And then there was a centrepiece...
1394 Words
Jordan
Noemi shrieks and jumps, dropping the hanger she held, and Wren starts crying. Her hand pressed against her chest, my sister-in-law cradles her daughter, ready to attack whoever scared her little girl. But when her eyes land on me, she lets out a long breath.
“Jordan.” The second she hears my name, Wren looks up. Big tears roll over her chubby cheeks, and her shiny grey eyes looking at me accusingly make me feel like the sh*ttiest human being and dragon shifter alive.
“Hey, Wren-Wren!” I say in my practiced ‘Uncle’ voice. “Oh no, did I scare you? I’m so sorry.” And she lets me pick her out of her Mom’s arms, pressing her cheek against my chest and taking a few tiny, ragged breaths. I bounce on the balls of my feet a few times, mouthing ‘Sorry’ at Noemi. But she waves me off, smiling at her daughter snuggling into me.
“All better now.”
“Looks like it.” Wren leans back, inspecting my face, and the first smile spreads on hers.
“There we go!”
I tickle her side, and her little giggles are the greatest thing I’ve ever heard. Turning back to her Mom, I see Noemi smile. She picked up the hanger, and when my eyes land on it, I remember.
“So… am I going to be an uncle again? Or do I need glasses, because I’m pretty sure that says ‘0-3 months,’ and last time I checked, this little lady is about to have her first birthday.”
“ONE!” Wren shouts and holds up a finger. The laughter bubbles out of me, and I hear a clicking sound. My head rears around, but I don’t see anything. Could have sworn that sounded like a camera. Or a smartphone, maybe. But when, even after a few seconds, I don’t see someone hiding, trying to take a photo of Noemi and me, I shift a little to cover her and turn Wren so she’s between her mom and me and facing away from the store.
“Yes, you are going to be one year old,” I say, still distracted by the noise I just heard. “So, who is mommy shopping for?”
“Bo!” My niece shouts, and I look at her perplexed.
“That a new man in your life I don’t know about, Wren-Wren?” She c*cks her head, looking up at me like I’m the dumbest person she has ever encountered. And I can’t help myself. I laugh again. Goddess, I never would have guessed it, but I love this little human so much. Talking to her is easy, being with her doesn’t come with any expectations. Grown ones tend to expect certain things from their conversational partners, and breaking into song, and tapping a beat only you can hear, aren’t accepted social behaviors.
Noemi blushes when I look back at her. Nodding her head, she almost whispers. “Yeah, OK. But don’t tell anyone. I… just found out, and I want to surprise Greer tonight at his birthday dinner.”
“You are aware that your mate is something close to a medium? A seer? He probably already knows.”
Crossing her arms in front of her chest, Noemi glares at me. “No, he doesn’t. Your brother is a bad liar.” Her nose crinkles, and she blushes a little. But she’s not wrong. Greer sucks at hiding his feeling. He was the easiest to beat at poker when we were younger.
“The worst.”
Noemi nods thoughtfully. “If he did know, he would’ve already started trying to force me to drink those disgusting green juices and carry anything heavier than a paper napkin for me. Like he did last time.” She looks down at Wren, stretching out a hand to brush some of her daughter’s hair out of her face.
“He let me carry the pram and the car seat to the garage today… your theory doesn’t add up.” I suppress a smirk at her almost c**ky smile. So different from the scared girl we all met last year. How far she has come still amazes me every day. Noemi has grown so much in the last year and a half. Sappy as it sounds, but Greer’s love had a lot to do with it, I’m sure about it. Not just because Noe said so, many times, but because it’s so obvious in every single one of their interactions. How much she leans on him, how his silent support is enough to make her stand taller. Walk with her head held high instead of crouching to hide in the shadows.
Seeing them together, especially now, after the blood moon, adds to the list of expectations I’m scared I might not fulfill for my mate. Not that she seems willing to let me.
::::::::::::::::
“Khai! DON’T YOU DARE!” Valentina points her fork at my brother, who just lifted the last dumpling to his mouth.
“You’re not that sca—”
Coughing, Khai tries to collect himself from her pointy elbow to his ribs.
“Never come between me and Blanca’s pirogi… very dumb idea.” Valentina grins, stuffing the meat-filled pouch in her mouth before closing her eyes and moaning. Silas stiffens next to her, his eyes darting to her lips.
“We can all hear your thirsty thoughts right now, little Si. Please behave.” Khai imitates our Mom’s ‘stern’ voice. “This is a family dinner!”
There goes another jab from Valentina and what must be a kick to the shin from Mom under the table because my obnoxious brother winces twice. Val leans over, kissing Silas on the cheek before jumping up, declaring she wants to be the second to give Greer their gift.
“Second?” my brother laughs. “Duh, Noe has to go first.” Noemi blushes slightly, frowning at her friend, but gets up to collect a small box. She hands it to Greer, and I can see her hands tremble. My brother sees it too, so he pulls her in his lap before untying the bow.
“It’s not really a gift for now… since it will take some time to arrive, but I thought—-
“No way!” Greer jumps up, forcing his mate up with him and turning her around to face him. “Noe, are you really?!”
“Is she what?” Val is the second one to push forward.
“I KNEW IT!” She shouts when Noemi nods, a little teary-eyed showing the pregnancy test inside the box.
“Is she what?! Some of us need a little more context here.” Khai complains.
“I’m— We’re having another baby.”
Mom squeals, and I see Dad smile widely, clapping Greer on the shoulder. They took becoming grandparents young in stride and love every minute of it. Luca smiles one of his rare smiles, and the hyped mood in the room buzzes through me like the wave of a new speaker, the bass turned up. The way my face creases with a broad smile feels just right, and it’s moments like this one I want to live in. Immortalize with my music. And yes, I know how strange and big-headed that sounds. But hey, gotta be a little full of yourself as an artist.
“F**K!”
Khai’s outburst brings all of us back to reality, Mom looking at him sternly. His phone in hand (as always), he turns the screen to the rest of us. And I swear we collectively take a sharp breath. A bright pink banner rolls at the top, and I see an ad for some stupidly overpriced sneakers and a self-publishing site flash in the left corner. But my eyes glue to the photo that is the centerpiece. I’m holding Wren, laughing, and Noemi is smiling, standing beside me. My stomach drops when someone (I don’t even know who) reads the headline out loud.
“Secret baby mama drama: Who is the girl Jordan Araújo and the rest of the royal family have been hiding? And for how long? Learn all about her here.”
Nine pairs of eyes turn to look at me. F**K.
- Writer
