“Speaking of Shaw, I just saw her and Piper putting Cannon in the back of Jags’s car. What’s up with that?”
Lyric pressed his lips together in a tight line before blowing out a harsh sigh. “So, you didn’t see Luca?”
I gasped and quickly glanced around for Violet, hoping she didn’t overhear us as I shook my head. “No. He’s here?” I finally spotted my blond cousin standing with her husband, talking to Mia. She looked radiant as she smiled up at Remington with her heart in her eyes while he rubbed his hand over her growing baby bump.
“Relax, Arella. Vi set it up for him to be here.” I felt my jaw drop, sure he was joking. “She had Aunt Emmie set it up,” he amended.
“Oh, okay. That makes so much more sense.” Kind of. “But why?”
“To get my parents and hers to make up,” he said with a shrug. “It worked. But I had some serious doubts when Vi and Remington first showed up.”
“And then Baby Cage made an appearance. For about two seconds,” Mila said in a quiet voice. “And Luca chased him out the door. I’m guessing he caused some real damage?”
Remembering how badly Cannon was moaning and groaning, I grinned wickedly. “From the sound of it, I’d say possible internal damage. It’s nothing he doesn’t deserve, though.”
I spoke to the couple for a few more minutes before my dad finally spotted me. I saw his blue-gray eyes light up, and something inside me warmed like it always did. There were daddy’s girls, and there were Drake Stevenson’s girls. My sisters and I knew just how lucky we were to have him as our father, and we never forgot that for even a second. Excusing myself when he called my name, I made my way through the crowd and hugged my favorite man in the universe.
When Daddy wrapped an arm around me, all the stress of the past few days started to melt away. I pressed my face into his shoulder and inhaled slowly, needing the safety of my father’s arms to calm my racing heart and mind.
But then Conrad gave a gurgle and tugged on my hair. He was so tiny, barely able to hold his head up on his own yet, but he was the most beautiful little baby boy I’d ever set eyes on. I couldn’t tell yet if he looked more like Nevaeh or Braxton, but one thing for sure was that he’d inherited those alluring Stevenson eyes.
Laughing, I blew a raspberry at my adorable nephew and kissed his chubby cheek, earning me a drooly, toothless grin. “Hey there, little man.” I rubbed my nose against his, making him giggle. According to my older sister, he hadn’t stopped laughing since he’d first started only the week before, and I had to admit, it was the most precious sound I’d ever heard. “How’s Auntie’s favorite little man?”
Daddy adjusted him in his arms. “He’s wet, actually. I’m going to hand him over to one of his parents.” He grinned. “One of the perks of being the G-Pop.”
I rolled my eyes at the name he’d come up for himself for his grandson. “I’m still not feeling that title, Daddy.”
He gave me a pout. “But I thought about it long and hard, Arie. Your mom likes it.”
“What does Mom like?” she asked as she came up beside us.
“Conrad calling Daddy ‘G-Pop,’” I supplied, and she quickly schooled her face, even though I saw the flicker of humor in her eyes. After how sad she’d been since Pop-Pop died, I was relieved to see even that small flash of happiness from her.
“Of course I do,” she was quick to reassure.
Daddy grunted. “I don’t care if you two like it or not. I’m sticking with G-Pop.”
“But what if Conrad doesn’t call you ‘G-Pop’?” I asked, and Mom and I shared a conspiratorial look before Daddy could catch on. We could so easily teach Conrad to say something else that was less cheesy.
“Then I’ll have to accept that,” he said with reluctance. “But I’m going to try my best to get him to use it. I don’t want the same grandpa title as everyone else.”
“What’s wrong with ‘Grandpa’? I like it—a lot, actually.”
He shook his head. “Boring. I’m Drake Stevenson. I need a cool title, kid.”
I had a feeling Mom and I were going to lose this battle, but I didn’t mind if we did. If it made him happy, I wasn’t going to take it away from him. He deserved every drop of happiness the world had to offer.
“He’s looking a little full in the tushy,” Mom commented as she took Conrad. The baby giggled when she kissed his cheeks. “Come on, you rotten little devil. G-Mom will get you a dry diaper.”
I groaned.
“What?” she asked, then winked. “If you can’t change it, embrace it.”
Daddy followed her out of the living room with his hand on her ass. I wanted to gag at the proof that my parents were still very much sexually active, but part of me thought it was romantic and so damn adorable, it made my heart squeeze.
For the next hour, I made a point to talk to everyone. I loved each person in this house—some more than others, but I loved them, nonetheless. Eventually, I journeyed into the kitchen where a buffet-style meal was set up. For the moment, there was no one else in there to judge me, so I grabbed one of the plates, tore open a huge yeast roll and smothered it with mashed potatoes, ham, green bean casserole, and a huge scoop of mac and cheese.
It was while my mouth was full of my first bite that Jordan walked into the kitchen. Mentally groaning, I grabbed a napkin and wiped my mouth as I quickly chewed and swallowed while he walked toward me. From the set of his shoulders and the look on his too-sexy face, I got the weird feeling he was determined about something, but I didn’t understand what it could be.