Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 107944 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 540(@200wpm)___ 432(@250wpm)___ 360(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107944 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 540(@200wpm)___ 432(@250wpm)___ 360(@300wpm)
“Could you blame her? I am remarkable,” Damian dryly replied, making me smirk.
“You two do look alike,” Jax chimed in.
Damian and I stared at one another and blinked before shrugging. “I don’t see it,” we said in unison.
“You two could be twins.” Connor laughed.
Just then, a little girl came in with a box in her hands. She set it in front of me and waved. “Hi, who are you?”
“I’m Aiden, Damian’s brother.”
“Uncle Damian, you have a brother?” she exclaimed.
“Yup, sure do.”
“I’m Elizabeth. That’s my daddy, and my mom is helping cook.” She pointed at Jax before opening her box and pulling out some makeup. “Can I do your makeup and nails now?”
“Oh, uh, sure?” I questioned, uncertain what to say.
“Elizabeth, what did I tell you about using makeup on strangers?” Jax called out.
“Only use non-waterproof mascara, and use a beauty blender to add highlights,” she replied.
“Exactly.” He held his hands up to show his hot pink=painted nails. “She wants to open her own makeup and nail salon when she’s older. I’m test dummy number one.”
Connor held up his neon green nails. “Two.”
Damian held up his black nails. “Three. Think of it as your pledge to become a part of our self-made fraternity.”
“Well, by all means, beautify me,” I told Elizabeth. She went to work as the guys taught me all about themselves. Connor and Damian were in the real estate business, and they were slowly but surely trying to convince Jax to take on the role at their real estate branch in the south.
“I’m a plumber,” Jax argued. “I don’t sell toilets. I unclog them.”
Fair enough.
After my nails were properly painted and everyone was juiced up for the night, Damian took me to the spare room I’d be staying in. “Thanks again for letting me stay here.”
“Of course, it’s not a problem. Also, Stella would’ve killed me if she knew I had you stay at a hotel.”
“She’s a good one.”
A small smile slipped out of Damian. The first smile I’d seen him give. “The best one. Let me know if you need anything. My room is two doors down.”
“Thanks. I do have a question for you, though.”
“What’s up?”
“Do you happen to know where I could find Catherine? She didn’t leave an address or anything, but I figured I could see her in the morning before I head to the airport maybe.”
His brows knitted, and he grumbled to himself. “You sure you want to do that?”
“I just feel it’s a part of my story, and once I face her, I can officially close out my past.”
“Yeah.” He blew out a hot cloud of smoke. “I get it. Lord knows I had to take on my own adventures of shit in order to get to this stable place now. Do what you need to do to get closure. I’ll get you her phone number, and you can reach out. Can I give you a word of advice as your older brother?”
“Go for it.”
“Catherine is, to put it nicely, a bitch.”
“That’s putting it nicely?”
“Trust me, it is.” He cleared his throat. “Just don’t get your hopes up, kid. Know that your story is yours, not the ones who gave you up. No matter what, you get to make a good life for yourself. If you need to see her in order to make your life better, do it. But don’t expect much of her being a part of your happy ending. She’s not built that way.”
I thanked him for his advice.
He scratched at his hair. “We aren’t like, hugging brothers, are we?”
“I mean, we could be if—”
“I don’t like hugs,” he cut in.
“Oh. Well, okay.”
He held his hand out toward me. “Handshake?”
I shook it. “Night, Damian.”
“Night, brother.”
That morning, I called Hailee to wish her a Merry Christmas. “I’ll be home in no time,” I told her.
“I’ll be waiting here,” she replied.
I woke up early, but clearly so did the rest of the household. Kids were screaming downstairs with excitement. Santa must’ve come that morning. As I collected my things to leave, I walked downstairs and came into the living room with three families dressed in matching pajama sets.
“Merry Christmas!” everyone shouted the moment they noticed me. Connor gave me a hug, Jax and Damian kept with their handshakes, and it felt oddly normal being in a household with strangers who made me feel like family.
I was, after all. I was their family.
“Nice pajamas,” I told Damian with a smirk. He was wearing a red set with reindeer all over it. Funny enough, I doubted that was his normal go-to attire.
“Don’t laugh too hard. This will be your future one day.”
Oddly enough, that didn’t freak me out.
“Did you hear from Catherine?” he asked, walking me to the front door.
“Yeah. I’m going to meet her for coffee before my flight.”
“Just be careful, all right?”
“Will do. Thanks for your hospitality. It’s been great meeting you and your whole family.”