“It will,” Heather said firmly, smiling softly at Nova. “Where’s Ash tonight?”

  “My grandma lives with us,” Nova explained. “She told me to tell you she’s sorry she missed it, but she had to work tonight.”

  “She needs to retire,” Heather said with a huff.

  “I don’t think she knows what that word means,” Nova said, laughter in her voice. “She likes being around people. She says it keeps her young.”

  “What does she do?”

  “She works at an ice cream shop, actually,” Nova said happily. “She loves it. She gets to give little kids treats all day.”

  “That does sound like a fun job,” I said, smiling back at her.

  “I told her to come work for me, but—” Nova shrugged. “She likes where she’s at.”

  “Nova owns a spa,” Esther told me.

  “Calling it a spa is stretching it a bit,” Nova joked. “It’s just a little shop.”

  “And it’s doing really well,” Heather added proudly.

  “That’s really cool,” I murmured, trying to ignore how intimidated I was being surrounded by such successful women. Nova owned her own business and Emilia was a real estate agent. I wasn’t sure what Myla did, but Otto had mentioned that she’d graduated from college, so I was sure she had some fancy career, too.

  “Do you know what you want to do?” Myla asked me. “There are a lot of people hiring right now.”

  “She doesn’t have to worry about that yet,” Esther said, cutting her off.

  “I’m not sure,” I replied. “I’m not really qualified for anything.”

  I barely noticed as men started streaming out of the house carrying plates of some kind of dessert.

  “There are a ton of places that will train you,” Myla said. “All you really need is a high school diploma.”

  Esther’s jaw was tight as she looked at me. She’d tried to shut down the subject and it hadn’t worked. I appreciated the loyalty more than I could’ve expressed. I just shrugged.

  “I don’t have a high school diploma,” I said, smiling tightly. “I got married my junior year.”

  “Oh, shit,” Myla mumbled. “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be sorry.” I shook my head. “I had Ariel less than a year later, so it was worth it.”

  Titus cleared his throat behind me and I froze as he set plates in front of me and Emilia. It looked like some kind of chocolate and whipped cream trifle.

  “Thank you,” I croaked.

  “Does anyone want coffee?” Emilia asked brightly. “Titus will get it for you.”

  The rest of the women gave their orders, but I sat silently staring at my plate. Life was life, and I wasn’t ashamed that I hadn’t finished high school—but it was a little embarrassing. I’d loved school and I’d hated when I had to drop out, but there hadn’t been much of a choice. Caleb was adamant that he didn’t want me surrounded by boys all the time and we hadn’t been able to afford the girls only private school in our area. I’d tried to homeschool, but without any support it had been pretty disastrous. Once Ariel was born it had been virtually impossible.

  “Do you think you’d like to get your GED?” Nova asked, reaching across the table to squeeze my hand.

  “That’s on my list.” I nodded, shaking off the embarrassment. “But…I’ve got a pretty long list.”

  “You should see her on the phone all day,” Esther said proudly. “She’s been calling around, getting all sorts of stuff set up for her and the girls. She’s already switched her license over. It’s like she’s trying to move out already.”

  The women laughed.

  “We like havin’ them with us,” Otto added as he set dessert in front of Esther and Nova. “Don’t think my girls are gonna let them leave.”

  “I’m sure you love tripping over dolls all the time,” I replied ruefully, smiling up at my brother-in-law.

  “You kiddin’? Worth it for that casserole thing you made the other night.”

  “What? I want to know about this casserole,” Esther said, waving her fork in the air.

  The conversation was easy after that, everyone sharing their favorite dinner recipes and complaining about how boring it was trying to figure out what to make every night. As I sat surrounded by women that were living lives I hadn’t imagined for myself since I was a teenager, I soaked it all up. It was surprising that they had a lot of the same complaints that the women I’d grown up with had. They worried about what to feed their families, the price of groceries, and how to juggle all the different parts of their life.

  It was dark by the time we left. Ariel and Flora were practically stumbling as they made their way to the car.

  “I’ll grab her,” Otto said quietly, as I looked at Diana asleep on the couch.

  “I can’t believe she fell asleep in the middle of all this.” I gestured to the people moving around the house, calling out goodbyes.

  “She played hard today,” he said with a grin, sliding his hands under her. She was practically boneless as he lifted her up.

  “We wore her out,” Heather said as she watched us over the back of the couch. “All the kids will sleep good tonight!”

  “Thanks for having us,” I said, following Otto.

  She pulled me in for a hug, holding me for a long moment.

  “We’re so happy you’re here,” she murmured.

  “Me too.”

  “Okay, go,” she ordered, letting go of me. “Before we both start blubbering like babies.”

  I let out a watery laugh. “Thanks for taking care of Esther for me,” I said softly.

  Heather’s eyes filled with tears. “Dammit, Noel!” She shook her head as she ushered me toward the door. “I said I didn’t want to cry.”

  I laughed a little as I followed Otto to the car. The big girls had already been buckled in and Otto was finishing up with Diana when I reached it.

  “I’ll follow you home,” Otto said, gesturing for me to climb in.

  His brothers and sisters were calling out their goodbyes as I opened my door and I waved, my gaze catching on Titus as he pulled on his motorcycle helmet.

  He nodded at me in goodbye. Something inside me clenched tight as I nodded back and turned away.

  “I am so tired,” Esther called to me from the driver’s seat. “I cannot wait to plop down on the couch. I’m going to have Otto rub my feet.”

  I climbed inside, looking out the window as Titus turned on his motorcycle.

  “Did you have fun?” Esther asked as she turned on the car.

  “I feel… full,” I replied, sighing as I pulled my seatbelt on.

  “Yeah, the Hawthorne’s will do that,” she said, smiling a little as she backed up.

  That feeling didn’t leave me as we drove home, the sleepy girls quiet in the back seat. It wasn’t until we pulled into Esther’s driveway, headlights illuminating a car parked there, that it began to drain away.

  Esther parked near the front steps and she hadn’t even turned off the car before Otto pulled up beside us. He turned off his bike and met Esther’s eyes through the window.

  “Stay in the car,” he ordered.

  I turned in my seat to look out the back window. Suddenly, I was empty again.

  Chapter 6

  Titus

  “How’d it go?” Bas asked, glancing up from his tools as I climbed off my bike.

  “Went fine,” I muttered.

  “Just fine?”

  “It was dinner. We had burgers. Mom made that pudding dessert you like.”

  “Dammit,” he complained. “You bring any home with you?”

  “Yeah, let me just pull it out of my pocket,” I replied, stuffing my hand in there and then pulling it out to flip him off.

  “Heather savin’ me some?” he asked hopefully.

  “She said to stop by tomorrow,” I replied, laughing as he put a hand to his heart and closed his eyes.

  “Shit, who’s callin’ me?” I mumbled, pulling my phone out of my other pocket. “I just left you assholes.”

  The moment I saw Otto’s name I took a step back toward my bike.

  “Hey,” I answered, one hand on my helmet.

  “Get over here,” he ordered. Just that. Then the line went dead.

  “Fuck,” I spat, climbing back on my bike.

  “What’s up?” Bas asked, kicking the tools away from the back tire of his bike.

  “Get to Otto’s,” I ordered, backing out of the garage.

  I turned around and practically flew back down the driveway. The sound of two sets of bikes roaring to life hit me just as I pulled onto the pavement. Good. Bas must’ve yelled for Cian.

  We all lived pretty close to each other and it only took a few minutes before I was turning onto Otto’s gravel driveway, but it felt like an hour. I didn’t know what the fuck was going on, but I’d only heard that tone in my brother’s voice a few times and none of them were good.

  I took in the situation in an instant and my blood boiled.

  Esther’s car was still running and the girls sat inside it. Otto was standing near the back bumper. A car I didn’t recognize was parked to the side, but I sure as shit recognized one of the three men standing beside it.

  I parked a little farther down the driveway and climbed off my bike, dropping my helmet in the grass. I figured the farther apart me and Otto stood, the better chance of the men having to split their focus.

  Anything to get the focus off the women in the car.

  Motorcycles pulled up behind me, but I didn’t bother to turn. I was too focused on the asshole who was standing next to the passenger side of his car, saying something to Otto. He turned to me, and recognition lit his face.

  “You,” he spat. “I should’ve known.”

  “Nice to see you again,” I replied, pushing down the urge to fucking kill him. I’d dreamed about what I’d do if I ever saw Noel and Esther’s brother again. I clenched my hands into fists.

  He laughed derisively.

  “You’re on private property,” Otto said, his voice dark. “Get back in your car and leave.”

  “I’m here to check on my sisters,” Ephraim argued, crossing his arms over his chest.

  “Where are my granddaughters?” one of the other men barked. He pointed at Esther’s car. “They in there?”

  “Who the fuck are you?” I asked. He ignored me.

  Bas, Cian and Mick spread out in the driveway. Otto had probably called all of the brothers. I vaguely wondered where Rumi was.

  “Noel,” the older man yelled. “Where are my granddaughters?”

  “Get the fuck outta here, old man,” I ordered, taking another step forward.

  “Who are you?”

  “He’s the boy Noel was sneaking around with before we moved,” Ephraim replied, glancing at me with disgust.

  “Not a boy anymore,” I replied, staring him down. “Feelin’ froggy?”

  He scoffed.

  “You need to leave,” Otto said again. “Now.”

  “We’re not going anywhere until we see my brother’s wife and my nieces,” the third man said, bravely walking around to the front of the car. I kept the surprise off my face. He was old. Maybe not as old as my parents, but at least forty. My mouth went dry. That was Esther’s brother-in-law? How old had her husband been?

  “Yeah, that ain’t happenin’,” I said easily, moving toward Otto. I didn’t like how far I was from Esther’s car. It would only take moments for the men to reach it.

  The man stubbornly stood his ground. Idiot.

  “Your brother’s dead,” I said flatly. “She’s not his wife anymore. Get the fuck outta here.”

  “What do you think is gonna happen here?” Mick asked, splitting the focus of the men—exactly what I should’ve been doing. “You’re outnumbered.” He looked around. “Very outnumbered.”

  “Noel needs to come home,” Ephraim said, like it was the most reasonable thing in the world. “Her family has been worried sick.”

  “Her family’s here,” Otto replied flatly. “You’re lookin’ at ’em.”

  “Well,” Ephraim said, lifting his hands as he looked back at the other men. “I think we’re going to have to disagree with you there.”

  “What part of get the fuck outta here are you not understandin’?” I asked, my blood boiling as movement inside the car caught my attention.

  “What are you doing here?” Noel asked from the opposite side of the car.

  My heart dropped into my stomach. She was closer to Ephraim than me or Otto and their proximity made a bead of sweat roll down my spine.

  “What in the world are you doing here, Noel?” Ephraim asked, his voice dripping with disappointment. “Lucille had to hear about Caleb from some woman at the hospital and when they went to the house, you guys were gone.”

  “I live here now,” Noel said, her voice a little less sure. “Tell Lucille we’re fine.”

  “You should be ashamed,” the old man called out. “Get the girls. It’s time to come home.”

  I was fucking done. Ignoring the men who watched me like they’d happily strangle me, I strode over to Noel’s side of the car.

  “You okay?” I asked quietly, taking her in.

  Her shoulders were curled inward and her fingers were twisting together nervously in front of her belly, but she held her head high as she nodded.

  “I thought we moved past this years ago,” Ephraim said, his voice low and disappointed. “You know better, Noel.”

  Her shoulders curled in even further.

  “You need to leave,” she said, her throat bobbing as she swallowed. “This is Otto and Esther’s house and they don’t want you here.”

  “I’m not leaving without my granddaughters,” the old man shot back.

  “My daughters aren’t going anywhere,” Noel countered, her shoulders straightening a little.

  The old man had calculated incorrectly by bringing up the girls. I could see it in Noel’s expression. Ephraim may have guilted her into bending a little, but with the reminder of Ariel and Diana, whatever gumption she’d mustered up when she called Esther that night a couple weeks before was back in full force.

  “You think you can keep my brother’s daughters from us?” the other man said, taking a step forward.

  “Tell Lucille that once we’re settled, I’ll call her and maybe she can come visit,” Noel replied, not backing down.

  I took a step to the side, moving behind her slightly. She was running the show. I wanted to make that perfectly clear. Pride settled somewhere deep in my chest.

  “They in there?” the man took another step forward.

  “Don’t come any closer,” Noel said before I could. “Get back in your car and leave.”

  Ephraim chose that moment to appeal to Otto. The idiot.

  “You understand where we’re coming from, right? Noel took off without telling anyone. We just want to make sure she and the girls are alright.”

  Jesus, the irony was unreal. I could still remember vividly the day I’d shown up at Noel’s house because I hadn’t seen her at school for two days in a row, only to find the house gutted and her family gone.

  “You’ve got that assurance now,” Otto replied flatly. “Leave.”

  “Well, we still haven’t seen Ariel or Diana…”

  “Not gonna fuckin’ happen,” I barked.

  The thought of the girls—who I really hoped had fallen asleep on the ride home—getting into the middle of this bullshit made me more furious than I already was. Diana wouldn’t have a clue what was happening, but I had no doubt that Ariel would be scared and confused.

  “Not sure how that’s your decision to make,” Ephraim countered.

  Noel shuffled back a little at the venom in Ephraim’s voice, her shoulder blades brushing against my chest.

  “Come here, Noel,” he ordered through his teeth.

  The movement was unconscious. I wasn’t sure why I did it, or even noticed that I had, until Ephraim’s gaze shot down to where I’d set my hand on Noel’s hip. His expression filled with rage.

  Then everything went to hell.

  Noel flinched, her back slamming into my chest as Ephraim rushed forward.

  Mick, Cian and Bas were yelling at the other assholes to stay where they were. I assumed that Otto was coming around the car, but before he got there, I was shoving Noel behind me.

  The man wasn’t a fighter.

  I guess he was more used to bullying women.

  I braced my feet as he reached me, swinging wildly at my face.

  I let him get a few punches in, making sure that he couldn’t claim any kind of assault. Then I went to work.

  I was the youngest of four boys. I’d learned how to take a punch before I had armpit hair. I’d been getting into real fights since I was in high school and had been working with a bag much longer than that. Ephraim went down so easily that a part of me would’ve felt bad if he hadn’t been such an absolute fuck.

  “Enough,” Mick barked, his hand coming down on my shoulder as I knelt above Noel’s brother.

  Ignoring my brother, I cocked my arm back, focusing on a section of Ephraim’s face that I didn’t think I’d hit yet.

  “Titus,” Noel called. “Stop. Please.”

  That got my attention. I let my arm fall.

  Climbing to my feet, I cleared my mouth and spit on Ephraim’s chest. My teeth had torn up the inside of my cheek when I’d let him hit me.

  “This is where you want to be?” Ephraim asked in disgust, looking between Noel and Esther as he pushed to his feet. I wasn’t sure when my sister-in-law had gotten out of the car, but her expression was stony. “With these animals?”

  Cian laughed.

  “I’ve always looked out for you,” Ephraim said to Noel, using his shirt to wipe at his face. “This is the thanks I get?”

  “You married her off to a man more than twice her age when she was sixteen years old,” Esther hissed. “Get the fuck off my property before I call the cops and tell them you’re trespassing and assaulted my brother-in-law.”

  I couldn’t seem to take a breath as I looked over at Noel. More than twice her age?

  Ephraim shook his head, glaring at Esther. “Trash,” he muttered.

  “And now, I’m done,” Otto said, striding toward Ephraim.