Chapter 34-2

I liked to think I did my job masterfully, capturing every moment perfectly, like the toasts, Rebecca and Tatum's first dance, all of the decorations and so on, but I wasn't going to deny that I was freaking exhausted. "Archer!" I heard my name being called as I stopped at the cart-turned-bar for a beer, and turned to see Rebecca waltzing over to me. Her eyes were bright and her cheeks were flushed, making me think she'd already had a good bit of champagne. "Hey, Rebecca," I said. "Put down that camera and come dance with me!" "What? No, sorry, I don't - " She apparently wasn't going to take no for an answer and snatched my camera right out of my hands, dropping it off with Hadley, who was sitting at a table, having a piece of cake while my mom held Milo, and then I was yanked out onto the dance floor. Now I don't have two left feet, but I don't dance. I never have. I danced with Hadley and my relatives at our wedding, because it was our wedding. I most certainly did not partake in recreational dancing. But did I really have the right to refuse? It was Rebecca's wedding, and she was my aunt after all. "Thank you for doing this so last minute, you know," Rebecca said during a slow, bluesy sort of song. "I really appreciate it." "Absolutely," I said. "Happy to do it." "Looks like you've had your hands full with that one over there, though," she said, nodding towards the table where Hadley and my mom sat with Milo. Milo was wide awake despite the later hour, a real first for him, and kept trying to grab at my mom's hair. "Yeah," I agreed. "Milo can be a handful sometimes, but I think we got lucky with him. He really likes his sleep." "Fair enough," Rebecca said with a grin. "But he sure is a cutie." "Hadley and I made a damn good looking kid, I know." Rebecca laughed loudly at this, perhaps a little more loudly than necessary, but her face was abruptly serious a moment later. "Have you talked to my parents at all?" Her parents were the very thing I'd been dreading about her wedding. I hadn't spoken to Irene or Carter since my visit. I had nothing more to say to them, and I was fairly certain they hadn't wanted to contact me as it was. I didn't think I was required to try and force conversation with them either. Somehow I'd managed to do a fair job of avoiding them so far, but I wasn't sure if my luck was going to run out. My mom already had the distinct pleasure of awkwardly speaking with them the night before at the rehearsal dinner. She hadn't mentioned anything about how it'd gone yet, and I wasn't going to pry. Just like I'd predicted, though, Carter and Irene hadn't been immune to my little sisters' charm, and were immediately sucked in by them. I knew this wouldn't be the last time they ever saw each other - but I also didn't know when the next time would be. "No," I said to Rebecca. "I haven't talked to your parents. I figured it was...best not to." Rebecca bit her lip, a thoughtful expression taking over her face. "I was hoping that...well, maybe that they wouldn't be assholes today." I had to swallow a laugh at this. I'd always thought Carter was the asshole in the situation, and that Irene would eventually come around. She at least seemed to understand the importance of family. "Rebecca, this is the last thing you should be worrying about on your wedding day." "Yeah, but I just thought - " "I think things will get better sometime," I said, cutting her off mid-sentence. "But we should just let it happen on its own. The last thing you want is some come-to-Jesus meeting at your wedding." "Maybe not," Rebecca said in agreement. "But still...I mean, it's the least we can do for Chris, isn't it? He wouldn't have wanted all this silence and bad feelings between us all." "No," I said after a moment of thought. "You're right. Chris wouldn't have wanted that." "But enough talk about depressing things," Rebecca said. "This is my wedding day, dammit." "Now you're getting it." Somehow I ended up getting roped into dancing with my mother, and then Hadley - which I didn't mind so much - after one of Rebecca's sorority sisters insisted that she didn't mind looking after Milo for a few songs. The reception continued on well into the evening, and the laughter and the dancing and the alcohol never seemed to stop. As much as I disliked being around so many people I didn't know, it was nice, having a break from the hustle and bustle of the city for a night out in a small town. "I'd count this day as a success, wouldn't you?" Hadley said as we sat down at a table, cake and beer in hand. Milo was in Rebecca's care at the moment, and she was telling everyone who would listen that even though he was her great-nephew, she was only in her thirties, dammit. "I'd say so," I said, taking a sip of my beer. "It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be." "Ever the pessimist." "You know me. I like to keep a realistic point of view." Hadley rolled her eyes as she took a bite of cake. "Yeah, whatever. Sooner or later, you know that's going to have to change." "I'm working on it," I said defensively. "Milo's been a great help." And this was true, at least. It was hard not to think only of positive things where Milo was concerned. I didn't think I'd been dealt the best of hands when it came to certain things in my life, but I was certain I would do right by our son, no matter what happened. "That's fabulous to hear," Hadley said, a smile brightening her face. It was hard to think of pessimistic things when she looked at me like that, too. "But just wait until Milo starts asking for money or wants to get his license or is bringing home girls and demands that we give him his space, and you'll want to - " "Jesus, Hadley, he's only two months old!" I exclaimed. "What, are you trying to break my heart already?" "Aw, Archer, who knew you were such a softie!" "Shut up. I'm not a softie. I'm a - " "Excuse me." Our conversation was cut short by the gruff voice that spoke behind us. I looked over my shoulder and was stunned to see that it was none other than Carter Morales at our table. I was a bit too shocked at first to formulate a coherent sentence, so it was Hadley that said, "Hi. You're Rebecca's father, right?"