Mary blushed, making her face appear even more beautiful. “How did you get them to stop?”
“One night I put on the biggest pair of slacks I owned. Then I took a solid oak board and positioned it just so in my pants.”
“You mean—?”
“One at a time, they each came in and did their usual slap on my butt. Hurt their hands just enough to make my point. You should’ve heard Jack. He actually asked me if I had started working out. It was priceless. They never stopped, but their hard slaps became gentle pats. Well, at least in the kitchen.”
They both fell into a fit of laughter. The baby whined a bit, and they both bit back their chuckles. Austin’s three granddads and three dads came frantically running into the kitchen.
Her eldest son Daniel spoke first, “Is the baby all right? We heard a commotion.”
Carol smiled, gazing down at Austin, who was already drifting back to sleep. “We’re just fine, son.”
Tom, Will, and Jack came up behind her, gazing at their new grandchild. Their pride was easy to see.
Tom kissed her cheek. “Sweetheart, our grandson is something, isn’t he?”
“Yes, he is.”
Jack stroked her hair. “He’s got Daniel’s eyes, darling. Your eyes.”
She grinned. “And Craig’s nose, sweetheart. Your nose.”
They all laughed.
Will rubbed her shoulders. “But he’s a gorgeous baby, just like our daughter-in-law. Don’t you agree, honey?”
“He is beautiful just like Mary.” She nodded, recalling so many memories since her wedding night.
Her three amazing men—Jack, Tom, and Will—had given her so much it was impossible to even measure or put into words. And having her three boys had multiplied her joy
on top of that. In her new role as a grandmother, she would enter the next chapter of her wonderful life in Wilde, Nevada.
THE END