Dangerline

CHAPTER 57- HANER PARTY OF 4

January gave way to February and the ladies of A7X came up with the best co-ed baby shower ever…it was to be on Jimmy’s birthday so it became a celebration of new lives coming into the world while remembering a life well lived by the guys’ best friend. At first I wasn’t sure how Brian would handle the news when Kylie and Gena ran the idea by me but he surprised me by smiling and telling me that they were geniuses and for once he wouldn’t dread the day like he usually did. So here we were on February 9th, having a baby shower/birthday remembrance in our backyard with so many people I thought the neighbors would complain. The grill was going full force, beer was chilling in coolers and happy chatter filled the air as people mingled inside and out.

                The girls had gone all out with decorating the house in blues, greens and yellows as well as baby shower themed foods such as cupcakes, chocolate covered pretzels and other finger food items. I spent a better portion of the morning dolling myself up and slipping into a baby blue maternity sun dress Suzy and Brian Sr. had bought me on my birthday. I felt like a little kid at Christmas time as I bounced down the steps, so happy that I thought my face would crack from permanently smiling so damn much. “Oh, baby you look amazing!” Brian gushed, setting the cases of beer down on the counter and coming over to me quickly. His arms wrapped around my waist as he kissed me passionately, only to be interrupted by the doorbell a second later. “To be continued” he murmured in my ear before walking over and opening the door as the first guests began filing into the house. I knew most of the family members and friends but I still felt shy and reserved as the house began to fill, calming only once Kenna arrived. The girls fussed over the decorations until they had everything situated before debating on whether to do the traditional baby shower games or forgo them. What ended up happening was everyone sat and shared stories of Jimmy while talking about babies and families expanding. The entire day was absolutely perfect from start to finish, from all the girls did for me and all the presents we received for the boys and everything in between. Gena had just started to show and we laughed as we were lined up, Kylie, myself and then Gena with our bellies showing and River standing close by, clasping Kylie’s hand shyly as pictures were snapped of ‘the future of A7X’ as so stated by Johnny.

                By the time the party wrapped up and we had hugged the last of our guests it was after 2 in the morning and I was yawning terribly. I looked around the living room tiredly but happy at the over flow of gifts and wondered how we were going to fit everything into the nursery. Brian walked around the house, locking everything up before hoisting me up in his arms and carried me upstairs, much against my protest that I was going to hurt him. “Hush woman, you still weigh next to nothing to me” he murmured quietly in my ear before setting me down and undressing me slowly, kissing me every few seconds.

                The next morning I woke up earlier than I planned and for the next 90 minutes I quietly carried stuff up to the nursery and began hanging up clothes, filling the changing table and dressers. I was just about to put the bedding sets on the cribs when I heard the door creak open and Pinkly came prancing in, followed by a half-awake Brian. “Baby what are you doing?” he croaked out sleepily, his hair a wild mess all over his head and a smile on his lips. I smiled guiltily and told him I couldn’t wait to start setting up the nursery. “I just want to see it all set up and ready for the boys” I stated softly, fighting with the packaging around the bedding. “Here baby let me” he stated softly, squatting down in front of me and ripping the plastic off with ease. This bedding set was done up tastefully in blues and browns and I sat for a good minute just running my fingertips over the microfleece material. By the time noon rolled around we had the nursery completely set up and all the presents we received in their respectful places. “Brian I think I need a nap” I laughed tiredly, yawning at the same time. “Go lay down and nap. I’ll wake you up in an hour or so.” I gave him a quick kiss and did just that, falling asleep almost immediately.