With Abandon: With or Without, Book 4

wolves snuggled—but Matt hadn’t
    argued. He’d allowed Eddie to climb into his lap, Darren to burrow under his arm, and Scott to sit next to them like a big boy. As time passed, Scott had gotten closer and closer until he too leaned against Matt’s arm and Darren’s side. So Matt didn’t dare comment on Scott crawling into their brother’s lap.
    Grinning, Logan brushed Scott’s hair off his forehead and cuddled him closer. “I noticed. Now shut
    up and go to sleep.” He glanced down at their two youngest brothers, then met Matt’s gaze. “How long
    have they been out?”
    Matt rubbed Darren’s arm. “Eddie fell asleep five minutes after we got out here, and about ten
    minutes ago Darren stopped talking mid-sentence. What’s everyone else doing?”
    “I just finished dishes and sent Blake to bed. He was worn out from baseball practice. I think Drew
    went to Chris and Johnny’s room to play video games with Johnny. Chris is on the phone with his
    girlfriend, Dad’s still on the couch and Bambi gave up the search for Mom and is at the table on his laptop With Abandon
    trying to catch up on work.” Logan relaxed back into the swing some more, slouching and getting
    comfortable. He was good at playing the caretaker. The younger kids listened to him. He was sterner than Matt and their father, but his judgment was great. Which was surprising, since he liked to push the rules as far as he could and even break a few. Sometimes he seemed much older than eighteen. He looked up at the sky, still holding Scott close.
    Matt yawned and looked up at the sky too. New Mexico was very different than Georgia. Besides
    being Aubrey-less, which he was not going to think about, the humidity was lower and it was definitely cooler. Matt sighed and focused on the stars. They weren’t as visible here at home, and the night sounds were louder in Savannah. There were crickets here too, but not as many, or at least it didn’t sound like it.
    Out in the country, the crickets chirped in stereo. Here you could pretty much pinpoint what direction the sounds came from. Was it possible to be homesick for a place that wasn’t your home? How could he miss
    someone that didn’t want him around? Matt ground his teeth together and squeezed his eyes tight. He was pathetic.
    “How long are you staying?” Logan asked.
    Opening his eyes and forcing his teeth to unclench, Matt shrugged. “As long as I’m needed.”
    “Yay.” Scott lifted his head. “Tomorrow can we all go to—?”
    Logan pushed Scott’s head back against his chest. “Sleep or I’m going to make you go upstairs and go
    to bed.” To Matt he asked, “Can you afford to miss school?”
    Scott groaned but leaned back against their brother.
    “Yeah. I don’t have any upcoming tests, and I called my friend Jordan before I left Savannah to tell
    him what happened and ask if he’d take notes for me. The classes we’re in together are the only ones I’ll need notes in. My English and math class are straight from the book.” Matt frowned and exhaled hard. Who was he kidding? “Actually, I don’t know if I’m going back.” He’d have Aubrey FedEx the rest of his stuff home and never have to see the jerk again.
    Aubrey. Dang it, why did he get that little catch in his chest at the thought of never seeing his mate again? Matt should probably return Aubrey’s call, but he didn’t know what to say to him at the moment. He hadn’t gotten to tell anyone why he left. It looked like he was running away, and he supposed he was.
    Denying that his mom’s abandonment hadn’t let him escape would be a lie.
    “Spill it. What happened?” Logan grabbed his hand where it rested against Darren’s side and pried his
    fist open.
    Startled out of his thoughts, Matt glanced over at Logan. He hadn’t realized he was tensing up.
    Logan pushed the swing, making them move again. “I thought things were going good.”
    “Keaton and Chay are in Georgia. They caught me and Aubrey in bed.”
    “Were you jumping on the bed?” Scott asked.
    “What?” Matt looked at Scott and then up at Logan.

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    Logan shrugged.
    Scott lifted his head and met Matt’s gaze. “You said they caught you. That means you were doing
    something you weren’t supposed to.”
    “Scott…” Logan sounded austere, but he was smirking.
    Matt groaned at his slip-up. He’d forgotten they had little ears around.
    Scott sighed and laid his head back down.