“You shouldn’t say ‘jackass.’ It’s a word for grownups.”
Resting her head on my shoulder, Lyric murmured, “Okay.”
Zodiac instantly shook his head. “Don’t buy into her agreeable routine. That kid is an outlaw. She’ll never behave.”
“I will,” Lyric insisted.
“No, you’re too devious. Mama’s little one is a criminal in the making.”
Lyric looked to me and shook her head. I quickly explained how her jackass uncle wasn’t worth listening to. Zodiac ignored me and focused on the houses belonging to Pax and Ford Reed.
“Are you here to watch out for my sister or to stalk Clint’s sister?”
“Can’t it be both?” Zodiac asked and then grabbed two suitcases from Nova’s overstuffed trunk. “I’m only planning to stick around for a day or two. If I get a chance to talk to Clint and bang his sister, I’ll consider this trip a win.”
Looking at Lyric, I rolled my eyes dramatically. She mimicked me, smiling at how I made fun of Zodiac. Despite her amused expression, I knew she was confused about what was happening. Nova was a great mom, but the girls fed off her moods. If she was anxious, they got wound up, too.
After hugging my niece, I grabbed another bag from the trunk and walked into the house. With Nova’s impulsive move, I couldn’t avoid reality any longer.
LULA
Exile had shown me pictures of Nova, Skylar, and Lyric. He was very proud of the little girls, and I could tell he felt tremendous guilt over what happened to his sister. Whenever he engaged with Dillon, I sensed him thinking about his family back in Baton Rouge.
Now, they were in my house. The brown spaniel mix was the first one inside. Ramen saw Xena, who perked up from her napping spot near the back windows. She barked at him. He dropped to the ground and squirmed around submissively. My tiny beast ran over and barked again before rolling around on the ground.
“Are they falling in love?” Nova asked from behind me. “Is this what I’m watching?”
“That or this is their version of trash-talking before battle.”
Xena ended up rolling around enough to land against Ramen. They sniffed each other wildly. Suddenly, the dogs jumped to their feet and started running around in circles.
“I’ll put them in the backyard,” I suggested when the dogs launched into full zoomies.
Once the two were running around in the backyard, I looked at Nova and Skylar. Besides her brown hair, she didn’t resemble her brother. Nova had big blue eyes and full lips. While Exile’s profile had sharp angles, his sister possessed a soft face.
Glancing down, I took in the sight of Skylar’s messy blonde hair. She hid what I assumed were tired eyes behind red plastic sunglasses. During the few minutes they were inside the house, the child had yawned three times.
“You think I’m crazy,” Nova said, exhaling unsteadily. “I probably seem crazy. But you shouldn’t judge me.”
“My parents live next door. I’m not one to judge a person’s close bond with their family.”
Nova’s cagey expression flipped to a pretty smile. “I knew Dan wasn’t coming back home like he said. He might think he can walk away, but I felt something else happening here, so I packed up and got on the road.”
“I understand.”
“Do you really?”
“Sure. If I were in Baton Rouge for too long, my family would have shown up, too.”
Nova studied me. “I thought you’d be bitchier.”
“Yeah,” Skylar said before shuffling over to watch the dogs sniffing the backyard.
“Iambitchy.”
“Are you hiding your natural wickedness for my sake?”
“No, I don’t tend to be bitchy when I’m in a good mood. My bitchiness just means I don’t take shit from people.”
