Robbie paced back and forth in the waiting area in San Francisco Airport Domestic Arrivals, more for something to do than out of any nervousness; Joey was his big brother, and he was bringing his girl home with him, and Robbie was agog to see her, although you’d never know it to see him; Robbie was the personification of laid-back, Mr. Calm himself. Casey was another story, her nerves stretching thinner and thinner as Joey’s flight adamantly refused to touch down even a minute early. She, too, was agog to meet this girl who’d captivated and captured Joey so quickly.
At last, Joey’s flight number flicked over from ‘On Time’ to ‘Landed’, and Casey moved up to clutch Robbie’s arm, her nerves keyed-up to fever pitch as people gradually began to filter through the arrivals gate, but still no sign of Joey. For long minutes she waited, in an agony of suspense, and then he was walking through the gate, flight bag slung jauntily over his shoulder, holding hands with a leggy redheaded girl who looked somehow familiar. Robbie and Casey exchanged a quick glance even as Joey saw them and quickened his pace, a huge grin splitting his face.
He and Robbie hugged each other, pounding each other on the back as they grinned happily, before he released Robbie to hug Casey, kissing her on the cheek as he did so. The greetings done, he took Luna’s hand and pulled her forward.
“Luna, this is my brother, Robbie, and this is his wife, Casey. Guys, meet Luna Hollister, she’s the girl I told mom about, the girl I’m gonna marry.”
*
Joey sat with his arm around Luna for the short drive from the airport to Daly City. She was silent, gnawing her lip nervously, her fingers twined with his as they held hands, a look of apprehension on her face as she waited to see what Joey’s family thought of her. Every so often their gaze would meet, and his fingers would tighten on hers as he flashed her a reassuring smile. Finally he leaned over, turning her face to his with a gentle finger.
“Calm down, baby, Mom will love you, I promise. The whole family will. Relax, babe, you’ll be fine!”
Sarah was waiting outside the house when Robbie pulled into the drive, her eyes shining, a welcoming smile on her face as she cradled Casey’s baby daughter in her arms, little Joe fast asleep in a stroller next to her. Joey hopped out of the car and hurried around to the other side to open the door and hand Luna out; as she stepped out of the car and stood up, Sarah’s eyes widened. She quickly schooled her features back into a welcoming smile.
“Baby, I’m so happy to see you!” she grinned, hugging Joey tightly, while Joey smiled in turn, hugging her back just as enthusiastically.
“Good to be home, Ma, I missed you, I missed you all! I want you to meet someone, Ma; this is Luna, and Luna, meet my mom, Sarah Vargas.”
As Sarah embraced Luna, a little body squeezed between them, a little girl, maybe three or a little older, with raven-black hair and dark, bright eyes. She had a strong resemblance to Sarah.
“Joey, Joey! Where you been Joey? Mommy said you had to go away, and I asked baby Jesus every night to bwing you home!”
Joey laughed, and picked her up, kissing her and grinning when she grabbed his ears and kissed him on both cheeks, then grinned and scraped the tip of his nose with her teeth before shrieking with laughter as he tickled her. He grinned at Luna, turning so she could see the little girl too.
“Baby, meet my baby sister, Caitlin. Katy, this is Luna, she’s my girlfriend! Say hello, munchkin!”
Caitlin smiled and waved shyly.
“Hello Luna, are you gonna mawwy Joey?”
Luna held out her arms, and Caitlin climbed into them. As she did, Sarah handed him little Joe, still fast asleep.
“Would you like it if I married Joey?” she smiled and Caitlin nodded.
“Yes. Will you be baby-Joe’s mommy too?” she lisped.
Luna laughed, touching Caitlin’s nose with the tip of her finger, making her giggle.
“Only if he’ll let me. Do you think he’ll like me?”
Caitlin nodded, and hugged Luna even more tightly.
“You’re nice. I like you!”
Luna grinned, once again chucking the little girl gently on the tip of her nose.
“Good, because I like you too! Will you be my friend? I don’t know anyone here except Joey, so if you want, you can come and play anytime you like!”
The little girl laughed, and wriggled in her arms. Luna laughed too, a happy chuckle that made the hairs on Joey’s neck stand up, as once again a fleeting chord of memory struck deep inside him. His grin matched hers. As she put Caitlin down, Joey handed her his son, now awake and smiling at all the attention.
“There’s someone I’d like you to meet, baby!” he murmured, his eyes softening as Luna took the little boy and cradled him in her arms. Joe looked up at her, his fingers skittering gently across her face as he tried to touch her vivid green eyes. Joey watched in wonder as Luna and Joe locked gazes, the two of them silently communicating, something seeming to pass between them, something that Joe understood immediately. He gazed intently at her while his fingers twined gently in her hair.
Joey let out the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding; somehow, his son and Luna had connected; he’d accepted her in the first seconds of meeting her, something Joey had never seen before. Luna looked deep into the little boy’s eyes, his brilliant blue eyes tracking her emerald eyes, the two of them talking on some other level than mere speech.
Joey looked around, and spotted Casey, her baby now in the crook of her arm, and his eyes softened as he saw his new niece. He held out his hands, and Casey smiled, kissing his cheek as she passed him the baby.
“This is your uncle Joey, baby-girl!” she murmured, and Joey smiled, his vision blurring as he gently rocked the little bundle.
“She looks like you,” he murmured, his eyes sparkling, “but she’s got Robbie’s eyes, Case; you did good, sis, you both did! Where’s Junior?”
Casey smiled at his concern for his nephew.
“Don’t worry, he’s with Mom, you know how she loves having him; she’s probably spoiling him right now.”
Sarah ushered them all into the house and waited for everyone to get comfortable, then smiled, holding out her hands for Casey to pass her the newest member of the family before settling down herself.
“All my children are here, and now we have a new one joining us; welcome to our family, Luna, and thank you for making Joey happy again!”
Luna blushed as she smiled and nodded her thanks, then busied herself adjusting Joe’s jacket to cover her confusion. Joey smiled and took her hand, lacing his fingers in hers.
“Guys, it’s been a while since I had anything to be happy about, and I’m sorry I made you all so worried, but that’s over now, because, finally, I’ve met someone who makes me happy again. Luna and me, we’ve been talking some, and we’d like to get married as soon as we can, but nothing special, just a small wedding, family only. I’ll leave that up to you, Ma, you and Luna are gonna have to work that out; I’m gonna be busy; I’ve been away too long already!”
Robbie threw a cushion at him, catching him in the face.
“Jest hold your horses, Tex, ain’t no stampede around hyar!” he drawled, while Casey and Caitlin giggled, followed by little Joe. “Get settled in first, Joey. The place won’t fall down if you take a few more days; believe it or not, I got it under control, meathead! Tell him, Case!”
Casey knelt on the floor next to Joey and took his hand.
“Take some time with Luna, Joey. Smell the roses. You’ve got so many responsibilities now, you need to take the time, because it’s going to get really hectic from now on!”
Joey looked at her in puzzlement.
“What are you saying Case, what’s…?”
Casey stood up and kissed her brother on the cheek.
“While you were gone, all those marketing strategies you had your team refining and getting ready for the ‘Ghost Planet’ launch? Well they worked, they worked so well you are now the West Coast’s hottest, most talked about marketing boy-wonder! ‘Ghost Planet’ is flying off the shelves, they can’t keep up with the demand. According to Elio, revenues are the highest this quarter the company has ever seen, and it’s all because of you, Joey! Your name is being noised about by the great and the good as the next big thing in the world of mass-marketing. Everyone’s asking who you are, where you came from, and most of all, what will it take to make you leave GameStx and go work for them!”
She smiled at his dazed expression.