: Chapter 38

“Oh my goodness!” she says, her eyes huge and sugar coating her lips. “This is delicious! Have I died and gone to heaven?”

Luz smiles approvingly at my girl’s reaction and nods. “Almost, chiquita—you have gone to Venezuela! This is bienmesabe—you do the honors, Drake, if you remember your Spanish?”

“It means ‘it tastes good to me,’ if I’m correct?”

“Exactly! This cake is made all over Latin American countries, but in my homeland, the secret ingredient is coconut and a little rum.”

“A little rum?” Mason pipes up from across the kitchen. “There’s enough rum in here to give Captain Morgan a hangover.”

Everyone laughs, and it eases the lingering tension in the air. Gathering together the whole of my clan for an impromptu brunch is never easy and usually has to be planned months in advance because we’re all so busy. But given the strained atmosphere that’s existed the past few days thanks to Pop’s health scare, they were all happy to rearrange their schedules and head on over here.

The fact that I had Amelia with me caused a little confusion at first, and my father glowered at me when we got here. “What the hell, son? You get us all together just so you can do some work?”

I didn’t quite understand what his problem was until Nathan piped up. “No, Dad, he won’t be doing any work. Amelia isn’t just his secretary.” Melanie shot me a knowing look. Nathan obviously tells his wife everything.

Dad stared at Amelia and me, his expression gradually softening as he realized what was going on. I slipped my arm around her shoulders to make it a little easier for him.

“Bro!” Mason said, jumping up and high-fiving us both, our fight yesterday already forgotten. He’s always been like that, never one to hold a grudge. But still, I’ll give him a proper apology later. “Congrats. And Amelia? Condolences.” He swept her up in a big hug, dancing her around the room in a way that I wouldn’t let any other man do.

He winked at me over her shoulder. “Come on, let me show you our Hall of Shame. Unless you’re not interested in seeing baby pictures of Drake?”

“Oh, I so am,” she replied, casting a quick look back at me to check in. I nodded and the two of them disappeared.

“Dad,” I said immediately after they left the room. “I want to apologize. You’re the least selfish person I know. I was⁠—”

He cuts me off by wrapping me in a hug. “It’s okay, son. I know you were just worried.”

“Scared shitless,” I mumble into his shoulder.

“Me too,” he admits quietly.

I step back, my hands on his shoulders. “Promise you’ll at least try to eat a little more heart friendly? And ease off on the Scotch?” I’m aware of the irony of my last request given how hard I was hammering it when I was trying to distract myself from Amelia, but I haven’t had a heart attack.

“I’ll take better care of myself. Promise,” he agrees with a nod. “Exercise is the key though. I’m thinking more sex is what I need, if I’m being honest.”

I screw my eyes closed. I’m aware he dates plenty of women, rarely more than once, but still. “Fuck, Dad,” I groan.

“Watch it, son. You’re not too grown-up for an ass-whooping.”

Dad never gave us a single ass-whooping in our lives, although we certainly deserved it more than a few times. “Just behave yourself, all right, old man?” I wink at him, and he smiles in response.

It came as a huge relief to everyone to have the situation resolved. The James brothers might scrap and fight like overgrown puppies sometimes, but we love each other deeply, and anything that adds tension to our dynamic sucks.

Now, we’re all in the kitchen where Luz has prepared a feast for us. Maddox mixed the cocktails even though he doesn’t drink, and Luke has woken up from his nap and is sitting contentedly on his mom’s lap.

“Can I hold him?” Amelia asks nervously, looking at the squirming bundle of chunky baby in Mel’s arms.

“God, yes, please do.” She passes him over, and he immediately spits up on Amelia’s shoulder. No sense of decorum, that child. Luz hands her a dish towel, and nobody comments. That’s what you get with babies.

Mel chats away to my girlfriend, and Amelia laughs as the kid whacks her in the face with one of his chubby fists. I know she’s always wanted children and that Chad kept stalling. I hate that he hurt her that way, but I’m also glad he did. If he hadn’t been such an asshole, she wouldn’t be mine now.

“You happy, brother?” Maddox says, passing me an old fashioned. “Because you look pretty damn happy. In fact, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen that particular look on your face before.”

“Oh? What look is that?”

“The look that says you’ve finally discovered what true love is.”

I grin at him. Out of all of us James boys, he’s probably the one who’s fallen in love the most. Had his heart broken plenty of times too, not to mention the other demons he’s conquered. He inspires me every single day, and I wish he could cut himself a little slack sometimes because he is fucking incredible. “Yeah, I think I have, Mad.”

He raises his glass of club soda and we make a silent toast to love, in all its forms.