Page 813 of End Game

He shrugs. “I’ve never wanted kids.”

Then Griffin goes quiet.

Not upset.

Thinking.

“I always figured I would,” he says finally.

Something in my stomach tightens.

He looks at me and must read it immediately.

“No. Don’t look at me like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like I’m giving something up.”

I stay quiet.

He rubs his hand over his jaw. “I think I just assumed I would. Wife. Kids. House. That whole thing.”

Dex wisely does not make a joke.

Griffin looks around the kitchen.

At all of us.

Then back at me.

“But if you ask me if I actually want to raise a kid?” He exhales. “No.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah.” His answer is firmer now. “I like our life. I like my job, even when the schedule sucks. I like being able to come home after forty-eight hours and sleep. I like that we can travel. I don’t feel like anything’s missing.”

My chest loosens.

Ronan looks at me. “How long is your IUD good for?”

“A few more years.”

“Then we don’t need to make a permanent decision tonight.”

“Agreed,” Griffin says.

Micah leans against the island. “And even permanent birth control doesn’t mean every door closes forever. Foster kids need homes. Adoption exists. If five years from now all of us collectively lose our minds, there are options.”

Dex points at him. “That is both sweet and terrifying.”

Micah ignores him.

Then he looks around at all of us.

“I just don’t need a kid to make this a family.”

Nobody says anything for a second.