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“Good.”
We sat together without talking for a while. Zane was playing solitaire at the table, and even though he glanced our way, he opted not to weigh in. Zane and I had become friendly over the years, but we were work friends, not close friends. He didn’t pry into my personal life, and I stayed out of his, for the most part.
Igor flounced into the room, ten minutes late. “Do I smell coffee?”
“Not for you,” Asher told him with a smirk. He’d been the one to make the shared brew today, so Igor wouldn’t be missing out on much. “Coffee is only for people who respect punctuality.”
Igor rolled his eyes. “It’s nearly Christmas. Where’s your festive spirit?”
I groaned. “Damn, I still haven’t done my shopping yet.”
Asher made a face. “Me neither. Want to do it together? Safety in numbers.”
“It’s not that bad,” I scoffed.
“Says a guy who doesn’t have to shop for three women.”
“I’ll give you that.” While my family consisted of five brothers and a single sister, Asher had two sisters and was the lone boy. He never seemed to know what to get for his sisters—a fact that wasn’t helped by the fact they were both older than him and living very different lives from his. One was happily married in the city, and the other was engaged, pregnant, and enjoying life in a cutesy home with a literal white picket fence.
“What does your family have planned?” he asked.
“A roast lunch at my parent’s place, same as always.”
“Nice. Anyone bringing a plus-one?”
“Not that I know of.” We’d had a few girlfriends and boyfriends come along over the years—and for a while, Nate’s ex-wife would reliably attend every family event, but we were either all single at the moment or being tight-lipped about dating. Any day now, I expected to hear that Max, Nate’s twin and the only doctor in town, would be shacking up with a sweet-faced woman who liked to bake and would give him two-point-five kids. I could tell he longed for a family, but he seemed to have run into the same problem finding someone locally as I had.
I doubted Nate would ever be willing to open his life to a woman. He already had his daughter, Tess, his best friend, Grace, and his ex-wife, Maddy, to contend with. Connor, the next brother after me, was a loner and seemed to prefer it that way. Toby was a player, and I doubted he had any intention of settling down. As for Summer….
Well, she had five overprotective older brothers getting in the way. Plus Asher, who seemed to take an instant dislike to any man she brought home. That didn’t stop her from trying though. Sometimes I wondered if she enjoyed riling us. A couple of the guys she’d introduced us to were such duds, I was sure she must have been screwing with us.
“Good,” Asher said. When I raised a brow, he flushed. “You know what I mean.”
“How about you?” I asked. “What’s the plan in the Heaton household?”
“A champagne breakfast at Mum and Dad’s, then a light dinner at Frannie’s.” Frannie was the pregnant sister who lived not far from me. “Is Grace joining you?”
I shrugged. “Perhaps later in the day.”
Thinking of her brought Kennedy back to the forefront of my mind. I wondered what she’d be doing on Christmas Day. Would she be alone?
Not your business, Liam.
ChapterFifteen
KENNEDY
Hi Liam,
How are Grace and Desdemona? I’ve been thinking about them lately, and Tabitha, and everyone else who made me feel as though I could call Destiny Falls home. I miss them like a part of me has been cut out.
I missyoulike my heart has been carved from my chest. A little melodramatic, perhaps, but that doesn’t make it untrue.
Love,
K xx
I spreadcream cheese on a bagel, then dolloped raspberry jam on top. I lifted it to my mouth and took a bite.
