“You’re right,” I replied, rubbing their back. “We’re not going anywhere.”
“I’d do it again,” Jesse whispered. “A hundred times.”
“You won’t have to.”
“What the hell is going on?” Finn asked from halfway down the stairs.
“Language,” Dylan said, his tone sounding just like Jesse’s when they corrected Finn.
I met Curtis’s eyes as he chuckled. I smiled back as Jesse pulled away.
“Don’t say hell,” they ordered, pointing at Finn.
“You do!”
“I’m fifteen.”
“So!”
As they bickered and Dylan joined in, I let the noise wash over me, still held in place by Curtis’s gaze.
I’d made a lot of bad decisions. Too many to name.
But standing in that kitchen, I finally made a good one.
Chapter 21
Curtis
“She’s a cunt,”Jesse snapped, tossing a towel at Dylan. “Fuck her.”
“Stop,” he ordered. “She’s not.”
“She broke up with you after youalmost died.”
“Keep your voice down,” he hissed, glancing over his shoulder to make sure Finn wasn’t in the room. “She’s pissed. I get it. I didn’t even call her after it happened.”
“Oh, poor fuckingIsla,” Jesse argued. “You didn’t let her know you were in the ICU. You didn’t call her becauseyour phone was taken as evidence because it was covered in your blood.”
“Can we stop talking about this?” Dylan asked miserably.
Jesse paused to look at him. “Fine,” they said. “But I reserve the right to rant about it when you’re not so emotional about it.”
“I’m not emotional,” Dylan protested.
“Okay, bud,” Jesse said.
“You two ready for school tomorrow?” I asked, making Jesse jerk in surprise.
“Where’d you come from?” they asked.
“Been standin’ here for five minutes,” I replied. “You got everythin’ ready for school?”
“All set,” Dylan replied with a nod.
“Good.” I looked back and forth between them. Dylan’s hair was trimmed out of his eyes, and Jesse’s was in fresh new braids. Neither of them had any bruising left, but Jess still had about a week before the wires were removed from their mouth. They’dlost about five pounds that they couldn’t really afford to lose, but Teddy assured me that they’d gain it back once they started eating real food again. “Uncle Will is gonna stay here tonight, yeah? He’ll crash down on the couch.”
“We know,” Jesse replied easily.
