Page 48 of Reckless Rebel

“No, Superman, is my favorite,” she tells him and he mocks being offended.

“Harsh, little one, always so mean to me.” He tickles her and her giggles fill the room and float out into the hallway and I remain enthralled.

I am so consumed by watching him that I don’t hear her approach, “Be careful, Riley.” I startle, turning to find Elle watching me watch Jace.

“Excuse me?”

“With him,” she confirms, not having to say his name. “His heart is pure, whether you can see it or not, and now he trusts you otherwise you wouldn't be here. You are on the inside with him now, so just be careful.”

“I,” I open my mouth to say something, but I stop because I don’t know what to say, so I just nod, and then enter the kitchen before she can say anything else, but she follows closely behind.

Both Cassie and Jace turn as we enter and I find my eyes widening as Cassie spots Elle and yells out, “Mommy!”

Mommy? Elle is this little girl's Mom? What the hell! I know Jace can see the shock on my face because he tries and fails to hide his humor.

“Yeah that’s pretty much the same reaction I had, Red.” He exclaims before taking a sip of his juice.

Elle looks between the two of us, “You didn’t tell her?”

Jace shrugs as more people start entering the kitchen, first Lincoln, followed by Logan, and then if I remember correctly Marcus, who moves over to Elle and Cassie immediately and drops a kiss on both of their cheeks. When Jace told me they had been through a lot and were engaged I never imagined them having a kid.

I watch the three of them together and they look like the perfect little family, and just as I am smiling about how cute they seem, someone else enters the kitchen. He’s blond, beautiful, and a little moody looking as he eyes everyone in the kitchen until his gaze lands on Cassie, but what has me almost falling over myself is when she shouts out, “Daddy!”

He moves swiftly and plucks her right from Elle’s arms as both her and Marcus look on with a smile, “There’s my little angel, I missed you.” They snuggle into one another and it’s like his whole persona changes as he breathes her in, it’s fascinating to watch.

Five more people enter the kitchen, an older couple, and then another man, and a girl who is probably just a little older than me. All of them offer me a friendly smile as I stand there overwhelmed by everything that I am learning.

“Quick fire, Riles,” Jace gets my attention and starts pointing to people. “You know Elle, Marcus, and Linc, you met Logan earlier, and of course Cassie.” I look at each of them as they meet my stare with a smile. “That’s her dad Asher Donovan, Elle’s brother Zack Royton, his parents Helen and Arthur Royton, and Logan’s twin, Lily.”

That is a lot of people, but I find myself lingering on Asher. Asher Donovan, a name that I remember from Sienna’s story about what happened to them all, and I am struggling to understand the full dynamic here. I feel Elle’s stare on me before she easily clears the kitchen in a quick swoop, “Breakfast is ready in the dining room.” A few responses are grunted her way and everyone starts moving except for her.

Jace looks at me and then at Elle before he leaves the room, and when I move to follow him her grip finds my arm.

“I’m sure you have heard the rumors,” she starts and I fidget under her stare. “Even a few towns over I’m sure you haven’t escaped the whispers of what happened here.”

I hesitate before nodding slowly, I mean I have heard a little, not enough to understand, but enough to know something happened, and she nods in return. “The only thing that you need to know is that every person who just left this room is my family, blood or not, and I am willing to kill and be killed for them, so don’t make me regret letting Jace welcome you into the fold, he’s got a bigger heart than me, which means it’s easier to break.”

I let her words wash over me before I nod again, “I’m only here because I am friends with Jace and he is part of my family now too.” For some reason her opinion of me matters so I add on, “I would never do anything to hurt him, but I think you are confused by what is happening here, I couldn’t break his heart because there is nothing happening between us like that.”

She smiles now, dropping her hand from my arm, “Sometimes we don’t see something until it’s already happened, trust me I’ve learned to see the signs. Now come on, breakfast is getting cold and I want to spend time with Jace before you whisk him away.” Her arm drapes around my shoulders as she pulls me along with her until we find the dining room.

Jace smiles when I walk in and gestures to the empty seat beside him and I move quickly to drop into it. When I look down at my plate I find all my favorite breakfast foods and I look up at him with a confused smile.

He notices me staring while shoving a forkful of pancakes in his mouth. “What’s the matter, Riles?”

I shake my head. “Nothing, this looks amazing, thank you.” He nods and goes back to eating his breakfast as everyone around the table chats away to one another.

I look down at my plate once more and feel warmth spread inside my chest. Not once have I ever told him what I like to eat, he has just noticed and remembered, and as I stare at the delicious variety in front of me I can’t help but think of how Rick wouldn’t know the same if I asked him. How can someone who has only known me for less than a couple of months, see me more than someone I have known almost my whole life?

Have I been blinded by what I thought was love this whole time? I think about how easily Rick and I went from friends to more, not much changed, except kissing and a little fooling around, something I thought was great, but now I can’t help but think there should have been more of a change. We should have felt more connected, more entwined, more anything, but we didn't, not really, I see that now. I think I was desperate for us to work because I wanted the perfect love story, but that doesn’t make it true or real, love is messy, just looking at the people in this room could tell me that. But when it’s right, when it’s meant to be, it will work out, just look at Elle and Marcus, at what they have, it’s clear they are head over heels for one another, and that’s with whatever complicated past they have clearly endured. That’s what I want, a love that can conquer anything, and as sad as it makes me to realize it, I know now that I don’t have that with Rick.

A hand squeezes my leg and I jump a little, looking down at Jace’s hand gripped on my thigh. “Are you sure you’re okay?” He leans in so the words are whispered just for me, no one paying us any attention anyway.

Am I okay? Such a simple question and I find that even after everything that happened last night, I can answer easily. “I’m great.”

25

Jace

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