44. Arden
44
ARDEN
Linc shifted on the couch, and a flicker of pain swept across his expression. I instantly leaned forward, reaching for his pain medication, but Linc placed a hand on my arm to stop me. “I’m okay.”
Brutus lifted his head from his paws as if trying to see if Linc was telling the truth. But I just scowled at Linc. “You winced. That means you’re hurting. And you could’ve taken your next dose forty-five minutes ago.”
Kye snickered from his spot in the chair opposite us. “You thought getting shot was bad. It’s got nothing on Arden riding your ass afterward.”
Fallon smacked his arm as she passed. “That’s not funny.”
“It’s a little funny. And a lot true,” Kye shot back.
I pinned him with my death stare. “Just remember this moment when I let Fal glitter bomb your office at Haven.”
The smirk slipped right off his face. “You wouldn’t.”
“Test me.”
“Shit,” Kye muttered .
“Swear jar,” Keely said, looking up from her spot on the floor, where she was working on a puzzle with Luca.
Fallon’s lips twitched as she held out her hand. “Yeah, Kye, swear jar. Pay up.”
Kye leaned to the side and pulled out his wallet, scowling into it. “I only have twenties.”
Fallon’s dark blue eyes twinkled. “Sucks for you.”
Kye smacked a bill into her palm but didn’t let go. “I’ll be checking the swear jar to make sure this was added, and you didn’t use it to fuel your sweets addiction.”
She laughed, tugging her hand free. “You’ll just have to trust me.”
Keely grinned at her. “If you get me some candy, too, I won’t tell that it didn’t go in the swear jar.”
“Me, too,” Luca cut in.
“Robbing me blind,” Kye muttered.
“Like you don’t deserve it,” Cope called from his spot on one of the kitchen stools next to Sutton as Nora and Rhodes worked on some dinner concoction that smelled amazing.
Linc shifted again. He tried to hide the wince this time, but I saw the echo of it. My back teeth ground together as I leaned forward to grab the bottle of pills. “If you don’t take one of these, I’m going to grind it up and slip it into your drink.”
“I want to try to stretch at least another thirty minutes,” Linc argued. “I hate that dopey feeling.”
“Dopey is a heck of a lot better than being in pain,” I shot back.
“Arden—”
“Please.” I wasn’t above begging because seeing him like this was killing me. “I can’t take it,” I said, dropping my voice. “You’re hurting because you were trying to protect me. Let me take care of you now.”
Linc’s hazel eyes flashed, turning more gold than green. “Vicious…”
“Please.”
He grabbed my arm and pulled me into him until our foreheads were touching. “I’d take that bullet over and over again if it meant you were safe. ”
“Don’t say that.” Panic clawed at me, icy fear right on its heels. How many people had to be hurt because they were trying to protect me?
Linc’s thumb traced my jawline. “You want me to lie to you?”
“I want you to be safe,” I whispered.
Those hazel eyes swirled, and I saw confusion and worry there. But he didn’t let go. Didn’t let me fall into the pit of worry and fear.
“Are you gonna have a baby?” Keely’s voice cut into my spiral, making me jerk back as a different sort of panic cut in.
“A baby?” I squeaked.
“You’re all…”
“Mushy-gushy,” Luca supplied, his nose wrinkling. “My mom and dad are like that aaaaall the time now.”
It was the first time I’d heard Luca call Cope Dad , which had a different kind of pang lighting in my chest. But it couldn’t drown out the panic and fear wrapping around my insides.
“Mushy-gushy, huh?” Shep asked as he strode in, Thea at his side.
Luca made a gagging noise. “The worst .”
Shep chuckled. “Sorry we’re late.” He glanced behind him. “ Someone had to finish her gift for Linc.”
Lolli bustled in behind them, holding what looked like a piece of art wrapped in brown butcher paper. “The artistic process cannot be rushed.”
“I tried to explain that to him,” Thea said, her lips twitching.
Lolli shook her head. “I’m really hoping you’ll be a good influence on my grandson. Get him to loosen up.” She paused for a moment. “You know, I’m working on a new blend of my brownies that helps in the mushy-gushy department. You and Shep should?—”
“Lolli,” Shep and half the room said at the same time.
She straightened, her countless necklaces jingling with the move. “What? Can’t a grandmother offer her assistance?”
“Not in the mushy-gushy department,” Kye said, struggling not to laugh.
Lolli let out a huff and crossed toward me and Linc. “I try to help, and all I get is grief.” She stopped in front of Linc and extended the gift. “I thought you might need a little something to brighten your day after your ordeal. I worked round the clock to get it done.”
A few snickers and smothered laughs sounded throughout the room. Linc glanced from Lolli to me. “Should I be scared?”
“Very,” I told him honestly.
Lolli just scoffed. “Oh, just open it. You’re gonna love it.”
Carefully and methodically, Linc tore into the butcher paper. Dropping it to the floor, he stared at the piece of diamond art Lolli had created. His brows pulled together as he frowned. And then he saw it.
The glittering piece of art was set on a backdrop of ice. There was a pile of pucks, but the two at the top were artfully arranged into what looked like balls. Sprouting from them was a hockey stick with a very unique…tip.
All my siblings and their partners moved to circle the painting so they could see it. Rhodes choked out a laugh first. “Is that a diamond dick stick?”
“What’s a dick stick?” Keely singsonged.
Kye held up both hands. “That’s on you,” he told Rhodes. “I’m not taking the fall when Trace wants to know where his kid learned that one.”
Fal dissolved into giggles. “Diamond dick stick. Where are you going to hang it, Linc?”
Linc just stared at the piece for a long moment. “I think it’s going to take me a minute to figure out the best spot.”
“Smart,” Lolli said, patting him on the shoulder. “You’ll want it in the place with the best energy and flow. And I bet Shep can put in some custom lighting to make sure it really glitters.”
“Oh, I can do that, no problem,” Shep said, struggling not to laugh.
Linc’s eyes narrowed on him. “Just as long as you do the same in your new place. I hear Thea has a dick-gourd painting that needs a place of honor.”
The smile slipped right off Shep’s face. “You fight dirty.”
Linc chuckled, but his hand instantly went to his side. I shoved the bottle of pills into his hand. “Take one. ”
“She’s right,” Nora said, crossing to us and placing a steaming plate of lasagna and a salad on the side table. “You need to stay ahead of the pain, or you won’t recover as quickly. Three bites of lasagna, the pill, then the rest of your dinner.”
Linc sighed. “Okay.”
I gaped at him. “I’ve been trying to get you to take this for the past thirty minutes, and you just cave when Nora tells you to?”
Linc grinned at me. “She’s got the mom tone. You can’t fight that.”
“Dang straight,” Nora said, lifting the painting from Linc’s lap. “I’ll just put this somewhere it won’t get…damaged. And, Lolli, we need to have another talk about the appropriateness of your gifts .”
“Dang it,” Lolli whispered. “I knew I should’ve waited until she wasn’t looking.”
“Gotta work on the slyness,” Kye told her.
“Always trying to harsh my buzz,” she muttered.
Linc looked at me, amusement in his hazel eyes. “I love your family.”
The warmth of those words swirled around me. I was glad we could give Linc some of what he’d missed growing up. He deserved that and so much more. But all I could think was that the more we all had, the more we had to lose.