AllFreeNovel
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It was Friday night, and just like yesterday at the Halloween party, she’d been drinking a bit too much. But this time it was from Kayla’s whiskey cocoa. The day was spent basically laughing and joking around the entire time amongst her brothers and sisters. Donovan had joined them for dinner at Duncan and Kayla’s place.
After dinner, she sat back in her chair and looked around the living room in Kayla’s house, so happy to see her three brothers and two sisters all together again in the same room. The only thing missing were their parents, who had stayed in New Jersey. But it seemed like the whole family would be together again at Thanksgiving as they had planned to visit the sisters here in Austin.
“I still can’t believe that you’re all here, guys.” Errin beamed up with loving eyes at Conner. Not only did they share the same hair color, but Conner also happened to be the youngest brother as Errin was the youngest sister. Just like Kayla and Calum, Conner and Errin seemed to have an unbreakable bond.
Which leaves Kate with Evan, but they didn’t share that kind of relationship. It may sound harsh, but Kate and Evan couldn’t be any more different. Kate had always been shy and awkward around people, and Evan was proud to be the life of every party. He was the popular jock in high school and always in for a good time; whereas, Kate hated her time in high school and was picked on by other girls.
But just like the rest of her brothers, if someone wanted to mess with one of his own, Evan would tear them apart. He was a six-foot-four, protective papa bear. And a goofball. She smiled as her gaze wandered from Evan to Calum.
He seemed hypnotized by Caitlin while sitting next to her on the couch. They’d met last April when Calum came to Austin after discovering Kayla was staying here to hide from her stalker. Although the attraction had been there, Caitlin was reluctant to act upon her attraction since Calum lived on the other side of the country.
Suddenly, strong arms engulfed her from behind. Donovan smelled her hair, and she turned in his arms. She sighed against his hard chest and inhaled his sandalwood scent. They stood there for what felt like a long time before they heard a couple of new voices coming from the front door.
Bree, Declan, and Ronan entered the living room and casually greeted everyone. They had partied hard on Halloween with the Walshes but today things would be a bit more laid back.
Seeing Bree here reminded Kate that it was Kayla and Duncan’s monthly game night today. Usually, Kate would skip it altogether, as she’d hated the Walsh’s game nights. She was sure her sisters were still every bit as competitive as when they were growing up.
Bree walked over to Errin who sat on the steel armrest of the stool that Conner occupied next to the cobble stone fireplace. “Hey, Errin. What’s up? Are you okay? I heard you took a bad fall in Lucky on Halloween?”
That was odd, seeing as Errin had brushed away Kate’s concern for her limp earlier today when she walked in, using a crutch. Was there more to it then she’d led on? Kate let go of Donovan and walked over to them. “What happened, Bunny? You told me you’d sprained your ankle while stretching this morning?”
Uncharacteristically, Errin blushed. Yes, she full-on blushed. Kate’s eyes grew wide, and she had to choke back a laugh at this foreign sight. Perhaps noticing the same thing, Conner pinched Errin’s cheek between his thumb and index finger. “Now, aren’t you the cutest, sissy.”
“What happened last night?” Kate asked and placed a hand on Errin’s shoulder.
Errin shifted on the armrest to avoid Conner’s pinches and Kate’s hand on her shoulder. “It’s nothing really. I was too drunk to go home so Brennan let me stay at his apartment. I took a tumble from his stairs—end of story.”
Conner and Kate shared a look over Errin’s head as Conner raised a brow and mouthed ‘Brennan?’ to Kate. She simply shrugged her shoulders and gave an even surprised look to her brother.
“If you still want to sleep over at my place, you better stop trolling me,” Errin said in her usual loud voice. Nothing went over her head—literally.
“What do you mean, he’s sleeping over at your place? I’m taking Kate’s bed again tonight,” Calum stated.
“Sorry, bro, but Bunny and I have a lot of catching up to do. And we need some privacy.” He winked. “You can always ask Cait if you can sleep at her place?”
Calum groaned as Conner was obviously yanking his chain. He stood from the couch and slugged Conner’s arm playfully. “Fuck you, little brother.”
“Well, I do have a spare room, you know? It wouldn’t be a problem at all,” Cait added to their conversation. Calum instantly turned and said, “Thanks. I’m taking you up on that offer.”
Cait’s cheeks heated, and she swiftly took a seat on the couch. When she glanced up again, she stared directly into Calum’s eyes.
“Yeah, you have a spare room, ha! But for how long? When is that phoenix sister of yours moving in?” Ronan bellowed from his side of the room.
“Phoenix sister?” Errin questioned with a giggle.
“Yeah, you know, risen from the fire or from the dead. Dunno, whatever. She was gone for all those years, and now she’s coming back to haunt me. The chick is—”
“Stop talking about our sister that way, buffoon,” Cait said sternly.
“Yeah, yeah.” He walked over to Bree and asked her, “So, where is Craig taking you tonight, Bree?”
Bree seemed unsure as to why he decided to turn this conversation on her dating Craig, but she reluctantly said, “He’s taking me to The Velv—”
“You’re not goin’ to the fuckin’ Velvet Club!” Declan interrupted her.
She sat up straight and jerked her chin in his direction. “What do you mean I’m not go—”
“You’re never goin’ back there, squirt.” He crossed his arms in front of his chest.
