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“That is one couple that I never expected to end up together, let alone married,” Liam muttered, staring out at the couple dancing on the dance floor.

He wasn’t wrong. The couple in question was my sweet Ally and her man. They were the reason I was propping up the bar, drinking my sorrows away while watching them have their first dance as man and wife.

My sweet girl was beautiful and made a gorgeous bride. She was also very happy; the happiness shone bright from her face as she looked up at her husband.

The ache in my chest was killing me at the thought of my baby not living with us anymore. It didn’t matter that she’d not lived at home for the last year, her getting married meant it was real. She no longer needed me; she had a new man to turn to now.

It wasn’t that I didn’t like him because I did. He was one of the best around, and I couldn’t have picked a better one for her if I’d tried. That wasn’t helping my feeling of loss, though.

At least Jeanie was still at home. Nobody told me it would be so hard to let my girls go. There should be some kind of warning in all those parenting books for teenagers that I’d read. There should be a section about what to do when you became defunct.

“Stop wallowing, Adam, it’s not like she’s leaving the country,” Johnny grumbled from next to me.

“Easy for you to say; Emy’s still a teenager. Just wait until you’re in this position in about ten years, and I’ll remind you about it.”

“Fuck no! Emy’s never getting married and leaving home. I told you that we should have sent them to a convent,” Johnny whinged.

“You’re both being ridiculous,” Maya rolled her eyes at us. Not my Tilly, though. I think she was struggling just as much as me at letting our girls grow up and fly the nest. Turning my head slightly, I pressed a kiss to her temple.

“Here she comes,” Tilly whispered as Ally walked towards us, her face glowing with happiness as she came to a stop in front of us.

“It’s time, Dad.”

“I’m not ready,” I grumbled grumpily.

Ally let out a tiny laugh at my words. We’d had this conversation a few times in the last year.

“It will be okay,” she promised, taking my hand and pulling me towards the dance floor for the father–daughter dance; I’d chosen ‘I Loved Her First’ to dance this dance with my girl. Because that’s what she was from the moment she’d walked into my office all those years ago. My girl.

Holding her in my arms for that last dance, the memories were like a kaleidoscope running through my mind — from the first time I’d seen her beaten and broken, then as she got stronger, not letting what had happened to her break her, to watching her leave school, her prom, going to college, then university, and finally now as I’d walked her down the aisle to the man that would take my place. I didn’t even know I had tears on my cheeks until Ally wiped at them.

“It’s going to be okay, Dad; I’m going to miss you too, but you gave me all the tools to ensure that I’d always be okay. I’m not going to be far away; we can still have lunch twice a week. You’ll always be the man I go to for advice. Plus, you love my husband; it’s not like you don’t know him.”

“I know that, cailín deas, doesn’t make it easy to hand over the reins though even if I did that over a year ago. Today is just the final bit. You’re always going to be my sweet girl, and as long as I’m around, you’ll never have to worry about anything, you’ll always have a home with us. I love you, and all I want for you is to be happy.”

“I am happy, Dad,” she assured me, her blue eyes sparkling with tears as they looked into mine.

“That’s good, sweet girl.” Pressing a kiss to her forehead, I hug her tight one last time as my little girl. Her husband’s walking towards us, and I know that I’ll have to give her to him soon.

“Your man’s here,” I whisper against her temple. Pressing another kiss to her head, I release her into the arms of her husband.

“I’ll take good care of her, Adam,” he assures me, taking her from me. Nodding, I turn because I can’t speak past the lump in my throat. Tilly is there waiting for me. Pulling her into my arms, I breathe in her scent as she holds me tight.

“Love you, stór mo chroí ,” I whisper to her.

“And I love you,” she reassures me with a kiss. “We still have Jeanie and the boys,” she reminds me.

Laughing, I bury my face in the crook of her neck. “We may have to sell the boys to get rid of them,” I chuckle. Our boys are hell on wheels most days, and when you throw them in the mix with their cousins, you never know what they are going to end up in.

“You’re not wrong,” Tilly laughs throatily. “Now, husband, let’s go have a whisky and then go home. We have the house to ourselves tonight.”

“Whatever mo chroí wants.”

Leaving the dance floor, we walk towards where the rest of our family have gathered. Da had retired to bed a little while ago, but Liam, his wife, Johnny, Maya, Tommy, and Lana were waiting for us.

I turned for one last look at the dance floor at the happy couple and counted my blessings before joining everyone for one last celebratory drink. Then I’d be taking my wife home, where we’d enjoy another type of celebration before Jeanie and the boys descended on us.

Life the last few years had been good, and I hoped that we would continue to be blessed for a long time.

The End