Page 25 of Hold the Line

“Better than ever. And he has tattoos.”

She let out a loud laugh. “I think I’m going to have to stop by to get a good look.”

I aimed a glare at Remi. “Please don’t let her stalk Deke.”

He raised both hands. “You know your sister does what she wants.”

My mother didn’t look very amused. “Be careful, love. He may have paid his dues, but he still has connections to the Slaters. No good can come of that.”

Cormac chuckled. “Look at Hannah. She dated a Slater and got herself a record.”

Hannah snarled at him. “It was a misdemeanor.”

At the height of Hannah’s rebellious phase, she’d been with Richie in a stolen car he’d crashed right in front of a cop. Luckily, she’d been okay. Double luckily, it had ended her relationship with Richie and the path of self-destruction she’d been on.

Jesse’s eyes bugged. “Does that mean you were arrested, Aunt Hannie?”

“I made some bad,badchoices when I was younger.” Hannah wagged her finger at him. “Take it from me, Jess, you don’t want to go to jail. The mattresses are rock hard, and the food is mush.”

He scrunched up his face like she was nuts. “I’m not going to jail. I don’t even like crossing the street unless I’m at a crosswalk.”

Caleb palmed his son’s head. “Good, kid. Keep that attitude, and you’ll do just fine.”

Hannah winked at him. “I don’t know…breaking a few rules is pretty fun—just don’t get caught.”

Caleb groaned. “Don’t listen to your aunt.”

Jesse shook his head vigorously. “Don’t worry. I’m not going to.”

After dinner, Hannah, Remi, Cormac, and Caleb played a card game in the living room while my dad took Jesse outside to look for a constellation. Since I refused to play games with my ultracompetitive siblings, I helped my mom clean up the kitchen.

She waved a wooden spoon over the leftover pasta. “Do you want to take some of this home with you, love?”

I almost said no but hesitated. “Yes, actually. That would be great.”

She narrowed her eyes. “You never take leftovers.”

That made me laugh. “Then why did you offer them?”

“Because I always do, and youalwayssay no. It’s our thing.” She folded her arms across her chest. “Have you not had time to cook for yourself lately? You work far too much, Phe. You should—”

“No, it’s not that. I was going to take them to Deacon. But it’s fine. I don’t have to.”

She considered me for a long beat. “You’re being a good neighbor?”

“That, and I’d like an excuse to talk to him.”

Her pale brow arched. “He’s that cute?”

“The tattoos, Mom.” I fanned my face, making her laugh. “I don’t know, there’s something about him. I want to get to know him better.”

“Hmmm.” She considered me closely. “I haven’t heard you say that in a while. As much as I like that you’re interested in someone, couldn’t it have been anyone else? Really, a Slater?”

“It could have been, but it’s not.”

She knocked my shoulder with her spoon. “Smart-ass.”

“Hannah’s busy. I had to fill the slot.”

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