“Thank you,” Layla says, the comment mostly directed at Abby, but she glances at me to let me know I’m included too. Which is nice. It seems like she’s remembering that she’s not such the odd one out here. She and Abby have a lot in common in terms of personality. She seemed to stay closest to Abby and Elena tonight, so hopefully she felt comfortable enough. I suppose the fact that she didn’t convince her boyfriend to bug out early with her is proof enough that she wasn’t too uncomfortable.
“Drive safe going across the pass,” I tell Evan, same as I told Chris and Megan before they left.
Evan waves a hand. “We’ll be fine. It wasn’t too bad coming over, and the weather’s been good while we’ve been gone.”
We exchange another round of goodbyes, and then they’re all out the door. Once the door closes behind them, Abby lets out an audible sigh of relief.
Grinning, I turn to face her. “Happy everyone is gone?”
She gives me a return smile and steps into my open arms. “I enjoyed having everyone here, but it’s been a busy few days, and yes, I’m glad for the quiet and for all of them going back to their own places.”
We stand in silence with our arms wrapped around each other for a few moments, my cheek resting on the top of Abby’s head. “Crazy that Chris and Megan are having a baby, though, isn’t it?”
She shrugs, but doesn’t say anything.
Pulling back, I look down at her to find her avoiding my gaze. “You knew?” I guess based on her evasion.
She shrugs again.
“You knew, and you didn’t tell me?” I can’t decide if I’m more impressed or disappointed. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
She finally looks at me, her blue eyes narrowed. “Megan told me not to. She needed to tell Chris first.”
I mull that over and decide it makes sense. “Why did she tell you before him, then?”
Yet another shrug. “She was kinda freaking out, and she needed to talk. I’m her best friend. So she told me.”
Definitely impressed. This girl could be a sphinx the way she sits on information without giving anything away. I mean, I knew that already, but I’m just glad to know she’d sit on any information I wanted her to keep quiet too. And no one would ever suspect a thing.
I pull her against my chest again, settling us back in our comfy hug. “If you find yourself pregnant and freaking out, you know I’m fully prepared to handle it, right?”
She snorts, and my eyebrows scrunch together. Does she doubt my ability to handle an unexpected pregnancy? But her next comment makes it clear that’s not the cause of her derision. “If I found out I was pregnant, one—I’d tell you right away. And two—I wouldn’t be freaking out the way Megan was because my parents aren’t ultra-judgmental assholes who cut me off for living with my boyfriend and think I’m going to hell. So … it’s not quite the same.”
“Ah,” I say, unsure exactly how to respond. But framed like that, yeah, Megan freaking out and needing someone like Abby to calm her down makes total sense.
“Should we go practice making a baby?” I ask.
Abby giggles, but steps back, her hand sliding down my arm until her fingers tangle with mine. She gives me a tug and leads us toward the bedroom. “I like practicing, even if I’m not ready for the real thing yet.”
I laugh, carefree and happy. “Good. Me either. But let’s practice making one anyway.”
EPILOGUE
Simon
The sound of the front door opening and closing reaches me in my bedroom, and Ellie’s now-familiar voice shouts, “Cal! We’re gonna be late if you don’t get your ass in gear!”
“Shut up, Ellie!” Cal yells back to his sister from the bathroom across the hall.
A moment later, my phone dings with a text, Can you go deal with her?
Shaking my head at their antics, I pull on a Marycliff Football T-shirt, make sure my joggers aren’t showing my ass crack, and head out to the living room. My family lives in town, so I’ll be staying here during the break and hanging out with them for all the usual holiday traditions while still getting my own space. I can’t think of a better way to spend the break. Cal and Ellie, on the other hand, have a four hour drive ahead of them before they get back to their parent’s house in The Dalles.
Ellie crosses her arms and cocks her hip, carrying herself with a swagger reminiscent of her older brother, even if their coloring is different. Ellie’s brown hair—a stark contrast to her brother’s dirty blond—is pulled back in a ponytail while her brown eyes rake over me in frank assessment that I still haven’t quite gotten used to from my friend’s little sister. “He sent you out to try to calm me down, didn’t he?” she demands.
I shrug and head for the kitchen. “Want some water?” I call over my shoulder.
Her snort follows me. “No, thanks. I have a cooler full of drinks and snacks.” She yells the last part, obviously for her brother’s benefit more than mine.
Any response he makes is covered by the sound of running water as I fill my glass. When I return to the living room, Ellie’s sitting on the couch, her phone in her hand.
She looks up at my entrance, her eyes sweeping over me once more. “How are you handling Coach Hanson’s forced retirement?”
Shrugging, I raise an eyebrow at the interview-like nature of the question. “Fine, I guess. Not much I can do about it.” I settle onto the loveseat adjacent to the sofa—Cal’s mom insisted we needed a matching sofa and loveseat when we moved into our little two-bedroom house—trying to negotiate the appropriate balance between being nice to my roommate’s
