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“That he did. He might be a skinny fucker, but he don’t half pack a punch,” Beast pipes up as he strides towards us with Carrick, carrying a huge makeshift ice bucket filled with alcohol between them.
“Jakub’s hardly skinny,” Cynthia retorts.
“Well in comparison to me he is,” Beast shrugs, dumping the ice bucket next to us and grabbing a beer, chucking one to Arden who catches it.
“Everyoneis skinny in comparison to you,” Carrick remarks, nudging him with his elbow, his dark hair falling into his eyes with the motion. “You're a feckingbeastafter all.”
“What can I say? I’m more than most can handle.”
“Except for Grim. We all know she has you well and truly under her thumb, big boy,” York says, giving him a wink as he passes him by with a tray of sizzling meat and sets it on the bench next to us.
“Damn straight,” Grim interjects, looking down at me whilst Iris wriggles in her arms. “Would you take Iris for a sec, I need to give Christy a call. She said she’d be here half an hour ago.”
“They’ve probably got her trussed up somewhere,” Arden mutters under his breath, and I hold in a laugh at the look Grim gives him. The Deana-dhe aren’t the only ones with a reputation. Let’s just say The Masks, and Christy, have certain sexual preferences that don’t align with the average couple.
“Urgh, please, I donotneed that visual,” Grim says, pulling a face as she passes Iris to me.
“Hey darling,” I say, settling Iris on my lap. “I think we should change the subject, don’t you? Innocent ears and all that?”
She smiles up at me, completely oblivious to the very adult conversation going on around her. “Auntie Pen-Pen. You look pretty. I like your yellow dress.”
“She sure does,” Dax says, dropping down behind me, pressing a kiss to my cheek, before patting Iris on her bouncy curls. “Would you like a drink, Kid?”
“Cynthia got me one thanks,” I reply, picking up my paper cup that Iris snatches from me and guzzles down. Smacking her lips when she finishes.
“I hope that didn’t have any alcohol in it,” Beast asks, eying Iris.
“Nope, just homemade lemonade,” I say, pressing my finger against the tip of Iris’s nose, “Withlotsof sugar.”
Lorcan snorts, settling Faith on the blanket too. “Good luck when that sugar rush hits,” he says from beneath his baseball cap as he leans over to kiss Cynthia.
“You too mate, you too,” Beast replies, jerking his chin towards Faith who’s currently tipping back huge mouthfuls of the same drink, stolen from her mother.
“Ah feck!” he exclaims, grasping the cup, but it’s too late, she’s already finished it.
“Foooooooood!” Faith grins, her nose lifting in the air as she sniffs.
Jumping up out of my lap, Iris rushes over to her dad, grabbing the burger that he’d only just placed in a bun. “I’m hungry!” she exclaims.
“Don’t you want Ketchup, sweetheart?” Beast asks, as she snags another burger and runs back to Faith, handing it to her. They sit side-by-side, giggling and whispering under their breaths. “I’ll take that as a no then,” he grins, shaking his head.
“Pretty sure those two are going to be a handful when they hit their teenage years,” Zayn says, handing me a hotdog and smirking in amusement. I give him a smile in thanks, taking a bite.
“When they’re older? They’realreadya handful,” Beast scoffs, then groans.
“I’m not being funny,” York pipes up, his mouth filled with food, “But they’ve got the genes of you fuc–”
“York!” I warn, eyeing the girls.
“You…feckers?” he smirks. “Pretty sure this is karma.”
“Didn’t anyone ever tell you not to speak with your mouth full?” Carrick questions with a chuckle.
“What can I say, I was practically brought up by those three,” York retorts, looking between his best friends. “Not exactly the best influences.”
“Err, rude,” Zayn replies in mock offence.
York laughs. “Love you, mate.”
