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I sidled up to him and took his hand. He gripped it tightly, needing to ground himself.
“We must have pictures,” Mom called out.
“Wonderful idea, Elizabeth,” Ophelia agreed. She and my mom had bonded over the last few days. I was kind of jealous. The grandmas armed themselves with their phones and turned on the camera feature.
“Izzy, will you grab the boutonniere for me in the kitchen?” Bridgette asked.
“I would be happy to.”
Patrick followed me. “When did she grow up?” he said, more to himself than me.
“You okay there?” I opened the refrigerator to grab the boutonniere.
“I think so. It just happened so fast.” He seemed dazed and confused. “Thank you for taking such good care of her tonight.”
I held up the boutonniere. “It was my pleasure. Now, let’s see our girl off.”
Patrick smiled. “Ourgirl. I like the sound of that.”
I hadn’t even realized I’d called her ours. “Is that okay?”
“Isabelle.” He brushed back my hair. “If there is anyone I want to share my children with, it’s you.”
I kissed his cheek, knowing we needed to talk about how we should go about adding one more kiddo to the posse. I had been thinking about talking to some of those doctors he knew, even though I knew it would crush me when they told me it was hopeless. Could I really get more than one miracle in a lifetime?
We walked back in to find our mothers staging a photo shoot.
“Drake, get in there,” Mom demanded. “Cruz, you can post this on Instagram or chat your snap or whatever that is. You can say you’re dating the niece of a superstar. But that better not be the only reason you’re dating her.” Mom wagged her finger at the poor kid.
“Mom, I think that’s enough. They need to get going.”
Bridgette flashed me a look that said,Oh, bless you. I knew it well. Charlotte and I had given that look to each other often throughout the years.
Mom ignored me and pulled Drake right into the picture. And the man let her. I would give him this: he was no dummy. He knew keeping my mom happy was the key to success.
Several pictures were snapped. Drake giving his famous dampened smile, Cruz looking like he might barf, and Bridgette shining like an angel.
Once Drake was out of the way, Cruz slipped on Bridgette’s wrist corsage, staring wide-eyed at her, like he couldn’t believe how lucky he was. Afterward, I handed Bridgette the boutonniere.
She opened the box and lingered on the pins. She looked between her nana and me, not sure what to do, or who to ask for help. I felt as if I had already overstepped my bounds tonight. Maybe that’s why Ophelia still hated me—she thought I was replacing her. Bridgette must have gotten that vibe too.
“Nana, can you help me?”
Ophelia smiled, pleased, and stepped forward to help her granddaughter, carefully instructing her how not to maim her date. Although, from the way Patrick gripped my hand, I wondered if he wouldn’t mind if Bridgette stabbed Cruz a few times. Patrick did not get his wish. Bridgette did an excellent job.
“Okay, we’re going to go.” Bridgette’s voice was filled with nervous excitement.
“Give your old man a hug first.” Patrick stepped forward and reached for his daughter. He wrapped her up tight, not wanting to let go. But let go he did, and even smiled at Cruz when he took Bridgette’s hand.
It was a lovely scene until ... I barely saw Rory whisper something to Jameson that made his sweet eyes turn to devilish delight. Before I could intercede, Jameson shouted, “Don’t give her any sperm!”
Every head whipped in the devious boys’ direction. Drake and Charlotte both said, aghast, “Jameson!” While Patrick and I said, “Rory!” The grandparents were all doing a terrible job hiding their snickering.
Rory shrugged. “What? You should all be thanking me.”
Patrick looked down his nose at him. “We’ll be talking about this in a moment.” He turned and gave his daughter one more hug. “Bye, sweetheart. Have a wonderful time.”
A mortified Bridgette grabbed Cruz and ran out the door.
