Garrett stared down at his sister, his throat starting to burn.

“Jesus,” he muttered.

Rocky smiled. “Be in the now, Merry. The now would make you happy if you just let it be.”

He tightened his arm around her neck. “Sucks, but you were always smarter than me.”

“Yes, but you were never afraid of spiders.”

A sharp chuckle bolted out of him.

Fuck, his sister was crazy.

“I see I got the upper hand here—you’re smart as a whip, but I can kill spiders without freakin’ out,” he remarked.

“You live a life in Indiana terrified of daddy longlegs, then we’ll discuss it.”

He had to admit, she had a point there.

He grinned at her.

She gave him a squeeze.

They both looked back out the window.

Blondie was running.

CeeCee was babbling.

Tanner was smiling.

His sister was pregnant.

He felt it.

He held on to it.

Because, in the now, all was just as it should be.

It was happy.

Chapter Seventeen

Tough Chick

Cher

Monday Evening

Mom was in my house, kicked back and watching TV with Ethan.

I was in the Equinox, backing it out in order to head to work but wishing I was going to Merry’s.

We’d had our awesome Saturday night and Sunday morning, and Merry had hung with me and Ethan before he’d taken off to spend some time with his sister.

And as we’d rushed toasting some bagels before getting my kid, we’d agreed that we’d find time to meet for lunch that week and I’d arrange it so one of my nights off, it was just him and me; the other one, it was family time.

Family time.

Merry hadn’t used those words. I hadn’t either.

But I liked thinking of it that way just as much as it freaked me out.

It was all going good.

No, it was going great.

I hadn’t fucked anything up yet, not a thing.

I was happy. Merry was happy. Ethan was happy.

It was a miracle.

That freaked me out too.

Even so, there were bummer parts to it.

Specifically not seeing Merry more often. A lunch here, a night there, lots of sex when we could squeeze it in.

As great as it was, it wasn’t working for me.

I wanted more.

There was no denying it.

I wanted more. And I didn’t know how that had happened. How I went from being a woman who’d lived a life never having what she wanted, now having what I wanted, and still wanting more.

I should be happy with what I had.

Now I had the feeling that being happy just made you jones for more happy and that was where you fucked up. A new kind of fuckup. Not being content with what you had.

I needed just to let myself be happy without freaking out about it and not fuck shit up.

(I still wanted more.)

I hit the street and shifted to drive. I started motoring when I caught something in the light of my headlights off to the left.