Angel was in the kitchen holding court and insisting she was too uncomfortable to sit down right now because of the position the baby was in. Because he was never far from her side, Adam was keeping a close watch on her while chatting with Olivia and Jake. Ellie, Kate, and Sharon all had their hands pressed to Angel’s belly and were softly laughing in delight as the baby kicked for them. Justin, Chris, Andrew, and Liam had all taken over Luke’s dining room to sit around the table and chat and that’s where he found himself drifting as well. It was a good spot for sitting down and taking a breather as well as keeping an eye on Olivia through the wide doorway into the kitchen in case she needed anything.

Grabbing a beer, he headed into the dining room.

The guys all turned and smiled at him as he came in.

“Come, sit, join us,” Chris said in a humorously magnanimous way, obviously fully enjoying the irony of acting like a host towards Luke while in Luke’s house. Next to him, Justin snorted and rolled his eyes. Watching the two of them was always so interesting because they looked so alike, shared the same girlfriend, and yet often acted very differently. Although he’d been told they were rubbing off on each other a little. Justin was apparently a lot more relaxed than he used to be and Chris less lackadaisical. They were sitting across from each other, with Andrew next to Chris and Justin beside Liam.

“Thanks for having us all over,” Justin said as Luke took the open seat next to him at the foot of the table. He could have sat at the head but then his back would have been to the kitchen. Now he could see straight in to the other room and keep an eye on Olivia. She was working on her second glass of wine so when she got low he wanted to be ready to get her some water. “I know it can’t be fun having all of us crashing in on you like this.”

“It’s okay,” Luke said, although he appreciated the sentiment. “I think it’s helping her to feel more comfortable in general, plus you all aren’t so bad.”

They all chuckled at that.

“Plus, having us all here to boss around helps,” Andrew said—although Luke noticed he said it quietly. “Means she’s not taking it all out on you.”

“I wouldn’t mind if she did,” Luke said without thinking. He winced, thinking they might tease him about being her bitch, the way his brother had, but all of them were looking at him with a kind of hushed respect and admiration. Maybe even a little bit of awe.