Today’s the first time since Hannah’s birth that we’re having our gang over to celebrate her birth, and Kat is running around the house like a madwoman, trying her best to pick up toys and erase crayon that Parker drew all over the wall this morning. Helen is busy working away in the kitchen, insisting on making her special crab dip that she knows everyone loves. Having her living right down the street in Jess’s old place has been great for Kat on those nights when I’m away working at the station. Kat hasn’t gone back to work since having the kids, and that makes me happy. She doesn’t have to work. Neither of us do. But she knows how important my job is to me and my desire to provide for my family’s basic needs is always my priority. That’s not to say that I don’t dip into my savings to buy something special for Kat or the kids, and to take trips to places that I know wouldn’t be possible on my salary alone. Kat never asks for any of it, though, which fuels my desire to do special things, like surprise her with an extravagant weekend in the city, getting pampered all day and night all the more important.
My love for Kat has grown so intensely since we were married, that it almost doesn’t seem possible to be so in love with one person the way I am with her. She’s always so worried about how much weight she gained with the pregnancy, and with being too busy to get dressed up for me on the days that I’m home, that it boggles my mind that she doesn’t realize how perfect she is in my eyes. She’s the most beautiful wife and mother inside and out; I try every day to make sure she knows how much I appreciate her.
I walk over to the swing where Hannah is beginning to fuss and whimper. I pick her tiny body up in my hands, and kiss her tiny, smooth head before cuddling her up to my chest where she loves to snuggle. There’s nothing better than the feeling of a little person who feels so safe and happy in your arms, and Hannah always settles in when I hold her. Just then, Kat flies around the corner and catches me rescuing my little girl.
“If you pick her up every time she makes a peep, she’s never going to learn to self soothe.” She kisses my cheek, and then takes Hannah from me, placing a pacifier in her mouth and moves her to a bouncy chair. She turns back to me. “Now get your butt upstairs and get dressed before everyone gets here.”
I can’t help myself and I sweep her up in my arms and throw her up the stairs like she is a hose line, and run up the stairs to our room. Parker and Hannah will be watched over by Helen, who catches a glimpse of me taking my wife upstairs. Kat’s laughing and yelling at me to put her down, but I ignore her and slam shut the door to our bedroom with my foot, before I place her on the bed and come down on top of her to trap her between my arms.
“Do you have any idea how sexy you are?” She smiles and rolls her eyes, which sets me on fire as usual. I lean into her and kiss her deeply.
I’ve kissed her a million times, and each time it still reaches every part of me. Her soft lips pressed against mine is almost the best feeling in the world.
Almost.
She slides her hands under my shirt and wraps her legs around my waist, showing me that she’s going to let me have my way with her. Just as I start to slip my hands under the waistband of her pants, there’s a pounding on our bedroom door that makes us both groan in exasperation. How did Parker sneak away from Helen? She would have surely stopped him from interrupting us.
We soon realize that there’s nothing that Helen could’ve done to stop what was outside our door, and then a familiar voice booms through our room. “Stop making baby number three. You have guests. Get your asses dressed and downstairs in five.” I try to ignore her, thinking I can be quick, and kiss Kat, who’s giggling. But Jess truly has no boundaries, so she pounds on the door again when neither of us answers. “I’m standing out here until one of you two come out.”
“Just because you can’t have sex for another two weeks, don’t take it out on us!” I yell back.
Kat slaps at me with a laugh, knowing how grumpy we were after we had Hannah and couldn’t have sex for six very long weeks. Jess and Gage just had their second baby, bringing their total up to three. “We’ve got to catch up to you and Cam,” Kat says jokingly before she places one last kiss on my neck. “To be continued,” she whispers.
“You go ahead and get dressed, and I’ll go down with Jess.” I lean down and kiss her quickly before I hop up and greet our friends.
Jess stands right outside the door, leaning against the opposite wall in the hall with a snarky expression, and I immediately think of Dave. Even after all these years, the hole of his loss in my life is as powerful as it’s ever been. I know we all feel the same, and as happy Jess is to be with Gage, there are times where I can see that she wishes he was there with her.
“You guys are gross.” She pushes off the wall and plants a kiss on my cheek. “Before you go downstairs, did you do everything I told you? I want her to be surprised.”
I put my arm around her, pulling her down playfully like the little sister she’s always been to me. “Of course I did. Just relax.”
When we get downstairs, Gage is sitting on the couch with Charlotte and their son Jacob. Charlotte is the perfect big sister to one-month-old Jacob, who eats up every second of her attention. She’s feeding her little brother a bottle, snuggled in with Gage, who’s looking up at Jess with ardor. Their relationship is something that is special to see. They both have lost so much in their lives, but have found something so much more powerful than they ever expected; there’s a connection between them that’s almost like being caught in an electrical current when they look at each other this way.
“How hot does my wife look?” Gage winks at Jess and she blushes, which makes me squeeze her tighter. Jess has always been beautiful, with her long blonde hair and crystal blue eyes that stopped most men in their tracks.
I’ve always thought as Jess and Cam as my sisters, and I’m not even quite sure any of the kids realize that I’m not really related to them. It doesn’t matter because family isn’t always blood. We’re family because we’ve stuck together through thick and thin. We’re there whenever someone needs us. Even when they don’t want us to be there, because they’re too stubborn to admit they need help, we’re there. I can’t even remember a time in my life without one of the three of them in it. What’s between Holden, Cam, Jess, and me is thicker than blood.
“Your wife just cock blocked me.” I forget that I have little ears all around me.
Charlotte looks up at me, and her perfect mix of Dave and Jess always makes me smile. “Uncle Joey, you need to watch what you say—there’re kids around.”
She looks so grown up as she holds her little brother and it reminds me how fast time flies once you have kids. Before I knew it, Charlotte became a teenager and I became fiercely protective over her, just like I knew Dave would have. Although I have to say, Gage is a pretty intimidating mother fucker with all those tattoos on his six four, muscular body. Any boy who even looks Charlotte’s way is met with Gage’s disapproving glance, and it makes me laugh every time I see it happening.
I walk over and shake Gage’s hand. “It’s so good to see you guys. I feel like it’s been forever since we’ve done this.”
“I know, man. I think we’ll be ready to get back to our Sunday dinners again in another month. Jess is missing you guys like crazy.” Gage takes Jacob in his arms and pats his back as he walks over to Jess and kisses her sweetly.
“I don’t miss Joey.” Jess tries to sound annoyed.
Just then, Parker hobbles around the corner behind Jess’s three-year-old, Samantha, wearing some princess dress, completely unaware of how ridiculous he looks. We all laugh and I can see how proud Sam is about her fashion transformation of my son. I can already see that Parker and Sam have a friendship like Jess and I’ve always had. They love each other, but will be sure to be arguing about something in another five minutes, before quickly making up again.
“The fun can begin!” Cam bursts through my door, carrying bags of food and drinks and followed closely behind by her three kids.
r /> Ellie is turning into a young woman and just the thought of her roaming the halls of our old high school freaks me out. Sometimes it feels as if my high school days were only a few years ago. Then when I actually see high school kids, they look like babies, and I realize just how old I’m getting. Sophia is close behind, and her shy smile perks up at the sight of Charlotte. Within seconds, the three girls are off to the backyard to go swim in the lagoon.
Cam comes right up to me and hands me the bags she’s holding and kisses my cheek. “Throw those in the fridge for me, please. I’ve got to get out there and watch the girls.” She takes Jess’s hand and pulls her along. “Come with me.”
The girls are acting weird, but they always do, so I just do as I’m told because I learned long ago most of the time it’s best to do what they ask. “Where’s Holden?” I call after Cam, and look to Gage to see whether he knows.
He shrugs and puts a sleeping Jacob in his pack and play, avoiding all eye contact with me. “I’m sure he’ll be here. Probably just finishing watching the Yankee game.”
“Speaking of, I have it playing on the deck. Let’s watch out there so we can be with everyone?” I grab the video monitor set up for Hannah, and Gage holds up his for Jacob. We hold them up and tap them as if we were toasting a drink. “My, how times have changed.”
Kat runs down the steps, two at a time, and suddenly takes my hand and drags me out to the deck. “Hurry!”
Just the look on her face would make me do anything she asks. Her eyes sparkle with determination, and a small smile plays at the corner of her full lips. I want to pull her aside and kiss her.
Gage follows behind, laughing at Kat’s excitement, and I suddenly feel as if I’m the only one not in on the joke. When we make our way to the deck, I’m assaulted with cheers and screams that make me almost fall over.
“Surprise!” A crowd of people fill the entire top level of our deck and I have no idea what to think.
“Happy birthday, baby.” Kat leans up on her toes and kisses me sweetly as our friends cheer and holler.
I can’t believe that she turned what was supposed to be a celebration of her hard work making our daughter into a birthday party for me. It’s still a month away, and I haven’t even thought of it. I look around and see all of my friends from the firehouse here with their families, holding a glass up to me. My parents stand with Parker in their arms, and Helen had grabbed Hannah from her swing and has Hannah perched on her chest.
“I can’t believe you did this.” I place kiss after kiss on her face; she giggles and squirms in my arms.
“Wait till you see what else I have planned for you.”
Just as my thoughts turn to all of the naughty things she could have planned for later, she turns my body towards the lagoon and I realize how off I am. The first thing I notice is one of my favorite songs of all time, “The Piano Man,” is booming from the mouth of the lagoon. Everyone around me sings along and I look at Kat, completely confused.
“What’s all this?” I say just as it becomes clear.
A large boat barrels around the corner, and I notice right away that Holden and DJ are at the helm together, wearing Yankee hats. When the boat pulls up, I notice it’s the one I’ve been talking to Kat about for more than a year now. It’s a fifty plus foot Super Sport ocean yacht with the name GoodFellas written in script on the back.
I stand there, stunned, and Kat takes my hand and pulls me over to the boat. “Are you surprised?”
I don’t need to answer. I kiss her hard, letting her know through my kiss just how much I love her gift. She’s been hesitant to get a boat of our own again until after Hannah was older. I sold my speedboat once Parker was born because it was only a two-seater, and I’ve missed being able to hit the freedom of the ocean whenever I want.
Holden and DJ hop off the boat and hand me the keys, while Billy Joel still blasts behind us. “She’s all yours. I can’t wait to get us all out on that thing! She drives perfectly.”
I high-five DJ and kiss his head. “How about tomorrow?” I ask, not wanting to wait another minute.
“Deal.” Holden walks over to Cam and wraps her up in his arms.
It’s always been fun watching those two back together. They are two of the most stubborn and thick-headed people I have ever met, yet together, they turn into marshmallow. They will do anything to make each other happy, and have been doing it for a long time now. I know the best part of their relationship has been their strong friendship. They have history together, and it keeps them bonded more solidly than most people. I can relate in a lot of ways to Holden and Cam’s relationship because Kat and I have known each other for decades too. Although their love affair began in childhood, Kat’s and mine took much longer to come to fruition, but once it did, my life changed in ways that make me wonder how I ever survived before her.
Tonight was one of the best parties I’ve ever been to. Kat had it catered by Cutter Lane, knowing there’s nothing I like more than Mr. Dade’s shrimp parmesan and seared scallops. There was a cotton candy machine and a snow cone maker all there for the kids to devour, although Holden and I had our share of sugary treats too. Kat had a DJ playing everything from classical music to Imagine Dragons, keeping us all on our feet most of the night after dinner. It was so much fun watching the kids at the center of the circle dancing along to Taylor Swift with Jess, Cam, and Kat.
I love mixing my work family with my actual family, and Kat did the perfect job including everyone who I would want to share this fun time with. We value all of our friends and family so much and never take for granted the love we have surrounding us. Seeing the guys from the firehouse playing horseshoes with Gage and Holden made me laugh harder than I have for a while. The two of them are so competitive and hate to lose, but they didn’t stand a chance against those guys, and it was hilarious to watch them blame one another for their losses. We play horseshoes almost every day to kill time at the firehouse, and watching Gage and Holden loses almost a hundred bucks tonight was almost as good as getting my boat.
Almost.
Now that the night is winding down and all of the kids are fast asleep, the six of us can finally unwind on the deck and enjoy a glass of wine together.
Jess lies back on Gage, who has his free arm protectively wrapped around her shoulder. I find it hard to find a moment when they aren’t touching each other when they are near. Before Kat, I used to wonder why he always did that. Now I know. Because when Kat is near me, it takes all of my self-control to keep her clothes on. Touching her helps calm my desires.
Even though the shooting happened years ago now, there isn’t a day that I don’t thank God for not taking her from me that day. Having her in my arm fills a part of me that I thought was lost that day. If anything had happened to her, I would have never experienced the joy that my family has brought to me, and it would have never happened without Kat. There could never be anyone but Kat for me.
Holden walks out to the patio with Cam after checking in on their kids and two more bottles of wine. “Hey you guys, I have a great idea!” Holden slurs a little. I love when Holden gets a little sloppy because it’s so rare. He’s one of those guys who can seem to always hold it together, but not tonight. Tonight he was on fire telling jokes and rough housing with all of the kids.
Cam slaps at his chest. “It was my idea.”
Holden rolls his eyes and pulls Cam down on his lap after he sets the wine bottles down. “I want to get a tattoo. Not a lame one like Joey...”
Cam slaps at Holden again before he can blow my surprise. I had almost forgotten about the surprises I had planned for Kat after all the excitement of the day.
Kat immediately looks at me with furrowed brows. “What’s he talking about? Did you get another tattoo? How’d I miss that?”
“He just got it yesterday…”
Cam jumps on top of Holden and puts her hand over his mouth. “Will you please shut the hell up and let Joey talk.”
Holden pulls Cam’s hand
off his mouth and pulls her lips to his. We all groan and I turn my attention to Kat, trying to ignore the exaggerated sounds of pleasure coming from Holden.
I take of my shirt, and Jess and Gage begin yelling cat calls and whistling at me. “You guys all suck,” I say before turning back to Kat trying my best to ignore their antics. “I had a few things planned for you tonight too you know?”
Kat turns and faces me, wrapping her legs around my waist as she traces her fingers along her name etched in my skin over my heart. “You know getting my name tattooed on you is the kiss of death for a relationship, right?” I know she’s teasing me when I see the tears well in her eyes.
“Nothing will ever tear us apart Kit Kat. Nothing. I wanted you right where you belong so that when I’m away, you’ll always be right here.” I take her hand and place it on my chest.
The others start making gagging sounds behind us and I press my forehead to hers in exasperation wishing I could have done this when they were all sober. “I love you so much,” she says with a giant smile letting me know she forgive their immaturity.
“There’s more.” I turn back to Jess who thankfully remembered her part in this all.
She hands be the little blue box that makes Kat’s eyes pop wide open. I open the box and hold it up to Kat.
“Joe.” Her voice is shaking when she sees the large emerald cut diamond encircled by alternating birthstones of our two children.
“Five years ago, you made me the happiest man in the world by marrying me. There hasn’t been a day since that I haven’t thanked God for bringing you into my life. When you look at this ring, I want you to remember how much I love you. You’ve given me a life I never thought was possible.”