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“Dad!”
Paul hurried up the driveway and gave me a tight hug and a kiss on the head. “Give ‘em hell, Ellie.”
I watched as he went inside and the four of us remaining outside waited to see if he was going to appear in the window next to my mom and we weren’t disappointed. Paul stuck his head out and gave the guys a thumbs up.
Vaughn groaned and turned to me. Before he could say anything, the sound of a siren in the distance clued us all in on the fact that someone really had called the cops.
I reacted like I was hiding drugs on my body. I sprinted to the front door, yanked it open, and motioned for them all to get inside. They ran inside and I slammed and locked the door behind them before turning out the lights on my way to my room. “If the cops come, you have to deal with them, Mom! Not it!”
The guys followed me into my room without prompting and I shut the door behind them, locking that one, too. I switched my bedroom light off, leaving just my bedside lamp on. The four of us were in my small room, in what could pass as mood lighting, and we were all breathing faster from the excitement. I looked at each of them and tried to cover my mouth to hide a snort but there was no helping it.
We all erupted in laughter and it was fun until I started crying. It was so random and embarrassing that I tried to play it off but Booth pulled me into his chest and held me tight. I held him just as tight as I cried into his chest.
“It’s okay, Ella. We’re here.” He took a deep breath and I sniffed and shot him a curious glance when I realized he was smelling me. “Sorry. I just missed the way you smell.”
“It’s okay.” I shrugged and breathed his scent in like I wanted to. We stood there, sniffing each other, for probably longer than was acceptable, before Fisher got impatient and pulled me away from Booth.
He hugged me but it didn’t seem like enough for him so he picked me up and held the back of my thighs as I wrapped my limbs around him. “I’ve missed everything about you. I just want you back, Ella. I would do anything to erase the last month. Everything is gray without you.”
I clung to him as I just let myself enjoy being held by them again before talking. I waited for Vaughn to demand his turn but when he didn’t, I glanced over and saw that he was standing next to the head of my bed, running his hand over Connie. Fisher let me down and I inched closer to Vaughn. “You fixed him.”
Vaughn shrugged. “It was my fault he was hurt in the first place. I’m sorry I didn’t do it better. There-”
“He’s perfect.” I closed the gap between us and gently wrapped my arms around his waist. Pressing my cheek to his chest, I could feel his heart racing. “I opened the bag this morning finally. I wasn’t ready before.”
He stood with his arms at his sides still, not holding me back yet. “And you are now? Ready?”
I just had to nod and he grabbed me in a fierce embrace. He bent to me, burying his face in the crook of my neck and letting out a groan filled with pain.
“I’m so sorry, Ella. I swear that I’ll never knowingly or willingly hurt you again.” He ran his nose up my throat and pressed a kiss to my jaw. “I just want to take care of you and listen to you laugh. I never want to be the reason you cry again.”
I tipped my mouth towards his, desperate to feel his lips on mine but before we connected, a loud knock on my door made me flinch away. “Yes?”
Mom swung the door open and smiled sweetly. “This is going to be an open door house tonight. While I appreciate a good round of makeup sex, I can’t know that it’s happening to my daughter, just a room away from me. You boys will be sleeping in the living room tonight and Paul will be sleeping in the hallway, in case you get any ideas.”
“And what if Paul gets any ideas?” It wasn’t that I wanted to do anything sexual when my mom was in the next room but I wanted to be held and it was too weird to do even that where my mom could see.
Paul stuck his head in next to Mom. “If Paul gets any ideas, your mother’s door will be locked. I’ve been informed that the only Daughton woman that takes a man back is in this room tonight.”
I shrugged. “I’m not making any promises yet but these three won a championship game today. What have you done lately?”
Vaughn wrapped his arm around my waist and then immediately let it fall away when Mom shot him a look. “Yep. Too weird. Sorry.”
“I’m not going to remind you that the last time you were in my house, you were my step-son, young man.” Mom wagged her finger at him. “And I’m not sure I’ve forgiven you three just yet. You made my baby cry. And, Vaughn, if whatever you did to Connie makes him come to life and start cutting people, I’m going to be pissed.”
Fisher laughed a deep belly laugh. “I told him he needed to watch a video.”
Paul eased past Mom and looked at Connie. His eyes were damp when he looked at his son. “You did good, son.”
58
***Ella***
“You said you weren’t making any promises yet.” Booth looked up at me from where he sat on my bedroom floor, the only place they could be without my mom fluttering by every five seconds. “You don’t have to do anything you’re not ready for. I just want to know if you’re willing to give us another chance. I need to hear you say it.”
I hugged Connie tighter, fighting every urge to be in Booth’s lap. “I’m giving us another chance, Booth. Mom gave me a lecture about forgiveness today that kind of made sense. And I think… I think it was just time. I was running out of steam. What you did sucked. What happened because of it sucked. I don’t think you would make the same mistake again, though.”
Vaughn reached up and rested his hand on my knee. “Never.”
