She turned and immediately smiled, rounding the table and taking him in for a hug. She had a close bond with all the brothers, her own and Jonah’s. But this one was something special. Holden tightened his hold and then stepped back.
He’d lived with them for a few years after they got married. Cord had already moved out, but Holden had stayed a bit longer after finishing college. He worked to save up for a house instead of moving into an apartment. It turned out to be the best move. He purchased a fixer-upper and, with help from Jonah, they rebuilt it. He lived only about thirty minutes away, but there were times when she missed having him around.
“How are you feeling?”
She sighed, resting her hands on her belly. “Good. So glad you and Layla could be here.”
Holden and his longtime girlfriend, who they all adored, got engaged last year. In two months, Holden would be a married man. Of course, Roxanne was the event organizer, and even a holiday didn’t stop her from working.
“Do you have the list for me?”
He sighed, rolling his eyes. “It’s Thanksgiving.”
“And? Hold, the wedding is only two months away.” She held out her hand. “I promise not to look at it until Monday.”
He sighed, rolled his eyes and pulled out a folded stack of papers from his inside jacket pocket. As soon as the papers hit her hand, she opened them up, scanning the lists.
“You just said you wouldn’t look at it.”
Roxanne waved her hand and read through all the details. For the most part, Holden and Layla just had to fill in the blanks, but she wanted to make sure they covered everything. She flipped to the second page. It covered the traditional things like cutting the cake, garter toss, and a slew of others. When she got to the bottom, she smiled when she saw the wedding songthey’d chosen.I love that song.There were a few other specifics. They chose to play a few wedding songs from their friends with their names listed as dedications. It was a sweet idea. Below was Layla’s father-daughter dance and …
The knot in her throat thickened as she stared down at the bottom of the list.
Groom’s dance with Roxanne McMillian.
Her eyes welled, and when she glanced up, a tear slid down her cheek.
“Holden,” she whispered.
He shrugged with a grin. “Closest thing I got to a mother is you as my sister.”
She slowly walked to him, tears streaming down his face, and slapped the papers against his chest. “I can’t believe you’re pulling this shit on Thanksgiving while I’m pregnant. Now I have to redo my makeup.”
Holden laughed, pulling her in for a hug, kissing the crown of her head.
Jonah walked through the door and stilled, glancing between her and his brother. The corner of his mouth curled.
“I take it you told her?”
“Well, I didn’t frickin’ know she was going to cry.”
The room erupted in laughter, with even Roxanne joining in.
Family.
****
Jonah stretched his back, lifting his arms above his head. It wasn’t the best time to be working on his current project. It was a little after three in the morning, and he’d only gotten a few hours of sleep since the last guest had left after Thanksgiving dinner. Still, if he wanted it done by Christmas, working on it in the middle of the night was necessary.
Life had changed a lot in the last few years since their oldest was born.Sawyer.They’d found out the sex of the baby and tossed around hundreds of names. It wasn’t until Roxanne had given birth that she suggested honoring his brother. And they did.
Jonah walked over to the mini fridge, grabbing a water and guzzling down half the bottle. He placed it on his desk, glancing over the pile of invoices. There were two stacks, and one was significantly smaller.
He’d cut back on bigger construction jobs and could be picky about the projects he worked on now. The money was always good, but it took a lot of time away from the family. It was something Jonah wasn’t willing to part with. Ethan had hired him as a full-time consultant for all his new construction builds. But as expected, his brother-in-law was always flexible and worked around Jonah’s schedule. Most of their meetings consisted of a family dinner with the wives and kids at one of their homes.
The biggest change was his original side hustle. It helped a lot that in the last five years his furniture business had taken off. He was taking orders over six months in advance. It was suggested that he expand his shop to a larger location, but he refused. Once the kids were in school, he wanted to be at the house when they got home. He hoped that in another few years, he could focus solely on his business. But for now, he was still balancing, which meant getting up in the middle of the night wasn’t a choice.
He was halfway across the shop when he heard the door creak and footsteps.Shit!He should’ve expected her eventually to make her way to the shop. It was her thing. But considering the long day and her being exhausted from the pregnancy, Jonah figured it was the perfect time to sneak out of bed. After all,Roxanne had passed out the second her head hit the pillow a few hours ago.
