Epilogue
Eight months later
Isla
“I really don’t think we should tell your family that it’s my birthday,” I said from the driver’s seat.
The stupid self-heating driver’s seat of Alistair’s Land Rover.
My arse was nice and toasty. I hated it.
Daisy had finally bit the dust last month. That chilly March evening, I’d finished my day at Brown’s, walked down to the car park, and she’d just been . . . dead. Not even a sputter goodbye.
I’d still been crying when Alistair arrived to pick me up twenty minutes later. It had felt like losing Granny Pat all over again.
“And why’s that again?” Clutching a blueberry pie in the passenger seat, Alistair raised his eyebrows over the rims of his glasses. He was wearing his thick navy jumper – my favourite – that brought out the blue in his eyes.
“Because it’s Juniper and Callum’s pre-wedding celebration, I don’t want to make it all about me.” They were having a small get-together at the distillery tasting room before the official big day tomorrow.
“Heaven forbid something should be about you.” He smirked. “It’s called a wedding day for a reason.”
“Today was perfect, let them have their night.” After convincing me the day before, under sexual duress, to close Brown’s for the day – on a Saturday no less – he had made me breakfast in bed with Teddy, and later, we’d taken a trip to Eilean Donan Castle.
Spring had well and truly arrived, and the grand gardens were starting to bloom.
I don’t think I’d had a better birthday since before Granny Pat died.
“I want my birthday to be all about me,” Teddy piped up from the back. Hers was still two weeks away. She was excited; she’d stuck a little countdown to her birthday party on the fridge.
“As it should be, kid.” He winked at her in the rearview mirror, and my heart soared. Eight months in and I knew that feeling wasn’t going away anytime soon.
They loved each other so much, it made me feel bad that I was dragging my feet about moving in together.
It was Alistair’s turn to be impatient.
He hadn’t come out and directly said he wanted to live together, but there had been signs.
He’d removed the lock on the connecting door the morning after the Cairn I’ll need it for work next week.”
“Sure.” I took the next turning, heading toward Iris’s house. Then did a double take at his flushed face. “Want the aircon on?”
“I’m fine. Why, are you too warm?” He fumbled with the controls.
“No, but you’re sweating.” Dots of moisture beaded his brow, but he quickly wiped them away with the back of his hand.
I pulled into the long circular driveway alongside Mal’s work van. “Shouldn’t he be at the distillery already?”
“Oh . . . um.” His throat bobbed, his voice a little scratchy. “I think Mum was watching Milo today. He’s probably just picking him up.”
“That makes sense.” Milo Kier Macabe was officially the cutest baby on earth.
Well, second to Teddy of course, but still pretty damn cute.
The Macabe clan were officially obsessed.
He’d arrived two days after the Cairn & Crust, almost a week past his due date.
“I can’t wait to squish his little cheeks later,” I said, turning off the engine.
Alistair paused, fingers on the door handle, and asked, “Are you coming?”
“Do you need me to?”
“Yeah, it might . . . uh . . .” He wouldn’t look at me. “It might take a minute.”
“Can we go, Mummy, please? I need the toilet really bad.”
“Okay,” I said, dragging the word out, unclicking my belt. Teddy was already scrambling from the back seat. “You sure you’re okay?” I asked Alistair. “You’re acting weird.” They both were, now that I thought about it. Sharing secret smiles and whispering when they thought I wasn’t looking.
He nodded. “I’m fine. Just wondering what you think of the car? It drives well, right?”
“I guess.” I handed him the keys.
He was pushing me to decide on a new car. Sharing one wasn’t exactly practical but getting a replacement felt like a betrayal to Daisy.
“Just think about it.” He pressed a kiss to my hair, holding me back as Teddy ran toward the front door. “Today’s been good, right?”
“The best. Want to fess up how you knew it was my birthday?”
“Want to say why you lied and told me it’s in May?”
“I just never really enjoyed the whole birthday thing growing up.” I shrugged. It wasn’t a big deal. “Seriously, how did you know? Did Teddy tell you?”
“I’m a doctor, Lang. I have ways of discovering information.”
“Mysterious.” I tugged his shirt. “Now, tell me, before I have to put in a police report.”
“You keep your driving licence on your sideboard.”
“Of course you snooped.”
“I had to make sure you have one – you shift gears like you learned to drive in a rally car.”
“Stop.” I groaned, clutching his shirt. “I miss Daisy so much, this is torture.”
“Sorry.” He kissed the top of my head again. “Let’s get this over with.”
“Think Juniper and Callum will mind if we leave the party early?” I asked and tangled my fingers with his as we continued toward the door.
“Teddy’s staying at Heather’s tonight. We can be as loud as we want.
” Don’t get me wrong, there was something really hot about the way he always pressed his hand over my mouth right as I was about to come.
But if you couldn’t have a screaming orgasm on your birthday, when could you?
He nipped playfully at my ear. “I’ll throw you over my shoulder right now. Don’t tempt me.”
I giggled. “Just do me a favour. Wait a few hours before holding Milo. Seeing you be all sweet and dad-ish sends my hormones into overdrive.”
He laughed, big and booming. “I’ll do my best.”
A minute later we walked into Iris Macabe’s darkened living room and—
“Surprise!” The entire Macabe clan, plus Jess and Angus, even Amy and her girlfriend, Nisha, burst from behind furniture with party poppers and waved balloons. They were so out of sync I could only stare.
“We probably should have practised that,” Callum said. He had a party hat sitting crookedly on his head.
Alistair pressed a kiss to my temple and whispered, “Happy birthday, honey.”
Yeah, this was the best birthday ever.