Chapter 25 #2
So I give it to him. Everything.
When I finish, silence settles heavy.
“I want to kill him.”
“Dex?”
“What? No. Russel.”
“I’m safe now.”
His grip tightens around mine.
Then he stands.
I follow, slower, as he stops in front of Dex.
They look at each other. Measuring.
“You the one who kept her from sleeping in her car?”
Dex sets the cloth down.
“I’d walk through a thousand snowstorms for her.”
“She’s my sister.”
“I know.”
“You hurt her, and nothing in this world will keep me from ending you.”
“If I ever hurt her, I’ll hand you the gun myself.”
My breath catches.
“I’d burn down the whole of Wyoming if I need to before I ever let anyone hurt her again.”
Something shifts.
“You think you’re good enough for her?”
“No one is.”
Dex’s eyes find mine.
“But I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to be.”
My throat tightens.
“Are you happy?” Mason turns to me.
“I am.”
“Good.”
“Mason.” My brother extends his hand to Dex.
“Dex Hawthorne.”
They shake.
This time, it holds.
Mason moves to the bar, grabbing a soda like he belongs there, like maybe he does now.
“Lexy told me about you,” he says. “So… how are we gonna protect my sister from that bastard?”
Dex leans back against the counter, already answering, and just like that the tension shifts into something else, something steadier.
By the end of the hour, they’re arguing about sports, voices low but easy, like they’ve known each other longer than they have.
And I just stand there for a second, watching them, feeling something inside me finally settle.
“Come on,” I say finally, nudging Mason. “I’ll show you the apartment.”
Upstairs, he takes everything in slowly, his eyes landing on Dex’s Marvel collection with a grin I haven’t seen in years.
We end up on the floor, laughing, Marvel wedged between us, going wild.
The door opens.
“All right,” Dex says, stepping inside, keys in hand, “Mama just called. We’ve got dinner at the ranch.”
I glance at Mason. “I don’t really want to leave him alone…”
Dex smirks.
“You really think Lily Hawthorne would invite you and not your brother?”
I laugh.
Of course not.
? ? ?
We pull up to the Hawthorne Ranch just as the last of the sun dips behind the hills, the sky stretched in soft purples and golds.
Even though I’ve been here before, something about it still gets to me. The space, the quiet, the kind of peace that makes everything feel bigger than life itself.
Next to me, Mason lets out a low whistle under his breath.
“Jesus…” he mutters, leaning forward slightly as he takes it all in. “You grew up here?”
He looks at Dex, who nods.
A small smile tugs at my lips.
The car hasn’t even fully stopped before the front door swings open.
Lily.
She comes down the porch steps like a force of nature, apron still tied around her waist as she wipes her hands on it, her whole face lighting up the second she spots us.
Dex barely gets his door closed before she’s pulling him into her arms.
“Missed you, my sweet boy.”
Dex laughs, folding into her easily despite his size.
“Mama, I’m a grown man.”
“Oh hush,” she says, waving him off as she squeezes him tighter before pulling back to look at him. “To me you’re still rolling around in the mud with your brothers.”
I can’t help but smile.
Dex walks around the car and opens my door, his hand already there for me before I can even step out. But I barely get both feet on the ground before Lily’s arms are around me too.
“Oh, sweet girl,” she says warmly, pulling me close. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
Something in my chest softens instantly.
When she pulls back, her eyes land on Mason.
“You must be Mason.”
He straightens slightly, offering his hand out of instinct.
“Nice to meet you, ma’am.”
Lily glances at it for half a second before waving it off and pulling him into a hug instead.
“Oh, none of that,” she says warmly. “Call me Lily. And I’m so happy you’re here.”
Mason freezes for a split second, then awkwardly pats her back, like he’s not used to this kind of welcome.
When she steps back, her eyes move between us.
“Well, I’ll be,” she says, smiling wider. “You two look like twins.”
We both laugh.
As we walk inside, I feel it immediately. The warmth, the noise, the kind of love that fills every corner of a place like this. Voices overlap, laughter echoing as dishes clatter and chairs scrape across the floor, everything blending into something alive.
Mason slows beside me, his head turning as he takes everything in. He is quieter now, not uncomfortable, just taking it in like he doesn't trust something this good to be real.
The long table is already set, food covering every inch of it. Roast, potatoes, and bread still warm enough to steam. The smell alone makes my stomach churn.
Dex moves through it all like he belongs there, greeting people, clapping shoulders, pulling Mason along with him without making a big deal out of it.
And just like that, Mason is pulled into a conversation with Ethan, the two of them already arguing about college teams like they have known each other forever.
I linger for a second, watching it happen. Watching him fit .
The front door swings open again.
“Lexy!”
I barely have time to turn before Mia comes barreling toward me, her little boots thudding against the wooden floor. She crashes into me without hesitation, wrapping her arms tight around my waist.
“You’re back!” she beams, looking up at me like I just handed her the moon.
I laugh, dropping slightly to hug her back.
“I am.”
She pulls back just enough to look behind me.
“Uncle Dex!”
She launches herself at him next.
Dex catches her easily, lifting her with one arm like she weighs nothing.
“Hey, trouble,” he grins, pressing a kiss to her cheek. “Miss me?”
“Yes!” she says without hesitation, then leans over his shoulder to look at me again, eyes sparkling.
By the time we make it to the table, the energy has doubled. Chairs scrape as people talk over each other, laughter rising and falling in waves, and somewhere in the middle of it all, Jude sits quietly.
He doesn't look out of place. If anything, it feels like he’s exactly where he wants to be, just watching, taking it all in, though there’s something distant in his gaze that wasn’t there before.
We take our seats, Mason ending up next to me.
Under the table, Dex’s hand finds mine.
I glance at him. His thumb brushes lightly over my knuckles before he reaches up with his other hand and tucks a strand of hair behind my ear.
The room goes quiet.
I don’t even notice it at first.
Until I look up.
Everyone is watching.
“Well?” Mia’s voice cuts through the silence. “Is she your girlfriend now, Uncle Dex?”
A beat.
Then Dex grins. “She sure is.”
He leans in and presses a kiss to my cheek.
And just like that, the room explodes.
“Oh my God!” Penny claps her hands. “Finally!”
“I like this,” Lily beams from across the table.
Josh reaches over, clapping Dex on the shoulder.
“About time, son.”
Voices overlap again, laughter filling the space as I am pulled into something bigger than I expected.
No one questions it.
And somehow… neither do I.
“All right, all right,” Dex calls out, laughing. “Let’s eat before this turns into a full-blown celebration.”
The noise rises again, plates pass, conversations split and reform, and I catch Mason looking at me.
Something in his expression softens.
We’ve always known what the other is thinking.
I nod, smiling softly.
This… this is what we lost.
The warmth, the noise, the way people fill a space without leaving gaps. Family .
And somehow… I found it again.
? ? ?
After dinner, the noise slowly spills outside.
Chairs scrape, laughter carries into the cool evening air, and people drift toward the fire pit like it’s second nature.
The sky stretches wide above us, stars scattered across it, endless and untouched.
The fire crackles low at first, then stronger as Ethan tosses another log on. Sparks rise into the air and glow briefly before disappearing into the dark.
I sit on one of the benches, the heat brushing against my skin, Mason beside me, quieter now than he has been all evening.
Voices soften, conversations stretch, and for the first time since we arrived, I really notice Jude.
He sits a little apart with his elbows on his knees, staring into the fire like it’s telling him something the rest of us can’t hear.
Dex is across the fire, laughing as Ethan shoves him, the two of them caught in some half-serious argument.
This is what family is supposed to feel like.
Penny nudges my shoulder gently.
“I’m so happy for you two.”
I glance at her, smiling softly.
“Thank you. I’m happy too.”
She follows my gaze toward the men, her expression warming.
“They’re good men.”
I nod, watching Dex.
“Yeah… they are.”
The fire pops. Someone laughs. Mia’s voice carries through the night.
It’s peaceful.
Until Lily’s phone rings.
She answers it with a smile, stepping slightly away from the group, but something in the pause that follows makes my stomach tighten before she even speaks.
“Oh…” she breathes, her voice soft and breaking. “Oh, honey… I’m so sorry.”
The air shifts.
No one says anything, but everyone feels it.
“If there’s anything we can do… anything at all…”
I’ve heard that before. Too many times.
Lily lowers the phone slowly, her hand trembling just enough that I notice. Her eyes lift, going straight to Jude, then Dex.
Dex is still laughing.
Jude isn’t.
Lily walks toward them. I can’t hear what she says, but I see it. Dex’s smile fades, and Jude goes completely still before pushing to his feet.
His hand drags through his hair, sharp and desperate.
“Jude,” Lily calls softly.
He shakes his head and doesn’t look back.
“I’m goin’ home.”
And then he is gone.
For a second, it feels like no one breathes.
The space he leaves behind feels too big.
I don’t realize I’ve stood up until I’m already moving toward Dex.
His eyes are glassy.
“What’s wrong, Pan?” I ask softly, my hand coming up to his cheek without thinking.