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“Earth to Nolan.” A hand waves in front of my face, and I’m snapped out of my daydreaming to see my siblings staring at me like I’m crazy.
“What? Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention.”
“We were just wondering what’s up with you. You’re being weird today.” Tilly smacks Matthew on the arm. “What? It’s true.”
I snort. “I’m fine. Just distracted today.”
“You sure? Everything okay at the bar?” Adam asks. I glance at Ellie while she plays with her blonde braid. She’s giving me a knowing look, and I’m suddenly unsure of what to do. I want to tell my siblings everything about Katie, but is she okay with that? I haven’t asked her since New Year’s when she didn’t want anyone to know. Does that still apply now? Adam, Ellie, and Carter already know. But I’m not the one who brought it up, they were. It’s different. I think.
“He’s dating someone. A very special someone to us.” Ellie decides for me. I could kiss her for that. It will now be Ellie’s fault that everyone knows about me and Katie. She waves her phone at me, silently telling me she’s either told Katie already or is going to tell her for me.
Shocked excitement builds in the room. They ask a million questions on top of each other, which makes it difficult to separate who’s asking what. I try to provide answers, but with everyone talking at the same time, I doubt anyone hears anything.
Carter whistles, effectively shutting us all up.
“Everything okay in here?” My mom peeks her head around the dining room wall that leads directly into the living room.
“It’s fine, Mom. We’re being heathens, as usual,” Matthew explains.
“Oh, okay. Well, dinner will be ready in a few minutes.” Mom heads back to the kitchen without further discussion. Family dinner is always chaos. There’s too many of us for it to be any other way. Add in that all four of my siblings have partners, on top of our unofficially adopted sister Natalie, her husband Tucker, and their two sons… Let’s just say Mom and Dad’s house has never been quite this packed.
All we’re missing is Katie and Cody to round out our family. I hate that they aren’t here today. It’s like I’ve forgotten something important. I invited them to come with me, but they had to go to a birthday party for one of Cody’s friends.
“Well? Are you going to spill?” Natalie gives her son, Carson, something new to play with from the massive bag she has next to her on the floor.
“Right. So, I started dating Katie.” I clench my teeth to keep from spewing every detail they don’t need to know about. Things like how much I love her and the incredible night we spent together on New Year’s and how every other night since has been better than the last.
“Katie? Our Katie? Mom of Cody, Katie?” Tilly asks, her eyes sparking with interest.
“I think you need to say her name one more time just to make sure,” Matthew teases.
“Shush, you. I’m excited.”
I grin at Tilly. “Yes, that Katie.”
“How? When? What?” Matthew asks, mirroring Tilly’s expression, only he’s not making fun of her now.
I make a face at him, silently asking what’s wrong with him. “I didn’t realize this would be such a big deal.”
“The only reason it’s a surprise is because you never date anyone long enough to tell us about them. That’s it,” Adam says, as if he didn’t know anything about this.
I think that was supposed to make me feel better, but it doesn’t. Not really. It only makes me feel more unqualified to be with her.
“I think the two of you make sense. She’ll ground you, and you’ll bring a little fun into her life,” Carter says. I smile at him gratefully. He’s always had my back and understood me better than any of my siblings.
“I agree. Lord knows that girl needs some laughter, not to mention a decent fu—” Ellie glances at Noah and Carson, who are keeping themselves busy on the floor. “Wrestling match.”
I throw my head back with a laugh. Katie told me that she shared everything with Ellie last night during their girls’ night. It’s nice to know I’m doing something right with Katie.
Adam frowns down at Ellie, who looks back at him with an innocent expression. “What? I’m not wrong. Even Katie agreed.”
“Anyway…” I get us back on track. “I am dating Katie, and things are going well. We’ve been seeing each other since New Year’s, and I’m really happy.”
“That’s all that matters,” Adam says.
“Actually, I wanted to talk with you guys about something. Katie’s birthday is coming up, and I kind of wanted to plan a surprise party for her.” I look at Ellie. “Do you think she’ll hate that?”
Ellie bites the inside of her cheek as she thinks. “Maybe outwardly because she doesn’t love being the center of attention.” I start to deflate, even though I’ve been thinking the same thing, but Ellie’s next words give me hope. “However, I think this is exactly what she needs. She’s never had anyone in her life who has made her feel special. You going through the trouble to plan a party specifically for her will be just the thing to help her see how much she means to you.”
