She annoyed the hell out of him.No denying that.But she was a beautiful woman.
Every time he looked at her, she made him remember things he’d rather forget.
But now…he didn’t really want to look away.
He’d just blame the headache.That was what it was…
That was the reason he couldn’t think straight.
2
Em had been rightin one regard.Calloway Grady would make gorgeous babies.He was one of the hottest men in Masterson County, hands down.He always had been.She had noticed that before—when she’d been all of fifteen and he’d been in his early twenties.It had been seriously hard for a young girl to miss.Her cheeks threatened to catch fire as she remembered that long ago, andnever-to-be-mentioned crush.
That crush hadn’t lasted very long.
Fortunately, thanks to the six kids who were now dependent onherto take care of them,herdesire to make more babies had waned completely.
She had babies to raise already—no denying that.Plenty of them.
Her entire focus was on her younger sisters and making certain they were happy, healthy, and safe.No matter what.No room for pretty men now.
From seven-month-old Maeya Jade, all the way up to twenty-three-year-old Juniper Katherine.They were herworld.There was nothing she wouldn’t do for them.Nothing.
Her world had changed drastically back in October, with one bullet from a psychopath’s gun.She was lucky it had been a .22.Auggie would always have the scars.Her left side twinged like it did far too often for her to think about.She would probably always have pain, she had been told.A great deal of lingering weakness.And despite months of ongoing physical therapy, some paralysis from her left thigh down.Monoplegia, they had called it.Paralysis of a single limb.
Shot by a man with a grudge against the father who had abused her.Nothinggoodhad ever come from her father—except the eight sisters she loved so much.
Walking again hadn’t been a guarantee.She would never forget that.
She’d had a less-than-ten-percent chance of survival that day.Had two strangers, doctors visiting the town by happenstance, not rushed to her aid that day…she wouldn’t be there now.
Auggie wouldneverforget that.She wouldn’t be there to take care of the girls now.
She was alive.She could walk.She could work.And she could take care of her father’s younger children and keep them safe from him forever.Protect them the way no one had protected her until she was older than January’s thirteen now.Her aunt and uncle had stepped in and changed their world back then.Gave themfutures.
She would do the same with her six youngest sisters and do her damnedest to make sure Em and Junie got their futures still, too.
Someone came running back to where she stood, watching their uninvited house guest.Her most suspicious one.October Grace Tyler, all of six years old now, and more trouble than three of the other girls combined.Auggie utterly adored this kid who had been cursed with the same wildly curling pumpkin hair she had.
“Mommy Aug, are you sure he’s not a bad man gonna taked you or Junie or Em away from us?”Tobi asked, in her distinctive lisp.
Auggie leaned down, until she could meet her sister eye-to-eye.“I promise Calloway isnota bad guy going to take anyone away.This is definitely Aunt Claudia’s big brother, sweetheart.He won’t hurt anybody.Ever.Or Aunt Claudia and Aunt Sage will make him go to jail.”
“Promise?”
“I promise.”Auggie made a mental note to make an appointment with the new speech therapist in town to have Tobi evaluated very soon.Tobi was delayed a year—their father just hadn’t bothered putting her in school.They’d decided after Augusta had ‘inherited’ the girls to keep them home for the rest of the school year—to work on family bonding and catching the girls up where they had inevitable academic and social delays.
To just give their family time tohealwithout adding in any school drama.
They were still debating whether public school was on the menu for the next school year or not.She just didn’t think the girls were ready yet.
Auggie wanted to make sure Tobi had all the help she needed to succeed.The speech therapist was in the same practice as Auggie’s physical therapist.She was hoping they could get similar appointment times, to make it convenient.
Scheduling six kids could be an extraordinary task.Keeping up with everything they needed, and working full-time, was exhausting.But she had Junie and Em to help.Her two next sisters in age were godsends.No denying that.
“What’s a brother?”Markie asked.
Avril, their little smart aleck, had to answer from clear across the room.“It’s just a sister with a penis, Markie!A boy sister!”
