Page 138 of Caged

“No worries there, I’ll make room.” He chuckled.

“Meg makes the best brownies,” Jay said.

Mary put her hand over her heart and feigned offense as Meg said, “Thanks.”

“Sorry, Ma, but it’s true. Yours are good, but she adds bacon and bourbon,” Jay said.

“The salted caramel ones are my favorite,” Jack added.

“Mine are the Mexican ones,” Jamie said.

“Oh, those are good too,” Jay added. “What kind did you make tonight?”

“I made the salted caramel,” Meg answered.

“I made the Mexican,” Emily said.

“No bacon and bourbon?” Jay asked, pouting. He turned to me, knowing I’d pick up on the fact they’d each made the one their significant other preferred.

It’s a good thing I like brownies, bourbon, and bacon.

“I guess I’ll need the bacon bourbon brownie recipe, too.”

Jay’s smile doubled in size before he squeezed my thigh. “You’ll need all the brownie recipes.”

“How much free time do you think I have?”

He glanced at my sling and laughed.

“This is temporary.”

“I’ll help you bake, Sweetie Pie.”

“Don’t.”

“Snookems?”

Ignoring him, I turned and said, “They both sound too good to pass up. Remind me to only have a small piece of each.”

“You should have giant pieces.” Jay chuckled when my jaw dropped open. “Don’t worry, I’ll eat what you don’t finish.”

“Bottomless pit,” his father said, making everyone laugh.

I had two small bites of each, before handing the rest over to Jay, along with most of my beer. The few sips I had provided the normalcy I’d wanted, which was all I wanted.

He raised an eyebrow and grinned, but kept his mouth closed like the smart man he was.

“If you have time, we’d love to have you over again,” Mary said as we packed up to leave. When she handed us leftovers, I tried turning them down but Jay vetoed me, and my father took Jay’s side.

“I have a feeling there’ll be plenty of opportunities in the future,” my dad said, smiling at me. “John, if the offer still stands, I’d like to check out the office and the training facility you’re building.”

“How about tomorrow, say ten?” John asked.

My dad looked at me to verify. “That’s fine,” I answered. I wasn’t like I had anything better to do.

The hugs goodbye were less awkward than the hugs hello.

I wasn’t sure when it happened, but at some point during dinner, I’d embraced my new role as a member of the Sheppard clan.

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