188 - Grandbaby

*Daddy, I’m calling to let you know that your name is now Grandpa. – Priscilla*

**May 2021**

Molly had been riding on a high ever since he had gotten the call that his first granddaughter had been born. The restrictions had been loosened at the local hospital and patients could now have one visitor at a time. Obviously, it had been her husband that had been with her.

Just as it had been Molly with each of his pretties when they had their babies earlier in the year. Case had her little boy while the national lockdown was still in place. Tammy had used her credentials and was there to support her.

The hospital changed their regulations between Mike’s birth and when Noel had Peyton, allowing Molly to see his daughter take her first breath. For only the second time, he cut the cord at his child’s birth. When Bridget was born a few weeks later, Alicia had cried with him because their Becks was not there.

Molly had facetimed with Priscilla a few hours after she gave birth to her first daughter. It was not the same as being there, but it would have to do for now. At least until he got a message stating that the new family were on their way home to the new house on the new cul-de-sac.

After the incident in August, Priscilla had moved back into her old room. She and her husband made a trip to the courthouse for a marriage license. His military status got the waiting period waived, and he moved in shortly after that.

With her husband still in the Army, the new house had been put on hold for a house for Athos and Michelle. When her grandparents’ deaths, Athos proposed, and they petitioned for custody. With the help from Celt and his family law firm, the young couple quickly received custody.

The houses on the new cul-de-sac were all rather large with a minimum of six bedrooms each. Aramis wanted to make sure that there were enough rooms for any kids that they had and offices for both him and his wife.

Michelle wanted the three boys to have their own spaces and to be able to accommodate any future kids. Athos and his new family were settled into their new house, the boys were adjusting as well as could be expected. They spent time with Carly and her horses working through the issues left by their father and then the new family dynamics.

Camille would be moving back home next year after she graduates. Kilo was already talking to her and Darkness about what they wanted. The man was willing to uproot his entire life and move for his woman. Molly could only hope that all of his little pretties could find a man to love them like that.

The house for Priscilla was put on hold while the one for Athos took precedent. Her modern farmhouse would be completed in late spring, but Cookie was now saying early summer. Molly was happy that they would be there for at least the first little bit of the baby’s life.

Priscilla would have her moms there to help her navigate the first days and weeks of motherhood. But being the oldest of twenty children, there was not much that she did not already know about babies and children.

He drove the old farm truck over to the pond in the pasture and parked just on this side of the small grove of trees. Getting out of the stopped truck, he walked through the grove and saw a few patches of snow that were still clinging to the shadows.

The last time that he was here was the night that Reba was born. He had not come back, partially for shame and partially for fear.

A light wind blew through the trees, and he shivered slightly. The sky above him was clear and crisp with only the occasional wispy cloud floating above the small pond. Pulling his jacket a little tighter around him as he sat down on the little wooden bench.

Sighing, he turned his face up to the sky and smiled. There were so many places on the farm that he felt the presence of Becks. This is one of them.

“Hey pretty’” he whispered to the sky. “I’m sure you know; we have our first grandbaby. She’s got Jess’s eyes. She looks so much like Priss did when she was a baby.”

“Eliza graduates in a few weeks, but she did not want a big party at the clubhouse. She didn’t patch either, no shock there. She does want to have a big barbecue out at the house.”

“Trisha compiled all your recipes and made a cookbook for everyone. It started off as just for the pretties and littles. A bunch of the old ladies wanted copies. We ended up having to buy a hundred copies.”

He chuckled.

“Mia offered to carry them in her little retail area, but Trisha refused. Now the old ladies are making a cookbook to sell as a fundraiser.”

“You’d be so proud of Open Arms and everything that they do now. Dixie opened one in Austin and Camille said that Gator’s wife wanted to start one in Baton Rouge. I guess it’s true that you never know how much you change the world until the end of your life.”

“The pretties and the littles still miss you. I caught several of them in the media room the other day watching home movies. There was a video that Pops took at Priscilla’s first birthday. I didn’t even know that the video existed.”

“Case and Noel have moved into the big room,” he sighed again. “I miss having you in bed. But I like having a full bed.”

His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he opened his eyes to pull it out and look at the screen. Smiling, he saw the notification that the gate to the compound was opened. Swiping open the Wolf Pack App he saw Priscilla’s Jeep pulling into the driveway. Her husband was driving and as always, he held his hand out the window to wave at the camera.

Molly could picture him looking around to make sure none of the little were around. When he was sure that the coast was clear, his wave changed only briefly as he flipped off the camera.

Unable to help himself, he chuckled and then flipped off the phone. Not that the younger man could see it, but it made Molly feel better.

“I promise to come see you more often… without the gun from now on. I’m sorry that I was ever that weak. Carly is really good. She said that taking care of the cows and horses was just another day of work.” He chuckled as he watched the Jeep as it parked, and the new parents got out and were quickly engulfed by the littles before they could get the baby out of the back seat.

“She gave me a kitten to bottle feed.”

As if sensing that the man was speaking of it, a tiny kitten head popped out of his center pocket on his hoodie. A scratchy meow called to him, and he looked at the little orange head.

“Becks, this is Odie, and I think he’s ready for his next meal.” The three-legged kitten struggled as he crawled out, screaming loudly at the large man. “I love you Becks, I always will.”

With Odie screaming at him, Molly made his way back to the pickup and then he drove home. The front door area was empty as everyone circled around the first grandbaby. Not that he could blame them.

“No,” Priscilla was telling her brothers and sisters, “daddy gets to hold her first.”

Noel smiled at Molly as she took the kitten from him. “I’ll get him some milk, you go see the baby.”

Leaning down, he kissed her lightly on the lips, “Thank you, pretty.”

Priscilla made her way over and stood between her father and her husband. Grinning at the man in the Army hoodie and haircut, he could not help himself.

“Nice hoodie.”

“Yeah? Uncle Sam gave it to me and then my wife was kind enough to let me borrow it once her belly got too big.”

“It’ll be mine again, soon enough,” Priscilla said as she handed her daughter over.

Light brown eyes blinked open and then closed as the tiny mouth let out a big yawn. “Hey there baby pretty.”

*Thank you for coming on this journey with me as I told a modified story of my friend’s extraordinary story. Priscilla’s story will be coming up and questions will be answered. With much love, Amy*