Page 84 of Fall Into Temptation
He sighed and turned to Eva. “Baby, listen. If he punches me, I’m cuffing him,” he told Eva before strolling over to where Jax and Joey stood, steaming mad.
“Jax, my friend, you’re outnumbered, and I think you should calm down before you ruin Reva’s night.”
“Calm down?” Jax spat the words out at Donovan. “Do you remember what you were doing at Homecoming and prom and after just about every football game?”
Eva bit her lip when the blush reached the tips of Donovan’s ears.
“I sure do. And I’m sure Reva has better judgement than any of us did back then.”
“Did you go to Homecoming, Bucket?” Aurora asked, wrapping her arms around Beckett’s legs.
He winced, presumably recalling memories of Moon Beam Parker, and lifted his daughter up to settle her on his hip. “I’m with Jax,” he announced. “We can’t let Reva go. Not with hormonal teenage boys oozing testosterone.”
“It’s about time you came to your senses,” Jax approved.
“Hang on, now,” Gia dipped a toe into the fight. “I’m not okay with you siding with Jax on this.”
“Sorry, Gianna, but these are our daughters. We have to protect them from idiots like we were.”
“Were?” Joey challenged.
“I hate to say it, but my stupid brothers might have a point,” Carter butted in. Meadow was cradled against his chest yawning.
“Stupid’s not a nice word, Uncle Carter,” Caleb said.
“You’re right. Sorry buddy,” he said, ruffling the boy’s hair. “My mentally deficient brothers,” he corrected.
“Carter,” Summer said. Her voice held a warning tone.
“What?” he challenged her. “We’ve all got girls, except for Niko, but I bet he’d agree with us.” They all turned to look at Nikolai.
He muttered a curse. “Sorry, babe,” he said, dropping a kiss on Emma’s cheek. “But I’ve got to go where the testosterone goes.” He stepped over the invisible line dividing the camps. A line that Eva noticed Donovan was straddling.
Franklin pulled up a couple of lawn chairs so he, Phoebe, and Evan could sit and enjoy the entertainment. Caleb climbed into the safety of Franklin’s lap, and Michael and Hazel stood behind them ready to act if necessary or at least capture the fight on video.
“Doesn’t anyone care what I want?” Reva demanded from the front porch.
“No!” shouted the men.
“Yes!” the women announced.
“This is Uranus right here, isn’t it?” Eva hissed at Donovan.
“Uranus and a couple of remorseful post-teenagers,” he whispered back. “You want to help me out here?”
“Let me talk Jax down, and you take the ladies.”
“They’re more likely to take a swing at me,” he grumbled. But he took Joey by the arm and dragged her a few feet away to listen to her complaints.
Eva slipped an arm through Jax’s. “Jax, Jax, Jax. We’re like step-brother and sister-in-law, right?”
He was still glaring at Reva’s dress. “Huh? Yeah, I guess so.”
“Good, because this would sting if it were coming from someone who wasn’t family.”
“What would—”
Eva slapped him upside the head. “Listen to me. You are this close to ruining what’s got to be one of the happiest days of your daughter’s life.”
