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Katie transferred her glare. “I can do whatever you can do.” Her hand rested on her stomach. “I still have a little while left.”
“Wait, so you’ll get even bigger?” Erin asked, her eyes widening.
“Why am I friends with you?” Katie muttered.
Blake laughed, kissing her. “You’re gorgeous.” He looked over at Malcolm, opening his mouth.
“Don’t say it. Beer, right?” Malcolm moved to the taps.
“At least I got that expression of yours anyway.” Blake laughed as he took the seat beside his wife. He studied Jami. “Looking good over there. Did you gain more weight?”
Jami’s cheeks reddened. “Reggie keeps adding more butter to the sweet potato fries.”
Katie smacked her husband next. “Don’t make her self-conscious.” She patted Jami’s shoulder. “It looks good on you.” Her eyes slid to Celia, and Malcolm could see the worry in them.
Despite the bed rest, and all of them making sure Celia ate, she hadn’t gained as much weight as the doctor had wanted. Still, she had the most adorable baby bump, one that her hand rested on even as Malcolm watched her.
The bell over the tavern door rang, and Malcolm’s eyes locked onto his parents as they entered. He forced himself to focus on the beer he was pulling, reminding himself to take a deep breath.
Tanya approached them to offer a table. Even among the voices of his friends, he could hear his mother’s apologetic tone. “Oh, no, we’re not here to eat.”
Malcolm sighed. He turned to set the beer in front of Blake before heading for the pass-through. His parents had shuffled closer to the bar, and his mother’s eyes slid to him, then away. “Oh. Hello, Malcolm.”
His father didn’t bother meeting his eyes. His hand moved to his wife’s back.
“Mom? Dad?” Katie called in surprise. Malcolm could feel Katie’s eyes on him as she tried to slide off the barstool. “What are you doing here?” she asked their parents.
“Oh, Katie, honey,” his mother said, moving to her side as Blake helped her to stand. “Don’t get up on our account.” She held her daughter’s hands, pulling them wide. “Look at you. I think you look even more stunning than when we saw you on Sunday.”
“She does,” Blake agreed. He bent to kiss his mother-in-law’s cheek. “We didn’t expect to see you today, Mrs. Griffin.”
Malcolm’s mother beamed at Blake. “I’ve told you to call me ‘Mom’ now.”
Blake slid his hand over the back of his neck. “Right.”
“Hello,” Celia greeted them with a smile. She started to stand, but Trenton’s hands moved to her shoulders, keeping her still. She glanced back at him before looking at Malcolm’s parents. “It’s nice to see you.”
Malcolm wondered if it was the first time his cousin had seen them since she moved back to town. His hands clenched into fists.
“Oh. Celia.” His mother’s forehead creased as she looked at her niece. “We heard about your pregnancy. Congratulations, dear.”
“Thank you,” Celia said, though her hand tensed over her stomach.
“We still haven’t heard mention of a wedding date,” his mother said.
Celia paled, and Trenton opened his mouth.
Katie forced a laugh. “I was pregnant during my wedding, you know.”
Their mother frowned. “Well, really, dear.”
Their father patted his wife’s back, unable to hide the tremor in his hands as he did. “We also heard you were on bed rest, Celia. What are you doing in a bar like this?”
“Leave her alone,” Malcolm said, shifting between them and Celia. “Why are you here?”
“Well, really, Malcolm,” his mother said. “Your father didn’t mean anything by that. We just worry, that’s all.”
“Why don’t you go worry somewhere else?” Malcolm watched as they flinched, and he cleared his throat, trying to swallow the snap in his tone. “You’ve never liked my tavern.”
