Chapter 28

Penelope

“Shut...up,” the smallest of his sisters giggles and steps closer to us, her eyes glued to my left hand. She picks it up and whistles. “Please, tell me this dork is lying and he didn’t marry a total babe.”

I can’t help laughing loudly. “I’m afraid it’s true, but dorks are kind of my thing.”

“I’m Skye, and you, sweetheart, are fucking awesome.” She pulls me in for a hug. “You’ve married into a family of huggers, and believe me when I tell you, we’re all going to want to thank the woman who brought our baby brother home.”

I laugh nervously, but before I can tell her otherwise, another sister pulls me in for a hug. And another. And finally, the last one.

Somehow, between all the hugs, we’ve made our way down the hallway and into the dining room. Damien’s father sits at the head of the table. He looks happy, and his eyes haven’t lingered too far from his son.

“Penny.” Damien is by my side, pulling me toward the older man. I swallow hard, wanting this man to like me. “This is my father, Tom.”

“It’s wonderful to finally meet you.” I smile, feeling nervous because he shifts to stand up. Damien’s hand shoots out to steady him.

“Penny?” Tom whispers. His gray eyes study me carefully.

I nod my head, because no words form. As far as fathers go, I have very little experience, but from everything Damien has told me about him, he’s the kind of father I always dreamt of having. I want this man to like me.

“Absoluetly lovely.” He grasps me tightly and wraps me up in his embrace. “Just lovely.”

I can’t help the sob that escapes my lips. My body sags against him because he’s hugging me the way a father is supposed to hug a child. For the first time in my life, I’m on the receiving end of that kind of hug. My heart feels like it might burst.

“Damien,” Tom chokes and pulls him into the hug. Damien kisses my head, and then his father’s forehead. His body trembles next to me, and I hear a soft sob escape from the man who up until a week ago, had closed himself off from the world. Tom’s hold tightens on us. “Words can’t express how long I’ve waited for this moment.”

A moment passes before he finally loosens his hold on us, and I become aware of how silent the room is. Damien wraps an arm around me, and I look up to meet the eyes of his family members. They watch the moment with admiration, some wiping away a stray tear or two.

“What say we get our new sister here a glass of wine?” Savannah laughs while reaching for me. She graps my hand and pulls me away from Damien, who lets me go with an assuring smile. Seems he might not need me standing by his side all night, not with all the love and joy filling the room.

I glance over at the men standing across from Damien. They haven’t said anything to us; in fact, they don’t look very happy at all.

“Don’t you worry about them,” Savannah murmurs softly, her eyes on the same group of men. One sends her a wink, and I assume he’s hers. “They won’t dare do anything to ruin this moment.”

“They’re angry,” I observe.

“They’re protective,” she says with a nod. “The little brother who broke all our hearts has returned.”

I want to say something in his defense, but she’s right. He might have had his reasoning, reasons I’m sure they’ll understand, but that doesn’t make what he did right. He did more than hurt himself staying away.

“Three of the four have never met him, so they’ll look to Astrid’s husband to figure out how to deal with him without finding themselves in the dog house tonight,” Skye pipes in from behind me. Astrid and Farrah follow close behind her. They’re leaving Damien to the wolves, and all I can think is maybe they are mad at him after all.

“Are they going to say something to him?”

“Probably, but like Savvie said, they’re protective. If they had it their way, he’d be outside in a world of hurt,” Farrah laughs, completely unconcerned.

Something about the way the men are watching Damien tells me they are right, but the sense I get from these four strong women is that they won’t cross the line with him. I hold back a giggle because the whole situation reminds me of Damien and how territorial he can be. I learned firsthand what she means by protective.

Savannah clears her throat when we enter the kitchen, pulling me away from the precious memories that night.

“Red or white?”

“Umm…” I pause, feeling my stomach churn at the choice. I’ve been feeling poorly since yesterday morning. The last thing I need to do is embarrass myself in front of Damien’s family. “Do you think I can get a glass of water instead?”

Astrid smiles and walks around the large island in the middle of the room, stopping in front of the refrigerator. She opens it and produces a cold bottle of water, handing it to me as she returns to her spot next to me.

“So, Penny, tell us, how did you meet our brother?” she asks, getting down to the nitty gritty. I know it must be a surprise to have Damien home, let alone learning he’s married, but we prepared for this question.

I give them a washed-down version of how we met, hoping they believe it, knowing full well we’re going to tell them the truth before we leave.

*****

After dinner, a quick clean up, and listening to his sisters shuffle all the kids upstairs and into bed, Damien and I sit down with his family.

Conversation is tense as the elephant in the room continues to be ignored. No one is ready to talk about why Damien broke away from the family, but like Damien, I see their grief is still fresh and unhealed.

“I want you to know that I read every email you sent.” Damien turns to Astrid, and I watch as the strongest of the sisters gets misty-eyed. “I’m sorry I never replied.”

She nods, never asking why. I suspect she already knew why, though. They all did.

“I have a little confession myself,” she admits, sipping at her glass of wine. “I’ve kept in touch with Kingston regarding your well-being.”

“I knew that,” he admits with a nod.

“You did?” she asks, clearly surprised.

“He asked the first time you reached out if it was okay. He isn’t the kind of man to go behind a brother’s back, family or not.”

“So, instead of responding to any of our emails, you let someone else tell us how you were doing?” Farrah growls, her sights narrowing in on her brother. “What kind of fucked-up shit is that?”

“Farrah—” Tom tries to interject, but Farrah doesn’t back down this time.

“No, it’s a reasonable question, Daddy. We’ve spent years worrying about him, holidays missing him, birthdays praying for him, only to discover he really just didn’t care about us.” She turns toward Damien and lets him have it. “Was it really that hard for you? One little reply?”

“No, it wasn’t.” He shakes his head, his shoulders sagging in shame. I reach out and grasp his hand. “But I wasn’t in the right state of mind—”

“None of us were.” She stands, throwing her arms out around her. It’s evident she’s been holding all of this in for far too long, and from the torn looks plastered on Astrid, Savannah, and Skye’s faces, they all have. “Look, I’m just going to say it. After all, I know we’re all thinking it. Losing Mom was difficult for everyone. Not just you. She was the glue that kept this family together, and it took a long time to figure out how to survive without her a phone call away—”

“Farrah,” Tom injectes again, this time using the stern dad voice. She freezes, and her face turns red as she struggles to tamp down the anger and frustration boiling through her. “That’s quite enough. It’s Christmas Eve and not the time to get angry over trivial things. An old man’s Christmas wish came true tonight, and I’d like to enjoy it with a smile.”

Farrah sits down next to her husband, who wraps an arm around her shoulders, trying his best to console her.

“Dad, please,” Damien calls, looking around the room with regret. The tension swirling around is thick enough to cut it with a knife, and he knows it’s his fault. Tom tilts his head, trying to assess his son. “I’m sorry. It was probably a bad idea coming here tonight. I didn’t mean to ruin your holiday. For what it’s worth, there hasn’t been a day that’s gone by that I didn’t think of you all. That I didn’t miss you. If you’d rather I leave, I’ll understand.”

The room is quiet after he finishes. He glances over at me, looking as defeated as I know he feels. I try to smile but can’t bring myself to push past the emotions stifling the room. With a nod of his head, he stands, ready to take their silence as his answer, but it’s Farrah who stops him.

“Stay.” She looks up at him, tears falling from her eyes. “Please don’t go away again.”

Damien crosses the room, pulls his sister into his arms, and gives her the one thing she needs most.

Her baby brother back.