Hugh grunted in response. They exited the house and walked to the abutting property.
“You’re already forgetting the G’s. No growls, grimaces, glares,orgrunting,” Bran reminded.
Hugh ignored the giant blonde mosquito buzzing in his ear and took long-legged strides to the neighboring house. As his feet hit Devlen’s drive, his boys at his back, he spied Rowan and her sisters through the full-picture window facing them.
The three women froze at the sight. Eyes wide they placed hands on Rowan’s shoulders almost simultaneously as his boys did the same. His heart actually struggled to produce its normal rhythm. She was breathtaking. Stunning. And she would be his wife.
“They’re here,”Rowan whispered. They’d been setting the table for dinner—and itwasa lovely table, which she’d told Devlen, who’d blushed and left for the barn. It was then that she spied three gorgeous modern warriors striding across Dev’s grounds. Good Lord, she forgot what a powerful image they made together. Her sisters obviously felt the same. Their eyes were glued to the trio.
“Get in the kitchen, girls, and do something besides trip over your slack jaws.” Nan said, popping them lightly in their rears with a damp kitchen towel.
Three squeals later, they ran back to the kitchen, adjusted their aprons, and had just picked up three identical blue flowered mixing bowls when someone knocked at the front door. Nan gave them astay therelook before going to let their guests in.
This was it. Baby reveal time.
Bébhinn opened the door,raised eyebrows and disapproval flattening her lips.
“Hugh, boys,” she nodded and smiled, stepping aside to allow them to come in.
The smile was only for Bran and Patrick. Hugh tipped his head in thanks as he moved by the Byrne matriarch, his eyes scanning the open floor plan for any sign of Rowan. He barely repressed a smile at finding three sets of hazel eyes glued to him and his sons.
If he had his phone in hand, he would have loved to have had a picture to preserve this moment. Rowan, Raven, and River held mixing bowls in varying stages of spilling the contents—except the bowls were clearly empty. They wore matching aprons, one green, one blue, and one yellow, all with #1 Granddaughter embroidered on the chest.
They were so similar in appearance. It still startled him. Except he knew them all very well now. Raven’s lips were fuller. River’s eyes held a curious cat slant. Rowan, his Rowan, had deep dimples. Dimples he’d worshipped with his tongue more than once.
He felt his sons at his back, giving him the strength to move. He walked with purpose toward the one woman he couldn’t live without. The girls each set their bowls on the counter before them. Sure enough…empty. They’d counted on them showing up. Raven and River weren’t even pretending to be surprised.
Rowan looked…scared. That put him on high alert.
The kitchen was nice but by no means spacious. Seven people crowding around the narrow center island was putting the space at or past capacity.
Rowan finally met his eyes. His focus had never wavered, so he knew the moment she decided to look at him. He saw her breath shudder, her shoulders stiffen. He wanted her in his arms. He wanted every reservation she’d used to build this wall between them destroyed.
She cleared her throat and brushed her hands down the yellow ruffled skirt of her apron. “Hugh, would you step outside with me?”
Alarm bells went off. Her demeanor was screaming endings. He was only interested in beginnings. The five sets of eyes currently ping-ponging between him and Rowan was a test of endurance and one he planned on acing. He wasn’t holding back. Not anymore.
“You can tell me whatever you need to in front of everyone. I have things to say to you too.” Her eyes widened in surprise and then panic. Not good. When she looked at her sisters for help, and they shrugged, his nerves started blowing fuses.
“I would rather do it in private,” she countered.
“I promised that I would try harder to show everyone in public how much I love you. I screwed up last night. I’m not doing that today or any day from now on.” She appeared shocked. Her mouth opened and closed several times. Nothing ever came out—yeah, he had definitely shocked the hell out of her. He crossed his arms and continued to watch her, waiting for her to realize he was dead serious.
“Okay…you’re sure?” she asked. At his nod, she said, “I’m pregnant.”
His mind took a nap. He could only stare and sway, sway and stare. Pregnant. “But…I don’t understand.” Even in his shocked state, he knew how dumb that sounded.
“One of the times we had sex the first night we were together—totally together—remember, we didn’t use?—”
A brief glance at Bébhinn had him cutting her off. “Okay, transparency doesn’t have to mean full disclosure,” he winced at the poorly covered cough-guffaws exploding around them.
He took a step closer to her. She was watching him closely, clearly trying to decipher how he felt about the news. If she discovered what that was, he hoped she would share her thoughts with him. He wanted to walk out of the kitchen and take some time to digest the news but knew to do that would hurt her. He would stay. Of course, he would stay. He and Rowan were going to have a child together. A zing of nerves pinched his chest, but so did excitement.
“Hey, Pat, do you remember all those safe sex talks Dad forced on us in high school?”
“Yeah, wear a condom, or I’ll kill you. I guess practice what you preach doesn’t mean what I thought.”
“Boys,” Bébhinn scolded. To the rest of the occupants, she said, “Let’s give these two a moment.”
