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Opening my mouth to reply, my eyes suddenly widen in realisation, “The parents are here?”
Neither of them gets the chance to reply as there’s a knock on the door, and I spin on my heel to go and answer it, nerves flooding my system, which seems absolutely stupid because they’re the parents apart from a few years blip, I’ve known them for my entire life.
Opening the front door, I’m immediately engulfed in tight hugs from Jenny and Kat as the parents all stream through the doors and greet the guys. Lily, Rafe’s mom, waits until they’ve stopped crushing me and then gives me a far calmer hug.
“Your place is absolutely stunning,” she compliments, and my smile widens.
“Thank you.”
“I have to admit we didn’t quite believe you when you said that you’d have plenty of space to feed us all,” Rich comments with a smile.
“We did tell you,” Luc grins and then adds, “would you like a tour?”
Before the parents can begin to reply, Riot asks with a sad smile, “I’m guessing that my aunt couldn’t get out of work again?”
Kat shakes her head sadly, “No, she couldn’t. We tried to convince her to come anyway, but she just wouldn’t.”
“That’s okay, I get it.” Riot replies and Rafe threads his fingers through Riot’s and squeezes gently, offering him the support that he needs at that moment, even if he does say he’s okay.
I love the bond that they have and that their separate relationship is so different from the relationship that I have with them, both individually and together. I also love that all of these different kinds of relationships work just as well as each other.
Since Rafe has Riot and is there for him, as the parents all start to stream past me to have the tour, I grab hold of Luc and pull him off to the side. I always worry about him when we have these family gatherings, and as always, I’m going to check in with him and let him know that I’m here.
He pulls me under his arm with a soft smile and then kisses the top of my head. When I look up at him, his hand comes up to cup my cheek, and he lowers his head, gently pressing his lips against mine as I practically melt against him.
When he pulls back, he says quietly, “I am fine, Firecracker, and I promise if that changes, I will tell you. Remember, my parents weren’t involved in family stuff for a long time before my father was arrested and my mother left the country. I have always preferred these things without them.”
“I know,” I reply, “I just worry. Where is your mom at the moment?”
“When I last asked Pete, he said she was in the Seychelles. He’s keeping an eye on her movements just in case and to see if she has any communication with my father in prison, the same as usual. From what he can tell, she’s still enjoying escaping my father.” He replies.
“Good, so long as she’s not causing any trouble, we’ll keep leaving her alone. The second that changes, and we’ll deal with her.” I reply.
“I know, now enough talk of shitty parents, and let's enjoy Christmas with those parents that we’ve adopted as our own,” Luc adds.
“Good idea. I saw Rafe go into the kitchen, and I’m going to go and see if he needs any last-minute help. That curry has been calling my name all damn day.” I reply.
“Alright, I’m sure if you ask nicely, he’ll give you a taste.” Luc smirks, “I’m going to go and catch up with the house tour. I’m damn proud of the home we’ve made.”
I smile as I move onto my tip toes and kiss him again, “Me too, have fun. Make sure that Jensen and the other two rest and don’t push it too far.”
“Don’t worry, I will,” Luc replies as shadows pass over his eye.
“Are you okay? I haven’t checked how you’re dealing with it? You were the one that resuscitated Jensen, and that was fucking terrifying.”
He looks down at me before his eyes dart away, “I’m okay. I never want to experience something like that again, especially not with one of my family.”
“Of course not. Let me know if you need to talk to someone professional. D knows people who can help and who are on his payroll, so they are used to dealing with more complicated issues.” I pause and frown, “Actually, Mr Rising probably has someone you can talk to as well.”
“I’d much rather talk to one of D’s people if I need to. I’m not sure why,” Luc replies.
“Probably for the same reason that I suggested D and didn’t even think of Mr R,” I reply, “we weren’t always legitimate, and after the whole mole thing and the fact that we still don’t know who was controlling them, it feels safer to talk to one of D’s people.”
“Yeah, that’s exactly it,” Luc replies.
I squeeze him tightly and add, “Just remember, if it wasn’t for you, Jensen wouldn’t have made it, and we would’ve lost him. You saved his life.”
“She’s right, dude, and I will forever be in your debt for that.” Jensen suddenly says.