Ruby’s wedding. I’d taken a few classes in Grand Junction and had loved them, but right now, I truly felt my place was with my family. They’d all been through so much. I wanted—needed—to be here for them.
And then there was Bryce…
Lord, I wanted to finish that kiss.
He’s too old for you.
The voices of all three of my brothers chanted inside my head.
Of course, Talon was ten years older than Jade. Bryce was a mere three years older than Talon, making him thirteen years older than I was. Would they really balk at a measly three years?
I jarred myself back to reality. We’d had one tiny kiss, and already I had us walking down the aisle. Truth was, I wasn’t in any hurry for marriage, even though within the past year I’d witnessed all three of my brothers find love and tie the knot.
I had to get out of my own head first.
My father had left me when I was eighteen. At the time, I’d thought he’d died. Instead, he’d faked his own death once all his children were of age. I was the youngest and the only girl, seven years younger than my youngest brother, Ryan.
Then there was my mother…
I’d always been told she’d killed herself when I was a baby. I had no memories of her. Until recently. She lived in a fantasy world where I was still a baby and Talon and Jonah were still little boys. Ryan didn’t exist in her world…because he was not her biological child.
He was the son of my father and his stalker, Wendy Madigan.
My life was a big mess.
Plus, I had God only knew how much crazy in my genes. My brothers shared the genetic crazy. In fact, Ryan probably had more. His biological mother was a true psychopath. Still, Joe and Tal were having children from their own bodies, and Melanie had assured all of us that if we weren’t exhibiting “crazy” by now, we were probably fine.
Still…I worried.
I loved children. Dale and Donny had both wormed their way into my heart in a short time, and Bryce’s son, Henry, was an adorable little mini-Bryce with a sweet disposition.
I missed him.
I hadn’t seen him since Ryan and Ruby’s wedding. Bryce had been around a few times, but always sans Henry. I wasn’t sure why.
“Right, Marj?”
I jerked toward Talon’s voice. “Huh?”
“Aren’t you listening?”
“Sorry,” I mumbled.
“No big deal,” Talon said. “I was just telling Bryce that we could use his expertise around here, but he’s dead set on a job that uses his brawn instead of his brain.”
“Oh?” I had no idea what they were talking about.
Bryce chewed his salad.
Instead of saying anything more, I stood and collected the empty salad plates and then brought the meat, potatoes, and green beans to the table. I also set a plate of bread next to Dale and Donny. They both grabbed a slice. Anything to fill up their little bellies.
“Can we talk about this later?” Bryce asked softly.
“Sure,” Talon said. “After dinner.”
I brought the food over. Talon served the boys first and then passed the dishes around. Bryce took very little, which surprised me. He was nearly as big as Joe, the tallest and most muscular of my brothers, at six feet four.
Something was bothering him, clearly.
I held back a huff. Of course something was bothering him. He’d been through hell just like the rest of us. His father was as crazy as Ruby’s. As crazy as Ryan’s mother.
Rather than face the consequences of what he’d done, Bryce’s father had offed himself, right in front of Joe.
Would things around here ever get back to normal?
I was content most days, helping Jade and taking care of Dale and Donny. Cooking for my brother and his family who had been through so much.
At least my brothers were more than content. Despite everything we’d gone through recently, they’d all fallen in love and found their soul mates. They were deliriously happy.
And I was happy for them.
Truly I was.
I just didn’t see that in the cards for myself—at least not anytime soon.
The boys gobbled up their food and were excused. Then Talon, Bryce, and I finished up in silence.
Really uncomfortable and awkward silence.
Whatever Bryce had come to see Talon about, he didn’t want to discuss it in front of me.
Made sense. Bryce and I had no connection.
No connection other than a short kiss that I yearned to continue.
But as I looked at him chewing his food in silence, I saw no yearning in his eyes.
Chapter Four
Bryce
Marjorie had cleared