“It is.” He scanned the room, not offering any more information. I figured there was a story in there, but not the kind you could discuss in the middle of a busy party. Or maybe he only gave it out on a need-to-know basis.
“We’ll have to get together next week,” I suggested. “I’m in town until Wednesday.”
He nodded.
A loud noise drew our attention. Over by the bar, someone had dropped what looked like a full glass of champagne onto the floor. And when I said glass, I meant it. Gram insisted on the real deal, no plastic on her watch, and every year a few things crashed and smashed. Usually it didn’t happen until later in the party when revelers had had a few too many. There were some usual suspects in attendance. Ash used to be one of them, back in his wild partying rockstar days.
Tonight it was my sister, Gigi. She stood looking at us. Or at Dom, actually, her mouth and eyes wide open, the glass of champagne slipped clean out of her hand. Was she all right?
“Here you are!” Caroline appeared at my side, giving me a kiss on the cheek. The dropped glass was forgotten.
“There’s my lovely bride.” I wound my hand around her waist, right where it belonged, pulling her to me.
“We have to have Kara over to visit us in Paris,” she responded. “Can you believe she’s never been?”
“She and Declan have been too busy having kids,” I guessed.
“And, shhh, don’t tell, but she’s pregnant again, due in five months. But, I’m sorry, I’m being rude.” She turned to face Dominic, offering her hand. “I’m Caroline.”
“This is my good friend Dominic,” I introduced them and I could tell she remembered instantly who he was. It wasn’t as if we’d talked about him all that much, but the story had left an impression.
“Oh my goodness!” She clasped her other hand around his, too. “I’m so happy to meet you.”
“Likewise.”
“You should come out and visit us in Paris! Have you ever been? It’s amazing.” I smiled at Caroline’s open heart.
“Thank you for the invitation,” he nodded. Classic Dominic, keeping his cards close to the chest, not offending, but neither revealing a thing nor making any commitment. In short order, he excused himself.
Caroline and I stayed a while at the party, by each other’s sides, touching one another’s hand or arm or waist as we made the rounds. I enjoyed introducing her to everyone. I knew I’d enjoy hearing what she thought of them all afterwards even more.
We chatted with my younger brothers and their wives for a while, the six of us forming a happy cluster. I could see Gram looking over at us, a content and satisfied expression on her face.
“How are the diapers?” I had to ask Ash of the leather pants and swagger.
“Her poop doesn’t even smell,” he answered in all seriousness.
“That is a lie,” his wife, Ana, answered. “He’s just so in love with her he doesn’t smell it.”
“We’d better get back and check on the baby,” Ash said to Ana and I nearly spit out my drink. I remembered the days when he’d practically just be waking up around this time of night. They weren’t that long ago. “See you tomorrow?” Ash asked us.
“We can’t wait!” Caroline answered for us both.
We were going to see them all again at the party the next day. The Kavanaughs were launching a new Holiday tradition this year, because now we had children in the family. Declan had two young ones and there was Ash’s baby now, too. Gram had told us she wanted to start a tradition that could involve the little ones.
“I’m 86,” she’d declared. “It’s time to start something new.”
In addition to the littles, tomorrow Gram was going to host another guest of honor: my mother. At my father’s mother’s house. It had been Caroline’s idea.
“Your mother must really be looking forward to seeing you all in the same place at the same time!” Caroline had declared, taking her presence for granted.
Somewhat sheepishly—because, she was right, I knew my mother would enjoy seeing all her children together—I’d explained she hadn’t been invited. “The holiday party was always dad’s thing.”
“But this party is brand new,” Caroline had corrected me. “Don’t you think she’d like to see everyone?”
She was right. I knew she was. I’d started offering more explanations and excuses, but didn’t get far before I realized how asinine I sounded. That was one of the great things about Caroline, her bullshit detector was spot on. As I tried to tell her our family was complicated, all she had to do was look at me and I knew what she was thinking. Nudist colony! She knew all about complicated families.
So, I’d invited my mom. She’d been surprised, but even through her typical reserve I knew she felt pleased to be included. I was glad Caroline had pointed out the obvious. I didn’t know what I’d do without her.
We followed Ash and Ana to the exit soon after. I wanted some time alone with my woman. And tomorrow, I couldn’t wait to see my rockstar brother, Ash, as a proud papa.
“How old is your brother’s baby, now? Nine or ten months?” Caroline asked. I smiled. Sometimes it almost felt like we shared the same wiring, our thoughts were so linked.
“You’re already closer at guessing than me,” I admitted. “I was going to say she’s baby age.” Roughly in that stage between just born and walking around. I didn’t know a lot about babies.
“Baby age,” she nodded. “Are you, like, a baby expert?”
“Of course,” I answered with my best cocky CEO voice. “I’m an expert at everything.”
“Are you now?” She smiled at me, well accustomed to and well amused by my arrogance.
“I got my doctorate in babies while I was getting my MBA.”
“At Harvard?”
“No, Yale.” I shrugged my shoulders. “Safety school.”
She elbowed me in the ribs. “You are so lucky you met me.”
“I am,” I agreed, all joking aside. And while we were at a serious moment, I stood facing her, my hands cupped at her elbows, gazing down at her. “I am interested in babies, though.”
“You are?” Now her smile looked even fuller, the kind that radiated from deep inside and shone through every part of you.
I nodded. “Would you like to start a family, Caroline?”
She threw her arms around my neck, kissing me ardently. I felt a few warm tears on her cheeks. “Let’s have three!” she declared
“Why not four?” I countered, always bargaining.
“Make it five!” She pulled away just enough to look up into my eyes. “We’ll have to teach them wilderness skills! In case they end up marooned on a deserted island. What was the name of that camp your Gram sent you to?”
“You’re already signing them up for camp?” I teased, happy she was so eager.
“There might be a wait list,” she teased me right back.
“One call from me and—” I snapped my fingers. I’d get our kids the best of everything.
I helped Caroline into her coat, marveling over how much could change so quickly. Last year at the same party I couldn’t even remember who I’d brought with me as a date, someone in a long line of interchangeable women who simply weren’t Caroline. I recalled that Gram had given me a talking to, told me it was time for me to settle down. I’d treated her concerns with respect, of course, but at the time the chances of my settling down had seemed as good as a snow storm in July.
Well, it had snowed. How about that for climate change? Now here Caroline and I were, an inseparable combination, ready to start our own family. And tomorrow we’d get to spend time with what was starting to actually feel like an extended family of my own, with nieces and nephews opening Christmas presents.
Gram saw us leaving and gave us a wave and a smile. I helped Caroline into her coat, gave her a kiss and we headed off into the night and our bountiful, charmed life together.