Rocking Kin (Lucy & Harris, #3) - Terri Anne Browning Page 0,75
sorry, Kin.” He released a harsh breath. “Your mother would be so ashamed of me right now.”
My arms tightened around him. “Well, I’m pretty proud of you, and since she isn’t here, that’s all that matters.” I gave him an impish grin, which got me a halfhearted smile from him in return. “I’m really, really hungry. Can we have Chinese?”
Behind me, Jillian let out an angry protest that sounded almost like a squawk. “You’re not leaving with them. I won’t allow it,” she bit out. “You came here with us, McKinley, and you will leave with us.”
I sighed and turned to face her, my expression blank so she wouldn’t see how pissed I really was. She’d already gotten one show for the night, I wasn’t about to give her another one. “I think we all know that you don’t count by now, Jillian, so what you want doesn’t really matter.” I wrapped a hand around Carter’s much larger one.
“See you tomorrow,” I called over my shoulder as I led them away from the crowd like I wasn’t affected by the shit-storm I was sure would follow the next morning.
Jace, still with his arms full of Angie, followed us. “I could really go for some honey chicken if we’re getting Chinese.”
“Only if you promise to share it.” I shot him a thankful smile as we left the venue and Caleb handed over his valet ticket. He was changing the subject, acting like nothing had happened and I wasn’t scared to admit—at least not to myself—that I loved him for it.
“If you share the noodles, babe.”
He was a tough negotiator, but I really liked sharing his honey chicken. “Deal.”
Chapter 17
Jace
I spent the rest of Christmas Eve and all of Christmas Day with Kin and her family in their hotel suite. As soon as we’d gotten back to their room, we’d rented How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Kin’s favorite cartoon Christmas movie, and pigged out on Chinese food. Kin settled between me and Caleb on the couch in the sitting area and before the credits were even running on the movie she was sound asleep with her head on my shoulder and her feet in her stepbrother’s lap.
It was a few hours later before Caleb and Angie went to bed, but I decided to stay where I was, hating the thought of leaving Kin. Carter covered her with an extra blanket and I settled in to sleep sitting up with Kin in my arms. It was the best night’s sleep I’d had in months, even if I did wake up the next morning with a stiff neck.
The Jacobsons were more than happy to keep me around Christmas Day while we stayed in their suite. It was more than I could have asked for, getting to spend the entire day with Kin when all I’d really wanted was just a meager five minutes with her.
At the end of the day, however, Carter told Kin that he and the twins were going to head back to the East Coast the next morning.
“No,” she protested as she shook her head. “You promised me four weeks. I still have at least another week.”
Carter sighed tiredly. “Honey, we’ve caused you enough trouble with Scott and that idiot wife of his. We don’t want to add more to your plate right now.”
I watched helplessly as tears had filled Kin’s eyes, but she had blinked them back, trying to keep them from falling. “I don’t care about them. I don’t want you to leave. I miss you guys so…much.” When her voice broke, I wanted to pull her into my arms and never let her go. “P-please, don’t go.”
The pain on Carter’s face had matched his stepdaughter’s. “Kin…”
“We’ll be back for your birthday, sugar bug,” Angie rushed to assure her. “We aren’t going to miss that. And I promise we will make up for all the trouble we caused.” She clenched her jaw and looked out the window. “That I caused.”
Kin’s chin trembled. “I don’t care about that. I can handle Jillian.”
Caleb’s big body crouched in front of her. “Maybe you can, but she’s going to milk what happened last night for all it’s worth. She will make your life even more miserable than it already is, sweetheart. I wish you would come home with us.”
“I-I can’t do that. I promised Mom.”
“She wouldn’t hold you to that promise if she knew what that crazy bitch was like, Kin. You know that,” Carter growled.