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  “It won’t be easy, you know. Kate and your family still have to be told.”

  “I think Kevin already knows, at least some of it. He may have guessed the rest.”

  “Then don’t you think you should call him? He must have a thousand questions.”

  “I can’t call, not about something as important as this. I’ll stay here until you’ve had time to make things right with both your daughters, then we’ll go to Boston together. I figure we can manage a June wedding, don’t you?”

  “Brandon, June is just around the corner.”

  He grinned at her stunned expression. “Then I’d say you’d better get a move on, woman.”

  Epilogue

  “Ohmigosh,” Dana murmured just as Brandon was about to cut the tiered wedding cake that was decorated with a frothy confection of white frosting and pink rosebuds.

  “Sis?” Sammy said, an expression of alarm on his face as she clutched her belly.

  Brandon heard the mix of anxiety and surprise in Dana’s voice and immediately dropped the sterling silver cake knife. He shot her a look of pure delight. “Now?”

  A grin split her face. “Now,” she confirmed. “This great-grandchild of yours is definitely coming.”

  “By golly, I knew this was going to be a day to remember,” Brandon said and started giving orders. “Jason, get the car. Kevin, you tell the guests they’ll have to excuse us.”

  Dana looked him straight in the eye. “Don’t you dare ruin this reception on my account.”

  “Ruin it! Hell, girl, this is the best thing that could have happened. Now I’ll be able to leave on my honeymoon without worrying about missing the big event.”

  Forgetting that he’d just given the assignment to Kevin, he grabbed the microphone from the band-leader in mid-song and called for silence. “Well, folks, I guess you all know we wanted you with us on this special day because we care about you. It’s a mighty big blessing to have so many friends and family around us on a day when we celebrate the true meaning of the wedding vows. There’s been a little hitch in our schedule, though. I’m afraid you’re going to have to excuse us. We’ve got a baby to deliver.”

  As a murmur of excitement spread through the room, he again asked for quiet. “While we get ourselves to the hospital, I hope you’ll all stay here and enjoy yourselves and drink a toast to the newest Halloran, our fourth generation.”

  * * *

  At the hospital it was difficult to tell who was more impatient—Brandon, Kevin or Sammy. They paced the waiting room, while Elizabeth and Lacey exchanged looks of amusement. Ellen and Kate hovered nearby, still awkward around their new family but clearly wanting to be a part of this special moment.

  “Why the devil don’t they tell us something?” Brandon grumbled.

  “First babies generally take their own sweet time,” Elizabeth reminded him. “I’m sure they’ll let us know when there’s anything to tell us. Why don’t we go have a nice cup of tea to settle your nerves?”

  “A stiff scotch couldn’t settle my nerves,” he said. “I don’t recall it taking this long for Kevin or Jason to come into this world.”

  “Probably because you were at work on both occasions,” Kevin reminded him dryly. “Maybe you and Elizabeth should leave before you miss your plane.”

  “Not on your life.” He stared down the corridor toward the delivery room. “Maybe I could get one of those gowns and just take a peek inside to see what’s happening.”

  “Bad idea,” Kevin said. “This is Jason’s big day. There’s no need for you to intrude.”

  “How would I be intruding? It’s my great-grandbaby.”

  “Which puts you two generations away from the right to be in there,” his son reminded him with a grin that had been a long time coming.

  Though Kevin had taken the events of the past few weeks far better than Brandon had anticipated, it hadn’t been easy. Once Kevin had been told the whole story, he’d swallowed any criticisms he might have had of his father or Elizabeth. He had not welcomed his new step mother as wholeheartedly as Brandon might have liked, but there had been no overt resentment. Brandon suspected he could thank Lacey and Dana for that, just as he owed them for making both Ellen and Kate feel welcome under difficult circumstances. He was proud of all of them for trying to put the past behind them.

  It had been most difficult of all for Kate, he suspected. She alone had no blood ties to her new family. But she was strong and independent, and a damned sight too cynical about romance from what he’d seen. Whatever hurts she’d suffered, it was time she let them go. She needed a new man in her life to spark things up. He might look around among the up-and-coming young men in Boston and see to that himself, once he and Lizzy got back from their honeymoon.

  “Lizzy, have you seen the doctor?” he asked worriedly. “I didn’t see him go in. Who ever heard of delivering a baby without a doctor?”

  “The doctor probably slipped in the back way just to avoid you and all your last-minute instructions,” Lacey teased.

  Sammy sidled up to him. “Come on, Grandpa Brandon. Let’s go get some cigars.”

  “I suppose we could,” he said with a last grudging glance down the hall. He looked at Elizabeth. “You suppose there’s time?”

  “More than likely,” she told him.

  “What’s that mean?”

  “It means I can’t guarantee it,” she said.

  “Then I’m not budging. What do you suppose they’ll name him? Did they tell anybody?”

  “Not me,” Sammy said. “I’ve been bugging Dana for weeks, but she wouldn’t say a word.”

  “You seem awfully certain it’s going to be a boy,” Elizabeth said. “Last I heard girls were a possibility as well.”

  Brandon shot Lizzy a pleased look, then gazed for a moment at his new daughter. “I guess they are at that,” he said, just as a nurse came out of the delivery room and started toward them.

  “You’re all here with Dana and Jason Halloran?” she asked.

  “Yes,” Brandon said. “Everything’s okay in there, isn’t it?”

  “Everything is just fine. If you’d like, you can come with me. Dana and Jason want you to see your new grandchild.”

  Brandon was the first one down the hall. This great-grandbaby of his was going to have a fine life. He’d personally guarantee that. He fumbled with the ties on the gown he’d been given, then struggled with the mask. He seemed to be all thumbs. He felt Elizabeth’s fingers nudging his aside, then her sure touch at the fastenings.

  Then the nurse was opening the door to Dana’s private room. Brandon stepped inside, his gaze going at once toward Dana and his grandson. Jason was holding a tiny bundle cradled in his arms.

  As they stepped closer, he could see Dana’s radiant face and felt as though his own heart would fill to bursting with sheer joy at having a new little Halloran born on this day that would always be special to all of them.

  “Dad, Granddad, Mom, Elizabeth, and Sammy,” Jason said slowly, beaming with pride. His glance included Ellen and Kate, though he didn’t mention their names. “I’d like you to meet our daughter.”

  “Oh, my,” Lacey said softly, taking Dana’s hand and squeezing it. “A girl. Darling, that’s wonderful.”

  Dana looked at each one of them, then said, “If you don’t mind, we’d like to name her Elizabeth Lacey Halloran… We’ll call her Beth.”

  Brandon watched as his new bride and his beloved daughter-in-law exchanged a misty-eyed look. Truth be told, his own eyes seemed to be stinging just a bit.

  “I would be honored,” Lizzy said.

  “So would I,” Lacey added.

  Elizabeth Lacey Halloran, Brandon thought with a sigh as he gazed into that tiny, precious face. A new generation, named for the old and made strong by their love.

  Indeed, he thought, as he took Elizabeth’s hand in his, the best was yet to come.

  * * * * *

  #1 New York Times bestselling author

  Sherryl Woods
r />   draws readers back into the world of strong friendships and heartfelt emotions in Serenity, South Carolina

  Determined to build a new life for her family after her divorce, Adelia Hernandez has bought a home in the historic Swan Point neighborhood of Serenity. Promoted to manager of Main Street's most fashionable boutique, she feels revitalized and ready for a fresh start as a single mom. But barely into this new independent phase, she crosses paths with the sexiest man to hit Serenity in years.

  Gabe Franklin, back in town to make amends for past mistakes, has no intention of settling down, but Adelia's proving irresistible. Cheered on by their friends, “the Sweet Magnolias,” Gabe is bringing long-absent passion and laughter into Adelia's life. To his surprise—and hers—sometimes a rolling stone is just what it takes to build the rock-solid foundation of a family.

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  ISBN: 978-1-4603-1777-8

  CHERISH

  Copyright © 2014 by Sherryl Woods

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  All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.

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