Nineteen.
Maci
“If you don’t feel good, we don’t have to go,” Duke tells me for the third time, standing in the doorway of the bedroom as I get ready.
He’s just trying to get out of going himself.
I shimmy on the black stockings under the long-sleeved, olive-green sweater dress I borrowed from Cassidy. The form-hugging dress falls just below my knees and has my almost fourteen-week bump popping. I’ve done my hair, my makeup, and even brought out my grandmother’s earrings. A little nausea and heartburn isn’t going to stop me from enjoying a cookie decorating contest and dinner party at Duke’s parents’ for Christmas Eve.
I glance at him, a mouthwatering kind of handsome in his black slacks and dark grey dress shirt tucked in. Deep chestnut hair slicked back, his short beard shaped and trimmed exactly how I told him I liked it.
“I told you, I’m okay,” I say, walking to the bathroom. “Cassidy said she bought peppermint hot chocolate. I’m sure once I get some of that in me, I’ll feel better.” I busy myself by checking my reflection in the mirror.
Duke appears behind me, grinning. “You look gorgeous, angel.”
I pout, angling my backside toward him. “You don’t think it makes my butt look too big?”
He chuckles deeply, wrapping strong arms around me. “I think it makes your ass look amazing, just like every other part of you.”
I roll my eyes and smile. Always the charmer. “Thank you.”
“But if you don’t feel well, we can—”
I bump him back with my ass. “We’re going. Your mom even called this morning to make sure we were coming tonight,” I say. “I promise I’ll tell you if I start to not feel well, okay?”
He huffs, peppering my neck with kisses. “You say the word, and we’re out of there.”
I bite my lip as he rubs his large hand gently over my belly, his dark gaze locked with mine in the mirror. I place my hands over his and lean into him. Three little words linger on the tip of my tongue. I’ve caught myself wishing—no, wanting to say them to him for days now.
Patience, I tell myself, there’s no rush. He’s made it clear he’s not going anywhere.
“You ready to go, beautiful?”
I turn in his arms and kiss him. “Yes.”
Duke takes my hand as I slide out of the truck. “Be careful. It’s all ice right here.” He keeps hold of me as he grabs the holiday poinsettia I picked out yesterday for his mom.
We make our slow way up the long driveway lined with vehicles to the classic white farmhouse equipped with several wreaths, garlands everywhere, and enough Christmas lights to signal outer space. And with the extra two feet of snow that’s fallen over the last few days, it’s going to be a magical white Christmas, indeed.
“Remind me again who’s inside,” I say, holding Duke’s arm tight as my boots slip on the unsalted ice.
“My parents, Cass, you’ve met all my brothers except Beau, but he’s not here. You’ll meet my sister, Lily, and her son, Parker. My grandparents on my mother’s side, William and Judy, and my Uncle Jim, Dad’s brother,” he says. “Looks like everyone is here except Rhett. Unless he rode with Levi.”
When we reach the door, loud chatter and laughter echo from inside. As the door opens the smell of a holiday meal floods my senses—and makes me a little more nauseous, but I keep that to myself. The open archways off the foyer lead in every direction. A large dining table is set beautifully in the dining area to the right, while the living space is to the left where music plays. Traditional holiday décor lines three Christmas trees in view just from the front door.
This is how I want my baby to experience the holidays.
Duke takes my coat, hanging it up with his before leading me down the hall beside the wide staircase. I squeeze his hand, a little nervous to be officially introduced as his girlfriend—to his entire family—while pregnant.
I’m awestruck by the grand farm kitchen, lined with white cabinetry, butcher block countertops, a six-seater island in the center, and stainless-steel appliances throughout. Cassidy, Julie, and two other women help to set out appetizers.
“You’re here,” Julie announces, seeing us first. A Christmas-themed apron is wrapped around her waist covered in gingerbread men that says; Nobody does holidays like Grandma.
I nearly burst into tears at the sight. I’d blame it on the hormones, but…it’s hard to deny the joy and acceptance I feel by simply walking in the front door.
Duke hugs his mother and hands her the poinsettia. “Oh, it’s beautiful,” she says. “Thank you so much, Maci.”
I smile, hugging her. “You’re welcome, but it’s from both of us.”
Julie pats her son on the arm, and winks. “Sure it is, dear.”
After a quick greeting from Cassidy, who’s wearing a matching dress to mine in red, she laughs when she tells us that Duke and Butch are dressed nearly identical.
Duke takes me around the house, introducing me to everyone I haven’t met yet, and I can feel their eyes on my belly.
A handsome little boy with brown shaggy hair dressed in tan slacks and a collared flannel shirt barrels toward Duke. Cassidy’s dog, Frankie, hot on his heels. “Uncle Duck!”
Duke snatches the boy, throwing him in the air to a slew of giggles. “Hey, bud, did you sneak any cookies yet?” He chuckles, wiping the smear of crumbs at the corner of the boy’s lip.
“Nooo,” he says with a mischievous smile, his pale blue eyes shining.
Duke turns to me with the boy perched on his forearm. “Parker, I want you to meet someone special.” He grins. “This is my girlfriend, Maci. Can you say hi?”
“Hi, Parker.” I wave. “How old are you?” He holds up three fingers, showing them proudly to me. “Woah. That’s a lot.”
Duke sets Parker down. “Hey, why don’t you go sneak one of those peanut butter cookies with the chocolate kiss in the middle for Maci? She loves peanut butter.”
Parker’s eyes widen, and he wastes no time racing off toward the kitchen.
“You’re going to get him in trouble,” I tease.
“Nah, you haven’t seen that kid sneak shit.” He laughs. “He’s a ninja.”
“You make a good Uncle Duck.”
He grins, dragging me flush against his warm, solid chest. “Just wait until you hear how he says Butch and Levi,” he says, leaning down to kiss me.
A light tug on my dress has me looking down at Parker holding out a cookie for me. “Oh, wow. Thank you.” I laugh, plucking the cookie from his small hand.
“Parker James,” Julie shouts. “Did you take another cookie?”
Her grandson giggles and races off to the other room. And the night takes off from there. Duke stays by my side the whole evening. Whether it’s a hand on my back, around my waist, on my thigh, or simply holding my hand in his—he’s there.
And I’m drinking in every last second of his affection.
After dinner and cookie decorating, we take a seat in the living room, relaxing by the fireplace where all the stockings are hung. Multiple conversations go on around me, but all I seem to be able to focus on is the tiny red stocking pinned to Duke’s with my name on it.
My stomach flutters.
“Maci?” Duke says, giving my thigh a rub.
“Yeah?”
“Lily asked when you’re due.”
“Oh, June thirtieth,” I reply, sipping my mug of hot chocolate.
“Another June baby,” Grandma Judy huffs, her tone rather cold.
“Aren’t you due July eighteenth, Cassidy?” Lily asks.
“Yep.” Cassidy smiles. “You never know, though. If Maci goes late, or I go early, we could be having them even closer together.”
I scrunch my nose. “Hopefully not too late.”
“I was early with all the boys,” Julie chimes in. “You’ll go early, Cassie-dear, trust me. These Montgomery boys grow fast and come out big.”
Cassidy cringes while Butch grins far too wide at that news.
“The average birth weight of a child is generally somewhere between the size of the mother and father when they were born,” Grandma Judy states matter-of-factly. “How large of a man is the father of your bastard, Maci?”
“Mother,” Julie gasps, offended on my behalf.
The room falls deathly silent as all eyes turn to me.
I sink into the couch beside Duke, wanting nothing more than to crawl into a hole.
Duke’s grip on my thigh tightens, but before he can say anything in my defense, his brother speaks first. “Keep your remarks to yourself, Gran,” Butch threatens. “This ain’t the fuckin’ 1920s anymore.”
Grandma Judy scoffs, crossing her arms, and sticking up her nose.
“Watch your tongue, boy,” Grandpa William barks. “Bad enough you’ve knocked up your poor fiancée before you can make an honest woman out of her.”
Butch’s jaw locks tight, and if this were a cartoon, there’d be steam flying out of his ears.
Levi claps with a balk of laughter. “Rhett, get the popcorn!”
Rhett barrels into the living room with Parker on his shoulders. “Who’s fighting this year? Should I get the mat?”
Uncle Jim swigs his whiskey with a laugh. “You two crotchety old fucks better watch out, these Montgomery boys will toss y’all out in the snow.”
Clayton chuckles, but Julie glares at him, shutting him right up.
Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to stop Judy or William from continuing to comment on Butch and Cassidy’s relationship, then Lily for having a child out of wedlock and moving back home to be supported by her parents.
The holidays, am I right?
Thankfully, my bladder gives me a reason to excuse myself. “Where’s the bathroom?” I whisper to Duke. When he goes to stand, I stop him. “I’m not gonna be sick. I just need to use the bathroom.”
He eyes me suspiciously. “You sure?” I nod and peck him on the lips. “Use the one upstairs. Down the hall, second door on the left.”
I escape the most awkward after-dinner conversation I’ve ever been a part of and find the bathroom. I wash my hands and take my time walking back to the stairs when a wall of family pictures catches my eye.
I lean in to get a closer look. There are a few group pictures of when all the Montgomery siblings were young. It’s hard to figure out who is who between some of the brothers, but boy were they cute chunky things when they were babies.
Going down the timeline of photos, around the teen years I start to notice a pretty, slender blonde in several photos with Duke. It’s soon apparent who she is when I get to his wedding photo. Rachel.
She’s in a short white summer dress, beaming on Duke’s arm dressed in tan slacks and a white dress shirt. I narrow my eyes at the sand between their toes, appearing to be on a beach somewhere.
“We eloped on vacation,” Duke says from behind, startling me to jump and turn to him.
“Sorry, I was just—”
“It’s fine,” he says, standing beside me. His dark eyes harden when he stares at the picture.
“She’s very pretty,” I say quietly.
“She was,” he corrects.
Smooth, Maci. “How long were you two, um, together for?” I ask.
“We dated in high school on and off. Broke it off and went our separate ways for a good chunk of time. Found our way back to each other in the end. We were together for another three years before I asked her to marry me,” he says. “I hate sand, but she always wanted to get married on the beach. So we did. We were married for about a year before the plane crash.”
And that was five years ago… My heart sinks. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.” He turns away from the gallery of memories to face me. “It was a long time ago. I was a different person then.”
“Was she your longest relationship?”
“Yeah, altogether was probably six years,” he tells me. “What about you? How many large men have you dated?”
I snort. “Two years is my longest. And the only large man I’ve ever dated is you.”
Duke cocks a smug grin as he steps closer, his muscular arms trapping me against him. “Good to know I can tear any of your exes apart if I need to.”
I roll my eyes and pop up on my tippy toes to kiss him. “Your grandma is mean.”
Duke grunts. “Yeah, well, you just missed the show. They’re leaving now. Figured I’d come check on you.”
“Aw, don’t lie.” I squeeze him. “You just missed me.”
He grins from ear to ear, gripping my ass as he claims my lips in a hot and heavy kiss that has me clenching my thighs. I moan into his mouth, and he groans. “Fuckin’ hell, angel. Tell me you’re ready to get the hell out of here,” he says, smacking my ass playfully.
I hum, pretending to think it over. “Can I have another slice of pie first?”
He chuckles. “The chocolate peanut butter pie?” I nod. “Anything you want, doll face,” he says, taking my hand and leading the way to the kitchen.
“Drop that pie, Rhett,” Duke demands as we cross the threshold.
Rhett freezes with a forkful of the last slice of chocolate peanut butter pie halfway to his mouth. “Why?” he asks a split second before Butch snatches the fork and plate from his hands. “Dude.” Rhett lunges for his plate, but Butch hands it straight to Duke. “What the fuck? I had it first.”
“And now you don’t,” Duke deadpans, setting the plate on the island and pulling out the stool for me to sit.
I smile, hopping up on the stool. “We can share.”
“No,” Duke grunts.
Rhett snarls, grabbing a fork off the counter with a wicked grin on his face. He dives over the island in an attempt to stab the pie. Butch grabs him, and before I know what’s happening, Levi is racing in—four Montgomery brothers in a wrestle on the kitchen floor over a slice of pie.
Cassidy sits calmly beside me with a lemon bar in hand.
“What the hell are you idiots doing?” Clayton booms.
“Duke stole my pie,” Rhett exclaims from under a headlock while throwing an elbow back into Butch’s gut.
Clayton just shakes his head, choosing a freshly frosted cookie off a nearby tray.
Julie snatches it from his hand. “You’re already at your sugar limit for tonight, dear,” she tells him, turning to her four wrestling adult sons. She sighs heavily. “Will you boys knock it off? Parker is getting tired, so we’re going to do pjs now.”
Duke drops Rhett like a sack of potatoes, jumping to his feet and rounding the island to stand behind me. “Touch her pie again, and you’ll be shittin’ sideways for a week.”
Levi plucks the last lemon bar off the bake tray, and Butch promptly seizes his wrist. “Don’t even think about it,” he growls, and Cassidy quickly acquires the dessert from her soon-to-be husband.
“Seriously?” Levi says, exasperated. “So, no one is allowed to eat whatever the pregnant women want?”
Rhett mutters something under his breath about his favorite pie while watching as I shovel in an oversized bite of the delicious chocolate peanut butter bliss.
“Come on, kids,” Julie calls from the living room, but I’m too invested in this pie at the moment.
Duke reaches for my plate, and I poke his hand with the fork. “No, sir.”
He chuckles. “We’ll bring it with us.”
Heat rises to my cheeks, and I laugh. “Oh.”
My pie plate in hand, we sit on the couch. Julie begins passing out gift bags. Handing the two largest bags to Butch and Duke, but the name on the side reads Duke Maci.
She didn’t…
Butch hands the bag to Cassidy. She pulls out a set of matching red flannel pajamas and a plaid, Christmas onesie for Frankie that says, Nana is my favorite. Duke opens his bag, removing a set of forest green flannel pajamas for—us?
“Did your mom buy us matching pajamas?” I whisper.
He simply grins. “And she’s going to expect us to wear them tomorrow when we come over for Christmas brunch. It’s mandatory. Along with the picture she’s going to take of all of us together.”
Oh, be still my heart. She’s adorable.
“I hope you don’t mind, Maci,” Julie says. “I asked Duke your size. The bottoms should fit, but the top might be a little big. Last-minute holiday shopping is always a nightmare.”
“Thank you so much, Julie, that’s…really sweet of you.” Don’t cry, don’t cry.
Parker starts to strip in the middle of the room to put on his new dinosaur pjs. Lily stops him, laughing. “Hold on, buckeroo. Give everyone a hug goodnight, and tell them we’ll see them tomorrow when Santa comes.”
Parker makes his rounds.
“Night, buddy. We’ll see you in the morning,” Duke says, giving him a bear hug. He crawls off Duke’s lap and onto mine, throwing his little arms around me, and I melt.
“So, Uncle Butts, Jeans, and Duck,” I say, crawling into bed. “I don’t think I heard. What does Parker call Rhett?”
“Just Rhett,” Duke replies, flicking off the lights and climbing into bed beside me. “He’s only met Beau once in person, talked to him a few times on the phone, but he only knows him from pictures. Rhett and Beau are a lot easier for him to say.”
I nod, snuggling up under the covers against his warm chest. “He’s a sweet boy.”
“He’s a good kid. Shame his dad ran off the way he did.”
“He’s got five crazy uncles to look up to,” I yawn. “I think he’ll be all right.”
“Yeah…” Duke sighs. “Do you, uh, ever worry about that? Raising a son or daughter without their real father?”
“Sometimes,” I confess quietly. “I mean, anyone can be a father these days, but not everyone can be a dad. But I can do both. I’ve been working on my dad-joke game for many years now.”
His chest rumbles under my cheek as he laughs. “Oh, yeah? Let’s hear it.”
I lift my head to look at him, resting my chin on the back of my hand. “Okay, but be prepared to pee yourself,” I say, and he chuckles. “Why couldn’t the bicycle stand up by itself?”
“Why?”
“It was two-tired.” I giggle.
Duke groans. “Ah, babe, that was bad.”
“It was not,” I say defensively with a pout. “Fine. Let’s hear you do a better dad joke.”
“All right, give me a second,” he says, forcing me to wait until he clears his throat. “I used to hate facial hair…but then it grew on me.”
I burst with a laugh that causes me to snort.
“Boom, right there. Best dad-joke maker around, baby.”
“That was awful,” I tease, laying my head on his chest. “How’d I get so lucky?”
The question lingers openly in the air between us. And I do. I feel so, so lucky in this moment to have found him.
Duke pushes my legs open with his knee as he braces himself over me. Hovering just above my lips, he whispers deeply, “I’m the lucky one.”
I slide my arms around his neck and kiss him with every ounce of my heart, because right now, it’s all his.