She was protecting him.

Again.

Ethan felt his heart beating real hard.

There were words in the message line that hadn’t been sent.

I fucked us up, baby, and I’m so fucking sorry.

She called Merry “baby.” She didn’t call anyone “baby” unless she liked them a whole heckuva lot.

It said I fucked us up.

His mom and Merry were an us!

And they were fighting.

“Kid! You want hash browns for breakfast or what?” his mom called.

She was coming his way.

Ethan bit his lip.

Then he hit send.

Real quick, he typed in, Don’t text. If you forgive me, come see me.

He sent that too.

Then, super quick, he moved to his gramma’s text string just as his mom hit the kitchen.

Screen out, he waved her phone at her. “Gramma wants us to plan a family dinner.”

“I’ll get right on that after we get back from DC for the dinner the president and first lady are putting on in our honor.”

Ethan burst out laughing.

His mom was totally funny.

And because of that and all the other cool that was his mom, Merry would come. Ethan knew it.

No texting. Merry was like Colt. He was a real dude. Ethan was sure he didn’t play games. Ethan knew this because Merry hadn’t messed around when he was worried about that guy who was running around with a gun in their neighborhood. Even if his mom was trying to play things cool for Ethan’s sake, Merry kept close to look out for Ethan and his mom. So Ethan knew Merry wouldn’t mess around with stuff like that. Not stuff that was important.

Stuff like his mom.

They’d talk. They’d make up. His mom could be stubborn, but Merry would break through.

They thought he was a kid. They thought he didn’t see. They thought he didn’t hear.

But he saw. He heard. He watched, because he sensed what he was seeing was how it should be and it felt good, being around the way they were.

That being that sometimes Feb could be stubborn too, and Colt broke through. So could Vi, and Cal always broke through too. Rocky was full of attitude—she was Merry’s sister so he knew all about that—and Tanner always just thought it was funny, and when he laughed at her, Rocky didn’t get ticked. Her face got all soft like she loved him even more because the way she was made him laugh.

Ethan’s mom was super funny. She’d make Merry laugh all the time.

So they’d make up. Merry would see to that. Merry was in no way a stupid dude, and any guy would want a lady who’d make him laugh all the time. Ethan knew that for certain. He knew it because Colt did, so did Cal, Mike, Tanner. And when Ethan found his babe, that was what he would want too.

And after they made up, they’d stop hiding things from him so his mom could protect him like she did when that bad guy effed her over so bad.