and I will get this exam done. Upstairs?”
“Oh, do you want me to take Danny so you two can concentrate on the dog?” Pru asked, reaching for her little brother.
Evie inched back with a playful warning look. “You will not take this bundle from my arms and expect to live.”
Pru cracked up. “Okay, but he does get heavy.”
“Unless you think he’ll go crazy when he sees Judah?” Evie said to Molly.
“He’s calm now,” she answered. “And you look, whoa, happy.”
“Any day now, Prudence,” Yiayia called.
“Coming.” She blew her brother a kiss. “Be good, Dan the Man.” She took off with the grandmas, leaving Molly and Evie with the baby.
“She’s incredible, Molly,” Evie said, looking after the coltish teen, whose black hair swung like a pendulum as she left. “Beautiful and sweet.”
“She gets better every year,” Molly agreed. “I’d say she’s the light of my life, then along came her father and brother. Now my life is so much…brighter.”
A twinge of something that might be considered envy tapped at Evie’s heart. Not that Molly didn’t deserve every happiness, but wow. She had every happiness.
“I can see why. And, uh, Yiayia’s quite the character, isn’t she?” Evie added on a whisper.
“You have no idea.” Molly gave an exaggerated eye roll.
“I think I do.” She laughed and stroked Danny’s sweet little cheek. “Look up the word sledgehammer, and there she is, ready to smash.”
Molly laughed. “Subtlety is not her strong suit.”
“Ya think?”
“I guess you’ve figured out they’re matchmakers.”
“Not much figuring out involved. Yiayia mentioned Declan before she said hello to me.”
Molly laughed. “It’s kind of hard not to have the whole family rooting for you and Dec, Evie. You’ve known each other forever. Aunt Colleen said she always thought you two would get married.”
Declan’s mother thought that? “The whole family?” she whispered playfully to the baby. “Even you, little man?”
He replied with another drool-filled giggle, then dropped his head onto her shoulder and stuck his thumb in his mouth, his fine hair tickling Evie’s jaw.
“Oh!” she exclaimed as they started up the stairs. “My poor heart.”
“Your poor ovaries,” Molly volleyed back. “My sister-in-law Beck is four months pregnant and totally blames Danny and my nieces, baby Annabelle and Fiona. We’re pretty sure Darcy, Cassie, and Grace are hard at work on the next Kilcannon-Mahoney baby boom.”
A Mahoney baby boom. Something slipped inside Evie’s chest. Something that had been slipping around an awful lot lately.
“You sure look like a natural with him,” Molly whispered with a jab of her elbow. “You know it’s not too late for you. You and someone…right out there in the garage.”
“Ouch. That sledgehammer hurts, Yiayia Jr.”
“Come on, Evie. It’s so nice to see you and Declan together again.”
“We’re not together. He’s fixing my warped windows…” She narrowed her eyes. “Which is not a euphemism for what you’re thinking. So, can we talk about the MRIs I emailed you, Dr. Bancroft?”
“Only because that topic is easier for you, and you’re holding my baby.”
“Much easier, and don’t worry, I won’t drop him.”
Molly smiled. “Okay, yes, I did get the images, and is it wrong to be excited about standing next to you while you perform a ventral slot? Because this is probably a career highlight for little old small-town vet me.”
On far more comfortable turf now, Evie shared the surgery plan, with Molly asking all the right questions. By the time they reached Granddaddy’s room, Evie was certain she’d made the perfect decision asking for Molly’s assistance.
“Hey, Judah,” Molly whispered as they walked in quietly, both noticing that Granddaddy was sound asleep. “How you feeling, buddy?”
Judah lifted his head from where it rested on Granddaddy’s arm.
“He looks comfortable,” Molly said. “Are you hanging with your pal, Judah?”
Evie stayed a few feet away with the baby, giving Molly a chance to establish herself with the dog who watched her warily.
“He’s protective,” Molly mused.
Danny’s head suddenly popped up from Evie’s shoulder. “Mmmbah! Mmmbah!”
The sound made Judah get right up on all fours, his gaze shifting to Danny with one quick bark.
“Not all dogs are named Meatball,” Molly told Danny.
Evie laughed. “How do you get Meatball from that?”
“I speak Danny.”
“Mmmbah!” He hit a higher, louder note, his hand outstretched to the dog, who immediately forgot Granddaddy. Judah took a few steps to the edge of the bed, tail flipping excitedly.
Granddaddy stirred at the disruption, then slowly opened his eyes, bringing them to focus on Evie and Danny. “Did I die and go to heaven?”
The dog reacted by putting his head back and letting out