Page 42 of Alive At Night

Okay, maybe not that infamous.

I wasn’t sure if they started the Halloween costume tradition as an act of rebellion or as some sort of consolation—since they had been allowed to keep their green sashes and berets. But now, it was undoubtedly an act of irony. One I could usually appreciate.

Juniper ran into Josie and Genevieve first—my two youngest sisters—giving them both hugs before making her way into our living room. Tall, black candelabras and glowing jack-o’-lanterns lit the space, giving it a spooky glow. My mom was next in the line of greetings, giving Juniper a big hug before accepting a platter of cupcakes from her.

Juniper hadn’t been lying the other day; my mom loved her. Jenny Briggs had never been a very strict parent. She maintained firm boundaries, but her concern was first and foremost for her children’s happiness. And whenever Gemma was with Juniper, she was happy. Which was all fine and whatever…until Gemma ended up in a hospital bed with a bad concussion and a collection of broken bones. And Juniper…well, there wasn’t anything happy about that night.

“You haven’t told us much about the new job.”

At my dad’s gruff voice, I turned to face him. He was busy filling a barrel with an assortment of beer that likely cost more than a day’s work in his shop.

“I share an office with Juniper,” I said, thinking that should sum it up.

Dad gave a hearty chuckle. “Small world, isn’t it?”

“Too small,” I grunted.

“You could always come back home,” he offered. “I miss having you around at work.”

“I miss being around the shop,” I said honestly. “But…”

But Gardner Law was a good place for me. Even with Juniper there. They cared about their clients, and I felt like I was doing something with truly meaningful impact. I didn’t know how to say that to my dad, though. I didn’t want to diminish what he did or his service to this community. He was here for people when they needed him, and that was important, too. Working with himhadbeen meaningful to me, just in a different way.

“But you have big fish to fry,” he finished for me. An inkling of a smile appeared on my dad’s face, the most I ever really saw from him. Not because he wasn’t happy but because he showed it in his eyes. They swept over me with a look of pride that affected me more than I dared to admit. “I know you do, Julian, and I’m excited for you.”

“Thanks, Dad,” I said, feeling my throat tighten with emotion I wasn’t expecting. He nodded, clapping me on the shoulder before bringing the beer into the living room for people to grab.

More and more guests flooded into the house, and I refilled the punch pitchers while sipping on a beer. I used to treat myself to an entire row of apple pie shots, but my party days ended the moment I left my undergrad days behind. Those four years had been my escape, my break from being the third parent in the house. Ending up as captain had been like transitioning to a different type of big brother, but it still wasn’t the same. It wasn’t picking Josie up from play practice before getting Gianna from soccer and bringing them home to make dinner while my mom graded papers and my dad finished changing someone’s oil in the garage.

I sometimes wondered if I had taken a chance on the pros, would I be where Noah was? Still living in a party? Sometimes I regretted not finding out. Sometimes I was happy that I didn’t. I probably could have been on that field with Grayson and Noah. I didn’t admit to being damn good at much, but I was one hell of a quarterback.

Football was a gamble for so many reasons, though. There wasn’t always control over where you played nor where you traveled. The income was great, but it wasn’t reliable. What would happen if I got injured in my first season? My career could end in the blink of an eye, all while I had people counting on me.

I needed something where I could be here consistently for my family. I needed something I could be passionate about for the rest of my life, not just through my prime years.

“You’re quiet tonight,” my mom commented. I hadn’t even noticed her enter the kitchen, but she stood next to me, watching the house fill up. I knew this was the one pause she’d allow herself before going off to mingle and greet guests.

“Busy mind,” I said with a shrug.

“Anything you want to get off of it?”

I shook my head. It wasn’t the time, and it wasn’t anything I’d dare tell my mom. I never wanted her to think I wasn’t happy where I was or with the choices I made. Because I was.

“Are you—”

Interrupting my mom, I swore beneath my breath as a short guy with dark hair slipped in the front door. He wore our hometown football jersey and jeans, which had to be the most unoriginal Halloween costume I’d ever seen. Even more unoriginal than wearing the same thing for the last seventeen years.

But that wasn’t what bothered me.

“What the hell is he doing here?”

My mom made that familiar judgmental noise in her throat. “You need to learn to let go of grudges, honey. You hold on to them way too long.”

I scowled, gritting my teeth as Greg fucking Kennedy sidled up to Juni, doing that thing where he put a hand on the wall behind her and leaned in, being a blatant flirt.

“He’s an ass.”

I ignored how my mom tsked in response. Not because of my swearing. She couldn’t care less about that. But she did have a very no-nonsense policy on name-calling.

---