Page 46 of Remade

I huffed. They were all fucking wrong.

Ethan shook his head in amusement and turned to Ryan. “I’m not saying everything’s hereditary, but do you remember when we started drinking coffee? Jake poured a fuck-ton of vanilla syrup and cream into his. On the other hand, he was like eleven.”

Oh,whatever.

Ryan chuckled. “All I remember is nearly throwing up after I tried a dozen sweeteners in mine.”

Darius smiled a little. “Even as an adult, Jake liked it sweet, though. He used brown sugar.”

“I remember that.” Ryan nodded. “He also introduced me to using whipped cream. Just a spoon of it—it’s damn good on a cold day.”

“That’s almost the same as what I’m doing,” I said.

Darius inclined his head. “Almost, if we ignore the truth.”

I smashed my lips together.

“Now you know you’re family, Leighton,” Gray said with a smirk. “It’s always three or more against one over some insignificant crap.”

That immediately earned him arguments from the three brothers, who turned on him next, and Gray just laughed through a groan and said, “And now it’s my turn. Of-fucking-course. Bring it, you old fucks.”

I grinned.

Bo pulled me back against his side, rested his arm down my front, and kissed the side of my head.

“No reason to be nervous anymore, pup,” he murmured in my ear.

I shivered and hugged his arm to me. It was so freaking bizarre, all of this. I hadfamily.

Something bleak within me was disappearing, a pit of loneliness was being replaced by hope, and the sucking void that sometimes gave me stomachaches was slowly becoming smaller too. Together, those sensations changed my perspective in the blink of an eye, and I decided right then and there to do my best never to dwell on time lost or the circumstances that’d kept us apart until now.

Maybe lingering bitterness and anger would resurface every now and then—but bottom line, I didn’t wanna waste my precious time on the past.

“Leighton,” Darius said, nodding toward the hallway. “Ma wants somethin’.”

Oh. I untangled myself from Bo’s arms and got up. “Please adopt better taste in coffee until I get back.”

Ryan didn’t miss a beat. “That’s rich comin’ from someone who doesn’t know the taste of coffee to begin with.”

I rolled my eyes and went down the hall. Dammit, I should’ve had a quick comeback for that, but I just didn’t.

Mary was waiting outside my door, and her smile grew warmer as I approached.

“Can I do something, ma’am?” I asked.

“Oh—well, since you asked… You could start warming up to the idea of calling me Nana or Grandma, but you take your time, honey.” She didn’t let me process that tidbit before she moved on. “Willow would like to see you, if that’s all right. Did Ryan tell you she’s nonverbal in uncomfortable situations? At least, around people she doesn’t know well, I should add.”

I nodded hesitantly, the terms Nana and Grandma going on a loop in my brain. “Yes, ma’am.”

She nodded too and gestured for me to go in. “Wonderful. Just let her lead. She’s prepared some notes for you. I’d give youa heads-up if I knew what they were about, but that girl can be secretive sometimes.”

Hold on now, I thought I was done being nervous. But just like that, my stomach churned with unease. Willow and my dad had clearly shared a special bond, and I didn’t know how this was gonna unfold.

I mustered a weak smile and opened the door, right on time to see James get up off the couch where Willow was seated.

“I’ll let him know right now, sweetheart,” he said.

She nodded stiffly and didn’t look my way.

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