
Her eyes turn wide. She flies to a seated position on the couch. “Did you give up your virginity to my brother?” she asks, her tone too high-pitched. She seems almost hopeful as she asks the question, which leaves me a little confused.
“Um no,” I answer skeptically, my brows furrow and I press my lips together. Flynn seems so gung-ho about the thought.
“Do you care to elaborate?” she asks, digging for more. How much more do I tell her?
I grin and cock my left brow. “Are you sure you want me to? I mean, it’s your brother.”
She purses her lips together and looks to me thoughtfully. “You’re still my best friend. I will find a way to separate the details so I don’t picture my brother in any traumatizing way that may scar me for life.”
I tilt my head to the side. “Why does this feel like you’ve given this topic some intense thought?”
Her lip quirks up on one side, and stares at me with a guilty smirk. “Don’t hate me,” she begins.
“You know I could never hate you,” I reply sarcastically. What has she gone and done now?
After a long pause, while biting her lower lip, she says, “Just I know how you feel about him. I watch you date these other guys, and there’s always something wrong with each of them, and I . . .” She falls silent.
“Spit it out, twerp,” I snicker, playfully.
“Just Oli is a great guy, and you would make a great sister, and so I thought maybe you guys needed a nudge in the right direction.” She winces.
“Meaning . . . what kind of nudge?” I urge her forward.
“The kind where I force you two to take a road trip together. Did it work? Tell me, tell me.” She rubs her palms together as if in anticipation.
“So, let me get this straight. You didn’t need m
e this weekend?” I ask, a little offended and a lot pissed off, because I forced myself into a car with a guy who I’m completely awkward around, a guy I’ve been salivating over for far too long, to be by her side.
“No, I need you. I hate being here and I love being here all at the same time. My insides feel like they’re being ripped out as I look out to the pond in the backyard, and at the same time I remind myself that this was once a happy place. I’m sure my parents wouldn’t want it to change. I need Oli here with me for this, and I need you too. I’m so grateful you came.” She places a palm on her heart. “It’s just that you could’ve flown with us, but I thought the drive would be good for you and Oli . . ..”
I hold up a hand. I want to hug Flynn and smack her upside the head all at once. “What about Chance?” I ask, completely stunned.
“My neighbor offered to take him in.” She cringes and shakes it off. “Can we get back on topic here?”
“I’m not sure,” I answer, biting into my lower lip as I try to process Flynn’s matchmaking attempt.
“Sloane, my intentions came from a good place. Question is, did it work?” She sits up and gives me an expectant look.
Now it’s my turn to bite down hard on my lip. “What can I and can’t I tell you that won’t freak you out? We clearly need boundaries here.” I sit up too. I want to be angry at Flynn, I do. She knows how badly I’ve wanted Oli. I haven’t kept my crush a secret, so I can’t blame her for trying to help me. Her intentions were good, even if her horny dog almost killed us.
“Call him Ryan, not Oli. That way, I’ll have a pic in my mind of either Ryan Gosling or Ryan Reynolds, depending on my mood,” she says with all sincerity.
I burst into laughter. “OMG!” Only Flynn would think of something so outlandish. “Basically, we had a pit stop in the morning at a McDonald’s to grab a late breakfast and Ryan found . . .”
Flynn holds up her hand, making me pause. “Ryan Reynold’s,” she says with a nod. “Definitely a scene for Ryan Reynolds.”
I chortle and continue, “As I was saying, Ryan found the way I eat my food to be a turn-on. Somehow, our gazes locked, then our lips did. It was hot.”
Flynn smacks a hand to her mouth. “I knew it. I knew I was right. Ever since that gala night, I sensed he had a thing for you. I told Myles,” she guffaws, all proud of herself. “Go on,” she urges.
“Right.” I nod. “Seriously though, you have a horny dog. Ryan was trying to save us from crashing while your dog was having a hump-fest on me. We got stuck on the side of the road. Ryan Gosling had to climb over the seat to get out.” I pause for a moment. “You like what I did there? I planted the picture of Ryan Gosling in your head. It fits the scene perfectly because at that moment, I checked out his junk and got really heated up.” I pause. Maybe that was too much detail, considering the reality is I’m talking about her brother. She doesn’t flinch though. “We got a ride into Ann Arbor, where everything was pretty much closed for the weekend, and we had to share a room at an inn,” I explain, leaving out the part where the front desk lady ripped off Oli because we had Chance with us. I don’t want to make Flynn feel bad.
She hisses “shit” under her breath.
“Yeah, it was some crazy, weird place. Everything around us was closed but we found a restaurant bar, ate great food, and I had one too many long island iced teas and got loaded. We started making out.” I pause when Flynn makes a loud, gasping noise as I remember Oli’s kiss on my lips. I sigh. “Ryan Reynolds is such a good kisser. I needed more.”
Flynn’s brows crease together. “Why did you stop?” This girl doesn’t miss a beat.
“Because I feel like kind of a slut now, bouncing back and forth between the two Ryans,” I snicker.
Flynn throws a pillow from the couch at my head. “Continue. Now!”
“Fine, one thing led to another, and we ended up back in the inn, naked in bed.” That should be enough detail for her.
Flynn’s eyes widen. Her features are filled with excitement. This is so weird. “Holy shit.”
She grins as she sits on the edge of her seat. I’ve left her with a cliffhanger.
“I was drunk, and Ryan went down on me—”
“Which one?” she interrupts.
I give her a “really?” kind of look and roll my eyes.
“Sloane, I need this,” she says sincerely.
“Fine . . . Gosling,” I reply to appease her.
“Thank you.” She nods.
“It was sooo good. A first for me. It really made me want to have sex. Only I worried Ryan Reynolds, I mean, Gosling, was so experienced he would know I was a virgin. I did something really dumb.” I cringe a little remembering Oli’s severe reaction. “In my drunken haze, I told him I was a virgin, because at the time it made sense in my head. Ryan flipped out. Fell off the bed and couldn’t get far enough away from me. I knew it was fucked up. I should’ve left the room or something, but I was too tired and drunk to care. I just passed out.” I shrug even though the pit of my stomach feels hollow.
Flynn sits with her mouth dropped open in a perfect O. “As in, you just fell asleep. Jesus, Sloane, that is intense. How did you just fall asleep?”
“I must have been drunker than I realized?” I raise both my brows, because I don’t know how. I’ve clearly rendered Flynn speechless. “The next morning things got awkward, and this day has just been mortifying.” I let out a heavy breath. “Say something, please.”
Flynn frowns. “Shit, honey, I’m sorry.”
She looks like she feels really bad for me and angry at the same time.
“Damn that brother of mine,” she mutters angrily.
I cut her off. “I just told you all this in confidence. You better not say anything to Oli.” I feel the need to clarify, because if Oli knew I gave Flynn all the details, he’d flip.
“No. For sure. You’re right. I don’t want to make things worse. He just angers me sometimes.” She shakes her head. Then her blue eyes brighten. “We need to look on the bright side . . .”
“And that is . . .?” I wait, anticipating what she could possibly say. There is no bright side to this debacle.
“Your vagina isn’t hostile.”
That’s the bright side? Is she nuts? She claps her hands together, bouncing on the couch. I’m scared she’ll wake the babies.
Chance walks up to her and jumps in her lap, and she pats him on the head then shoves him over to the seat beside her. He does what she wants.
My mind shifts to the dog and how he’s obedient around Flynn. Why was he so defiant with me? I swear I can’t take care of dogs, or babies, for that matter.
Flynn stands and starts to floss and chant. “Mama guru’s wrong. Your vagina wants Ryan. Woohoo! No more hostile vagina.”
“Would you shut your mouth?” I chide. Now it’s my turn to throw the pillow at her head, only I do it with a smile because that shit’s pretty damn funny.
Twelve
Oli
I slip back into the house to get Flynn, Sloane, and my niece and nephew, but I stop dead in my tracks when I hear them talking. Sloane’s vagina apparently wants some guy named Ryan. I’m not sure why, but the thought of some other guy sleeping with her and taking her virginity gets my blood boiling and my ears ringing. When I hear my sister sing that Sloane’s vagina is no longer hostile, I’m completely confused, and wonder if that’s girl code for something else.
I turn and walk back down the hall and open and shut the front door again because clearly, they didn’t hear me come in the first time.
“All set,” I call out with a grin as I walk into the family room. The babies are still asleep, and Flynn and Sloane are each sprawled out on separate couches. “Let’s do this.” I smile to my sister, because walking into our childhood home moments ago wasn’t easy but in a way, I felt like my parents were close to me. I think they would be smiling down from heaven knowing Flynn and I came back for a visit and brought their grandbabies along.
Flynn nods to
me, and with a sad smile, softly says, “Yeah, let’s do this.”
We head over to the house. The maintenance crew did an even better job than expected, probably because I had them change and update a few things they said needed changing. After we all settle in to the rooms upstairs, I’m ready to be alone and process the last twenty-four hours of my life. Hearing Sloane is attracted to some Ryan guy has set me off more than I realized. I need time to sort through some shit in my head. It feels like everything is moving too fast. I hate how things managed to be completely awkward with Sloane today, because she is my sister’s best friend and I acted like a crazed lunatic when I found out she was a virgin last night. I don’t even know why I reacted the way I did. It was like she was doused in acid and I couldn’t get far enough away. I barely slept last night, just replaying the whole situation in my head. Now I need shut-eye really bad, because my thoughts are brewing up a storm in my head. I’m about to fall asleep in my old room in my old bed when Flynn comes knocking on the door.
“Oli, I kind of wanted to check on Myles at the hospital. Would you mind helping Sloane out with the babies?” She winces, no doubt knowing I don’t have a whole lot of experience with babies, but I get that Myles really needs her right now and this is why I’m here: to support them.
With a groggy voice, I answer, “Of course. Go take care of things. Just show me what I gotta do. You know . . . the feeding and stuff.” I climb out of bed. I was hoping to gain some perspective on Sloane, but that’s not going to happen now. At least I have my niece and nephew to distract me from my thoughts.
Flynn grins lovingly, and I follow her downstairs. “I prepared the water and portioned the formula for the bottles. I left the diapers in the family room with the wipes and some butt cream for Kevin. He has a rash,” she explains, looking back to me.
“Uh diapers?” I pause.
Flynn laughs and rolls her eyes. “Yeah, babies need their diapers changed. Between you and Sloane, you should be fine,” she says. I tilt my head to look at Sloane, relieved that she must know what to do. Only she looks more wide-eyed and scared than me. Fucking great. This trip just gets more and more interesting by the minute.
Butt Ending: A Big Stick Novel 2 (Standalone) Page 9
