I was no Bronagh Murphy.
My friend had an hourglass figure, and I didn’t. I wasn’t sure if there was a name for the body shape I possessed. My chest wasn’t large, but not small either, and my waist was smaller than my hips but not by much. My hips were a little wide, and my thighs were “thick”. That’s what Nico had said when I once mentioned in his presence how much I hated the size of them.
“Thick” was apparently good, but I didn’t think so.
I felt like I would be a whole lot happier with my body if I didn’t have love handles. My body was a huge factor in why I almost didn’t hook up with Dante considering how toned he was. I had always been insecure about it, but Dante had assured me that I was sexy, and my body was “spank bank” material.
I wasn’t sure if I believed him about that, but he worshipped my body when we were together, and from the look in his eyes when he saw me bare, I knew he wasn’t lying about finding me sexy. I wish I saw what he did, but I didn’t. Gnawing my lip, I grabbed my phone and decided to FaceTime Bronagh for her opinion.
Nico answered, his smiling face filling my screen.
“Hello, gorgeous.”
I clicked my tongue. “I’m tellin’ Bee you called me that.”
“Go ahead. She’d agree with me.”
My lips twitched.
“Where is she? I need her opinion on me outfit.”
“Is my opinion worth nothing?”
“No, ’cause you’ll just tell me I look pretty.”
“You are pretty.”
I smiled. “Where is me mate at?”
“Bronagh!” Nico hollered. “Alannah is on the phone wanting your opinion on her outfit.”
I cringed. “You have a big mouth.”
“Loud is the only language Bronagh understands.”
I laughed, and not long later, Nico’s handsome face was replaced with Bronagh’s beautiful one.
“Hey, how are you? Are you okay? Do you want—”
“Bronagh,” I cut her off, chuckling. “I’m doin’ okay at the moment.”
“And your ma?” she asked. “Have you spoke to ’er at all today?”
“Yeah, and she said she was okay, too.”
“That’s good.” Bronagh nodded. “That she feels good, I mean.”
“Yeah, it is.”
“So?”
I grinned. “So?”
“What happened with Damien last night?” she asked, wasting no time. “Not knowin’ has been killin’ me.”
“Nothin’ happened.”
“Alannah!”
“What? Literally nothin’ happened. I cried all over ’im ’cause of me ma, then he helped me get questions together for me interview. He was gone when I woke up this mornin’.”
Bronagh frowned. “I thought he might kiss you or ... somethin’.”
I didn’t want to know what the “something” was.
“He kissed me when I got me car from the garage yesterday so—”
“What?”
I jumped at the volume of her shout.
“Damien kissed you yesterday?” she asked incredulously.
“That’s my boy!” Nico hollered in the background.
I groaned. “I called you for your opinion on what I’m wearin’ to the interview, not to talk about Damien.”
“Yeah, but—”
“Yo, anyone home?”
Alec.
“No, go away,” Bronagh hollered. “I’m in the middle of an important conversation.”
Bronagh had twisted the phone so I could partially see Alec when he entered her kitchen with Georgie in his arms. I could only see her chubby legs, but I could hear her babbling away at full volume.
“I’m returning your offspring. Her diaper is full.”
“And you couldn’t change it?” Nico asked, taking his child.
Bronagh shifted the phone and I could see Nico kiss all Georgie’s face, making her squeal in delight.
“Could have.” Alec shrugged. “Didn’t want to.”
“You are the ?Monday morning’ of people, Alec Slater.” Bronagh scowled.
“Wrong!” he quipped. “I’m clearly a Friday!”
“Ha!” Bronagh’s laughter taunted. “You’re the furthest from a Friday!”
“Your words,” Alec said, clutching his chest in mock pain. “They wound me.”
My friend stalked towards him, the camera showing me her legs as her hand dropped to her side.
“I’ll feckin’ wound you!”
From the angle I could now see, Nico hooked an arm around her waist, careful to avoid her belly, and drew her against his body, grinning over her head at his older brother.
“Let me go!”
“Nope,” Nico replied, popping the P. “You’re pregnant, and he needs to be alive to witness the birth of his first child.”
Bronagh almost growled.
“Fine,” she relented, “but he won’t live long enough to conceive the second.”
“That’s fair enough.”
“Hello?” I sighed. “I’m still ’ere, ye’know?”
“Is that Lana?”
Alannah.
“Shite,” Bronagh said then scrambled as she lifted the phone up so I could now see her face, and Nico’s chest as he stood behind her. I could hear Georgie, but I couldn’t see her. “Sorry, Alec came in and annoyed me.”
I grinned. “That is his talent.”
“Bite me, Ryan,” Alec hollered.
I snorted as I flipped the camera on my phone and aimed it at my body-length mirror.
“Honest opinions, Bee.”
“Holy shite, Alannah,” she whistled. “You look like a sexy librarian.”
“Shut up.” I flushed. “I don’t.”
“She’s not lying, Lana,” Nico chimed in, then Alec said, “Well, fuck me sideways, you look downright sinful.”
I flipped the screen back around to my face, but before I could call the lads on their bullshit, Bronagh said, “Your makeup is so pretty!”