I saw two heads! ~ K
One minute later…
Are you alive?! We have baby gooses! ~ K
One minute after the previous text…
OMG they’re yellow and fluffy. I am dying of cuteness! ~ K
I looked at my sister. “We’re hatching!” I shouted, which startled the sleeping baby. Nora gave me a withering look as Matty began to cry. “Sorry. Sorry, I was just excited.”
“Meh, it’s okay, he’s due for a feeding and a diaper change. I think you should do it.” She might be tired and sore, but her torment-the-brother game was on point.
“All I have to offer the kid is half a Mars bar.”
“No, not feeding him. The diaper change.”
I gave the squirming babe a long, serious study. “I mean, is that part of uncle work? I thought we only did the fun, cool shit like tossing a baseball back and forth, teaching the child how to fart and belch at ear—or pant—splitting levels, and drawing mustaches on magazine covers while waiting at the barbershop for a haircut.”
“Since you’ll be racing home—” I started to argue, but she knew I was only here for a day or two. I couldn’t make Kenan carry the weight of all the work at the alehouse and we were having goslings as I spoke. “No, don’t tell me I’m wrong. And I get it. I wish we were all closer.”
“Me too, sprite, but you’ll be coming to my place for the Fourth. We’ll have a whole week to bond and change shitty diapers. You never know, when you come down next month, I might have someone living with me.”
My phone buzzed again. Nora gaped at me for a moment, then squealed so loudly her son shit his pants. The sound was incredibly loud and very wet. Nope. Nope. Nopeity nope. That one was all hers. She flew from the bed to hug me and cover my face with kisses.
“I knew it.I knew it. I knew you two were forever! Oh my God. I am so happy for you, Brann.” She squeezed me so tightly I could barely breathe. “Okay, shit. Damn.” She drew back, her cheeks wet, to give my face a pat. “I have a dirty boy to clean up and you need to reply to Kenan before he sends the Mounties to come look for you.”
“That would be incredibly epic,” I whispered, kissed her brow, and thumbed a quick reply to my man back home. Mounties were so cool…“Just do me a solid and don’t say anything to Mom. We’re still in a really tender place with all of this moving in stuff. I don’t want her calling Kenan to discuss China patterns and good Italian surrogate mother picks.”
“God, that is so something she would do. I won’t tell her, I promise, but you shouldn’t put her off for too long. She’ll be hurt if she finds out secondhand.”
I bobbed my head. Yeah, I knew that. And I would tell her as soon as I had something concrete to pass along. Hell, Kenan might have changed his mind already. Speaking of my man…
Send me pics. I am going to hug Matty then head home. I love you. Kiss Fred and Wilma for me. ~ B
Take your time. They’re not even out of the coop yet. I am not kissing either goose. I WILL kiss you though. Give Nora, Antoine, and Matty kisses. Love you too. ~ K
When I glanced from my phone, my sister was staring at me all googly-eyed as she lifted her son from the bassinet. Matty let a nasty toot—or maybe more—rip. Nora gagged. I snorted. The baby gurgled in delight.
Yeah, me and that boy were going to get along just fine.
Chapter Ten
Leaving Ottawa took longer than I had anticipated.
I’d gotten roped into attending the big family breakfast at a local eatery. Mom and Dad had insisted I meet them there to ensure good relations with Antoine’s family. They were lovely people who had paid for the entire bill and then sent me off with a package of maple beaver tails. The box of four huge fried treats—minus one for Kenan—did not make it to the US/Canada border.
After I crossed back into the US with sticky fingers and a newfound love for beaver tails, I pulled off for gas, to piss, and to grab some coffee.
Kenan was at work by now, and with only Lyle and Linc to help, I didn’t want to bother him. I sent him a fast text saying I was back in the States and would see him soon. The ride was uneventful. The scenery stunning. I had the windows down and some old Foghat was playing on the stereo. In all honestly, Foghat is a very underrated group. Sure, they had one massive hit that the populace knows right off, but they also have aseriously substantial body of pretty solid rock and blues tunes. Lots of people would call them a one-hit wonder, but that’s only because they’ve not delved deeper into the band’s backlist.
So yeah, Foghat it was as I rolled along, belting out songs from theStone Bluealbum. The closer I got to home, the more excited I was to see the new goslings as well as my sexy boyfriend. I was about an hour out from home, cruising along, when a call came through. Not a text. A call. I groaned, knowing it was probably my mother.
Since I was a good boy, and the New York State Police frowned upon driving and talking on your cell phone, I pulled over at the closest rest area. Knowing I was in for an earful as I suspected my sister had let the cat out of the bag, I used the bathroom, bought a soda, and talked to a trucker who was chilling in the shade. We discussed the Buffalo hockey team and the weather. Once he pulled away, I sat on a bench under a thickly leafed maple tree and called my mother back.
“Hey, Mom, I saw that you called. I was driving. What’s up?” I began as soon as she answered, so she knew I wasn’t ignoring her on purpose. She would be happy to hear her boy had been so law-abiding.
“Brann, I am so upset right now. Why didn’t you tell me that you and Kenan were moving in together?”
