Page 49 of A Fate of Blood and Magic
“It’s where we put crazy old people who threaten to haunt their grandkids,” Ryenne said.
“Lord, have mercy,” Grandma Richter muttered. The fae eyed her curiously when she did the sign of the cross. “I don’t know what I did to deserve you.”
“You must’ve been really good in your previous life,” Ryenne said.
I rolled my eyes, ready for Grandma Richter’s long-winded, Bible-quoting rant.
Before she could start, I stood, taking Elias’s hand when he stood beside me.
“Why don’t we get on with our celebration?” I asked.
“I’d be happy to if I knew what we were celebrating,” Brenton said.
“Why don’t we show you?” I asked.
From Elias’s inner pocket of magic, he pulled out a white shirt I’d made for Brenton. It wasn’t a very good shirt, with my letters being messy, lopsided, and various sizes. When I’d shown the kids, Kieren had offered to make a shirt himself. While I was certain his would’ve come out better than mine, I enjoyed the idea of giving Brenton this awful masterpiece.
Brenton took the offered shirt while Ryenne recorded it with her phone. Brenton eyed me suspiciously before he unfolded it. Once he read the words on the shirt, he shot up, pushing his seat back as he rushed the few steps to me. His arms circled my neck, but then he reached for Elias to hug us both.
“Are you truly?” he asked.
“Truly, what?” Everly asked.
Brenton stepped back to show those we loved most his shirt with the wordsWorld’s Best Unclescrawled on the front. He worked quickly to remove the shirt he was wearing to slip on the one I’d made for him.
I laughed in surprise at the evident pride when he looked down at the shirt.
“You’re pregnant?” A smile overtook Donnie’s face.
When I nodded, the room broke out in loud chatter. When we finished hugging everyone, including Leah, who seemed to feel a little out of place with our loud group, I pulled out two pieces of folded paper from the pocket of my jeans.
I held them over my head, and everyone quieted. “Ry,Donnie, y’all have been my family and have loved me since we were in diapers . . .”
“We’ve tolerated you,” Ryenne said, speaking over me. Nate covered her mouth with his hand.
“I hate that I didn’t tell y’all the minute I found out, but I wanted to tell Elias first.” That wasn’t exactly true since Ryenne and George figured it out, and I’d told Javier, but whatever. Semantics, right? “To make it up to you, you each get to reveal something about the pregnancy.”
Ryenne clapped when I handed her and Donnie their pieces of paper. I instructed Ryenne to go first. She took her time, unfolding it dramatically with Nate drumming on the table.
“Just open it already,” Brenton urged, which only made Ryenne move slower. “Leah, am I having a little niece or nephew?”
Leah pursed her lips and lifted a shoulder. With her fae-like swiftness, Everly plucked the paper from Ryenne’s hand before any of us realized what she intended to do.
“Hey!” Ryenne shouted.
Everly held the paper over her head, where Ryenne couldn’t reach. My friends were a tiny bit insane, and I loved them for it. I loved it even more for the girls, Javier, and our boys, who’d grow up with such a fun but loyal group.
“If I give this back to you, you’ll tell us the gender. Right away,” Everly said.
Ryenne rolled her eyes. “Give me the paper, or I’m hogging the little one and never letting you hold it.”
“It?”Elias said with a scoff.
“I see why I’m your favorite, Mama Teddy,” Aidas said, slipping beside me.
I peered up at him, the mischievous quirk of his smile making mine grow. “All our friends are insane.”
Kieren set a hand on his friend’s shoulder.“You fit right in.”
