“Ah, so that’s the way of things. Do Hunter and Kata know?”
“Yep, but even if they didn’t, it wouldn’t matter.”
“Good for you.” Xander smiled faintly.
He was a genuinely nice guy, usually a bit of a prankster. Today, he looked really damn somber.
“How is your brother?”
Xander shook his head, looking more than a little annoyed. “God, doesn’t Logan keep anything to himself?”
Actually, Tyler had filled him in on the tragic murder of Xander’s sister-in-law and the guilt spiral his brother, Javier, had been on ever since.
Caleb just shrugged, and Xander sighed heavily. “Thanks for asking. He’s not doing well. He’s trying to drink himself to death, and I had to have his stomach pumped about two weeks ago. He’s alive and he’s not terribly happy about it. I don’t know what’s going to make him want to live again.”
“It will be something,” Caleb assured. “I’ve seen guys come back from war and they’re so traumatized…”
Of course not all of them pulled through, but if they had caring friends and families and the will to go on, they often not only functioned again but were damn happy. Even without saying it, Caleb saw that Xander loved his brother. Somehow, he’d pull his sibling out of the dark again.
“It will work out,” he assured.
“I hope you’re right.”
Chloe wiggled out of his grasp and lunged at Xander, who chuckled and grabbed the little girl, mouthing a raspberry on her shoulder. The toddler giggled.
“You’re a little flirt,” Xander accused.
The little girl just batted her lashes.
As the men laughed, Caleb felt his phone vibrate again. He read Hunter’s text with a wide grin.
“Two minutes, gang!” he shouted above the din of the party.
Instantly, everyone crowded into the kitchen, as Tyler and Jack killed the lights in the kitchen. Caleb did the same in the great room. Everyone lowered their voice to a whisper in anticipation of Hunter and Kata’s big entrance. He sidled up behind Carlotta and slipped his hands around her waist, pressing a kiss to her neck.
“Hey, none of that now,” Logan teased beside him.
Tara elbowed her husband.
Luc and Alyssa took advantage of the dark and shared a sweet kiss.
Jack pulled Morgan closer. In the shadows, it seemed baby Brice was asleep.
“Like hell,” Jack groused. “This is the only time I get to touch my wife anymore. Don’t mind us over in the corner,” he told everyone.
Morgan giggled. “Stop that, Jack. Everyone will think I don’t give you any attention.”
“You know me. I can never get too much of you, mon coeur.”
“TMI.” Tyler shuddered.
A pair of headlights flashed through the front window. The car engine cut off. Two doors slammed.
“Where are we? Why are we here, Hunter?” Kata’s voice sounded through the door as Hunter opened it for his wife and ushered her in.
Just then, the men flipped on the lights again and everyone shouted, “Welcome home!”
Kata turned to her husband with a stunned looked, her mouth gaping open. “Home?”