Page 84 of Death Kiss

Colin’s fatherly arms.

‘Well, it’s still a little sparsely furnished, but we’re working on it. We thought we could do up the suite in the west wing and make you guys a little granny annex in case you ever want to stay over.’ I loop my elbow through Sandra’s as we walk back to the kitchen.

‘Granny?’ she asks, raising a brow.

I laugh and shake my head. ‘Not yet, but one day, I hope.’

‘You’ll be hard-pressed to get rid of us if there are babies.’

‘And the suite will be yours, to stay as often and as long as you like. I want this house to be filled with love.’

Sandra’s face softens, and she pats my hand. ‘You’re so good for each other.’

We enter the kitchen, only for Liam to pull us into a bear hug, which makes Sandra laugh. ‘Happy Birthday, my love.’

‘Thank you for coming.’

‘There’s nowhere else we’d rather be.’ Colin comes up and hugs Liam, clapping him on the back.

They take off their coats, and I pass around glasses of the neon cocktail I’ve knocked up—which thankfully tastes better than it looks.

‘This is for you,’ Sandra says, passing an envelope over to Liam.

He opens it and pulls out a card with a picture of a grumpy cat on the front who’s wearing a skew-whiff birthday hat. A smile lifts his mouth until he opens the card, furrows his brow, and snaps the card shut.

‘Sandra, I can’t⁠—’

‘You can and you will. It’s a gift. Refusing a gift is rude.’ Sandra gives Liam a stern look as I take a long sip of my radioactive-looking drink.

‘It’s too much.’

‘No, my boy, it’s not. We know you can use it. Make your dreams come true.’ Sandra smiles at him before reaching for a block of cheese and popping it in her mouth, which sets Hamish off, wriggling around her feet.

‘Take the money, Liam,’ Colin says. ‘It’s best not to argue.’

‘And,’ I say, putting my drink down and clapping. ‘We have one more surprise for you.’

‘Kat—’

‘Humour me. It’s your bloody birthday.’ I cover his eyes and walk him through to the front door. Sandra opens it, and I drop my hands right as Ellie barrels in and throws herself at Liam. It took a while for us to get past the betrayals, both ours and theirs, but between postcards and photos, group chats and texts, we buried our grievances.

‘Happy birthday motherfucker!’ His face is a picture of shock as Ellie tackles him.

‘Ellie!’ Sandra admonishes her for cussing.

‘Group hug,’ she calls, pulling both Sandra and me into the cuddle. Freddie loiters near the door until Ellie grabs his hand and tugs him in, shortly followed by Colin. ‘God, I’ve missed you all.’

When I manage to detangle from her arms, I pull back and look her up and down.

Her skin has a deep golden glow, and worry seems to have melted from her face. Far more shockingly, she’s sporting what very much looks like a little baby bump. Sandra clocks it at the same time as I do and lets out an almighty shriek.

The men all look utterly perplexed until Sandra screams, ‘You’re having a baby?!’

‘I know it’s quick, but we’ve decided to embrace whatever life throws at us.’

For a minute, I’m worried that the surprise, with this extra surprise on top, might make Liam feel usurped on his own birthday, and I watch his scarred face, worry rising as he stares at Ellie’s stomach.

Then the most glorious grin covers his face, and he reaches out and gently touches the bump. ‘I’m going to be an uncle?’