Chapter 18 #2
“You’re brave. You tooked care of me when the bad guys came and stole me and Mommy.
You take care of everyone, and even if you’re hurt, you just keep doing it.
That’s what I want for my brother. I want him to know he was named after the strongest person ever.
He probably won’t grow up as big as you, but that’s okay, because me and you will be there to beat up anyone who’s mean to him. ”
“Squirt,” Truck whispered, but couldn’t say anything else.
Tears filled his eyes, and he couldn’t have prevented them from falling if his life depended on it. He was a big bad Delta Force soldier, and this little slip of a girl had brought him to his knees.
“I’m glad you and Mary are together now.
I’m not as dumb as people think I am. I know when she was babysitting me and you came over that you guys liked each other, but since she was sick, you were both pretending you didn’t.
But she’s better now. So you can get married like Daddy and Mommy did and live happily ever after. ”
Truck heard Mary sniff from next to him, but couldn’t take his eyes off of the precious little girl in his lap. He cleared his throat several times and finally got himself under control. Annie wiped the tears that had fallen from his cheeks and smiled at him.
“Ethan Ford, huh?” he asked.
Annie nodded. “Yup.”
“Cool.”
“Yeah, cool,” Annie agreed. Then she climbed off his lap and asked, “Can we have cake now, Mommy?”
Everyone chuckled. Truck turned when he felt Mary’s hand on his thigh. Everyone began to stand, to congratulate Fletch and Emily and to coo over the still sleeping Ethan. But Truck couldn’t move.
“I can’t think of a better tribute for the greatest man I’ve ever known,” Mary said softly.
“I don’t know what to say.”
Mary smiled and leaned up and kissed him gently on the lips. “That’s the thing about best friends. You don’t have to say anything. Fletch knows how much you love him. Knows that you’ll do anything to keep him and his family safe.”
“I will. Just as I will you,” Truck vowed.
Mary leaned up again, but Truck met her halfway this time.
“I need to go see my namesake,” he said after a minute.
Mary nodded. “Go. I’ll find Rayne and see if there’s anything I can help with.”
Truck stood and helped Mary up then wandered over to Fletch. He was surrounded by the other Deltas. He went right up to Fletch and pulled him, and his son, into a brief hug. “I don’t know what to say,” he told his friend.
“Nothing to say,” Fletch reassured him. “You’ve always been there for me, and every one of us,” he said, gesturing to the men around them. “Without question, without fail, you’re there. I can’t imagine a better namesake for my son.”
The other Deltas nodded and added their agreement.
“We’re all so fucking thrilled that things with you and Mary worked out,” Fletch continued.
“So am I,” Truck said with a grin.
“And in case you’ve forgotten with all the head banging you’ve done over the last month, Rayne still wants to get married at the same time as Mary,” Ghost informed him. “Even if you’re already officially man and wife.”
“And the biggest wedding ceremony this town has ever seen is currently being planned,” Beatle said.
“And it’s not going to be in my backyard,” Fletch quipped.
Everyone chuckled.
“How’d we get so lucky?” Truck asked, looking around at his friends. “Seriously, not too long ago we were like Trigger’s team. Ready and willing to sleep with any women who wanted us. We didn’t have any connections, we were free and easy, living for our next mission. And now look at us.”
“Yeah. Look at us. We’ve got the best fucking friends, children, homes, family. I don’t care how it happened, but I’ll fight anyone to the death who tries to take it from me,” Coach said vehemently.
“Me too,” Beatle agreed.
“Me three,” Blade chimed in.
Fletch held out the hand that wasn’t holding his son. “To friends and family,” he said softly.
Truck put his hand on top of Fletch’s. “To friends and family.”
One by one, the other men did the same until they were all standing in a circle with their arms outstretched, hand to hand.
“Look at them,” Rayne said with a contented sigh. She and the other women were in the kitchen, laughing and talking.
Everyone turned and stared at the men in the living room. They were standing together, obviously having a moment.
Rayne put her arm around Mary and pulled Kassie, who was still holding Kate, into their little embrace too. The other women quickly followed suit, linking arms and staring at the men in the other room.
Mary smiled when Casey reached out and pulled Bryn into their huddle. The other woman hadn’t realized what was going on, and probably didn’t understand why Casey was suddenly holding her hand, either.
“Thank you all for being so amazing,” Rayne said softly.
“I didn’t have many friends, other than Mary, before I got together with Ghost, and now I can’t imagine not having you all in my life.
We need to promise not to let anything come between us.
I know the thing with me and Mary got out of hand and involved all of you, and I promise not to do that again.
I need you all in my life. Any kids I might have need all you aunts in their lives.
We need to swear right now we’ll always be friends, no matter what happens in our futures or where we might end up, even if it’s in the middle of nowhere. ”
“Like Rathdrum, Idaho?” Bryn asked. “That’s in the middle of nowhere.”
Everyone chuckled.
“Exactly like Rathdrum, Idaho,” Rayne told her.
“I’ve never had friends,” Bryn commented.
She didn’t seem upset about it. She was just stating a fact.
“I didn’t really think I was missing much, as I don’t like painting my nails or don’t really see the need to sleep in someone else’s house when my bed is super comfortable.
But when Fletch called last week to say the party was postponed, I talked to Annie after he and Fish were done.
She cried.” Bryn was whispering now. “She said that she’d been so looking forward to me coming to visit, so we could talk about how deafness occurs and what kind of life the deaf lead.
No one has ever been so upset that they wouldn’t get to see me that they cried.
And all of you gave me that. I know I’m different and weird, but it’s like you guys don’t even care. ”
“We don’t care,” Harley said softly. “We’re all weird in our own way.”
“True enough,” Sadie said with a laugh.
“So we’re agreed?” Rayne asked.
“Agreed!” everyone chimed in.