“He’s cuntstruck,” my brother chimed in, taking a swig of his beer while looking at me like I was crazed. “Too much good pussy makes a man look exactly like that.”
Atlas’s head swiveled to my brother, and he folded his arms across his chest. “That’s my sister you’re talkin’ about, asshole.”
Callum winced. “Sorry, bud.”
Atlas’s eyes narrowed on him.
“You should be sorry, and don’t talk about my woman like that,” I chimed in. “We wouldn’t discuss Maeve that way.”
Callum looked down at his boots, suitably chastised, and muttered, “Sorry, bro. Won’t happen again. I’ll put it down to the fact that it’s the first time my brother’s been with a decent woman and my mouth ran away with me.”
Atlas clapped Callum on the shoulder. “Apology accepted.”
“Phew,” Cal muttered, taking a swig of his beer.
“Have you told them the good news yet?” I asked.
Loud shrieks echoed through the room, and we turned to see the girls on their feet, pulling Maeve in for hugs.
Atlas nodded toward them. “What’s goin’ on there?”
Callum’s face softened. “My wife probably just told the girls that she’s pregnant.”
A shocked look flashed across Atlas’s face before he broke out into a huge grin. “Fuck, yeah!” he yelled before turning around and bellowing, “Yo! Toots!”
Maeve looked over, a happy smile on her face, and waved at him.
“Congratulations!” he shouted. “You’re gonna make an outstanding mom!”
The chatter in the bar died down for a few seconds, and then, as Atlas’s words settled, whoops and hollers filled the ether.
Breaker gave Callum a bro handshake followed by a man hug and muttered, “Congrats,” just as a plethora of Speed Demon brothers leaned over to shake Cal’s hand, while the women squealed and called out their well-wishes to Maeve.
My brother caught his wife’s eye across the room and shot her a knowing little wink, grinning as she beamed a smile at him and blew him a kiss.
Eventually, the shouting and hollering died down, and everybody went back to their conversations.
“Bet Maureen’s beside herself,” Atlas piped up. “Make the most of the peace, Cal. Life’s about to get interestin’ for ya.”
I nodded at Cub behind the bar, indicating I needed a beer, before my eyes went back to my brother. “When I left Mam tonight, she and Imogen were about to sit down with an Irish baby name book and pick out a moniker for your kid.”
Callum took another sip from his bottle. “Too late. We’ve picked the names already.”
“Mam won’t be happy.”
He shook his head with a sigh. “Mam will have to deal.” His eyes fell on something behind me, and he jerked his chin. “So, what the fuck’s going on there?”
I craned my neck to see Pagan deep in conversation with a group of his men, Saskia still hanging off his arm.
“If that bitch has his ear, it could cause us some trouble,” Callum pointed out.
“I don’t think she’s in there at all,” I relayed. “Maybe he’s fucking her, but I can’t see it leading to marriage and kids. He seems more irritated by her than anything. Don’t know the details, but it seems he fucked Saskia while he was with Aislynn, and our sis found out.”
Callum’s eyes slashed back to Pagan, his lip curling into a sneer. “What is it about these assholes who have a good, decent woman at home and fuck them over for cunts like Saskia?”
Breaker almost choked on the beer he was in the process of swigging.
“That bitch tried to break up my marriage along with Maeve’s so-called sister,” my brother reminded him. “What am I supposed to call her? A paragon of virtue? Saskia stood in my bar and told me she was gonna bring me down. She failed, so it’s no big shock that she’s gone after Ash instead. Still, I’m surprised Pagan fell for her bullshit. He’s a clued-up guy. Why the fuck would he listen to anything Saskia said? If he fucked around, it was because he wanted to.”
