Page 100 of Rise After Fall

“And it’s going to be a blast for the kids come summer,” Isley says.

“Summer?” I ask.

“Yeah, Morris had this idea to turn the tubing hill into slip ’n slides in the warm months. Graham plans to put in the irrigation system as soon as the temperature permits it. They’re going to line the runs with plastic and have a constant water stream running down each one.”

“That’s brilliant,” Anna says.

“Morris actually came over the other night with a list of suggestions. Langford was impressed.”

So am I.

My eyes seek him out, and I find him standing with my father and brother, making faces at Kaela as she and Weston come hurtling toward them.

Looking around, I see my family and the family that chose me.

It’s the perfect ending to the perfect day.

Morris

“Iwish I’d been the one to get to feel his nose crack beneath my knuckles,” Patrick says as we walk back to my truck to retrieve his bags.

“It did feel good, and it was totally worth the handcuffs.”

“You know, my buddy is a corporate attorney, and his partner who practices criminal law has offered to help us with the Tobias problem. That includes taking care of your charges.”

“I appreciate that. What exactly are your plans regarding the Tobias situation?” I ask.

“That all depends on Zoey. It’s one of the reasons I flew in right away. I want that bastard to pay for what he did. I might not be able to tear him limb from limb, but I can hit him where it really hurts. His reputation and his freedom. I want to make sure he never gets the opportunity to do it again.”

I nod because I agree.

“Do you think Zoey is ready for that?” he asks me.

“I don’t know. She just got up the courage to tell the story to a few of us. Is she ready to tell the world? She’s the only one who can answer that.”

I look over my shoulder to where she is standing with Kaela on her hip, chatting with the girls.

Damn, she’s beautiful.

“Can you wait until tomorrow to broach the subject with her? Let her enjoy the remainder of tonight,” I plead.

His eyes follow mine. “Abso-fucking-lutely.”

We move the party to Weston’s house, where the women cuddle up with glasses of wine upstairs and the men head to his man cave to shoot pool and play darts.

Zoey’s dad is a shark and wipes the floor with all of us.

I move behind the bar to mix drinks for the fellas when Tucker and Caleb take a seat on the stools.

“What can I get you, fellas?” I ask.

“I’ll have an ice-cold root beer,” Tucker says.

“Same,” Caleb adds.

I pop the tops on two bottles and set them in front of the boys.

“Is Zoey your girlfriend, Uncle Morris?” Caleb asks.