Ethan.
Holding Mina in his arms, my adorable, innocent one-year-old niece, while his wife, Tessa, stands behind him, brows raised.
I swear, my soul leaves my body.
Because Ethan is not stupid.
And he’sdefinitelynot blind.Or deaf.He heard that damn song.
His gaze sweeps over the scene.Me.Joel.Our mother—literally glowing with pride.
He blinks once.Twice.Then his expression shifts.
And then—he knows.
Ethan’s jaw locks.
His entire body tenses.
He looks at me, then at Joel, then back at me, and I can actually see the moment it clicks.
“Oh,hell no,” he mutters, passing Mina to Tessa without even looking away.
Joel immediately takes a step forward, palms up.
“Ethan,” he says, cautious, but calm.“Listen, man?—”
Ethan cuts him off.“What the actual is going on here?”
Mom sighs, so incredibly deeply, you’d think she was summoning all of the ancient gods to her aid.
Tessa, to her credit, doesn’t look surprised at all.
I, however, am about to self-destruct.This all too much.
Ethan’s gaze snaps to me.
“Anna?”His voice is way too sharp.
I make a strangled noise.
“Ethan, it’s fine,” Mom interjects, clearly exasperated.“This is wonderful news.”
Ethan’s eye twitches.
Joel tries again, his voice steady.“Look, I care about your sister?—”
“Youcareabout my sister?”Ethan repeats, indignation painting his tone.
Mom groans, rubbing her temples.“For heaven’s sake.”
Joel visibly steels himself.“Yeah.I do.”
And just like that, Ethan looks like he’s ready to commit murder.
“Are you kidding me?”Ethan gestures wildly between us.“How long?When the hell did this start?”
I gape at him.“I—what?”