“This is nice, isn’t it?”
I nod, taking in the scene. “It is. Feels like everyone’s where they belong tonight.” There’s a peace in the air that feels earned, like we’ve all found the balance we were looking for.
She glances at me with a knowing look. “Even you?”
I don’t answer right away, my gaze drifting across the room to Bree. She’s laughing at something Lucy said, her eyes crinkling at the corners. My heart stutters just looking at her. I know Juliette notices the way my attention locks on Bree without even thinking.
“Aye,” I finally say. “Especially me.”
It’s true, every word of it. With Bree in the room, with all of this life and love, everything has finally clicked into place.
Juliette lets out a soft laugh, nudging me with her elbow. “You’re a goner, Callan.”
“Don’t I know it,” I reply, shaking my head. But even as the words leave my mouth, I can’t tear my eyes away from Bree.
Shannon’s startled yelp interrupts us from the kitchen, followed by Mum’s unmistakable bark of laughter.
“What on earth?” Juliette mutters, her brow furrowing as she turns toward the commotion.
I push off and follow her on crutches, moving as quickly as I can with my leg still giving me grief. The sound of Rose’s laughter grows louder, and as we step into the kitchen, we find Shannon standing there, holding a bottle of wine that’s spilled all over the counter, her face flushed with embarrassment. Rose is doubled over, practically wheezing with laughter, and Mum? Well, Mum is unfazed, calmly dabbing at a splash of red wine on the granite like this is just another Tuesday.
“Careful now,” Mum says. “That’s not a whisky you can mop up with a biscuit.”
Shannon narrows her eyes, her cheeks flushed a bright shade of red. “I’d like to see you manage three glasses and a corkscrew while dodging elbows!”
Mum, ever unruffled, straightens her back with that air of superiority only she can pull off, then smirks. “And yet I’ve done it, lass, and in heels no less.”
Juliette bites her lip to suppress a laugh as Shannon points an accusatory finger at her. “Don’t you dare laugh.”
“I’m not,” Juliette says. “I’m just…observing.”
The moment is too perfect, and it only makes Shannon even more flustered. She turns her glare back to Mum, who’s still busy wiping down the counter with the same calm efficiency, completely unbothered by the wine that has now made a small mess.
I can’t resist chiming in. “Sounds like you’ve uncovered a hidden talent there, Shannon. Competitive wine juggling, maybe?”
Rose finally straightens up from herlaughter-induced slump, wiping her eyes. “Oh, she’d be brilliant at it, until the final round.”
Juliette elbows me lightly. “You’re not helping.”
I grin. “Wasn’t trying to.”
Arms wrap around my waist from behind. “What has my mom done now?”
I glance over at Mum, still casually dealing with the aftermath of Shannon’s mishap, and can’t help but smirk. “Turn away, lass. You’ll be embarrassed by your mum’s blatant disregard and disrespect for good wine.”
Bree chuckles softly. “You’re brave, mocking her while she’s armed with broken glass.”
I meet her eyes over my shoulder. “Bravery,” I say, straight-faced, “is exactly what makes me the ideal son-in-law.”
Shannon groans dramatically, tossing the last bits of glass into the trash. “God help us all. A smart-mouthed Scotsman with terrible opinions about wine.”
Bree tightens her arms around me, her laughter vibrating against my back. “And I wouldn’t change a thing.”
“Even if I do mock your mum’s…destruction habits?”
“Especially then,” she says, her voice light and teasing. Just the way I like it.
forty-four
