Page 18

“Yeah, I haven’t thrown up in a few weeks, but maybe I ate too much tonight. I was sitting, a little bent over, and I just felt a wave of nausea. How embarrassing.” She leans her head against my shoulder.

“Don’t apologize. I should be the one apologizing. I did this to you.” I place a kiss on the side of her head. “Can I get you a water or something else that sounds good?”

She shakes her head. “Nothing sounds good, but I should probably drink something.”

I move my hands down to her waist and wrap my arms around her. “You feel like you can get up, or do you want to stay still for a few more minutes?”

“It feels like it’s passed now. I should be fine. I’m going to brush my teeth though.” She places her hands over mine on her stomach.

I give her one more kiss on the side of her head and unwind my arms from around her and stand. I hold out my hand for her to take as she gets off the floor.

“Why don’t you brush, and I’ll go grab you a cold water?”

We walk over to the sink.

She looks up at me and smiles softly. “Thank you for holding my hair, Archie. That was really sweet.”

“That’s what I’m here for, darlin’. Here to spend time with you, yeah, but I want to take care of you and the baby.” I kiss her forehead and squeeze her hand. “I’ll meet you on the couch when you’re ready.”

She nods, and I walk out and into the kitchen. I don’t see any bottles of water in the refrigerator, so I nose around through the cabinets, looking for a thermos.

I find a Stanley and pull it out of the cabinet.

I put ice in first, then fill it with water from the door on the refrigerator.

Then I think about the weird mixture she likes with the 7UP and blue Powerade and grab another thermos from the cabinet and mix that for her too.

As I walk over to the couch, I see her coming down the hall.

“Feel a little better?” I wait for her to come closer and let her sit down first. When she sits, I hold out both to her. “This is water, and this one is the mixed drink you like. I wasn’t sure which one you’d want.”

“Thanks, Archie,” she says as she lifts the cup with the mix slightly, then shifts her body so her knees are bent and she’s angled.

“Not a problem, darlin’.” I set the other one on the coffee table and take a seat and turn toward her. “Why don’t we pick a movie and you get some rest?”

She nods, then rests her head on the back of the couch cushion.

I pick up the remote control off the coffee table and lean back. The television is playing Hocus Pocus , but it looks like it’s almost over. Yes, I’ve seen it before, and I know when the ending is near.

“Do you want to watch the rest of this or find something new?”

“It doesn’t matter to me. I had this one on because my sister and I had watched it the Halloween before her last surgery.”

I haven’t wanted to ask too many questions, but since she’s giving me an opening, I’m gonna take it.

“Tell me about your sister. What was she like?”

I look over at her. She has a soft smile on her face, so I don’t think she’s upset that I asked.

“My sister’s name is—was Sunny. She was only six when she died, but in the short time she was with us, she was just special, you know?” She looks at me.

I reach over and put my hand on her knee. “So, she was a happy kid?”

“The happiest, but she was born with pulmonary atresia, which is a congenital heart defect. What happens is the pulmonary valve, which is the one that carries blood flow to the lungs, doesn’t develop properly and forms a solid sheet of tissue, forcing blood flow through other parts of the heart.

Surgery is necessary in order to fix it.

She had her first surgery when she was just a baby.

The cardiologist successfully repaired it, and she did continue to develop fairly normal, but when she was five, she started getting winded easily just from running around the house or in the yard. ”

She looks at her hands in her lap and twists them.

“After they ran tests, the doctors determined she needed a new valve. From what I remember and what I’ve been told since, she got an infection likely before the surgery.

When they went in, her immune system was too weak, and the infection spread.

They put her on medications, but it was too late.

She died days after her second surgery.” I pull in a deep breath and exhale.

“My dad’s younger brother had the same defect, but he didn’t live past two months old.

Medicine wasn’t as advanced in the ’70s as it was when Sunny was born. ”

A tear has fallen, so I reach over and wipe it with my thumb.

“We don’t have to talk about it anymore, darlin’.

But I’m glad you told me so I know more about you and why you would want to talk about it with the doctor.

I’m sure it’s a little scary, but just know that no matter what, I’ll always be here for you and the baby.

” I wipe another tear from her cheek and then tuck a loose piece of hair behind her ear.

She looks up at me. “No, I’m glad you asked.

I don’t talk about her enough. None of us do really.

Sometimes, I feel so guilty that I’m here and living a pretty nice life, but she’s gone.

My parents didn’t cope well with her death for a long time.

They grieved, and in turn, they essentially ignored me.

It might not make sense, but being the perfect daughter was important to me, so my parents didn’t have anything else to worry about. You know what I mean?”

“Did they ever consider having another baby?” Maybe I shouldn’t have asked that, but I’m curious since I come from a large family.

She shakes her head. “No, I don’t think so. My guess is, they were too worried that the same thing could happen with another baby. I was lucky and never had any medical issues. Not even a broken bone.”

“But she was happy in the time she was here?” My hand rubs her knee.

Emma smiles and looks up at me. “Yeah, she was. Even though we were three years apart, we were really close. When she was born, I didn’t want anyone else to hold her. Then as she got bigger, she was my little shadow.”

She shakes the Stanley in a circular motion, making the ice clink around inside.

“In the summer, we would go visit my grandparents, and they had these huge sunflowers that grew super tall. She and I would go sit in the middle of one of the rows and look up. She loved it and would say we were in a tent. The last time we visited, I remember looking over at her, and with the shadows of the flowers, it looked like she was wearing a halo. I will never forget it. And when I think back, she always seemed older, if that makes sense. Like she was an old soul or something.”

She shakes her head, making some of her hair fall over her shoulder, and she takes a piece between her fingers and twists it. “Sunny used to call me Emma Bean. And the last thing she said to me was that she would wait for me in the sunflowers.”

I place my other hand over hers that’s resting on her knee. “I like Emma Bean. Maybe I’ll start calling you that.”

“Don’t even think about it, Archie. Besides, I kinda like when you call me darlin’.” She smiles at me, then leans forward and kisses me.

When she pulls back, her head rests on the back of the couch again.

“Why don’t you get some rest? I can sit here with you until you fall asleep.”

“I was hoping you would stay with me tonight. As much as I want some naked time with you, I am really tired.” She laughs.

“I can stay with you, but I have to leave early, and I should probably go to bed soon myself. Do you still want to watch a movie or just head to bed now?” I really am tired too.

“Let’s go to bed. I think I have an extra toothbrush somewhere. Let me find it for you. I forgot to look the other night, but you were already asleep anyway.”

She gets up and holds her hand out to me. I follow her to the bathroom, where she looks in a drawer. Then she hands me a packaged toothbrush.

“Thanks, darlin’.” I lean in and kiss her cheek.

We brush our teeth at the same time, taking turns to rinse.

“I’ll go get my bed ready if you want to use the bathroom first?” she says.

“Thanks.” I wink at her.

When I’m done, I walk across the hall to her room.

She’s leaning over the bed, and I take a minute to just watch her.

She’s so beautiful, and the person I’m getting to know makes her even more beautiful.

And I can’t lie—I’m also tempted to walk up behind her and push her down onto the bed and slide into her tight heat.

But I won’t. She needs rest.

After she’s done organizing her pillows, she stands and turns around. “I’ll be right back.” She pauses to give me a kiss on her way out.

I move to the other side of the bed and pull off my shirt first, then take my phone out of my pocket and set it on the nightstand. As I’m pushing my sweats down, Emma walks back into the room.

“You’re wearing boxers tonight?” She looks surprised.

“Ha! You disappointed?” I shoot her a smile.

“I mean … a little, but it’s probably for the best. Self-control and whatnot.” She giggles as she gets into the bed.

“Oh, hey, I don’t have a charger. My phone battery is low, and I can’t miss my alarm.”

“There should be an extra around here somewhere.”

She pulls open the drawer of the nightstand next to her side of the bed, and I spy a hot-pink vibrator sitting right on top.

“Found one. Here you go.”

She reaches across the bed, and I take it from her.

“Thanks, baby.”

I plug the cord into the outlet on the wall and sit on the edge of the bed. Opening my Alarm app, I set the alarm for seven a.m. I need to make sure I wake up early enough to run back to my house, eat, and get to the field by nine.

I set my phone down and move fully onto the bed. Emma is already lying down on her side and facing me.

“Hey, Archie? Thank you for asking me about my sister. It means a lot to me that you care, but it is something I needed to tell you about anyway. One of the biggest reasons this pregnancy scares me is because Sunny’s condition was hereditary.

So, there is a chance our baby could have the same defect.

” She reaches over and places her hand on my shoulder.

I turn onto my back and hold my arm out to her. “Come here.”

She scoots over and rests her head on my shoulder while bringing her hand to my stomach.

“I’m really glad you told me about her. But, Emma, if he or she does have the same issue, we’ll do whatever we need to do to make sure our baby has the best life. And like the doctor said, there have been advances in medicine between then and now.”

She nods. “You’re right, and logically, I know that. I mean, that’s what I’m in school for, but I never thought about it for myself, if you know what I mean. Just surreal, honestly.”

She looks up at my face, and I meet her gaze.

“Going through this with you though is making that fear lessen. I’m not sure why I feel this sense of peace or ease with you, but I do.”

I kiss the top of her head. “Good. I’m glad I can help you feel better about it all. I’ll do everything I can to take care of you and the baby. You won’t ever have to question that.”

“I’m just so used to taking care of everything on my own that it’s hard to trust, but I do trust you.” She strokes her hand up to my chest, and it rests right over my heart. “You ever going to tell me what this tattoo means?”

“The cards?”

“Yeah, I noticed it the first time we were together and have been curious.”

“Well, it represents my brothers. Aiden, the ace of hearts. Aston is the ace of clubs. Ace is diamonds, and Austin is spades. The Joker is Jesse. He was also a surprise baby.”

“I love that. Can I see a picture of them? I don’t know why I didn’t think to ask sooner.”

I grab my phone off the nightstand and pull up my photos. “This is my mama, my dad, Aiden, Ace, Aston, Austin and Jesse. And this good-lookin’ guy on the end is yours truly. ”

She takes the phone from my hand and really looks at the picture.

“I think you and Aiden look the most alike, but you can definitely tell you’re all related. I wonder what my relationship with Sunny would have been like as we got older. Are you all pretty close?”

“Yes, we are. I don’t know what I’d do without them.

I love my friends, and I know they have my back, but nothing beats the bond I have with my brothers.

Emma, I know you’ve been alone in a lot of ways since your sister died, but letting someone in and allowing others to help you don’t make you less of a force.

In the small amount of time we’ve spent together, I can see you’re strong and very capable of taking care of yourself.

But I’m asking you to let me take care of you.

I promise to never forget how strong you are. ” I lean in and kiss her lips.

“Okay, Archie, I’ll try.”

She kisses me this time, but before we get carried away, I break the kiss.

“Let’s try to get some sleep. Big Griff and Baby Griff are growing and need the rest.” I reach down and pull her shirt up slightly to touch her lower belly, where my baby is.

She hitches a breath. “That tickles.” She places her hand on top of mine. “But, yeah, I don’t think I can keep my eyes open.” She yawns. “A year ago, would you have guessed you would be spending Halloween in bed by nine p.m. with your …”

“Baby mama?” I belt out a laugh. “Never in a million years, darlin’.”

We both laugh and then settle into the quiet. After a few minutes, I feel her breathing steady, and I hear a soft little snore coming from her.

After a while, she turns away from me, but I curl around her, wanting to feel her body against mine. I kiss the back of her neck and wrap my arm around her waist and rest my hand on her lower belly under her shirt.

With a feeling of contentment, I fall into a deep sleep.