Page 124 of Your Last First Kiss

Every time Landon shows up with a new sketch to show me, pride beaming in his eyes.

Every time Gage tells me he misses playing with me in the morning.

Every time Lia wraps her little arms around my neck so tightly, I worry she’ll break.

And every time little Mari gives me a toothless smile.

My heart expands beyond the limits I thought I had. These kids have buried themselves so deeply in my life that I can’t imagine a day without them.

Hopefully, it won’t come to that. But God forbid, if Penny doesn’t let me in, I will never be able to walk away from them. Blood or not, they’re mine. My love for them is different than my love for Penny, but it’s no less powerful, and it hit me just as fast.

“Dillon?” Miller calls from somewhere within Ashton’s house. Construction is happening around the clock at the TAC now, so I’m even more thankful for this place. A construction zone is no place for Izzy. “Dillon,” he calls again, and I hear the strain in his voice this time.

I’m barreling out of my room and down the hall a second later. He’s standing at the bottom of the stairs like he saw a ghost.

Fuck.

There are times in your life when you see someone and just know. You just know that something awful, something life-altering has happened.

It’s in Miller’s face now.

Dear God, let them be okay.

“What? What is it? Are they okay? The kids? Penny? What the hell, Miller? What’s wrong?”

He backs into the wall as I crowd the landing.

“E—Eddy’s in jail.”

The air whooshes from my lungs like a popped balloon.

“He was driving…”

Every muscle in my back tightens, and my spine goes rigid. Fear makes it hard to breathe. Miller is shaken up, with blurry eyes and trembling hands. I count to ten to give him time to tell me what the fuck happened.

“Aster. She was in the car.”

My knees lock, and the vein in my neck throbs.

“He said she took some pills, then told him she wanted the girls to be happy, right before she grabbed the steering wheel.” He sucks in a ragged breath that’s so choppy I’m afraid he’ll choke. “They hit a parked police car before crashing into the Bowens’ fence. His truck rolled three times before it caught fire. Eddy wasn’t wearing his seatbelt and was thrown from the truck. By the time he regained consciousness…”

Oh, God. Aster wasn’t a great mother, but no one deserves this.

“He—he couldn’t get close enough to know if she made it out, and the police officer on the scene never had a chance to get to her because the car ignited almost immediately. The flames were too hot. When the firemen finally made their way down the embankment, it was too late. She—she’s gone. And Eddy is in more shit than he can ever get out of. His blood alcohol level was three times the legal limit.”

I place my hands on his shoulders. It’s an oddly intimate gesture, but this man is part of my new home. He has a place with me. For the first time since I was a child, I embrace how the Westbrooks championed found families. Miller is my friend, my brother, and right now, he’s hurting.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” he says quietly. “It’s just such a shock. And fuck, Dillon. Penny. The kids. This will bring a shit show of epic proportions down on them.”

“We’ll protect them as best we can. Does Penny know?” My throat burns, thinking she might have gotten this news with no one supporting her.

Miller shakes his head. “Not yet. She took Lia for a well-visit with the pediatrician. It happened at the county line on the other side of town, so I don’t think the news has spread this far yet. The sheriff heard it on the scanner and called me after he got the details.”

“Okay,” I say to buy time as I formulate a plan in my head. “We need to get to Penny before someone else does, and we have to get the kids from school. They can’t hear this kind of thing from anyone but Penny, and with social media these days…”

“Agreed.” We share a look that lets me know we’re on the same page. “I know things are rough with Penny, but the fact that you didn’t even hesitate right now? That means more than you could know. I’m in your corner, Dillon. The road is going to knock you around a bit, but stay the course. I’ve got your back.”