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legs under her and asked, “What’re you gonna do about it?”
    “I went to see Sela before I came here. I saw him too.”
    Brianna slapped his chest. “Shut up! You did not!”
    “Yeah, I did. I’m tired of wonderin’ what the hell happened to us. I need to know what they were thinkin’ when they decided to get married before the ink on my contract was even dry.”
    “So, was she able to give you any answers?”
    “No, I think I caught her off guard. Then he showed up, and things kinda went downhill from there.”
    “You guys didn’t get into it, did you?”
    Aiden smiled. “No, not that I wouldn’t have liked to.”
    “So, what’re you gonna do now?”
    “I think I might track down Sharon, see if she knows why Sela chose Neil over me.”
    “Sharon… you mean Neil’s ex-girlfriend?”
    “Yeah. You know where I might be able to find her?”
    She shrugged. “No, but why don’t you ask Dad? He’s good at finding people. If he can’t help you, maybe Mike can.”
    His father and brother were both retired police officers, so he had no doubt they could help him track Sharon down. “Yeah, I just might do that.”
    “Good luck,” Brianna said, reaching over to kiss his cheek. “I hope you can put this thing to rest. I know it’s eatin’ away at you for too long.”
    “You’re right about that,” he muttered.
    Before he could say anything more, his mother rushed into the room, his father close behind. “Oh, it’s so good to see you,” she said, holding her arms out to him.
    Aiden smiled as he picked his mother up and swung her in a low circle. The years since he’d left home had been kind to her. She looked just as beautiful as she did eight years ago. “Damn, it’s great to be home.” As he saw the faces of the people who loved him most, he realized it was true. He was finally back where he belonged.
    She squeezed his neck hard as she laughed and cried in unison. “When your dad told me you were coming home… I…”
    Aiden laughed as he set her down on her feet. “Quit cryin’ already. You’re gonna get this one started,” he said, gesturing to his sister.
    “I can’t help it,” Lexi said, swiping at the tears sliding down her cheeks before fanning her face. “I’m just so happy.”
    Josh rolled his eyes as he pulled his son into a back-slapping hug. “She’s been over the top ever since I told her the news. I don’t expect her to come down for a good long while.”
    Aiden chuckled. “I guess that means I’m gonna benefit from some serious pamperin’ over the next few weeks. Home-cooked meals, someone to do my laundry…”
    Lexi slapped his shoulder. “Behave yourself.”
    “So,” Josh said, taking a step back, “I hope you don’t mind that we’re plannin’ a little get-together in your honor tonight?”
    “Uh-oh, a little get-together is never very low-key around here. Who’d ya have in mind?”
    “Well, your Uncle Trey and Aunt Sierra, Alisa and her new husband, Liam—”
    “Hey, yeah, how crazy is that?” Aiden asked, laughing. “Our little cousin Alisa married some billionaire hotel tycoon old enough to be her father. Uncle Trey must’ve busted an artery over that one.”
    Brianna launched a pillow at him from behind, hitting him square in the head. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. Liam Bryson is H-O-T, and Uncle Trey and Aunt Sierra have both accepted him like one of the family.”
    “Cool, I’m lookin’ forward to meetin’ him. Who else is gonna be here?”
    Lexi pretended to be deep in thought as she ticked off the guests on her fingers. “Let’s see, Evan and Ryan, Ty and Avery, Anna and—”
    Aiden laughed as he held his hands up. “The whole gang, I got it. Cool, I can’t wait to see everyone. I just wanna crash for a while and grab a shower before everyone gets here.” He glanced at his watch. “I’ve got time, right?”
    “Yeah, they’ll start gettin’ here around seven,” Josh said. “It’ll be casual, just beers