Only Ever You

Chapter 1

Age five

Islam my hands onto my hips before raising one hand to wag a finger at the small white animal in the tree.

“Roger. We talked about this. Once you get up there, you can’t get back down.”

I let out a big sigh as my cat climbs to a higher branch and gives a long, loud meow.

Rolling my eyes, I step onto the base of the tree and look closer. “Roger?”

He’s pacing. Stupid cat.

I wrap my hands around the lowest limb I can reach and pull myself up.

The next branch is harder, but there are some good places to put my feet on the tree, so I scrabble up. Roger’s still higher than me.

He lets out a wail. He’s stuck.

If I could just climb a little bit higher …

“Whatcha doing, Pipsqueak?”

I freeze before slowly turning around.

My brother, Lucas, stands at the foot of the tree, his arms crossed.

But it’s not him speaking. His best friend, Deacon, waits beside him, one eyebrow raised.

“Roger’s up the tree.”

Lucas snorts. “Why did you ever call your cat Roger?”

“Because I can.” I cross my arms and frown at him.

“It’s a stupid name.”

The branch jolts, and I let out a scream before dropping my arms to my sides and gripping the wood.

Lucas laughs, but Deacon takes a step forward.

“You okay up there, Pipsqueak?” he asks.

“No.” I sniff.

Deacon holds up his arms. “Drop down. I’ll catch you.”

I shake my head. “I can’t. I’m scared.”

“Trust me.”

Lucas moves beside him, reaching out his arms too. “Come on, Pippa. We’ve got you.”

Big, fat tears roll down my cheeks. “I just wanted to save Roger.”

“I’m pretty sure Roger is fine.” Deacon beckons me with his fingers. “Jump.”

I close my eyes and push myself off the branch. I’m not sure I trust either of them to catch me, but maybe they can …

Oof.

I land on something soft and slowly open my eyes.

Somehow, they’ve caught me between them, and we’ve fallen in a heap on the ground.

I let out a delighted laugh and even grumpy Lucas smiles.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper.

Lucas wraps his arms around me. “As long as you’re safe, little sis.”

He plants a kiss on my cheek, and I giggle. “Thank you for saving me.”

“That’s what big brothers are for.”

A loud crack above us makes both Lucas and me look up. Deacon’s scaled the tree, reaching the branch Roger’s on, and he’s got one arm out to grab him.

Roger loves Deacon, and before I know it, he’s rubbing himself on Deacon’s hand. Deacon grabs him and drops down off the tree in an instant.

I hold my arms out for Roger, and he comes to me, purring so loudly and headbutting my face.

“Don’t climb the tree again, Pipsqueak. You’ll hurt yourself. Let one of us do it,” Deacon says.

Lucas rolls his eyes. “Don’t make her promises like that.”

“Why not? You don’t want your sister hurt, do you?”

He shuffles on his feet. “No.”

I love Deacon.