Page 101 of Lock 'em Down

“You ready for life with me, Knox?”

“I can’t wait, Ten.”

“Good,” I murmur, kissing her again.

Ryder and Rowan burst into the room and the bedroom door slams off the wall. Cami and I break apart in surprise.

The twins crack up and Ryder holds out a hand. “I knew they’d be kissing.”

Rowan grumbles and slaps a five-dollar bill in his waiting hand.

“You two are smart cookies,” Cami says, wrapping an arm around each of their shoulders. “Who wants to play me in Uno?”

“Me!” they both shout. Then, they each take one of her hands and pull her back downstairs.

A cheer goes up when she enters the living room.

I stand at the top of the stairs and listen to the conversations, to the excitement, to the love flowing from my parents’ living room.

Mom appears at the bottom of the stairs and gives me a knowing look.

“Happiness looks good on you, Leif.”

I take the stairs slowly and when I reach the bottom, wrap an arm around Mom.

“Scheming looks good on you,” I say.

She laughs.

I kiss the top of her head. “But if you tell any of my siblings I said that, I’ll deny it to the death.”

Mom wraps an arm around my waist and pinches my side. “I wouldn’t expect anything less.”

We stand like that for a long moment.

In two days, I’m getting married.

Epilogue

Cami

“He’s not supposed to see you before the wedding!” Mom says for the third time.

“Mom, it’s called a first look,” Jenna explains, also for the third time. “It’s a thing now.”

“It’s super popular, Mrs. Coleman,” Izzy tacks on.

Mia and Tamara nod seriously while Annie presses her lips together to keep from laughing.

“Just because it’s a thing doesn’t mean she has to do it,” Mom argues.

“Mom,” I say, glancing at her in the reflection of the mirror.

She meets my eyes and hers fill with tears. “You look beautiful, Camille.”

“Ooh! I said I wasn’t going to cry!” Izzy fans her hand in front of her eyes and turns away from the mirror.

I hold out a hand and Mom takes it. I squeeze. “Thank you. But I want to see Leif. Nothing about us is traditional so why break our winning streak now?”

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