“Asshole.” B giggled, like she knew it was a bad word.
“Daddy’s sorry. Don’t say that. It’s bad!” Oh shit. I should have known. Kat didn’t seem amused.
“Asshole.”
Kat covered her face with both hands. “Oh my God. What else?”
“Asshole.” B giggled.
I couldn’t help but smile at the situation. It was funny hearing a cute little girl saying bad words. Kat scolded me. “Don’t laugh at her. If we make a big deal about it, she’ll keep saying it. Let’s just go downstairs and ignore her.”
I picked her up. “Let’s go eat breakfast. Are you hungry, bug?”
“Asshole, Daddy.”
“For what it’s worth, she learned it from you.” Kat noted while leading us down the steps.
“Yeah. Live and learn.”
As soon as bug saw food she was done using her new potty mouth. My mom greeted her and she all but jumped out of my arms to get to her. I noticed Kat saying something to Melissa, but was too busy making sure B was managed first.
Just like the day before, my family planned to cook out on the grill. Branch and I rode to the grocery store while the girls were cleaning up breakfast, and my dad vacuumed the pool. We got about a block from the house before my brother said anything. “Are you planning on having a birthday party for B? Melissa was talking about maybe traveling to South Carolina.”
Kat and I hadn’t discussed that far. “Her birthday is September 11th. I’m sure Kat’s planning something. It’s the first one I’ll be able to celebrate with them.”
“I can’t believe you didn’t get to see her when she was first born. I feel like an asshole. Katy really ripped me a new ass last night. I deserved it too. Brooks, I didn’t know this is how our lives would turn out. I would have been a good husband to her. I hope you know that. It wasn’t all a game to me. I loved her too.”
“Kat and I have made a pact that we weren’t going to let the past dictate our future. We’re happy and together. B has her mom and dad in her life. At the end of the day it’s all I care about. Besides, you didn’t make me join the military. I did that on my own. My tour in Afghanistan was part of the job. Even if we were together, I wouldn’t have been there for B’s birth. I’ll regret it for the rest of my life, but I know it’s the only time she’ll ever have to be without me. I don’t plan on missing anything else.”
“How come you’re not engaged yet? I’m sure Kat’s itching.”
“She’s fine. Trust me.”
“Whatever. It’s your business anyway. I’ve got my own woman to worry about.”
“So, about the whole sterile thing.” I had to bring it up. It had been bothering me since I found out. “How does Melissa feel about it?”
“We have options. We talked about her being inseminated, or adopting. Right now we’re content I think. Mel’s planning the wedding, so she’s happy she gets to keep her figure. We’ll figure it out when the time comes.”
I could tell the topic got to Branch. He was obviously living with demons of his own. “I’m sorry that happened to you. I don’t even remember it.”
“You wouldn’t. You were too far up Kat’s ass to pay attention to me. I’m pretty sure you spent the night at her parent’s house when I had the surgery. I know you were together.”
“Weren’t we always? She was our best friend, you know.”
“Some things don’t change, bro. It seems like Kat still feels that way about you. Sometimes I wonder if she ever loved me.”
“This conversation is weird. We need to change the subject before you’re using the steaks we’re about to buy to relieve a black eye.”
Branch chuckled. “It’s not like that. I have no interest in your girlfriend. I swear. I’d like to think of Kat as my sister, of it’s okay with you?”
I almost made a comment about them sleeping together, but decided it was best if I closed the door on the whole conversation. “Look, Branch. I’m trying to keep it all in the past. I’m pissed at you. I might be that way for the rest of my life, but you’re still my brother. It’s obvious you care about my daughter, that means a lot. Let’s take baby steps to repairing our relationship.”
He agreed before we walked into the grocery store. On the way home we talked about sports, which we both shared a common interest in.
The girls were drinking tea out by the pool when we arrived back at the house.
I hurried to put my suit on so that I could join them for an afternoon swim.