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I expect him to whisper a threat, but he doesn't. That's all in my head. Too many action movies. Too much awareness I fucked up royally.
But it was nearly ten years ago now.
Does she have to hold it against me?
I roll my suitcase inside. Sure enough, a set of sheets, two towels, two pillows, and one blanket are folded neatly on the blue couch.
The rest of the apartment isn't quite so neat. It fits Jackson's wife better than it fits him. Framed pop-art prints, plus posters of all fourMatrixfilms, and furniture in bold colors.
A TV, two overflowing bookshelves, a couch, a kitchen table, and a little kitchen in the back.
A nice size for New York, I'm sure, but smaller than what I'm used to these days.
"Do you prefer Rome or Roman?" Jackson's wife, Daphne, greets me with a smile and a hug. She's wearing a cherry-blossom print silk robe over a pink nightgown. It looks like silk too. Not that I can tell the way Laurel can.
I used to tease her about her interest in fashion, but these days, I'm jealous. I can't tell cotton from bamboo from polyester.
"Rome," I say as she releases me.
"Welcome, Rome." She smiles as she looks to Laurel. "I'm so glad you're here."
"You wouldn't rather have Cassie?" Laurel asks.
"Of course, I'd love to have Cassie," she says. "But I'm glad to see you too. I need help with this—" She pats her stomach.
"No." Laurel's jaw drops. "You're pregnant?"
Daphne beams as she nods.
Jackson too.
They're the picture of happy parents to be.
"Since when? You said you were going to wait," Laurel says.
"We were," Jackson says. "Then someone wanted to play truth or dare."
"You dared him to get you pregnant?" Laurel asks.
It would be a stupid question if Daphne hadn't dared him to marry her. But according to their one-year-anniversary card, she did. (I guess I made the list by virtue of attending the same trip to Las Vegas).
"Not exactly." Daphne laughs. "He, uh, he dared me to stop putting my life on hold. I loved my first year of residency, but it took over everything, and I missed having that time for me."
"So, you thought, if I have a baby, I'll have more free time?" Laurel laughs.
"Is that not how it works?" Daphne asks.
Jackson laughs. "It was an experiment, of course. She wanted to see if sex felt different if we were trying."
Laurel's nose scrunches in distaste. Too much information about her brother's sex life.
Daphne notices and raises a brow. "If Zack saw that…"
"If you don't tell, I won't tell." Laurel mimes zipping her lips.
"Did it feel different?" I ask.
"Very," Daphne says. "But I'll spare my sister-in-law the details." She hugs Laurel again.
