Page 127 of Loving the CEO

"Yeah," I said, looking at Leo, "since when are we following the rules?"

He held his hands up. "Whatever. I’ll make sure Jake knows I had no part in this."

We didn't bother ringing the bell because Jeannie had told us they were leaving the door open, so we simply walked inside. There was a lot of commotion coming from the living room.

We all had our gifts for Abe delivered here directly at Jeannie's request. It was madness in the living room. Natalie was sitting down next to Jake. Spencer was holding little Halsey while his son was running around the room.

"Perfect. You three are here too," Abe said. "Welcome."

"Happy birthday!" I kissed his cheek and then glanced down at the gifts. "Sorry. This is for Halsey."

Abe grinned. He looked a lot like Leo when he did that. "She's upstaging me today, and I absolutely approve of it."

"Granddad, when are you ever going to start enjoying birthdays?" Leo asked.

"I haven’t so far, so I think that ship has sailed."

Jake laughed, looking at Nick, and then his eyes fell on the bag I was holding. Leo opened his mouth, but Jake waved his hand.

"Don't worry. Literally no one listened."

"Oh, but we've only got two great-grandkids to spoil," Jeannie said. "You can't expect self-restraint from us."

"That's fair," Jake said.

"Hell yeah. Now that I have a green light, I plan to buy even more stuff," I exclaimed.

I went straight to Natalie, sitting down next to her. "How are you feeling?"

"You're so adorable," Natalie said. "You don't have to check on me every day, but I feel great."

I shrugged. "I just want to make things as easy as possible for you."

After she'd given birth, we’d all rallied around them, bringing food and stuff. Of course, the Whitleys could afford to pay someone to cook, and Jake had done just that, but we also wanted to spoil them in those early days.

"When should we bring stuff from the kitchen?" Nick asked.

Jeannie stood proudly. "No need. The catering team is already in there."

Nick whistled. "Well, well, I never thought you'd announce that with a smile."

"I like to adapt to the times. Besides, there's a huge benefit to someone else doing all the cooking. I can focus on the guests."

Everyone was sitting around the living room. I kept eyeing Spencer for signs that he planned to let go of Halsey, but he was still under her spell.

Abe cleared his throat. "I'd like to thank all of you for coming today. This isn't exactly a speech, but I wanted to say a few words. I'm very grateful to be surrounded by all of you. Nothing in this world matters to me and Jeannie more than our family. I'm proud of all of you, of how far you've come, of the great relationships you have with one another, and for finding a better half. I knew that eventually everyone would."

"Hey, I'm still the last man standing," Nick said.

"For now," Jeanie whispered, smiling at him.

I quickly looked around the room. Every single person was fighting laughter. Well, except Nick. His poker face was so obvious that I knew he was working hard to school his features.

"And even though I don't particularly love celebrating,” Abe continued, “I do like that it gives us an occasion to come around together. I thank you all. I love being in this room gathered with everyone. Now, let's dig in," he finished as the catering team brought in huge platters.

"Yes, let's," Nick said.

"Oh, not so fast, young man," Jeannie said, walking straight to him. "I’ve been meaning to tell you that a friend of mine, Christine, introduced me to her granddaughter."

---