I wanted to stop him, protest, because him revealing his chest had a whole different feel to it than when his brothers had done it. Logan’s eyes met mine, his head slowly inclining for just a moment before he took his shirt off and then tossed it with the others.
“Always walks the hard road, that one,” Barb said with a shake of her head.
But I didn’t care about what road Logan walked down, hard or otherwise, so I didn’t watch him on the field. My eyes followed Jasper, something he seemed to sense as he played. He’d perform some kind of spectacular mark, or dodge out of the way of an opposing player with a kind of athletic grace that didn’t seem possible, then would glance up, shooting me a quick grin. His hands snapped out and grabbed the ball from the air, hugging it tight. Biceps bulged, abs flexed, pecs swelled as he moved like a demon, kicking the ball through the goals over and over.
“God, they’re at it again,” a feminine voice said, full of world-weary amusement. I glanced up to see an older woman standing next to us, shaking her head as she surveyed the field. “When it became clear Logan had forgotten about the bags, I soon realised why.”
“Gracie!” Barb was up and out of her seat, wrapping her arms around the other woman’s diminutive form, the two hugging each other with the kind of well-worn familiarity of dear friends. “You didn’t tell me you were coming!”
“I didn’t know I was, until just before we left,” she replied, patting Barb’s arms. “I apologise, but I’ve been kept in the dark a lot, lately.” Gracie’s focus shifted my way and as soon as I saw those cool grey eyes, I knew exactly who she was. “Hello,” she said, offering me a slender hand. “I’m Grace Morrison, Ben and the rest of the boys’ mother.”
Chapter 49
“Mummy, who’s this lady?” Evie asked, turning in her seat, and catching Grace’s attention. Any cool reserve she might have been trying to maintain melted the moment she saw Ev. She blinked, then searched my daughter’s face, doing what I had used to do. Looking for signs of her father in Evie and finding them, finding so many.
“Hi Grace,” I replied and shook her hand, Barb looking a little concerned as her eyes flicked from me to her friend and back again. “I’m Lily, and this is my daughter, Everly.”
“Evie,” she corrected and then thrust out her own hand for Grace to shake. The woman just took it in both of hers and held onto Evie’s, not letting go for a second.
“Evie…” Grace’s voice was full of wonder and longing, the kind that made Ev a little uncomfortable. She wiggled away from her grandmother, coming to stand by my chair, snuggling in as close as she could go. “That’s a beautiful name for a beautiful girl.”
“Thank you.” But Evie’s mind was already ticking over. She glanced at the boys as they finalised their game, then back again. Apparently, the Morrisons had won. “Are you…?” Her brow creased, and she looked around for an adult to explain things, then provided one herself. “Are you my nanna?”
“I am.” Grace said those two words with such satisfaction, such pride, I instantly decided to like her, even if her husband was trying to ruin my bloody life. Which reminded me… I watched the guys wander over, grabbing beers from a cooler on their way, Logan in their midst.
“I had only one nanna before,” Evie said thoughtfully. “I just call her Nanna. Maybe I should call you Nanna Grace and her Nanna Carmen.”
“I’d like that very much, sweetheart. Do you mind if I take a seat?”
That was aimed more at me, I thought, but Evie nodded magnanimously.
“I’ve been building possum houses with Jimmy. Did you want to see?”
This was a test, one Grace could succeed at or fail, but she grinned then, her smile a perfect match for Jasper’s impish one.
“I’d like that very much.”
Evie bobbed her head and then scurried off to retrieve her box.
“I’m not sure the possums will ever get a chance to live in that box,” Barb told me with a chuckle. “Your girl is pleased as punch with her work. She’s very capable, too. Jimmy said she did most of the construction with little help from him. Just had to show her once and then she was on to it.”
“That’s Evie,” I said with a smile I didn’t feel, my voice sounding strained in my ears. “If she can master something easily, that’s all she wants to do. Or she’ll work really hard at something and then that’s her favourite thing. But if she’s not interested…”
“She wants to be strong,” Grace said with a little nod. “Capable. She likes to master things.” I nodded at that, her eyes holding mine. “She’s an alpha?”
Time felt like it stood still just then, all the extraneous sounds in the background falling away.
“We think so,” I replied finally.
“We?”
There were so many questions there, and the fact that Grace looked completely overwhelmed by them just made me feel a little better. I went to answer, feeling the social pressure to do so, trying to formulate words that encapsulated our situation without me vomiting out our drama all over the table, when Evie returned. The possum house was plonked on the table and my daughter began to chatter. Then the guys came over and with them came even more drama.
“You cheated, again,” Ray Bradshaw said. “Can’t expect anything better from the bloody Morrisons.”
“How the hell did we cheat, Ray?” Jasper snapped, then settled down in the chair beside me, his hand taking mine in an instant.
I felt a rush of warmth at that, something that had me blinking. His thumb brushed across my knuckles as all the guys argued about the game between swigs of beer. All excepthim. Logan’s smile faded as he watched Jasper’s thumb move over my hand. I caught him forcing himself to settle back in his chair, lift his beer and take a long, long swallow before joining in the conversation.