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I arched a brow. “What news?”
“I’m getting married.”
My eyes flared wide. “Who the hell to?”
His lips twitched. “Think I should key the woman in first before I tell you.”
“What the fuck, bro? You can’t just drop that on me and not expect me to ask questions.”
“Got no answers. Not yet. But it’ll stall Da for a while.”
“Wait, so it’s a joke?”
“No. It’s not.” His smile was grim. “You aren’t the only one who has a past, Declan. We all made mistakes. Some are impossible to rectify, but some can be if you just try.”
With that cryptic statement, he stormed off, leaving me to stagger toward him down the stone path.
I headed inside, instantly wincing when Ma barreled out of nowhere to hug me. It always astonished me just how strong she was, but I appreciated it. I couldn’t deny it. I squeezed her back even though it hurt, and when she peered up at me, concern on her face and relieved tears in her eyes, I couldn’t fault her.
Just like Brennan had said, we all made mistakes. Ma’s mistake had been to let Da get away with murder. I couldn’t hold it against her, not after Da had gone full throttle crazy when she’d been abducted by the fucking Aryans nearly twenty-five years back—the repercussions of which we were still dealing with to this day.
I kissed her temple and murmured, “Good to see you, Ma.”
“Even better to see you, son.” Anxiety danced in her eyes, and I wondered if she was concerned that I knew about her visit to Aela and apparently stirring shit when I’d asked her to do the opposite, but when I said nothing, she licked her lips and asked, “How’s Seamus? Are you ready to bring him to Sunday dinner yet?”
That was four days away. I guessed I had time to prepare my kid, myatheistkid who didn’t believe in God—a discussion we’d had after watching a show calledNarutoof all things—to church and then to the family home.
“I’ll see what I can do.”
Whether I liked it or not, life was starting to butt its head against our doors. Aela and I had lived in a little cocoon. A small bubble that kept the past, present, and future from colliding with us.
Our time had come, however, and while we’d navigated this small storm, I had to wonder if the hurricanes that were a part of this world were something we could survive.
