“Between those boys and now Maggie expecting her and Colin’s baby any day, she stays on cloud nine all the time. With any luck, she’ll get her first granddaughter this time.”
“That’s crazy. I can’t believe Colin is finally becoming a dad. How are Marcus and Dia?”
“Still Fort Worth’s favorite power couple.”
Dia had worked her way up the corporate ladder to become one of Neiman-Marcus’ top buyers while Marcus enjoys a successful career as one of the area’s top surgeons. Choosing not to have kids, they had become everyone’s favorite aunt and uncle.
“How is Claire? Have you been up to see her and Alex in a while?”
Claire was one of Izzy’s friends from college. She met her husband Alex when she was visiting her family in Oregon at one of the local college libraries. They moved to England when he was offered a contract with the Manchester City soccer team.
“I was up there a couple of weeks ago. You know he is thinking of retiring from playing to coach in Glasgow now that Claire is expecting again? They like the idea of living closer to Molly’s grandparents.”
“I hadn’t heard that but we’re taking the train later to visit them, so I’m sure I’ll get all the dirt then,” Izzy answers.
Tori suddenly wraps her small hands around my face, turning me to meet her green eyes. That’s at least one thing inherited from Grayson.
“I have a secret,” she whispers at me.
“Victoria.” I hear the ominous warning come from Izzy.
“Out with it. We have no secrets in this family,” I say, fully expecting it is some silly thing from school or Saturday morning cartoons.
“Mommy is having another baby,” she loudly whispers to me.
My eyes whip around to Grayson who’s sitting there, looking anywhere but at the table.
“Shit, Grayson! It’s called a condom, learn to use one for fuck’s sake.” I’m already trying desperately to reel the words back in as they tumble out. Sometimes those things just fall out of my mouth with little warning.
“What’s a condom, Daddy?” a small voice asks from my lap.
I slowly start easing the girls off my lap as Grayson’s eyes narrow on me. I figure I can toss one of them at him as I make my escape out the door.
Somehow Gracie remembers the thrashing I got when I taught her the word fuck as much as I do. Her little arms wrap around my neck, clinging to me, her eyes narrowing at Grayson. She is so much like her mother, it’s hard not to laugh, which would make this so much worse for me.
Right before I can take off, Theo starts to laugh.
“Tor, it’s one of those stupid grownup things they never talk about. Just forget it, you have to be old before they’ll tell you.”
The girls nod their heads in unison, accepting Theo’s explanation as enough. This kid is brilliant, he really does take after me.
“Later I’m flaying the skin off of you.”
I can count on at least one threat an hour from Grayson. Looking over at Izzy, I start to apologize but her shoulders are shaking as she laughs into her hands. Looking back over at my brother, he points two fingers at his eyes then back at me.
“Yeah, yeah. Later I die a bloody death. What else is new?”
The rest of the day flows along smoothly. I manage to keep my mouth under control, mostly, as we drag the kids around London. I take them up in The Eye, tour the zoo and wander through The Tower of London, listening to horror stories of executions. I fill them full of fish and chips, topping it all off with candy for dinner.
By evening everyone is worn to a frazzle. I help Grayson carry the sleeping girls up to the room, tucking them into bed, as Izzy starts Theo’s bath.
“If you’ve got this, Iz, I’m going to go with Teddy for a while,” Grayson says.
Izzy kisses him on the cheek, whispering something in his ear. She steps over, giving me a big hug.
“It is really great to see you, Teddy.”
I squeeze her to me tightly before stepping back to follow Grayson out the door, already homesick for them. When we make it back to my apartment, Grayson heads to the kitchen to start the tea.
