Come to Me Softly (Closer to You #2)(31)
Author: A.L. Jackson

Her words fell on me, causing confusion and comfort, because I was thinking Karen should be mortified I was with her daughter, and she was singing it like praise.

She edged back a fraction and took me by both hands, her grip fierce and her gaze unwavering as her eyes traced my face. I just stood there staring at her. None of this made any sense, Aly’s love for me and this woman who’d been closer than a sister to my mom giving me the same. Had that love always been there? Had I just been blind to it?

Just as she pulled away, Dave and Aly’s little brother, Augustyn, came in from the back of the house.

“Hey guys, Happy Thanksgiving.” Aug was all dimples and smiles when he approached, although he wasn’t so little anymore. Already sixteen, the boy wasn’t as tall as Christopher, but he was pure muscle, bulk and brawn. His appearance was so different from Christopher and Aly, you’d never guess they were siblings. Except for the fact he looked just like his mom, light hair and brown eyes. Christopher and Aly looked a lot like their dad. But Aly? There was something about her and her mom that just fit. They didn’t resemble each other a whole lot, but when they stood side by side, there was no mistaking they were a pair.

Aug and Christopher shook hands, pulling each other in for a swift hug and a short clap on the back. Dave basically took Christopher through the same motions, though I could feel the weight of his eyes on me, even when they seemed to be doing their best at avoiding me.

Aug came toward me, completely casual like he always seemed to be. “Hey, Jared.” He stuck his hand out, and I took it. The hug he gave me was just as short as the one he gave Christopher. “How’s it going, man? It’s so cool you’re here.”

“Yeah, great to be here,” I was quick to agree, although I wasn’t exactly sure I did.

Besides, I felt like I was quickly wearing out my welcome.

Karen looked at her husband, tipping her head in an almost imperceptible nod toward me. No doubt, she’d told him I would be here. And by the way he warily turned his attention to me, I had no doubt she’d given him a warning to behave, same as she’d always done. The man was wrapped around Karen’s finger just as tightly as I was wound around Aly’s.

If I wasn’t watching so closely, I would have missed the subtle search of his eyes, like he wanted nothing more than to inspect me in the same second he could barely look my direction. Ultimately that search landed on the back of my hands where the color bled out from under the cuffs of my shirt. The green of his eyes locked on the numbers stamped across my knuckles. He flinched when he caught onto the meaning, and he turned away just as fast as he’d latched onto the sight.

Reluctantly, he took a step forward and stretched out his arm to offer his hand. “Happy Thanksgiving, Jared. Glad you could join us.”

I accepted it, my hold firm as I shook his hand. “Thank you for having me.”

Why are you here and how long are you staying? All these questions played out on the lines twisting across his face.

It didn’t take long for Dave to get his answer.

From just inside the foyer, Aly paused and looked back on us from where she was embracing her little brother. She stared at me with outright affection. Then she extended her hand, beckoning me to her side.

My eyes shot to Dave. I just couldn’t help it. It was like I had this impulse to see his reaction when he realized why I was really here.

And f**k, did I wish I hadn’t seen.

White blanched his face, before a rush of redness hit his cheeks. The hand that just seconds before had been shaking mine flexed into a fist. There was no question he was about as repulsed by the idea of Aly and me as I had been with myself the first night I’d fed from her beauty. When I gave in and slipped into the sanctuary of her arms, giving myself over to the fantasy.

But what Dave didn’t realize was he was witnessing our reality.

This was the aftermath of all that sneaking. The outcome of all the hiding behind closed doors and all the lies that had been told.

This was what happened on the other side.

I stepped up and took Aly’s hand. It was warm and fit perfectly into my palm.

Yeah, Dave was seeing that Aly really was mine.

Aly led me down the entryway hall that led deeper into the house. The entire place echoed with the memories of our childhood.

The hallway walls were proud with pictures, photos of all three kids and the family displayed exactly the way I remembered Karen had showcased the images, except there were some new ones that added even more honor and love to the story they told. Both Aly’s and Christopher’s smiles shined bright as they posed for their high school graduations, a ton of Aug’s football pictures were put on display, and a family picture I could only assume was taken sometime around last Christmas took precedence among them all.

I was quick to drop my attention when I saw that we were still there, too—a f**king picture of the family I’d shattered was set on display right smack dab in the middle of the Moores’ story. It was the same one that had taunted me at my mother’s funeral, the one that had cast its insults at me as they’d laid her in the ground.

My pulse thundered and my pace slowed, and Aly was tugging at me like she knew, like she was removing me from what she knew I couldn’t face.

When we passed through the curved archway into the kitchen, I realized not much of this house remained the same. It’d been remodeled, and only the main walls of the basic structure were unchanged.

A modern kitchen had taken the country kitchen’s place. The bar we’d once sat at now was a large granite island with a row of low barstools taking up the end. A small table was still tucked in the bay window, but the windows were now larger and offered a better view of the backyard. Natural light shined in, reflecting off the pool, basking the entire space in the comfort of the fall sun. The wall that had blocked off the family room where we’d spent so much time hanging out had been gutted, making for one large room.

Still, it all felt so much the same, the same gentle warmth clinging to the walls.

And this smell . . . this f**king delicious smell that reminded me of the days we’d spent here. Us kids running around, clamoring through the cramped kitchen, our moms yelling at us to take it outside.

God, how much did I miss those simple days?

Aly glanced up at me. A wistful expression framed that gorgeous face. “I’m so glad you’re here,” she mouthed, like she somehow knew I was experiencing all of these emotions I didn’t know how to process, a disorder of disgrace wrapped up with this f**king irrational feeling, something that felt like I’d somehow made it home after I’d been lost for so long.