Wes laughed, but for some reason still didn’t move from his spot by the door.

“Come down here before I get myself in more trouble.” He eyed Wes more seriously than before, and then nodded his head back a little, as if to say come here. “Play with us, Wes... unless you’re afraid I’m going to show you up.”

He crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe. “At a game of catch?”

“He can frow to the moon!” She turned the “TH” sound into an “F” like she did sometimes. The excitement radiated off her, wrapping around Wes and pulling him out toward them. He wanted to make his niece happy like that. Chelle would have been able to do it. She tried to do it for him when they lost their mother.

“Nah, Braden has nothing on me. Let me see the ball.”

“Big talker. Can you deliver?” Braden winked at him as he tossed Wes the ball.

Wes caught it. “Wouldn’t you like to know?” He was flirting with the man but didn’t want to think about that. If he did, he’d stop. Right now he didn’t want to stop. Right now he wanted to have fun. Wanted to forget the fact that he never really flirted with anyone. He picked guys up for an anonymous fuck once in a while, much like he’d done with Noah, but he didn’t flirt. That meant you planned to see them again, and for years, Wes tried to avoid emotional ties.

Tonight wasn’t about that, though.

“What do you think, Jess? Can I throw farther than Braden?”

Poor Jock ran around them, just wanting his damn ball back, as Jessie hugged Wes. She wrapped her little arms around his leg and said, “Hug for luck. You can do it.”

His chest swelled at her belief in him. “Thanks, kiddo.”

He pulled his arm back to throw but Braden’s voice interrupted him. “You have to wind up first. It goes farther that way.” He had a mischievous look on his face, raised brows and a cocky grin, as though to say he didn’t think Wes would do it.

Well, he would have another thing coming.

“Watch out. I’m going to need space for this.”

Happily, Jessie skipped a few feet away.

“You’re going to regret that, Braden.”

He cocked a brow. “Doubt it.” Something about the smoothness of his voice, the way he took Wes in with his eyes, serious yet playful at the same time, told him Braden didn’t mean he thought Wes wouldn’t win their pretend contest. But maybe that he saw Wes needed to enjoy himself a little, and that Braden wanted to see it.

I’m going crazy. This man doesn’t know me enough to care about that, and I don’t know him enough for it to matter.

Wes ignored those thoughts. He’d gotten good at ignoring things. He spun his arm around the way Braden had done. He pretended to release the ball and said, “Did you see it, Jess? It went so fast I could hardly keep my eyes on it.”

“Where? Where, Uncle Wes?”

He pointed. “It went way over there. I think it’s still going.”

“I think it went farther than mine.”

Braden stepped closer to them, and Wes found himself replying in the most unusual way. “Yeah?”

Confusion tugged the corners of Braden’s lips down. “Yeah.” And then he pulled Jessie’s attention away with, “Look over there. Is that it?” She faced away from him so Wes was able to throw the ball high into the air for it to fall back down in front of them.

Jessie looked up at him. “I bet it went all the way to Heaven and Mommy frew it back.”

Threw, Wes almost corrected. The need to pull her close filled him. He wrapped an arm around her, needing her close. “Yeah. Yeah, I think so, kiddo.”

Braden pushed his hands into his pockets, looking like he worried he shouldn’t be here. Jock ran off with his ball, probably thankful to have it back, while Wes held his niece, wishing she hadn’t lost her mom. Wishing they all hadn’t lost her.

Chapter Seven

Braden lingered around the house as everyone started to clear out. Wes had gone into Jessie’s room with her a little while ago to put her to sleep. Braden should probably leave too. The only people still here were himself, Lydia and her family, Cooper and Noah. The last time he lingered things hadn’t gone well between them, but he still didn’t walk toward the door and go.

“How’s the rehab going?” he asked Cooper as he put on his coat.

“Good. I’ll be back out there with ya before you know it.” He couldn’t hide the eagerness in his voice. Cooper was born to fight fire, just like Braden and every good firefighter was.