Cassidy chuckled as she glanced inside the coffee shop to make sure Dante hadn’t followed her. He remained at the table, but his eyes were on her. She could feel the tension he radiated and gulped.
With his increasingly protective behavior and her growing need for him, she was starting to lean toward him being her mate. But that was a problem for later. She had something else to deal with now. She smiled at Dante and gave a small wave before turning her back to him.
“They are,” she agreed; she loved her sisters, but she was the sanest one of them. “But you also have my brothers’ mates too.”
“Now, there you have alotof competition.”
“I’m still the best, though.”
“Weeelll,” he drew the word out in amusement. “I don’t know; Maggie is entertaining, and Paige’s paintings are beautiful, and Emma—”
“You’re my favorite brother-in-law.”
“Oh, okay then, you’re the best.”
“I knew it.” In the background, a baby squealed. “Is that Rhys?”
She’d been home for Christmas and again last month, but it sounded as if her brother Aiden’s nine-month-old son, had grown a lot since her previous visit. But then, she already knew that from the proud pictures, Aiden bombarded them with every day in their family group text.
“It is,” Brian confirmed. “Abby volunteered to babysit so Aiden and Maggie could have a couple of days away.”
“He sounds thrilled about it.”
“Surprisingly, he is. The kid finds me irresistible.”
“Someone besides Abby has to.”
“And just like that, Willow has replaced you as my favorite sister-in-law.”
Cassidy laughed. “Liar.”
Brian chuckled. It had taken him some time to adjust to their large family, and his role in it, but he’d grown to love them all. He would probably vehemently deny it, but she suspected he also loved all the chaos and relished being a part of it.
“So, I know I’m the most wonderful conversationalist in the world, and everyone’s dying to talk to me, but I don’t think you called to confirm you’re my favorite sister-in-law,” he said.
Cassidy glanced into the coffee shop again. Dante was staring at his phone, but his eyes rose to her before returning to whatever he was reading. “I didn’t. Do you think you could find someone if they were dead?”
Brian was silent for a minute before replying, “No. I follow the soul of a person.”
“And the dead wouldn’t have a soul?”
“Not one that I can track.”
She tried to bury disappointment, but she knew it came out in her voice. “Oh.”
“Are you going to tell me what’s going on?”
“It’s not my story to tell.”
He paused before replying. “I understand.”
And she knew he did. “Could we not tell Abby about this conversation? I’m not ready for more of my siblings to meddle in my life right now.”
“What conversation?”
Cassidy smiled. “Thank you.”
“Julian and Kyle driving you crazy?”
