Page 54 of June: Jess' Story
“Hey, happy birthing day.” Liam joins us, offering me a hug. I accept it.
“Babe, it’s weird when you say it,” Brit chastises him.
“We just had a whole talk about this. You said first birthdays are for the moms, not the kids. You said birthdays should really be called birthing days. Did you not?” He looks at her, confused.
“Yeah, no, you’re right. Next time let me say it, though. Happy birthing day!” she exclaims, throwing an arm around me, hugging me tight. I laugh.
“Fuck, they’re supposed to bring out the frozen hot chocolatesafterthe food, hold on.” Liam leaves us to manage the party.
“How do I find one like that?” I ask Brit, both of us watching her man walk off.
“I don’t have that answer…but you will find him.” She squeezes my arm. “I’m going to go meet the famous Ellen. Want to come introduce me?” she asks.
I shake my head. “No, you go ahead. I have to say hi to the ex-hubs and his boy toy.” She laughs, then walks off, hardly any waddle to her 8-month gait.
Don’t want to do this, don’t want to do this.“Hi.” Jamie and Tommy both turn to me. “Glad you could both make it.” It feels weird, greeting them like acquaintances.
“Hey!” Jamie says, too much overt cheer in his tone, then reaches for a hug. I allow it. Followed by a weird side hug from Tommy.
“You guys coming over after this?” I think they just got in this morning, otherwise I’m sure they would have come to see Eden before.
“Yeah, if that’s okay.”
“Definitely!” Now I'm the one forcing cheer. An awkward silence descends on us, but doesn’t last long because the hair on the back of my neck stands up. And when I turn around, I see that Alex and…Caleb(?) have just arrived.
I use the excuse of new guests to leave the two men I could really live without being here for the other two men I’m entirely confusedaboutbeing here.
“Hey!” Alex turns towards my voice, immediately presenting me with a gift bag from FAO Schwartz. Caleb passes me a bag from Byredo.
“I picked out the gift for Eden, Caleb picked out the gift for you. Brit said we were celebrating your accomplishment inbirthingtoday.” Alex’s cheeks go a bit pink. (That’s not fucking awkward at all.) I laugh.
“Great. Entirely unnecessary, but super thoughtful of you both. Thank you!” I take the extended bags and drop them at the gift table where I find that half the gifts are addressed to me, the other half to Eden.
It’s a small party, but all the major players are there: my best friend, my mom, my soon-to-be ex-husband, the guy I might still sort of be in love with. The whole thing lasts two hours, flying by. There’s lots of laughter, lots of oohing and ahhing over Eden’s wobbly attempt at walking. We eat way too much cake, and then it’s time to pack up.
I’m putting the cards in my diaper bag when Alex comes up to me. My heart beats a little faster in his presence, my whole body warms a few degrees, too.
“Hi,” I say. He’s sort of staring at me, something uncertain in his gaze. He’s so beautiful. I know I’ve called him a Chris Hemsworth knockoff, but that’s not true. He’s better than him. I love seeing him not in roughs (he's always dressed like he just got back from a hike), but today he’s in jeans and a long sleeve henley that’s almost too tight. It’s perfect.
“Do you trust me?” he asks, voice lowered and deep. I have to take a second to comprehend. And then, he does something that rocks my world. Seriously, the earth shifts on its axis. Somewhere planets align.
He takes my hand, threading our fingers together. His massive hand swallows mine, and it feels…perfect. I love the way I feel being swallowed by his presence.
“Yes,” I finally manage to croak out. I look at our hands twined together then back up at him. He squeezes my hand, gets a sad sort of smile on his face, then takes my face in his other hand and places a kiss on my forehead. When he pulls back, I wonder if I’ve died. Why does a forehead kiss from Alex Palomino feel like an instant hit of dopamine?
“Excuse me?” Alex raises his voice, turning me towards the rest of the small dining room to face everyone. “I just wanted to say thanks for coming today, and to my sister and Liam for planning it.” He looks down at me, and I look at him confused. He pulls me into his side, fingers still threaded together.
The natural instinct here would be to look at the faces of the people gathered around, likely all staring at Alex and me now. But I don’t. I’m staring at Alex not knowing what’s coming, but also not caring because he’s acting a certain way towards me that I’ve only dreamed of for years.
“We were going to wait till Christmas, but with everyone here, I think it’s the right time.” He looks at me, then back to everyone else. “Jess and I are getting married.” There’s a collective gasp from the room (and me) and my stomach falls 40 stories. Alex’s hand squeezes around mine. My mouth falls slightly open, but before I can speak — question — anything, he lowers his mouth, placing a sensual kiss on my lips. There’s just a small brush of tongue across my lips, and it finishes with a hand cupping my cheek as he drops one last kiss on the corner of my mouth.
It’s not the passionate, NSFW kiss of last time, but the effect is the same. I’m fucking soaked.
“Alex…” I say softly, surprised to find I’ve absentmindedly placed a hand on his arm that’s holding my cheek. He sort of shushes me.
Talking to everyone else, he says, “Jess wanted to wait,” he redirects his eyes to mine, searing my soul with his next words, “but I don’t want to wait anymore.” The smile that forms on my face is involuntary. (Snapshot title:“Dreams Come True Serendipitously.”)
Alex