November Falls - 17. Chapter 17 Brady

The last week and a half have been amazing, I’ve had to pinch myself to make sure it’s real. Being with Ember is so much better in real life than I imagined it would be in my head. He’s sexy as hell, I can’t keep my eyes off him. Watching him muck around and play with his niece while we waited for the boy's race made my stomach flutter. I would love to do this all again with him, the picket fence, 2.5 kids, the works. That’s how it should have been in the first place, not that I’d give up Katie or Novy, they make me want to do it again. I wonder how they would react if it ever came about that Ember and I had kids together. I’m sure they’d be fine with it, probably. Maybe shocked at first but I’m sure they’d love to have younger siblings.

Little Ember and my Ember, – oh jesus, where did that come from – were having a thumb war, he kept cheating, and the little one kept calling him out. Ember’s feign of innocence was over the top and dramatic, but hilarious. Novy and AJ were watching with one eye while they mentally prepared for the race. Little Ember leaned in whispering to her Uncle.

“Oh!” Ember stood up taking his niece’s hand. “We're off to powder our nose,” he said in a hoity toity accent as he strode past me.

His hand reached for mine, giving it a quick squeeze as he went. I smiled at the gesture, it was affectionate and thoughtful. I’m so crazy for him. What the hell am I doing? I shook my head to stop the sappy thoughts out of my head. It’s like I’m a damn lovesick teenager.

“You boys ready?” I asked, moving closer to them.

They’d already competed in their heats earlier finishing well enough to make it to the final. We were waiting for the final race. I think I was more nervous than the boys were. There’s a lot riding on this for Novy he needed the points for the invitational at the in October.

“Yeah…” Novy answered, his posture changed suddenly with a big grin splitting his face. “Mum!”

My son went quickly to his mother, I turned to see them exchanging hugs and smiles. It made me happy to see them like that. Gordon was with Linda, my ex-wife, Novy’s mum. Gordon was my best friend until I came out. Not that he’s homophobic, but he was mad at me for the situation. I get it, I’m mad at me too but what’s done is done. I don’t ever regret having Katie and Novy, maybe the way it all came about wasn’t the best, but, I’ve got two beautiful kids and at least Linda and I can make a better life for ourselves this way.

“You came,” Novy said excitedly, “hi Uncle Gordon.”

“Hi Novy,” Gordon smiled genuinely.

“Of course we came,” Linda said, “I wanted to see you race.”

She looked good. Happy. Linda’s smile was genuine, she even looked younger; I think.

“Come meet AJ, my friend from school, we ride together.” Novy was bouncing around excitedly.

Gordon walked closer to our pit but didn’t follow Linda.

“How’ve you been?” I asked him out of politeness, although I’m sure he could tell.

When it came to Linda and Gordon as a couple I vowed never to let Novy see how pissed off it made me that they were together. Well I flip-flop on the matter, sometimes I’m happy Linda has someone to love her they way she should, the way she deserved. But did it really have to be Gordon? That part kind of pisses me off and makes me uncomfortable. Sometimes I ponder if there was something going on between them when we were together. It’s a ridiculous notion and not who Linda is, probably not Gordon either if I’m being honest. Subconsciously I wish it was so, that way I wouldn’t have to feel like the demise of our family was all my doing.

He looked at his feet for a quick second then to Linda.

“Good.” He answered but his eyes darting anywhere but me.

“How’s Linda doing?” I asked leaning in closer dropping my voice so only he could hear me.

Gordon shot a look at me, then he glanced at Linda and back at me.

“She’s fine, no than–”

“Hey, everything okay?” Ember asked as he returned. NO! His eyes flicked between me and Gordon. Ember stood next to me, his shoulder brushed mine, he cocked his head at me raising his eyebrow. This entire encounter is killing me on the inside. I would have been fine if it were just Linda alone, by herself. I didn’t know how to react, this is the first time I’d seen her since we parted. I certainly didn’t expect the first time I saw her would be with Gordon in tow.

“This is Gordon, my roommate from Uni.” I told Ember but didn’t bother with further introductions. I don’t think I would have got the words out. Plus I didn’t think this was the time or place for Linda or Gordon to work out this was Novy’s namesake.

Ember reached out his hand shaking Gordon’s, “Ember, Brady’s talked about you.”

I saw Gordon wince at the strength of Ember’s handshake. That’s my man. When Ember released from the handshake he put his forearm on my shoulder, leaning a little closer to me. It wasn’t overtly a display of affection so much as it was staking a claim, anyone passing by would have just thought we were mates. I could see by the way Gordon looked at us he knew differently.

“Ember, huh? That’s an unusual name,” Gordon said smugly.

“It’s short for November,” Ember smirked, “but you already know that, don’t ya Gordy.”

That knocked the smug look off his face.

The call for the boy's race came over the loudspeaker. Just in the nick of time too.

“Okay, boys let’s do this.” Ember clapped his hands together, turning toward the boys, Linda and his niece. “Ember sweetie can you stay with Brady while I walk with the boys to the start/finish please?”

She looked at her uncle defiantly, “Uncle Brady,” she stated her hands on her hips.

Ember chuckled while my face grew a lovely shade of pink.

“Sorry, stay with Uncle Brady.” He corrected his former statement trying not to laugh.

The young girl happily skipped over to me, putting her arms out to be picked up. My heart just melted as I picked her up.

“Mr. McCain, this is my Mum, Linda.” Novy introduced his mother to Ember.

He plastered a charming smile on his face, a far cry from the expression he wore not two minutes ago when he was introduced to Gordon.

“Nice to finally meet you,” Ember doled out the charm.

He shook her hand a lot gentler than Gordon’s – thank god. Not that I thought he would do anything otherwise, but I was still worried. It’s not like we really know who each other is at this stage, and we never really did I suppose. We loved and hated each other from afar. He hated, I pined to be able to love every inch of him inside and out.

“Enjoy the race, wait until you see these two together. They are quite the team.” Ember smiled charmingly once again. “Okay fella’s let’s do this.”

Ember and the boys rolled away with the bikes as the rest of us watched, calling out ‘Good Luck’ to their backs. At least Linda waited until the boys had left before she said anything.

“Huh? So that’s November. I see you finally got what you’ve always wanted.”

Hearing that was like a stab to the heart. Her tone wasn’t cold or malicious, just matter of fact. But it still hurt like hell. I hate being reminded of what I’d done, to her, to us, to our family. I’d only told Novy where his name came from, it was part of the conversation we’d had on the move. After our car had died on the side of the road and had to wait for the road side assistance and then the tow truck. My son had me cornered and he knew it; the questions came, so I’d answered them honestly. Novy obviously told his mum, but I would never ask him to keep a secret from her.

I watched as Linda and Gordon walked off to find a place to watch Novy ride. His hand at the small of her back as they dawdled along, chatting with each other as they went. My insides were tied in knots, I didn’t know what to think or feel. I blew out a breath to try and let it all go, none of it was something I had control over. No point stewing on it.

“Are you okay Uncle Brady?” asked the princess in my arms.

“I’m good.” I plastered a smile on my face and tapped her gently on the nose with my finger. “Are you ready to watch your brother race?”

Ember nodded, “And Novy.”

“That’s right, how could I forget. And Novy.”

I put Ember gently on her feet so we could walk to the stands, she slid her hand in mine walking right beside me. God, I was done in by this little girl. She reminded me of my Katie at the same age. They’re so sweet and innocent, they make your heart melt, soar, and break all at the same time. And they are just so damn cute.

“Uncle Brady, do you think I would be allowed to ride like AJ when I get older?”

“I’m not really sure sweetheart, have you asked your mum and dad?”

“Yeah,” she said defeated, “Daddy said it’s too dangerous and he didn’t want me to get hurt. He said AJ was a knuckle head and too stupid to get hurt.”

A laugh popped out of me. That’s exactly what I probably would have said to Katie if she had ever asked me if she could race like Novy. One kid is hard enough to watch do this sport, I don’t think my nerves could handle two of them. I’m not that much of an asshole that I would have stopped my daughter if she really wanted to ride motorbikes. But anyone who has a daughter vows to keep her safe forever and never let them get hurt and grow up strong and independent. Daughters help knock the hard edges off us men. When a son is born, you say the same thing, but you want more than anything for them to grow up to be a better man than you.

It would sound sexist if I voiced my thought to anyone. People forget about human nature and how our natural instincts can sometimes take over from rational thought. Plus, there is a difference between telling your child “no” because they might get hurt and telling them “no” because they’re a girl. Nobody wants their child to get hurt, – ever.

Little Ember and I found a seat in the stands, she pointed out Linda and Gordon standing across the other side of the track. As I looked their direction I felt movement beside me, Ember had sat down. He leaned in and quietly spoke in my ear.

“Are you okay?”

I turned to him with rueful smile, “Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

His hand slid over to mine on the bench and quickly squeezed showing me I had his support. That simple touch gave me so much comfort, the pick me up I needed to deal with the situation at hand. Ember removed his hand from mine as the race started. The riders took off in a spray of dirt, they bunched together for the first turn.

“Breathe,” Ember said out the side of his mouth.

I didn’t even realise I had been holding my breath, I exhaled with a puff of air looking down to see my knuckles were almost white from the grip at which I was clinging to the bench. This was the first time I was nervous for Novy to do well, I wanted nothing more for him while his mother was watching. It had never really been an issue before, but with the uncertainty I was feeling with Linda and Gordon there, I wanted my boy to win to prove some kind of point. As if his winning would show them how well he’s doing living with me. How well we were doing together. The truth is Novy wasn’t just doing well, he was thriving with the move, faring a lot better than I had been. Although things seem to be falling into place for me too.

Ember’s change of heart where it concerned me had a lot to do with it. I knew we had a long way to go yet, but it all seemed to be full steam ahead. He no longer ran hot and cold with me, there were no games or guessing. I’m not sure he had fully forgiven me yet for my past, but he seemed happy to open up to me and let it all go without punishing me any further. I’ve never been more grateful for anything in my life. My love for him grew more every moment we spent together. Not that I’d tell him that. Don’t get me wrong I would shout my love for him from the mountain tops, but there is no way he was ready to hear it.

“And 386, Novy Douglass takes the lead, in turn 15. Unbelievable folks, where did this kid come from. He’s having the ride of his life today… He’s on fire.”

The announcement brought me back to the present in time for me to see Novy fly over the tabletop, legs in the air, his bike to the side. My breath caught in my throat, but he nailed the landing bringing us to our feet, the crowd screamed accolades and applause. He had a full two second lead on the pack with another kid between him and AJ in third. With one lap to go the entire world washed away including the man next to me, all I could focus on was Novy and the ride of his life. God that kid makes me proud. I watched willing with all my power for him to keep it together and finish the race. Over the rolls, moguls and around the corners he went like lightening. I’ve never seen Novy ride so aggressively, it was amazing to watch. He made it look so easy.

As he came around the last turn he braked hard and paused as he looked for the pack, in a panic I grabbed Ember’s forearm. He reached across his body with his other hand squeezing my shoulder.

“Breathe man,” is all Ember said, his eyes like mine glued to the action.

Novy took off again before the pack caught him, his pause may have been a nano-second but it felt like a minute as the pack gained ground. Novy jumped the tabletop where the start finish was, his feet above him in a handstand from the handle grips. Fuck me! Again, he stuck the landing, his fist pumped the air as he slowed around the track. The kid in second place fist bumped him as he went past, and I assume said something congratulatory. Then came AJ who leaned over with a quick side hug and stayed beside him as they rode off the track, while they thumped on each other’s shoulders.

I grabbed Ember picking her up, as the three of us head to the scrutineering area. Our feet couldn’t take us quick enough. We waited for the boys to come out once their bikes were checked.

“I can’t believe he won, he never goes for it like he did tonight. Man, he was something else,” I said to Ember grinning from ear-to-ear.

“I know right? And not only just, he killed it. Him and AJ really bring out the best in each other.” He grinned back at me. “You know what this means?”

“Novy has the points for the invitational in October,” I said proudly.

“Yup,” Ember answered just as proudly. “It’s because of the great mechanics they’ve got.”

“Shut up!” I laughed heartily.

Linda and Gordon arrived just before the boys came out to us. Thankfully that meant I didn’t have to engage with them to much, because they are here for Novy. The second Gordon was near, Ember stepped in beside me.

“What did you think of the race?” Ember asked Gordon.

I don’t know who Ember thinks he’s fooling, but I heard the possessive edge in his voice.

“Yeah surprisingly, Novy did really well.”

Ember shot Gordon a look that would have had most people heading for the funeral directors. Geez Gordon if you’re going to have who’s dick’s is bigger than who’s contest. Dude you’re gonna lose. Ember’s got this by miles. Plus, after that back handed compliment I should kick you in yours anyway. Asshole!

“Hey congratulations,” I shouted as I grabbed Novy around the neck pulling him to my chest. Luckily Ember was there to catch Novy’s bike. “Where did all that come from, the new moves and everything? Buddy you killed it tonight I’m so proud of you.”

Ember was doing much of the same with AJ, but it included little Ember.

“AJ and I have been practicing, he’s showed me some stuff and we’ve gotten some off of YouTube.”

My son’s face was red and sweaty, he was panting like he needed water. His Mum handed him a fresh bottle and one to AJ. Novy hugged her then Gordon which made me scrunch my nose in irritation. Ember nudged me and smiled.

“Good ride AJ, you two did great out there,” I said turning my attention to AJ. “You are a powerful team together.”

“Thanks Mr. Douglass.” AJ beamed, both boys wearing grins and those smiles were going nowhere soon.

The young kid who came in second walked by waving to AJ and Novy prompting our move toward the pit. Ember gave Novy his bike then picked up his niece because the area was full of moving bikes and people. He walked beside AJ while Novy was with his Mum and Gordon. Ember turned his head smirking from in front of me.

“Come on Sparky, get a move on.”

I hung my head in shame, I can’t believe Justin and Basher told him. A couple of days ago I managed to give myself a little electrical charge… well more of a shock. It made me yelp like a wounded puppy, giving the two men something to laugh about and have since been calling me Sparky. They promised they wouldn’t tell Ember. “Lying rat bastards,” I thought with a grin. Basher said my eyes lit up like light globes. When I caught up to Ember and AJ he nudged me with his shoulder chuckling away.

“Oh, shut up. It was one time,” I groused, “I can’t believe they told you.”

That only made Ember laugh harder. God, I love that laugh.

“Hey, Uncle Ember, do you think we could take a look at my bike sometime this week?” AJ asked frowning.

“Sure buddy, why what’s up?”

“I don’t know, our bikes are identical and I couldn’t get anywhere near Novy, I struggled to block Ryan and failed. Luckily, Novy, was miles ahead of the pack. No one could catch him which is grouse.” AJ smiled, his voice elated. “I don’t know if it was the bike or I was having a bad day. If Novy gets in front I need to be able to block other riders from getting to him. He does the same for me. We’re a team.”

“We’ll leave your bikes at the garage when we get back. Come by when you finish school and we’ll take a look.” Ember promised AJ.

“Thanks.” AJ smiled moving at a quicker pace to catch up with Novy.

My phone vibrated in my pocket, when I checked it was message from my daughter cancelling our catch-up with an excuse that she had stuff to do at the last minute.

“What’s up?” Ember asked with brow furrowed.

“Katie just cancelled on me.” I looked at him confused. “Somethings not right. I need to talk to Linda. There’s something going on and they’re not telling me.”

“Go, do your thing. I got this. I’ll get the boys packed up and ready to go.”