Seb laughed, then buried his face in Declan’s chest. “Get the fuck on with it then,” Declan answered, grinning himself. “You two get it out of your systems?”
“Hey, Seb,” Gray cut in. “Sorry you got caught in the crossfire. Uncle Declan just never seemed the romance type, you know?”
Seb laughed as he pulled his face back from Declan’s chest. “Trust me, I know what you’re talking about.” He glanced at the stove, then took Declan’s hand. “So, breakfast?”
Quickly, the chatter picked back up. The teasing broke through any awkwardness, and Seb joked around with Raiden and Gray easily while he helped Declan pull breakfast together. He even got in a few good jabs of his own when he realized how stale their bread was, then solved the problem by transforming it into improvised French toast. When he shared that he worked in technology and scientific research, the conversation took a real left turn, with Gray asking a million questions about time travel, all of which Seb answered with a friendly smile.
The whole thing felt good to Declan. Better than he expected. It was kind of like when he was young, when the family still got along and before the bridges had been burned. Over the years that followed, he had taken care of himself and himself alone for so long. It had taken Seb to remind him of how good it felt to care about someone else. Watching Gray and Raiden eat his breakfast just felt right, the way caring for family should.
Maybe his own uncle had been a piece of shit, ready to throw Declan under the bus, but that didn’t mean he had to make the same mistakes.
“What did you both want to talk about anyway?” Gray asked as they finished the breakfast.
“A couple things,” Declan answered. “I thought I should introduce you all, while I had the chance.”
Raiden and Gray turned to each other, then let out anotheroohh, making Seb laugh and bury his face in his hands.
“And,” Declan cut in loudly, “I wanted to let you know that my contract is over. We’re done with Reed, as of this morning.”
“Fucking great,” Raiden answered with a nod. “The further away you can get from that guy, the better.”
“That’s for certain,” Seb answered, his fork poised in the air. “He was setting us up the whole time.”
“Yeah,” Declan added. “Good fucking riddance.”
Gray waved his mug of coffee in the air, spilling a little on the table. “That’s it? You’re not going to teach him a lesson? Show him not to mess with you?”
Declan grunted. “No, that’s what you would do. I’m too old for that shit.”
Gray tilted his head to the side, disbelieving. “Really, Uncle Declan?”
He frowned. It was only natural that Gray would think that way. Not hitting back would show Reed that Declan was weak, which would leave him more vulnerable in the future.
With Seb around, though, Declan wouldn’t just be putting himself at risk. And now that they were finally in the clear, he wasn’t about to give that up for anything.
“Really,” he said flatly. “The sooner that man forgets about me, the happier I’ll be. And that’s a lesson the two of you could learn, too. There’s nothing glamorous about revenge. What matters is staying safe.”
Gray nodded, the force behind Declan’s words apparently getting to him. “What’s the plan, then?” he asked. “Are you headed back out to Vegas already?”
Declan and Seb exchanged another look, and Declan straightened his back. “We’re still figuring that out.”
Gray leaned across the table, pushing aside his plate. “I don’t need to tell you,” he said, “but you’re always welcome on my crew, Uncle Declan. I know we must look like a bunch of jokers to a guy like you, but I swear, we’re good at what we do. We’d make you proud, Uncle Declan.”
Declan scoffed, then took another drink of his coffee. He didn’t know why Gray was suddenly acting like he was something special. “You don’t look like a bunch of jokers,” he said, then glanced at the papers scattered all over the place. “Okay, not entirely, at least. You just look young, nothing wrong with that.”
“But you!” Raiden cut in. “Gray has always told us stories about you. The one guy in the family brave enough to stand up to the boss. And then you fought your way out of Seattle and made your own life in Vegas? Sounds epic, man.”
Declan cleared his throat. He glanced at Seb, who was staring up at him with admiring eyes. It made something tickle in his stomach, and he swallowed down a little more coffee to try to drown the funny feeling. “I did what I had to do,” he answered. “Nothing special about that.”
“Will you join us?” Gray asked. “It’s the perfect time. Our crew could really use someone with your experience.”
Six months ago, the answer would have been yes, Declan knew. If he would have realized how good it would feel to connect with his family again, he would have tossed aside that life in Vegas and made his way out to Albany. But things hadn’t gone that way, and no matter how much Seb might have been unfazed by stuff like this, Declan knew the road ahead was different.
“I’m doing something else now,” he answered, then grinned. “But don’t think that means I’m going to be a stranger. I’ll be breathing down your neck and trying to keep you out of trouble, just watch.”
Underneath the table, Seb grabbed Declan’s hand. He looked up to Declan proudly, his eyes wide and a soft smile turning up the corners of his lips.
“Well, it’s a damn shame,” Gray answered, leaning back in his chair. “We would have been legendary with you, Uncle Declan.”
