Page 290 of Come Back to Me

For a little while, we all hunkered down at the ranch. But then Cody told us they had a town meeting where everybody agreed that if Clyde dared return to town, every shopkeeper would refuse to serve him.

Clyde.

Just him.

Not the rest of the Korhonens.

As Nonna embarrasses Colt by asking him when they’re going to start a family, I take a seat beside Cody, who’s juggling my nieces.

Like always, he looks calm.

(Honestly, it’s both hot and annoying how calm he is.)

(Mostly hot.)

I stare at him, askance. “I don’t want any yet.”

His lips twitch. “Good to know.”

“I’ll tell you when.”

“You won’t just roll up with a baby bump?”

“And yell, ‘Surprise?’” I tap my chin with my finger. “I could do it that way. If you wanted.”

“Nah. I figure I’d like to be involved, you know?”

“You would?”

He clears his throat. “Yeah. Be kinda neat to see something we made together.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “How do you come up with this panty-melting stuff?”

“Aunty, what’s panty-melting mean?”

“It means?—”

“Tee!” Anthony barks, glowering at me. “Little ears.”

“She asked a question! Knowledge is power, Tony.”

“Not that type of knowledge.”

“Tee, are you saying bad words in front of my grandbabies?” Mom chides and hustles over with Tony to snatch the kids away.

“Are words bad? Or is it the weight that society places on them that’s bad?”

Zee groans. “No philosophy. Not tonight. It’ll postpone the tiramisu.”

“Nothing postpones that,” Nonna declares with a clap of her hands. “Right,tutti,take a seat.”

The second my brother’s in his chair, I attack.

“OW!” he yelps, making everyone around the table jump. “What did you do that for?”

I quickly hook my leg around Cody’s. He tenses but doesn’t give the game away. “I didn’t do anything.”

“Tee, did you kick your brother?”

---