Page 84 of She's Like the Wind

And that’s when it hit me.

That warm little crack in my chest.

That flicker I’d been trying to snuff out with logic and fear.

I wanted this.

All of it.

This family.

This man.

This messy, complicated, beautiful new beginning.

And the scariest part?

It didn’t feel like I was falling.

It felt like I was coming home.

The Walker family assault continued—when a few days later, while I was folding bralettes, two young people walked in.

“Hi,” said a tall, attractive woman in a cream romper. “You must be Naomi. I’m Kayla. And this is Ryan.”

I tried to place them, and seeing that, Kayla continued, “We’re Gage’s siblings.”

“The smarter ones,” Ryan added, giving me a small wave. “Well…Iam the smarter one, studying to save lives while she dances like she’s trying to kill them.”

“I’m better at pirouettes than he is at sutures,” Kayla announced dramatically.

“Well”—I bit my upper lip, not sure how to handle this—“ah…how can I help you?”

“We came to check you out,” Ryan said seriously.

His sister punched his shoulder lightly. “You can’t just blurt stuff out like that.”

I grinned. These two were adorable.

“Our parents like you,” Ryan remarked like that was a peace offering. “And…Gage talks about you like?—”

“Like he’s pussy whipped,” Kayla interjected.

I choked out a laugh.

Ryan nodded. “It’s kind of annoying, honestly.”

“He gets poetic when he’s in love…who would’ve thunk?” Kayla smacked her forehead with her hand.

They didn’t stay long—just enough for Kayla to look at lingerie that Ryan threatened no sister of his would ever wear, to which she responded with an exasperated sigh. She bought a bra and panty set, which I tried to gift her, and then, when she declined, offered it to her at the friends and family discount.

They hugged me before they left.

The Walkers were a touchy-feely bunch.

Who would’ve thunk, as Kayla put it!

“Your brother and sister came by today,” I told Gage that night over the phone.