Page 108 of Courting Danger

“Exactly,” Pope said.

Grunge and Diesel didn’t twitch when a roar went up, announcing the presence of several of the dancers from the strip club. Male and female, they moved around the sand, barefoot, in G-strings and bikini tops, carrying trays of food down from the clubhouse and grills, much the way Scout and Axel had brought around the drinks. One passed out paper plates, another other passed out utensils rolled in napkins.

Roan helped himself from the platters, they all did, filling their plates with meat and vegetable kabobs, deviled eggs, pasta salad, and anything else that looked good. He worked together with Ocean to strip food from the kabobs for the dogs, making sure each item was one that was safe for them to have, before offering them their treats.

It was amazing to see the way they ate now, versus how they’d woofed everything down when they’d first brought them home. They were thriving, another source of pride for Roan, who’d never had a hand in caring for another living creature before. Having Pope and Danger patiently teach him and Ocean how to groom them, how much to feed them, and how to care for their paw pads and nails had been one of so many things that had built his confidence since they’d come into their lives.

No longer afraid to ask questions or laugh without trying to smoother it so no one got pissed, it felt like a weight had been lifted from his soul and the dark cloud following him had finally drifted away. Pope had proved true to his word, finding the answers for him when he didn’t know something, allowing them to grow together, like with that sand dollar.

It had been so cool finding videos of them when they’d been alive. Close kin to sea urchins and sea stars, baby ones could even clone themselves, which had been one of the coolest things they’d learned about them. Not only that, but what they’d found on the beach was the bleached skeleton, called a test. They weren’t shells at all.

And that library at the house that he’d been so afraid to touch anything in when he’d first started living at Pope’s, had become one of his favorite places in the house. There were so many answers in them and tons of stories too. The best part was that Pope was always adding to it and had included it in the expansion plans for the house, so they’d have room for more books. Roan had found several he couldn’t wait to dive into when they arrived. He’d never loved learning before, but now that he had Ocean, Danger and Pope to talk to about the things that interested him, he found that he absolutely enjoyed it.

Somehow, they’d come to fill all the missing pieces in his life, smoothing out the cracks with laughter and support, filling in the broken pieces with encouragement and love. Fingers danced down his arm, and he turned to see Ocean with a deviled egg in his hands covered in paprika, another reminder of the laughter and learning that took place at the house. When Roan sucked the egg from between Ocean’s fingers, Ocean winked like they were sharing a wicked secret, or a promise of things to come.

Out of everything, it was the love he’d found that meant the most to him.

He’d learned that it didn’t have to be loud and forceful. That it could be soft and come in many different forms. Quiet moments meant as much as the ones when they were all discussing something or being rowdy on the waves. Casual touches. A kiss brushed over his lips before one of them left a room. There was never a need to put on a spectacle to remind them that he was there. They never forgot him, never ignored him, never made him feel small or stupid when he struggled with something, and along the way, he’d discovered that there were things he could teach them too.

He was a part of them.

Vital.

Special.

A key piece in the home they were building together.

Never relegated to a corner.

Never told he was in the way.

Missed when he was gone. Welcomed when he returned.

He was theirs. They were his. And together they, as well as all the members on the beach and those who couldn’t be here tonight, were family.

Messy, wonderful, slightly unhinged.

But family just the same.