It was the eve of the party. After a late night talking into the early hours on the phone with Ned about his special day, Morgan was surprised when she’d managed to get out of bed so early feeling fresh.
She quickly showered, dressed and made her way downstairs and into the kitchen pub. Opening the fridge, she was surprised the entire contents didn’t fall out and bury her. It was jammed to the brim with items she’d taken out of the freezer to defrost overnight. Thankfully, Pamela now had free space on the farm in the refrigerators she used for wedding catering now that the food had been delivered to its clients.
Morgan checked the clock. The others would be arriving any moment to help prepare the food for the party. Picking up the kettle, she filled it to the brim and switched it on before getting out five mugs. ‘Me, Pippa, Christine, Katherine and Pamela.’ She paused. Tammy had said she would be coming to help as well, leaving Declan to run the tearoom for the morning. She wondered if that was still the case after the big reveal yesterday. Maybe Declan wanted her there so they could chat about his afternoon with his new father—Ned. Morgan still couldn’t quite believe it. Ned had been absolutely shell-shocked, but in a good way. She smiled thinking of the meeting at Ben’s house as pulled out another mug for Tammy, just in case.
The kitchen door opened, and Pippa breezed in followed by the others, including Tammy who was beaming from ear to ear. Morgan was pleased she looked so happy; her emotions reflectedwhat Declan must have been feeling when she left him at the tearoom to come here.
‘Good morning, Aunt Morgan. The cavalry has arrived.’
Morgan smiled widely. ‘Good morning, ladies. Thank you all so much for coming. I’ve just put the kettle on.’
Tammy lifted her arms in the air, a paper bag in each hand. ‘And I brought muffins with me, freshly baked by yours truly first thing.’ The women laughed.
‘I know what kind of morning this is going to be,’ smiled Pamela. ‘Do we need a tot of whiskey in our coffees to get this party started.’
‘Yes!’ came a chorus of voices.
‘Not for me,’ said Pippa, her hand flying to her mouth.
The women turned to look at her. ‘Since when have you refused a drink?’ asked Christine, her hands on her hips and a frown pulling her brows together.
Pamela’s jaw dropped. ‘Oh my goodness.’ She looked directly at Pippa. ‘Are you not drinking because of why I think you're not drinking?’
The other women looked from Pippa to Pamela and back to Pippa again, their eyes widening as comprehension of what Pamela had just said dawned on them. Tammy put the paper bags down on the stainless-steel island and rushed over to Pippa, her hands clasped together in a praying position. ‘Please tell me it’s true.’
A grin eclipsed Pippa’s face and she nodded. Tammy threw her arms around Pippa’s neck and the other women squealed with happiness, before rushing forward to join in with the hug.
Finally, all arms had unravelled, and Pippa came up for air giggling. ‘I was supposed to be keeping it under wraps until I reached the beginning of the second trimester. Only Aunt Morgan and Oliver know, so please don’t breathe a word to anyone else.’
‘We won’t,’ said Chritine, making a cross sign over her heart with her finger.
‘How far along are you Pippa,’ asked Katherine.
‘I’ll be going into my second trimester very soon,’ smiled Pippa.
Morgan watched her niece with a smile, her heart swelling with love, before turning away to make the coffees. ‘Anyone take sugar?’
‘Two for me Morgan,’ said Katherine.
‘I’ll just take the whiskey,’ said Tammy with a chuckle and a sigh, ‘there’s so much to celebrate.’ Morgan turned around and met Tammy’s eyes. The smile on Tammy’s face was huge. Morgan dipped her head once at Tammy, acknowledging and giving permission for what Tammy was about to divulge. ‘Let’s see. Well there’s Morgan’s sixtieth birthday tomorrow.’ The women did a little cheer. ‘Pippa’s wonderful pregnancy news.’ Another little cheer came from everyone, ‘And there’s some other news that Declan is sooo happy about, that he wants everyone is Seagull Bay to know it.’
Morgan’s smile stretched across her face. She knew from her telephone conversation with Ned last night he’d agreed with Declan their new relationship shouldn’t be kept under wraps.
Pippa’s mouth and eyes went wide. ‘Oh my goodness. You’re pregnant too!’
Tammy laughed and shook her head. ‘No-no. It’s not that.’ The women cupped their hands around their mouths and did a little boo and Tammy laughed harder. ‘There’s plenty of time for that later on if we decide to get married.’ She shook her head.’ No, this is news about Declan and Ned.’ The women went silent and glanced from Tammy to Morgan and then back to Tammy again, frowns puckering their brows. Morgan was surprised they’d looked her way. Did they expect her to already know Ned’s news? Had they seen something between Ned and her shehadn’t until recently? ‘Declan and Ned recently found out they are related.’ The women gasped.
‘Wow. That’s amazing,’ said Pamela. ‘How?’
‘They are...father and son.’ Silence fell over everyone, before astonished gasps could be heard.
‘How did this happen?’ asked Katherine with a frown, looking confused. ‘I mean, how did Declan find out?’
‘Declan was fostered from a young age. He recently made contact with his mum and found out the man hethoughtwas his father, actually wasn’t. Hi mother told Declan she’d never told the real father she was pregnant. Obviously, Declan asked his real father’s name and where he came from. His mother is Irish and first came to Seagull Bay when she moved here for work. She had a brief relationship with a man who came from the bay—Ned. She moved away without telling Ned she was going or that she was pregnant.’
‘Wow. It’s like something out of a novel,’ gasped Christine. ‘And are they both pleased?’
‘They are ecstatic,’ said Morgan as she handed out coffees.
