“Whoa there,” came a sharp voice from across the barn.
We both froze.
Logan dropped his forehead to my chest, groaning in defeat as I stared at the rafters, willing the ground to swallow me whole.
“That was something I never needed to see.”Anothervoice, this one painfully familiar. Boone.
My entire body stiffened. I sat up with a strangled sound, fumbling to fix my shorts while Logan scrambled to coverhimself, hand flying to his crotch in a hopeless attempt at modesty.
We were met by a crowd of very amused faces—seven pairs of eyes to be exact.
“Damn…” Theo said with a laugh, baby Frankie perched on her hip. Even the baby seemed to be in on it, her wide eyes blinking at us like,Ha! Caught you!
She cooed and pointed.
I wanted to melt into the hay.
Logan pointed right back, grinning shamelessly. “I’ve spent the last year walking in on all ofyoudoing things I can’t unsee. This? This is payback.”
Everyone erupted into laughter, the barn suddenly filled with teasing and hoots and hollers.
“You’re all lucky it wasn’t worse.”
And somehow, through the embarrassment and the heat still pulsing under my skin, I found myself laughing too, because this was us. A mess. A family. And mine, with Logan smack in the center of it all.
“I have something to say before you two keep going and end up pregnant too,” Penny said with a mischievous grin.
The laughter that had been echoing through the barn died instantly.
“What?” Aspen turned around so fast it was like someone had flipped a switch. Her eyes locked on Penny, wide and disbelieving.
“Pregnant?” Theo echoed, brows lifting.
“You?” I added, my voice soft, stunned.
Penny’s smile only grew. She bit down on her bottom lip and nodded—slowly, shyly, radiantly.
All of us looked to Mac, who stood just behind her. He looked frozen for a beat, like he was still wrapping his head around being at the center of the moment. Then, his expression shifted,and a slow smile broke across his face. He stepped forward and kissed her cheek, his eyes never leaving hers.
“I’m gonna be a dad!” he said, voice hoarse with disbelief and pride, then threw one hand into the air like he’d just scored the winning touchdown.
The barn exploded with cheers and hollers. I rushed Penny, wrapping my arms around her from every direction. I felt the weight of other bodies pressing against me, sandwiching me against Penny as high-pitched squeals of excitement from Aspen and Theo filled my ears. In the break, I heard the guys cheering and when we broke, they had Mac wrapped in a celebratory hug.
“A freaking baby!” Aspen yelled, throwing her arms up like she physically couldn’t contain her excitement. “I get to be an aunt twice?”
“Oh my God, I havesomany baby things you can have,” Theo said, eyes wide. “So many. I’m already obsessed!”
It hit me then—this is what growing up looked like. Babies. Relationships. Roots. I had only truly become part of this group a few months ago, but standing here now, surrounded by laughter and love, it felt like I had known them forever. Like we were all woven into the same story, just different pages turning at the same time.
Eventually, we all regathered, naturally falling into a circle like we always did when things felt big. “So… is this why we’re all here?” I asked, looking between them. “To find out you two are expecting?”
“Well, we were the ones who invited everyone,” Boone said, wrapping an arm around Aspen’s waist. She smiled up at him, cheeks still flushed from all the excitement.
My eyes narrowed suspiciously. I pointed a finger at them. “You too?”
Aspen’s hands flew up like I’d just accused her of a crime. “No! No, no. Not pregnant. We just missed everyone, and wethought the ranch would be better than the bar for catching up,” she said, tossing a look at Mac. “Though I guess this turned out to be the perfect night for surprises.”
Mac held up his hands in mock innocence. “Hey, no complaints. I’m just glad to have the night off.”
