Page 51 of Insta-Family (Forbidden Descendants 3)

I was handling it. Everything was fine. And if something started to hurt, I could still tuck it away out of sight, out of mind, with no issues.

“You’ll probably see more offerings where that came from,” Lucy was telling me, motioning her head to the food.

I swallowed and mentally told myself to calm down. I was not under attack; everything was fine.

Then I managed to nod as I agreed, “That’s what Gray said.”

“Smart man.” She repositioned Ava in her arms and waved for me to follow as she started into the kitchen. “Well, let’s crack these bad boys open and see what they got for us. I don’t know about you, but I’m starving.”

“Uh, okay.” I carried the food into the kitchen and set the containers on the table where Lucy motioned me to.

“Please, God, let these be Yellow’s snickerdoodle cookies,” she murmured as she reached out with one hand to peek inside the bag. “Yes!” Her fingers disappeared inside, only to emerge a second later, clutching two cookies. “Mmm.”

She sank her teeth into one and closed her eyes, enjoying the taste. The moment reminded me of the first time I’d seen her on the picnic table, eating a sandwich, and my throat went dry.

If Duke had never seen me look over at her that day, we wouldn’t be here right now. Her daughter wouldn’t exist, her life wouldn’t be completely flipped on its head, and she and I never would’ve met at all.

I wondered what she’d think if she knew that, or if it’d make any difference to her at all. This strange urge to tell her rushed over me, only to vanish again when she opened her eyes and lifted her half-eaten cookie, saying, “You need to try these. Yellow is a master with snickerdoodles.”

Ava mewled from the one arm Lucy was holding her with, and when Lucy glanced down to check on her, she laughed. “Oh crap. Sorry, baby.” Using the back of the hand she was holding her cookie with, she brushed her daughter’s face free as she told me, “I got crumbs on her.”

“Whoops.” I managed a smile, captivated by the picture they made together.

Lucy seemed just as delighted and content as she’d been that first day I’d seen her, so I found myself shifting forward to get closer, unable to stay away.

16

VAUGHN

As Lucy continued to groom Ava, only managing to get more crumbs on her in the process, I slid my hand into the cookie bag and pulled out my own snickerdoodle.

When Lucy noticed, she lifted her brows and awaited my feedback. I nodded, holding up a finger as I chewed. Once I swallowed, I licked my tongue over my bottom lip, then used my thumb to wipe crumbs free from the top, and finally, I gave her a single glance before solemnly declaring, “Those are pretty damn good.”

Lucy laughed. “Right?” She motioned toward the two other containers. “How about you break those open and see what else we got?” Then she stuffed the last of her cookie into her mouth and leaned forward to get a better view.

Wanting to keep her happy because her joy did something to me on an elemental level, I opened both lids to reveal that one contained lasagna while the other housed what appeared to be a homemade chicken pot pie.

“Ooh, we should share and take a little of each.” She glanced up, looking for my response, only for her eyes to widen with worry. “That is…unless you’d rather not.”

No way did I want to do anything that pulled her from the current mood she was in, so I sent her a small, baffled shrug and answered, “Your plan sounds fine with me.”

Her smile blossomed. “Oh, good. There are a couple of plates in that cabinet up there and silverware in the end drawer there.” As she motioned with her head, she sat in the chair at the end of the table and secured Ava more firmly in her arms.

And I guess that was her way of inviting me to eat supper with her.

Thrilled to accept, I fetched the plates and a couple of forks, asking, “How big of a portion do you want?” as I returned to the table.

“I don’t know. As hungry as I am, I could probably eat a whole pan by myself. But, uh, how about to here with the lasagna and here with the pot pie?”

I watched her draw an invisible line over each meal, and then I nodded, murmuring, “You got it,” before I cut into them with one of the forks.

After finding a roll of paper towels and covering the meal, I set her dish in the microwave to begin the heating process.

“Did you want anything to drink?” I asked after the warming was underway.

“Hmm?” Lucy glanced up distractedly from where she’d been smiling at Ava and tracing her finger around the small, cherubic face. “Oh. Um, just water, please. Thanks. The cups are…” Voice trailing off, she frowned around the kitchen before murmuring, “Hey. You cleaned.” Returning her attention to me with raised eyebrows, she added, “Again.”

The look felt like a condemnation, so I cringed. “Sorry, I... I just didn’t have anything else to do while I was waiting for you to...” I motioned toward her breasts, which felt stupid as soon as I did so. And my face immediately went warm.

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