I straighten out the tray of biscuits on my coffee table for the fifteenth time, obsessed with everything appearing perfect. Freddie catches me doing it and gently places his hand on top of mine, smiling sympathetically.

"Babe, they look fine."

"Are you sure?" I ask, unconvinced.

"I mean, there's no salvaging it at this point. You don't even have Oreos."

I lightly nudge him in the ribs, taking his insult towards my biscuit selection personally. I'm glad he's here and that he's cracking jokes at my expense. I didn't think I'd be this nervous, but I'm moments away from freaking out and I don't know why.

"When is he getting here?"

I'm moments away from responding when my buzzer sounds.

"That's him!"

Freddie—sensing my unease—comes rushing over and takes hold of my face between his hands.

"Deep breaths," he encourages, lightly kissing the tip of my nose. "You're okay."

With his words rolling around in my head, I accept the call and walk towards my front door, ready to greet Liam O'Connor with the smile I've ceremoniously been practicing all morning. Earlier—with Freddie by my side—I'd called Liam in the hopes he'd be happy to meet up over a coffee. He'd been keen and insisted on coming as soon as possible, stating he'd been waiting years for—and I quote—fiery Catherine to get in touch.

I swing open the door, gasping at the sight in front of me. Liam O'Connor is tall and handsome, not much older than Nan. His dark hair is greying at the edges, adding a sliver of colour to his otherwise dark stubble and dark eyes. Hair and eye colour aside, it's like looking in a mirror. We share the same nose and lip shape, which normally I wouldn't fixate on. But growing up, I remember often being complimented on the two. Or rather, their uniqueness. I can only assume the same thought is running through his mind, given his inability to greet me. I never met Nan's husband—my grandpops—and the few pictures I've seen are pretty poor in quality. I've never had reason to question my roots. To wonder where I came from. Until today.

"It's nice to meet you, Liam," offers Freddie, taking control of the situation. "Why don't you come in? We've got biscuits."

Liam smiles, seemingly snapping out of his haze.

"Thanks. That'll be lovely."

This thick, Irish accent is smooth and light, relaxing me a little. Shocked or not, at least I know he's not hostile towards the situation.

"Did it take you long to get here?" asks Freddie, stepping in with the small talk I seem so incapable of offering.

"An hour or so. Traffic was good on the motorway."

Liam's gaze—once again—finds mine and we're locked in a moment of questions and confusion.

"Tea!" I blurt out, having lost the luxury of compiling full sentences.

Liam nods, happy to accept the excuse of making drinks to give us both a minute or two to process our thoughts. Thankfully, Freddie follows me into the kitchen a few seconds later, approaching me with caution.

"Ana—"

"Are you seeing what I'm seeing?" I ask, desperate for validation.

Freddie cringes. "Yeah..."

"He's got to be my grandad, right?"

He steps closer, momentarily capturing my attention. "Let's not jump to conclusions."

"Freddie—"

Liam steps into the kitchen, eyes apologetic. "I can leave if I'm making you uncomfortable."

Shit!

"No, you're not making me uncomfortable," I insist, sounding unconvincing.

Liam nods, eyes filling with tears.

Shit! Shit!

The second a tear spills over and glides down his cheek, I push all my awkwardness to the side. Nurse Ana somehow takes over and before I know it, I'm embracing the man as he cries. His entire body trembles as I hold him, head resting on my shoulder. Freddie must slip out at some point, sensing our need to be alone.

"I don't really know what I was expecting showing up today," he admits, sniffing away his tears.

"Probably not this," I joke, wiping my own away.

I pull back a little, feeling comfortable in this stranger's arms.

"Do you want a drink of water?" I ask.

He shakes his head, smiling. "No, thank you."

Despite taking a step back, we're still holding onto each other's arms and surprisingly, it doesn't feel awkward.

"When did you last see her?" I question.

Liam frowns, as though remembering the moment with distain. "The morning of her wedding."

I wipe away the wetness from his cheeks, feeling compelled to do so. "Do you believe in second chances, Liam?"

"I want to believe in them," he admits, lightly squeezing my arms.

I smile at him, hoping to convey my confidence in him.

"I never used to," I admit, giving him a little insight into my life.

Liam smiles and tucks a stray piece of hair behind my ear. "What changed your mind?"

"That man next door," I inform.

We both turn towards the door leading into the living room, looking at Freddie sitting on my sofa, rearranging the biscuits on my tray.

"He seems nice," acknowledges Liam.

"He is."

We look at each other for a while, settling into our newly established roles. It's a nice moment, interrupted by the sound of knocking on my front door.

"Ana!"

Shit!

Freddie practically springs from the sofa, looking at me in horror.

"Is that—"

"Nan," I tell Liam, panicking. "She doesn't know about you yet."

"You didn't tell her?"

I feel bad for lying, but don't have time to get into it right now.

"Stay here," I instruct, flying towards my front door.

"Anastasia—"

"Nan, you can't come it!" I stress, speaking through the front door.

"Why not?"

"Because..." I fumble for an excuse. "Freddie's naked!"

Freddie looks at me, quirking a brow.

"Tell him to get dressed then!"

I open the door a crack, figuring I'll be able to get through to her better if she can see my face.

"Why don't I meet you down at the coffee shop in ten minutes? You go ahead and get the order in."

Nan smirks, finding the entire thing amusing. She nods, moments away from following through when she spots Liam's jacket draped across my armchair.

"What's that?"

Fuck!

"Freddie's coat."

"That's not Freddie's coat," she insists, pushing on the door a little.

Liam's initials are sewn onto the breast pocket and I'm silently cursing the man for being so fucking fashionable.

"Anastasia!"

She worms her way in, finding Freddie stood in the centre of the room, fully clothed.

"What's going on?"

"Nan, don't get angry..."

She fires me a warning look.

"I did something."

"What did you do?"

Before I can find the words to explain my actions, Liam steps out of my kitchen, revealing himself to Nan in the most bizarre way imaginable.

"Hi, cupcake."

Nan looks just about ready to faint. "Liam?"

I'm half tempted to yell, "SURPRISE!" but figure now is not the time for light-heartedness.

"What are you doing here?"

"Your granddaughter invited me."

Nan cuts her gaze across to mine, at a loss for what to say.

I immediately attempt to defend myself. "Before you say anything..."

"Are you meddling, Anastasia?"

I cower away under her watchful eye.

"Well?"

"Maybe."

She sighs, which makes Liam laugh.

"You're supposed to be on my side," she scorns, pointing her finger towards Liam's chest.

"Oh, come on, Catherine. Don't pretend you weren't just as mischievous back in the day."

His tone is teasing, and I love how with just one sentence, he can bring a smile to Nan's lips. It's wonderful watching two people slip back into their old flirtatious ways after life viciously tore them apart. I'm sure Nan is livid with me right now, but the sheer appreciation she's experiencing at seeing Liam again is outweighing everything.

"That's not the point," she insists, adopting her own teasing tone. "Maybe I didn't want to see you again."

"Why wouldn't you wanna see me?"

I glance across to Freddie, slyly smirking.

"Because the last time I saw you, you told me you hated my dress."

"I only said that because you were marrying the wrong person."

"Careful," she warns, regaining some of that signature spunk she's known for. "That's her grandpops you're talking about."

"Umm—Nan—about that..."

She turns to face me. "What?"

"Are you sure?"

"Sure about what?"

I attempt to subtly gesture towards Liam.

"What?"

She has no idea what I'm insinuating, and I turn to Freddie for help.

"What Ana is trying to say is..."

Freddie falters, the pair of us unsure how to word this.

"Am I her grandad?" asks Liam, blunt as a fucking pencil.

Nan gapes. "I beg your pardon?"

"We have the same nose and mouth, cupcake."

"So?"

"So, is there a chance we might've had a baby together?"

"NO!"

"Are you sure?" he asks, smirking.

If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was enjoying winding her up like this.

"Well, I'm pretty sure."

"Pretty sure?" I ask.

"It's you two putting ideas into my head!"

"Catherine," soothes Liam, stepping closer. "She looks like me."

Nan snaps her gaze to mine, regarding my features carefully. "I suppose there's a possibility..."

Freddie intervenes with an ill-timed joke. "I know of a great home DNA testing kit."

Nan bursts out laughing, followed shortly by myself. Liam is a little lost, but proceeds to smile, keen to be well-mannered.

"I can't believe this," insist Nan, perching on the edge of the sofa.

Liam immediately tends to her, hands slowly caressing her hair.

"It's okay. It's not your fault. It's no one's fault. It's just one of those things."

"But what if you are? We could've..." Nan breaks away from that thought, consumed by the pain that comes with thinking about missing out on a life she could've had with Liam.

"Hey, none of that matters," he assures, comforting her with tears of his own. "What matters is now. You."

Nan scoffs. "Why does a washed-up woman like me matter?"

"I'll have none of that, thank you very much," he scorns, playfully nudging her arm.

She pushes on his chest, unwilling to listen to his compliments. "Be real, Liam."

"I am being real," he insists. "You're everything to me, Catherine."

She fixes him with a long, hard stare.

"You're... You're..." he quickly glances at me, firing a subtle wink. "You're my second chance."

My body somehow makes it way towards Freddie's, our energies like magnets. I gently place my hand inside his and squeeze, moments away from crying myself. More than anyone, Nan deserves this. I only hope she's willing to accept.

"How about Ana and I grab some coffees from downstairs?" suggests Freddie, once again taking charge of the situation. "That'll give you two a moment to catch up."

Nan looks up at him and I know in that moment she's grateful for his intervention.

Liam smiles, just as appreciative.

"Take as long as you need," I state, happy to give them all afternoon if they need it.

Freddie and I leave my apartment and head to the coffee shop downstairs. We kill an hour by talking about Liam and our potential ties, eventually deciding to Facetime James and Sloan—who are looking after Charlotte for the morning. They're out at the farm when we call, James carrying Charlotte in the harness. He jokes he's getting some practice in and Freddie responds with a teasing, "You can have her overnight if you want?" I know he doesn't mean that. Freddie may pretend he'd like a break, but he panics whenever he's not within walking distance of his little girl.

"Shall we head back up?" I ask, checking my watch.

It's been a little over two hours now and I'll admit, I'm a bit impatient.

"Sure."

Freddie and I head back up to my apartment, tentatively approaching the front door.

"Imagine if they're getting it on," he teases.

"FREDDIE!"

"What?"

"That's my nan. Can we not?"

"Oh, like Catherine ever cuts us any slack."

That's true. She'd be the first to make suggestive comments had it been me in a similar situation.

"Nan?"

I call her name and knock twice, giving the pair plenty notice should Freddie's joke hold some truth. Thankfully, they're both sitting on the sofa with a cup of tea, fully clothed.

"Everything okay?" I ask.

Nan nods, smiling.

Thank fuck!

"Everything's grand," announces Liam, checking his watch. "I've got to dash though."

He grabs his jacket and briefly kisses Nan on the cheek, whispering something to her afterwards. He then approaches me and offers my shoulder a compassionate squeeze.

"I'd like to come back soon and perhaps spend the morning getting to know you?"

I smile at him, nodding. "That would be lovely."

"Your nan tells me you're at a wedding next week. Maybe we could arrange something the week after?"

"Sounds wonderful,' I insist. "I'll replenish my biscuits."

He laughs, and it's the richest of sounds.

"I—umm—had a son. We lost him a few years ago." He briefly looks over his shoulder towards Nan. "He had two girls. Holly and Lola. They might be your cousins."

I quickly glance at Freddie, eyes filling with moisture. I never entertained the thought of Liam having children. My whole life, I've never known what it's like to have family my own age. I never had siblings or cousins to play with. Hearing I might now have cousins is fucking incredible.

"Oh, wow! That's amazing," I insist, smiling at Nan.

She mirrors my expression, coming to stand beside Liam. "We've decided to leave it up to you about doing a DNA test."

Oh.

"We understand it must be a big shock."

I nod, agreeing to some extent. I didn't exactly imagine this when I contacted Liam this morning, but I'm a big believe of things happening for a reason.

"Let's do it," I say, smiling. "When we get back after the wedding."

Nan nods, grinning at Liam.

"Alright. Well, I've got your number," he states, turning his attention towards Nan. "And I've got yours."

Freddie and I share a smirk.

"It was lovely meeting you all."

Liam hugs Nan and repeats the action on me when I open my arms for him. He then goes on to shake Freddie's hand, thanking him for his generosity. Once he leaves, Nan and I take one look at each other and embrace like we haven't seen each other in years.

"I don't suppose you're so overcome with joy that you've forgotten all about my meddling?" I ask.

She squeezes me tighter to her chest.

"No fucking way. You're in big trouble."

"Nan!"

"Grounded for at least two weeks."

Freddie laughs, gently placing his hand on Nan's shoulder. She may be cracking jokes, but that's not to say she isn't in need of a gentle check-in.

"Are you okay, Catherine?"

"A bit shaken," she admits, pulling back. "I only came around to pick up the book I left last week."

I laugh, glad she's taking everything in her stride.

"Are you okay, sweetheart?" she questions.

I nod. "I am if you are."

Once again, she pulls me to her chest and kisses the top of my head.

"Wait until Helen hears about this. She'll piss her knickers!"

Freddie barks out a laugh, practically doubling over from giggling so much.

"Oh, Nan..."

"What?" she asks.

I shoot her my biggest smile. "I love you. Never change."

✨✨✨✨

Hello, lovely! 💕

Didn't I say I'd be throwing DRAMA your way!

And this is only the start.

Who can guess what (or rather who) is going to show up soon?

Will Freddie's & Ana's relationship survive the test?

Keep reading to find out.

And don't forget to experience this chapter through Freddie's eyes.

Speak soon,

Rebecca xo