The Reunion

by Meghan Quinn

I told him I had a dream I was taken away.” My lip quivers as I remember that moment in the dark. “He gripped my face with one hand and looked me dead in the eyes. He pressed his forehead against mine and said that, for as long as he breathes, he would never leave me. He told me I was his and he was mine, our souls were connected, and for as long as he was allowed, he would always take care of me.”

Cooper steps up to me, inches away from my face, and I brace myself. “Good luck,” he says simply. “You’re going to need it.” And then he takes off. Uhh . . . What? Good luck? No older-brother lecture? No “don’t hurt my sister” threat? That was not what I expected at all.

I smile. “The person you like, huh?” “Naturally I like you.” Her chin rises. “If I didn’t, then I wouldn’t have let you play with my nipple piercings last night.” I nearly choke on my own saliva. She gently pats my back. “There, there,” she says. “It’s going to take some getting used to hanging out with me. Prepare yourself, Dr. Beau. I hold nothing back.” Evidently.

Three siblings, three different cakes. I’m pretty sure I know what I’m going to do now. Isn’t it obvious? Butterscotch for Coop. Lavender for Palmer. And, of course, chocolate raspberry for Ford. But naturally, I’ll let them keep fighting over the flavor until the very last day because the ever-changing cake is quite entertaining.

“And look who has the upper hand over there,” Cooper says. “At least I know Nora owns me.” Nora lifts her glass to the group. “Cheers.”

Beau . . . well, Beau looks like he wants to pull his scrotum over his head and hide.

“Very serious. You mean so much to me, Larkin, which brings me to the second part of this. I want to date you. I don’t want you to be my therapist, and I sure as hell don’t want you to make it your mission to help me find myself. That’s not your job—” “It is,” I say, gripping his leg. “That’s what it means to have a partner, to share those vulnerable moments.”