Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 72647 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 363(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 242(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72647 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 363(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 242(@300wpm)
“Get my son a drink, Matt,” her father ordered. “And top me and my daughter off. Did I mention to you my sweet Daisy can drink anyone under the table?”
Aidan sank down beside her. “I have no idea what’s going on.”
“Daisy and I have agreed to be ourselves around each other from now on.” Her father picked up his now full glass again. “The bad guys are all dead. Your sister has a career path that has nothing to do with danger, and both my kids are getting married. Nate hasn’t formally asked yet, but he knows what happens if he doesn’t. So let’s have a toast, and then you two should stay away from the main stage unless you want to know how you were conceived.”
“I’m going to need more liquor,” her brother said.
Maybe her da was onto something. She lifted her glass. “I think we can stay a little delusional, Da.”
He grinned and winked her way. “To delusion.”
That was something she could drink to.
* * * *
Nate stared across the lounge where it looked like the whole O’Donnell family was now celebrating.
Damn, his woman was fine.
“You really think you can handle her, son?” His father stood beside him. The same way he’d been for as long as Nate could remember. Brody Carter might have missed the first couple of months of his life, but he’d more than made up for it.
“Of course he can.” His mom wrapped an arm around his waist. “He and Daisy are a perfect match. Just like her parents.”
He watched as Liam and Daisy managed to slap their shot glasses on the bar in time and drink in perfect synchronicity.
A terrible thought hit his brain.
“I’m the Avery, aren’t I?”
His father patted his shoulder and sighed. “Yes, son, I’m afraid you are definitely the Avery.”
“Hey,” his mom said. “That’s not such a bad thing to be. She’s all kinds of awesome.”
Nate threw his head back, laughter filling him. His woman was wild, and he would have to balance her. She looked over and smiled his way.
It wasn’t a bad thing to be at all.
He led his parents into the bar to join their extended family.
Epilogue
Years later
Dallas, TX
“I’m going to run to the store, love.”
Avery glanced up from her work. Casseroles. She’d already made three. One breakfast and two for lunches or dinners. Her daughter’s freezer was going to be well stocked for the coming weeks.
Damn, but she loved Liam O’Donnell. He’d aged some, but she still saw him in the prime of his life. So gorgeous she could barely stand to look at him. Sometimes she still felt the moment her eyes had locked with his and she’d known she wanted to be with him forever.
Or maybe it had been more complex and the years had softened the actual history. Maybe it had been harder, but there was nothing hard about loving Liam O’Donnell now.
“Do you need anything?” he asked.
Anything she’d needed, she’d been given.
“Hey, love, what’s this about?” Liam moved into her space, cupping her cheek, and when he looked down at her she was young again. He used his thumbs to gently wipe away the tears clinging to her. “I don’t have to go to the store, but you know Brody and Steph are on their way from the airport right now, and Brody’s been on a plane for twenty-four hours. He’s going to be hungry. Besides, our Daisy asked for chicken salad.”
Their Daisy. Their smart, funny girl who’d recently given them even more joy. She laughed. “I’m baking a couple of weeks’ worth of food for her, but she needs chicken salad. Her postpartum cravings are worse than her pregnancy ones.”
A brilliant smile crossed her husband’s face. “Well, you have to admit she deserves it. Our little granddaughter is perfect.”
Their first grandbaby. Wilhelmina Avery Carter. Billie.
Their first but not their last since they’d gotten good news the night before.
How new the world felt. She’d loved raising her family, but there was something so sweet about watching them go out into the world and find their places. Nate had moved up to an investigative team at McKay-Taggart, and he seemed to love solving mysteries with his partner, an intellectual guy who reminded Avery so much of Brody’s friend Walter. Daisy had graduated with her master’s, and she hadn’t even burned down Kai’s clinic yet. She was helping kids, and now she had one of her own.
“She is indeed.” Avery went on her toes and kissed her husband. “Are they sleeping?”
Liam nodded. “They were up all night with Billie. Are you sure we should go home tomorrow?”
The birth had been hard, but Daisy had come through it like a champ. Like all new moms she needed help, so Avery and Liam had stayed for the first week ensuring all Nate and Daisy had to do was take care of themselves and the baby. They’d cooked and cleaned, and Liam had tried to hog the baby as much as possible, rocking her and singing her Irish lullabies. But it was time to let her other grandparents help.