“I’m still learning,” Lily said, slightly dropping her head.
“I can show you,” Levi offered, making Lily blush, but she nodded, smiling at him. I noticed how Levi puffed out his chest a little at the action.
Olivia started to cry, and we all froze for a second before Cami swooped in, gathering her into her arms. She was becoming a natural mother to the little girl, and I wondered how things were going between her and Malek. I knew she was engaged to Lark and Seb, but I couldn’t miss the sparks that flew between them and wondered what that meant now.
“I can help you too,” Levi offered, biting his lip. He didn’t like it when she cried.
“You hear that, Liv?” Cami cooed, “Levi will help you, too. I bet we can get you some floaties, and you’ll be golden. I’ll even swim with you if you want.”
“I’ll come too,” Imogen offered. I’d noticed she had a soft spot for the little kids, and I remembered how excited she’d been when she watched Levi, making me wonder how many kids she’d gotten to be around.
“I just need some swim shorts,” Jude mumbled.
“There are some in the locker rooms,” Atticus offered, sitting down next to me with our cups of coffee. “If there’s a size we need, we can have someone get some.”
The kids started to chat more excitedly about their plan to swim, making me happy to see them so excited about something amid our war. These little moments let me know we were doing the right thing. We all deserved a life where we didn’t have to look over our shoulders or worry about someone taking out a person we loved.
“You should call Lark and Seb to come over,” I suggested to Cami. She looked up, her face brightening.
“Okay, yeah. Thanks.”
Atticus squeezed my leg under the table, offering me some comfort. It was the reassurance I needed that I was, in fact, the lady of the manor as he suggested. I just needed to get used to making decrees and being comfortable with them. Baby steps.
Once the kids were set on swimming, they quickly finished their food and pulled Cami and the teenagers out of the room. Monroe stood to follow when Jude spoke up.
“I can help Levi if you’re okay with that,” he said. Levi nodded enthusiastically, taking Jude’s hand. The maternal part of me wept at the sight, and I held back the tear that wanted to fall. My two sons. I’d meant what I told Monroe; Levi was my son now too.
“Oh, yes, thanks, Jude. That would be great.” He smiled at him before dropping his eyes to Levi. “Listen to everything Jude has to say. If he has to come back and report you weren’t being careful or put anyone in danger, then no more swimming. If you’re going to help teach the others, you need to ensure you follow all the swim safety rules, so they know them. Understand?”
“Yes, Dad.” Levi nodded, a serious look on his face. Monroe had done well to make it about teaching the girls. Levi pulled his little shoulders back, a look of responsibility on his little face. When they left, I turned to Monroe, impressed. Before I could say anything, Atticus beat me to it.
“I can tell you’re a good lawyer just from that.”
Monroe beamed, shrugging his shoulders. Wells laughed, slapping him on the back.
“You should’ve seen him in the group home. He could always get us out of trouble.”
The guys laughed, the atmosphere feeling nice. Nicco cleared his throat once the laughter died down, leaning forward onto the table as he assessed his brother.
“So, what happened last night?”
Atticus sighed, placing his fork down. “Max was able to get everything thrown out. They didn’t have any evidence that wasn’t circumstantial, and with my iron-clad alibi, they had to let me go. I don’t think it was an actual attempt to get me arrested. I believe Dayton used it as a diversion, but that also failed. I’m not sure what was planned, but based on his pissed-off expression when he saw me, he didn’t get what he wanted, so it’s a win in our column.”
“Score one for Pixel’s crazy scheme,” Nicco said, chuckling.
“Where is she?” I asked, realizing she hadn’t been around the table earlier.
“She got a message from Aunt Phea this morning, and had to return home for something. She said she’d be back though and would be bringing a surprise when she did,” Monroe answered.
“I’m kind of going to miss her,” Sax grunted, taking a sip of his coffee, making me smile.
“So, what do we do now? Where are we on the plan?” I asked, looking around the table.
“We stay the course. Taking out Jacqueline is our priority today. It’s time to remove one more player from the board. Natalia will also have an update for us later. I have a few more meetings to finalize the plans for the secret party, but most of it is all set.”
I looked at the clock on the wall, realizing it was almost time for Jacqueline’s demise. “Can we get the TV turned to channel 8?” I asked.
Within a second, the TV came on, the news reporter standing in front of the house I’d once called home. Wells turned the volume up, and we all watched in anticipation.