Page 30 of I Think They Love You

At Nic’s hard glare, her mouth screwed into ayou’re not fooling anyonepout, Denz shuts up. She’s barely thirteen and already as intimidating as their dad. When did that happen?

He tugs on one of her box braids. “I was listening for Mikah.”

Nic rolls her eyes. “Liar. He’s asleep in his crib. And you’re freaking out.”

“I’m not—”

“Who’s freaking out?” Leena asks, hovering over a fresh pie on the kitchen island.

“Denz,” Nic announces, dodging the hand he tries to clamp over her mouth. “He thinks Dad’s gonna murder Bray.”

“He won’t,” Kami assures while loading the last plates from dinner into the dishwasher. “At least not until after Christmas.”

Denz flips her off. He sidles up to his mom, frowning. “He won’t, right?”

“I mean…” Leena cuts four equal slices from the pie. “When we bought this house, he specifically requested a big backyard. Easier to hide the bodies.”

“Mom!”

His sisters cackle. Leena’s shoulders shake as she tries to hold in her laugh. “He’ll be fine.” She shoves a small plate in his hands. “Eat. Enjoy being home. Your dad’s harmless.”

Denz wants to refute that claim. Heknowshis dad’s history. Knows the trail of boys Kami’s brought home that haven’t lasted five minutes alone with Kenneth Carter. Bray’s been gone eight minutes. It’s a record Denz celebrates by forking up a giant chunk of his mom’s sweet potato pie.

He misses this. The air coated in a heavy blend of vanilla and nutmeg and melted butter. His mom playing Whitney Houston—The Preacher’s Wifesoundtrack is a holiday staple—on the Bluetooth speaker. Nic wearing a mash of prints and stripes Auntie Eva would disapprove of, calling it “trendy.” The sleepy bags under Kami’s eyes, still adjusting to motherhood a year later, accentuated by her smile after her first bite of pie.

“Jesus, Mom, how is it so perfect every single time?”

Leena smirks. “My secret ingredient.”

“Which is,” Denz prompts.

“Nice try. I’m taking that to the grave.”

“Come on!” Denz and Kami whine. They grin at each other. Since Nic was five, the three of them have maintained a bet on who would discover the hidden ingredient in their mom’s pie first. No amount of begging, bribing, or overfilling Leena’s wineglass has worked. That doesn’t stop their efforts.

Nic beams. “I know what it is!”

Denz narrows his eyes. Growing up, he’d always been closer to Kami. But when she left for college, suddenly the eight-year age gap between him and Nic became nonexistent. She tells him almost everything. He can’t believe she kept this secret.

Nic leans her head on Leena’s shoulder. “It’s love.”

Denz and Kami groan. Leena hip-checks Nic away. “Nicola,please,” she says. “I’m still not using your dad’s name to get BT-whatever to perform at your next birthday.”

“BTS,” Nic grumbles, defeated.

Denz tugs her under his arm, laughing. Kami replaces their sister at Leena’s side. Each of them chewing and giggling and talking. No expectations. No questions from the aunties or uncles about what’s next now that he’s only a year and a half away from graduating.

Honestly, he hasn’t given it much thought. He can’t imagine Bray won’t somehow be a part of that bigger picture, whatever it might look like.

It’s been at least fifteen minutes,he thinks. Should he…

“Bray’s fine,” Kami tells him.

Denz startles. “I know.”

“So why do you look like Nic when she thinks she’s found where Mom hid the Christmas gifts?”

“Hey!” Nic protests.

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