Page 65 of The Forever Rule

“I don’t know, running barefoot in the woods, cutting open our feet, and letting our dad put Band-Aids on our wounds felt a little more idyllic than anything.”

“You must remember a different summer than I did,” Dorian said dryly. “Because Dad wasn’t the one that bandaged our wounds. You were.”

I frowned. “How is that even possible? I’m only four years older than you.”

“Yes, and in those four years you got to be the big brother.”

“And I’m only two years older than the twins,” I corrected, speaking of Flynn and Hudson.

“Yes, and five years older than James, and seven years older than Theo.” Dorian frowned. “You know, I can rattle off those ages quite quickly, but I’m going to have to figure out the family tree with the others.”

“Did I hear childhood age math?” Theo asked as he came forward and wrapped his arm around my other side. I was trapped between my two outlandish brothers.

“Is there a reason that you’re sandwiching me?”

“Because we’re going to march you into that house for dinner. If we have to go, you have to,” Theo explained. “Now, are we going over ages again? I don’t like the fact that I’m continually being pushed down the ladder of ages.”

“Ford is still the baby of the main siblings.” Dorianpaused. “Okay, that sounds kind of asshole-ish to the others.”

“Yes, because calling them half-sibs probably isn’t the best thing to do,” Theo answered.

“Let’s not say that in front of them, because I’m pretty sure that it’s going to be Phoebe that kicks our asses,” I said dryly.

“Or Phoebe’s boyfriend. Who happens to work with Ford. Oh, my God, why did Dad have to try to repopulate the Earth?” Dorian pinched the bridge of his nose. “He makes everything so complicated.”

“Of course he did—he’s Dad,” Theo said, not bothering to explain that comment. And then they did indeed march me into the house, not bothering to let me finish my conversation. Or my downward spiral of thoughts.

Flynn and James were already inside, whiskey in hand as Mother stood between them, glaring at them as she spoke. She was probably dressing them down for something, but who knew what it was going to be.

I looked around, frowning when I realized that we were missing two people. “Where’s Hudson and Ford?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. But of course, my mother had ears like a bat.

“Hudson is stuck in that God-forsaken town with a rockslide of some sort. So he couldn’t even make it to see his own mother,” Melanie Cage complained.

Considering my mother’s favorite phrase was “I don’t mean to complain,” it was a little ironic.

Then her words hit me, and I moved forward. “Is he okay? Did anyone in town get hurt?”

We had a responsibility for the town because we owned so many of the businesses and the land. We weren’t mayors or responsible for any of the actual political aspects of the town, though I had a feeling Hudson might be part of the town council. Mostly because the town wouldn’t have it any other way. While it wasn’t in the bylaws, the town still required us join in on the planning and upkeep of the town. We never wanted to mess with the small-town politics that came with our responsibilities, so we always acquiesced.

Mother cleared her throat. “He said he was fine, no one got hurt. But I didn’t ask much. I’m just disappointed he’s not here.”

“It’s not like he can fend off a natural disaster,” Dorian said, and my mother’s face brightened.

That was Mom. Every time she saw her baby, she couldn’t help but love him. And I had no idea why it was Dorian. He wasn’t the oldest, wasn’t the youngest. It was like once she got to him, she decided he would be her favorite, and the rest of us would all wait for the scraps. Not that I minded. I didn’t need much from Mom these days.

“And what about Ford?” Theo asked. Flynn tried to do a cutoff motion with his hand, wincing, as James turned his back.

Mother lifted her chin. “Ford is with the other family. Because apparently, his priorities have shifted.”

I let out a sigh, annoyed at the familiar refrain. “He’smarried. Of course he has responsibilities with his family.”

“Hmm.” She gestured toward the bar. “Make yourdrinks, and then we’ll have dinner. Chef says it should be soon. We’re having roast beef, but no extra starches.”

She moved away, and left us behind to stand there, wondering why the hell we were even here.

“So, dinner’s going to be fun,” Dorian said dryly.

“At least Mom likes you,” Flynn muttered into his drink, and James choked.

---