It was a good day there in Tate’s front yard.

Tate sat nearby in a chair Matt had brought out for her. He’d even glowered at his wife until she’d sighed and sat. Then he’d put up an umbrella to shield her from the sun, and people had come by continually to freshen her lemonade or tea.

This pregnancy had been harder on her than the other two. The early months, she’d been fine with occasional evening nausea. But after she’d moved into the second trimester, she’d been so sick in the early parts of the day she’d actually lost weight.

The baby was fine. Growing well. So that was good. Tate was at the stage where she cried a lot, which was normal too. But Beth hated to see her sister in any sort of discomfort.

They all did.

Family had simply gathered around her in a protective knot. Of course that had driven Tate, who was used to being the one in charge, insane. Which was just too bad because people loved her too damned much to let her be any more uncomfortable than she had to be.

But it was nice having Tate all to herself for a bit. It’d been a while since they’d been able to really visit.

Tate must have felt the same. “So what’s going on with you lately? I feel like between the salon and me not being there every day and the pregnancy and your new man, that we don’t touch base enough. I’ve neglected you and I’m sorry.”

Beth rolled her eyes at her sister. “We talk every day. You’re busy. That’s how it works when you have two kids under five and another on the way. I’m busy because we’re taking up the slack. That’s also how it works. When I get married and have babies, you’ll do the same for me.”

Elizabeth or “Lil Beth” toddled over, handing her mother a clump of dirt, and then plopped down in Beth’s lap.

“Hi.”

Beth smiled, kissing the top of her head, in between two little pigtails of pale blonde hair just like her momma’s. “Hi there, lumpkin. You brought some dirt to momma?”

Lil Beth nodded with a grin.

“Did you by any chance eat some of that dirt too?”

She shook her head, but Matt loped over. “Mmm hmmm. What did daddy say about eating dirt?”

“No!” But that she said it as she kicked her feet and leaned back into Beth while laughing sort of spoiled the admonishment.

Tate grinned, shaking her head.

Beth stood, holding Lil Beth on her hip. “How about we go inside and wash faces and brush teeth?”

“I can do that.” Matt held his hands out but Lil Beth held on to her aunt tighter.

“We’ve got this one.” Beth smiled and gave a quick head jerk toward Tate who was looking green around the edges.

He held a hand out to his wife and looked at her with so much adoration that Beth squeezed the baby to her a little tighter as she took her inside. “All right you, come inside. Everything is done anyway. Jacob just ran to grab pizza, but there’s some rice left over if you’d rather have something plain. Maybe with some fruit? You need to eat, Venus.”

“Your daddy sure does love your momma. Which is good, because you have the best momma in the whole wide world. You know, I think maybe a bath might be good too. What do you think, stinkbug?”

Lil Beth, who was pretty much the happiest baby Beth had ever seen, just giggled and nodded.

Once inside, half the family set about getting food ready so she moved toward the girls’ bedroom at the back of the house and the bathroom to get some babies clean.

Beth set the baby down while she got the water temp just right and began to fill the tub. Lil Beth started stripping down, making Beth laugh.

“Need some help there, stinkbug?”

She sat, her arms halfway out of her little shirt. “Yes!”

Beth helped her, tossing the dirty clothes in the nearby hamper.

“Meg, my darlin, you coming?” she called out, knowing how much these girls loved the bathtub.

“Here, Aunt Beth!” Meg bounded into the room naked as a jaybird.

“Want bubbles?”

“Yes, ma’am!”

“Can you help sissy choose a nightgown?”

Meg nodded and ran into the other room to help her sister find a nightgown to change into.

Nathan cruised past. “Everything okay? Can I help?”

“I’m just going to get the girls cleaned up and dressed for bed. Be sure Tate is sitting.”

“Matt’s on that.”

Meg streaked in, putting two nightgowns on the counter.

Nathan snorted. “Girl, you have no clothes on!” He covered his eyes with a hand and Meg thought that was hilarious. He was quick enough to grab a diaperless Lil Beth as she attempted to toddle past. He deposited her in the bathtub and Meg followed.

“I’m going to leave you to it. Mind your aunt, girls.”

By the time she’d finished, Beth had to change her shirt because she’d gotten soaked from two giggling girls. But there was something so sweet about freshly bathed babies in princess nightgowns she didn’t mind one bit.

Moments like this one, days like that day were Beth’s life now. So wonderful. Filled with so many people she loved.

They’d never had that growing up. Never had adults fighting over who got to take them for an overnight or who brought them bubbles to blow just because. Certainly never had pretty pink princess nightgowns.

That generation of Murphy kids had a damned good life. William’s kids, Tim’s kids, Tate’s kids—all loved, all being raised with a firm, guiding hand. They didn’t have to be what they came from. Just thinking about it that way loosened the knot of anxiety that lived in her belly that she had the seeds to be her mother inside her. Or worse, their father.