Page 17 of Kidnapping Their Third

“Yeah, you do that,” Ted snickered. “Make sure to get permission to breathe while you’re at it. Fuck dude, if you’re this pussy-whipped, you might have a chance with her.”

“I don’t like that term,” Pike said. “It’s rude.”

“Yeah, that’s what a pussy-whipped beta would say,” Ted answered. “I’ll see you Sunday. Unless Cora says you can’t come over to play.” Laughing, Ted ended the call.

Pike carefully set the phone down, or he might have accidentally crushed it in his hand because he wanted to reach through it and wring Ted’s neck. As eager as he was to meetCora’s family, it was clear he wasn’t going to like this brother at all. Hopefully, the others weren’t such assholes.

“Was that Ted on the phone?” Cora asked from behind him.

He was surprised she was able to sneak up on him, even if he’d been distracted by the call. Looking over his shoulder, he gave her a smile. “Yeah, how did you know? Have you been there the whole time?”

Still wearing only his shirt, she took a seat at the table and shook her head. “I only caught the last bit, but I saw it was my phone, and Ted’s superpower is the ability to piss anyone off in .4 seconds flat. It hasn’t done his face any favors because he’s gotten sucker punched for his comments so many times, his nose will never be straight again. Or at least not without major plastic surgery.”

“Good to know I’m not special,” Pike said, giving the sausages a last few rolls before going back to mixing the biscuit dough. “He said you have six brothers, all of them older than you.”

“From oldest to youngest, they are: Caleb, Tim, Cooper, Ted, Carson, and Trevor.”

“And then Cora,” Pike said. “Cute.”

“Only if you think growing up in a pack of feral dogs would be fun,” Cora drawled. “I’m surprised Kimble didn’t get up with me.”

“He probably wanted to, but it’s still daytime. It would be hard for him until he’s had at least a week of meals like the one he had earlier,” Pike explained, then turned the topic back to her brothers. “Are they mean to you?”

“They weren’t deliberately abusive,” she answered slowly. It was clear she’d thought about the topic a lot. “When we were young, they played a lot of pranks on me until I learned how to be even worse back to them. By the time I was nine, we had a ceasefire. They could do stuff to each other, but they had to leave me alone.”

Pike couldn’t imagine being the youngest and smallest among a bunch of rough boys without anyone to soften their behavior. His parents were immensely kind people who raised him to be gentle with anyone smaller, which was almost everyone.

“Where was your dad during all this?” Pike asked, sprinkling flour on the counter and dumping out the biscuit dough. “Did he ever step in to keep you safe?”

“Dad fell apart when Mom died,” Cora said, her voice quiet. “I don’t remember her. I was only a toddler.”

Pike’s heart hurt for child Cora. “Can I ask what happened?”

“Brain aneurysm,” she said. “Caleb was twelve and was the one who called 911. He said she started asking weird questions and then fell over and started seizing. She died before they even got her to the hospital.”

Hands covered in flour, Pike turned and took a half step toward her. He wanted to grab her in a hug, but worried that would be overstepping. She didn’t look overwrought or upset; it was him who couldn't handle this story.

“I’m so sorry,” he whispered, clutching his hands together and creating a little cloud of white powder.

Cora smiled at him, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “It’s okay, you don’t need to be upset for me. It’s hard to be sad about losing something I don’t even remember. Dad’s the one you should feel bad for. According to everyone, he was never the same. Mom’s sister, Aunt Maria, ended up moving in to help take care of us, and his business partner took over everything else. Caleb says that Dad spent a lot of time hiding in his bedroom, crying or sleeping. Anyway, he managed to pull himself together and start taking care of us and working again, but it was a lot for one parent by themselves. He relied on Caleb and Tim to take care of the rest of us. Aunt Maria helped a lot too, bringing over food at least once a week and doing a lot of shopping.”

The affection for the woman was evident in Cora’s voice. “She was like a mother to you.”

“Still is,” Cora confirmed. “She’s my favorite member of the family, including my siblings, and they know it.”

Chuckling, Pike turned back to his dough. He could see Cora saying that to her brothers without hesitation. “After talking to Ted, I’d think the same way, and I haven’t even met her.”

“What about you?” Cora pressed. “What's your familylook like?”

“My mom and dad live out in Bonita,” Pike explained. “We talk every few days and get together for a meal once a week. I’d like to bring you to the next one.”

“Have they met Kimble yet?” Cora asked.

“He comes with me for the weekly meals,” Pike answered. “Mom and Dad have been great, talking to him as if he can respond and treating him like family.”

Cora went silent, and Pike glanced back to see her blinking with shock. “They’re okay with having a vampire in the family?”

Pike was confused by her question. “They want me to be happy, and Kimble makes me happy.”

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