mind wonât change.â
Okay. So there was a finality to that, which Megan found unsettling.
He got up from his spot. âExcuse me. Iâm going to refill my plate.â
Megan watched him walk toward the house.
Chelsea grasped her hand. âMen. Pay no attention to them. Theyâre as fickle as our weather.â
âHey,â Bash said.
Chelsea looked over at Bash and made a kissy face at him. âAll men except you, babe.â
âYouâre totally placating me right now, arenât you?â Bash asked.
âTotally,â Chelsea said.
Megan laughed. âI donât know what to make of Brady. Heâs so enigmatic. And I just canât seem to break through that wall of utter . . . stoniness.â
âOh, but itâs a sexy wall, Megan,â Chelsea said. âHang in there.â
She breathed in a sigh, then dug into her coleslaw. âI will. For now.â
Chapter 8
OKAY, SO MAYBE Brady was a total downer at this party. Which was why he didnât socialize much. He didnât bring much to the table.
But he had to admit, these cakes and cupcakes were damn good, and he sure wouldnât have wanted to miss them.
They had all gathered to celebrate and offer congratulations to Des and Emma, who, in his opinion, looked ready to give birth any second. Then again, what the hell did he know about pregnant women? Admittedly, nothing. But they were moving around just fine and seemed content and healthy. Both of them had taken the time to seek him out to tell him they were happy heâd come. They were all currently gathered in the dining room eating and laughing and talking baby names, since both were still trying to decide on names. Everyone was currently trying to suggest names.
âBeauregard,â Carter said to Logan, who gave him a frown.
âBeauregard McCormack?â Logan said. âWhat? You wanna test my kidâs spelling skills?â
Des laughed. âI kind of like it. We could shorten it to Beau.â
Logan shot Des a look. âNo.â
âI like Felicia if itâs a girl,â Megan said.
Brady grimaced and leaned over to whisper to her, âReally? Felicia?â
She turned to him. âWhatâs wrong with Felicia?â
He shrugged. âNothing.â
âItâs a cute name,â Emma said with a smile. âI like it.â
âGood,â Brady said. âYou can have it.â
Megan lifted her chin. âWell, since you and I are clearly never having babies together, then you donât have to worry about Felicia.â
Brady laughed, and that earned him a glare from Megan.
âRalph,â Carter said.
âYou do not ever get to name our future children, Carter,â Molly said.
Carter looked over at Brady and winked. Brady tried not to grin, since Molly was shooting visual daggers at Carter.
Then it became a free-for-all of names.
âSteven.â
âLane.â
âKathleen.â
âMartha.â
âAwww,â Des said, grasping Marthaâs hand after someone had shouted out her name. âWouldnât that be sweet?â
âDonât you dare name one of your babies after me,â Martha said, but Brady noticed her eyes looked a little misty.
Brady knew that after the McCormack brothersâ mother up and left them when they were younger, Martha had taken over as pseudomother for all of them. He knew how much she meant to the entire McCormack family.
âUh-oh,â Emma said from her spot on her comfortable cushioned rocking chair. She followed that up by laying her hand across her stomach.
Luke looked over at her and frowned. âUh-oh. What does âuh-ohâ mean?â
Emma looked over at Luke. âIt means my water just broke.â
Martha stood. âI need you all to excuse us for a minute. Can we clear the room?â
Megan got up and Brady followed her outside. Torches were lit and there was a fire pit to keep
Lightnin' Hopkins: His Life, Blues