Tabby could barely make it through the wedding, despite them being her favorite things, sitting still was a struggle for her. But the reception was another story. It was more than just a party.
In a very interesting turn of events, Tabby got to see her Aunt Poppy get proposed to by her soon-to-be Uncle AJ, so luckily whatever the issue, seemed to be resolved. As a 90-year-old bride, Yaya felt it wasn’t bad luck for hergrandson to get engaged on her wedding day, in fact, she considered it a wedding present. Speaking of wedding presents, Deacon had spoken to Frankie and managed to get Yaya’s Venmo. He knew it was considered tacky, but his presence there was unorthodox, and from the little bit he did know about Yaya, he doubted she’d turn down a financial gift as a wedding present, then she could pick out what she really wanted.
Besides the proposal, Tabby had been on the dance floor the entire evening, she was going to sleep good tonight. She was currently getting jiggy with AJ’s twin brother, World Series MVP Niko Costas.
Deacon had made good use of his time, he’d gotten a chance to speak to each one of his sisters and their husbands individually, which was nice. They all said they understood why he hadn’t been forthcoming about his relationship to them. He’d even spoken to Teresa and apologized if he’d brought any pain to her. She told him having two more people in the world to love couldneverbe a bad thing.
The more time he spent around his siblings and Teresa, the more curious he got about his father. How could a man have such an amazing wife, such amazing daughters, an amazing family and risk it all not once, not twice, but three times? From what he’d learned, Michael’s affairs with Poppy’s and Liam’s momsbothwent on for decades. Liam’s mom’s lasted until she passed away, and Poppy’s mom’s until Michael did.
Deacon didn’t get it, and he probably never would.
In better news, Tabby had her very first cousin sleepover booked for Tuesday night. It was going to be at Phoebe’s house. Finley, apparentlyalwayswanted a baby sister and now had one, but she was too small to have funwith yet, was very excited to have a little cousin/sister. She’d taken Tabby right under her wing.
Deacon had no clue what he was going to do with himself on a random Tuesday night. He couldn’t remember the last time he didn’t have Tabby. Oh, well, yeah, he could. It was the night of his parents’ funeral. That had definitely been a night off well spent. He hadn’t hung out at JT’s Roadhouse. Maybe he’d go there Tuesday night.
“Hey man.”
Deacon glanced beside him to find Liam offering him a beer, ice cold and beading with condensation.
“Hey. No, I’m good.” He raised his Coke.
“How are you doing...” Liam took a sip of his own beer. “…with everything.”
“Good, I mean, I’ve known for a year and a half.”
Liam nodded. “Knowing is one thing.Everyoneknowing is something else.”
“Yeah.” There was definitely a difference. He just wasn’t used to talking to people about things.
“It is. Believe me.” Liam took another sip, then spoke in a lower voice. “I found out when I was twenty that the man I thought was my dad, wasn’t.”
“Holy shit.” Deacon had no clue that was Liam’s story. He just figured… he didn’t know what he figured. Poppy said she’d always known Michael was her dad, so he guessed that’s what he thought about Liam, too.
Liam was infamously known for being a man of few words. He’s maybe heard him say fifty in total, and most of those were spoken at his house when he hosted Thanksgiving dinner. It was actually strange hearing him talk so much now.
“My mom was sick, basically on hospice, it ended up being the night before she died, and I heard her talkingabout it with my dad. I was never close to him, and I thought that was why. It fucked me up for…years.”
“Yeah. I get that.” He really did. Finding out your parent wasn’t actually your parent, that they’d lied, could really mess with your head.
“How did you find out?” he asked, then started to take a drink before amending, “You don’t have to tell me.”
“No, it’s okay.” Deacon shrugged. “First, my parents told me I was adopted when I was thirteen. They said it was a closed adoption.”
“Did you know you were adopted before you were thirteen?”
“No.”
His eyebrows lifted slightly.
“Then about two years ago, they sat me down and told me that wasn’t true.” He relayed the story of his mom giving birth and giving him to his parents and her reasoning. “Then they died six months later. I put my DNA into a site and found out Michael was gone, but you guys were around.”
Liam’s brows furrowed. “I have alerts set up for any hits on Michaels DNA, I didn’t get anything about you.”
“Smart, but I blocked my DNA,” Deacon explained. There was no way he’d have that out in a public domain.
“Right.” Liam grinned in understanding. “Smart.” He nodded then continued, “I waited years to look for him. By the time I did, he was dead. But I did find out about Poppy and Teresa and everyone. It’s a lot to walk into, to take in, but they really are good people.”
“You all are.” They stood in silence for a moment, a question nagged at the back of Deacon’s head. “Do you ever wonder what he was like? Michael.”
