I head over to the desk, seeing a black and white picture of a man and a woman who are sitting on a bench in a garden, with a little girl in their arms, smiling wide. It’s definitely old; I can tell by the man’s suit and the girl’s plain, long dress. The woman’s hair is up in a fancy do like they wore during the Second World War.
Reid wasn’t the only one to pay attention in history.
I jump when lights suddenly turn on, making a crackling sound, and turn my glare at Reid.
“Sorry, found the lights,” Reid mutters, soaking up the room.
There are two more openings with stairs, one leading further down and another leading up. We must already be cellar level. The stairs were too steep coming down for them to travel just one floor.
I aim my phone into the one leading down, and it does nothing to give us a guess as to what is down there. It’s nothing but darkness.
“As much as I’d love to explore, there is no way I’m going down there,” I tell Reid, my voice echoing, bouncing off the walls.
And I won’t. I’m curious and intrigued, but I’m not stupid. And going down there would be seriously stupid.
“Me either,” he mutters, and I turn to him, dubious. He shrugs at me. “At least, not until I’ve gotten my torch and Eli and Luke are back.”
“Let’s get back before Jaxon has a hernia.”
“We should go back up those ones, see where they lead us. Could be another hidden room. We want to make sure it’s empty for the family who own it.”
I give him a nod and flip the switch, turning the lights back off before following him up the stairs, my legs aching by the time we reach the top. He pushes open the door with more struggle, nearly falling into one of the bedrooms towards the back of the house. We’re back on the second floor.
“How the fuck did I not see that?” he growls, turning to look at the panelled walls as I shut it behind me. It’s a room we already emptied.
“I didn’t either,” I tell him, amazed at how hidden it is now I’ve shut it. Even now, knowing it’s there, I can’t see the lines.
“If I had the money, I’d totally buy this place.”
“I don’t think you’d earn enough in this lifetime to purchase this house,” I state, chuckling.
“Maybe I could get Maddox to tear it down a bit and tell the owners it’s a waste of time. I’ll get it cheap then.”
“Maddox hates you more than he hates the rest of us,” I tell him as we leave the room.
We’re nearing the next room when I hear voices. I stop Reid, putting my finger to my lips when I hear Jaxon and Lily.
“Okay, here is private. Now you can tell me why you’re really here,” he orders her softly. “Are you okay? You look pale.”
“Jaxon, do you remember me asking you if you were scared about me being alone with our child?”
I turn to Reid, who seems to be as confused as I am. We keep quiet though, neither of us bothered about eavesdropping on a private conversation. Jaxon will tell us anyway.
Maybe.
“I do, Lily, and I meant what I said. I have no doubt in my mind that you will be a fantastic mother. I meant every word when I told you our baby would be safe and well-loved in your care. What is this about? Has Aiden upset you? I know you were meant to have Sunday today. If he’s said something, I’m going to break his fucking neck, your brother or not.”
“No, no, nothing like that. I, um, I…”
“Lily,” he growls softly.
“I’m pregnant,” she blurts out, and I turn to Reid, grinning.
He points to his chest, mouthing, “Best Uncle.”
I shake my head. If anyone gets that title, it’s me. The kid will love me. Fuck the Carters. They have enough members in their family. Our niece or nephew will be all ours.
“Jaxon, please, say something,” Lily pleads, her voice wobbly.
I tense, hoping my brother isn’t crazy enough to fuck this up. He’s wanted Lily most of his life and now he’s finally got her. And it wasn’t easy for them to get to where they are. And if there’s one thing I know for sure when it comes to my brother, it’s that he wants kids. Always has. He practically helped raise all of us after Dad died, and that proves what a good dad he will be. No other fucker could control us.
“You’re pregnant?” he whispers, his voice choked with emotion, and for the first time, I feel like I’m intruding.
Still, we might as well stay for the rest.
“Yes,” she whispers back, sounding teary.
“I’m going to be a dad?”
She sniffles. “Yes.”
“You’re going to be a mum?”
“Yes,” she repeats.
“We’re having a baby,” he tells her, then I hear a shuffle, before Lily lets out a startled yelp.
“Jaxon, I’m still feeling sick,” she warns, laughter in her tone.
“Oh right, yes. There’s really a baby inside there?” he asks.
Lily bursts out crying, and I tense, hoping everything is okay.
“I’m so happy, Jaxon. You make me happy. I could have gone my whole life alone, Jaxon, with no one to call mine, and I would have been okay. Happy. But being with you, this baby… I’m bursting with it. I’m so happy I could explode, and it’s because of you, because you love me, and I love you. I’m scared it’s going to go away. I’m scared I’ll lose you, lose what we have.”
“Hey, princess, you’ll never lose me. Ever. I’m here now and always. And you need to trust what we have, that our future together will be solid. We’re solid. I love you, Lily Hayes, then, now and always.”
“I love you too,” she tells him softly. “I’m so silly.”
“What? Why?” he asks.
“I let you go. I nearly lost you,” she whispers.
“Hey, you didn’t. I would never have let you. I was always going to make you mine.”
“When I took the test, my heart stopped when I saw the positive sign. If you hadn’t come back for me on New Year, I wouldn’t be your wife. I wouldn’t be carrying your child.”
“Yes, you would,” he tells her fiercely. “This was always meant to be.”
A sob slips past her lips. “I love you.”
“Love you too, princess.”
Reid wipes an imaginary tear from his eye, but it’s a show. I can see he’s feeling the exact same as me. He’s happy for them. Happy for our brother. He can pretend to be a playboy, pretend he only cares about getting his dick wet, but neither of us can pretend that we don’t want what our eldest brother has, what our mum and dad had.
We might be young, might still want to have fun, but it would stop the minute we found the right woman, the one we breathed for, were meant for.
It doesn’t mean we’ll stop having fun until then, I muse.
My brows furrow when the sound of glass smashing echoes through the house, along with a light bang. With one look at Reid, we pivot on our heels, not caring that Jaxon and Lily will know we were listening, and begin running through the maze of hallways until we reach the library. We rush to the window.
What I see has me sucking in a breath. On the green outside the front, and on the stoned driveway, are a group of kids on bikes, their hoods up and black bandannas covering their faces. Some have bats shoved behind their backs, kept in rucksacks. What’s worrying are the dozens of bottles with rags hanging out the stem, liquid spilling as the kids pick them out of their pockets and bags.