Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 87538 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 438(@200wpm)___ 350(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87538 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 438(@200wpm)___ 350(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
“That’s your uncle Dylan,” Eddie tells Guinevere. “Don’t go near him. He stinks.”
Dax starts to laugh. “This Cadogan dynamic feels very familiar.”
“Do you have any hot friends?” Eddie asks Dax as I head to the door.
“I’ll draw up a short-list.”
As I open the door, Dylan’s glassy eyes greet me, and instantly I feel the tears build in my own. “We did it,” he says. I grab him and wrap my arms around him. It’s the first time I’ve seen him in person since we got word of our uncle’s death and our inheritance.
“I feel like a survivor,” he says. “And it’s not about the money. I mean we survived our parents’ indifference and then their absence and then our uncle’s betrayal. It’s only now, as I pulled up in front of the house—the house that you’re going to be living your best life in—that I can imagine a future where we can break free of the past.”
He’s right. Our uncle’s death has cut the final tether of our history. We can look to our future now.
I release him and pull him over the threshold. “It’s our time to be happy.”
Eddie walks toward us, Guinevere in her arms. “I’ve already told her you stink and she should stay away from you.”
Dylan presses a kiss to Eddie’s cheek. “I love you,” he says, completely ignoring what she said.
“I mean, he’s alright. And you can always count on him, trust him and all that. He’s really loyal and kind and clever.” She shrugs. “He just stinks. Can’t help it.”
Dylan doesn’t even flinch at his sister’s description. He spots Dax as he approaches and holds out his hand. “Dax. Good to meet you.”
They shake and then hug. “Welcome to the family,” Dylan says, nodding to Eddie. “You may live to regret the introduction.”
Dax chuckles. “You haven’t seen anything yet.” He looks over at me. “I think the Cadogan-Coves were made for each other.”
I think he might be right.
A few months later
Dax
We’re all standing in wellies in a Norfolk field, looking across at our parents’ new house two hundred meters away. The builders have finally left, and Mum and Dad moved back in last weekend.
“It looks great from here,” Jacob says.
“It looks bloody expensive,” Dad says and turns back to me. “Now, Dax, can you tell me why we’re standing in the middle of next door’s field?
“The new house looks good. And it’s big,” I say. “But I’m not sure it’s big enough.”
“Big enough!?” Dad yells. “What are you talking about? It’s the size of a small hotel. We have eight bedrooms! Four in the old house and four in the new house.”
“Eight bedrooms is a lot of bedrooms,” I say, trying to keep Dad calm. “But you have a lot of kids.”
“Six,” he says.
“Right. And we’re reproducing at a rate of knots,” Jacob says.
He’s the only one I’ve told about my plans. We’ve become closer since I moved in opposite. Perhaps it’s because we see each other more. Perhaps it’s because we’ve both become fathers. Maybe it’s because Sutton and Eira get on so well. Most likely it’s a combination of all those things. And Eira. Because Eira makes me feel more connected to everything, including my family. Which is why we’re all standing here.
Vincent chuckles. “That’s true. Who’s next to announce they’re popping out another kid?”
Beau and Vivian exchange a look but keep quiet. I don’t say anything but I can’t help glancing at Eira, who’s rocking a grumbly Guinevere. It’s close to nap time. It’s because of Eira that I even noticed my brother and his wife are keeping a secret. It’s because of her I’ve got the connection to Guinevere I do. I literally owe her my life. My happiness. My future.
“Let’s just enjoy baby Juliette for a few weeks, shall we?” Mum suggests, cooing at Sutton and Jacob’s two-week-old daughter. “You rainbow babies get twice the love, did you know that, Juliette?” I don’t think I even said anything to Jacob when he and Sutton lost their first baby. I guess I didn’t understand how they would feel—what a light must have gone out in their world. I do now.
“So what’s with the field? Are we going to have you camp outside?” Dad asks.
“No, but we—Eira and I—bought the lot. I’m planning to build a place on it,” I say. “As our families expand, even with Madison and Nathan having the place nearby, there just won’t be enough space.”
Mum lets out a sob, and I turn to her.
“You’re upset?” I ask. I really hoped she’d be pleased.
Her eyes are filled with tears, and Dad takes her hand. “Told you,” he mumbles to her, and she nods.
“What’s going on?” Beau asks. “Did I miss something?”
“Your mother is happy, that’s all,” Dad says.
“Could have fooled me,” I say.
Dad pats me on the shoulder, and I feel like I should know something I don’t.