Shadows of You (Lost & Found #4)(61)

“Mr. Grizz!” Cady flew at me, and I hauled her into my arms.

“Hey, Tiny Dancer. Did you have fun with G and Caden?”

She nodded her head enthusiastically. “The mostest! We got to go to the stables at the resort and go riding. On a school day.” She sighed. “I wish I could do that every day. And then Miss Grae took us to get cheeseburgers and milkshakes. I got strawberry, and it was the yummiest.”

“Sounds like a pretty epic day.” I glanced at Caden. “Thanks for your help.”

He nodded, studying me as if I were an alien. “Of course.” He paused for a moment. “Crowd outside is getting bigger.”

I set Cady down. “Hey, can you get your new board game set up in your room? Then you, me, and your mom can play.”

She grinned up at me. “Totes.” Then she took off down the hall.

“Totes?” I asked.

Aspen shook her head. “Drew is teaching her all sorts of lingo.”

Caden snorted. “Might want to be careful there.”

She winced. “Hopefully, he’s mindful of little ears.”

Caden shifted, glancing from Aspen to me and back again. Aspen’s cheeks heated, and she twiddled her fingers. He cleared his throat. “If you guys need a more secure place to stay, you’re welcome to take one of the cabins at The Peaks. We have tight security, and no press is allowed onsite without explicit permission.”

“Thank you, Caden,” Aspen said softly. “I really appreciate that. But we’ve got the animals, and Cady has her routine. I want to try to keep things as normal as possible.”

He nodded. “I get that. But if you change your mind, the offer’s always there.”

“That’s really kind of you.”

“I’m sorry for what you’ve been through. I can’t imagine. If you need anything at all, please let us know,” Caden said.

Aspen’s throat worked as she swallowed. “You’re not mad I didn’t say anything?”

Caden’s expression softened. “We all have our secrets—the things that are hard to share. The only reason we’d want to know is so we could help.”

Aspen’s eyes misted. “And G?”

I hadn’t realized how nervous Aspen was about keeping this secret until right now. Her fingers twisted so hard her knuckles bleached white, and I saw her breaths coming quicker than normal.

Caden’s lips twitched. “I won’t lie. You’ll probably be getting a visit from her sooner rather than later. She’s dealing with a mix-up at the resort right now. Otherwise, she would have been here with me. But she loves you. She only wants to make sure you’re safe and okay.”

“She’s just going to be nosy and pushy about it,” I muttered.

Caden chuckled. “Roan isn’t wrong.”

Aspen worried her lip. “She’d be right to be pissed at me.”

“She’s not,” Caden assured her. “I promise.”

Aspen nodded, not looking completely convinced.

“I gotta get back to the resort.” Caden glanced at me. “Walk me out?”

I instantly went on alert but nodded, following him to the door.

We headed out into the chilly afternoon air and moved toward Caden’s G-Wagon. He paused by the driver’s door, twirling his keys around his finger. “What’s the deal with you two?”

I stiffened. “None of your damn business.”

Caden’s eyes flared. “Not trying to be an ass, but that woman’s been through a lot. You haven’t exactly been the relationship type.”

I didn’t say a word, simply stared back at him.

Caden sighed. “Gigi’s losing her mind worrying about Aspen. She’s freaking out about the press, the crazy ex-brother-in-law, Aspen’s mental health. She’s going to be protective of her right now.”

A little of the tension bled out of me at that. Caden had my sister’s back, and I couldn’t begrudge him that.

My jaw clenched and unclenched. “I like them. Both of them. They make me feel…like I belong.”

And for someone who’d never truly felt that way, the feeling mattered.

Caden stilled, pain slicing through his expression. “Roan. You do belong. You’re family. Your sister loves you like crazy, and so do the rest of your siblings. Your parents, too.”

I toed a piece of gravel with my boot. “I’m different. I don’t fit.”

“Different doesn’t mean you don’t fit. It just means you make the puzzle that much more interesting. Grae and your family gave me a place to belong when I needed it the most. I couldn’t want anything more for you than to feel that.”

He clapped me on the shoulder. “If Aspen gives you that? Hold tight and don’t let go.”

That grinding sensation was back along my sternum. I didn’t have words for Caden, but he seemed to understand. He just clapped me once more on the shoulder and climbed into his SUV.

I stood there for a moment, staring out into the fields surrounding the farmhouse.

Don’t let go.

I didn’t want to. But fear that I’d screw it up dug in deep. Or worse, worry they’d be taken from me.

My gut twisted in a vicious squeeze. I shoved down the fear and turned back to the house.