by Jenna Gunn
Her eyes go soft as she reaches for him. “Baby!”
He giggles. “Momma.”
I’m stunned into a stupor as I watch them together. Will he ever act that way when he sees me?
Shyly, his eyes float to me. “Hi Bruno,” I say softly.
He tucks his face against Mia’s neck.
I feel Cass’s eyes on me as I watch Bruno and Mia. I clear my throat. “What do we need to get?”
“Oh, the baby bag. The car seat, his snacks from the kitchen.”
I look around. Cass offers, “I’ll gather everything up.”
Mia says, “I’ll help if Bruno will hang with Bishop.” She turns to me. “Bruno, can you go to Bishop?”
“Wanna go for a ride?” I ask, knowing he liked that before.
A ghost of a little smile crosses his lips, then he frowns. “Momma?”
“Yes, Momma too.” His serious blue eyes study me, then he says, “Ride.” It somehow feels like a victory.
I reach slowly toward him, and he leans out toward me. “I like your shirt, Bruno. I like fishies.” I say and point to the bright orange fish on his t-shirt. He twists his mouth and points to the fish too.
Mia appears a few seconds later. She carries the baby bag and groceries— I carry Bruno and the baby seat. Before long we’re loaded in my truck and on the way home with Bruno chattering away in the back seat.
“I feel like I’m in a time warp.” I admit.
“Yeah, I’m off kilter myself.”
“It’s been hard being alone with him, I bet.”
She looks away, twists her fingers together. “Yes, it has.”
“Where have you been?” I want to know, but I’ve been afraid to ask.
“Well, the Cataldi Troop closed. Uncle Mario took all the money and ran. I got some acrobat jobs, short gigs around Europe mostly. That was while I could still work. Some of the jobs lasted a few months. Franco, Marcella, Candy, Letecia were all on the job hunt too. Sometimes we stayed together. But we all had to do what we had to do to make ends meet. After Bruno came when we were together they helped a lot, they kept Bruno during my performances and on training days.
I swallow down a sword of jealousy. They were watching Bruno grow up, and I wasn’t.
She sighs sadly, “Then the jobs dried up, and I was out of money. Everyone went on their way, trying to survive. I had nowhere to turn.”
My jaws clench hard, “Fuck, Mia. You should have told me.”
She presses her finger against her lips, “Little ears.”
I crunch my lips together. “You didn’t have to be alone.”
Her eyes drop to her hands.
Suddenly a wave of emotion bubbles up inside of me so strong I can’t hold the words back. “I missed out on two years of his life.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
I try to breathe through the band around my chest the whole rest of the drive.
When we walk into the house, Bruno starts laughing and babbling. “Well, he seems to like it here for some reason,” Mia says.
“I guess we need to childproof.”
“Yes, we can figure out a plan tomorrow.”
“Alright, what do we do now?”
“Bath and bed.”
“Want me to put the clothes away?” I offer because I have not a clue about baby baths and getting ready for bedtime. “I can make you and me something to eat as well.”
Mia eyes me over Bruno’s head. “That all sounds great.”
I disappear into the guest room and get a plan together for putting their clothes away. Mostly I burn off nervous agitated energy.
Burbling water sounds come from the master bath. Mia sings softly. She draws me in with her siren song.
I lean a shoulder against the doorjamb as she plays with some little floating toys and Bruno splashes around.
“Does he like the water?”
“He’s like a fish.”
I smile. “An Archer at heart.”
“In so many ways.” She says, fondness in her voice.
I kneel and grab one of the whales,
“Careful—”
Shit. I squirt myself right in the eye. Bruno busts into laughter. Mia’s eyes are wide.
I aim the whale at her, squish it again. It sprays her forehead. Bruno claps and splashes. “You’re teaching him bad things!”
I laugh. “It’s only the beginning.”
The house is dark and quiet when Mia comes back to the living room.
“He asleep?”
“Yeah, on the floor. We need to get a crib for him tomorrow.”
“He’s on the floor? Oh wait, so he can’t roll off the bed?”
She nods, “You’re catching on fast.”
I offer her my beer, “Want a sip?”
She smiles. Mia never drank much, but she liked a taste of mine now and then. “Sure.”
She sighs after she hands the bottle back. “Long day.”
“You can say that again.”
I open my arm and she sits next to me on the leather couch. “You should get some rest.”
“Soon,” She says.
“What can I do for you?”
“Nothing but talk.”
I’m not sure what to say for fear of stirring up my own personal hornet’s nest again. Hurt is barely hidden below the surface for me. It’s going to take time to work thought all of these layers of emotion.
“What have you been doing, Bishop?”
I frown, not much. “Well, I’ve been restoring a very unique classic car. It’s been a massive project. I can show you tomorrow.”
She leans her head against me. “I’d like that.” She’s pressed right up against the big tattoo on my chest. I might as well get talking about it out of the way.
“I promised I’d tell you about my ink.”
“I’d like that.”
“The raven symbolizes wisdom and protection. The celestial bodies represent my connection to the heavens. It was part of my search for solace.”
She curls her fingers around my forearm. “It’s beautiful. And the words?”
“Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional,” I say. “It’s a reminder that I have the choice to live again, or lose myself in agony.”
She’s silent for the longest time. Then she says, “I hope you moved on.”
“Barely. I got through, like a zombie, a hollow shell of myself.” I admit.
“I’ve been the same.”
I curl my arm around her neck, pulling her smaller body tight against me. “I guess we’re in this together. I hope we can learn to forgive and love again like we did before.”
“Me too,” She breathes.
I can’t think of a single thing to say. We sit in silence for a long time, sharing my beer. Then she peels away from me. “I need some sleep.”
“Are you sleeping on the floor too?”
She nods.
I follow her to the bedroom and pull all the bedding off and onto the floor. I set the two pillows side by side, hoping she gets the message. “Are you sure?” She whispers.
I drop my clothes and crawl in between the sheets. She shimmies in next to me. I roll her into the curve of me, spooning my big body behind hers. Soon she’s as asleep as Bruno is. I listen to the two of them, feeling the weight of the moment all around my heart.
I know I’m on a slippery slope to losing myself to these two in ways I’ve never known before.
It scares the fuck out of me.
Chapter Eight
The morning is chaos. Bishop and Bruno goof off, playing with food. I try to get Bruno dressed, but he runs from me. I finally give up. Bishop leaves for work soon and I’ll get things back under control then.
Whew. I’m tired. My body and brain are exhausted. Travel. Stress. Emotions. So much all at once.
I feel the urge to bring up things I know we need to talk about, but I don’t. Bruno and I just need to be still for a few days until I get my bearings.
“I’ve got time to intr
oduce you to Bryce’s wife Raven and their baby, and maybe Christian’s wife Maddy, before work if you like.”
I’m not a shy person, but for some reason I get a jittery stomach about seeing his family again. I know the brothers hate me. And his Dad? I can’t even imagine seeing him again. He didn’t want us to get married in the first place… and now here I am, living under the same roof again with a baby I hid.
But I have nowhere to go right now and having help is going to be so much better than the way things have been for the last few months.
“I’d like that. Are you sure you have time?”
He grabs up Bruno as he runs past. “I want them to meet Bruno. Plus, you need some mom friends, I suspect.”
I nod. “I think you’re right.”
“Maybe we can trade off babysitting when needed.”
“They have infants?”
“Yeah, Christian & Maddy’s twins are one month old, and Bryce and Raven’s baby was born about three months ago.”
“That’s a lot of new kids in the family at once.”
He grins, squeezes Bruno’s little cheek. “And Bruno is going to rule the roost. He’s the oldest. And he’s going to be a brute if his size now is any indication.”
“He’s growing like a weed.”
Bishop shifts Bruno to his other leg. “Archer boys grow up fast. But it will be a long time before he catches up to me.”
Bruno does look tiny against him, but he’s getting heavy enough now that I feel it when I carry him too long. He’s going to have Bishop’s size if I’m right.
“Will you put a shirt on him, please?”
“Come on, let’s get you dressed.” Bishop disappears down the hallway to the guest room.
I’m still in shock when he returns, with a little t-shirt in his hands. He wiggles it on Bruno. “Let’s go to Bryce’s first.”
I follow him out the door. We walk across the Archer compound, taking the narrow sidewalk to Bryce’s cottage. I stand beside him, twisting at my hair as I wait.
The lock clicks and the door peels back slowly. Bryce is dressed for work in his county uniform shirt and swim trunks. He grins. “Wow, who is this?”
“This is Bruno,” Bishop says proudly.
Bryce’s eyes slide to me, a totally neutral expression on his face. “Mia, hello.”
A beautiful brunette appears next to Bryce, wraps her arm in his. “Oh, hi guys.”
“Mia, this is Raven.” Bryce says.
I extend my hand. “Nice to meet you.”
She shakes my hand firmly, then her eyes shift to Bruno. “Look here, this is an Archer for sure. Look at those eyes.”
“He’s growing like an Archer too.” Says Bishop.
“Hey!” Calls another female voice. I turn toward Christian’s house to see a cute blonde girl I recognize coming my way.
She smiles brightly, “What’s all the excitement?”
Bishop turns her way, “Maddy, this is Mia, and Bruno.”
Her bright green eyes look me over in a friendly inspection, “Hey, don’t I know you?”
I nod. “I’ve seen you at the cafe.”
“Maddy, I want you to meet Bruno too. Our son.”
She gasps. “Son?”
“Christian doesn’t know yet. Is he home?”
She reaches out and tickles Bruno’s bare toes. “No, he left already for the Marina.”
“Mia and Bruno are going to be living at my place. I wanted you ladies to meet them. Mia doesn’t have wheels at the moment, so she’ll be hanging around.”
Maddy smiles, holds up a baby monitor handset. “We should get together. I’ve got to run back to the house, the babies might wake up any moment.”
Raven speaks up. “Picnic on the lawn later?”
I’m a little stunned at how easy this was. “That sounds wonderful.”
Bryce laughs, “Alright, I guess us men need to head to work while you girls have a picnic.”
Raven pinches him, “Hey, I work-work, and do mom work too.”
He pulls her under his arm. “I know, just kidding. You work way more than I do.”
Bishop says, “Now I just need to tell Dad.”
Bryce and Raven both wince. “Good luck with that,” Bryce says.
“Later, I’ll find him after work.”
Bishop frowns. “Maybe you ladies should have your picnic on the other side of Christian’s house so you don’t run into him.”
Raven nods. “Good point,”
I follow Bishop back to the apartment, feeling relieved at the ease at which Raven and Maddy accepted me right into the fold.
Bishop lowers Bruno to the living room floor. Then he catches my hand and pulls me to him. “I need to head out. Call me if you need anything.” He lowers his mouth to me, brushes his lips across mine.
When he pulls back, I touch my fingers to the place his mouth just touched. He still gives me the tingles.
He studies me for a minute, his eyes dark and serious, then he disappears out the door.
I used to know how to read Bishop, but now I’m not so sure I understand those complicated things I see behind his eyes. Something has changed in him.
I’m walking on my hands to entertain Bruno when a soft knock on the door catches my attention. I drop down to my feet and find Maddy staring through the screen door at me. I’m relieved it’s her, and not Bishop’s dad. I’m still amazed he hasn’t heard us downstairs yet.
“That’s some kind of talent,” Maddy laughs as she wheels in a double stroller with two little sleeping nuggets inside.
“It’s handy for entertaining him.”
Maddy comes into the house and perches on the edge of one of the chairs.
“Want to hang out? I could use some adult conversation.”
I laugh, “Sure thing. I know exactly what you mean.”
“I can’t imagine what this is going to be like when these two start running around.”
“Bruno’s a lot already. I can’t imagine two.”
Bruno walks up to the babies. “Baba.”
Maddy smiles. “Yep, baby.”
Bruno gets fixated on the baby’s little toes.
“Raven said you’re just back from Europe.”
“I am. Just a couple of days ago. I haven’t had time to get a job or find a place yet. Bishop said we could stay here in the meantime.”
“Of course he did. I bet he won’t let you stay anywhere else.”
I roll my eyes. “How’d you know?”
She grins. “Because I’m married to an Archer.”
I feel my insides beginning to relax. It’s going to be good to have Maddy and Raven to talk to.
We spend the next half hour chatting about Pelican Point, the five brothers, and the babies.
Raven knocks on the door with her own infant in her arms. “You ladies didn’t tell me you were getting together.”
“I knew you were working still,” says Maddy.
“What kind of work do you do?”
Raven takes up a spot on the floor. “I work for the county, Ocean Rescue. I’m a lifeguard like the guys, but right now I do social media and education, because…” She nods at the baby.
“Wow, it’s great you can work from home.”
“It is.”
“And Maddy, do you work?”
Her eyes dance as she says, “I do, I still run the cafe, but I have help now. So I only go in a few days a week. What about you, what do you do?”
I laugh, “This is going to sound weird, but I’m an acrobat.”
“Wow!” Raven says, “Like Cirque?”
“Yes, basically like that. I do trapeze, and aerial stuff, and floor work, mostly.”
Maddy gasps. “Wow. That’s incredible. How exciting.”
“It is exciting until you try to find a job in Lynn’s Cove.” I sigh. “I tried to get a receptionist job and a waitressing job. Two interviews. Nothing so far. My skills don’t translate very well to mainstream work.”
They both look at me
sympathetically. “You can have a few hours at the cafe, if that helps. It wouldn’t be a lot, though, I have a full time person already.”
“Thanks, I appreciate that.” I don’t tell them I’m thinking about what the restaurant guy said about the Fox Hole strip club. I plan on calling there this afternoon to see if they want to add an aerial show, but I’ll wait and see before I mention anything. “I’m going to make some calls this afternoon.”
Maddy worries at her lip for a minute. “Let me think on this, I will see who I can contact.”
“Thanks, I need all the help I can get. Speaking of help, do you know anyone that might be getting rid of a baby bed, and other things we might need?”
Raven says. “I do. I can make some calls later.”
“You guys are the best.”
Raven adjusts the little bundle in her arms. She smiles down at the sweet little face looking back up at her. “So, how are you doing, Mia? Bryce told me a little about you and Bishop. We weren’t gossiping, I promise. He’s just been worried for Bishop. I’m sure things are hard.”
Hm. What to say…“It is hard. Things are so complicated.” Should I tell them that Bishop may have been set up for cheating on me?”
“Well, if you need anyone to talk to, I’m glad to listen. And what is said amongst us girls stays amongst us girls.”
“Thanks. That means a lot.” I hold my tongue for a minute but decide to ask what’s on my mind. “I do have a question. You might not know this, but do you think Bishop’s brothers believe he cheated on me?”
I feel bad for asking them to share what their husbands think.
Maddy answers first, “No. Christian said he never believed that Bishop would do that.”
“Bryce thinks the same.”
I blow out a breath. “I was so stupid to even think he could do that. Bishop has now convinced me that someone set him up, framed him.”
Maddy’s eyes are wide, “Framed?”
“Yeah, the evidence of the affair that I got by courier when I was in Italy is the kind of thing that someone would use intentionally to destroy our marriage.”
“Who would do that?”
“I have no idea. But I get a feeling that Bishop is going to make it his mission to find out now that he’s seen the things that were sent to me. He didn’t say as much, but I saw a look in his eyes…that made me a little worried.”