Page 239 of At First Catch

“I thought you were downstairs.” I laugh.

“I was.” She points dramatically toward the open window.

“Then somebody started screaming.”

“That was you,” Nolan says.

She ignores him completely. “I stand by it.”

The screen door opens again. Crew wanders in carrying two empty serving trays.

“I told her to give you five minutes.”

Bailey gasps. “I gave them at least three.”

Rowan follows, shaking his head. “I’ve never seen someone sprint that fast without a medical emergency.”

“It was an emergency,” Bailey argues. “They got engaged.”

Behind him, Mom steps into the kitchen already wiping at her eyes. “Oh, sweetheart...”

She wraps me into a hug before I can say anything. “I’m so happy for you.”

“I know.” I laugh through another wave of tears. “I can tell.”

Dad smiles from the doorway while Lila slips her arm around Dean’s waist.

Dean catches Nolan’s eye. “Told you it’d work out.”

Nolan smiles. “You did.”

“And you ignored me.”

“For a while.”

“I noticed.”

Soft laughter fills the kitchen, then Holt appears. He doesn’t rush in. Doesn’t make a speech. He simply leans one shoulder against the doorframe and looks between us, then at the ring, then back at me.

A slow smile spreads across his face. “There she is.”

I blink. “What?”

He shrugs one shoulder. “My sister.”

Emotion catches in my throat.

Holt crosses the room and pulls me into one of those quick, one-armed hugs we’ve shared our whole lives.

Quiet enough that only I hear, he says, “You look lighter.”

My eyes sting again. “So do you.”

He smiles before turning toward Nolan. For a second, they simply look at each other. No awkwardness. No warning. No protective speech. Just understanding.

Holt reaches out first. The hug is quick. Solid. Brotherly. When he steps back, he claps Nolan once on the shoulder.

“About time.”