Page 69 of Once Upon a Lie

“Oh, shit.”

“Yeah,” Hannah responds through another laugh, looking at Dom like he could hold this hospital above his head with one hand if she asked him to. “Couldn’t have done it without my guy.”

Dom presses a kiss to her forehead. “Baby, you did all the work. I just made sure I got you here safely.”

“So . . . do I have a new baby niece or nephew?” I ask, cutting in before they can exchange I love yous or start swapping slobber. I love their love, but I’m here on baby business, not to witness a full-on romance.

“Come meet her,” Hannah says softly.

Dom grins at me, the smug bastard. “Told you it was a girl.”

I step closer, and Hannah hands her over without hesitation. I swallow around a ball of emotion as I look down at this piece of her and Dom they love me enough to trust me with. She’s small, warm, and somehow manages to smell like heaven and baby wipes all at once.

“Abigail Dunn,” Hannah says. “But we’re calling her Abby.”

“Keeping the NCIS family alive?” I ask, smiling down at little Abby. “I bet Sherry’s thrilled.”

Dom chuckles. “She’s over the moon.”

Hannah’s mom, Sherry, was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s when Hannah was just a kid, and for a long time, she gave up every part of her own life to care for her alone. I saw the depth of her struggle firsthand on a murder case Dom and I worked—the one that brought Sherry into our lives and earned me the affectionate nickname Leroy Jethro Gibbs in her NCIS-loving mind. She lives and breathes the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and, a lot of the time, believes her life is the show.

Hannah and Dom have been the ultimate sports by keeping the NCIS naming theme for all their kids. It’s their little nod to Sherry, and I love it.

“Hi, Abby,” I whisper as I look down at her sweet little cherub face. “I’m your uncle Shane. Though your grandma Sherry calls me Gibbs.”

Hannah laughs. “Actually, Sherry should be back any minute. Lovie took her and Tali and Louie down to the cafeteria to get some snacks.”

It’s not long before that promise is fulfilled and Sherry and crew step into the room, and the timeline on my baby hogging comes to a close. Lovie scoops Abby right out of my arms, Louie and Tali bouncing around Dom and Hannah wildly, and Sherry bulldozes over immediately to pull me into a hug.

Her whisper is incredibly gentle for a woman who has no idea who I really am, let alone what I’m going through. “You doing good? Tony said you were on an important case but can’t talk about it.”

I nod. “Very top secret.”

She narrows her eyes at me, like she’s trying to see inside my mind.

“Don’t even try, Sherry. If I tell you, I’ll have to kill you and all that.”

“Understood, Leroy.” She smiles proudly and gently pats me on the back. “Rule number four.”

“What’s that one again?” I ask, and she laughs at me, which is appropriate, considering they’re supposed to be my rules.

“Oh, Gibbs, you’re always testing, but don’t worry, I know it. The best way to keep a secret? Keep it to yourself. Second best? Tell one other person—if you must. There is no third best.”

I smile. “Yep. You got it. That’s a good one, isn’t it?”

Sherry nods excitedly and goes over to Louie, pretending to scream when he shoves a stuffed dinosaur at her. I guess some things don’t need memory.

Tali jumps into Dom’s arms wearing mismatched socks and a superhero cape, and the group of them comes into startling focus.

It’s chaotic, but at the sight of it—the picture of their happy little family hits me.

I lost both of my parents far too early, and my uncle Benny, while fatherly at least, hasn’t exactly been lovey-dovey. It was disjointed and dysfunctional, and while I survived, my experience isn’t how childhood’s supposed to go.

This is what it looks like when someone gets it right. The noise, the chaos, the love. This is the kind of happiness that doesn’t need to be said out loud because it’s just there.

Dom catches me watching his happy little brood, of course, and jumps on the chance to give me shit about it. “You ever think about giving up perpetual bachelorhood?” he questions with a soft but challenging smile. “Find a nice girl, buy a minivan, and pop out a couple of kids?”

I snort. “Not exactly in the cards for me, Dom.”