If Rick and Matilda hadn’t found me, I would have needed a place like Bellamy House to survive.
It’s a good sign that the town is so emotionally invested, and I know it has a lot to do with my brother’s friends. It looks like JD was right. The Finns are a bit like the Kennedys here. Only gayer.
More gay?
I was disappointed when Derek refused to come in for breakfast, mostly because I was hoping to use him to keep JD from noticing I’m not exactly myself. Thankfully, Fiona is more than enough to keep him occupied.
She’s incredibly pregnant. As in, I’m surprised she isn’t on bedrest or already in the hospital. That kind of pregnant. And she definitely has a glow. Whether it’s from impending motherhood, or the fact that she has two adoring men at home who love and care for her, no doubt giving her daily orgasms before they wash all the places she can’t reach in her last trimester, is anybody’s guess.
“I still can’t believe he moved here. Permanently.” JD is talking to Fiona but looking right at me.
I force a brotherly smirk. “Blame yourself. If you don’t want the rest of us descending on your bliss, you need to stop talking this place up every time we call.”
I don’t take the nervous twitch at his temple personally. JD has always been wound a little tight, but he’s been doing better since Carter, the Zen former drill sergeant, started rubbing off on him.
There’s a lot of rubbing, based on what I saw the other morning.
I’m never going to get that out of my head, am I?
“He’s teasing you, JD,” Fiona assures him, giving me the stink eye. “Your parents have the time-share specifically for visits, and the rest of your brothers are busy with their own lives and happy where they are.”
It’s easy to see why Fiona is a therapist, full time now at Bellamy House since her duo banned her from working in the pub at this stage of her pregnancy. And she’s exactly the kind of friend I’ve always wanted for JD. Someone who gets him the way I do, sees beneath the wit and worry he uses to keep people at a distance, and accepts him unconditionally.
Everybody deserves a Tani of their own. Though mine is still the OG.
The waiter sets down our breakfast with a shy smile in my direction before his eyes widen on Fiona.
“What is she doing?” he whispers, obviously scandalized.
I turn in time to see Fiona dumping hot sauce on her eggs. A lot of hot sauce.
Shake. Shake. Shake.
Still going.
“That can’t be a good decision.”
She nods at me in apparent agreement but continues to douse her plate almost compulsively. The cute waiter zips away, possibly afraid he’ll be blamed for whatever happens when a woman this pregnant takes that first fiery bite under his watch. Maybe he’s already calling an ambulance.
“What is happening right now?” I ask the table at large.
“A craving.” Fiona bites her lip, focusing on her eggs. “And yes, I’d love the normal pickles-and-ice-cream type cravings other women talk about, but the last few months this is all I’ve got. I’ve been slipping jalapeños into sandwiches and mainlining sriracha. It’s not giving me heartburn, but I am starting to think my twins aren’t human.”
The father is a fireman. I suppose there’s a kind of symmetry to it.
“Human or not, I think we can all agree they’ll be born without taste buds,” JD comments with a grimace, struggling to get the bottle out of her hand. “This is more than usual, even for you. Are you stress hot-saucing now? What’s going on, Fi?”
She lets him take it and her hand lowers to the stomach that thankfully won’t allow her to get close enough to the table to eat the mess she made. “I had an uncomfortable appointment yesterday. I’m not sure if I need a new therapist now or if she’s right and I should pack it in.”
The therapist has a therapist?
“What did she say to you this time?”
Her lips tremble at JD’s question. “That I was selfish and pushed Wyatt into a ménage relationship he wasn’t ready for. That I’m turning them both gay because I think they’d be better off without me and I don’t want to be happy.”
“I think your therapist is doing it wrong,” I tell her, getting upset on her behalf.
She laughs wetly and JD leans his head on her shoulder. “Let’s be logical for a minute, okay? Wyatt and Thoreau have both been crazy in love with you and chasing you for years. They both knew all your ins and outs before you got together. They definitely know you a hell of a lot better than this lady does. Can you agree with that?”
“Yes.” She sniffles loudly.
“Good. Now Wyatt took his time and made a lot of noise because of his family issues, not because of you. But there is no way anyone could get a Finn or a Wayne to do something they didn’t already want to do. Not with the best carrot-and-stick scenario I could dream up. Most importantly,” he continues. “No matter how gorgeous you are, you definitely can’t turn anyone gay. That’s her ignorance talking. And jealousy, because you have two beautiful men who enjoy each other and can’t wait to be your babies’ daddies. There is nothing wrong with that. Look at Wyatt’s brother, Rory, and his trio. No relationship, no person is perfect, but everyone deserves the chance to be loved. Flaws and all. Anyone who says differently is an idiot and can come at me.”