Page 56 of Unhitched

Chapter thirty-six

Mya

“Aunt Mya!” my nephew, Hendrix, yells as he squirms from my sister’s arms and runs toward me. The crochet “Little Foot” I made him is tucked under one arm as he catapults himself into me on the couch.

“Hey, buddy. Who do you have there?”

He squiggles on my leg, leaning back to show me. “Olaf!” He shoves the dinosaur in my face like I’m not the one who made it.

I chuckle. “Olaf… like the snowman from Frozen ?”

“Uh huh.” He grins wide. “I love him. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He snuggles into my chest, and I’m so happy that even though I haven’t been home in months, our Facetime dates have been enough for him to remember me.

“He won’t put it down,” Ella says, sitting on the couch beside me. “I love your hair, by the way.” She reaches to touch the tips. Anyone could look at us and know we’re related. My hair nearly matches hers now, except she has lavender streaks running through her blonde waves.

“Thank you. I do too.” I grin .

“Here you go, Mya.” I glance up to see my brother-in-law handing me a cup of coffee.

He’s wearing plaid pajama pants and a three-quarter-sleeve baseball shirt.

His perfect rockstar hair is pushed to the side, and his eyes are tired.

He’s definitely transitioned from lead singer and guitarist in a band to full-on dad mode, and every day I’m thankful my sister has someone so wonderful to do life with.

I bet Kace would make a good dad. A good husband. A good everything if he’d let his guard down. I sigh, pushing the thoughts aside as I reach for the mug. It says “Rock Star Dad” in AC/DC font. “Thank you… Wait. Did you make this?” I cringe as I wait for an answer. Mack hates coffee.

He chuckles. “Hey, give it a chance. Ella has forced me to perfect my coffee-making skills.

“Okay, good.” I grin, bringing the steaming beverage to my lips.

I take the smallest sip at first, but the moment the caramel goodness hits my tastebuds, I go back for a full gulp.

“Thank you.” I reach to put the mug on the coffee table because I don’t trust the way Hendrix is flying his dinosaur around.

“So, what’s new?” Mack asks.

“Nothing much, really.” I know my shifty eyes give away the lie.

“You’re not living with ‘a total hunk’ that you’re crazy about?”

I shoot him a look, one brow raised, semi-aware of my sister giggling next to us.

He holds his hands in surrender. “Ella’s words, not mine.”

A sad laugh escapes me. “I don’t know.”

“Mommy, Olaf pancakes, please,” Hendrix interrupts, clearly bored by our conversation.

“Okay, sweetie,” my sister says. “Should we go make everyone breakfast?”

“Yes!” He reaches his hands out, and Ella pulls him from me and into her arms. They wander to the kitchen, leaving me to wonder if I will be eating snowmen or dinosaurs.

“What don’t you know?” Mack says, snapping my attention back to him.

I sigh. “It feels like I don’t know anything.”

“None of us do,” he says confidently, leaning back into the couch.

“You guys seem to.”

He chuckles. “Come on, Mya. I love your sister more than life, but you know she did not always have it figured out.”

“Yeah,” I admit. “I know. But she had you to help her. I have no one.”

“What about this Kace guy?”

“I feel like we’d be so good together. We balance each other.

He’s calm, organized and safe. I’m chaotic and spontaneous.

He grounds me in a way I know I need, and I’d like to think I help him live in the moment.

But we’re similar in ways that work too.

We like the same foods and shows. He understands my love of nostalgia and how my brain works, even if it frustrates him sometimes.

But he’s got a mental block. He doesn’t trust me not to hurt him because I haven’t been in a long-term relationship. ”

“You just hadn’t found the right one yet,” he says like it's obvious.

“Exactly! I don’t get why Kace can’t see that.”

He mulls over a thought. “Can I tell you a story?”

I nod.

“Before Ella, I was with someone else.”

I mean, obviously he was–he’s twenty-nine. But it’s still weird to think about. He and my sister are so perfect together that it’s easy to forget they haven’t been married forever. “I remember. You were still hung up on her when you and Ella met, right?”

He nods. “I was convinced I’d never find someone again.

I brushed Ella off without a second thought and ghosted her for a while.

Coming from someone who has had their heart ripped apart by someone they thought was the one , I can tell you it’s not easy to move forward–even when someone is as incredible as your sister.

It’s terrifying to put yourself in the position to possibly get hurt again. ”

“How did you know when it was time to let go of your ex and give Ella a chance?”

He leans forward, his forearms on his knees. “I knew I gave my all to Maci. At the end of the day, it wasn’t enough. I realized that if it were meant to be, it would have worked out because I gave it my best shot. My best wasn’t enough for her because it wasn’t right being with her.”

“So you’re saying if Kace doesn’t want to be with me, I should just accept it?”

“I don’t know if Kace is your Ella or the one who comes before. Only you can determine that. What I can tell you is that all you can control is whether or not you give it your best shot. Once you do that, moving on or staying stuck is your choice.”

I groan. “Being an adult is harder than staying alive in the Oregon Trail game.”

Mack chuckles. “You’re going to figure it out, Mya. You’re always welcome to stay with us.”

“Thanks, Mack.” I lean into him for a side hug, and I can’t help but think about how well Mack and Kace would get along. I can picture them playing an after-dinner game of Guitar Hero together or making hot cocoa for everyone on Christmas Eve.

“Anytime.” He stands to help his family in the kitchen.

As I sip my coffee and watch the three of them from a distance, colliding waves of emotions hit me.

I feel so behind not already having what they have.

It feels like my ovaries are shriveling up and all the fish in the sea are being caught.

Time isn't just ticking–it's sprinting past us all in Nike Air Maxes while some of us are still tying our shoelaces.

The tiny rational part of my brain tells me I need to get back out there as soon as possible to up my chances of reaching the finish line.

I don’t want it with just anyone. I want it with Kace.

But I’ve exhausted time and energy trying to convince him we should be together, and he’s hardly given an inch.

It would be worth the wait if I knew we’d end up together.

I’d rather be even more behind on the timeline I’ve set for myself than be on track but unhappy.

But his mixed signals don’t give me enough indication of hope.

Setting my goal to devise a new life plan this week, I join everyone in the kitchen as Ella is placing pancakes–a combination of snowmen and dinosaurs–onto a serving plate.

We gather around the table, and I force myself to sit in this moment and enjoy it.

I don’t want to be jealous of what my sister has.

That won’t get me any closer to getting what I want.

Aside from that, I am happy for her. She deserves this life and so much more.

Mack hands me a plate covered in sizzling bacon on a paper towel. I use the tongs to layer two slices over my stack of pancakes right as the doorbell rings. Our heads all turn toward the noise.

“Are we expecting anyone?” Ella asks Mack.

“Don’t think so,” he answers, setting the plate on the table. “I’ll get it.”

Focusing back on the food, I reach for the syrup and drizzle it across my breakfast.

“Hi,” I hear Mack say from behind me.

Whoever is at the door clears their throat. “Hey, uh.” I freeze mid-cut of my pancake. “Is Mya here?” My heart rate skyrockets, and I look across the table to my sister with matching wide eyes. “I’m Kace.”

“Hey, man!” Mack’s voice warms like he’s known Kace forever.

“Yeah, she is. Hold on. I’ll grab her for you.

I’m Mack, by the way. Mya’s brother-in-law.

” How the hell did Kace get here? And why isn’t Mack concerned that someone he’s never met showed up completely uninvited and unannounced?

Whoa. That was uncharacteristically safety-conscious of me. What is he doing here?

“Nice to meet you. I’ve heard good things,” Kace says, and I get the feeling they’re shaking hands.

“Feel free to come in,” Mack says.

“That’s okay. I don’t want to intrude.”

“You’re not at all. I’ll let Mya know you’re here.”

“Thank you.”

A moment later, Mack appears in the kitchen. My eyes flick from my sister to her husband and back again. “Are you going to make him wait, or should I bring him some bacon?” Mack asks.