AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The front door flies open, and an excited squeal fills the room. We turn toward the sound and find a young blonde girl barreling straight toward us. There’s a giant smile on her face, her two front teeth missing. She has a remote controlled car clutched in one hand, and a candy bar in the other.
“Addie!” I step out of her way as she launches herself into Addie’s arms. Addie picks her up and spins her in a circle, laughing as the girl gives her cheek a sloppy, sticky kiss. “I got you this.” She holds the candy bar out, and Addie gently takes it.
“Thanks,” she says, hugging her tighter.
“Your surprise is in the car, Heather,” the girl says, and Heather smiles brightly at her.
“Skye!” a man barks, and I snap my head in that direction. I ignore the giant tattooed man stomping across the room and zero in on the tiny woman beside him.
I rush toward Koda and wrap her in a tight hug. I squeeze my eyes shut as she hugs me back. I hadn’t realized how worried I truly was about her until this moment. After the shit she’s been through, I just want to wrap her in bubble wrap so she won’t ever get hurt again.
“Hi, Kenny,” she laughs as she pulls back. She looks up at me, then slides her eyes to the side and her mouth falls open. “Ian?”
“Hey,” he laughs.
“You’re huge, oh my God!” She steps out of my grasp and gawks up at Ian.
She’s tiny, but looks even smaller beside him. She looks ridiculously small beside Axel, her giant husband. I glance over Ian’s shoulder, finding him crouching in front of the girl, gently scolding her. She rolls her eyes, and I bite my lip to hold in my laugh.
“She’s Axel’s kid?” I ask, throwing my thumb over my shoulder. Koda nods proudly, then sees him talking to her and lets out a long breath.
“I’ll be right back,” she sighs. “I need to play referee or she’ll walk all over him.”
“I didn’t know she had a kid,” Ian says, and I shrug.
“Stepkid,” I clarify. We watch her run her fingers through Axel’s mop of hair, and his broad shoulders slump, as if her touch grounded him. He lets go of Skye’s arm, and she bounces on the balls of her feet.
“I need to see Uncle Bashy!” She turns back toward Addie, her father completely forgotten. “I have a present for him. And for Uncle Reid. Where are they?”
“Chapel,” Heather says, grinning down at her. Axel lets out a soft groan as he gets to his feet and wraps his arm around Koda. Ian and I step beside Ezra and he slips his arm around my waist, holding me proudly to his side.
“Shit,” Axel says, staring at Ezra’s arm around me. “This is a thing?” He waves his fingers between us and I shrug.
“Damn right it is,” Ezra says. He taps Ian with the back of his hand and winks at him, making Ian’s face turn bright red. “They’re mine.”
“You sure you know what you’re getting yourself into?” Axel asks me, and I shrug again.
“Crazy calls to crazy, and apparently, I’m fucking nuts.” He throws his head back and laughs, his stubbled throat bobbing.
“Well,” he says as he looks down at Koda. He smiles before he looks back at me, and fuck, are all the guys in this club this hot? “Welcome to the family.”
Kennedy
“So, this is your room?” I look around, taking in the cluttered, messy space. It smells like him, like salt air and coconuts, and something else, something entirely him—entirely Kiwi.
“Yep,” he says proudly. “Nice place, huh?” He flops down on his unmade bed and laces his fingers behind his head. I press my lips into a smile as I nod, still taking everything in.
He keeps a cocky smile on his face as I stalk around the room, my hands clasped in front of me. I glance at him, a grin curving my lips as I open the top drawer of his dresser. Mostly clothes fill it, but before I close it a small box in the back corner catches my eye. I know I probably shouldn’t snoop, but I can’t help myself.
I grab it and hold it up, my brows raising in silent question. He shrugs, his eyes on me as I sit on the edge of his bed. Slowly, I open the wooden box and peer inside.
One blink.
Another.
Then I laugh.
“Seriously?” I pull out the little jar of weed and wave it around. “Are you fifteen? Why are you hiding it?” He snorts a laugh as he slides to the edge beside me.
