Five days later…
“Oh, my God!”
I dropped my phone with fright, then spun around and barrelled into the kitchen.
“What?” I shouted. “What’s wrong?”
I scanned the room, looking for any signs of danger, and when I found nothing, I focused on Keela, who was staring at her phone with wide eyes. I looked to the left when I heard commotion, and I stepped forward when I saw Nico, Damien, and Ryder running down the hallway and all but falling into the kitchen.
“What is it?” Ryder demanded as he rushed over to Keela.
“There is an indie book signing in town next week, and I never bloody knew about it!”
A huge breath of relief left me.
“Bloody hell, Kay,” I said and placed my hands on my hips. “You frightened the hell out of me.”
“Us too,” Damien grunted from behind me.
I loved how his voice surrounded me and made me feel all tingly and warm.
“I’m sorry, but this is serious,” Keela stressed. “Oh. My. God. Indie royalty will be there, some of me favourite authors. I’m buying a ticket right now.”
Her happiness was infectious.
“Get me one too, and I’ll go with you. If you’re this excited right now, I want to see how you’ll be at the event.”
The lads snorted from behind me.
Nico frowned at her. “Hasn’t Alec talked to you about when you are screaming about books? You scream when one you want gets a release date, a summary thing, a cover, an excerpt thing, and when it releases. I told you it makes me think you’re dying or something.”
“I know, I’m sorry, but it’s a book signin’, Nico,” Keela said in awe. “Me people will be there.”
I laughed. “Your people?”
Keela looked at me and nodded. “Book people. The best kind of people. They get me.”
“I get you too,” Nico stated, “but damn, screaming like you’re being killed scares the crap out of me.”
“Sorry.” Keela smiled up at him.
“When is Alec gettin’ ‘ere?” I asked. “I’m starvin’.”
“Branna said we’re startin’ without ‘im.”
I whistled. “That’s not gonna go down well.”
Keela, the lads, and I filed out onto the decking of Branna and Ryder’s back garden. The smell of barbecue had my mouth watering as I took a seat next to Damien at the newly purchased garden table. Bronagh, who was snuggling her sleeping newborn son, sat across from me. The day after Damien proposed to me and I found out I was pregnant; my best friend went into labour and gave birth to her and Nico’s second baby. Nico cried in delight when he was told it was a boy. Bronagh cried with happiness because she was no longer pregnant. My new nephew was called Beau Damien Slater. Beau as in beautiful, not Beau as in bow tie.
Bronagh was clear about the pronunciation, and we were all on board with it rather quickly.
“He’s so chunky,” I said to Bronagh. “I want to gobble ‘im up.”
“I know.” Bronagh smiled and kissed Beau’s head. “I keep smellin’ his head. I love that newborn smell.”
“Oh, me too,” Keela said as she adjusted Enzo’s buggy next to her. “I smell his head all the time as well.”
“That smell is one of me favourite things.” Branna smiled as she fixed the plates that were piled with food on the table. “When I was holdin’ Beau yesterday, I could smell it, and I instantly wanted another baby.”
Ryder snorted. “It’s not like you have long to wait to get another one.”
I froze, and so did everyone else. Branna and Ryder laughed.
“You’re pregnant?” Bronagh asked, wide-eyed.
“Yeah.” She nodded. “I’m five weeks.”
I gasped. “Like me! When are you due?”
“The fourth of March.”
My jaw dropped because that was my due date, and Branna knew it since she was in the room with me and Damien yesterday when we found out at the hospital.
“What the fuck?” Aideen said from our right. “You’re both due on the same day?”
“Fucking hell.” Kane chuckled. “You both apparently had some fun on the same day.”
Ryder and Damien grinned as congratulations were passed around.
“You’re crazy,” Bronagh said to her sister. “The twins will be thirteen months when you have this baby … It’s just the one baby, right?”
“Yes,” Ryder answered on Branna’s behalf. “We triple checked this time.”
“Weren’t you gonna wait until the twins were at least one to try for another baby?”
“Yeah,” Branna answered me with a nod. “But I forgot to get me latest birth control shot and bam. Pregnant.”
“Thank God I’m not the only one who got pregnant because I messed up with birth control.”
Everyone laughed.
“Since Alec isn’t ‘ere, you get the first burger of the summer, Lana.”
I rubbed my hands together as Damien put it on my plate. “Come to mama.”
“Tell me that in bed tonight,” he said, making me grin. “Please.”
At that moment, Alec walked out of the kitchen and into the back garden. When his eyes landed on me, he sucked in a startled breath, and Branna looked like she was about to run away as I bit into the first grilled burger of the summer.
“Branna,” he all but snarled, his eyes on the burger I held tightly. “What in God’s name is this?”
“Um …” She twitched. “Ye’ … ye’ said years ago that she could be your stand-in for first servin’s if you were ever absent or late to a meal.”
“That privilege was revoked the second she broke my favourite cup!”
“Well, how was I supposed to know that?”
“Because you know me!” Alec stressed.
“I’m sorry, okay?”
He put his back to Branna.
“The betrayal,” he said and placed his hand over his chest. “It runs deep.”
Nico rolled his eyes at his older brother’s dramatics as he bounced Georgie on his knee while everyone else watched the scene unfold with amusement.
“This tastes so good,” I hummed. “It’s really incredible.”
Alec spun around and pointed at me, his hand shaking with obvious anger. “You and me are blood enemies from this day forth, Ryan!”
I had no idea what a blood enemy was, and I didn’t care.
“Fine by me, tight arse.”
Keela covered up a laugh by covering her mouth with both of her hands while Alec glared holes into my forehead.
“I’ll make it up to ye’,” Branna said to Alec, slightly gaining his attention. “In fact, I’ve an offerin’ that will make up for this situation right now.”
“How?” he demanded, refusing to look at her. “That monster used my cup, then fucking broke it, and now she has eaten the sacred first grilled feast of summer. What can you possibly do to make this better?”
“I’ve a bigger plate made up with your name on it.”
I heard Alec swallow. “How big of a plate are we talking here, Branna?”
Hook, line, and sinker.
“Practically triple what everyone else is gettin’.”
His four brothers cursed in outrage while Alec turned to face Branna with the biggest smile I had ever seen on his too attractive face.
“I accept your offering and forgive you for feeding Pennywise first.”
I rolled my eyes, not offended.
“You’d sell your own child for a plate of dinner.”
Alec bared his teeth and hissed at me while holding up his hands and putting his two fingers together to form the symbol of a cross.
“Be gone, demon spawn.”
I opened my mouth so he could see the half-eaten burger and then closed it when he pulled a face of disgust.
“You’re gross,” Alec informed me.
I swallowed then smiled. “Thank you.”
“That wasn’t a compliment.”
“Sure, it was,” I beamed. “You’ve practically just told me ye’ love me.”
Alec’s left eye twitched. “I’m going to shove the rest of that damn burger into your mouth.”
I chuckled as I put the burger down and got to my feet.
“I got ye’ somethin’,” I said as I grabbed the small bag that sat next to the doorway.
“You got me something?”
“Yeah,” I answered Alec. “Though I’m not sure you deserve it.”
He snatched the bag from my grasp before I could finish my sentence. He rustled through it, then removed a box from the inside. Alec sucked in a sharp breath when he realised what I had gotten him.
“You did not!”
I most definitely did.
“Alannah!” He beamed as he removed his brand new, extra-large Harry Potter Mischief Manage cup from the box. “It’s huge!”
“That’s what she said,” I answered, making everyone snort.
Everyone except Alec, who walked inside the house, brought his cup over to the kettle and switched it on. I followed him, leaned on the counter, and together, we waited for the kettle to boil. When the switch flipped, Alec popped a tea bag into his new cup, filled it with boiling water, and leaned down and watched the blackness fade, revealing the secret footsteps and popular Harry Potter book quote.
I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.
“I’ve missed this so much,” he said and looked at me. “Thank you.”
I nodded. “You’re welcome.”
“Now.” He grinned, his grey eyes shining. “Never fucking touch my cup again.”
I grinned. “No promises.”
“No promises, Lord Alec,” he corrected.
I scowled. “I still think it was a fluke that Tyson barked and ran to find you when Keela’s water broke.”
“You lost the bet, stick to your terms. You have to call me Lord Alec for one whole month.”
“I hate ye’ … Lord Alec.”
Alec beamed. “This is one of the best days of my life. I want you to know that, demon spawn.”
I huffed.
“You all need to admit that I’m the baby whisperer and the dog whisperer. Things would just be easier if you accept the gift that is me. I’m a blessing. I’m practically a modern-day Jesus.”
“You can’t be a modern-day Jesus.” I rolled my eyes. “You only have fifty followers on Twitter.”
Alec grinned. “Jesus only need twelve.”
My eye twitched. “Damien?”
“Yeah, freckles?” he called.
“Your brother is comparin’ ‘imself to Jesus … again.”
“Just go with it, freckles.” Damien laughed as Alec tugged me back out to the decking with his new prized Harry Potter cup in the air for everyone to see. “Just go with it.”
“I want to make this very clear,” Alec said, gaining everyone’s attention. “Alannah is not allowed to touch my cup. Ever. If you see her drink from it, touch it, or even look at it, then you are to revoke her tea privileges when she visits your houses. Otherwise, I will withhold my fine looking redheaded son from you all.”
I sucked in a sharp breath, and so did everyone else.
“Sorry, Lana,” everyone said in unison.
I understood their betrayal. Enzo was too cute and won over me any day, but his father, on the other hand, had just ignited a fire within me.
“War,” I told him. “This means war.”
“Bring it, chicken legs.”
“Aren’t you glad you’re marryin’ ‘er?” Bronagh asked Damien as Alec and I continued to glare at one another
“Bee”—Damien laughed—“you have no fucking idea.”