Page 83 of Peaches & Pistols

That woman’s eating up having two grandbabies like candy.

Harper unfolds the valentine and hands it to Mia. Tears flood her blue eyes, and she wraps her new daughter in a mama-bear hug.

“I love it, Harper! It’s beautiful. You made this yourself? It looks like you bought it at a fancy shop!”

Harper nods rapidly. Mia’s a world-class mom, always making the girls feel seen and appreciated.

“Thank you, I’m going to keep it forever. Can I hang it on the fridge?” Mia asks.

Harper agrees and glows with happiness as her new mom cherishes the gift she made with her own two hands.

“Everly, did you make any valentine’s at school?” Mia asks, her mini-me a mess of yogurt and peanut butter.

“No,” she chirps, happy as can be.

Mia gives me one of those, did you hear that, parent looks, and I shrug. That one’s a firecracker, we never know what’s going to come out of her.

After everyone makes a mandatory bathroom stop, we pile into my truck and head to Lucky Spurs Ranch.

Walter opens the door with a flourish and carts the munchkins into the kitchen to get them all sugared up, and we make our way to the den where the adults have gathered with a smaller spread of chocolate covered fruits, and both alcoholic and non-alcoholic sparkling wines.

“I’m just saying it’s weird,” Connor not-so-quietly whispers to Delilah.

“Maybe a little, but as long as she’s happy, right?” she responds to her best-friend-turned-husband.

“Who are we talking about?” Olivia butts in, nosey as always.

“Quincy,” Connor and Delilah say at the same time.

“What’s going on?” James says, mouth full of chocolate, picking my little sister up like she weighs nothing and moving her aside.

Liv slaps his chest, and he feigns mortal injury. I give him my signature “knock it the fuck off” glower and he holds his hands up in mock surrender.

“Quincy’s in Laramie visiting Lucas,” Izzy clarifies, perched in Reid’s lap.

“Is that a bad thing?” Mia interjects, and I’m damn proud she’s become comfortable enough with the family to ask.

“It’s not bad…” Delilah says.

“But it’s a little weird that she made a special trip to Laramie, in the dead of winter, to spend time with her dead husband’s best friend, on Valentine’s day,” Liv so-helpfully adds.

Leave it to my sister to say what everyone’s thinking.

“How about we mind our own fuckin’ business?” Reid says with a finality no one dares question.

“Sure, sure. But can we get up in Grey’s business for a hot minute, because I think someone’s been keeping secrets,” Liv piles on.

James shuffles over to sit thigh-to-thigh with her posing like a gossip-hungry schoolgirl.

Mia buries her face in my bicep and starts shaking. Goddamn it, they’ve taken it too far. Just as I’m about to rip some heads off, I hear her laughter.

“Welcome to the family, honey. It’s a fuckin’ circus, but we take care of our own,” I say.

Reid dips his head in solidarity and the women explode with questions at top volume.

“I have to go get Cecelia and Walter, they’re gonna want to hear this, unless you want to say it all twice.” Olivia jumps to her feet, already moving for the kitchen.

I drag my hands down my face. “Y’all are relentless.”