Page 61 of A Little Bit Naughty

When Remi picked him up, he pumped him for information and Isaac had to grin. It was a little bit of Daddy asking about his baby boy’s day and a little bit of Remi not-so-secretly hoping that Isaac might consider the job.

Isaac got so absorbed in talking about some of the patient populations that the clinic worked with that he almost forgot where they were going.

It was only when they pulled up in front of an unfamiliar house that he remembered. “Oh, right! It’s Lotte’s birthday.”

“Yep. Is it still OK that we’re here? I can still take you to Tommy’s place. Or Brick’s place, more likely.”

Isaac considered for a minute. As far as he understood it, this was the party that was “just for family,” but with the size of Remi’s family, there’d likely be thirty people, from infants to grandparents, and maybe a few extra friends. With everyone focused on the birthday girl, Isaac figured he’d just fade into the crowd.

It wasn’t like this was the big meeting-the-boyfriend’s parents thing. He was just a friend, hanging around for the evening before he flew home tomorrow.

If Remi were offering to drive him home right now for something dirty, that might be different. But as it was, he’d enjoy Remi’s company wherever they were. Anyway, he was kind of curious about Remi’s family.

“No, I’m good. I mean, there’ll be cupcakes, right?”

Remi gave Isaac’s ear a gentle tug. “Cupcakes and pizza and chicken nuggets, no doubt. I’ll have to make sure you have something healthy first.”

“Thank you, Daddy,” Isaac said sweetly.

Remi handed him one of the gift bags, an explosion of everything pink and glittery. Perfect for a five-year-old who loved that stuff, as long as Isaac didn’t have it forced on himself.

He raced toward the front door, only to have Remi call him back, laughing.

“Slow down, speedy. We’re going around the back.” Remi opened the gate just as Isaac caught up. “God, you’re so much braver than me. If you asked me to meet the thirty closest members of your family, I’d run for the hills.

Isaac shrugged. “I like people. And I’ve heard so many stories about them, I’d like to meet them myself.”

The yard was teaming with people, just as Isaac had imagined. Children—far more than just Remi’s six nieces and nephews—shrieked as they raced across the lawn in their swimsuits. There was a sprinkler set up in one corner and a wading pool a few feet away. A bit further from the action, there were two card tables loaded with food, and a motley assortment of lawn chairs and picnic tables and a few picnic blankets where adults and a few more children sat around and chatted while they ate.

A hand-lettered sign taped to the fence read “Happy Birthday, Lotte!” but aside from that the party theme was pretty subtle. The picnic tables were topped with thin plastic table cloth that might have unicorns on them, and there were pink plates for the pizza. Mostly, the theme seemed to be enjoying good company.

Remi drew close to Isaac’s side. “Overwhelmed yet? I mean… I’m a little overwhelmed.”

“No! It looks amazing. When I was a kid my parents would rent out a party space and invite all the kids in my class at school plus my Torah school class even if I didn’t like them. Then every kid in both groups did the same thing, so there was pretty much a party or two every weekend. I had fun at the time, but looking back it was pretty sterile and corporate. The employees brought out the cake and the parents kind of stayed out of the way, you know? In middle school, I think everyone started doing slumber parties, but my family didn’t feel comfortable with my friends being over.” He didn’t add that the main reason was that all his friends were boys, and his parents viewed him as a girl.

“So that was about it for birthdays,” he concluded. “This looks like so much more fun. You’re lucky to have everyone so close.”

Remi laced their fingers together, and Isaac felt like he must be glowing. He’d kind of assumed that Remi would introduce him as a friend from out of town, and he was fine with that. It wasn’t like he’d see any of these people again.

But this was a whole different level. It was like Remi was claiming him. Maybe he did this all the time though. Who knew? Either way, it felt special. Important.

They barely made it into the yard before a curvy woman in a blue summer dress made her way over to them. He could already see the family resemblance in the curve of her cheek and the dark eyebrows, so she had to be one of his sisters. “Hey Remi! We’re putting the presents inside right now because of the water. And who’s this?”

“This is Isaac,” Remi introduced him without any further explanation. Their hands were still tangled together though.

“Hi, Isaac! Welcome to the family!” Isaac’s eyes widened, but when she leaned in for a hug, he hugged her back as much as he could.

He gave Remi a look over her shoulder. Welcome to the family???

The sister drew back. “Oops, sorry. That was probably in the wrong order. I’m Dani. And we’re just so excited that Remi brought someone with him. I promise not to pester you.”

Remi shrugged, looking abashed. “Isaac’s just visiting for the week. He flies back to Boston tomorrow.”

She gave Remi a look, before turning her smile on for Isaac. “Oh, well come back and visit any time.” She gestured around the yard, not even pausing at all the implications.

Well, at least now he knew Remi didn’t usually bring guys over. What did that mean, though? Was Isaac special? Or did it just make sense because of the timing?

It was clear already where Remi got all of his confidence and ready affection from, though. Even as the quiet one in the family, he must have been showered with warmth, and now he had more than enough to share with Isaac.