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Sighing, I twirl the stick between my fingers. “Because I feel the same way. I always have,” I tell her. “It’s not that I was neglected growing up or anything, but I came into the twin’s life when they were five and they already had each other, plus they were very close to your brother. I was the outsider. Plus, they have that twin language thing. Now, they have more boys than girls with their offspring, and Juniper is going to be just like us.”
“She’s very sweet,” Paige says. “I always hold her first when I get there and then right before I leave.”
I can’t help but laugh. “I held her all night the other night and slept in the chair with her.”
“So, you’re trying to make her love you more?”
Without hesitating, I nod and then bang the cymbal. Paige shakes her head.
“At least you got one named after you.”
“True, but you’re named after your bad ass great grandma. Have you ever looked her up?”
Paige shakes her head.
“Oh, man. You’ve got to. My grandma loved Betty’s movies back in the day. Seriously, Paige, you need a movie marathon. Your name is so iconic, you don’t want to share it with anyone.”
She frowns a little.
“If I were you, I’d learn all you could about your great-grandmother and roll with it. Embrace who you are and who you’re named after. I’m going to tell the newbies the same thing. Look at poor Jett,” I say, shaking my head. “He doesn’t even get to go by his first name.”
This time she smiles.
“You know he’s going to be that kid in school where the teacher calls his name and he’s going to have to say, I go by Jett, and his teacher is going to roll their eyes, because who names their kid Jett?”
“Elle does,” Paige says.
“Exactly.” I hit the cymbal again. “What I’m saying is probably a bunch of nonsense, but you just have to learn to embrace what you can control. Is having your niece or nephew named after you nice? Sure, but none of them are actually using those names. Junie will never go by Elle. Now maybe if her name was Quinella that would be a different story.”
“Oh God, that is worse than anything,” Paige says. “There’s a group on one of the apps that makes fun of people who give their children outlandish names. I don’t always agree with the names their hating on, but whatever. I’m not having kids so what do I care.”
“You’re not?”
She shakes her head. “By the time I’m ready, my parents will be old. I see how happy they are now, with the triplets and I don’t know . . .” she shrugs.
“You know, now that you mention it, my parents are old and they’re adopting a baby. Who do you think gets Ollie if something happens to them?”
“Peyton,” Paige says quickly. “She’s the responsible one out of the three of you.”
“Ouch.” I put my hand over my heart while nodding. “You’re right.”
“Where’s Nola?”
Damn, I didn’t think she’d pick up on Nola’s lack of presence. I sigh and run my hand through my hair. “At her parents.”
Paige eyes me and then looks down at the keyboard, pressing more keys. “I don’t like her so I’m glad she’s not here.”
“Really? I thought you guys got along.”
She shrugs. “I guess it’s one of those things where you pretend until they’re not around.”
Interesting. Her admission makes me wonder who else doesn’t like my ex. It’s not like I’m going to take a poll at the end of the night to find out. It’s unsettling though, to think my family faked their way through my relationship with Nola to make me happy.
“Damn . . .”
Paige looks up at me. “Sorry.”
“No, you don’t have to be sorry,” I tell her. “I’m just taken aback.”