Page 130 of The Villain We Tempt

Mom rolls her eyes and laughs as she tucks her long dark hair behind her ears.

All three of us ended up getting Dad’s sandy dark-blond hair, and Ronan got his lighter, Irish complexion. Demi and I got mom’s more tanned, Greek skin tone.

Mercifully, Ro and I both got Dad’s height.

He’s six-foot-five. Mom is well over a foot shorter.

“One sec,” Mom beams. “I'll call your dad.” She walks over to the main staircase in the open foyer and cups her hand to her mouth. “CASTLE!!” she bellows. “LOCHLAN’S HERE!”

She turns around and shrugs. “We were just…cleaning out the closet.”

I chuckle. “Yeah? That why your shirt's on inside out?”

Mom jerks her gaze down to the t-shirt she’s wearing, which is indeed inside out and backward. Then she looks up, grins, and shrugs sheepishly.

“EEEW!!” Demi blurts, looking ill. “I thought you guys were up there reorganizing!!”

“Pretty sure they were reorganizingsomething?—”

“Lochlan!” Mom huffs, slapping my arm. “Rude!”

I laugh loudly as my sister dry heaves.

Footsteps thunder from above, and I look up just in time to see my dad jog down the stairs, a big, shit-eating grin on his face.

“Hey, kid,” Castle Kildare rumbles. He throws both arms around me and yanks me into a big bear hug.

“Hey, Dad,” I smile as I hug him back, clapping him on the shoulder as we pull away.

“Well well,” he grins as he reaches up as if to cup my face. “To what do we owe this?—”

He frowns when I pull back from his outstretched hand.

“What—”

“Did you wash those hands?”

He looks confused for a second. But then he notices the way his wife is hiding her face and trying not to giggle, and the way his daughter looks like she wants to vomit.

Pretty sure that’s the moment I canseethe pieces click into place.

He chuckles loudly.

“First of all, I apologize for nothing.”

Mom snorts a teary-eyed laugh as Demi groans.

“Second of all…” he waves his fingers in the air. “Yes, I washed my hands. I’m not an animal.”

“Agree to disagree,” Mom mumbles under her breath.

“MOM!” Demi and I blurt at the same time as our parents roar with laughter and snuggle up to each other.

“You two are fucking gross.”

Dad rolls his eyes. “What,that?” He blows air through his lips. “That was nothing.”

Mom immediately yelps as Dad’s hand swats down on her butt.