2. Nine Lives

Holy Cheez-its, Hayes Kingman had certainly filled out. Not that he was ever small in the first place, but he had muscles where I didn"t even know muscles existed. Not to mention the absolute monstrosity between his legs.

I wondered if he would have even been able to cover it up with my pussy... cat. Not that I"d wanted him to, and not that he"d tried. He"d definitely given me a show.

My cat squirmed, wanting to be put down. Probably just so he could go off on another adventure through the neighborhood.

"Seven of Nine Lives," he knew he was in trouble when I used his full name, "you poop. I just got home, and you can"t even let me have a snuggle?"

I was up at this ungodly hour, still feeling the jet lag from my last-minute, twenty-four hour series of flights to get from Vietnam back to Denver with a good mix of wackadoo time changes. I could use a snuggle.

But when the Guncles called to say I needed to come home right away and here"s first-class plane tickets, I made the arrangements with my school to take a little bit of time off. Time changes and jet lag be damned.

I loved my parents, I did, and they loved me. But they always had expectations for me and my life that I just never felt like I could fulfill. Liam and George weren"t like that. They were the ones who encouraged, and initially bankrolled, me and my backpack when I headed to Europe to see the world instead of going to college.

So, if they needed me home to give us all The Big News, I"d put my job on hold. I"d put my life on hold for them, honestly. I just wish they"d indicated whether this was good news or potentially devastating. Like, was I coming home for a party, or should I have packed a black dress and all the tissues I could fit in my suitcase?

The two of them loved a secret and a reveal, but this was Liam"s life we were talking about. Would a hint have killed them?

It was killing me.

And I was apparently killing Seven, because he gave me a desperate "mrrow" and wiggled. "Sorry I was squishing you, bubby."

I propped him up on my shoulder like a baby and gave his butt some pats. He resigned himself to accepting my attentions and even deigned to give me some purrs.

"See, you missed me." I"d just been home a few months ago, and he couldn"t leave me alone then. Now I was home under a lot more stress and he would barely give me the time of day. Unless, of course, I was giving him treats.

"Come on, let"s get your ear drops and I"ll give you a treat." His tail swished at the offer of a snack. Same, buddy, same.

"Willabean, you here?" Xander called for me from inside the house.

Ah, the bane that was my older brother. "Don"t make me murder you, Xan."

"You can try, Beanie."

If I didn"t have a cat in my arms, I would find something to throw at his head. Willabean had been cute when we were six. At sixteen he"d used it as a weapon of mass embarrassment, and at twenty-one, I still hated it. Which, of course, he found hilarious to no end.

If he wasn"t a six-three wall of muscle and headed for a career in professional football next year, I would take him down and sit on him like I did when were younger. Except I was the one who got in trouble and he always got off scot-free.

Butthead.

Unfortunately, he was also the one who sweetly threatened to beat up any boy who broke my heart, used his golden-child persuasion to convince my mom to allow me to get a cat, and was the one who flew all the way to Ho Chi Minh City to teach me how to ride a motorcycle when I first got the job teaching English, just so I wouldn"t crack my head open.

He popped into the backyard and waved for me to come back inside. "Let"s go hit the coffee shop and force the Guncles to tell us what"s going on now. I"ve got a game this afternoon, and I need to know if I"m gonna be playing like a badass or if I need to call Coach and take some time off."

Xander loved Liam and George just as much as I did, and he might be a big, tough guy, but I heard the fear in his words. He didn"t even have to say anything. I knew. "Unless, of course, you got it out of them last night?"

I was staying at their house instead of with Mom and Dad, because... reasons. "No go. They were tight-lipped and insistent that we all had to go to bed the minute we got home. And of course were up and at Cool Bean at the butt crack of dawn. I think I"ve actually seen them for all of about thirty minutes since I landed."

I"d seen more of Hayes Kingman than—oh, nope. No, don"t go there. And dammit. Now I was thinking about naked Hayes again.

Ever since the draft, we don"t talk about Kingman, no, no, no. We don"t talk about Kingman.

"I doubt we"ll get it out of them, but I could definitely use some caffeine. It"s eight o"clock at night for me and I didn"t get a whole lot of sleep on the plane or last night." I would just get adjusted to Denver time when I had to go back to Saigon. My body was going to be all kinds of pissed.

I hauled Seven up to my room, gave him his eardrops, which he hated and immediately bolted from, and then got dressed. But what I had in my suitcase was not suitable for a cool Colorado autumn day. I had mostly the lightweight dresses I wore to teach in. That was dumb. I hadn"t really been thinking when I was tossing things into my bag to hurry and catch the flight.

This wasn"t going to work. I popped into Liam and George"s room and raided their closet. George was a Mustangs fan through and through, and most of his comfy clothes were jerseys and logoed t-shirts. That would work fine with the singular pair of leggings I"d had the foresight to bring.

Xander made a face at me when I came back downstairs. Shizz. I wasn"t thinking. He used to love the Mustangs, had always hoped he"d get drafted by them. Not anymore. He was still mad. I got that.

I"d planned to hit Lane Bryant or Torrid while I was here anyway. I even had orders from a few other teachers who also weren"t Vietnamese sized. We could get clothes made by the plethora of tailors easily enough, since clothes big enough to fit even the average-sized American, Brit, Aussie, or Kiwi simply weren"t available. But the one thing we all still needed to get from home were bras and underwear. No one was making me a forty-two double D over the shoulder boulder holder.

I"d grab a couple pairs of jeans and some plain sweaters for the rest of the time I was home, because I hated to see that hurt look in my brother"s eyes that he thought he hid so well. Can"t hide much from twin telepathy though.

"All right, I"m as ready as I"ll ever be." Was anyone really ready to find out their favorite human on the planet might not have long to live? "Just let me grab my Kindle and my bag and we can go."

I had a feeling I was going to need my emotional support Kindle for some escapism later.

Even though it wasn"t that far, we drove over in the new car my parents bought for Xander last spring. I did not need a car. My cute motorbike was third hand from a teacher who"d been leaving and wanted to pass it along. It was yellow and I"d named it Captain Kirk. I missed the Captain right now.

There usually wasn't any parking this time of day, but Cool Beans was not what I"d call hopping this morning. Wasn"t this supposed to be their busy time? Xander pulled into a spot right in front. My mom waved to us through the window, and I didn"t see any other customers inside even though the glowing neon sign said the place was open.

A yucky niggle in my gut had me worried that Liam and George had shooed the customers away because nobody needed to see a grieving family cry. I sent a quick prayer out to the universe, hoping that wasn"t true. Please let this be good news. We could all use that.

Xander pulled the door open, and the moment I walked inside, the aroma of coffee wrapped me up in its warmth. I loved the smell of toasty, roasted coffee beans. It reminded me of everything childhood. I just wish a cup of brew tasted like what it smelled like. I"d never admitted to a soul that I didn"t actually like coffee. I was in it exclusively for the cream and sugar.

George saw me first and there was nothing I wanted more than one of his big, squishy bear hugs. Which is exactly what I got. After a longer than normal embrace, which worried me, he gave me a twirl. "Willa, don"t you look cute as shit in that jersey. It"s the newest addition to the collection."

I let him give me an extra twirl just like when I was little. "I raided your closet, hope you don"t mind."

"Not a bit. Everything has been such a flurry the past few days, or I would have pulled my head out of my butt and grabbed you some warmer clothes for the fall. You keep that one. I"m happy to get another later on. As if I need a reason to buy more Mustangs" paraphernalia."

He gave Xander a wink. "Or DSU Dragons."

He"d said later on.

If he was planning for the future, that was good, right? I wanted to ask him to tell me what was going on, but I held my tongue. They brought us all together as a family to do this. Either we"d all be crying together or cheering together.

Liam gave me a smile from behind the counter. "You two want a drink while we wait for your dad?"

Did he look paler than when I"d seen him over the summer? No? Maybe? He sure didn"t look like he was dying. But that might be my wishful thinking. He certainly wasn"t giving me even a clue, and he knew it. "Sure. Surprise me, but make it something sweet and extra?—"

"Extra whip. I got you, boo." He handed me a mug already covered in whipped cream and caramel drizzle. He also pulled out a super disgusting plain black coffee for Xander. How did I have a twin brother that was so boring and staid? The world may never know.

Xander took his gross cup of joe and leaned against the counter. "Give us just a little hint about your news, Li."

"You two can wait a couple more minutes." He nodded toward the window. "Your dad is pulling up now."

Probably straight from the golf course, if his super goofy plaid pants and polo were any indication. But knowing Dad, it might just be what he chose to wear today. Fifty-fifty chances on that one. He pushed in through the door. "I"m here, so you can get the party started now. And it had better be a party, little brother, because if you"re still dying, I"m going to kill you."

Dad crossed the room and went right over the counter to wrap Liam in a huge hug. I swore I caught a grin on Liam"s face, but it might have just been because Dad was squashing the air out of him.

George waved us all over to the table where Mom was sitting, and I took the seat next to her. "Hello, Willabean. What in the world are you wearing?"

"Hi, Mom." I didn"t answer her question, because... why? She didn"t listen to me anyway. Sigh. That wasn"t fair of me. Mom just had selective hearing when it came to what I wanted, in my wardrobe and my life. At least she hadn't mentioned anything about my weight. I had steeled myself for that and was happy not to have to bring out that particular piece of armor.

She smiled at my brother. "Alexander, how was your math test?"

"Flying colors, Mom."

"Good boy. And you"re on the starting lineup this afternoon?" Welcome to the mom-ish inquisition. I"d be lucky if I wasn"t next.

I felt Xander"s mental eyeroll. I had to bite the inside of my cheek not to roll my own. As if Xander hadn"t started in every game since halfway through his freshmen year of high school. Along with Hayes Kingman, of course.

"As always." He took another swig of his coffee and turned in his seat to face the Guncles, who, it seemed, were finally ready to give us the news. Lucky break. Or maybe unlucky. We were about to find out.

I couldn"t help it, I grabbed my mom"s hand under the table. While she and I very rarely saw eye to eye on anything, she gave my fingers the squeeze I needed.

Liam and George gathered everyone"s attention, and a hush fell over the table, the clinking of coffee mugs fading into the background. My heart quickened, nerves prickling at the edges of my skin. This was it, the moment we had all been dreading or hoping for.

Liam cleared his throat, exchanging a glance with George before speaking. "Well, I want to thank all of you for being here. It means the world to us." He looked right at me and his voice, though steady, carried a weight that hung heavy in the air.

George reached out, his hand finding Liam"s, a silent show of support.

"We"ve had some news from the doctor," Liam continued, his gaze sweeping over each of us, lingering for a moment on my face. "And it"s good. Really, really good."

Just like that, I could breathe again. The muscles in my chest and shoulders released, and I pulled my hand from my mother"s, needing to shake all that tension away. Good news. The words echoed in my brain like a mantra. Thank the fucking universe. I owed it a cupcake, or a dozen.

Xander let out a whoop and fist bumped the air like he"d just scored another touchdown. Dad gave him a high five and me a smiling wink. Mom"s eyes glistened, which was as close as I"d ever seen her to crying. I saw that flicker of vulnerability in her expression, a crack in the facade she wore so effortlessly.

"What exactly did they say?" Dad"s voice was gruff with the same emotions we were all feeling.

Liam smiled, a genuine, heartfelt, toothy grin that should have been in a toothpaste commercial. "The doctor gave me a clean bill of health. It seems I"m going to be around for a while longer, much to our customer"s dismay," he added, a hint of humor coloring his words.

Scattered laughs and the rustle of shifting chairs were the only sounds in the coffee shop. The weight that had been pressing down on us lifted, leaving behind a sense of buoyancy that I hadn"t felt in far too long.

"Thank the heavens," George murmured, his voice thick with emotion.

Xander grinned, the tension draining from his features as if it had never been there. "Looks like I won"t have to take over the coffee shop after all."

Liam chuckled, the sound a melody of joy that filled the room. "That"s ninety percent of the reason I worked so hard to get better. Nobody wants a bunch of football players serving their coffee."

George raised his hand. "Excuse me. I would absolutely like that, thank you very much."

I let out a shaky breath. Had Xan really thought he"d take over the shop? In what spare time? Although, knowing Golden Boy, he probably already had a business plan and was ready to sink his future signing bonus into our little home away from home.

Because it wasn"t like anyone was going to ask me to take over Cool Beans. I didn"t even want to. I had a whole life, a burgeoning career, and the world to see. I didn"t want to be tied down, especially not in Denver.

But I did have a whole week off work, and I was going to celebrate in style. Which was starting with some really long Guncle hugs. Which were the best kind.

"Hey, Wills," Liam said after I held him tight for about a thousand years, "if you"re not too jet lagged, I was hoping you might stick around and work with me this afternoon while everyone else goes to the game. I doubt we"ll be terribly busy and it will give us a chance to hang out."

Party, work at the coffee shop... same, same but different. "If it gets me out of going to the game, I"m definitely down to clown."

And Liam was exactly the right person to relay the morning, ahem, glory story to. I whispered so Xander didn"t overhear. "You won"t believe who I saw this morning."