Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 97696 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 326(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97696 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 326(@300wpm)
My family. That’s what I see as I look around the table. The laughter of the women helped to smooth some of the rough edges in my gut, especially one particular sound that went right to the heart of me. She’d put aside her little pique at me. I guess she would be saving that for later. I felt a slight smile tip the edges of my lips as I thought of her antics.
I do that a lot these days, smile. There’s a lot to smile about even with everything that’s going on. But way too often beneath my pleasure is the constant gnawing anger. They shouldn’t have to live like this, shut away from the rest of the world. How long before they grew tired of us keeping them here, holding them hostage? How long before they were no longer living under threat of a madman? Put it away Cord.
I listened now to my sisters making plans for their upcoming nuptials as if they didn’t have a care in the world, I wanted to make that a reality. This was the only time I ever see my brothers relaxed anymore, when they were with their women.
Each of them had an arm around their future bride and even Dev and Quinn were beaming at the girls’ antics as they ragged on their men about one thing or another. Davey was looking better these days as well. The interest my brothers and I showed him, and the way we’d drawn him into our circle had helped to give him more confidence. But he too had been shut away from his friends for the past couple weeks. Finding out that he was the old man’s son had upped our protectiveness of the young man who was now more brother than friend, and he blossomed under our care.
My Susie was right in the middle of it, putting in her two cents in between giving me coy looks. She’ll soon be planning her own wedding too, little did she know, just as soon as I finish designing her rings.
Ours was not going to be the most orthodox of unions by no stretch of the imagination, but the chain I’d hung around her last night was just the beginning, and to me, just as important as the ring I will some day put on her finger.
As the night wound down reality kicked in again. Tomorrow I was sending my woman out there alone without me. It would be the first time in a long while that I was letting her out of my sight. I thought I was prepared for it, but now I’m not so sure. There was no way for me to secure her mom’s place and short of me sleeping outside her bedroom window there was no way for me to keep eyes on her. Fuck I don’t know if I can do it.
“What are you thinking about so hard big guy?” Tyler asked the question under his breath so as not to alert the others. “Sometimes, I wonder.”
“Wonder what?”
“How we got so fucking lucky. I mean, doesn’t it hit you out of the blue sometimes? Don’t you wake up some nights and just stare at your woman? Just watch her breathe, touch her face and wonder how the fuck did this fall into your lap so easy?”
“Every fucking day bro, but you know what, we deserve it. Took me a while to accept that, to take that happiness and run with it. After the shit we came from, then the horror of war, I think Vicki is my reward. What’s really bothering you?”
That’s one of the dangers of living with men who knew me so well. I can’t hide from them. “I can’t do it.”
“Do what, marry her?”
“No you fuck, tomorrow. She’s supposed to go home tomorrow. Her mother’s making noises about not seeing her and Davey.”
“I got you, it would be hard for me to let Vicki out of my sight now too. What does she say, how does she feel about going? She’s not scared is she?”
“I don’t know, she wants to go but…I don’t think it’s such a good idea. I still don’t know why she was in that book or who the fuck put her there. I can’t keep an eye on her over there and we’re supposed to go to the job site tomorrow which means I won’t be around if something happens.”
“So don’t let her go.” That’s easy for him to say, he don’t have to put up with her shit. Not that I would let that deter me one way or the other, but it had been a while since she’d seen her mother, who has been very understanding so far.
Dani and Gaby were older and had been out on their own before meeting my brothers, so had Vicki, and Nessa lived out of town. My girl was still living at home with her mom who had no idea what was going on and wouldn’t understand why her kids couldn’t come home when she wanted them to.
For now, she was under the impression that Susie was here keeping an eye on her brother who was here because we were keeping our word to the CO. That’s the story we’d come up with to pacify her just in case she started asking questions, which she hadn’t as yet. But how long would that last if I kept her daughter away from her?
“Go with your gut brother, fuck everything else.” His words stayed with me even after everyone had left and Davey had gone to bed. Thank fuck his room was well away from ours, and the playroom and he had no idea of the things that went on between us at night.
“Still mad about my outfit?” She climbed into my lap, as I was deep in thought. I turned my eyes on her. “Nope, I would’ve been mad if anyone else had seen you in it though.” She pouted and rolled her eyes as her hand played with the collar of my shirt.