Page 122 of Hot Puck
“She’d want me to wake her up.”
“Then do that. But not yet.” Cami indicates the stairs behind me. “Go help Deanne pack the girls up for a night with their grandparents and cousins.”
Turning, I find the foyer empty, and I don’t fight the smile tugging at my lips. “Guess the girls are ready for a night away from us.”
“I’m sure it’s more they’re ready for a night of being spoiled.” Cami laughs, her hand rubbing her round belly. “Shame I can’t let this one join in yet.”
“Soon.” My smile grows. “Soon there will be another three for the grandparents to spoil.
“And Aunt Deanne. Don’t forget me.” Deanne is coming down the stairs, Candace on her hip, the twins behind her.
“You two okay to?—”
“Yep.”
“Yes!”
Neither of my sisters even stops on their way to the door. “Okay, see you tomorrow I guess.”
“Don’t worry, Chase. They still love you. They just love their grandparents more.”
Cami’s words have me looking back at her. “Grandparents…we’ve never had any. Both sets died when I was a baby.”
“Well, they have them now.” She slips her arm through mine. “Come on. Let’s get something to eat. Little Bit is hungry.”
“Ah, give me a minute. I just want to check on Gem.”
“You’ll find us taking over your kitchen,” she says with a grin.
I don’t hang around to watch her go back to the others. Taking the stairs two at a time I race back to our room.
It’s funny. We haven’t told anyone directly—except the twins—that we’re together. Although everyone knows Gem is pregnant with my baby. I expected some questions, a few narrowed eyes, but there’s been none of that.
Then again, everyone has been preoccupied with the Gannon and Shelby situation.
And now that’s been resolved, or the threat neutralized at least, I guess we can all get back to normal lives. Whatever they are.
Nothing about my life has been normal in over a year. But maybe that’s how life is supposed to be. Always changing, always growing.
I like to think my parents would be proud of me, proud of the girls, or at least happy for us and where we are now.
If they were here, if they hadn’t died, we wouldn’t have the life we have, we wouldn’t be adding another member to the family in a few months.
As much as I wish my parents were still here, there are so many things that wouldn’t be the same if they were.
For one—I push open our bedroom door—I wouldn’t have a wife and a baby on the way. I frown when the empty bed comes into view.
A wife who isn’t where I left her.
“Gem?”
“Bathroom,” she calls out.
“You okay?” I race across the room only to skid to a halt when I find her brushing her hair. “Ah…”
“I heard voices downstairs, checked the security feed until I worked out who was here.” She turns a sheepish smile my way. “I’m still in protection mode. Had my finger poised to hit the second 1 on 911.”
I smile, but it’s not a happy one, it’s more a grimace. I hate that we’ve all been scared the last few weeks. “I can understand that.”
