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Violet whined in her sleep, and she shifted so she was turned in the opposite direction from the noise. I was about to silence the phone when I saw it was Aunt Emmie calling. With the number of missed calls from her already, my stomach grew queasy as the realization that something must be wrong hit me.
Swiping my thumb across the screen, I lifted it to my ear. “Hello?”
“The jet is waiting at the airport for you and Lyric. I need you both here.”
The tension in her voice that was so unlike my aunt only made me want to puke more.
“What happened?”
“How awake are you? I don’t want to have to explain this twice. I’ve already called Lyric, and he’s on his way over from Jagger’s right now. If you’re going to pack anything, make sure it’s enough for at least a week or two.”
“I can’t miss that many practices!” I whisper-shouted, but it was still loud enough to make Vi lift her head. She blinked down at me in confusion and then wiggled her hips. When I saw the discomfort flicker across her face, I nearly howled in pain. I was hurting her.
“I already spoke to the team’s owner. You have off for as long as you need.”
Aunt Emmie’s voice distracted me from my current situation. “What happened?” I demanded again.
“Your mom collapsed yesterday when we touched down at the airport. After some tests, they found a tumor on her pituitary gland. She had it removed early this morning.”
Frowning, I quickly glanced at my phone to check the time. Shit. California was two hours behind us in time, so it was nearly eleven thirty there. Putting the phone back to my ear, I tried to speak through the lump choking me. “Is she okay?”
Tears filled my eyes, and Vi cupped my face. “What’s wrong?”
I could only shake my head as I listened to Aunt Emmie. “The surgeon was able to get everything. No radiation will be needed. She’s already out of recovery and slowly waking up. Prognosis for a full recovery is good. But she needs her kids and grandbabies around her right now.”
Before I could ask more questions, I heard the doorbell going off. Lyric had arrived and was pressing down on the ringer and pounding his fist against the front door at the same time. Vi jerked at the loudness. He sounded like the fucking cops trying to break down the door. I couldn’t hold back my groan when she lifted off me, leaving my cock lying hard and wet against my stomach.
Grabbing my shirt off the floor, she rushed out of the room even as she slid the huge thing over her head. “I’m coming!”
The need to follow her, to keep her locked in our bedroom, was at war with asking more questions. Knowing it was my brother at the door was the only thing that kept me where I was, listening intently as I waited for answers.
My aunt sighed heavily in my ear. “Lyric knows everything. He will explain it to you on the way. For now, just get yourselves here. Bring Vi and Love Bug. Your mom needs all the love she can get to help her get through this.”
“I…” I sat up. “But she’s okay? I mean… Did our argument make her collapse? Did I do this to her?”
“No, Luca, no,” she rushed to assure me, her tone turning soft. “This has been growing in her head for years. Maybe even decades. They don’t know for sure, but the mass was the biggest the doctor had ever seen. He said it was a miracle he was able to safely extract it all.”
“Is it cancerous?” The memories of Remington telling me about his own brain tumor flooded my mind, and my tears fell faster. “Is it aggressive?”
“It’s not cancerous. With some close monitoring and medication later on, she’s going to be fine. I wouldn’t lie to you, Luca.”
Violet came running back into the bedroom, distracting me yet again.
“Baby, don’t run!” I commanded, scared she might hurt herself or the babies.
“I have to get us packed!” she exclaimed, disappearing into the closet. “We can’t waste time. Layla needs us.”
“The pilot is waiting,” Aunt Emmie informed me. “I’ll have someone meet you when you land. They will have enough child car seats for you on the plane and in the car. I love you. All of you.”
“I-I love you too,” I choked out before the phone went silent.
Stunned, I just sat there on the side of the bed, staring down at my phone. It wasn’t until Violet stepped between my legs, completely dressed now and her hair damp from a shower, that I realized time had passed. “Luca, you need to shower and get dressed,” she said softly, cupping both sides of my face.
“My mom…”
“I know,” she said, her eyes darkening with pain and sadness. “I’m sorry. We’ll get to her as fast as we can, I promise. But you have to get cleaned up and dressed before we can leave.”
“What am I going to do? I told her we didn’t want to see her yesterday.”
