Page 42 of Her Courage

Kaleb's breathing slowed. His thrashing ceased. His face smoothed, the tension draining from his features as his unconscious mind registered her presence.

Her touch.

"She's good for him," Andrei murmured, having witnessed the same thing I had. "For all of us."

"The best thing that ever happened to us," I agreed, echoing his words from earlier.

My eyes burned with exhaustion, but I couldn't sleep. Wouldn't sleep. Not while Kaleb battled his demons. Not while the threat of Patrice still loomed despite her arrest.

Not while our girl needed us to be strong.

"Tomorrow will be hard," Andrei said, his voice carrying the weight of prophecy. "Marshall and Hardouin will need statements. The press might catch wind. Patrice will lawyer up."

"I know."

"But we'll face it together."

"Together," I confirmed.

The word had become our anchor. Our promise.

Whatever storms came, we'd weather them as a unit.

Kaleb. Andrei. Lottie. Me.

A family forged not by blood, but by choice. By love. By the willingness to stand together when everything tried to tear us apart.

I settled deeper into the chair, my eyes never leaving Lottie's sleeping form.

Tomorrow would come with its own battles.

But tonight, I'd keep watch.

Because that's what family did.

Chapter Twenty-Four

LOTTIE

Istifled another yawn as I fumbled with the buttons on my cardigan. The delicious aroma of something cooking downstairs made my stomach rumble, but instead of the usual excitement I'd feel for Colby's cooking, worry gnawed at my insides.

Kaleb wasn't in bed when I woke.

Only Colby, sitting in his chair like some kind of gorgeous silver fox sentinel. He'd helped me out of bed with gentle hands and guided me to the bathroom without a word.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror, noting the dark circles beneath my eyes. Yesterday had been⁠—

No. Not thinking about that right now.

I needed to focus on Kaleb. On how to help him. Support him through whatever was coming with Patrice in jail.

My fingers worked through the tangles in my hair, pulling it back into a messy ponytail. The simple act of getting ready felt monumental after everything.

"Lottie?" Colby's voice drifted through the bathroom door. "You okay in there?"

"Yeah," I called back, splashing cold water on my face. "Just waking up."

When I emerged, he was waiting with my slippers in hand. The small gesture made my throat tight. These men. My Daddies. They thought of everything.