Steal My Breath (Elixir 1)

I hold out the envelope to her. “We hope this is a start.”

She frowns as she takes the envelope from me. “What is this?”

“Open it,” Luke bosses her and I lean against him. We’ve been talking about doing this for a few months now and I’m excited for it to finally happen.

Her hand flies to her mouth when she sees what’s in the envelope and her eyes widen in surprise. Looking up at us, she exclaims, “Oh, my God! You guys shouldn’t have.”

“Yeah, we should have,” Luke says and I nod in agreement. “I’m just sorry it took me so long to do. Dealing with Jolene’s appeal and Alanis’s arrest took up all my time, but I really should have made the effort before now.”

“Oh, did you see the news today?” Paris asks. “Apparently Alanis has admitted to the murder.”

Luke shakes his head. “No, I haven’t heard that, but thank fuck.” I watch as he takes that knowledge in. I know this has been weighing on his mind.

“I wonder why she did it,” I murmur.

Paris shrugs. “We’ll probably never know. She’s a psycho bitch?”

I nod. “That’s the truth.” I always knew she was a bitch; I just didn’t realise she was crazy, too.

She looks down at the envelope with her travel documents in it. “An all-expenses-paid trip to London. It’s too much.”

Paris has talked non-stop about a trip her friends are taking in a month’s time, wishing she could afford to go. Luke and I decided to gift her the trip as a way of saying thank you for everything she’s done to help us.

“Paris, you are one of the kindest people I know. You go out of your way to do nice things for those you love. This is the least we can do for you,” I say.

“God, now I feel bad for what I am about to tell you,” she says, her eyes full of worry.

“The best thing you could tell us would be that you’re moving out,” Luke says, surprising me. He hasn’t mentioned anything to me about wanting her to move.

Surprise flares in Paris’s eyes also. “Really? You want me to leave?”

He nods. “Yes, I want you to start living your life for you rather than for us. You spend too many hours looking after this family when you should be looking after yourself.”

Her eyes well up with tears. “God, I thought you meant you wanted me to leave because I was annoying you or something.”

“As far as I’m concerned, and I think Callie feels the same way, you could live with us forever. But you need to be out there living your life.”

She nods. “Well, I am moving out. I’m going to share with some friends. But I was worried you’d be upset so I’ve been putting off telling you for wee—”

Sean comes flying into the room, yelling with excitement. “Grandma’s here!”

I stand, placing my hand on Luke’s shoulder. “I’ll let her in while you two finish talking.”

“Thanks, baby,” he says, his eyes firmly on mine.

Sean grabs my hand and drags me to the front door. I’m surprised to find not only Estelle and George waiting, but Avery and Tyler also.

“Darling!” Estelle bustles in with a quick kiss to my cheek. Her arms are loaded with food and drink. We’re celebrating George’s birthday tonight.

After she passes me, George pulls me close for a hug. We’ve grown much closer since mine and Luke’s wedding and I adore spending time with him. “Thank you for putting up with my wife’s crazy antics tonight,” he says quietly.

I laugh as I let him go. “Well, I do love her. Nearly as much as you do. So we let her do what she needs.” Estelle has come a long way since she married George. Even Luke has admitted that.

He pats me on the arm. “We wouldn’t have her any other way.”

Before I let him pass, I kiss his cheek. “Happy birthday.”

“Thank you, Callie,” he replies before following his wife into the house.