Page 78 of About Last Knight

She smiles at him, but he’s white as a ghost. He turns to me. “How do you know Harley?”

I pinch my eyebrows together. “She’s Jackson’s stepdaughter. How do you know Darian?” I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned her name before.

Just then, the doors from the pool area open and Darian walks in. She smiles at me, but her face drops as soon as she sees Declan.

Tears well in her eyes and her hand goes over her mouth. “Declan?”

Jackson looks between Darian and Declan, as do I. Both of us are clueless as to what’s going on.

Jackson walks over to a clearly shaken Darian and pulls her into an embrace. “What’s wrong, sugar? How do you know him?”

Darian looks up again at Declan as if she’s seeing a ghost. Declan looks like he’s going to pass out. I can see a thin coat of sweat now covering his forehead.

She pulls out of Jackson’s embrace and starts walking toward Declan with tears streaming down her face. She initially touches his face, seemingly making sure he’s real, but then reaches up and hugs him. He reluctantly hugs her back. She whispers, “Declan, it’s so good to see you.” She squeezes him hard. I see tears coming down his cheeks and he eventually hugs her just as hard.

Jackson and I look at each other in complete shock. What the hell is going on? How do they know one another?

Harley puts her hand on Darian’s shoulder. “Mom, what’s going on? How do you know Melissa’s boyfriend?”

Darian pulls away. She looks at me and then up at Declan. “You’re dating Melissa?”

He nods.

She tilts her head to the side. “You didn’t make the connection until just now?”

He shakes his head. “I had no idea at all.”

She tries to stop a smile, but fails miserably. Eventually, Declan smiles too. The two of them seem to be amused by something the rest of us are clueless about.

Darian grabs Harley’s hand and pulls her close. “Harley, you haven’t seen Declan since you were about four or five, so you probably don’t remember him, but this is Declan McGinley, your father’s brother. Declan’s your uncle.”

I think Jackson and I both might need to sit, as both of our chins drop to the floor.

Jackson looks at Darian and then at Declan. “I thought she said your last name is McGinley?”

Darian responds, “They had different fathers. After Scott’s father passed, his mother remarried and they had Declan.”

Declan looks at Harley. More tears stream down his cheeks. “Darian, she looks just like you the last time I saw you. It’s unbelievable.”

Darian smiles. “What are you saying, Declan? I don’t still look like that?”

He lets out a small laugh through his tears. He holds out his arms to Harley and looks at her in question. “Can I?”

She slowly nods. He hugs her hard, and now both he and Darian are completely covered in tears.

“Mommy?” We hear Scotty’s sweet little voice. He walks down the stairs, holding a stuffed animal, seemingly just waking from a nap.

“I’m right here, baby.” Harley holds out her arms and he runs into them.

Declan looks between Scotty and Ellie wide-eyed. More tears streaming down his cheeks. He then turns to Darian. “They’re your grandkids? You have grandkids?”

She nods as she reaches for and squeezes Ellie close. “This is Ellie. She’s almost two. And this…this…” She starts getting choked up, unable to speak.

Harley speaks for her. “This is Scott Lawrence Cooper. We call him Scotty.”

Declan is visibly shaking. I’m not sure what to do. I grab for his hand and he tightly squeezes mine back.

He looks at Harley and whispers, “They’re so beautiful.”

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