Page 37 of 27 Kisses

He stops and darts a questioning glance back at me. I shrug. Not like I knew what was happening. But he quickly recovers. “Mr. and Mrs. Bishop. Good to see you again.”

Mother nods and Father shakes his hand. They’re stiff around Aidyn and barely cordial. It fucking irritates me. Aidyn ignores Jane and takes a seat in the chair closest to me.

“Christy,” Jane says, raising a brow.

His mouth opens and my heart rate spikes. Please don’t cuss my sister out.

Lanie squeals and rushes into the room. “Jane. You’re here!” She hugs her and then hugs her grandparents. “This is so cool.”

And bless her sweet forgiving heart, that’s all it takes. Aidyn still glares at Jane, but he won’t risk upsetting Lanie.

“I thought we were decorating,” Aidyn asks with a thread of concern in his voice. No one else seems to notice.

“We’re looking at pictures. It’s for the Christmas slideshow.”

What? I can’t believe no one told me until now. Did they assume I knew?

I watch Aidyn’s face as they sort through the albums for pictures they want to add, so I see the smile as soon as it happens.

“You were a wee lad, here.”

I move closer to see—and be nearer to him—and rest my hand on the back of his chair. In the picture, I’m hugging an inflatable reindeer. My hair is wild and I have a goofy grin on my face. “Oh my God.”

“You’re so cute.”

I shake my head. But the memory of that day pops up without my permission. I was seven and Emily was five. The next picture shows us grinning like we’d just gotten the best present ever. At the time, I thought we had.

As a kid, I wasn’t into superheroes. I was a nerdy boy who loved to read. Things likeTheLord of the Rings.The Dragonriders of Pern. Fantasy mostly. I wanted to be in a brand-new world. One where I fit in. But that was later, when I reached middle school. In elementary school, I thought I had the best family ever. I find another picture of Mother and me. Both laughing.

When had that changed?

“Garrett?”

I clear my throat and look at Aidyn. He’s standing behind his chair. “Yes?”

“Do you have tea?”

I nod, still feeling disoriented by the picture. By my world shifting. “It’s in the cabinet by the?—”

“Can you show me?” he asks, sounding impatient.

Oh. “Of course.” I follow him into the kitchen and pull out the tea. He takes it out of my hand, sets it on the counter, and then proceeds to kiss me. I grab his shirt and cling to him. Another kiss, and he pulls away.

“Hey.”

I laugh. “Hey.” I realize this is my chance. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know Jane would be here.”

His hand circles my neck. His caressing thumb causes my body to take interest. “No worries, love. Are you okay?”

“Fine. It’s just weird going through those pictures. Are you okay?”

He grins. “I wouldn’t have missed this for anything.”

“Really?” I study his face. What am I missing?

“I finally have proof.”

“Proof of what?”