Page 98 of Hard to Hold

Within seconds, I’m enveloped in hugs, one after another after another. My sisters are crying too, as they hold on tight and tell me how much they’ve missed me.

“What in the world are you doing here? My birthday’s not until next month—I—” I cover my face with my hands, so utterly overcome with happiness. They’re here. They came here to see me.

“Well, you bailed on the surprise birthday party we were throwing you, so we decided to bring it to you,” Dekker says as her fiancé, Hunter, waves to me on the outside of the circle.

“Surprise birthday party?” I laugh. “But . . .”

“Yes.” It’s Chase this time. “That’s usually how you throw surprise parties to catch the honoree off guard.” She steps up and hangs an arm around my neck. “Chicago? The reason Dad turned down the invite for you to speak at the conference? It wasn’t because we didn’t think you couldn’t hack it, you big dork, but rather because we had a ridiculously over-the-top party planned for you.”

“It’s not every day that it’s your birthday,” Brexton chimes in with a gorgeous smile and a blow of a party horn.

“Dad had the rooftop bar at the St. Cloud reserved. All your friends had RSVP’d.” Chase shrugs. “And you ran to California because you thought we didn’t love you. Such an annoying little sister thing to do.”

We all laugh. That might have been a trick she used when she was little. Pretend to run away—like to the sidewalk out in front of the house—so that we’d notice she was gone, and then tell her how much we loved her and never wanted her to leave.

“You’re a brat,” I say, but look around at all this love and my chest constricts. “I don’t even know what to say.” I turn to my father, who has been silent until this point. He’s been standing back observing as usual. I take a step toward him. “Dad—I—I don’t even know—” My words stop as he pulls me into one of his awesome bear hugs, the kind that makes everything bad in the world go away.

The kind that makes me realize I let everything with Finn get to my head, using the hurt against the people I love.

And who love me.

“How’s my girl?” he asks before stepping back and framing my face in his hands. “You look good. I think your wandering has paid off.” He winks as tears well in my eyes.

How could I doubt his love—this love from my family? The bitter hurt I felt, the unwarranted assumptions I made . . . and here they were just hiding behind a surprise for me. A surprise I went and ruined.

“I’m good, Dad. Really good.”

It’s then that I look over his shoulder and see Rush with his arms crossed over his chest as he stands beside Hunter. They’re talking, but Rush’s eyes find mine and his smile lights up my heart.

“You know about this, McKenzie?” I ask looking from him to Johnny, who had to have known.

“Of course, I did. Good thing we had a baseball game today or I would have had to sign us up for more surfing lessons to get us out of the house so they could decorate.” He motions to the balloons and decorations all over the place. “God knows, I never want another surfing lesson in my life.”

I smile through the tears, overwhelmed by the validation directed my way.

“Rush McKenzie, meet”—I pause and turn to look at everyone. I realize that while they’re a pain in my ass, he’s never had this. So when I say my next words, they are definitely over a huge lump of emotion in my throat. “Please meet my family.”

There’s commotion as he’s thrown into the Kincade chaos of greetings . . . when it hits me.

I’m here.

Rush’s here.

Now they know we’re staying in the same house. Under the same roof.

Even worse, someone had to have been the lookout for when we came home.

And that lookout would have seen us kiss.

And we kissed-kissed.

Well . . . shit.

I’m sure assumptions are being made and nudges are being nudged.

My face must show it, because Chase walks up and pulls me close. “We’ll talk about it later, Lenn. But yeah, I saw. I was the lookout. And damn . . . he’s even hotter in person.”

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE