Page 79 of The Sweetest Mistake

“Let’s see. Harper is yours, right?” the waiter said.

“Or so he likes to think,” Connor teased. “It’s really the other way around.”

“Right. Well, Harper said to tell you she’ll wait up for you.”

“Oooohhhhh,” Liam said. “Somebody’s going to get lucky tonight.”

“Yeah, and it’s obviously not you!” Finn said.

Liam gave him the finger, which they all ignored. This was typical behavior for the brothers, and even Will seemed to be getting used to it.

“So, which one of you is Connor?” the waiter asked, looking between the two remaining brothers.

Liam raised his hand, and Connor smacked it down. “That would be me,” Connor said firmly.

“Okay. Julia said to have fun and that she’ll talk to you in the morning.”

It might not have been as enticing a message as Finn and Will had gotten, but Connor smiled all the same. He could read between the lines, and he understood what Julia had been trying to tell him. She knew how much he’d needed a night out, and she was giving him free rein to stay as long as he wanted. Which meant that she was sensitive to his needs and that she trusted him. That was huge in his book, especially since Cam had come back into his life. The fact that Julia trusted him made his heart warm. Maybe love was the right word to describe this feeling after all.

“Now, let me think,” the waiter said, tapping his index finger to his chin. “There was one other message.”

All heads turned toward Liam, who wore an expression of surprise and hope.

“McKayla, the pretty blonde one.”

“Yeah, that’s right. What did she say?” Liam asked, not bothering to hide his impatience.

“She said, and I quote, ‘Keep your nose out of my business.’”

Before Liam could react, Finn and Connor burst out laughing. Will was the only one who had the decency to look sorry.

“Are you serious, man?” Liam asked as if the waiter might have gotten him confused with someone else.

“You’re Liam, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Well, then, yes. Sorry, man.” And with that, the waiter turned and walked away. A few minutes later, Liam left, not even bothering with excuses.

“I gotta go,” he mumbled, and that was it.

“Gosh, that sucks,” Will said, shaking his head.

Connor snickered but not so much about Liam as about Will using the word “gosh.” He was as straight as an arrow, that one.

“He’ll get over it,” Finn said and then finished off the last of his beer. “You guys about ready to go? I’ve got a pretty lady waiting at home for me.”

“Me too,” Will said.

“I guess that leaves me, huh?” Connor said, although being alone had never really bothered him. In fact, he usually enjoyed it, or he had until recently. But suddenly, the idea of sitting there drinking alone didn’t appeal to him. He’d much rather be going home to Julia. Damn! Maybe I really do love her.

They’d made Will the designated driver, although they’d all driven there separately. It turned out that none of them had drunk enough to need Will’s services, which was probably a good thing. But it also made Connor feel old. They were all starting to “settle down” even though none of them were married yet. He’d bet money that it wouldn’t be long before Finn proposed to Harper. And now Connor had Ava and Julia. And if Liam had his way, he’d be tangled up with McKayla before long.

What a crazy thought. Just a matter of months ago, Connor had been as free as a bird, flitting between women and not even considering settling down. And now he was the father of a beautiful baby girl, who, if he were being honest, he missed like crazy whenever they were apart.

Suddenly, he didn’t want to be free as a bird anymore. He wanted to be the involved dad— a man who was there for his daughter from now until forever. But when he looked into the future, it wasn’t just Ava’s face he saw. He saw Julia’s face too.

Oh. My. God. I do love her!