Sitting back in my chair, I groaned and rubbed my slightly aching stomach. As Mom held up another offering of pudding, I vehemently started shaking my head. “God, no. If I eat one more thing, I’m seriously going to explode. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so full in my life.”

Mom rolled her eyes, but it was obvious she was trying to conceal a grin. “Anyone else?” she called.

A series of groans echoed around the table. If Mom had one life goal each Christmas, it was to feed her family into a coma. Kara let out a slight whimper across from me. “Damn you, Ali,” she said. “If I go into labor now, I’m going to curse you to all eternity.”

Mom placed the pudding back on the table and chuckled. “And lose the best babysitter you’ll ever have?” she said, wiggling her eyebrows. “I don’t think so.”

Kara had less than two months until she was due. We were all taking bets on the day she would pop. I put my money on Valentine’s Day. That kind of thing would fit right in with our family.

Dad clapped his hands and pushed his chair away from the table. “All right, let’s get this mess cleared away, so we can all pass out in the den. I might not technically be a granddad yet, but I sure can nap like one.”

Isaac pushed himself up to stand beside him. “It must be in the genes, then, Dad, because I can nap like a damn pro.”

As Kara struggled to her feet, one arm latched onto Adam and the other around her bulging stomach, she sighed a wistful sound. “All I can say is that this baby better have that gene. It’s the one thing I’ve been dreading. I don’t do well on limited sleep.”

Adam’s lips pressed into a thin line behind Kara, his eyes widening with agreement, but wisely, he just shook his head, choosing to not go there.

Dad clapped him on the back as he passed him, plate in hand, mumbling under his b

reath. “I taught you well, Son. You’ll go far.”

Leaning forward on the table, I watched Noah drape his arm over Kaeli’s shoulder and draw her closer to him before he kissed her on the temple. I had to admire my little brother for his dedication and commitment to his girl. It wasn’t something you saw too often with guys his age. Hell, it was rare in guys my age too. Wyatt proved that point better than anyone I knew.

I scowled, pissed off with myself for allowing Wyatt into my thoughts. One, I just simply detested the guy for treating Jess the way he had. Two, when I thought of him, it made me think of Jess, and she was the last thing I needed to be thinking about right now.

As everyone started migrating into the kitchen to clean up, I loaded up my arms with whatever I could carry and followed. I was with Dad. A nap sounded amazing right about now.

“How’s everything going, E?” Noah asked as I passed him.

Kaeli smiled as I paused, grabbing a couple of plates from me and disappearing toward the kitchen. “Okay, I guess. How’s the investigation going?”

He nodded, but his expression was distracted. “We may have a witness,” he said quietly. “It’s been a tough one, but I have a gut feeling about one of them. She knows something.”

My pulse started picking up a little faster. If Zac really did drug Jess, I would love nothing more than to see him arrested for it. “You think someone saw Zac slip something into Jess’s drink?”

His head moved side to side. “I’m not sure exactly, but I think she knows more than she’s letting on. A lot more.”

I thought about his words as Kaeli appeared, to take the rest of the things I was holding on to. “Sorry, I’ll be in there in a minute to help.”

She smiled brightly. “It’s all good. We’ve got it under control.”

We both watched her disappear through the doors before Noah met my gaze again. “I still can’t believe the test came back positive,” he said. “It’s fucking with my head trying to figure it out.”

“Yeah, I just don’t get it, man,” I said, shaking my head. “I know it’s all still speculation, but if it really was Zac or Wyatt who drugged her, then why? If neither of them wanted to take advantage of her, why do it? It just doesn’t make any sense.”

Noah scratched his chin. “Yeah, I can’t figure that one out, either,” he said, sighing. “But if either of them slipped something into her drink—regardless of what their intentions were—they’ve just started playing in an entirely different ball game. Not only is this their careers, this is their life, man, and if my gut is right, they’ve just fucked up in the biggest way possible.”

He had no idea how right he was. I knew what the last seven years had been like for me. The only thing that got me through each day, was the knowledge that it would all soon be over, and I would finally start receiving the benefits of all the hard work I’d been putting in. If anything happened right now that would take that possibility away from me, I didn’t actually know what I would do. It would be devastating.

But if all this turned out to be true, and either Zac or Wyatt was guilty, I knew I would have no sympathy for them. This wasn’t some unfortunate event that fate had dished out to them. This would have been a choice. They put their own needs before Jess’s safety, and her justice was something I would fight tooth and nail for.

“You know she likes you, right?” Noah asked suddenly.

My thoughts did a complete one-eighty. “Who?”

Noah smirked. “Jess. You should ask her out.”

And the conversation was over. Taking a slight step toward the kitchen, I gave Noah a playful smile. “A girlfriend is the last thing I need right now, Noah. I didn’t subject myself to seven years of hell, only to be distracted in the eleventh hour. I’m going to finish this shit, and I’m going to ace the bar exam, and then I’m going to live.”