Page 142 of Hollywood

“You organized this?” I asked him.

He scratched at his furry jaw. “Told ya to talk to Knight, but you didn’t.” He shrugged. “When you asked for work at the park, I knew you’d be too stubborn to do it.”

“You’ve got no idea,” Hollywood muttered.

I handed him the envelope. “I don’t know if I should accept this much money.”

Hollywood opened the envelope to get a peek at the money. “Are you guys sure you can afford it?”

“Yep,” Ghost answered.

“We’re here when you need us,” Knight added.

“Hell, I didn’t know y’all were struggling,” Flynn said, shifting to pull out his wallet. “Let me chip in too.”

I shook my head. “You don’t need to do that.”

Flynn handed two twenties to Hollywood. “Take it. I’ve probably eaten and drank forty bucks’ worth of food here tonight. Seems like a fair trade.”

My throat grew tight, and I shook my head. “I made this mistake. It’s my problem.”

“We talked about this,” Hollywood said. “We’re a team.”

“Yeah, us,” I said. “But this is different. The guys aren’t letting me sleep in their bed every night.”

Hollywood smirked. “Good thing. I don’t want to share you. But the guys love you too, you know. In a different way.”

“A brotherly way,” Knight added.

Joyride nodded. “Like family.”

“Not like family,” Ghost said, voice gruff. “We are family.”

“I just…” I glanced around at the guys. “You all already helped me when my sister’s ex was giving her trouble. Now this? It’s too much.”

“There’s no limit you’re going to hit,” Knight said. “When you need us, we’re there. That’s the deal. If we need you, I know you’ll be there too. Like you were the night of my fight.”

“And like you’ve been there for me,” Hollywood added. “You dropped everything and moved here to help me. You disappointed your father so you could be there for me and Ruby. I couldn’t have done this without you.”

“You could have,” I said. “You’re a damn good dad, and I’m glad I got to be here to see it. I’m lucky you gave me another chance.” I glanced at the other guys seated around the fire. “I’m grateful you all gave me another chance after the way I bailed last summer.”

“We didn’t give you another chance,” Knight said. “Because we never gave up on you the first time. We’re all in this together, okay?”

I gnawed on my lip, still torn about accepting so much help. But when I looked at the guys, they didn’t seem reluctant or resentful. Theywantedto help.

“Okay,” I said.

Hollywood slung an arm around my shoulders, giving me a playful shake. “We love you. We really love you!”

I laughed as he planted a slobbery kiss on my cheek, and Ruby climbed from his lap into mine to do the same.

Knight changed the subject, turning to Flynn to ask him how work was going at the auto shop. Ghost focused on Biscuit, who was still nosing at the plates. “Come on, let’s get you a scrap or two,” he told him as he patted his back.

Aiden and Joyride leaned toward each other, exchanging some quiet words. Joyride pulled out a piece of paper, showing it to Aiden. Maybe he was finally writing that letter of apology to Dakota.

This was what the guys did. They stepped up when you needed it, and they backed off when you needed a breath, too. They wouldn’t hold this money over my head or tell me that I owed them.

Because this was my real family.