She narrows her eyes at her brother. “Fine,” she says. “But only if you come too.” Her smile is downright vicious when Sasha doesn’t say anything. “Misha and Yuri really like you. Come on, big brother, you don’t want to start a war just because you’re too scared to get wet.”
“If I drown out there, Cyn is going to be really pissed at you,” he tells her.
Mia laughs. “You won’t drown. You’re tied to your board thingy.”
“Yeah, Sasha,” Max says. “You’re tied to your board thingy. You’ll be fine.”
I grin at the familiarity of my family’s teasing and listen to the surf plans they’re already making. Keeping my phone in my hand so I’ll hear it as soon as Sitka texts, I lean back and wait, so fucking eager to get back to her.
Chapter 22
Sitka
After getting the text from Damien, I let out a relieved breath and look over at my mom. “He’s alive. That’s got to be a good sign, right?”
“A very good sign,” she agrees, turning her head to kiss my temple. She sees my phone’s screen before I can pocket it and asks, “Why does he just use emojis and voice messages?”
I quickly turn my phone over, not sure what to say. I know Damien doesn’t like people to know, but I also know my mom would feel terrible if she ever did anything that ended up embarrassing him. Plus, he’s about to be her son-in-law. It’s not like I’m telling a stranger.
“He’s dyslexic,” I say, deciding to just come out with it. “He didn’t want to tell me. He’s embarrassed by it, but I told him that’s ridiculous.”
“It has nothing to do with intelligence,” my mom says, making me smile.
“That’s what I said.”
“I had no idea.” Her fingers keep brushing through my hair while she says, “He hides it very well.”
“I think he’s been hiding it his whole life,” I say, and I’m hit with a rush of sympathy for him because that must’ve been so hard to do when he was little.
My mom kisses my head again and says, “Well, he doesn’t have to hide it anymore.” Standing up, she holds out her hand to me. “Come on. I’m too antsy to keep sitting here. If Damien is texting, then I bet you anything your dad and brothers are on their way here.”
Taking her hand, I get up and follow her into the kitchen. She disappears into the pantry and comes out with her arms full of supplies that I immediately recognize as a staple from childhood.
“Homemade hot chocolate fixes everything,” she says, repeating the line she’d tell my brothers and me when one or all three of us would be upset about something. She’d sit us at the counter and make a huge batch of hot chocolate, letting us put in extra marshmallows and chocolate sprinkles until we couldn’t even remember what we were so upset about.
I smile and grab the cutting board and a sharp knife so I can help her dice the chocolate while she heats up the milk.
“We’re definitely going to need extra marshmallows tonight,” I tell her.
“And maybe I’ll add some vodka to your dad’s.”
“Not a bad idea,” I say. “Might want to do the same for Yuri and Misha.”
“Well, let’s hope they’re in a much calmer mood by the time they get here.”
I stop to give her a quick hug. I may not be super affectionate, and I know I don’t tell her how amazing she is often enough, but I know how lucky I am to have her, and when I tell her that, she squeezes me tighter and says, “I’m the lucky one.”
Before either one of us can get too emotional, she kisses my cheek and grabs a hunk of chocolate from the cutting boardbefore popping it into her mouth. It’s not a bad idea, so I do the same before getting back to work.
When it’s ready, we get the marshmallows. I’m almost done making the chocolate shavings to sprinkle on top when the front door opens. My mom and I both freeze, our eyes darting to where we can hear the thud of heavy boots on the floor, and as soon as my dad turns the corner, my mom runs up and flings her arms around him. He immediately lifts her up and holds her tightly, whispering something to her that I can’t hear.
Giving them privacy, I wait until my brothers walk in, my mouth dropping when I see Yuri’s swollen, bloody lip and the shadow of a bruise on Misha’s face.
“Did you hurt him?” I ask, stepping closer, so pissed at them I’m about to add my own marks to their faces.
Misha raises a brow at me while Yuri huffs out a disbelieving laugh and says, “You’re not even going to ask if we’re okay?”
I scowl at him. “You’re obviously fine. I’m looking right at you. Did you hurt Damien?”
