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She felt Pops stiffen his arm around her shoulder. He nudged her with his calloused hand on her bicep.
“Nooo…. Really?” He looked from Bree over to Declan and the gleam in his eye misted over by the first tears.
“Tell me now. And don’t take a piss. Are ye… Am I right to think yer….” He nudged his chin toward Bree’s belly. “Now? Tell me. Make yer Pops the happiest man ever to be alive!”
Bree giggled when he gently nudged her by her arm. She turned in his arms and hugged him tight. “It is true, Pops,” she whispered. “Me and Declan are going to have a baby.”
“Sweet Lord in Heaven!”
“What’s happening? Dec?” Sean Jr. poured the final glass of whiskey as he pulled one eyebrow.
“It’s true, Dad… Bree and I… we’re—”
“Don’t be daft, son! Yer goin’ to be a daideó. A granda!” Pops shouted over Bree’s shoulder to Sean Jr.
Sean Jr. clanked the bottle on the table and walked over to Dec, who was sitting in his father’s chair next to the fireplace. “Aye, is it true, son?” Sean Jr. asked while he pulled his six foot three tall son from his chair.
Declan smiled the biggest out of everyone, if it were even possible. “Yes! Yer gonna be a granda and Bree and me are finally gonna be together!”
She cleared her throat and tried to stand up from the couch, to say they weren’t quite together, but Pops pulled her right in for another hug.
“Oh my sweet, sweet lass! Yous two were made for each other. I’ve always said so. I’ll never forget that first day…” Pops let go of Bree and joined the hugging Declan and Sean Jr..
Bree took out her phone from her back pocket and snapped a photo of these three burly Mills men, crying and hugging. What a sight to behold. She thought back to her Mom calling Bree stupid and almost wished she were a Mills girl. But then, she would be Dec’s sister, and that shook her right out of her weird thoughts.
Pops walked back to the couch and grabbed his drink from the coffee table. After taking a hefty gulp, he burst out laughing as he remembered. “Ye were a six-year-old lass. Ye came runnin’ out of ye house and bumped right into me boyo.”
Bree looked over at Declan, who walked over to sit next to her on her other side. With an amused smile across his lips, he gave her a kiss on the cheek.
“Sweet, little Bree knocked Declan right into the nearest puddle. Ye knocked the wind right out of him, I’ll tell ye!” Pops chuckled and Dec winked at Bree.
“Of course Ronan had to step in and gave ye his best potty mouth. Ronan was always making sure no one would ever hurt his brother.”
“Fianna had handled him already,” Bree said with a smirk, thinking back at Fianna standing up for her to Ronan.
“Hmm-hmm,” Pops beamed at the memory.
“I’m so, so happy. Let’s call the rest of me boyo’s... Call Errin and her sisters. Lets have a party, eh?”
Bree tried to give Pops her best smile, but failed by the look of Pops.
“No? Not a good idea?”
“Pops, it’s still new and Bree… we’re…” Declan searched his words.
“We just came from my Mom’s,” Bree said. “Let’s say things didn’t go so well…”
“No? And why?” Pops asked before taking another swallow of whiskey.
Bree sighed. She hated to defend her mother. She knew her mother was in the wrong today by calling Bree stupid and trying to drive a wedge between Dec and her. But in her own way, her mother was trying to look out for her.
“Mom was being Mom.” Bree shrugged.
“Let’s leave it with that, shall we?” Sean Jr. said. “Let’s share a toast to the Mills grandson—”
“Or Pops’ first great granddaughter!” Declan said.
“Are you team pink?” Bree smiled at the thought of Declan with a baby girl in his arms, snuggling her close, smelling her hair like he always did hers.
