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“He treating you good?”
“I don’t know. Are you treating my sister good?” We both knew my question was probably the stupidest one ever asked. Drake would leave this Earth worshipping my sister. He glanced at something over my shoulder and, with the way his eyes softened, I knew without looking that he was looking at Lana.
“I’ll take that as a yes,” he said after a few more seconds of watching Lana. Strong arms enfolded me and pulled me into a tight hug. His lips pressed against my forehead. “Happy birthday, Lucy. Love you, sweet girl.”
I hugged him back, soaking up his love. Jesse Thornton might be my favorite Demon, but Drake was definitely not far behind. Sure, I loved and adored all four of the men who had become such a big part of my life, but there was just something about Drake that would always make me love him a little more than Shane or Nik.
“Hey, stop stealing all the hugs,” Lana’s sweet voice ordered and Drake pulled back just enough so he could pull her into
our hug. She leaned her dark head on her husband’s shoulder and tried to fight back a yawn.
“You guys must be ready to head home.” I touched a hand to her pregnant belly, laughing when my newest little niece kicked against my touch. “You don’t have much longer in there, little angel.”
“I hate to drag everyone away, but it’s already past the girls’ bedtime. And honestly, I’ve been ready for bed since I woke up this morning.” Lana pressed a kiss to my check. “Did you have a good birthday, Lucy?”
Without realizing what I was doing, I glanced over at Harris again. He was hugging Trinity close, most likely telling her goodnight. The sight of him with his little sister like that told me he would make a great father one day. He was a good guy, a strong man. And he was all mine.
“This has been the best birthday ever, Lana.” I hugged her and Drake tight one more time before stepping back. “Thanks for coming, guys. It means so much to me.”
“We wouldn’t have missed it, Lu.”
I stood with them while they gathered their daughters. Unlike the others who had left their younger kids at home, Lana had brought all three of hers. Neveah had recently turned nine—just a few months younger than my brothers—while Heavenleigh was still an itty-bitty at the age of eighteen months, putting Arella in the middle at six years old. Each gave me big hugs and wet kisses before their parents tucked them close and headed home.
As I turned from waving one last time, I nearly walked right into the tall man who had been standing behind me. Two large hands shot out to steady me and I grinned up at a face that was almost a mirror of Harris. “Mr. Cutter.”
Aquamarine eyes were full of amusement as he shook his head, causing his long hair to fall over his shoulder. When he smiled, flashing those damn dimples at me, I realized that this was what Harris would look like when he got older. The Cutter men could have passed for brothers—twins if you were in a dim lighting. “How many times have I asked you to call me Devlin over the years, Lucy?”
“Oh, I’d say about a thousand, but we both know I’m not gonna do that.”
“Yeah, doesn’t keep me from hoping, though.” He wrapped his arms around me and I knew that with all the tight hugs I’d been getting tonight, I’d probably be sore in the morning. Not that I cared. I loved all of it. “I wanted to tell you happy birthday again before we head out.”
“Thanks, Mr. Cutter. And thanks for coming tonight.”
Aquamarine eyes turned darker blue as he stepped back, his eyes skimming over my face. In that moment I saw the father in him, and not the still-sexy rocker. “I always hoped that you and Harris would get together one day. I’m really happy that you decided to give him a chance, Lucy.”
Blushing, I lowered my eyes, not sure what to say to that.
Devlin Cutter chuckled. “Happy birthday, Lucy.” He kissed my cheek and stepped back. “It was good to see you again, sweetheart.”
“Yeah,” I murmured. “You, too.”
Slowly, everyone started heading home. Aunt Emmie, Nik, and Mia gave me a huge group hug and followed Shane and Harper out. Soon it was just my parents, brothers, Kin and Jace, and Harris. We all dropped down onto a group of couches and I leaned against Harris, closing my eyes. All the excitement of the day had wiped me out. Sleep was trying to pull me down and I fought against it, wanting a little more time with my boyfriend.
Around me I could make out some of their conversation, mostly Kin and Jace bickering while my parents tried to convince the twins that they needed to take showers when we got home. None of that concerned me, though. All I wanted to do was listen to the steady beating heart of the guy who owned my heart.
“Time to go home, sweetness,” I heard Harris murmur close to my ear.
“Don’t wanna go,” I mumbled, half asleep already.
“Sorry, baby.” My mom’s voice tried to penetrate my sleep-fogged mind. “The boys need to be in bed and you look like you could use one, too.”
I tightened my hold on Harris’s waist. “No. I’m comfortable here.” Maybe they would let me stay if I held on tight enough. Maybe they would let Harris take me home with him…
I nearly smiled at that thought before it even fully developed in my head. Yeah, right. No way was Jesse Thornton going to let that happen.
Harris chuckled quietly and I felt his lips in my hair before a pair of the strongest arms in the universe lifted me. I cracked an eye open to glare at my dad for a second. “But I wanna stay,” I whined.
Dad tucked me closer and the warmth from his body mixed with the peace and safety I always felt when he held me like that were the perfect combination and I gave up the battle to stay awake.
