AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“So are you,” I hugged her. “You look great, Mom. How is everything?”
“Everything’s fine. I'm loving my new job, the house is back in order, Nick’s going to school now. I’ve been talking to Trent a lot lately too.”
“That’s awesome! I found a lawyer to help with his case. So far, she says things look good. There were a lot of things overlooked in his first trial. She's going to offer the prosecutors a deal and see if they accept.”
Outside of work, a lot had changed over the course of a month. Especially with Trent. The lawyer said there was a good chance he could be released since things in his case were forged and kept on the hush in the beginning. That meant it would be possible for him to be home just in time for me to give birth.
On the way to Mom’s, we stopped at the fire station so that I could see Brayden. I couldn’t wait a minute longer to wrap my arms around him and kiss his lips. One month felt like one year; I missed my man! I needed to see him. The way he swept me off my feet and bear hugged me was an indicator that he missed me too.
“I didn’t know you were coming in today! I would’ve called off to come and pick you up.”
“I wanted to surprise you,” I said. “What time are you getting off?”
“It’s slow today. I'll stick around for a couple more hours. When I get off, we can all go to dinner. You, me, our moms, and Nick. If he doesn’t hate me too much.”
“I’m sure he doesn’t hate you,” I chuckled. “I’ll let him know; extend the invite. I can’t wait.”
He and Mom said a quick hello before we headed to her place to get settled in. I was surprised to see how much she’d cleaned up the place. There was no more junk outside. The floors were clear of clutter and old hoarded furniture. There wasn’t a single dish in the sink either. The place looked brand new again.
“Wow!” I said. “You really did get it in order around here. Looks good, Mom.”
“Thank you,” she smiled. “When I came to my senses and realized how much of a mess it was in here, I couldn’t believe it.”
Mom and I lollygagged around until Brayden was off the clock and on his way to take us to dinner. We were told to dress in our best and be ready for an exciting night. In my eyes, anything Brayden did was exciting. Even if it was something that would make me angry at him.
When he arrived sporting a stylish suit and a freshly trimmed beard, my insides tingled with pleasure. He was so sexy, if it weren’t for going to dinner and Mom and Nick being in our eyesight, I might have taken him inside for some excitement, alright.
“Good evening, ladies,” he greeted as he opened both of our doors. “What’s up Nick?”
Mom and I greeted him with hugs and kisses, while Nick threw a head nod in his direction. My brother was as stern and stubborn as an ox, but he let his guard down enough to go to dinner with us that evening, and that was all I could ask for.
He ushered us all to a nice steakhouse for dinner. Uncle Joe and Brayden’s mom were already there waiting for us, and she looked as beautiful as ever. She and Mom were so excited to see each other, I nearly burst into tears watching their reunion. I was a little worried about how they would hold up being around each other again, but they both seemed to be in total control of their urges.
“That’s Little Nicky right there, isn’t it?” Uncle Joe asked once we were all seated. “Sheesh! That kid has gotten tall.”
“Yeah, he’s about six feet,” I said.
“Six three,” Nick corrected.
Six foot three inches tall. My baby brother was far from a baby. I thought about the baby growing in my belly and smiled as I looked around the table. My mom was sober. Brayden’s mom was sober. She and Uncle Joe were getting along. I had a loving boyfriend who was just as happy about being a father as I was a mother. And I had a fruitful career that extended me the luxury to do as I pleased. I felt like I had it all.
After years of bearing the weight of my mother’s responsibility, fighting to get to my dreams, and being separated from the two people I loved the most, I finally had it all. I was most grateful for Brayden. He taught me a lot over the summer of our painful reunion. He brought me a lot of tears and anger, but he also brought me peace and gave me a precious gift that I couldn’t thank him enough for.
I was the quietest over dinner. While everyone talked amongst themselves and enjoyed their food and drinks, I sat back and took it all in. The laughter, the excitement to be back in each other’s lives. We were all family. A sometimes dysfunctional and angry one but when it mattered the most, we came together and sorted out our differences.
That was all I ever wanted in life. A safe haven; a feeling that reminded me of home. A loving family and happy relationship, and Trent. I had high hopes that he would come home and claim his spot in our family tree. It was a matter of time.
“I’d like to say a few words, everyone.”
Brayden picked up his wine glass and took a stand at the table. All eyes were on his handsome face and all ears waited in awe to hear him speak. He was so dreamy to look at, my mouth watered when he licked his lips.
“First off, I want to thank everyone for finding the time to come out tonight,” he said. “I feel like we haven’t been a family unit in years, and it feels good to be able to sit down at a table and enjoy something as simple as a meal.”
He looked at his mom and Uncle Joe when he said that, and I looked over at my mom and saw she agreed with him. Everyone did. Even Nick, even though he hadn’t been old enough to know the real depth of our unit.
“With that being said,” Brayden continued. “I think we all know that Mia and I are expecting. It came as a surprise to the both of us, but hey. We're here now and there’s no turning back.”
All of a sudden, my heart started to flutter. I looked around the table to see if anyone else felt what I felt, and it looked like everyone had a secret in their eyes. My heart fluttered more and more. I had no idea what was happening to me or why I felt so anxious, until Brayden turned my chair to face him and got down on one knee. I nearly fainted.
