Page 135 of At the Edge of Surrender

Jolted by it, I realized I’d been staring, and I whipped my attention back to the three of them gawking at me.

Yup.

I was completely and utterly fucked.

“Weird she’s your kid’s aunt?” River arched a brow, the question true.

Agitation stirred through my spirit.

“Should it be?” Mine was just as earnest.

River shook his head as he took a swig of his beer. “Nah, man. You said you didn’t even know her sister.”

Unease slithered through me, hit by the same disturbance when I thought about how something with Emmalee had been off.

Wasn’t like it mattered now, anyway, except for the way it affected Emery.

“Think that might be what bothers Emery most,” I admitted.

“That you and Maci’s mom weren’t together?” Theo asked.

“Just the fact that we were together at all.”

“Since when do you have a problem with banging sisters?” This from Otto, the bastard.

I sent him a scathing look.

In surrender, he held out his hands, attempting to hide his laugh. “Fine, fine. That crossed a line.”

I sighed because this was something that didn’t feel like a joke. It was something that bothered Emery and, fuck me, if I didn’t want to gouge my eyes out at the thought of hurting her in any way.

A trickle of Maci’s laughter flooded the air, and my focus drifted to the child.

She was beelining my way, her arms thrown over her head as Nolan chased her across the yard.

How could I regret it? That night with a stranger that had brought this little girl to me?

“Damn, brother…” All the teasing had drained out of Otto’s voice.

Throat thick, I looked back at Emery.

Otto reached out and squeezed my shoulder. “You really are fucked.”

“There’s just…something about her.”

Something I couldn’t shake.

Something I wanted to drown in.

“Then don’t be an idiot and squander it,” Otto urged below his breath. “As far as I’m concerned, we’ve all wasted too much time thinking we didn’t deserve the best things in life. Going after that temporary thrill that could never really satisfy since we thought we couldn’t have something that actually counted. It’s bullshit, man, so fuckin’ make itcount.”

I stalled as all those uncertainties came at me full force.

“And I’ll be taking on next week’s job.” Theo dropped his voice to be sure we were the only ones who could hear it, though I could almost hear the undercurrent of a question. His words prompting me toward what had taken me away during the middle of the week.

The guy urging me to be careful.

To see what was right in front of me.

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