yipped, like he was accepting the responsibility, and wiggled his bottom in the air. Moving slowly, Aaron scooped the puppy up in one big hand and lifted him close against his chest. ‘Hello, Tigger. Hello, good boy.’ He touched a finger to each of the dog’s little ears then let Matty give him a pat. Mindful of her mother’s soft warnings, Charlie edged closer, giggling when Tigger licked her hand with a tiny pink tongue.
They painted such a picture of domestic bliss, Luke felt like an intruder amongst them. Tightness spread across his chest, and he pushed to his feet. ‘I’ll grab my bag.’ He held his hand out to Kiki for the car keys. ‘Just the crate from the back, or is there anything else?’
She smiled up at him. ‘There’s a few things in the boot.’
Aaron shifted his weight, like he meant to get up. ‘I’ll give you a hand, Spud.’
He waved him down. ‘No, stay put. No point in both of us getting soaked.’
By the time he’d hauled in his bag and about a ton of doggy essentials, the others had decamped to the kitchen. A zesty-chemical smell rose from a shiny patch on the floor tiles and Matty was busy spreading sheets of newspaper by the back door. Tigger had obviously made his mark again. Shrugging out of his wet jacket, Luke held it up to Kiki. ‘Any chance of sticking this in the wash?’
‘Of course.’ She nodded to the sleeve of his sweatshirt, ‘You might want to add that too.’
Luke examined the wet cuff ruefully. ‘How can such a small dog have such a big bladder?’ The soft patter of liquid on newspaper was the only response.
With the kids finally ushered upstairs by Kiki, Luke and Aaron finished tidying up the kitchen and settled at the table, each with a beer in hand. On the right side of a double helping of chicken stew and dumplings, Luke was drowsily full and grateful he’d changed his mind and decided to come for the weekend. He raised his bottle towards his brother. ‘Happy Birthday, Bumble.’
Aaron clinked beers with him and grinned with a hint of smug satisfaction. ‘It bloody well is at that.’ A snuffling sound came from the big basket they’d corralled behind a temporary barrier made from a laundry rack with cardboard sellotaped around the bottom half of the rungs. ‘I still can’t believe they got me a dog.’ He sounded pleased as punch about it.
An image of his big, strapping brother walking the tiny puppy on a lead came into Luke’s head and he covered the laugh welling in his chest with a swig of beer. He was sure Aaron would take to looking after this new addition to his household as well as he had the rest of it. The affection he held for the children showed in every look, every small, reassuring touch he shared with them. And as for him and Kiki … Luke’s heart fluttered at the prospect of once again sharing a love like that. ‘It suits you.’
Aaron cocked an eyebrow in query so Luke stretched his arms out wide. ‘This. Domestic bliss. A lovely woman, two point four kids and now a dog. You’re a cliché, mate.’
His brother shook his head. ‘Not sure about the point four. Two seems to suit us just fine, and it’s two more than I ever expected to have. Besides, I don’t even know if Kiki wants any more …’
Luke opened his mouth to point out that people, adults, normally had serious conversations about things like that before they took the plunge and settled down together, then shut it again with a snap. Considering he’d married a woman based on little more than a bone-deep knowledge she was meant to be his, he didn’t have a leg to stand on when it came to commenting on the relationships of others. ‘You’ve got plenty of time to sort things like that out. You’re not that old.’
‘Cheeky sod.’ Aaron tapped his fingers against the glass bottle in front of him. ‘Things happened pretty fast, you know.’
He laughed. ‘I know.’ He cocked his head at the gurgle of water passing through the pipes overhead. Sounded like bath time was over, but it would take Kiki some time yet to get the children settled down for the night. He had Aaron to himself for a few more minutes at least. Enough time to ask the one question pounding in the back of his head. ‘So, how is she?’
His brother relaxed back in his chair, the expression on his face making it clear Luke’s attempt at sounding casual had been a miserable failure. ‘I don’t know.’ He held up a hand when Luke would have jumped in. ‘Physically, she seems better. Lord knows, between Mia and Kiki, she can’t turn around without being fed. Last time I saw her, she’d lost the worst of that gauntness from her frame.’
‘Last time?’ His brother and Kiki spent almost more time at Butterfly House than they did at home, so how long could it have been?
‘Shit. Kiki didn’t tell you?’ Aaron looked stricken.
His gut clenched, and a sick, familiar dread crept up his spine. ‘Tell me what?’
Aaron puffed out his cheeks. ‘Nee’s up with their dad. Vivian took a turn for the worse and, well, given how things were between you two at the wedding, Nee thought it would be best if she steered clear of the party tomorrow.’ He frowned and rubbed the heel of his hand against his forehead. ‘Sorry, Spud. It all happened rather suddenly. I know Kiki’s hoping it will mend a few fences between George and Nee, and it certainly took the pressure off her and Mia feeling one of them had to go up there.’
Forcing himself to unclench his painful grip on his beer, Luke placed the bottle carefully on the table. Everything Aaron said made perfect sense – Nee would certainly have had no expectation of his attitude towards her having changed after their brief encounter at the wedding. She was also the most logical choice of the three sisters to make the journey, and yet he couldn’t shake off the feeling she’d run away from him.
Again.
Well, that was something he would have to deal with in due course. He’d let her go without a fight once before. There was no way he was going to do it again. Right now, he needed to get the conversation back on track. He met this brother’s worried gaze and shook his head. ‘Forget about it. I’m sure everyone sighed in relief at not having to deal with the two of us together in the same small space. I also can’t blame you for not wanting to even mention her name to me, given the way I bit your head off at Mum and Dad’s the other week.’
Aaron reached across the table to give his forearm a quick squeeze. ‘I shouldn’t have stuck my nose in. I’m getting as bad as Madeline.’ They both grinned. The older woman was a huge favourite of theirs, even if she did have a tendency to interfere. His brother’s expression sobered. ‘Kiki’s still worried about her, though. As I mentioned before, it’s obvious something happened in New York, but Nee won’t talk about it, no matter how hard they try to persuade her to open up.’
Luke frowned. The pale, haunted woman he’d seen in September had been a mere shadow of the bright, sparkling girl he’d fallen head over heels in love with. What could change a person in so short a time? ‘I don’t even know why she went there in the first place.’
‘She got a placement at the Reinhold Institute.’ Kiki’s soft voice came from the doorway and they turned to face her. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt. Charlie wanted a drink.’ She held up a yellow plastic beaker.
The name meant nothing to Luke, but the way Kiki said it, it sounded like a big deal. Making a note to Google it later, he took a sip of his beer as he tried to corral his racing thoughts. Even in the short time they’d been together, it had been clear to him Nee was ambitious about her art career, and
