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He bends, drops his mouth to my ear, his lips brushing against my skin, the contact making me shiver. “Your nails are pretty.”

Then he kisses the hinge of my jaw, straightens, and strolls into the kitchen, leaving me gaping after at him.

Care and kisses and compliments.

What the fuck is happening here?

TWENTY-FOUR

Ace

“I like her.”

I glance up from the piece of paper in my hands and lift my brows at Noble. “Is that a prerequisite for my woman?”

“In normal families, yes. In ours—and with regard to every woman you dated before, that’s a no.” He snatches the paper from my hands. “They were all nuts, a bitch, a gold digger, or I’ll say it again…fucking nuts. She’s”—he waves the paper toward Violet, who stepped away to take a call from her assistant—“sweet and normal and smart and knocked Oakes the fuck out.”

My lips twitch.

It’s been a day and there’s no end in sight for the razzing Oakes has been receiving.

Especially since my asshole oldest brother does have a bruise.

Not to mention, he deserves a fuck of a lot more than teasing.

Luckily, Jenny is used to his nonsense—or maybe to shy and cowed to comment on it—so she didn’t blink an eye, no pun intended, when she rolled up to dinner.

And anyway, the mark should be gone by the time the tuxes are on and he’s waiting at the end of the aisle.

So, it’s all worked out—or mostly anyway.

Oakes is still pissed, and I’ve been keeping an eye on him, making sure he stays far away from Violet.

Lex is his usual surly teenage-boy-esque angry, keeping his distance and glaring at me and Violet when he can’t.

Likely this is because Oakes isn’t the only one getting shit.

He and Beck and my dad are too.

The difference is that Beck and my dad have decided to be amused while Lex and Oakes are…well, channeling their inner assholes.

“No, Josie,” I hear Vi say. “I think the rest of that can wait until I get back.”

A beat, her eyes lifting, connecting with mine, and I don’t know what Josie is saying, but I have the feeling that it’s about me.

Especially since when Vi realizes I’m looking, her gaze drops away.

“No.” Her voice is a smidge sharper. “Like I said, the rest can wait until I get back.” Another pause. Then a sigh. Then⁠—

“I’m hanging up now.”

“Unless…” Noble says and it’s hard for me to refocus on him.

Mostly because I just want to watch Violet.

“Unless what?” I mutter.

“Unless she’s hiding more than a right hook under that cool and collected and put-together exterior then I think you finally scored yourself a good one, big bro.”