Page 39

The day Zeke died. That was when.
“It ain’t goin’ to be like that,” he replied. “You got me. And fuck, baby, you’re gettin’ better at this control thing too when you think about it. You know I’m right.”
“It’s not enough,” I muttered. The door jingled, and I tensed, watching as a family of five walked in, laughing and having a great time. We weren’t like that. We never had been. “This was a mistake. We shouldn’t—”
“Take a deep breath for me, baby,” he cut me off. Those honey-chocolate eyes glared at me until I did as he asked. News flash: it didn’t help. “This ain’t goin’ to be like last time. They’re goin’ to come hang out, we’re goin’ to eat some fuckin’ epic bacon cheeseburgers, and you’re goin’ to have fun because you ain’t had any real time with them in almost a fuckin’ decade. You deserve to spend some time with your family.”
“But what if it’s not safe?” I replied.
“It ain’t safe.” He shrugged. “Baby, we live in a world of fuckin’ superpowers and demons. And that ain’t includin’ all the stupid humans and the stupid shit they do. I watch the news. Humans are fuckin’ morons. No one is safe.”
“That’s not helping.”
“My point is… I spent the last forty-eight hours arguin’ with a man I ain’t even datin’ about stupid lunch plans. If it wasn’t safe, we wouldn’t be here. I ain’t riskin’ you. Mal and Tessa ain’t either. Okay?”
Grayson Harper, the voice of reason. Sometimes. I gave his hand an appreciative squeeze.
“Okay.” I needed something to distract myself. For four days, Gray had been wearing my dog tags, but I couldn’t bring myself to ask. Until now. “Why are you still wearing my dog tags?”
“Without Sergeant Josiah Hartford I wouldn’t have Ryder Collins. And I’m real damn happy I have you, baby.” He said it so simply—like I should’ve known he’d cling to whatever parts of me I gave him.
We fell silent as we waited for my family to show up. I wanted to say my nerves went away, but they didn’t. If anything, they got worse as the time passed. Thankfully, Gray didn’t say a word. All he did was grab the silverware and put it on the window ledge so it’d stop bouncing around the table. When the waitress brought glasses of water, he promptly put those on the ledge as well.
“They’re late,” I said quietly after almost half an hour passed.
“They’re travelin’ with a child,” Gray retorted. He smirked, adding, “And Jo.”
“You’re making fun of my brother, aren’t you?”
“He makes it so damn easy.”
As if summoned, the door jingled, and my brother walked in—big ass smile, Star Wars shirt, flannel, and all. That smile only got bigger as we made eye contact.
“Fuck, is it good to see you!” Mal exclaimed for everyone in the diner to hear as he approached. I was on my feet all of half a second before he hauled me in for a hug. No amount of walls or defenses could keep out the happiness that melted into my skin. “I’ve missed you.”
“Yeah,” I whispered. Okay, as a family of empaths, we weren’t always great at expressing ourselves, but the feelings were there. “Where’s Tess?”
“I don’t have children,” he announced as he let me go. “Which means I can get out of the car without three hundred tasks first. Gray! You look alive!”
Gray chuckled as he got to his feet to greet my brother. Mal bypassed the hand he offered and hugged him.
“We’re a hugging family,” Mal said.
“Since when?” I demanded.
“Since I had a baby, and I get emotional over everything,” Tessa cut in. I smiled as she joined us with Jo propped on her hip. I smiled because damn it, my niece was adorable. Big blue eyes, little auburn pigtails, and chubby cheeks in a pair of pink overalls. It was like looking at old pictures of Tessa all over again right down to the two fingers she sucked on.
“She definitely takes after you,” I told her. I didn’t have a clue what to do with a one-year-old. Did I talk to her? Wave at her?
Demons, sure. Hunt them, stab them, kill them. That shit was easy. Toddlers, no fucking clue. My only experience with small children came from being a kid once. As an adult pushing forty… this was a whole different experience. Shit, I felt awkward as I gave her a little wave. Her happy face broke into a giant, one-tooth smile, and she waved, sending saliva flying.
I was in with the toddler. Why did that shit make me happy?
Ah, fuck it. Who cared?
I reached for her, going for some uncoordinated attempt to take her from my sister. Jo was more than happy to abandon Tessa in favor of some stranger—a fact I wasn’t thrilled with.
Note to self: talk to Tessa about stranger danger conversations. It was never too early for that shit. People sucked.