Page 289 of Out of Left Field

Something I’d been happy about until I realized she was still dating Linc. She hung on Olivia and Chris’s son like they were handcuffed together.

“You can’t still be uptight about Rosie and Linc,” Everett sighed.

“Let me know how you feel when Catherine starts dating.” For years I’d wanted to rip that kid’s head off his shoulders.

Not that Linc wasn’t a good kid. He was funny, smart, kind. All good things. But he touched my daughter entirely too much. Too often. And because they’d been together for so long I was absolutely sure they’d…done things.

“Rosie isn’t a child anymore, Isaac.”

“I keep telling him that,” Kate said as she wrapped her arm around my waist.

“I don’t understand how you’re so calm. Look at them!” They were kissing.

“Isn’t that what people do when they’re in love?” She poked me in the ribs.

“I don’t kiss you like that in front of your father.”

Kate rolled her eyes. “Yes you do. And we kiss like that all the time in front of your father.”

“That’s different. We’re old.”

Everett shrank away. He was much smarter than me, I was realizing. Kate smacked my arm. “You might be old but I’m not.”

I kissed her. “Sorry. I’m an ass. I can’t help myself. Why can’t she wait to date until she’s thirty?”

“You just kissed me in front of your parents again.”

I was not winning this battle. That much was clear. So I kept my mouth shut and took in the group. When I wasn’t seeing red I was actually pretty damn happy. This was our family. So many happy, wonderful people. Seth and Annalise were still in their mansion along with their three dogs. Chris and Olivia added two more to their family just like us. Ollie was a year older than our twins and Hawk was a year younger. They all went to school with Everett and Willa’s brood who ranged from nine to one in age.

It was funny how life changed things. When Chris retired he moved back here and became closer than ever to Everett. Since I was up in Tampa we had Seth and Annalise over all the time. We were all still close, just slightly rearranged. Olivia and Willa formed a side company, blending their talents while both Seth and Annalise consulted with the Tangerines and Mantas.

Everything was good. Everything was fine. “Oh hell no!” I stared in horror as Linc got down on one knee.

Kate grabbed my arm. “Don’t you dare ruin this for her. You’ll regret it for the rest of your life.”

I wanted to march across the beach and punch the little punk but Kate was right. So I put my arm around her and held on, using her as an anchor. I wasn’t ready. I simply wasn’t ready.

But life kept moving and changing.

Rosie said yes and everyone cheered. I held onto Kate while I died a little inside, then pulled myself together.

“This was going to happen one day.” She cupped my face.

“I know.”

“Just love her.”

Kate always knew the exact right thing to say. “I will.” Then I swallowed my fear down and shook Chris’s hand. “Looks like we’re family now.” Another change, another tie, rearranging us all over again.

“I’m not ready,” Olivia mumbled beside him. “I’m not ready!”

Chris hugged her tight. “It will be okay.”

“We can form a support group. I just said the exact same thing.”

She gave me a lopsided smile. “They’re growing up.”

It was a funny thing to say with so many tiny kids screaming and running around us. Rosie and Linc were so much older, but they were always going to be our babies. “She could have picked a worse guy.”