Page 61 of The Fates We Tame

“You hungry?” she asks. “‘Cause Uncle Colton makes the best pancakes in the whole world.”

Niro turns around and spots me. He waves a spatula at the seats tugged under the counter. “Take a seat. I’ll make you some.”

“If it’s not too much trouble, that would be great.”

“I’m Avery, and my dad is the enforcer of the club, which means he’s the biggest and strongest.”

“Hey, Avery. I’m Sophia. And I met your dad already.”

“And he is definitely not the biggest and strongest in the club,” Niro says with a chuckle. “He’s not bigger than Spark or Halo.”

Avery’s eyes narrow. “Yes. But he’s the fiercest.”

Niro dabs a bit of pancake batter on the tip of Avery’s nose. “He’s probably the best at jump rope, how about that?”

Avery chuckles as she wipes it away and turns to me. “My daddy is the best at jump rope, he can cross his arms over and everything.”

“That does sound like he’s very good. So, your daddy is the best at jump rope, and Uncle Colton is the best at pancakes. What are you best at?”

Dramatically, she taps her finger against her lip and looks at the ceiling.

“She’s best at talking. Or maybe being annoying,” Niro says with a grin.

“Hey,” she says. “I was going to say I’m best at being your best friend.”

Niro’s whole face softens. “Yeah, kiddo. You’re definitely best at that.” He scoops three pancakes off the griddle and hands them to Avery. “You know what to do.”

She hurries to the table and then takes toppings from three different bowls. Blueberries. Chocolate chips. And sprinkles. Then she smothers the pile in syrup.

I wince at how sweet that must all taste. “All the basic food groups, huh?”

“The food we eat at mine and Uncle Colton’s sleepover club stays in sleepover club,” Avery says. “Mommy and Daddy will never know, will they, Uncle Colton?”

“Nope. Not a word from me. And Sophia can only be in our club if she agrees to the rules.”

I put my hands in the air. “I agree to the rules.”

Niro watches Avery until she’s sitting with her plate and begins to eat. “Same again?” he says, tipping his chin towards Avery’s plate.

“Yes, please. I might skip the candy toppings though.”

“Spoilsport.” Niro carefully pours three ladles of batter onto the skillet. “Sleep well?” he asks.

“Better than I have in a while.”

He looks up at me for a second. “That’s the power of freedom.”

“What do you mean?”

He shrugs as he watches the little bubbles pop in the pancake mixture. “You and Switch, you’ve both been cooped up in that rehab unit, Switch without his bike, and you without whatever it is you used to do and be. Then you found out you were meant to be married off to some guy, and that’s probably why you had your accident.”

I look around to make sure no one else can overhear. Avery is too engrossed in her food to pay Niro’s softly spoken words any mind.

“Don’t worry,” Niro says. “The clubhouse is slow to get moving in the morning. I was outside with King a few minutes ago because he needed to work on his bike in the garage, but that’s it.”

My relief must be palpable.

“Listen, I’m on your side. I’m one of the few who will be once it comes out why you’re here and why you married Switch. But that’s where I was going with the power of freedom. You gaining your freedom means my brother has lost his.”