“It looks and smells great, Cleo.” Miya smiles.
“Thank you. I couldn’t have done it without Autumn’s help.”
Autumn waves away the comment. “Nonsense. You had it all under control.”
Cleo turns toward her husband and stares at him.
Kai raises a brow. “Would you like me to say something?”
“Thank you for offering! I would love it if you would.” She smiles brightly.
The corner of Kai’s mouth twitches as he faces down the table.
“Cleo and I would like to thank you all for joining us. The holidays are meant for family, and we consider each of you just that. Some of us by blood.” He looks toward Callum. “And some of us chosen.” He looks between Kado and me. “This year our families have grown, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome each and every one of you.” He eyes the rest of the table. “So let’s eat and be merry.” He raises his glass. “Cheers.”
We all reach for our glasses and say, “Cheers.”
No one misses that he never even looked at Nikita. He’s pretending as if she doesn’t exist. Honestly, it’s for the best. Kai in a bad mood tends to get bloody. He might shy away from harming women normally, but Nikita isn’t a woman to him. She’s a threat to his family. His wife. For her, he would murder every single person on this Earth, women and children be damned.
Can’t say I blame him, I’d do the same for my wife.
The food is passed around, plates are filled, and wine glasses are filled. After eating my fill, I lean back in my chair and put my arm over the back of Miya’s. Slowly, I reach into my pocket and pull out the remote to the little toy I put in her. As she talks to Autumn, I turn toward Kai.
“This better than you thought it would be?” I ask him.
“The night is young.” His eyes glance toward Nikita.
He doesn’t trust her. He’s right to be cautious, but so far, the girl has done nothing wrong. Still, he’s waiting for the other shoe to drop.
“Oh hush.” Cleo rolls her eyes at him as she smacks his arm.
He grabs her hand. “Never, princess.”
I chuckle at their antics and turn on the remote. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Miya flinch, dropping her fork on her plate. It takes everything in me not to chuckle.
Autumn frowns. “Are you okay?”
“Of course.” Miya turns to Cleo and apologizes. “I’m sorry, my fork must have slipped.”
Cleo shakes her head with a smile. “You’re fine. Accidents happen.”
Kai raises a brow at me, and I shrug, a shit-eating grin on my face.
“Are you fucking kidding me? Turn it off,” Miya hisses under her breath into my ear as she squeezes my thigh.
To everyone else, it probably looks like she’s whispering sweet nothings to me. Little do they know…
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I whisper, shutting the toy off.
Instantly, Miya’s shoulders relax, and she takes a deep breath.
“Callum, have you talked to Killian?” Cleo asks her brother.
Callum wipes his mouth. “I did. We talked the other day for a moment. He had to cut the call short because Kieran was crying.”
“I can’t wait to go see them.” Cleo sighs. “I tried to call this morning, but they didn’t answer. I assume today is crazy for them.”
Autumn nods. “Baby snuggles are the best.”
