Page 23 of O'Connell's Forever

Finn sits with Angel on his lap, and my heart fills with the warmth at the love they show one another. He might not be able to take away her past, but he will slay her demons, one by one—that I’m sure of.

Prince is delighted with his personalized knife and shows it off to his brothers, both too young to understand a thing he’s explaining to them. He refuses to remove the match from his mouth, and I wonder if this is a sign of things to come. His rebellious streak is uncannily like his father’s. Kingston and Knight sit beside him, latching on to his every word, and he proudly takes them under his wing with a patience reserved only for them. The three share so well together but not with others. That will be interesting as they grow older. I smile to myself at the thought. Finn and Angel will have their hands full, that’s for sure, and so will whoever takes those boys on.

Princess has the attitude of a typical teenager even though she’s not quite old enough to be one. She barely lifted her head from her phone until Sam surprised us with his arrival, and now she sits happily beside him, swiping through photos of events this year, each one he’s missed and each one she asked him to attend. The way she looks at him like he’s her savior is heart-warming, it’s a shame the poor boy has so many demons he can’t enjoy life and expand our family with one of his own.

Cal has been stressed all morning after Chloe woke him and Lily early. The poor child went to bed with dark hair and woke with blue. At some point during the night, she took it upon herself to use the food coloring Cal left out and dyed her hair. Her hands too.

Thankfully, she’s thrilled with it, so despite Cal’s winces every time he locks eyes with his daughter, all is well.

And no matter how many times Keen torments Chloe about looking like a Smurf, she reminds him she is in fact a real-life blue-haired Barbie. I laugh at the fight and determination behind her eyes.

Oscar and Paige have spent the morning doing their baby yoga class. When Finn asked if it was code for something else, Oscar informed us all that we should try it, to keep a positive mind for the day ahead. Nobody took him up on the idea. Not that he would offer to show us, my son is far too enthralled in his little family.

I often wonder what Bren and Sky’s children will become. Seb, Sam, and little Issac are expecting another sibling, and something tells me my son won’t stop having children until Sky has a girl. I smile to myself, remembering how Brennan had told me the exact same thing. Of course, we weren’t aware of the heartache so many years can bring.

I have my girls, the boys have extended our family and chosen wisely enough I have a daughter in each and every one of their partners.

“Ma, you have a visitor.” Cal breaks my trail of thought, and I snap my eyes up toward the door.

Teddy steps into the room, into the chaos, but all I can hear is my heart beating so fast I feel like I might pass out.

He glances round the room before his eyes land on mine. Tears blur my vision.He came, he actually came.

My legs shake as I stand and move toward him.

His pitch-black eyes stay locked on me, and I don’t miss the gulp of his Adam’s apple, and that reaction causes my lip to tremble. I open my arms to greet him, and when his scent engulfs my nostrils, I sob against his chest.

“She never gets emotional like that when she hugs me,” Con jokes on a whisper.

“Fucking dipshit!” Bren clips him on the back of the head.

Finn points his toothpick in Con’s direction. “That’s ’cause nobody likes you.”

Con scoffs. “Eve likes me. Don’t you, Eve,” he coos at his little girl nestled in Will’s arms.

“And everyone likes Pussy too, right, Dad?” Keen smiles from ear to ear.

Cal chokes on his drink.

Teddy clears his throat. “Actually, I wanted to introduce you to...” I step back as Teddy speaks, and he steps away from the door before making a motion with his hands. “My family.”

My heart soars on his words as confusion floods the room.

A young girl, with long hair so blonde it appears white, of a similar age to Sky, steps into the room, and clutching her hand is a small boy; he can’t be any older than six and his features mirror hers, the startling green eyes extraordinary.

“We brought gifts too.” She bites into her lip, and I move toward her to reassure her, but Teddy holds his arm out to stop me. “She doesn’t like being touched,” he grinds out.

“I understand, son.” I nod at him, and his shoulders relax.

“Teddy said the children would like these?” She places a bag on the floor, then bends down and lifts a bundle of cuddly toys out.

“Tigers!” Keen exclaims. “Awesome, thanks, Teddy!”

“Mm... Merry Christmas, son.” I choke on my words.

“Merry Christmas, Ma,” he replies, and the softness of his words force my eyes to close on the memories assaulting me, the hours, years I spent longing to hear those very words. I’ll remember this day for a lifetime, the first Christmas my son called me Ma. Teddy’s arms embrace me once again, as if hearing my thoughts, and it only makes me hug him tighter.

The front door slams shut, and I lift my head, as numerous footsteps approach the room.

“Who are you expecting?” Bren asks Cal.

Cal rears back, his expression blank.

“Why the fuck do we have Russians in the room?” Reece’s voice fills the room. “Oh, and Merry fucking Christmas!” he roars, and Pussy darts out of his arms and runs for cover.

THE END

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