Loving in the Light Read online

  “Sweetie, it’s called a fraternity, and that’s where I met your daddy and how we became best friends.” Anders grits his teeth and his jaw hardens as he asks, “Now what else did your Auntie Giselle tell you?”

  There’s definitely some animosity between Giselle and Anders; Tinley noticed it at the birthday party Marek threw for her, and it’s even more evident now. It’s like a serious love-hate relationship, and she’s curious about their history.

  Luna shrugs and replies, “Just that when you were both trying to get in, the other bro dudes made a nickname for you and Daddy. She said they called my daddy Mary Kate and you Ashley. I’m not really sure why, and your last name definitely isn’t Brolsen, but Auntie Giselle told me to call you Ashley the next time I saw you.”

  The whole interaction has Tinley dying. She holds back the laughter that’s trying to escape, as funny as the whole scene is, encouraging Luna to call people names is not something she wants to teach her. At her young age she’s incredibly impressionable and Tinley doesn’t want to start her out young being a bully.

  “Auntie Giselle has jokes, doesn’t she? Why don’t we stick to the old nickname instead?”

  Luna makes a tiny fist and bumps it with Anders’ as she says, “You got it, A-Dawg.”

  Giselle suddenly comes walking into the room with the fiercest look on her face, and Anders gently places Luna back on the floor next to Tinley. “What is he doing here? He has no right to be here right now.”

  “Giselle, I promise I’m not here to start any shit, just to see if you’re all okay.” He gives her a look Tinley can’t decipher and takes a small step toward Giselle. “So…are you okay? Is there anything I can do for you?” He reaches his hand out toward her, but it hovers slightly above her arm as if he’s waiting for permission.

  She hesitates. A single tear drips down her face and she opens her mouth. She reaches toward him and then, like a switch is flipped, her hand drops to her side and all emotion disappears from her face. Her voice comes out cold and emotionless. “No, Anders. I don’t need anything from you. I think we can handle everything here ourselves.” She turns away from them and walks down the hallway toward the guest bedroom then adds, “You know the way out, so why don’t you do what you do best and walk away.”

  The slam of her door echoes down the hallway and Luna jumps, reaching her hands up to Tinley. She whimpers, and Tinley can tell the whole situation upset her. Tinley’s not really supposed to be picking up anything heavy, but technically the little girl is right under her weight limit and she picks her up. If there’s one thing that’s for sure, it’s that their relationship has changed drastically since Marek has been gone. She refuses to think about any possibility other than him returning and them being a family together.

  With Luna holding on tight, Tinley says, “I’m not even going to pretend I understand what’s going on between the two of you, but that’s not what’s important right now. You’re here…have you heard from Marek?”

  At the mention of his name, Luna’s ears perk up. “Daddy? Where is my daddy?”

  She’s kept the little girl in the dark so far about everything going on overseas and what could potentially be going on with Marek. The only thing she has to blame for letting his name slip is her current stress level. She cringes at her mistake and looks down toward Luna.

  Placing her back on the floor she says, “Honey, why don’t you run to the pantry and grab yourself a snack while I chat with your Uncle Anders.”

  The thought of having a snack, one of her most favorite things, has Luna’s eyes lighting up. It doesn’t matter how many meals she’s eaten, she is always hungry for snacks. “Can I get some fishy poofs?”

  “Absolutely, and maybe a fruit leather too, if you can find one.”

  Luna jumps up and down with her fists in the air as she screams, “Yes! I love you Tinley.”

  Now is not the time for Tinley to melt into a puddle of goo on the floor, though this is the first time Luna has expressed any affection toward her whatsoever outside of just considering her the babysitter. Maybe, just maybe, she’ll one day consider her like a mom. They’re one step closer to that, and it will make her the happiest woman on the planet the day it happens.

  She takes off running toward the kitchen and her snack and Tinley yells after her, “Love you too baby girl.”

  Tinley turns back toward Anders, and she’s surprised by the look of sadness on his face. “I haven’t heard from him in a couple of days and then I finally turned my TV on and saw the news. I came right over, but I’m sorry I wasn’t here sooner. I’ve been doing inventory at the bar and have been focusing on work so much lately. It makes things easier when I’m busy.”

  She ignores that last comment, briefly wondering if it has anything to do with Giselle, instead preferring to focus on what matters right now. “Anders, this isn’t your fault. We don’t even know if there is anything to worry about. Marek could be perfectly fine and safe right now. In fact, I’m choosing to focus on that possibility rather than think of the worst-case scenario, because I don’t know if it’s obvious to you or not, but I’m currently carrying his child—his second child, since his first is currently digging around for snacks in the pantry.”

  “You’re right, and I’m sorry, but don’t think for one minute I’m not thinking about that little girl in there. I’m her godfather, for goodness’ sake—I think of her as my own.”

  A sudden feeling of protectiveness flashes through Tinley and she can’t hold her feelings back. “You might have known her longer than I have, but that little girl in there is mine.”

  Anders takes a step back as if her words smacked him. “Calm down there, mama bear. I’m not saying anything at all other than we both have the same interests at heart. I might be her godfather and Giselle her godmother, but I think we all know you’re the person most capable of taking care of Luna.”

  Tinley pushes down her emotions, not sure whether or not it’s her hormones making her extra insane right now. She chooses to take a deep breath and keep herself levelheaded. “It doesn’t matter who her godparents are. Her father is still alive, so that doesn’t even matter, and I refuse to believe anything else is the truth.” She’s been trying to stay calm this entire time, but with each passing day she can feel her resolve weakening and she doesn’t know how true Anders words really are. Maybe outside of their current predicament she could be strong enough, but she’s not so sure anymore.

  “You’re right, I’m sorry. I’m tired and not thinking straight right now. Is there anything I can do for any of you?”

  She shakes her head. “No, I think we’re fine here, but promise me you’ll call me if you hear anything from Marek. We’re all a little worried here, and the longer the radio silence continues, the worse it gets.”

  “I promise, and same for you too. He’s not just my best friend, he’s my brother.”

  That statement causes Tinley to pause. Then she remembers they were in a fraternity together and thinks that must be what he means. “Because of the frat thing, right?”

  “No, it’s more than that. We’re best friends and business partners. I’d trust him with my life.”

  Tinley gives Anders a hug and they say a quick goodbye. The stress of the whole situation leaves Tinley feeling uneasy. Her hands glide down to her belly as her little one offers up rapid kicks from the inside. She hopes the stress won’t put her into early labor. She still has a little over a month left in her pregnancy, and she knows it’s possible it could happen at any time. She says a silent prayer for Marek and their baby and that he’ll return home safely to them.

  Chapter Three

  The house is quiet as Tinley exits the en-suite bathroom and tiptoes across the room. Everyone, but her has been fast asleep for at least an hour and as much as she wanted to climb into bed herself she knew better than that. Lately she’s been getting horrible leg cramps at night, another side effect of the pregnancy, so each day she ends it with a nice soak in a lavender Epsom salt fill
ed bathtub. She’s so thankful she found that little tidbit after a horribly painful night ending in a Google search. Tonight, she caught herself drifting off so incredibly relaxed, just letting all the stress on her shoulders slip away into the warm water. But now as she makes her way toward the bed some of that anxiety edges its way back into the forefront of her mind.

  This day has been one of the longest of Tinley’s life and that’s not even close to an exaggeration, although she wishes it were. Between mediating the battle between Giselle and Anders and making sure Luna has everything she needs, it’s been exhausting, not to mention her own stress level where Marek is concerned. Oh yeah, and the whole growing a human thing. The worst part about the whole situation is the unknown. Now she knows what the families feel like in every episode of Grey’s Anatomy where there’s a major disaster and nobody knows whether or not their loved ones are safe. Also, as far as official notifications go, she’s nobody. They’re not married or even engaged. She’s just carrying his baby. She’ll probably be the last person to find out anything. He could be breathing his last breath in a hospital bed right now and she wouldn’t even know it.

  Although they haven’t really addressed the awkward elephant in the room, Dakota has been surprisingly helpful. It gives Tinley hope that their friendship isn’t ruined after all and that there’s a chance to repair things. Things won’t be the same, but a new normal is hopefully on the horizons for them. They just need to sit down and talk things out. Maybe if Giselle can pull herself together and play with Luna they can actually do that. Until then, it has to go on the back burner.

  Up until tonight, Luna has been kind of a monster at bedtime. Tinley didn’t even know the whole asking for water, needing to go potty, needing a snack, and so on was a real thing that toddler’s do, but boy was she in for a rude awakening. At the end of the day on some of those battling nights she wished she could drink a glass of wine or five, but sadly pregnancy has kept her from doing that. But it’s like she senses something is going on because she didn’t put up a fight at all. At least that’s one situation Tinley didn’t have to diffuse. Still, that’s nothing compared to the drama between Giselle and Anders. After she got the little girl off to bed, she was practically dead on her feet and decided she needed to crash too. All this drama is getting to be too much.

  She lays her head down on her pillow, finally allowing herself to relax and close her eyes. She says a silent prayer and then her phone starts buzzing on the nightstand next to her. What now? With a groan, she rolls over and sees a couple of messages from her sister.

  Tara: Sorry for the late message. Are you still awake?

  * * *

  Tara: Have you heard anything from Marek yet?

  She releases a small chuckle at her sister’s messages. She asks if she’s awake then doesn’t even wait for a response before sending another message. Just like Tara.

  Me: Not a word, and his phone is going straight to voicemail now, so either the cell towers are down because of the weather or his phone is dead.

  * * *

  Tara: I’m sorry, do you want me to come by? Or bring you anything?

  * * *

  Me: Umm do you not realize what time it is right now?

  * * *

  Tara: I didn’t mean right this minute. I could come by tomorrow morning if you need me to. Bring food or something.

  * * *

  Me: No, that’s okay. You have your family to take care of and it’s kind of a shit show over here.

  * * *

  Tara: What do you mean? What’s going on?

  * * *

  Me: Well I’m trying to keep Luna in the dark about what may or may not be going on with Marek, so that’s an effort in itself.

  * * *

  Tara: Okay. Is that all?

  * * *

  Me: No. I still haven’t talked things through with Dakota and that’s going to be a fun conversation. *eye roll emoji*

  * * *

  Tara: I hope you do talk it through though. I hate seeing you and her fighting like this. You’ve been best friends for too long to just throw your friendship away.

  * * *

  Me: I know that. As awkward as it may be, we need to talk about everything. I have a feeling there’s more to it than I know.

  * * *

  Tara: Is that everything that’s going on? Not that isn’t a lot…

  * * *

  Me: I wish.

  * * *

  Tara: Should I call you so you can vent it all out to me? Would that be easier?

  She doesn’t really feel like getting into everything with Tara right now, the only thing she wants to do is sleep for a week, or until this baby comes. Yeah, that sounds like a good plan right there, but she knows that’s not possible. She has too much responsibility right now than to think about herself. Life of a mom she guesses. Tinley doesn’t even have the chance to reply before her phone starts vibrating in her hand with a phone call from Tara. So impatient, but that’s how she’s always been. No bullshitting with Tara, that’s for sure.

  She slides her thumb to the right, answering the call, and immediately Tara says, “Sorry, I’m just worried about you. What’s going on?”

  “Hold on for a sec.” There’s a kink in her neck starting to build from lying on her side and holding her phone up while texting. Tinley places her phone on the bed next to her and slowly pushes herself up to a sitting position. She stacks up four pillows behind her to give some much needed support for her back and neck then picks her phone back up. “Sorry about that, I had to get into a more comfortable position. No matter how I move I always feel like I’m perched all kinds of awkward. This whole pregnancy thing isn’t easy.”

  “Remember, I was pregnant not that long ago, for the second time might I add—I get it.”

  She chuckles. “I don’t think I’ll ever forget that. I’m pretty sure you scarred me for life when you had Landon. I don’t mean to sound rude, but you can be a raging bitch when you’re in labor.”

  The laugh coming from the other end of the line has Tinley moving her phone away from her ear. The cackles coming from her sister’s mouth are nothing short of obnoxious. Not that she would know any different, her sister has always been that way. When she finds something funny, she laughs and lets it all out. After what seems like forever but is probably closer to a few seconds, Tara stops laughing and says, “You weren’t there when Livi was born—why do you think Clark didn’t show up until after I delivered Landon?”

  Tinley’s mouth falls open in complete shock. There’s no way her brother-in-law would do something like that on purpose. He’s not that kind of guy at all. He’s so quiet and mild mannered, in fact Tinley can’t remember a time that anything other than nice words came out of his mouth. “You’re telling me your husband knew the kind of horror I was walking into and he left me to fend for myself? Asshole.”

  “Dude, he’s just smart. He was at the hospital, he just stayed in the waiting room. I gave him the okay text moments after Landon popped out.”

  “I don’t even know either of you anymore, and don’t even get me started on your covert texting skills. How did I miss you texting Marek and letting him know where to find me? Or how you even got his phone number, for that matter?”

  “That’s easy: I stole his number from your phone when you were staying with me. One of the days you went and took a nap, you left your phone on the coffee table and I snaked his number. You really should add a password to your lock screen if you don’t want someone sneaking in and stealing information. That’s how you get your shit hacked or identity stolen.”

  Tara doesn’t even show any kind of remorse or act like what she did was wrong in any way. “So shameless. You don’t even seem to care that you crossed more than a few lines.”

  “Hey, when my sister is being dumb, somebody has to do what she won’t. I just pushed things along rather than watch you suffer over stupid crap. You have to admit you realize that now, right? What’s going on now is something to agon
ize over, not the childish shit you thought was drama before.”

  If there’s one thing about Tara, it’s that she doesn’t hold back. She has no issue with being blunt about everything, and even though it hurts to hear her sister say those words to her, she knows how true they are. Exhaustion from the day continues setting in and her eyes slip close. Before she allows herself to fall into oblivion, she opens her eyes and checks out the time on Marek’s alarm clock: just after nine. Wow, she must be getting old or something.

  With a yawn she says, “I’m sorry, I need to go. I’m about ready to pass out. In fact, my eyes keep slipping closed every few seconds. I don’t think I’ve ever been this tired in my entire life.”

  “Okay, get some rest. Lord knows how exhausting the last trimester can be, not to mention everything else you have going on right now. If you need anything from me, just call. You know I’ll come running, or at the minimum, I’ll send Clark over. No matter what time it is, odds are I’ll be awake anyway with a little man attached to my boob.”

  “Well that is quite the picture.”

  Tara laughs, and the sudden loudness of her voice causes Tinley to pull the phone away from her ear again. It’s definitely not what she expected, nor are the words that follow. “You’ll be there soon enough, you’ll see. Your life is going to be dictated by a tiny human who sleeps, eats, and poops, in that order.”