“Without me?” Sutter gasped before blinking rapidly and answering his own question. “Of course not. We’re a package deal.”
“Of course, baby. I wouldn’t choose a man over my boy,” I said, and we shared a smile.
Ford grunted. “Yes, we all remember when you randomly announced you’d let Shay and me die in a fire so you could save Sutter.”
“New mothers are obnoxious,” I said, waving off his comment. “As I recently announced, I’d try to save all of you now.”
“I don’t think you should move,” Shay fessed up, and I knew she was struggling against tears. “I think you’re going through a lot with the baby and what happened today. It’s not fair for anyone to ask you to make a big choice when you’re vulnerable.”
“WhereisZodiac?” Ford asked, glancing back at my room.
“He’s washing off his man stink from the ride here.”
Digging around in our fridge, Sabrina grumbled, “Baton Rouge is swampy hot.”
“I don’t keep liquor down here,” I told my cousin.
“Well, I need booze if I’m expected to deal with you moving to America’s armpit.”
Ford shook his head. “I thought Florida was America’s armpit.”
“No, it’s New Jersey,” Sutter said, always having random info ready to go.
“Ford,” Shay mumbled, wanting him to focus. “Elle’s going to leave us.”
My dad offered her a tender smile. “Babe, you knew this was coming.”
“I thought he wasn’t a man capable of settling down.”
“Neither was I until I met you. Our girl never showed any interest in a guy, but she’s stupid over Zodiac. The signs were all there.”
Shay looked at me with her sad gray eyes. “I thought you’d stay here with us. I really did. I figured Zodiac and you would hook up occasionally, but your life would remain in Little Memphis with us.”
Sutter cuddled up with his grandma and looked at me for reassurance.
“Zodiac suggested we give it a year in Baton Rouge. If we don’t like it there, he said he’d give up his club and move here.”
“Whoa,” Ford muttered and took a seat nearby. “Is that whathesaid, or is that whatyouheard?”
“Why would you doubt me?”
“You took a hit to the head hours ago, Elle. And you’re hormonal. You’ve got plenty of reasons to get confused about what the man you love says.”
“Do you love him?” Shay asked.
“Yes.”
“Does he know that?” Ford asked.
“I just told him.”
“Did he say the words to you?”
“No.”
Likely feeding off his grandma’s sadness, Sutter frowned and asked, “But he wants us to live with him?”
“He said he will buy a house since there’s no space in his apartment. We can help him pick what we want.”
