Page 17 of Pack Baines

I groan against him, shaking my head at his matching ridiculousness, even as it eases some of the turmoil running rampant through my entire system. “What the fuck does that even mean?”

“Bold of you to assume I’d know. I just heard a youth say it last week,” he snickers, pressing another kiss to my head, his lips lingering while I hear him inhale deeply.

“Youths? What are you, eighty?” I snort, curling my hands in his shirt, unwilling to let him go just yet. He feels too nice against me, too comforting and familiar, despite the obvious way his body has changed over the years. He’s certainly not the skinny kid with unruly copper hair anymore. Instead, my arms are banded around a lean, toned body, much like a swimmer would have. His hair is shorter than it used to be, but still long enough that the top of it waves over his forehead and into his eyes. He’s still just as beautiful, if not more, than he was back then. “You remember you’re the same age as me, right?”

“We’re practically fossils, Blue,” he sighs in mock sadness, resting his cheek on my head as he starts rocking us back and forth.

A sneaky laugh slips free of my mouth, escaping too fast for me to bottle it, and I blurt, “We’re twenty. If we’re fossils now, what will we be in another twenty years?”

I feel him shrug. “Probably fuel, I dunno.”

“Oh my god,” I mutter, chuckling into his chest, feeling ten times lighter already.

“God, I’ve missed that sound, Blue. If I could bottle your laugh and carry it around with me, I’d do it in a heartbeat,” he breathes, and my chuckles slow, my smile softening.

Pulling away from him, his hands still holding me and mine, him, I offer my own truth. “You have no idea how much I’ve missed you. And the others. I feel like I’m in a dream right now, waiting for my alarm clock to tear me away from you all again.”

Ev is already shaking his head, his hands raising to cup my face carefully, like I’m some delicate flower that needs to be handled with great care. “Nothing, and I mean nothing, will take you away from us again, sweetheart. I can promise you that. Got it?”

I mean, it’s not something he can promise, since life has always been unpredictable. Look at my life, for example. But the conviction he bleeds into his words has me nodding anyway, a desperate need to believe him compelling me to agree.

“Now, how about we go have some pizza, drink a little, and watch a movie? And if you want to share where you’ve been the past eight years, what you’ve been doing, and what you’re doing at North Five, then I’ll be more than happy to listen. But tonight is a no stress, no expectations, and no rules kind of night,” he implores, his thumbs rubbing over my cheeks. “We’re just happy you’re here with us again, want to soak in whatever time you’re willing to give us. No pressure or anything, okay? You’re leading this shit show, sweetheart.”

He grins as he says it, and I can feel my knees grow weak, just like they always used to every time he directed that thing at me. Each of them has a smile that could light up a damned room, beaming and vibrant, and I bite my lip while I try to capture it to memory.

“Okay,” I agree simply, my own stupid smile growing to match his. I want to roll my eyes at myself, but the glittering approval in Evron’s emerald eyes steals whatever negativity I might have thought about this moment. One look, one smile, and everything already seems better than it was when Creek left this morning.

“Okay,” he repeats, dropping his hands, leaving me bereft of his touch for only a second before he clasps his fingers through mine and drags me out of the bathroom before I can change my mind and decide to hide some more.

I realize I didn’t even get a chance to check my makeup, my crying jag no doubt ruining the streaks of mascara and eyeliner I’d carefully applied earlier. So, with some discretion, I swipe my fingers under my eyes, cleaning up the mess as best as I can before wiping what little smudges appear on my finger against my jeans.

“You look beautiful, sweetheart. Don’t stress,” Ev assures, winking down at me.

I roll my eyes, my lips twitching, and explain, “I was more concerned about looking like a feral trash panda, to be honest.”

“Well, you’re a beautiful trash panda,” he shrugs, laughing when my mouth falls open in shock. Just as I gear up to punch his arm, he blurts, “I’m joking! I’m joking. There isn’t a single smudge.”

I can’t tell if he’s lying or not, but it’s too late to do anything about it, because we’re rounding the corner and heading into the kitchen a few seconds later, and all eyes turn to me the moment we come into view.

“Gawk a little harder, guys. Make herreallyuncomfortable,” Evron snickers, leading me to the beautiful marble island counter, where a shit-ton of pizza boxes are opened.

I snort to cover the sound of my stomach growling at the smell, and I pause when I spot my favorite. Double pepperoni with chorizo and ground beef. I haven’t had it in years, not willing to scrounge up the money to splurge on pizza, and my mouth waters the same time my eyes do. Fucking A. I’m so over the goddamn tears.

Blinking rapidly, I clear my throat and rasp, “Sorry. You know, for the emotional rollercoaster.”

“Oh, no. Don’t apologize, Juju. We get it,” Leylan reassures, squeezing my shoulder when he’s close enough, before offering me a plate. “Help yourself. There’s enough to go around.”

I don’t move for a long moment, watching the guys all tuck in, filling their plates with mountains worth of pizza. I almost forgot how much they all eat, biting my lip to keep my smile hidden when Geo places the end piece of a slice of pizza between his teeth before adding more to his plate, stealing one slice of everything before helping himself to a drink.

A plate scraping along the surface of the marble draws my attention, and I peer down at it, finding three slices of my favorite pizza on top of it, along with a single slice of barbeque chicken that I know is Lowie’s favorite. My gaze darts in his direction, finding him busy pouring a drink into a large glass, the pitcher cold and dripping with condensation. When he’s filled the glass damn near to the top, he slides that across to me, too, pale-blue eyes colliding with mine when he finds me watching him.

“Peach iced tea. Your favorite,” he says gruffly, knowing my obsession runs deep enough that I wouldn’t have ever been able to give up my one and only vice. Well, anything sugary and sweet are myvices, but I’ll be the first to admit that I have a somewhat unhealthy relationship with peach iced tea.

Before I can thank him, Lowie picks up his own plate and drink and disappears into the living room. The others wait for me to pick up my own plate and glass before following after him, and I bite my lip, staring in the direction Lowie disappeared.

Now that I’m not crying, suffocating beneath all of the emotion that steamrolled me the moment I walked into the lavish home they all share, I don’t actually know how to act around any of them, less so Lowie. I know he hugged me earlier, could smell his and Leylan’s scents mingling together as they held me tightly between them, but he stayed silent the moment he pulled away, taking with him his deep, creamy sandalwood and soft coconut scent that complements Leylan’s woody and slightly citrusy cedarwood and coconut. Now, however, Lowie can barely seem to look at me for longer than a couple of seconds, only offering those five words and nothing more. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t hurt as much as a punch to the solar plexus would. In fact, I’m sure I’d recover better if someone threw me a mean right hook.

It takes me a moment to realize I’m not alone, Leylan hovering near the corner, waiting for me. His lips tug into a shy smile, one I could recognize in a room full of people, and he gently offers, “Give him time. This is probably harder for him than all of us combined, and that’s saying something. He’s adjusting.”

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