BROKEN HOPE (Broken Redemption Book 2)

Chapter 12

Lucas

"You sure this looks alright?" Standing at the full-length mirror, I turn from side to side, still not entirely convinced. "I feel like a damn penguin in this thing."

"For god's sake Lucas. You're hanging with a bunch of six-year-olds. I doubt they'll have much of an opinion about what you're wearing." As expected, my sister does a piss-poor job of reassuring me.

"Then why this? Wouldn't jeans and a dress shirt be more appropriate?"

"Seriously?" Pulling at the lapels of my suit, she turns me so I'm facing her. "Because there's a little girl on the other side of that door who is waiting for her knight in shining armor to come through for her. She's a Princess, Lucas. Didn't she tell you? The least you could do is stop whining and do your best to look the part." She smiles up at me as she smooths out the front of my suit.

Standing here with Jenny, her face radiating joy as she dresses me up is surreal. Whether her happiness stems from our reunion or my discomfort with the outfit she chose for me, I almost don't care. After years spent wondering how she was, seeing her this way soothes that part of me that always wondered if leaving her was a mistake.

Fighting back a smile, I smart. "Then shouldn't you be styling me in armor instead of this?" I lift my arms and look down at myself in feigned disgust.

When it comes to wardrobe, I've spent most of my adult life wearing whatever the mission required. Typically, choosing function and comfort over anything else. The closest I'd come to dressing up was when wearing my Navy service blues, and that was only when it was officially required. I would have been more comfortable going that route instead of this, but Jenny outright revoked the idea. Her reasoning... that it was about time I learned to fit into society, and then something about learning to keep up with the Joneses. Whatever the hell that means.

"Trust me. This is perfect. Alyssa's going to love it."

At that, the now familiar feeling of warmth creeps back under my skin. There's something about making those two little girls happy that zaps the toughness right out of me. The smile that lights up their faces when we hang out and play together is like nothing I've ever experienced and floods my system with happy hormones I'm growing addicted to.

When Embree gave the okay for me to take her to the dance, I damn near cried. My knees went weak with the hope that slowly but surely, I'm making progress in my quest to convince her I'm here for the foreseeable future. A fact that just a few weeks ago would have sent me into the deep end of a panic attack.

"You ready for this, big brother?" She brushes her hands over my shoulders one last time, and when she meets my gaze, her eyes are a pool of emotions.

"Jenny..." Overcome by the sudden heaviness, I swallow hard. "Thank you for this. You have no idea what your being here means to me."

Rising on her toes, she reaches up and throws her arms around me. "You're wrong. I do know because you being here means everything to me, too."

"Uncle Luc! Look at me, look at me, look at me!" The little whirlwind twirls into the room, her pretty pink dress flowing around her as she spins in circles. The look of unbridled happiness on her face permeates the room, bringing brightness and light to everything around her. She's perfection. A God-given miracle. And I'm the lucky bastard who gets to take her to her first dance and show her how a princess deserves to be treated.

Walking quickly, I get to her just as she tips over from dizziness. Her loud giggles as I lift her into my arms make me smile, but when her little hands wrap around my neck in a tight hug, my heart damn near bursts out of my chest. Much like their mother, the girls are quickly becoming as necessary as the air I breathe, which leaves me wondering how I'll survive the day Embree's issues are resolved, and I'm forced to get back to my life.