Page 40 of Wanted

"Bennett." He's suddenly shy, burying his face in his uncle's neck.

"I'm Lucy." The little girl bounces on her toes, making her curls shake around her cheeks.

"It's nice to meet you."

"Do you know Daddy?" With both hands, she pushes the hair out of her face.

"I don't think so."

"Do you know Mommy?"

"Um, which one is Mommy?"

Jude brushes his shoulder against mine and leans down toward my ear. "She's the one who brought you the clothes."

"Oh! I know your mommy."

"We have a dog Cooper and a dog Bo." She continues revealing her life's details.

"Lucy, why don't you let them come into the house." Her mom, Whitney, ushers her away. "Sorry, she loves to talk."

I tuck my hands into the pockets of my jeans. "I don't mind."

"We've already officially met, but the others are excited to meet you."

Her warmth infuses me. I can only hope the rest of the family members are the same.

I can feel Jude at my back as Whitney leads me into the living room. Every seating space is filled by a body. There are so many that some people even lounge on the floor. All the eyes in the room find their way to us as Whitney begins thorough introductions.

"We might as well work our way around the room." She gestures to the woman with cropped blond hair on her left. "This is Bree. She's married to Corjan." She gestures to the man next to her with curly brown hair and twinkling eyes. "And their two kids are Charlotte and Weston."

"It's nice to meet you! How are the jeans, do they fit okay?" Bree asks.

"They're great, actually. Thank you so much for lending them to me."

"Ptsh," she waves her hand in front of her face. "You can keep them. Those are from pre-pregnancy, and no amount of dieting is going to return my thighs to that size."

Corjan runs his hand up her leg. "I love you exactly like this."

Bree blushes. "Me too."

"Anyway." Whitney rolls her eyes.

I stifle a nervous giggle. Jude's warmth at my back keeps me grounded while I'm under the spotlight.

"Next is Aiden. He's the baby."

Aiden puffs up his chest. "I'm hardly a baby."

"The youngest is always the baby. I would know," a girl pouts from beside him.

"That's Juniper. She's the youngest of the girls. She's married to Lee, who happens to be the oldest of us all."

I'd love to hear the story of how the two of them got together, but Whitney keeps going.

"Next is my fiancée, Jack. He's Jude's biological twin. We’re getting married this summer and we have another little one on the way." She cradles her very small belly.

I tilt my chin over my shoulder. "Does that mean the rest of you aren't related?"

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