Page 67 of How Much For a Life of Lies?

“We should go,” I murmured.

But Kai nudged me, breaking me out of my reverie, and I forced a smile as we made our way closer to them. Jax spotted us and his face lit up with surprise and delight.

“Zach! Kai! What are you doing here?” he exclaimed, pulling away from Arlo’s embrace to greet us.

“We were in the neighborhood,” I replied lamely, feeling awkward and out of place amidst the family gathering.

“Well, I’m glad you stopped by!” Jax said with warmth, giving us both a hug. He picked up Charlie. “Look, Charlie, it’s your…”

“Uncle Zach,” I finished.

Jax nodded. We’d need to talk, but the papers were legal, Charlie was Jax’s, and it was right for Charlie and me. One day soon we’d explain, maybe when he turned three? There was already a letter explaining everything for when he was older, but I didn’t want who I was to be a secret. I just wanted him to know that I loved him and that I’d chosen someone special to be his daddy.

In the week I hoped to spend nearby, I would tell Jax, Arlo, and Charlie that, and I’d do it all with Kai at my side.

Charlie pointed at me, confused, then patted Jax’s cheek. “Daddy?”

“Twins, remember, Charlie? Like your purple teddies. The same, but different?”

Charlie nodded, then pushed his fist into his mouth as Arlo smiled and extended his hand to shake ours.

“Nice to see you both again,” he said. “Are you staying for food?”

I didn’t want to stay, I wanted to run and not talk and not face my twin.

Jax was the stable one, the one who’d followed his path, had a family who loved him, and had found happiness with Arlo. Meanwhile, I had chosen a different direction—one fraught with danger and uncertainty. We couldn’t be more different, and I wasn’t sure there would ever be a place in Jax’s life for me. I’d always thought that my reason for diving headfirst into danger was some noble cause, a desire to protect and serve, but in truth I’d been leaving, and running, and trying to find something that fit.

Kai was my fit, his presence grounding me in a way nothing else could. Somehow he’d become my family, my tether to sanity in a world that often felt like it was spinning out of control. In the end, it wasn’t the dangers of the world that defined me—it was the love and support of Kai, and maybe it was time to take a step into my brother’s life?

Kai and I exchanged glances, and then he squeezed my hand again. Was I staying? I nodded. “Yeah.”

“Jesus, this is freaky!” Someone clapped a hand on my shoulder and I spun to face the enemy, already tense.

“Stand down, Frogman,” Kai chuckled, and I immediately relaxed. Faced with three people I recognized, two men, Leo and Reid, and a woman, Lorna, Jax’s siblings, who stared at me with varying expressions.

Lorna yanked me into a hug, and at first, I didn’t know what to do with my hands, but when she didn’t let go, I patted her awkwardly.

“I’m Reid,” one of the men said. “Hell, you look the same as Jax,” he murmured in shock. Well, yeah, twins. “So freaky.” It was his turn to hug me, briefly, more a bro-hug than a full-on bear grip like his sister.

Then it was Leo, who held out a hand, his eyes narrowed. “Leo,” he murmured, and I shook his hand briefly. “Also, you should know I’m a cop,” Leo crossed his arms over his chest. “Most of the intel I tracked down on you is redacted.” My mouth fell open. Was Jax’s brother going to start an interrogation in the middle of a party?

“There’s a reason?—”

“Thank you for your service,” he said briskly and nodded.

Okay then.

Then someone joined us, a young girl named Daisy, if I recall correctly, Jax’s niece through marriage.

“So, are you my uncle as well?” she asked me.

I went into a semi-crouch, happy to feel Kai’s hand on my shoulder. I suppose I was her uncle, sort of. “Yes.”

“Cool. I’m Daisy.”

“I’m Zach.”

“Hi, Uncle Zach.”

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