Page 35 of Havoc's Fox
“You alright?” Addie asked, her own voice soft.
Havoc looked at the new female still sitting on the sofa, looking in his direction. He didn’t know her, but he sensed that she was a kind person. He was so tired of pretending that he was okay. And that realization gave him the freedom to be honest with everybody in the room, with himself even. “I haven’t been alright in years,” he confessed.
Footsteps sounded as Bam and Emmalyn reentered the room.
Bam’s gaze swept the living room, pausing briefly on Havoc who’d moved to the sofa and retaken his seat, before settling on Addie who was sitting next to him.
“Everybody doing okay?” he asked, plastering a smile on his face.
“Don’t even fake it, we heard you,” Maverik said.
“Oh, like you don’t still try to parent yours,” Bam snapped.
Maverik grinned at Bam. “Don’t we all? You a little overbearing, though. Adults, Bam. They all adults now. All we do is get in the way if we push too hard.”
“Mine will never be too old to be parented,” Bam grumbled.
“They already are,” Emmalyn said, going back into the kitchen.
“Do you need some help Aunt Everly?” Daisy asked.
“No, baby. I got it, but thank you,” Everly said, busy putting the finishing touches on her contribution to dinner.
Daisy looked over at Addie and decided to try to strike up a conversation with her. “Does your sister know what she’s having yet?” Daisy asked, making conversation.
“Not officially, but we all think it’s a girl,” Addie answered.
“Oh, man, little girls wrap around your heartstrings and play you like a puppet,” Havoc said with a smile.
“Don’t think it’s just the little girls. They all do,” Valerie said.
“Hey! Merry Christmas!” Brandt called out, opening the door and leading the way in for everybody with him. He kept Tempest’s hand clasped in his, as he greeted everyone. Ronan came in right behind him, with Hellen and Barron bringing up the rear. When Brandt got to Addie, he was surprised for a second, then just brushed it off and hugged her, too. “Hey! This is a surprise. Glad to see you here.”
“Thank you, Alpha,” Addie said.
“No, I’m just Brandt,” he said. “We’re not that formal.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And none of that sir, crap either. Hey, everybody, this is Addie, she’s part of the family that moved in between Christian and Remi,” Brandt said.
“Taking my name in vain already, and I’m just now getting here,” Remi said, walking through the door with his arms full of casserole dishes.
Brandt laughed, then turned to Addie. “You know Barron, this is Ronan, and that’s Remi, and this is Hellen,” he said. Then he pecked a quick kiss to Tempest’s cheek. “Going to help Remi unload the rest of Aunt Avaleigh’s food.” He headed back outside, followed by Remi. Moments later the door opened and Avaleigh, Daniel, and Angelle were coming in.
“Hey! About time,” Maverik called out.
“What are you talking about? Everly said one, and it’s ten minutes to one,” Daniel answered.
Maverik looked perturbed for a second then shrugged. “Guess we early, then. Y’all need some help?”
“Naw, you know Avaleigh cooks enough for a dang football team, and she did it this time, too. But Brandt and Remi are getting it,” Daniel said.
“It’s my love language,” Avaleigh said, playfully tapping her mate on the butt.
“Who’s this,” Daniel asked, his attention focused on Addie sitting next to Havoc. “Hi, I’m Daniel. This is my mate, Avaleigh, and this is my daughter, Angelle. Remi’s our son.”
“Hello,” Addie said, nervous again because now they had not only one, but two Dragons in the house with her. Everyone in this clan was some kind of predator, except the humans and the Foxes. Okay, fine, Foxes could be considered predators, too, but not like the others in this house.