Page 153 of Chasing Shelter

“Come over for brunch. Around ten-thirty,” I said.

“Are you having a stroke?” Gabriel asked. “Talk about a one-eighty.”

“I’m not having a stroke. Everything’s been hard lately. We need to remember the good that’s mixed in. So, come over for brunch,” I said.

Ellie looked up at me and mouthed,I love you. She understood why I needed this. That I wasn’t going to let my father or anything else make me lose sight of what was important.

“I’ll be there,” Gabriel said quietly. “Pleased as hell for you that you’ve found someone who makes you see the world a little more clearly.”

I leaned into Ellie and brushed my lips over her forehead. “Me, too, brother. Me, too.”

The soundsof pure chaos reigned in my house. Laughter, oldies music, the din of conversation. The entire Colson crew was here, along with Gabriel, Walter, and even Leah. Ellie had asked if we could invite her, too. And for the first time in a long while, I could see us taking steps toward becoming a truly blended family.

As I moved through the living room, I saw Arden coloring something fantastical with Keely and Luca. Linc hovered close by. Nora and Lolli were in the throes of some card game with Sutton and Thea. I caught sight of more people outside, including Gabriel, who said something to make Leah blush.

That had me shaking my head and moving toward the kitchen, where I found Ellie shaking her hips as she sliced strawberries for our waffle station. “Please note the epic slices. This is chef quality over here.”

I chuckled and leaned over to examine her work. “I amveryimpressed.”

She beamed up at me. “I think I deserve a reward later, don’t you?”

My dick twitched at her sultry tone. “For the love of God, my entire family is here. Please, do not give me a hard-on.”

Ellie just laughed, the full-bodied one that said she didn’t have a care in the world. And then she leaned in and kissed me. She tastedlike strawberries, tea, andher. I could’ve drowned in the combination and been a happy man.

A hoot sounded that had the two of us pulling apart. “There’s some nookie happening in the kitchen,” Lolli hollered.

“Jesus,” I muttered.

Ellie only grinned wider. “I didn’t have you pegged as a narc, Lolli.”

My grandma straightened her shoulders and let out a huff of air. “I would never.”

“I don’t know. It sounds like you were throwing them under the bus to me,” Kye called as he walked into the kitchen, looking a little worse for wear. Dark circles ringed bloodshot eyes, and I was fairly certain he was wearing clothes from the day before.

That had me frowning. Ellie told me Kye had opened up to her about some of our shared history, and I couldn’t help but worry that doing so had reopened a wound for him.

Lolli made apshhnoise as she gave him a once-over. “You need a little hair of the dog. You’re looking a little rough over there.”

Kye moved to the coffee pot and refilled his mug. “I’m not hungover. Got caught up in some sketches and didn’t get a lot of sleep. I just need about a dozen cups of the good stuff, and I’ll be fine.”

The fact that Kyewasn’thungover almost made me more worried. It wasn’t out of the norm for Kye to disappear for a night or even a couple of days, but the fact that darkness still clung to him set me on edge.

Before I could press him about anything, an excited Keely and Luca raced into the kitchen. “Daddy, can we go to the fall carnival? It starts today, and Luca said there’s rides and cotton candy?—”

“And corn dogs,” Luca said, as if corn dogs were the most important thing on Earth. I didn’t blame him.

Ellie rolled onto the balls of her feet like a little kid. “I love carnival rides.”

I looked back and forth between the two of them. “I don’t know if today is the best day?—”

“Pleeeeeease, Daddy,” Keely begged. “Benny, Gracie, and Isabella are going, too. Luca said. Please.”

I glanced at Ellie, uncertainty digging in. The idea of bringing her somewhere out in the open given everything that had been happening set me on edge. But I also understood that her being cooped up in my house or hers wasn’t ideal either.

“I can stay here with Linc and whatever deputy you want. You and Keely can go,” Ellie offered instantly.

Of course, she had. Always looking out for my girl.

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