CHAPTER FIFTEEN #2
Lolli simply shrugged. “I’m just saying that Trace isn’t as much of a stick in the mud as I thought, and he doesn’t have a leg to stand on.”
Keely looked up at her dad, her dark, artful braids swinging. “Daddy, what’s rec-re-ashal mean?”
Ellie buried her face in Trace’s neck. “I would like to die now.”
Trace sent Lolli a scathing look.
“What?” Lolli asked with faux innocence as she turned toward the massive fireplace. “You know what would look perfect above this?”
“A fairy orgy diamond painting?” Cope suggested. “I’ve got one he can have.”
“Copeland Colson,” Nora warned. “You are not too old for me to ground you.”
“I will help her,” Sutton added.
“What’d I say?” Cope asked, affronted.
“Is an orgy a battle with ogres?” Keely asked, confused. “Like in a fairy tale?”
“Gotta be,” Luca said with a decisive nod.
Cope grimaced. “Okay, I might’ve messed up there.”
“You think?” Trace growled.
Linc’s hazel eyes sparked with mirth as the hockey team owner slapped Cope on the shoulder. “Just wait for the call you get from Luca’s teacher when he uses that one during an English lesson.”
Arden choked on a laugh. “Please record the phone call.”
Sutton shook her head and sighed. “It’s all fun and games now, but you’ll be in the same boat we are before long.”
Linc’s hand went to Arden’s slightly rounded belly. “I’m getting the twins earmuffs.”
“Make sure they’re noise canceling,” I muttered.
Cope chuckled as he pulled me into a back-slapping hug, holding it for a moment longer than he normally would. “You hanging in?”
I nodded as he released me. “I’ll be better when my sisters are home.”
God. Saying that just felt right.
“You’re going to need some furniture first,” Shep murmured.
His girlfriend, Thea, studied the place. “A lot of furniture. But it’s going to be such a magical home for them.”
I turned to Ellie. “I was actually hoping you could perform a miracle and outfit this house in the next few days.”
Ellie’s eyes went wide. “Days?” she squeaked.
I grimaced but nodded. “I need to get the house approved by DHS.”
In a flash, all shock and doubt were gone. She fished in her tote bag and pulled out her phone. “I’m going to need you to walk me around the space. Tell me what the girls’ personalities are like. What they enjoy doing. I know Gracie loves art.”
“And she’s really good at it, too,” Arden said, burrowing into Linc’s side. “I should’ve guessed something was off when it was always Hayden picking her up.”
“I’ve been kicking myself all week,” Cope muttered. “I should’ve tried harder with Hayden. Made her explain what was going on.”
I couldn’t help stealing a glance at Fallon, and I found her face as I expected, guilt and sadness swirling in her expression. I moved without considering the dangers or the risk to my already fraying control. Wrapping an arm around her, I pulled her into my side.
Trace crossed from the kitchen island into the living space. “There’s nothing we could do. Without permission to enter the home or reports of neglect or abuse, we had no rights.”
“I should’ve had Noah follow up again,” Fallon said softly.
My fingers dug into her shoulder gently, just enough to bring her gaze to mine. “You’re the reason he looked at the case to begin with. You had him circle back to their teachers twice.”
“And I know you had him drop off materials about the different support programs the county offers,” Trace added.
Fal shook her head. “A lot of good leaving that in her mailbox did.”
My thumb ghosted back and forth across her shoulder as if memorizing the curve of the bone.
I’d commit every piece of Fallon I could to memory these next months.
I’d burn them into me so they’d never leave.
Even if they were pieces I had no right to—stolen shards of a woman who’d never be mine but would always have my soul.
“We’re doing what we can now, right?” I asked, not wanting Fallon to carry this guilt.
It should belong to me. I was the one who never checked to see if Renee had other kids, never looked deeper into what she was up to.
And it would’ve been easy. My brother was the sheriff, and I even knew a hacker through Anson, who could find anything, anywhere.
Fallon tilted her head back to meet my gaze. Waves of white-blond hair cascaded down her back, teasing my arm. Her dark blue eyes glittered with so much hurt—for my sisters, for me. Her hand lifted, and she pressed it to my chest. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s not on you, Sparrow.” I’d never used the nickname in front of our family. It had always been something I’d tucked away, only letting it slip free when emotion got the best of me and Fal and I were alone.
“Fallon …” Rhodes began, her voice wary. “Why is there a ring on that finger?”
Fal’s gaze didn’t stray from mine, as though she thought she might lose her nerve if she looked at her family. I held that beautiful blue gaze, not letting go as I spoke. “Because I asked Fallon to marry me.”
I pulled her tighter against me then, trying to bleed strength into her and apologize for making her lie to the people she loved the most.
Fallon’s pink lips curved. I’d always loved watching them move: the way the highest peaks bowed when she smiled, how one corner of her mouth reached just a bit higher. She let out a silent exhale, leaned in, and stretched.
I knew what was coming as Fal rose to her tiptoes. “He asked, and I said yes.”
There was stunned silence the minute my hand slid along her jaw, feeling my rough skin against her petal softness.
The moment my eyes held hers, I waited one breath and then two so I could memorize her face in the light.
The moment her lips met mine. Silence reigned as I finally felt what I’d been missing for fourteen years.
I knew it was all pretend, a show, but I couldn’t stop my tongue from sliding in for the briefest moment.
I needed to know if Fallon tasted the same or if I’d simply embellished a childhood memory. But then all my senses sparked to life as her heat blazed through my tee, and the scent of jasmine dipped in coconut swirled around me. The taste of spearmint and fresh, clean air flooded me.
That taste.
I’d happily drown in it time after time. Suddenly, I could breathe. For the first time in fourteen years, Fallon gave me air.
And then our whole world exploded.