“Yeah.” Chloe looked down at the table, started fiddling with her juice box, and began kicking the seating again. “Until we move again. Then we’ll be new somewhere else and just the three of us like always before.”
Pushing back deeper into the booth, Garrick exhaled and curled his hand around the back of his neck. “Maybe this was your last move.” Shit, was this conversation in confidence? Or should he tell Grace about Chloe’s dejected acceptance at the thought of moving again? “Could be this one sticks to you all like glue.”
“Maybe.”
“You’ve been here a year now,” Garrick pointed out, remembering Grace telling him that when he’d rented the garage apartment. “And your mom is getting this whole real estate thing going here in Redemption. Has that ever happened before?”
The kicking stopped. “No.”
“Well, there you go.” Garrick found himself staring at Devlin’s strong back. He couldn’t help the small grin that lifted his lips or hold back the sensation of mini fireworks popping in his chest and stomach. “Things might be looking up for all of us,” he said, his voice as soft as hers had been earlier. “Can you hope for that? With me?”
Chloe scooted closer to him and leaned her head against his arm. “I’ll try.”
Shawn suddenly screeched, and he shouted, “The cheese is burning! The cheese is burning!”
Garrick looked up just as Shawn yanked open the oven door.
“Shawn!” Garrick flew out of the booth, and panic scraped his voice raw. “Don’t touch that!”
Devlin spun in a flash, grabbed Shawn by the back of his shirt, and hauled him away from the open oven door just as the kid was starting to stick his hand inside. Devlin moved Shawn well out of the way, turned off the oven, and then used two hand towels to remove the mac-n-cheese.
Garrick stalled out at the island--his legs feeling like jelly--the second he processed that Shawn was okay. “Shit.” His heart raced too fast and he could not breathe properly to slow it down. “He would have been badly burned.”
“That’s why mom always uses the latch and locks it,” Chloe said, now at his side.
Rookie mistake. “I should have done that too,” Garrick replied, his throat still tight.
“I should have thought to tell you,” Chloe murmured. “No matter what mom tells him or takes away to punish him, he gets too excited and still tries to take stuff out of the oven all the time.”
A hand curled around Garrick’s shoulder, and Garrick followed the line of strong, tanned arm up to Devlin’s eyes. “Everyone is fine. Okay?” Devlin’s touch and voice steadied the buzz of adrenaline speeding within Garrick. “Disaster averted.” He pulled Shawn to his side and gave the kid a noogie. “Maybe it just means Shawn is going to be a chef one day. He likes the kitchen.”
With a snort, Chloe said, “Maybe it just means he’s dumb.”
“Am not!” Shawn whirled on Chloe and jabbed her in the leg with his little fist. She shoved him right back with an open hand to his shoulder.
“Hey!” Garrick pushed his way in between the flailing arms. “Both of you stop it now.”
Devlin and Garrick ended up in the middle of the kids, strong-arming each of them, and acting as a divider wall.
“How about we end this round as a draw and sit down to eat?” Devlin asked.
“I vote for Devlin’s plan,” Garrick said. He eyed Chloe first and then swung the other way so Shawn got a piece of his stink eye too. “And if you both want to go back outside to play when we’re finished, you’ll agree to it too.”
They both grumbled but divvied up the task of carrying the condiments and paper plates to the table without further complaint.
Once Garrick saw the kids playing nicely again, he lifted his gaze to Devlin’s. The man had the most enticing light sparking silver in his eyes, so full of knowledge, and Garrick couldn’t create enough saliva to do more than whisper, “Thank you.”
“No problem.” Devlin handed Garrick the plate of burgers. The grazing of their fingers as it traded hands rippled a gentle wave of awareness under Garrick’s skin, making him feel as if they’d been comfortably touching forever. Devlin winked and said, “Let’s eat.” He left Garrick standing there with his jaw on the floor.
Chloe giggled behind him, and Garrick knew she’d witnessed the little moment too.
Great.
* * * *
Garrick winced as Shawn screeched from his bedroom, “I can’t find my Transformer!”
Chloe rolled her eyes and sighed dramatically. “Why does he need to bring a stupid toy with us?” She pushed open the door, let herself out onto the porch, and looked up at Garrick and Devlin through the screen. “Tell him to forget about it or we’re gonna leave without him.”
With lunch finished, Garrick had promised the kids a trip to the ice cream shop if they helped make the kitchen sparkle as clean as their mother had left it this morning. They’d completed that task a few minutes ago, but after everyone took a turn using the bathroom, Shawn had declared he needed his Transformer.
After glancing at his watch, Garrick joined Chloe on the porch. “Come on, Chloe, let’s give Shawn a break. He’s only been looking for two minutes.”
Still on the other side of the screen door, Devlin ahemed and raised his hand. “Why don’t I go see if I can help him find it?”
Another easy smile pushed up the corners of Garrick’s mouth, as had been happening all damned day. “Tell him he has three more minutes.” His finger brushed against the soft screening as he pointed at the too-sexy man inside. “Don’t let tears sway you into more.”
Devlin jogged backward across the living room,
