Page 36 of His Relentless Angel

“Damn, Miranda. Warn a man before you pop out of nowhere.”

“You want a warning?” Miranda shifts on her bare feet, pushing her hands into the small pockets of her loose, purple paisley skirt. “Well, how about this? Next time you decide to sneak out to spend the night with my daughter, you remember to sneak back in before Sherman wakes up and wonders where you’ve gone without your shoes and car.”

“Miranda…I don’t want there to be a next time.”

Her brows shoot up with shock. “You and Bailey are breaking up?”

“What? God, no.”

“Good, because I’d be just as likely to kill you as Sherman if you broke her heart again,” she says fiercely, showing me a side of her I’d never seen before she caught Bailey and me in the hotel.

“What is with this family, always threatening to murder people? It’s not normal. You know that, right?” My quasi-joke breaks whatever tension she’s carrying, and her shoulders slump. “Listen, Bailey and I are in it for the long haul. I can promise you that. But this sneaking around…I don’t like it. I want to tell Sherman.”

Miranda reaches up and pats my cheek. “I know you do, honey, and I’m thankful for that. You and Bailey have my support when you come clean.”

“So now we’ve got your support? Because, I’ll tell you honestly, it sure didn’t seem that way at the hotel.”

Miranda sighs and leans a shoulder against the earthy brown wall next to Autumn’s bedroom door. “I know. It was a shock, to say the least, what with your age and history. You’d been breaking her heart for years, and I was terrified you would do it again once we left Austin. Bailey…you didn’t see the wreckage after you left. I’d never been so scared in my life ‘til then about one of my kids. If you leave her again…”

“Never. You have my word.”

Chapter 16

Bailey

There’s just something so incredibly sexy about a big man holding a tiny baby. Watching Isaiah coo over wispy, light brown-haired Clara is just about the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen, and my lower belly flutters, thinking of him holding our future newborn. Although, after a week of babysitting Shayla’s brood, even with the rest of the family’s help, I know there’s no way I’m having this many kids.

“I don’t know how y’all do it,” I tell Shayla after taking a seat next to her on the couch once James has eased her down onto it beside Dad.

“Do what?” Shayla covers her yawn with a hand, her eyes slightly unfocused due to lack of sleep.

“All these kids. Don’t get me wrong—I love getting to spend so much time with them, but man, I’m so glad y’all are home.” I wipe away faux sweat from my forehead. Whew.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She yawns again and winces as she tries to get more comfortable on the couch. ‘They’re nothing but a bunch of little angels. Easy peasy.”

Just then, Gentry comes flying into the living room from down the hall, holding a wooden model airplane high above his head. Artie chases after him, screaming for Gentry to give it back. Mirabel starts crying because Artie is, and Grayson calls Lainey Devilainey because she won’t give him a piece of paper from her sketchbook at the kitchen table.

“See. Angels?” Shayla laughs through her exhaustion as she reaches for Mirabel. James is quick to pick my niece up and set her gently on her mother’s lap. He steps in between Gentry and Artie with a yawn of his own to make Gentry apologize and give the airplane back.

With all the chaos, I tell Shayla, “If you need help, we can stay a few more days.”

“Speak for yourself!” Autumn squeezes Grayson and Lainey into a hug that they both try to fight since they’re smushed together, then gives them a loud, smacking kiss on each of their foreheads. “Auntie A needs a vacation after all this.” Autumn gives Shayla a quick kiss on the cheek. “Glad you’re home, sis.” When she stands, she cocks her head to the side and asks Isaiah, “Where are you going to be staying?”

“What do you mean?”

“Now that I’m taking my room back?” Autumn knows good and well that he’s spent every night with me instead of in her bed. He didn’t even have to sneak in and out since Dad went to Fort Worth on the third day of babysitting to visit an older cousin who was in the hospital and only just got back into town this afternoon.

“Oh. Uh…” Every adult swings their attention to him, who is clearly flustered.

Dad stands and claps Isaiah on the shoulder. “Sure was nice of you to stay in town to help out. I know it’s not ideal, but you’re welcome to our couch if you’re staying any longer.” Dad does that head cocking move, mimicking Autumn. “Say, when are you heading back to Austin?”

Isaiah straightens and looks Dad in the eye. “I’m not going back to Austin.”

A lead weight drops in my stomach. He’s going to tell him. Oh god, he’s going to tell him.

Dad pauses for a beat as if he’s waiting for Isaiah to continue. “You’re here for good?”

“I am.”

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