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I remembered how angry Tate had been when Ava left and didn’t come back when we all had expected her.

I also remembered telling him that he needed to be grateful she came back when she finally did.

Because at that time, in those moments, I’d told myself I would have given anything for Layla to return.

But now she was here, and I couldn’t handle it.

Maybe that was because she hadn’t exactly returned by choice. She hadn’t come here for me the way Ava had come back for Tate.

And I understood that she probably wouldn’t have been here if her mom hadn’t been in an accident.

But it hurt.

God, it hurt to see her and know that she didn’t want anything to do with me when she was all I thought about from the day she left.

“How can I possibly feel like this after all this time?” I croaked. “This is excruciating.”

“Maybe you should try going to her again,” Jules suggested. “She didn’t ask you to leave, did she?”

I shook my head. “No.”

“It’s worth a shot,” Tate reasoned. “Maybe she’ll be better prepared if she sees you again. And not to throw it in your face, but I do recall you telling me tojust fix itwhen I was being stupid about things between Ava and me. Why can’t you tell yourself the same?”

I could have.

I should have.

There was no question I desperately wanted to.

But there was one small problem.

“Because there’s a difference between your situation with Ava and mine with Layla.”

“Which is?”

I pressed my lips together, not wanting to admit the painful truth. “Ava came back because she wanted to be here. Layla came back because she didn’t have a choice.”

Jules wasn’t giving up. “Maybe that’s true, Liam, but I don’t think that it means you can’t work it out. I think there’s still a chance if you want to try for it.”

If it had been any of my siblings in this scenario, I would have been doing precisely what Jules and Tate were doing right now. I wished I could have done it for myself. But after so many years of hurt and betrayal, I felt the overwhelming urge for self-preservation. If I kept putting myself out there, it was sad to admit, but she had the power to destroy me worse than she did the first time. I wasn’t quite sure I could survive itagain.

“Is this where all those who need cheering up are going?”

At the sound of the newcomer, I twisted my neck and looked back to see Ava making her approach.

“Are you sad about something?” Tate asked his wife.

She made it to him, settled herself in his lap, and shared, “Despite my best efforts, I couldn’t manage to steal Rosie away.”

Thoughts of my niece put a smile on my face again. She really was the best thing that had happened to me since Layla.

Apparently, Jules was on a roll with urging others to do what she wanted them to do. “You know, you two could just make a baby of your own. Then you wouldn’t need to fight for Roselle.”

“You just want to be an aunt again,” Tate teased.

“Of course, I do. And I’m thrilled Wyatt and Rhea are making it happen. Are you telling me you don’t want to be a dad?”

The thought of a third baby in the family was so bittersweet. I’d love nothing more than to be an uncle to all my siblings’ children. Roselle had proven just how much love I had to give to them.