Page 100 of Rescuing Erin

Asher stepped forward and pulled his mom into his arms. He was so much bigger than Jasmin, she all but disappeared. He kissed the top of her head and moved to his Uncle Zane. Jax, Leo, Colin, and Declan all waited to wish my boys well. Not boys, my sons, they were men now. Eighteen and off to start their lives. I’d tried to get them to go to college first, God knows they had the grades and athletic ability to go anywhere, but neither of them would hear of it. Asher was soaking up all the last-minute advice from the men who’d helped raised him, when I noticed Robert still hadn’t said goodbye to his mother.

The two-minute warning was called, and we needed to make our way outside. My wife’s stoic mask was firmly in place, while Violet, Ivy, Olivia, and Erin were all sniffling and wiping away tears.

Just when I was getting ready to kick Robert’s ass for not talking to his mom, he stepped in front of her, preventing her from exiting the building.

“Mom.”

Jesus, when had my son’s voice taken on such a hard edge? Where had the last eighteen years gone?

“You better hurry. There’ll be hell to pay if your ass isn’t planted in that seat in about sixty seconds.”

“Mom. Look at me.”

Jasmin, being the stubborn woman she was, shook her head. “Linc, tell him. They need to—”

“Look. At. Me.”

Her eyes shot up to his, and I knew why she’d been refusing. There were tears.

“We got this. You know we do. You and Dad gave us everything we needed. In nine weeks, we’ll see you at our Pass in Review. This is a walk in the park.”

“I know,” she clipped.

“Right.” Robert smiled at his mom’s short answer. “I love you, Mama.”

Jasmin nodded.

“It’s an easy day.”

She nodded again.

“We’ll be careful.”

“Promise?” she muttered.

“Promise.” Robert yanked his mom forward, and she collided with his chest. Her body shook, and Asher walked to the pair and wrapped his arms around both of them.

“I love you both so much. Watch each other’s six. No matter what, you two stick together.”

“We will,” Asher said.

“Shit and damn. Now I’m crying. I don’t freaking cry. Hurry up. Get to the bus.”

Robert passed Jasmin to me, and she tucked in close, just like she’d done for the last twenty years. With a lift of their chins, my sons were boarding the bus to basic training.

“Good old Great Mistakes.” I laughed.

“I miss them,” Jasmin whispered. “Already, Linc. I fucking miss them so much I feel like my heart has been ripped out.”

“I know you do, sweet Jasmin.”

“What do we do now?”

“Now we get to sit back and wait.”

“For what?”

“For greatness. For them to need us again. I figure we got at least ten years until they learn that just because you’re men doesn’t mean you don’t need the guidance of the men and women that have gone before you.”