Page 81 of From Best Friend to Bride
I’d barely sobbed twice into my palms when two strong arms wrapped around me. I would know Fred’s touch even if all my senses were blocked, and I leant into him.
“I didn’t mean to make you cry,” he murmured. “I’m sorry.”
I shook my head against his chest. “No, I… She’s the first baby, right?”
He hesitated. “Yes. The lady of the house usually names the first calf of the year, and I know you should have been the one to name her, but—”
I cut him off with another shake of my head. “The fact you gave such an honour to Nana makes me happier than if she’d been mine to name.”
He drew in a deep breath and sighed it out, resting his chin on top of my head. “I thought you’d like it,” he said softly. “There’s a little part of her in baby Judy now.”
Yeah.
Something so small, but it was something that was, in truth, so big it couldn’t be truly explained.
It meant everything to me.
I might have done the same if I didn’t think she’d give me a clip around the ear for naming a cow after her.
When she did it, it was cute. If I were to do it, it would be an insult. What a double standard.
“The next one is yours,” Fred said after a moment. He pulled back and tilted my head up until our gazes met. Then, with the softest touch in the world, he brushed his thumbs across my cheeks until he’d wiped away every last tear. “Even when you cry, you’re still my pretty wife.”
“You—”
“Nonsense. She’s ugly as heck when she cries,” Nana said, wheeling herself towards us. “You’re blinded by love if you think that face is pretty, Frederick.”
He stepped back with a grin. “That must be it, Nana.”
I whacked him on the arm and wiped my face with my sleeve. “I thought you might stay in there longer.”
She waved a thin, wrinkled hand. “They’re both asleep, and I thought I’d follow suit with a nice little nap. Besides, I needed to check on yourallergies, didn’t I?”
I sniffed, smiling tiredly at her. “I’m fine, Nana.”
She stared at me for a moment, a lifetime of wiseness in her eyes, before finally nodding her head. “Give us a push, Freddie. If I keep moving these wheels, I’m going to look like one of those gym bros on the TikTok who skip leg day.”
“That’s oddly specific,” Fred said, giving my head a gentle pat before taking hold of the handles.
“She discovered animal videos on my phone,” I replied, falling into step beside him. “She was particularly enamoured by the guy who takes his cats and dove on little journeys on his boat. Now, she has her own account and a mess of a For You page.”
“How did you get from cats on a boat to gym bros, Nana?” he asked.
“I like handsome men,” she replied smartly. “And handsome men with their muscles out are even better.”
Fred gave me a sideways look.
“I thought she was less likely to get in trouble for sexual harassment on TikTok than the actual gym,” I explained.
“A wise choice,” he concurred. “You know, Nana, I’m a handsome man. I have nice muscles.”
“I’m not going to perv on my grandson, dear,” she replied. “I’ll save that activity for my granddaughter.”
“I do not perv on Fred.”
Mostly.
Sometimes.
