Page 78 of Bonita Brynne

“Good. And for you,señorita?”

“Um…” She bit her bottom lip. “What’s your usual?”

“Chorizo and eggs platter. Remember, I don’t like onions.”

“I remember. So no fajitas for you, huh?” Her finger moved across the menu.

“No.”

“I’ll have the giant California burrito. Chicken, please. Oh, and extra guacamole, please.”

“Ooh, good choice.” Maria dashed away.

“I never heard of that burrito before.” I lifted the menu to read. “Shit, it has everything in it. Rice, beans, pico de gallo, sour cream and cheese.”

“It’s also covered in cheese sauce.” She licked her lips. “My mouth is watering just thinking about it.” She dipped a chip into the salsa. “Are you going to have some?”

“Yeah.” I took a chip and lightly dipped it.

“Joseph, what are you doing? You scoop the salsa onto your chip. Not dip the corner into the bowl.”

“I don’t like onions. I thought you said you remembered.”

She covered her mouth and laughed. “Oh. Right. I guess I’ll eat this whole bowl myself.”

“Fine by me. Enjoy. You’re eating for two, so eat up.”

I sat back with my arm around her shoulders and drank my beer. Mariachi music played in the background, and it put me at ease.

I was home with my girl by my side.

But it felt different than I recalled. A little like the end of an era, and I was okay with it. Brynne and I had a lot to look forward to. Marriage. The birth of our child. Whatever else the future had in store for us.

I turned toward the wall on Brynne’s left side. Carved into the wood paneling was a pair of angel wings. “See that?” I pointed.

“Mhm.” She chewed her food.

“I put it there when I was in high school.”

Brynne got a closer look. “Jessica is written in the wing. Is that your mom?”

“Yes, Bonita.”

“That’s so sweet.” She teared up.

“Don’t be sad, Bonita. I’m not because I feel her presence every day. And she’s happy for us.” I kissed my finger, reached across Brynne, and pressed it to the angel wings. “Love you, Mama. Thank you for protecting us the other day.”

29

Brynne

“Your baby has a strong heartbeat.” The tech wiped the gel off my stomach and printed out the ultrasound picture. “She’s measuring perfectly at eighteen weeks.” We were slightly off the regular appointment schedule because of the delay in getting prenatal care. But we had gotten every test available to ensure our baby was developing well, along with finding out the gender early.

My mom and Raul had done the same testing and discovered they were having twins, a boy and a girl. It was safe to assume they were still reeling from the news weeks later.

“I still can’t believe it’s a girl.” Joseph couldn’t take his eyes off the monitor. “My baby girl.”

“And mine,” I told him. “I never get tired of looking at her.” I was in awe of the magic happening in my stomach. I was growing a human.