Chapter 1
Kade
The aroma of roast and potatoes filled our spacious kitchen as I turned the oven down to warm. Then I lowered the recessed lighting, set the table, opened a bottle of red wine, and flicked on the stereo.
Beethoven floated out of the built-in speakers overhead, setting the mood for the night I had planned with my beautiful wife.
Once I was done, I ambled into our master bathroom and lit the candles around the Jacuzzi-style tub, which could fit two grown adults easily. I debated whether to fill the tub but decided to wait. The water wouldn’t be hot, and Lacey loved to soak in the hot, soapy water.
All I needed now was Lacey. I checked my watch. She was fifteen minutes late.
Don’t panic, dude. It’s rush hour, and she’s coming in from Portland. So that means she has to drive through Boston.
Still, I tapped on her name. I had to know where she was. The last text I’d gotten from her was when she was leaving Portland a few hours ago.
The line went directly to her voice mail.
She was probably in a bad spot with no coverage.
After I left her a message, I made my way back into the kitchen, when the doorbell rang. My mind instantly went to the dark side—something had happened to Lacey.
My pulse was erratic as I wound my way through our large first floor, passing an open high-ceiling living room before answering the door.
When I laid eyes on Maiken, my heart rate slowed, and I swallowed a growl. With Lacey due home, the last thing I wanted were distractions. We only had four days together before she had to return to Portland. My agenda was to lock us in our house, shut out the world, and make love to her nonstop. I wanted to christen every room—something we hadn’t done yet because whenever she’d been home on a break during the last year, we’d had teenagers living with us, including the one standing before me.
Maiken beamed up at me like a lost puppy, his blue eyes filled with struggle and confusion. “Can I come in?”
I didn’t see a suitcase, so that was good. I wasn’t one to turn my back on family, but I wasn’t ready to deal with more drama. I’d had enough when Maiken and his siblings, Ethan, Emma, and Marcus were living with us. I’d stepped up to lend a hand when his mom needed help while she took care of her sister, who had recently passed from breast cancer.
Four teenagers living with Lacey and me had been maddening and frustrating. Not a moment’s peace. Not a moment to myself. Not a moment to make love to my wife in privacy.
I now understood what my old man had gone through when Kelton, Kross, Kody, and I had been in high school, although my brothers and I had been harder to tame than my cousins. Well, maybe not Marcus, who was quite the rebellious one out of his siblings.
I waved Maiken in, but fuck, my cousin had better have a good excuse for being at my house. I scanned the yard and driveway before I closed the door. “Where’s your car?” He lived about three miles from me.
“I jogged over.” He ran a hand through his sandy-blond hair. “Do you have a minute?”
I really didn’t, but Lacey hadn’t pulled in yet, and I could use a distraction so I didn’t give myself a heart attack over worrying about my wife.
I padded into the kitchen. “A minute. Lacey is due home.”
“Nice,” he said. “Something smells good.” He made himself comfortable on a stool at the island as though he were living here again.
“Is your mom okay?” I felt compelled to ask. His family had been plagued with bad luck since his father had passed almost two years ago.
“She’s fine.”
I turned off the oven. “Is it Quinn?”
He lowered his gaze to his hands.
Shit. Did they break up?
I sat down across from him. “What happened?” I remembered the day Lacey had broken up with me like it was yesterday.
“I’ve been a complete ass to you during this Pitt and Lorenzino mess.”
“Kade?”
