Page 62 of Tangled Hearts (Mended Hearts #4)

Nic

“ W ake up.” There’s a gentle shove against my chest, and I open my eyes with a groan.

“Hey, doll, what’s going on?”

Eli jumps up and down, wiggling back and forth in our bed. I look at him fully, and my dick hardens rapidly. God, he’s still covered in cum from last night. I can’t believe we fell asleep without cleaning up. He never does that. “Dad called me, and they’re going to bring Lexi home!”

I blink at him in confusion. “What?”

“Before the fundraiser, Dad sat me down and told me he wanted to adopt Lexi. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. He asked me to keep it a secret.”

“That’s okay, doll. You don’t need to apologize,” I interject, trying to stop him from worrying, but he barrels on like I didn’t even talk, his eyes lit up and his cheeks flushed with happiness. Goddamn, he’s so gorgeous .

“So, he had to talk to Dad first, right? And they talked, and then they talked to Lexi, and she wants to come home with them. I’m going to be a big brother!” He sucks in a deep breath.

I loop my arms around him and pull him down on top of me. “You’re going to be the best big brother in the world, baby.” He lets out a cute-as-fuck squeal of excitement, and I can’t help but laugh. “I love waking up like this.”

He props himself on my chest with his chin resting on his folded hands. “Like what?”

“Like this.” I brush a strand of his hair off his forehead, smiling at the way he leans into my touch. “With your infectious joy and bright smiles. God, I just love you so fucking much. You don’t even know.”

A huge smile spreads across his face. “Wrong. Because I’m pretty sure I love you way more.”

“You little shit.” I dig my fingers into his side, loving the way he laughs even as he tries to squirm away from me. “We need a shower. No one cleaned us up last night.” I raise an eyebrow at him. “I take one night off from controlling my little doll, and he falls asleep covered in cum.”

Eli’s eyes darken. “Yeah,” he breathes. “I’m finding I don’t mind the mess as much when it’s ours. ”

I groan. “Alright, you little menace. Go get in the shower.”

He jumps off me, holding his hand out. “Join me?”

“Like I’ve said before, doll. I’ll follow you anywhere.”

Today’s a big day. For Eli, of course, but also for Beck and Roman. And kind of for me too .

“Do you think you guys will ever stop adopting all the strays?” I ask Beck, taking the tray of cookies off the counter and following him into the dining room.

He laughs brightly. “I’ve been doing it since I was eighteen, so not likely.”

Today is the day Roman and Beck bring Lexi home. She was so happy when they told her they wanted to bring her home with them, and her very first question was, “Is Eli going to be my big brother?”

That one hit me right in the heart. I really wanted to be with Eli today, but he and Roman are on their way back with Lexi now, so I offered to help Beck set up her homecoming party instead.

“Well, thanks for adopting me too, at any rate.”

Beck shakes his head. “You can thank Eli for that one.” He smiles, organizing the trays on the table. “Look at me, passing on family traditions. Now that’s nice. But hey, even if he hadn’t, we still would have. You’re alright, kid.”

I grew up without a dad, so I can’t say for sure, but that might be the most Dad thing Beck has ever said to me. And I’m still not going to bring up my age to them. Pass. If they aren’t concerned, there’s no reason to rock the boat. “Thanks,” I say, laughing a bit to myself.

The sound of the front door opening catches my attention, and a woman calls out. “Beckett?”

Beck rolls his eyes. “Fucking Holden,” he mumbles under his breath. “In here, Mom.”

I laugh. “What did Holden do?”

Beck waves his hand through the air in fake irritation. “Little fucking chaos twink started calling me Beckett one day and wouldn’t let it go. He still does it, and worse, he’s had my mom doing it for just as long.”

I mean… “Could it maybe be that you call him a chaos twink? ”

Beck levels me with a glare. “Whose side are you on here, Nicolas?”

I can’t help but grin. “My brother’s.”

His jaw drops open in shock, and then he pats my back with a chuckle. “He’ll be happy to know that.”

“Is my newest grandbaby here yet?” Beck’s mom asks when she rounds the corner. She stops short when she sees me. “Oh, hello. You must be Nic. I’ve heard so much about you! Hold has been talking about you nonstop. It’s so sweet.”

That makes me so happy. I love that Holden talks about me. That he’s excited about me.

I hold my hand out to shake hers, but she swats it away and wraps me in her arms. She smells… A million memories flood me—dinners on the couch with Mom, movie marathons, and decorating our Christmas tree—and my eyes fill with tears. “I’m sorry,” I choke out, jerking myself away from her.

“What’s wrong, love?” She truly looks so concerned that it makes me smile.

I shake my head. “Nothing. You just… you wear the same perfume my mom did. I wasn’t expecting to be hit with that smell.”

Lydia frowns, confused, so I explain. “She passed away last year.”

“Oh, honey.” Her face falls. “Can I hug you again?”

“Do you see where I got the adopting strays mentality?” Beck asks, patting me on the back. “This is my mom, Lydia. This is Nic, obviously.”

“It’s nice to finally meet you, and definitely.”

She steps closer to me and wraps me in a hug, squeezing me half to death. “I’m so sorry for your loss.”

I hug her back, soaking in all the mom-love and breathing in the scent of my mom. “Thank you. I’m mostly okay, but occasionally it hits me, you know? ”

I let my hands fall, and Lydia steps back, a sad smile on her face. “I do know. I lost my parents when I was young too. They never even got to meet Beck.”

“I’m sorry,” I murmur.

She pats my arm. “It’s been a long time, but it still gets you every now and then.”

I nod at her, but before I have a chance to respond, the door flies open, and I catch Eli say, “I’ll show you your room. It’s Uncle Hold’s old room. I even put a makeup station in there for you.”

Little feet shuffle across the floor, and Lexi pops her head into the dining room. “Hello, Prince! Hello, Nic! Hello, Gigi Lydia!”

“Hi, Lexi!” I wave at her with a smile, and she darts off again.

Roman steps into the dining room and makes a beeline for Beck. “I have a feeling we’re going to be using Uncle Holden and Uncle Julian a lot. ”

Beck pulls him in for a hug, pressing his lips to Roman’s forehead. God, if that’s not me and Eli in a decade, I don’t want it.

“Hey, Lydia,” Roman says, glancing at her with a smile. “Hey, Nic. Thanks for staying back and helping Beck today.”

“No problem. I’m going to go check on Eli and Lexi.” I turn to Lydia. “It was so nice to meet you, Lydia. I was sorry to miss introductions at the fundraiser.”

“You too, love.” Sadness flashes in her eyes before it clears, and she smiles brightly. “We’ll be seeing a lot of each other, I’m sure.”

I give everyone a wave and make my way down the hall to Lexi’s new room.

The door is open, and when I step into the doorway, Eli is kneeling on the floor in front of Lexi.

Her eyes are closed, and he’s carefully brushing her eyelids with eyeshadow.

They’re wearing matching smiles. Eli’s is so radiant that it nearly takes my breath away .

He’s stunning when he’s doing what he loves, when he’s opening his heart and sharing that with others. I can hear Roman and Beck’s faint laughter from the other room, then the door opens and Julian’s low, rumbled greeting and Holden’s excitement fill my ears.

“Where’s my brother?” I hear him ask, and it makes my heart swell so big I’m almost sure it won’t fit in my chest anymore.

When I came here, it was with an empty heart and nothing more than what I could fit in my Jeep. Somehow I found a home. A family. Eli.

I don’t know what comes next, but I know no matter what it is, I’ll have them. I’ll have Eli.

And that’s everything.