“Seriously. When did that happen?” he said. He leaned in close and whispered, “Fuck Jack. Don’t take this the wrong way but holy-crap, she’s even hotter than the last time I saw her.” I chuckled and did the man-hug mandatory slap on the back.
Priya said, “I’m going back in with Donna. I’m sure everyone will be able to see her in her room. The baby will be in the Nursery soon.
I asked Priya what they were going to name the baby and Priya said, “I think you should have some say in that but we have talked about choosing “Anna”. I just looked at her dumb-founded. My mouth was opening and closing like a fish out of water. She looked at me with an amused look and said, “Is that okay with you?” I could only nod. She kissed me on my cheek and left.
I pulled Frankie off to the side and told her about Donna and Priya naming the baby “Anna” and asked if she had an issue with it. She grinned and said, “That’s a wonderful name.” She kissed me on the cheek too.
We all waited around until we could see baby ‘Anna’ in the Nursery. In the rush in the delivery room, I had barely seen her. She was as beautiful as her mother. There were subtle hints of my genetics mixed in, but thankfully not too much. Priya came and took me back to Donna’s room and the three of us talked. Donna said, “Priya says that you and Frankie are engaged. I’m so happy for you.” She motioned for me to come closer and I sat down on the edge of her bed and leaned forward. She whispered, “Frankie looks just like the picture of Anna in her wedding dress that you kept in your bureau. She’s her sister, right?”
I grinned and nodded and said, “She is, but she isn’t Anna, if that’s what you’re thinking. I was sinking fast, when she dropped everything in her life to come save me this past winter and with her help, I have put Anna and you away. I don’t think I could have even talked to you if it wasn’t for her.”
She looked at me for several moments and I could see the mixed emotions run through her eyes. Then she said, “Well, God Bless her then, because it would have been tortuous for me to not have you back in my life even if it’s not what we planned. You hated me when you left.”
I looked at her and then nodded as I said, “I guess hate and love are different sides of the same coin. I didn’t think I would ever forgive you but Frankie got me past Anna and you. We can be friends, right?”
She took my hand and squeezed it and then gave me a sultry little smile and nodded. She whispered, “I hope we can be good friends.”
Priya sat down beside me and set her chin on my shoulder and whispered, “Really good friends.”
A month later, Frankie and I got married in the wedding of her dreams at the premier venue in the city. Frankie’s father pulled a few strings to get a reservation on such short notice. He came to walk Frankie down the aisle but her mother declined the invitation and he left right after the ceremony. I understood and Frankie didn’t hold it against them. We invited all the family we could think of from both sides and all her friends and mine. Joyce was the Maid-of-Honor and Eddie was my best man, if I could keep him out of bed with Sylvia. It was a big bash. Money was not an obstacle.