Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 133849 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 669(@200wpm)___ 535(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 133849 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 669(@200wpm)___ 535(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
“I think that’s great.” She wouldn’t have to worry about money for the rest of her life. She wouldn’t have to work. But he wanted her to pursue all of her dreams. He would happily support her in everything she did.
He loved this woman, and the fact that she was alive and whole was everything.
There was a knock on the door and then his parents were invading. If Olivia hadn’t had a meeting in South Texas she would have been here, too. His sister seemed to have shoved all her problems aside in favor of keeping her almost sister-in-law company. And Harlow, before her paranoid dads had come with a private helicopter to take her home.
He would have to watch those situations. Just because he was happy and starting his own family didn’t mean he would leave the old one behind. It was a lesson he’d learned from his dad.
Who was walking in and had some things to answer for.
“You want to tell me what I’m wearing that has a locator device in it? At first I thought it was probably my phone, but then I remembered you’re a ruthless bastard and I can leave my phone behind.” Josh wasn’t at all pissed at his dad. Merely curious. The truth was they might have been screwed without Jack Barnes’s determination to keep an eye on his loved ones. Also, Josh was thinking of the future. He could use some pointers.
His dad had stopped, at a loss for words for once.
Not so his pops. “I think you’ll find it’s in your watch. You remember. He gave it to you for your sixteenth birthday. And when you switched to a smart watch, he got you a new wrist band. Yeah. It’s there. Grim’s is in his watch as well. He put two on Olivia. The first one was a necklace, but when she decided to get a belly button ring, Jack saw opportunity.”
His mom laughed. “Yes, he used that bit of rebellion against her.”
“Not against her.” Dad sat down next to Grim and looked a bit defeated. “It’s a hard world, and you kids can be made targets.”
“I’m so glad you did it, Jack,” Nicole said, all her humor pushed to the side. “I don’t know I would be here if you hadn’t. Is it in the necklace?”
His father nodded.
“I like to change my jewelry. I might need a locator where I know what it is so I don’t accidently not wear it one day. I was married to a man who would do something like that in order to control me. You wouldn’t, but you have to let me know.” It was obvious Nicole was going to put up some logical boundaries. “I’ll be happy to share my location. I don’t want you to worry.”
“Dad, I’m not mad. Grim’s not mad,” Josh said.
Grim leaned against their dad. Damn but he’d come a long way. He used to be stiff and formal, and now he leaned against the old man like he had the right to comfort him. Because he did. “I like my watch, too. Don’t worry about it, Dad. My main question is where did you put the one for Pops? He loses everything.”
Pops chuckled. “He had Big Tag…well, tag me a long time ago. It’s in my right butt cheek. If it helps, he’s got one in his butt, too.”
“Well, mine is in my everyday collar,” his mother announced.
Josh shook his head. “Necklace. Can we call it a necklace?”
“Prude,” his mother admonished. “Now we can share the app he uses and all keep track of one another.”
“I only use it in emergencies.” His father had put an arm around Grim. “I promise. I know I call Chase paranoid, but I’ve seen some things in my time I can’t forget.”
“And apparently Pops has too,” Grim said with a whistle. “He knew exactly what to do when we needed to close Harlow’s wound.”
His mom shook her head. “Yes, we all remember how to do that. It’s burned in my brain forever. But let’s talk about more pleasant things. I know you guys are happy with the guest house, but we thought you might need more room.”
“We’re fine.” Grim looked horrified at the thought. “The guest house is perfect. It’s great.”
“They’re not kicking us out.” Josh knew exactly what scared his brother. “And those three bedrooms with no office and no…space for other things is going to feel tight after a while. We might take some time before we talk about having kids, but we’ll want more room when it happens. I was going to suggest finding some land close by.”
They’d sat by her bedside the night before and talked about the family they wanted to build. Nicole had told him she wanted at least two kids, and maybe three, and she wanted them close together so they wouldn’t feel alone. Like she had.